After hearing the assignment, Charles held his lower-quality spare weapon with a worried look. He opened his mouth but eventually chose to swallow his words.
He took a deep breath and nodded. "Leave it to me, I guarantee I'll complete the mission."
After hearing Zephyr's tactical arrangement, Lefiya's fingertips gripping the staff tightened. To say she wasn't nervous would be a lie. She could only keep taking deep breaths to adjust her mood.
The position of the main attacker was given to Zephyr, meaning he had to face all of the Crab Pig's counterattacks directly. Her chanting time was the time Zephyr would be in danger. Any mistake on her part would lead to Zephyr getting hurt.
Lefiya pressed her lips together tightly, repeating the chants in the depths of her heart to ensure there wouldn't be the slightest mistake when the time came.
Lili knew that as a Supporter, her greatest help to the party was to flexibly manage supplies while ensuring safety. She hugged her backpack and retreated to the flank of the party, her eyes hiding her own calculations.
After returning to Orario safely this time, she must go and ask the shopkeeper of that general store if there was any stock left of that kind of magic sword, even if the price was expensive.
After finalizing the battle plan, Zephyr looked at his friends as they gradually took their positions and said with a smile, "This thing is at most only slightly stronger than an Infant Dragon. As long as we coordinate well, there will be no problem defeating it."
"That's right."
Charles shouldered his weapon, his eyes igniting with fighting spirit.
Up ahead in the spacious passage, the sound of the Crab Pig's six legs stomping drew closer, and the frequency of the ground's tremors began to intensify.
Zephyr readjusted his breathing rhythm and headed toward the Crab Pig. He did not choose to launch a direct, fierce attack immediately. First, he needed to determine this Gourmet Creature's defensive level and whether he could break through it using his current strength combined with his weapon. If so, this battle would not be that difficult.
When the Crab Pig noticed the Adventurer approaching, it lowered its tusks and charged.
Zephyr avoided the trajectory of the charge, swinging his axe toward the Crab Pig's flank.
Bang!
The axe carved a half-inch deep gash into the Crab Pig's flank, and beads of blood continuously seeped from the wound, staining the edge of the blade.
It's effective! It doesn't feel as strong as I expected?
Zephyr quickly readjusted his stance.
Dragon Roar!
The roar was effective against the Crab Pig, though the control duration was relatively short. However, this still bought him enough combat opportunities. The attacks might seem like chip damage, but as long as he scraped fast enough, he could definitely kill it.
Yet, problems still existed. As the wounds continued to appear, the intense pain completely ignited the Crab Pig's ferocity.
The Crab Pig lifted its head, pointing its tusks toward the ceiling of the cave.
"Awoo!"
The sound waves shook the rock walls, causing gravel to fall from the ceiling with a rustling sound, relentlessly assaulting the eardrums of the Adventurers.
Furthermore, the roar also carried a stun effect.
Zephyr felt a loud boom in his mind. His thoughts were forcibly cut off, leaving only sharp ringing in his hearing, and he froze in place.
Even though he possessed a slight immunity to stun effect brought by [Dragon Roar], being too close, he was still affected.
He felt the edges of his vision constantly blurring, and even his body refused to obey him. He could only watch as the Crab Pig kept approaching.
In its eyes, there was nothing but fury. It seemed as if it wanted to use its tusks and hooves to trample and tear apart the Adventurer who had provoked it.
Charles and Kate at the back of the team were also frozen in place. Their expressions were full of dullness, and their breathing was cut off deep in their throats.
Before Zephyr could even bite his tongue to wake himself up with pain, the stun effect began to fade at a speed visible to the naked eye. He clearly felt blood rushing back to his brain, the ringing in his ears gradually fading, and he was even able to exert force with his limbs again.
Abnormal Resistance.
This was a Development Ability chosen after his level up, and it provided effective help in the battle against the Crab Pig.
In his line of sight, the Crab Pig's massive body had already pressed right in front of him, and its six short legs were lifted simultaneously toward his position, attempting to launch a stomp.
Overheat!
Zephyr did not hesitate for a moment, using this talent he had just obtained from the Barbecue Pig, which could briefly boost his strength.
The temperature of the blood in his body began to rise. His skin kept flushing red and the frequency of his chest's rise and fall increased.
He could clearly feel the power of every inch of muscle in his body being thoroughly activated, and the force of warm blood rushing through his veins was clearly discernible.
Zephyr leaned his body sharply to the side and lunged with all his might toward the back, brushing against the edge of the Crab Pig's abdomen to evade the attack.
Not only that, he quickly adjusted his stance, gripping his weapon tightly with both hands.
The axe swept horizontally with the momentum.
Clack!
The wound caused this time was even more severe than before. It tore through the Crab Pig's extremely thick skin, exposing the internal muscle tissue, and a bloody scent spread through the cave.
Zephyr lowered his center of gravity and quickly circled to the Crab Pig's left side. The Crab Pig's massive size destined its speed to be unable to keep up with his rhythm.
Seizing the opening, he swung the axe again, slashing with full force toward the root of the Crab Pig's left front leg.
Pfft!
The sharp blade followed the skeletal joint, successfully severing the trotter, and driven by inertia, the leg rolled to the side of the rock wall.
Red blood gushed from the severed stump. The Crab Pig, having lost its support point, began to tilt its massive torso. It tried to maintain balance, but the imbalance in weight distribution caused its coordination to collapse, and its body toppled toward the side that had lost support.
Boom!
The Crab Pig fell to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
Just at this moment, Lefiya's chanting was finished.
Arcs Ray!
The magic sped toward the Crab Pig's chest, leaving a white trail in the dim cave.
After losing the protection of its extremely tough pigskin, the magic achieved its full effect, tearing open the wound on the Crab Pig's chest.
Zephyr could clearly see that the beating heart was protected by only a few ribs, and even the heart-guarding flesh had been completely blown away.
It seemed to have sensed the arrival of death and struggled on the ground, attempting to make a life-or-death counterattack, but its speed, in his eyes, was far too slow.
Stepping on the gravel, Zephyr rushed in front of the Crab Pig. He raised his axe and slashed with full force toward the ribs below the wound.
Clack!
The crisp sound of the Crab Pig's ribs being snapped rang out as the blade wedged into the intercostal space, prying open a gap, and the heart appeared directly before his eyes.
Blaze!
The flames spewing from his mouth poured into the depths of the Crab Pig's chest along the gap pried open between the ribs.
The high temperature enveloped the exposed heart, beginning to burn the monster's internal organs from the inside, until the Gourmet Creature's roar came to an abrupt halt.
Its massive body collapsed onto the ground and stopped twitching entirely.
The excessive consumption of stamina made Zephyr stagger back two steps, using the handle of the axe to prop himself up against the ground, barely supporting his body.
The flush on his skin was slowly fading, and his body temperature returned to a normal range.
But immediately after, a sense of exhaustion swept over him. He bent over, gripping his knees as he gasped for air.