Chapter 131: The Eyeball Monster

The massive water monster hurled a rock, though it seemed that the object’s weight had reached the creature’s limit; its tentacles wobbled, and the throw lacked speed. Luo Chen dodged with a slight acceleration of his footing, but this maneuver left him facing attacks from both front and rear.

Luo Chen did not possess the graceful footwork of Zhuo Yuqing. After killing a mud hound and shattering over a dozen tentacles, several more whipped out from behind, tightly binding his waist. These tentacles merged into one, instantly swelling to several times their original size. Luo Chen struck with a Great Hand Seal, but the massive tentacle was unusually resilient and refused to break. The water monster then swung its limb, hoisting Luo Chen into the air before slamming him toward the ground.

Seeing this, Zhuo Yuqing immediately shook off the demonic beasts beside her and rushed toward Luo Chen, attempting to strike the water monster to force a rescue. However, the cunning creature simply used the momentum of its swing to hurl Luo Chen directly at her.

Having witnessed the monster’s strength in moving boulders, Luo Chen knew that such an impact would be devastating for either of them. Fortunately, having hunted for so long, he remained calm under pressure. He pressed his palms together and slashed downward at the tentacle. "Vortex Pressurization: 40%! Level Three Combat Skill—Iai Slash!"

The hallmark of the Level Three Iai Slash was its sharpness. Combined with the forty percent boost from the Vortex Pressurization, the tentacle was finally severed. Luo Chen landed, pressed his hands to the ground, and rolled to dissipate the impact.

Before the severed tentacle could regenerate, Zhuo Yuqing dashed forward using the Rippling Wave Step, thrusting her hand-blade into the monster’s lower abdomen. With a splash, the water monster dissolved into a spray of droplets.

Zhuo Yuqing turned back: "Captain, are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Don't worry, it can't hurt me!"

Another water monster’s tentacle coiled toward him. Luo Chen grabbed it, exerted a sudden burst of strength to drag the creature closer, and readied his Diamond Fist in his right hand to shatter it. Just then, two mud hounds lunged from behind, while a third attacked from the right. A flash of inspiration struck Luo Chen; he mimicked the water monster’s tactics, spinning around to hurl the small water monster at the two trailing hounds. The three demonic spirits collided into a tangled mess, allowing Luo Chen to easily dispatch the hound on his right.

The pressure suddenly lifted. Luo Chen realized this was a brilliant method. Although he had missed an opportunity to kill the small water monster in that exchange, he had traded it for a mud hound—a seemingly poor trade, yet it had bought him precious time for his spiritual energy to recover. He knew his energy reserves would have been depleted had he maintained the Vortex Pressurization.

Luo Chen suddenly grasped something: rhythm. Yes, rhythm. Many people in combat focused only on how to kill demonic beasts as quickly as possible, especially when surrounded; they were desperate to kill one after another, hoping to thin the herd and reduce the pressure.

But in truth, this was not the wisest approach. Most lacked the ability to kill multiple beasts instantly, and haste led to chaos. If one could control the rhythm, even while surrounded, one could create opportunities to face beasts one-on-one or two-on-one, rather than falling into a dangerous, chaotic brawl.

Controlling the rhythm was not just about timing; it had to be coordinated with the flow of one's spiritual energy. Like his recent move, had he greedily killed the water monster, he would have been immediately swarmed by the three hounds. Instead, he had used his strength to create a breathing room.

Beyond simply throwing the monster to repel enemies, there were many ways to control rhythm. With this in mind, Luo Chen fired off two Wave Fists. One was barely powered, just enough to obstruct the mud hound so it stumbled from mid-air to the ground without even dislodging the mud from its body. The other was powered with more force, sending the second hound flying, forcing it to roll several times before it could charge again. This created a significant time gap between them.

Luo Chen chuckled. Ignoring the two hounds, he surged toward a small water monster behind him using twenty percent of his Vortex-boosted energy. The hounds could not keep pace, creating a new time gap between them and the water monster. He shattered several tentacles with a Great Hand Seal and finished the creature with a Level Two combat skill, the Stone-Crushing Kick, blowing its abdomen to pieces. By the time the hounds approached, he easily shattered the head of the first with a Diamond Fist, followed quickly by the second.

This was it—the feeling. Time gaps and the distribution of spiritual energy, all perfectly balanced to create a sense of rhythm. Even when surrounded by demonic spirits, he no longer felt flustered.

Many people viewed the Wave Fist as a useless skill once their spiritual energy reached a higher level, as it was too weak to deal significant damage. Yet, Luo Chen realized that any skill could be effective if used correctly. In controlling the rhythm, the low-impact but fast-executing Wave Fist was an excellent choice.

Having learned to master the rhythm, Luo Chen moved with ease even against multiple foes. He even had the leisure to contemplate more ways to control the flow of battle. The fight became increasingly exhilarating, and the tension he had felt earlier vanished.

Shi Feng was right; Luo Chen’s talent and comprehension were exceptional. He had simply lacked the conditions to learn, which had slowed his start. This realization of "rhythm" in live combat was proof of his potential. His mental state had ascended to a new level. Not long ago, he only knew how to use combos to kill beasts one by one; now, he had learned how to calmly handle a group attack—a distinction between the individual and the big picture.

However, these were only the lowest-level demonic spirits. They were weak, making the rhythm easy to control. If he were to face faster, stronger, and more varied attacks, mastering the rhythm would be far more difficult. He might have to make the wisest decision in the blink of an eye. Luo Chen still had much to learn, but at the very least, he was on the right path.

Ten minutes later, dozens of demonic spirits were wiped clean. Luo Chen felt a sense of wanting more. The mentor was right: experience was truly vital; experience was power. The lesson he had just learned had been immensely effective. But now was not the time to celebrate. Luo Chen said to Zhuo Yuqing, "A beast tide might have broken out. Student Zhuo, we should leave the forest immediately and return to the city."

Handling a group of low-level spirits was one thing, but more groups would be troublesome, and no one could guarantee that higher-level spirits wouldn't appear.

Zhuo Yuqing nodded, "Agreed!"

The two activated their movement techniques, sprinting toward Miracle City. Suddenly, a deafening roar echoed from the sky. Looking up, Luo Chen was horrified to see a massive hole ripped open in the heavens. Dark clouds were pushed aside, and looking through the gap, he could see another realm filled with steep cliffs and swirling mist—a world where it was currently night, with a full moon hanging high.

It was as if the scene were a mirage. Both Luo Chen and Zhuo Yuqing were stunned by the rare spectacle, coming to a halt as they stared upward. "What... is that?"

Two small black dots emerged from the hole and descended toward the ground. The one in front seemed to be fleeing, while the one behind gave relentless chase. The black dots moved with incredible speed, descending to within tens of meters of the two in an instant. As they became clearer, Luo Chen and Zhuo Yuqing realized with shock that the leading dot was an eyeball.

There was no mistake—it was an eyeball, or at least, that is what it looked like. It floated in the air, darting about; the sight was even more preposterous than a pig flying in the sky.

Within the eyeball seemed to be a pitch-black universe, where countless tiny points of light flickered like innumerable blinking eyes. When Luo Chen and Zhuo Yuqing caught a glimpse, they felt dizzy, seeing stars, and were filled with terror.

Damn it, what was this thing? Could it be a type of demonic spirit?