"This one probably used to be a nurse, right? Although her whole body has turned into a keratinous existence, you can still see her graceful demeanor from the past."
Lu Ren remarked candidly as he observed the polluted creature in front of him. The pure white clothes were tattered on its body, covered in keratinous shells, with the head encased in a keratinous helmet. The overall structure was sleek and rounded, with a pair of massive wings at the shoulder blades. Rather than wings, Lu Ren believed them to be similar to a turbine engine. The creature's hands were extremely sharp, even reflecting a metallic sheen under the light.
What the heck, a mutated version of Kasa?
The streamlined physique made Lu Ren conclude that it belonged to the agility type.
"So, it's very good?" Xiang Yang was unexplainably agitated.
Lu Ren: "If it were alive, it would probably be good at giving birth."
Xiang Yang twisted his body: "Look, look."
Lu Ren glanced over at Xiang Yang, whose malnourished body was like a washboard on both sides, leaving Lu Ren indifferent: "One should have self-awareness and not humiliate oneself."
Xiang Yang's little face immediately collapsed, muttering, "What? Don't you guys all like lolis?!"
Lu Ren was somewhat surprised: "You even know about lolis?"
"My dad often says that men outside are drooling over my type."
Lu Ren expressed that those are creepy uncles; he is a respectable man...
Feeling a bit excited, he crouched slightly and gestured with his hands: "Enough, is there a way for us to pass?"
Qingxu's voice came from the earpiece picked up from the monitoring center.
"I'm sorry to inform you that each of the other three routes has at least three polluted creatures wandering, and this route is the least dangerous."
Least dangerous?
Lu Ren couldn't help but look around the environment filled with shocking claw marks, with many areas on the ground marked with unknown blackish-brown traces, not just dried blood or something else.
This absolutely demonstrates power, speed, and sharpness.
He picked up a piece of unknown broken debris from the ground and threw it towards a certain area inside.
Just as it was thrown, the polluted creature quickly detected the commotion. After glancing at the black debris tracing an arc through the air, it turned its head towards Lu Ren and Xiang Yang, who were peeking from around the corner of the passageway.
Lu Ren's eyes narrowed: "This thing has quite the intelligence."
Qingxu: "… A polluted creature capable of defining its territory possesses a level of intelligence, though not comparable to humans, yet far from being a beast that solely acts on instinct."
"Meaning, is the intelligence of this creature also evolving?"
As they spoke, Lu Ren no longer hid. He drew his dual swords and stood upright.
The polluted creature merely glanced at Lu Ren's brazen posture, bent its body, and the turbine-like wings behind it suddenly burst into a brilliant blue light, turning the entire figure into a phantom rushing towards Lu Ren.
So fast!
But it's manageable!
The initial display made Lu Ren feel he could undergo battle tempering. His eyes narrowed, pupils constricting, and instead of retreating, he advanced. With one step, he slashed down deftly with the longsword in his hand, moving swiftly and urgently like a leopard.
In an instant, the polluted creature was already charging head-on, and as the sharp blade in Lu Ren's hand came down, one side of its wings suddenly quivered.
Buzz!!
Like a fan suddenly being driven intensely, the entire body tilted sideways, lightly dodging Lu Ren's head-on attack, then promptly swiped at Lu Ren with its sharp claws.
Damn! Unbelievable!
Lu Ren remained calm and composed. With a spirit of eight points, he maintained his cool despite feeling the sharpness transmitted by the claws, making his eyelid twitch.
Then, with his eyebrows furrowing, the left-handed sword swept out opportunistically.
Clang!
The sound of metal clashing erupted suddenly, as Lu Ren's body leaned slightly backward. The left-handed sword used to block bounced high, and his right foot swung in a sweeping motion, kicking the opponent's elbow joint of the other hand. The heavy and solid force destabilized the opponent, making it stagger backward flapping its wings.
With his breath steadied, Lu Ren struck again with a sword, like thunder, pointed at the opponent's throat.
Ding!
A light sound, as Lu Ren's expression slightly changed. Beyond some cracks in the attached keratin, there was no further reaction.
The sword wasn't sharp enough, and his strength was insufficient to break through the creature's keratin.
Seizing this gap, Xiang Yang, who had been watching all along, let a faint blue glow emerge on the blade of the dagger in his hand and slashed at the base of the creature's left wing.
A "crack" sound rang out, as if ripping through paper, the creature's left wing fell with a sound, and the immense pain caused the polluted creature to emit a sharp, high-pitched screech, the high-frequency soundwave made Lu Ren's ears ache painfully, being nearest.
Simultaneously, it reached and clawed, sending Xiang Yang flying towards a distant wall, landing atop unknown equipment, struggling in pain.
"Ding, your stab at the Armored Eagle Lady's throat didn't effectively penetrate the armor, your Basic Swordsmanship skill level +1."
No time to check on Xiang Yang, Lu Ren endured the ear pain, brandished his dual swords, and performed a twin-peak strike, clapping the Armored Eagle Lady on the head, silencing its shriek instantly.
A focused strike is needed.
As thoughts whirled, Lu Ren didn't hesitate anymore. The opponent's enraged erratic claw swipes, slicing through massive air currents between the Armored Eagle Lady's sharp claws, brought forth clearly audible gusts of wind.
The Armored Eagle Lady's five claws stretched towards Lu Ren's nape, its massive claws almost enveloping his entire head.
The fierce claws nearly suffocated Lu Ren.
However, he didn't dodge. From the initial clash, Lu Ren had already gauged the opponent's strength, perhaps higher than an average person, even greater than his own strength, but still manageable. Using the force-dissipating technique of Basic Swordsmanship, he could withstand it.
Lu Ren raised his longsword, maintaining a somber countenance, and in a flash, the dual swords danced as if performing!
The whistling sound of sword flashes slicing the air echoed continuously.
Sword Dance!
Lu Ren swung his arms, transforming the longsword into an illusion. Under the light, sword glints emanated like blooming white flowers, enveloping the Armored Eagle Lady into a mass.
This was not purposeless, full-range attacks, as most of Lu Ren's swords fell on the keratinous area of the Armored Eagle Lady's throat.
Finally, accompanied by a sharp cracking sound akin to shattering glass, Lu Ren, who wielded over a dozen sword slashes in a second, swiftly shattered the keratin at the Armored Eagle Lady's throat. Firmly gripping the longsword in his right hand, he plunged it heavily into that spot, reaching the other end's keratin.
"Ah!!!"
Ignoring the system prompt ringing in his mind, Lu Ren, upon withdrawing his hand and after retreating, narrowly avoided the Armored Eagle Lady's claws that sailed millimeters past his face.
"Give me the dagger!"
Lu Ren tilted his head and shouted to Xiang Yang, who was sitting on the ground, and Xiang Yang, struggling to support himself while gritting his teeth, threw the dagger in his hand, hurling it ten meters away from Lu Ren.