Chapter 83: Mantis Giant Shrimp

This time, the haul for all four of them was quite astonishing.

The corpses of Sea Spiders were gradually piling up on the ground.

Gong Xiao killed five more Sea Spiders, gaining five Spiritual Sources. She was now seven Spiritual Sources away from her breakthrough.

Ding Longyun killed four Sea Spiders and currently possessed Spiritual Source 13/50.

Although Su Li wasn’t actively competing, he still killed the most Sea Spiders among the four in that short time, dispatching seven. He currently possessed Spiritual Source 12/50.

Among the group, Gong Xiao was the closest to breaking through. Just as she killed another Sea Spider and gained one more Spiritual Source, a dark shadow suddenly rose over the edge of the roof.

The shadow leaped up and flew toward Gong Xiao like a hawk pouncing on a rabbit, moving with lightning speed.

The sudden attack caused Gong Xiao’s face to lose color. By the time she realized the danger, the shadow was already right in front of her.

Just as the shadow was about to strike Gong Xiao, Su Li suddenly let out a low shout and rammed the creature sideways.

With a “bang,” he struck the shadow. The shadow’s attack turned into a sideways projectile. It flew past Gong Xiao, tumbling over and over, only stopping after flying over ten meters away.

Su Li landed in front of Gong Xiao. The muscles all over his body subtly expanded, straining his clothes, like a suit of muscle-formed armor had suddenly manifested on his body.

Just now, he had engaged his muscle control into the Defense State, and with a push-off from his feet, his body shot out like a cannonball, ramming the sudden shadow and saving Gong Xiao.

Gong Xiao was still shaken. Seeing that Su Li had saved her again, an inexpressibly strange emotion surged in her heart.

The person she constantly wanted to surpass was Su Li. She hated being inferior, yet every time she faced danger, it was Su Li who saved her.

The expanded muscles on Su Li’s body slowly subsided, returning to normal. The vertical eye-like fine lines appeared on his brow. The “Peering Rune” was activated.

“Name: Mantis Giant Shrimp. Level: 3 Elite Beast. Mantis Fist attack speed is high and power is fierce. Punches are like bullets. Weakness: Poor stamina, unable to sustain long battles. Killing the Mantis Giant Shrimp has a certain probability of acquiring the special ability ‘Mantis Fist.'”

“It’s a Level 3 Elite Beast, the same level as the Tyrant Crab.” Su Li’s mind raced. He was interested. Taking several quick steps, he rapidly closed in on the Mantis Giant Shrimp he had just rammed.

The Mantis Giant Shrimp was two meters long and entirely dark red. Its head resembled a shrimp, and its lower body was shaped like a mantis. Su Li’s ramming had sent it flying onto its back. It sprang up with a flip, stabilized itself, and let out a faint, angry hiss. It pushed off with its four limbs, launching itself into the air and charging toward Su Li.

Before they even closed the distance, the pair of shrimp claws it kept retracted in front of its body shot out. They moved so fast they created a blur, launching countless attacks in an instant, all aimed at Su Li’s vitals.

Su Li was slightly startled. This creature’s Mantis Fist was formidable. Although he could control his muscles into a defensive state, he dared not risk taking a direct hit. He quickly retreated, avoiding the immediate onslaught.

Gong Xiao, gripping her baseball bat, flanked the monster.

By now, aside from the corpses of Sea Spiders littering the ground, all other living Sea Spiders had retreated. The appearance of the Mantis Giant Shrimp had scared them off.

Ding Longyun also moved to surround the monster.

They were all interested in the Mantis Giant Shrimp.

Gong Xiao extended her left hand, activating the “Entangling Vine.” A green vine shot out, attempting to first wrap around the Mantis Giant Shrimp’s pair of claws. She had correctly identified that the claws were the monster’s most dangerous weapon.

Ding Longyun, circling to the rear, held the axe and prepared to attack the tail. With his current strength, if his axe struck the tail, he could easily cleave open the Mantis Giant Shrimp’s carapace, as its external defense was not high.

Su Li continued to dodge. The shrimp claws the Mantis Giant Shrimp swung struck the ground repeatedly, sending stone chips flying. Each strike left small indentations in the concrete roof, causing tiny, spiderweb-like cracks to appear.

“This thing,” Su Li thought, shocked by the power. The striking force of this Mantis Giant Shrimp’s Mantis Fist was terrifying.

It was only a Level 3 Elite Beast, yet it could punch holes in the concrete. Even with his current 1,700 jin of strength, he couldn’t do that without a tool.

The Mantis Giant Shrimp’s attacks on Su Li missed. In the next moment, its claws were seized by Gong Xiao’s “Entangling Vine.” The monster hissed, pulled its body upward, reared onto its hind legs, and flexed its claws, attempting to break free of the “Entangling Vine.”

Su Li, who had been avoiding the attack, seized the opportunity. He held the machete with both hands, his arm muscles swelling, veins bulging on the back of his hands. He rapidly closed the distance. The Mantis Giant Shrimp was rearing up, exposing its underside. Su Li brought the machete down from above.

The Mantis Giant Shrimp’s abdomen had no hard shell protection. Even if it had, Su Li’s full-force strike would have penetrated it easily.

A gush of green fluid erupted from the Mantis Giant Shrimp’s abdomen. Su Li’s single blow had completely ripped the monster open.

The Mantis Giant Shrimp hissed. Its body, rearing on its hind legs, fell backward.

Gong Xiao did not stop her attack just because Su Li had successfully struck. She immediately released the “Entangling Vine,” gripped her baseball bat with both hands, and leaped up. Using the momentum of the jump, she brought the bat down hard.

With a “thwack,” the baseball bat struck the head of the backward-falling Mantis Giant Shrimp. The creature’s head instantly exploded into a bloody pulp.

Su Li stopped. He saw that with Gong Xiao’s final blow, the Mantis Giant Shrimp was dead. A Spiritual Source flew from its body and merged into Gong Xiao’s forehead. Su Li thought, This woman is quite skilled at claiming kills. He had inflicted a fatal blow to the Mantis Giant Shrimp’s abdomen. Even with its tenacious vitality, the monster would have died in a few seconds at most. But Gong Xiao’s follow-up strike, which smashed its head, killed it instantly. Consequently, the Mantis Giant Shrimp’s Spiritual Source was credited to Gong Xiao.

He knew Gong Xiao hadn’t deliberately stolen the kill. It was the instinct of a combatant: a powerful monster, even when mortally wounded, can launch a death throe counterattack that is still dangerous. In such a situation, people instinctively continue attacking to deliver the final, killing blow.

If he had been Gong Xiao, he would have continued the attack to kill the Mantis Giant Shrimp rather than stopping after seeing the abdominal wound and allowing it to slowly die.

A look of excitement crossed Gong Xiao’s face. The Mantis Giant Shrimp had provided her with two Spiritual Sources. She now only needed four more Spiritual Sources to break through to the next level. This meant she was incredibly close to advancing.

(End of Chapter)