Not only had this Dracowhale worth 2,000 contribution points shown up right in front of Li Fan, it had even snatched away his mission reward. How could he possibly tolerate that?
A Foundation Establishment cultivator might be powerless against such a beast, but that didn’t mean Li Fan couldn’t kill it.
Li Fan’s eyes narrowed to slits as Formless Killing Mechanism locked onto the Dracowhale.
The whispering in his ears and the hallucinatory visions returned, though this time the side effects were noticeably less severe than when he had targeted Enforcer Wan.
He recovered quickly, and his gaze snapped to the distant, fading silhouette of the Dracowhale. He sped off in pursuit.
The Dracowhale exotic beast remained utterly unaware it had been marked. It was currently hunting in the depths of the sea.
A throbbing from the protrusion on its head told it the time was near. It knew that by continuing to hunt, its body would soon undergo a monumental transformation, finally shedding its hideous form to match the sacred image etched in its memory.
The Dracowhale patrolled the deep sea leisurely, as if strolling through its own garden.
Soon, it detected prey ahead. It was one of its own kind, a female Dracowhale. Attracted by the powerful pheromones of the male, the female swam forward in a coaxing, ingratiating manner.
Looking at this creature, which would be considered “beautiful” for their species, the Dracowhale exotic beast felt a wave of nausea and disgust.
This is my kin? How absurd.
A dangerous light glinted in its eyes.
As the female drew near, it opened its massive maw and ruthlessly swallowed her whole.
Pathetic creature!
As it quietly digested the flesh and blood in its belly, the Dracowhale exotic beast couldn’t help but recall its own past.
Once, it too had been like that pitiful wretch, muddling through existence on the seafloor, living by instinct, and spending most of its time eating and seeking mates.
But one day, everything suddenly changed.
It was like waking from a long nightmare.
Consciousness stirred within it, and it gained a purpose. It wanted to grow powerful, as powerful as those creatures that flew above the sea surface every day.
Knowledge flooded its mind out of nowhere.
It learned what best to devour and digest to grow stronger. Its premonitions also grew sharper—several areas on the seabed filled it with intense danger whenever it drew near, so it always avoided those places when hunting.
Its growth rate sped up, and its intelligence rose.
Eventually, it could even sense things on the sea surface that might benefit it.
That was when it breached the surface for the first time, gorging itself on an island before fleeing just as danger approached.
After that, a bulge appeared on its forehead, and the image of an incredibly powerful exotic beast surfaced in its mind.
An instinctual sense told it that this was a power buried deep within its bloodline. If it kept devouring, it too could become as mighty as its ancestors!
Yes! It would keep eating! Nothing would stand in its way!
A dangerous presence snapped the Dracowhale exotic beast back to the present.
It suddenly realized a massive sea serpent was blocking its path.
From what it could remember, this serpent had lived for ages. It had been the ruler of these waters since the Dracowhale was born.
In the past, it would have circled around to avoid the sea serpent for safety’s sake.
But now? Times had changed.
A flash of greed shone in the Dracowhale exotic beast’s eyes as it lunged toward the sea serpent.
After a fierce battle, blood dyed the seabed red.
As the Dracowhale devoured the most valuable parts of the sea serpent, a gentle energy welled up continuously from its stomach, healing its injuries.
The Dracowhale felt a thrill of excitement. The injuries were worth it—absolutely worth it. Once it fully absorbed the sea serpent’s energy...
Before it could indulge in further fantasies, another dangerous presence rapidly approached from not far away.
The giant octopus?
Why were they all coming at once today?
Fine. It would just have to eat them all.
The Dracowhale let out a roar and clashed with the giant octopus.
A long time later, the octopus’s massive body was torn to shreds. But the Dracowhale exotic beast was also covered in wounds.
There was no time to eat and absorb the octopus’s flesh. The Dracowhale sensed three or four more dangerous presences drawing near.
What bad luck it was having today!
It picked up speed, trying to put distance between itself and these troublesome creatures.
But... it was endless.
No matter where it went, it encountered enemies that attacked on sight. Even those who were clearly outmatched fought with insane desperation, throwing their lives away.
At first, it thought to teach them a lesson. But soon, it could only flee in panic.
There were too many of them, and it hadn’t rested in so long. It was growing more and more exhausted as time passed.
The Dracowhale sensed that something was amiss, but it couldn’t pinpoint what.
The pursuit of the other sea creatures seemed never-ending.
The Dracowhale’s consciousness began to blur.
In the moment before death, it vaguely saw a shimmering blue phantom appear before it.
Then, its consciousness plunged into icy oblivion.
***
After unleashing the Blue Flame Phantom Spirit to deliver the final blow to the Dracowhale exotic beast, Li Fan finally let out a long sigh of relief.
Formless Killing Mechanism’s lock faded. The surrounding sea creatures that had been watching the Dracowhale menacingly lingered in confusion for a moment before finally retreating.
The hunt for the Dracowhale had taken far longer than Li Fan had anticipated. This exotic beast was simply too formidable.
Recalling the several brutal undersea battles he had witnessed while tailing it, Li Fan still felt a tremor of apprehension.
Fortunately, no matter how strong it was, it couldn’t withstand endless attrition.
It had taken over twenty days to exhaust this Dracowhale exotic beast to death—a testament to its incredible vitality.
Good thing it was me. An ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivator would have had no way to deal with it.
Formless Killing Mechanism, comprehended from heaven and earth’s killing mechanisms, truly lives up to its name.
He had slain the Dracowhale exotic beast without a single scratch. With two thousand contribution points secured, Li Fan couldn’t help but feel pleased.
The Dracowhale is too big to fit in my storage ring. I’ll have to cut away the most distinctive and valuable parts...
Li Fan contemplated the Dracowhale’s corpse before him.
After considerable effort, he finished butchering it.
Just as he was about to leave, Li Fan suddenly remembered something else.
I’ve heard these Dracowhales often have undigested matter in their stomachs. Over the years, it accumulates into a mass. It can serve as rare crafting material and is worth quite a few contribution points.
Adhering to the principle of never passing up potential gains, Li Fan began rummaging through the Dracowhale exotic beast’s stomach.
The contents of this Dracowhale’s stomach are truly miscellaneous... there’s everything in here...
Huh? This is...
Li Fan picked up a spherical object that had been only half-digested. It felt strangely familiar.
He realized what it was almost immediately.
Isn’t this a Liuli Pearl?