Versatile mage c1 2021, p.36
Versatile Mage c1-2021, page 36
Mo Fan glanced behind him and felt increasingly shocked.
_This thing’s attack frequency is too high, I can no longer dodge it!_
Mo Fan began to use his intent to activate the Magical Equipment imprint within his soul so he could call out the Bone Scythe Shield to shield him.
As Mo Fan was about to finish it, a clear voice called out from the distant basketball court. “Water Field, Dissolve!”
Following this, Mo Fan saw a stream of water forming in the air. This stream of water was as soft as a ribbon as it floated in front of him. However, it quickly formed into a concave shield.
After the red ray hit the water shield, it was completely neutralized. The red energy was immediately dispersed into countless droplets that sprinkled over Mo Fan’s feet.
Mo Fan immediately cancelled the activation of the Bone Scythe Shield. He turned his head around just in time to see the girl called Xiao Ke smiling sweetly toward him as she revealed two cute canine teeth.
_Xiao Ke? Lady, your timing is too good!_
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Translator : Tofu
Editor: RED
*[Long Taos]: side characters in Chinese operas who perform acrobatics and fight scenes
*[12.47 to 13.07]: don't ask me about the tree sap
Chapter 59 - Battle Ape Rat!
“Fan Mo, fall back. Leave this animal to me!” Captain Xu Dahuang shouted as he and Fei Shi both arrived in time.
The two looked as though they were on a flat escalator. They didn’t take a single step, yet they were moving rapidly along the flat ground.
Mo Fan knew that this was the primary spell of the Earth Element, Earth Ripple!
Earth Ripple was also a movement spell, it could control the surface of the ground to initiate quick movement. Wang Sanpang was also capable of this. However, he was not as adept at it as Feishi.
“This is a Colossal-eyed Ape Rat, they usually live underground. Thus, they’re experts in digging holes and particularly enjoy the city sewers. They can stretch their neck and their eyes can release a piercing red light beam… This thing is like a mixed rat, capable of high speed reproduction. Their survival abilities are high. The sewers and garbage lots tend to have quite a few of them. Normally, they eat human leftovers. However, if their hunger reaches a certain degree, they are able to eat humans as well, making them a terrifying and common Magical Beast!” Soon enough, Vice Captain Guo Caitang informed everyone about this creature.
_(Ed. Note: Ah, comic book combat time. Look at that paragraph. And he said all that in the middle of an attacking giant rat!)_
Colossal-eyed Ape Rat?
The Magical Beast classes had discussed this creature a few times; this creature was an expert at living underground and hole-digging! It was the Lan Xiang University amongst Magical Beasts!
Normally, whenever this kind of Magical Beast encountered a Magician, they would run away peeing themselves. How come this one dared to even initiate attacks!?
“This one is evidently extremely rash. I reckon it’s starving; requiring a large amount of food and energy. Fortunately, we happened to find it!” Feishi said as he smiled.
These people were different from the group of students who ran like dogs when they first encountered Magical Beasts. Whether it was the Captain Xu Dahuang, the girl Xiao Ke, Wind Mage Guo Caitang or Uncle Feishi, they wore a different attitude when they faced off against the Colossal-eyed Ape Rat.
They were all spread out, but they stood at a distance where they could support each other.
They formed an attack formation, while maintaining a distance where they could retreat if they encountered danger.
Mo Fan, who had just joined their team as a member, was awkwardly standing there. It looked as though he had told his teammates, “After you retreat, I will challenge this creature.” However, the truth was, he was slowly shifting behind his teammates; on the inside, he was cursing Fei Shi for not using Earth Ripple on him.
The sound of an empty stomach grumbled out.
This Colossal-eyed Ape Rat was indeed extremely vicious, as it didn’t run away despite seeing so many people. Its eyes immediately locked onto the closest person to itself; the Wind Mage, Li Wenjie.
It was the red light beam! This animal that lived amongst the human city’s dark corner looked as though it wanted to shoot through the people moving around it presently. Its intense roaring was particularly fierce in the air of the evening school campus.
“You want to attack us?” The Wind Mage Li Wenjie was laid back.
Mo Fan practically didn’t see Li Wenjie meticulously focus his mind to link the Star Paths, yet a cyan Wind Track emerged around his body, blowing around his white shirt.
_Swoosh!_
The red piercing beam shot forth, but Li Wenjie left behind only a wild breeze at his former location. His figure had already flashed five meters away. How could one be that handsome?
“Fool, you dare to come out and harm people with just this little skill?!” Li Wenjie stood in front of a table tennis stand as he coldly smiled toward the Colossal-eyed Ape Rat.
When the Colossal-eyed Ape Rat saw its beam was ineffective toward this nimble human, it flew into a rage as it spread its four sharp limbs.
With a neck and head that strange, the Colossal-eyed Ape Rat’s speed was actually a few times faster than the Spirit Wolf which Mo Fan had met before. If it used this speed to go against students, even if they were able to stay calm and complete their Star Path, they would still be too late casting their spells!
The time it took for students to cast their spells was around four seconds, whereas the Colossal-eyed Ape Rat was able to get to Li Wenjie from a place forty meters away in a short two seconds. Its claws ripped right for Li Wenjie’s face.
Mo Fan couldn’t help but feel apprehensive; he was scared Li Wenjie would lose his life.
Looking at his surroundings, neither the Water Mage, Xiao Ke, nor the Earth Mage, Fei Shi, seemed to have any intention on saving Li Wenjie.
“Wind Track, Flash Steps!” Li Wenjie was not fl.u.s.tered at all. His gaze was calmly watching the Colossal-eyed Ape Rat dash over as he coldly spouted the name of his spell.
_Swoosh!_
Li Wenjie’s body once again disappeared from his original location. The Colossal-eyed Ape Rat’s claws smacked against the stone table tennis stand, reducing the table to powder that flew off into the surroundings.
After the creature realized that its claw had failed, it immediately began to look for Li Wenjie.
_Swoosh!_
Li Wenjie’s took another step, he once again left behind a dust trail before he quickly flashed twenty meters away.
_Swoosh!!_
Li Wenjie stopped behind a cotton tree planted inside the cantina. To Mo Fan’s surprise, the Wind Mage had once again disappeared from his sight.
Following this, a red beam fiercely hit the cotton tree Li Wenjie had stopped behind. The cotton tree was pierced straight through by the beam, leaving behind a blackened hole. Ash blew out of the hole from the superheated steam and charred wood, drifting down in a cloud of dark motes.
Wind Track, Flash Step!
Mo Fan saw this as he gasped in surprise.
In school, all the Wind elemental students had only grasped the Wind Track’s Swift Travel. To move fast with Swift Travel was only possible if you were able to create a Wind Tunnel. Although it was indeed quick, it was still not as fast as Li Wenjie’s Flash Step!
If Zhang Xiaohou had grasped Wind Track’s Flash Steps back then, he would definitely have been able to thrash that Spirit Wolf around a few times, and get out of the difficult situation of being chased deep within the cavern.
Although it was also a primary spell of the Wind Track, its effect felt evidently on a different level. The Colossal-eyed Ape Rat’s sensitivity was even above that of Spirit Wolf. However, at the end of the day it still wasn’t able to touch the corner of Li Wenjie’s clothes.
As expected, the things you learned at school were far too limited. Only when you were exposed to this kind of environment and constantly gaining practical combat experience would you truly be able to raise your strength.
_It was a wise choice to join the Hunters, only when I follow these Hunter Mages who are fearless in front of the Magical Beasts will I be able to grow. Going with those students who pee their pants when they see a Magical Beast is definitely a bad choice._
It wasn’t that Mo Fan disliked his classmates, but he had come to realize many things after battling against the Spirit Wolf.
Pursuing examinations, grades, target shootings, attending Magical Beast classes, and analyzing battle techniques were completely useless when you actually encountered a Magical Beast. The only way to improve was to fight, to constantly face Magical Beasts like this.
“Have a taste of my flames!”
Captain Xu Dahuang flew up confidently. There was already a ball of scorching hot flame in his palm. The flames illuminated the sturdy uncle’s face, which carried some disdain for the creature before him!
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Translator: Tofu
Editor: RED
*[Long Taos]: side characters in Chinese operas who perform acrobatics and fight scenes
*[12.47 to 13.07]: don't ask me about the tree sap
Chapter 60 - Come Forth, Lightning!
"Fire Burst!" Xu DaHuang bellowed, the strong flame in his hands split the night, flying towards the Colossal-Eyed Ape Rat.
Feeling the heat behind him, the cunning Rat tried to dodge to the side.
This move by the Colossal-eyed Ape Rat astonished Mo Fan. It had some keen senses to detect the speedy attack by Xu DaHuang...
It was obviously going to miss. Monsters wouldn't stand there like a dummy in school, waiting to be attacked.
"Hiding? Futile!" Xu DaHuang laughed in mockery.
The fireball landed where the Colossal-eyed Ape Rat first stood, missing it completely.
"Burst!" he chanted the twist to the technique.
In that instant, a ray of light emerged from the extinguishing fireball as it burst open!!
_Boom…!_
The cloud of fire exploded, waves of fire quickly swallowed everything around the point of impact.
_Crimson fires!!_
The crimson flames engulfed everything in a three-meter radius, including the Rat which thought it had evaded the attack.
A tremor appeared in the air, the explosion was blinding!!
Through the flames, Mo Fan could faintly see the Colossal-Eyed Rat get swallowed up in crimson. Its fat bulk was thrown five, six meters away, slamming head-first into the canteen walls.
Cornered, the Colossal-Eyed Rat thrashed for its life, now stripped of that monstrous air. Now, it was just a half-dead sewer rat.
At this, Mo Fan's lips stretched into a giant "O"!
_Unbelievable!_
Fire Burst, Burst!!
That overbearing burst effect left no chance for that agile Big-Eyed Rat. The burn and cremation effects paled in comparison to that direct and violent burst effect!
Mo Fan never would have thought that the squad leader of the Hunting squad had trained the Fire Burst technique to the third level. The burst effect nearly killed the Rat instantly.
Man, if he had known Burst during the Spirit Wolf encounter, he could have ended it in a single blast. Would he have needed to run, needed those stalagmites? If those stalagmites weren't everywhere, and the monster positioned directly underneath one... Last time, he was lucky.
_Unbelievably cool!_
At this point, Mo Fan's heart toiled like the raging waves of fire.
Thinking about how his fireball could reach this level, his passion for training blazed.
As long as he could master Burst, that Yu Ao wouldn't be his match, that old geezer Mu Zhuoyun could be smacked so hard that his face would swell up!
_Yes, no matter what, I have to reach the third level in Fire Burst before I graduate, and blind the titanium dog eyes of those old geezers in the Mu Family!_
The experience and skill of the Hunting Squad was apparent when they predicted that the Rat would run after the blast. Fei Shi and Guo Caitang sealed the escape routes of the Rat using their techniques.
"Ku...!!!!" the Big-Eyed Rat roared, and leapt unexpectedly towards Guo Caitang.
Guo Caitang paused, her Ice Vine technique froze the spot where the Rat had just fled. She did not anticipate that the Rat could still thrash so violently.
"Xiao Ke, Water Meld, now!" Squad Leader Xu DaHuang tensed at this sight.
Xiao Ke panicked, frantically linking the Water Star Path. Too nervous, Xiao Ke slowed down and couldn't cast Water Meld in time.
While Guo Caitang, having faced dangers like this before, grit her teeth and leapt to the side.
Although she couldn't dodge it completely, as long as she could save her vitals, losing an arm was better than dying.
"Lightning Seal, Python Mark!!"
Multiple seals swarmed in the distance just as the situation turned for the worse.
These seals flogged the Colossal-Eyed Rat and flayed its flesh. The Python marks on the Rat drilled frantically into its muscles, leaving it unable to run.
Halfway through its dash, the Rat seized up and slumped to the concrete, rolling to a stop before Guo Caitang's legs.
Guo CaiTang paused as she saw the twitching Rat, before jumping back a few meters away. She stared in disbelief at Mo Fan.
"Good Job, Fan Mo!"
"Man, this Colossal-Eyed Rat has to be mutated, why is it more violent than a One-Eyed Wolf? Half-dead and it is still attacking rather than running!" Fei Shi exclaimed, still shocked from the ordeal.
"I've told you so many times, be on your guard, be on your guard!! Guo Caitang almost died… If not for the Lightning Mage we recruited today, would the monster be paralyzed? How else do we stop the Rat from staking it all?" Squad Leader Xu DaHuang burst into a tirade.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it's my...my fault," Xiao Ke stammered.
"Apologies wouldn't help if someone died, they can't hear it in their graves! As the only Water Mage in the team with defense capabilities, your job is to be on your guard! Be ready with your Star Path at all times!" Xu DaHuang bellowed at Xiao Ke.
Mo Fan was slightly surprised, he had expected Captain Xu DaHuang to just nag instead of lashing out at such a cute girl.
However, he wasn't wrong. Magicians of different Elements had different roles to play when forming a Hunting team. A single mistake in a strategy was not only lethal, but would spell disaster for the entire team. Monsters killed in an instant!
Xiao Ke bit her lip and said nothing, having realized the severity of her mistake.
Guo Caitang did not blame Xiao Ke, instead, she continued to stare at Mo Fan.
She was about to die, but this greenhorn had saved her life!
_____________________
Translator : Tofu
Editor : RED
*[Long Taos]: side characters in Chinese operas who perform acrobatics and fight scenes
*[12.47 to 13.07]: don't ask me about the tree sap
Chapter 61 - Advancing the Lightning Element!
“Fan Mo, your reaction was really quick. Your spellcasting speed also shocked us. We thought you were the type of newly graduated Magician whose legs would soften up after seeing a Magical Beast.” Li Wenjie walked up to Mo Fan and patted his shoulder a few times.
“Yeah, I thought we would have to take care of you for the most of the year before you would be somewhat useful; who would’ve thought that your spirit quality was already good enough that you even saved Guo Caitang. Guo Caitang, you’ll have to devote your entire life to him to properly express your appreciation,” Fei Shi said with a laugh.
Mo Fan had applied for this position without any practical experience, nor resume. In fact, the Hunter Team’s minimum requirement was to have killed at least ten Magical Beasts. If Mo Fan were of a different Element, then this elite Team of Hunters would definitely not have accepted him. They didn't even need those with the Fire Element. After all, the City Hunter Team fought off Magical Beasts within the city. If other hunters couldn’t face off against a Magical Beast, then they would just die by themselves. If the Hunters Team couldn’t face off against Magical Beasts, then it was possible that the consequences would spread to people who couldn’t fend off the Beasts themselves.
The City Hunters Team’s responsibilities were significant, and thus, its members needed to be the elite of the Hunter Mages.
Considering the rarity of a Lightning Mage, as well as the abilities of their spells, the Hunter Team was willing to spend half a year to properly nurture the rookie who knew nothing. In everyone’s eyes, Mo Fan was a definite rookie who wouldn’t necessarily be able to cast a spell when faced up against a Magical Beast.
Just now, after he had finished his Lightning Strike spell in an instant, his reaction time and control of his Star Path actually gave the Hunter Team a whole new view of him!
Especially Guo Caitang. In the beginning, she had aggressively given Mo Fan, a rookie, a harsh scolding. Who would’ve thought that at the most crucial time, it would be this rookie that would save her life? Her heart was exceedingly complicated at this moment.
“Alright, Li Wenjie, Feishi, the two of you go and inspect the cafeteria. If there is no other Magical Beast, then we can leave the rest of the matter to the police if that girl is still alive,” Xu Dahuang ordered.
“OK!”
Search and rescue required a large number of people. The Hunter Team’s primary objective was to eliminate the danger factors. Following that, all they needed to do was to let Feishi and Li Wenjie assist the police in searching for the missing Lin Yun’er.
It was just that it had been over a week, and the girl’s chances of survival were very low.
_Buzz..._
As Mo Fan was about to leave, the Little Loach Pendant suddenly let out a buzz.
_There’s a Soul Remnant?_
