Chapter 340 - Armed Stroller

Demon Starfish, Molten Crocodile, or Light Devourer...

Lu Ran pondered for a moment. “These three are the most difficult level 3 Legendary secret realms bosses, right?”

“Correct.” Manager Ying nodded lightly.

Next to Manager Ying, Lu Ran plopped onto the sofa, crossed his legs, and sank into thought.

“A boss in the deep sea... Currently, there are very few beastmasters proficient in deep-sea combat. Plus, this boss has strong self-healing abilities, making it really challenging to conquer. The Demon Starfish has dual Water and Dark attributes. I do want Water and Dark-attribute traits.

“Pure self-healing traits like this are something everyone needs. It can be a backup option when the Broken Horn doesn’t work. With Baby Cloud and Dark Crow around, deep-sea combat isn’t a problem for me now. I can give it a try.

“As for the Molten Crocodile... forget it. Fire-attribute traits aren’t something I need much. I’m the only one on the team with fire abilities, and with Flame Spirit around, it’s unlikely I’ll contract a Fire-attribute familiar in the future. This one’s out. Even if Baby Cloud learns fire-oriented weather skills later, this probably isn’t the best choice.

“The Light Devourer has Grass and Light dual attributes. I already have a strong Grass-attribute trait, and I’ll definitely contract a Grass-attribute familiar in the future. Light is also a powerful attribute that pairs well with Grass. Choosing this one seems like a good option, too.

“I’m so indecisive. The first and third both seem viable. What the Demon Starfish drops might be immediately useful, while what the Light Devourer drops could be more beneficial in the future.”

Manager Ying knew this would happen.

It sighed and said, “How about flipping a coin? Leave the decision to fate.”

“That works.”

Lu Ran took out the Lucky Clover trait crystal, grabbed a marker, and wrote “grass” on one side and “water” on the other.

Under Manager Ying’s twitching gaze, Lu Ran emptied his mind, closed his eyes, and tossed the crystal towards the sofa. The crystal flipped several times in the air before landing. Lu Ran peeked at the result and fell into deep thought. The “water” side was face up, meaning the Lucky trait was guiding him to challenge the Demon Starfish.

“I’ll trust you this once!” Lu Ran retrieved the crystal and wiped off the markings.

“Are you sure?” Manager Ying asked.

“Yes. It’s the Demon Starfish. Where’s the secret realm located?” Lu Ran inquired.

Manager Ying replied, “The Malay Nation. No big deal. I’ll notify them, and you can head straight there.”

“Got it. Then I’ll go now. I don’t have anything else to do anyway,” Lu Ran said casually.

He wouldn’t be watching Dean Qin and Youxiong’s match. As for preparing for the Legendary secret realm, there was no need. The bosses in level 3 Legendary secret realms were all level 40 Intermediate Overlords.

Even though secret realm bosses were much stronger than wild Intermediate Overlords, they shouldn’t pose much pressure to Lu Ran.

After all, his team’s lineup was too overpowered. Trying to solo Lu Ran’s group at the same level would probably take a divine beast’s offspring. The only challenging aspect of this secret realm was the combat environment, but Lu Ran already had a solution for that.

“Going now? Fine.” Manager Ying smirked mischievously.

Isn’t this a slap to the International Alliance’s face? Just after clearing five consecutive Alliance Tournament matches, you’re immediately off to challenge one of the hardest level 3 Legendary secret realms. Isn’t this basically like saying the tournament was a walk in the park?

***

The Malay Nation, Limitless City.

Soon, Lu Ran teleported here and checked the secret realm information.

[Name: Demon Starfish’s Abyss]

[Level: 3]

[Difficulty: Legendary]

[Secret Realm Introduction: The Demon Starfish, a mutated form of the Dark Sea Star. It is an extremely vicious and irrational demonic variant that has caused endless slaughter in the ocean. The Demon Starfish’s Abyss is one of its habitats. Here, you will encounter a juvenile Demon Starfish and become its prey.]

[Species: Demon Starfish]

[Attribute: Water and Dark]

[Species Rank: Intermediate Overlord]

[Level: 40]

[Entry Fee: 0 crystal coins]

Lu Ran looked at the intimidating description and recalled Manager Ying’s intel.

Based on other teams’ experiences, upon teleportation, participants will find themselves in high-pressure, freezing deep-sea conditions, making movement difficult. The first hurdle is locating the Demon Starfish’s Abyss in the pitch-black depths.

Without a Water-attribute familiar, this step alone can eliminate participants. Next comes the encounter with the Demon Starfish. This is also a major challenge. It’s generally recommended for beastmasters with fusion skills and Water-attribute familiars.

Without hesitation, he summoned Baby Cloud and took out the Kunpeng Feather.

“

Plip! Plip!

”

Baby Cloud appeared, looking unenergetic. After a month of hard training, it hadn’t gotten to participate in the tournament at all. It felt deeply hurt.

Lu Ran rubbed the floating cloud-like creature and said, ”That was just a baby cup. There wasn’t any challenge at all. Next, we’re tackling a Legendary secret realm. Fighting a boss is where the real excitement is.”

“

Plip!

” Baby Cloud’s eyes lit up as it glanced at the Kunpeng Feather.

Am I the main force this time?

Lu Ran smiled. “You’re the main mode of transportation.”

Baby Cloud was taken aback.

Fine, fine. Then I’m going to ram the boss to death.

Perfectly reasonable for a mode of transportation to kill someone by crashing into them, right?

“What? What nonsense are you thinking? But if you want to ram it, go ahead. With all these buffs, we can afford to be reckless.” Lu Ran smirked.

Soon, after taking the Kunpeng Feather from Lu Ran, Baby Cloud transformed into a massive fish within the exclusive room. Lu Ran reached out, touched its body, and then slipped inside. It was like a white, cloud-like room.

From inside Baby Cloud’s body, Lu Ran could clearly see the outside, as if riding a submarine about to dive into the deep sea. However, having Baby Cloud as a submarine alone wasn’t enough to take on the Demon Starfish. Lu Ran then summoned the rest of the squad—Captain Doofus, Sudden Death King, and Dark Crow.

When one thought about it, summoning Sudden Death King, a Lightning-attribute familiar, for deep-sea combat wasn’t ideal. But since it had learned defensive halo, it still had some value.

With the whole team aboard the giant fish submarine, Lu Ran confidently entered the secret realm.

[Transfer complete.]

[Mission: Defeat the Demon Starfish.]

The mission was to defeat, not kill. It seemed that Limitless City judged outright killing the Demon Starfish to be too difficult. As for what constituted “defeat,” that was up to the Limitless City’s discretion.

After entering the deep sea, Captain Doofus and Sudden Death King were fascinated, peering at the surroundings through the watery windows Baby Cloud created. Meanwhile, Baby Cloud was swimming aimlessly, waiting for Lu Ran’s instructions.

Lu Ran glanced at Dark Crow and said, “Finding the enemy is your job.”

“

Caw!

Let me see if I can curse it to death in one go!” Dark Crow said.

It immediately focused on locating the Demon Starfish. Soon enough, it spotted a terrifying monster lurking in a distant abyss. The creature had pink skin and a hybrid form between a human and a starfish with dark patterns on its limbs.

It seemed to be sleeping in the abyss. When Dark Crow’s Evil God’s Eye manifested in the area and locked onto it, the sheer darkness emanating from the creature shocked Dark Crow.

Its dark energy is even purer than mine...

Dark Crow thought its presence was well-hidden, but the moment its eye appeared, the Demon Starfish’s pitch-black eyes snapped open. It teleported behind the Evil God’s Eye and crushed it in an instant.

Inside the giant fish submarine, Dark Crow blinked hard and grumbled, “Damn it! Its perception and reflexes are insane. I barely got a look at it before it crushed one of my Evil Eye clones. My King, give me another chance. I’ll definitely cut it down.”

“The stronger, the better. With that, Baby Cloud’s ramming will be more satisfying. No rush on the curses. Let Baby Cloud have some fun first,” Lu Ran said.

“

Ah?

” Dark Crow was stunned.

Ramming?

“It seems attracted to us. I guess that saves us the trouble of finding it.” Lu Ran stroked his chin, sitting inside the submarine and looking ahead.

In the distance, the starfish-like figure streaked through the water like a missile, its face twisted as it searched for the intruder.

Soon, it locked onto Baby Cloud’s huge whale form. At the same time, Baby Cloud noticed the Demon Starfish and mirrored its ferocity.

“

Plip!”

Brother Dragon, shield me!

After Baby Cloud’s shout, Sudden Death King, who was baffled, cast a shield on it. The next moment, Baby Cloud’s body glowed as it shot forward with speed rivaling the Demon Starfish’s, crashing into the approaching foe with a thunderous impact.

The Demon Starfish was taken aback. The two collided violently. With a

boom

, the Demon Starfish was sent flying backward through the water, its body trembling in shock. It realized its attack hadn’t breached the opponent’s defenses. Instead, it was the one left dazed and disoriented from the collision.

Before it could recover, Lu Ran issued his next command. “Captain Doofus, Limitless Sword Domain!”

“

Awoo...

”

In the next instant, Captain Doofus activated its sword domain in the deep sea, enveloping the entire team and the Demon Starfish. Only then did Lu Ran fully unveil his battle plan.

“Captain Doofus, use your ability to imagine Baby Cloud as a sword. Then, enhance its sharpness with Sharp Metal Sword Intent. Let’s have Baby Cloud spar with the Demon Starfish first.”

Amidst the Demon Starfish’s furious roaring, it was sent tumbling again by Baby Cloud’s ramming. This time, several sword-like gashes appeared on its body, shocking the creature.

As it stared at the whale in disbelief, it seemed to think,

What the hell is this thing? Ramming can hurt this much?