A green glow rose from the Crack-Rock Bear King's body, and he felt his injuries gradually healing.
His strength was slowly returning.
After about five minutes, the Crack-Rock Bear King's injuries were completely healed.
Suppressing the anger boiling in his heart, the Crack-Rock Bear King looked at Xia De and asked, “Human, what exactly do you want?”
He tried to stand up, but in the next second, Xia De's foot stepped directly onto his face, pinning him to the ground so firmly that he couldn't budge.
Xia De smiled. “Round one is over. I had a lot of fun. Now, let's begin round two!”
Xia De then lifted his foot and quickly leaped back to the side of Reid and the others, whom he had trapped, before looking back at the Crack-Rock Bear King.
Indeed, his final strike had sent the Crack-Rock Bear King plummeting right back to where he had started.
Hearing Xia De's words and sensing the amusement in his tone, the Crack-Rock Bear King—despite being a Tier Eight Calamity-class magical beast—felt a chill run through his entire body.
Fear rushed into his heart like a tidal wave. He subconsciously touched his right eye and realized that the permanent, unhealable scar left by his old rival, Hank, had completely vanished.
But this discovery only brought a deeper dread, a terror far worse than anything he had felt even when facing Hank back then.
He was going to die!!!
Now, because of Xia De's healing, the influence of the Demonic Seed had been cleansed, and his intellect was slowly returning.
He recalled how he had just been swatted around like a ball without any ability to resist, and by a colossal force that far eclipsed his own—despite being a beast renowned for raw strength!
This made him realize that the human youth before him, who showed absolutely no magic fluctuations, was an incredibly powerful powerhouse!
“Human, we have no grudge between us. I was only bewitched by the Demon God Cult into starting this monster tide. Spare me, and I will lead the magical beasts to retreat.”
He had chickened out.
Xia De ignored his pleas for mercy and chuckled. “Actually, we do have a grudge. Weren't you looking for your child?”
He pointed at the pile of mashed meat not far away, which he had shielded from the very beginning, and continued, “Look, that pile over there is it. Too bad it's already been turned into bear jam.”
“You!”
The Crack-Rock Bear King's face instantly twisted in fury, baring his razor-sharp teeth as the rocks on his body began to crack and splinter.
He knew that this human before him would not let him off today.
Thus, he stopped begging. As a Tier Eight Calamity-class magical beast, he had his own pride.
Magic power constantly gathered within him, the dark mark between his brows deepening in color as dark purple magic formed a shroud of light around his body.
With a cold snort, ominous dark purple magic drifted faintly from his nostrils.
“Since you don't want to make peace, let's settle this with a head-on clash! You only had the advantage just now because we were in the air and you caught me off guard. But now, we are on the ground.”
The ferocious Crack-Rock Bear King glared savagely at Xia De, his crimson eyes gleaming with murderous intent. A bloodthirsty grin pulled at the corners of his mouth as he spoke:
“And the earth is my home turf.”
“Earth Tremor!!!”
With a sky-shattering roar, he slammed his massive paws violently against the ground. The rocks on his body exploded outward, their shattered fragments orbiting around him as if held by gravitational pull.
The earth trembled.
If anyone were looking down from a bird's-eye view at this moment, they would see...
The ground for dozens of kilometers around was vibrating, rumbling with a sound like a roaring beast. Then, countless fine fissures appeared, and the entire landscape began to splinter apart.
Humans and magical beasts alike began to flee in all directions, both sides letting out terrified wails.
But in the face of this power, they were as minuscule as ants, helpless to do anything but scramble for cover and pray.
They prayed they would not plunge into the abyss-like fissures.
A Tier Eight powerhouse unleashing their full strength possessed the power to alter geography, a force akin to a natural disaster.
This was a Calamity!
Unfortunately, standing before this Calamity was an extraordinary Tier Nine Cataclysm.
“Reverse!”
Several earth-yellow magic circles appeared beneath Xia De's feet and swirled around him. The trembling of the earth ground to a halt. Not only that, but the splintered ground pulled back together, closing up as if nothing had ever happened.
What?!
The Crack-Rock Bear King was dumbfounded. The earth had actually defied him! One had to know, the Law he had comprehended to break through to Tier Eight was of the earth element—Mountain Shatterer, Rock Splitter!
Yet now, the earth had actually disobeyed him!
Xia De looked at the frozen Crack-Rock Bear King, who was still stuck in his slamming posture, and smiled:
“Though I prefer using shadows and black flames, let me give you a friendly heads-up... I have mastery over all attributes of magic!”
Then, Xia De raised an eyebrow, his smile growing even more excited:
“Alright, time to end this farce. A new guest is arriving.”
The moment those words left his mouth, the Crack-Rock Bear King felt the breath of death brush against his face. Completely panicked, he opened his mouth, desperate to beg for mercy.
But Xia De was faster. Moving with teleportation-like speed, he drove a powerful straight punch directly into the beast's abdomen.
With a dull thud, the stone armor on the Crack-Rock Bear King's body shattered into pieces, and the light of life in his pupils gradually faded.
(Starfall: ? Where is my first Tier Eight magical beast?)
Xia De withdrew his hand, and the Crack-Rock Bear King's massive body collapsed with a loud crash, kicking up a cloud of dust as he hit the ground.
Having casually beaten the Tier Eight Crack-Rock Bear King to death, Xia De sat down on the beast's head. Only then did he turn his gaze to the trio nearby, who had long since been scared witless, and spoke:
“Now, it's your turn.
I'm in a relatively good mood right now, so I don't want to torture you. Why don't you choose how you want to die?
Of course, don't even think about asking me to spare you. The moment you decided to use me as a shield to cover your retreat, your fates were sealed.
No one can save you!”
At this, Xia De paused, then tilted his head slightly toward the dazed-looking young man who had just appeared beside him:
“Don't you agree, Charles?”
With this, player one exited, and player two took the stage!
Charles ignored Xia De's words and quickly jogged over to Reid's trio. Xia De did not stop him, simply watching in silence.
As a professional Healer, Charles immediately noticed Kathleen, whose limbs had been severed, her face disfigured, and her breath hanging by a thread. He then saw Reid, who looked fine on the outside but had several of his internal organs destroyed, and Shanna, who was in a state of mental daze.
Then, extending both hands, magic circles materialized before them as he called out, “Heal!”
A warm, gentle glow mingled with glittering specks of light bathed the three of them, and their injuries began to rapidly mend.
Even Kathleen, whose limbs had been severed, began to regrow her hands and feet.
Feeling the warmth, she opened her eyes and looked at Charles, weakly murmuring, “Charles?”
A gentle smile appeared on Charles's blank face. “Please don't speak yet. Focusing on your recovery is what's most important.
I cast healing magic on you and Reid, and a mental-soothing spell on Shanna. You'll be fine very soon.”
Shanna, who had no physical injuries, was the first to snap out of it, looking at Charles with a complicated expression.
Only now was she absolutely certain that they had misunderstood Charles back then.
After about thirty seconds, the injuries on all three were fully healed. Charles finally turned to look at the handsome youth sitting on the bear's head and asked:
“Why did you hurt them like this?”
Xia De replied:
“Because they used me as a shield, trying to lure several Tier Four magical beasts to my location. If I hadn't happened to be a little bit stronger, I'm afraid I would have already become food for those beasts. Thus, I am merely returning the favor. I don't see anything wrong with treating them this way.”
Thinking of the horrific injuries the three had suffered, Charles asked again, “Why did you have to use such cruel methods instead of talking it out?
The monster tide is currently invading, and as humans, I believe we should be helping each other. Besides, you weren't actually hurt in the end. If you had just talked things through...”
Pausing for a moment, Charles continued, “I believe that as long as we communicate properly, both humans and magical beasts can get along happily. So, please forgive them. Stop making mistakes, and let's all get along happily!”
“Only when we learn to forgive will there be no more barriers between people.”
Though Charles's voice was soft, it carried an unwavering, resolute will.
However, Xia De gently shook his head. “I admit that such a world would be beautiful, but that is nothing more than an impossible dream.”
“And you speak of forgiveness?
Forgiveness can indeed prevent most conflicts from arising, but not everything can be forgiven.”
“The people beside you not only tried to take my life, but they also insulted my parents. If I were to forgive them, with what face could I ever look at my parents again?”
“You talk about humans and magical beasts getting along happily. I've done so many quests, and I have never seen a single magical beast that could live in harmony with humans. No matter how cute or friendly they might appear on the surface, the greed and malice in their eyes are always directed at me.”
Charles said, “I believe there will definitely come a time when we can peacefully coexist with magical beasts. To achieve that, we must work hard. After defeating them, we should communicate with them and spare their lives. I'm sure they will understand and turn over a new leaf.”
Xia De sneered, offering no comment.
Setting aside whether a spared magical beast would go on to attack others, just the fact that magical beasts served as nourishment for his own combat strength meant he would never let a single one of them go.
Xia De did not bother arguing with him further on this matter. Instead, he shifted the topic, continuing to lay his groundwork.
“Then can you forgive them? They treated you like trash, constantly insulted you, beat and verbally abused you, and dragged your reputation through the mud, making you known throughout Toka City as a useless Healer. They made everyone despise you, and finally, they kicked you out of the party, leaving you to almost end up on the streets. Can you forgive them for that too?”
“I can forgive them! They are my companions—they were in the past, and they still are now. I believe they must have repented by now.”
Charles replied, his voice ringing with absolute conviction.
Seeing Charles's unwavering expression, Xia De finally felt at ease.
This could finally end.
Rate on N.U.
