CHAPTER 120: BETRAYAL

Carlotta finally grasped the situation. Though surprised, she was also quite intrigued. The corpses of Resonator monsters were excellent materials, many of the components she needed for crafting cards required monster parts.

The group then began discussing how to eliminate the monsters on the opposite mountain.

"The lingering effects of the Monster fruit run deep. These monsters won’t leave anytime soon. Driving them away won’t work, we have no choice but to kill them."

Simon offered his suggestion, straightforward and decisive.

"Sigh... most of the strong members from our respective adventuring parties have already gone into the inner zone. It’s really not easy to deal with peak-tier Listener monsters."

Aubrey sighed.

Many Listeners had headed into the inner zone, seeking greater rewards, even though it was far more dangerous there.

The outer zone still had quite a few Listeners, but peak-tier ones were rare. Among this group gathered here, the highest rank was only middle-tier Listener.

After assessing everyone’s strength, Carlotta wore a subtle expression.

She thought of Victor, leader of the Meyer Adventuring Party, whom she had eliminated. He was a genuine peak-tier Listener, one of the few peak-tier Listeners who hadn’t entered the inner zone.

Such individuals were certainly uncommon in the outer zone, yet she had just happened to encounter one, and together with Amelia, had blown him to pieces using the Moonlight. Truly, fate was unpredictable.

A peak-tier Listener should have been unstoppable in the outer zone, yet he had run into them.

"In truth, both the Raging Bear and the Flaming Bird are already severely wounded, they fought each other all night yesterday."

Simon pointed this out, sighing. "If we had attacked them during the day, it would have been optimal. Unfortunately, we were all investigating them. But it’s not too late now, their injuries won’t heal quickly."

"I support taking action."

"So do I. We can’t wait any longer."

Everyone unanimously agreed on eliminating the monsters, and Carlotta had no objections.

However, when it came to choosing the primary target, disagreements arose.

They couldn’t attack both monsters at once, they had to concentrate their forces. But whether to strike the Raging Bear first or the Flaming Bird first, opinions varied.

Some argued for targeting the Flaming Bird first because it could fly. If left until later, once it sensed danger, it could simply take to the skies, leaving them helpless.

Others believed attacking the Flaming Bird was too risky, precisely because it could fly. They might not be able to kill it quickly, and if it raised an alarm, drawing the Raging Bear over, they’d end up fighting both monsters at once. Thus, they thought it better to eliminate the Raging Bear first, since it couldn’t escape.

In the end, they held a vote.

Carlotta felt it was better to target the Raging Bear first, eliminating one at a time was more reliable.

Attacking the Flaming Bird first was uncertain. These people came from different adventuring parties, lacking coordination and. Could they really prevent the bird from taking flight?

Besides, the Raging Bear was more severely wounded and weaker, truly much easier to deal with.

After the decision was made, Aubrey said, "Now that it’s settled, let’s move out immediately. The longer we wait, the more these monsters will recover. We can’t give them time to heal."

Everyone agreed.

Soon, the group set off toward the opposite mountain.

Since they were facing a peak-tier Listener-class monster, only the Listeners from each adventuring party would participate. The rest would remain outside.

On Carlotta’s side, both she and Amelia moved forward, causing some people to glance at Amelia in surprise.

Amelia’s displayed strength was tier nine apprentice, yet she dared to come along. This made many speculate, given Carlotta’s precedent, people couldn’t help but wonder if Amelia, too, could fight on par with a Listener.

Still, though surprised, no one actually asked the question.

Before long, they arrived at the foot of the opposite mountain. After walking along the mountain path for a short while, they heard a deafening snoring sound, it was the Raging Bear sleeping.

"Asleep? But monsters have high alertness. Once we approach, even in sleep, it will wake up immediately."

Aubrey whispered.

Simon said quietly, "Everyone, get ready for battle. Wells, we’re counting on you to take the front."

Ralph Wells was from the Rock Shield Adventuring Party. He practiced shield magic and even possessed a magical artifact-level shield that could merge with his magic, granting him incredibly powerful defense.

Tall and sturdy like an iron tower, he provided his teammates with a strong sense of security.

He nodded, raised his artifact-level shield, and stepped to the front.

The others followed closely behind. The group of fifteen advanced silently.

As they walked, Jemina suddenly said, "The snoring has stopped."

"It seems we’ve been detected."

Simon wasn’t surprised.

A peak-tier Listener-class monster wasn’t something they could easily ambush. A direct confrontation was inevitable.

The group immediately quickened their pace, rushing forward.

"ROAR!"

Suddenly, a roar nearly shattered their eardrums, blasting toward them from ahead. Accompanying the roar came rolling waves of air, like a violent gale, flattening the grass along the way. Sand and stones flew, broken branches whirled through the air.

Then, a massive figure appeared, charging at them at high speed.

The Raging Bear stood as tall as four or five stories, its entire body brown and covered in rocky armor. Its surface was stained with blackened burns and blood, remnants from its previous battle with the Flaming Bird. Though its wounds hadn’t healed, its ferocious aura remained undiminished.

"Watch the ground, don’t just focus on the Raging Bear."

Aubrey quickly warned.

Though the Raging Bear was powerful in close combat, its long-range abilities were also formidable, it could manipulate the earth.

No one in the group would overlook its long-range capabilities, after all, they had all witnessed many of its techniques during yesterday’s battle between the Raging Bear and the Flaming Bird.

Carlotta sensed the ground trembling, vibrations varied in intensity across different areas. She immediately dashed toward a spot with weaker tremors.

Then, in the surrounding areas where the shaking was stronger, sharp earthen spikes erupted upward. Such an attack, if it landed, would definitely cause serious harm.

But everyone was prepared and avoided the spikes effortlessly.

Seeing its attack miss, the Raging Bear seemed to realize this group was different. It stopped charging and instead slammed both palms heavily onto the ground, launching another wave of assault.

In that instant, an intense surge of magical energy covered the ground before the Raging Bear. The earth swelled upward rapidly, condensing into massive stone spheres, each two meters in diameter, which then rolled down with a thunderous roar.

The Raging Bear had been positioned uphill, so the boulders gained tremendous speed rolling downward, arriving before everyone’s eyes in the blink of an eye.

"Boom!"

Ralph raised his shield and charged forward, smashing head-on into the leading boulder, shattering it instantly. Shards of rock flew everywhere, yet he himself remained completely unmoved.

Those behind Ralph quickly took cover behind him, while the others relied on their own abilities to dodge.

Carlotta used Elven Butterfly Dance, her figure flickering unpredictably left and right, weaving through the gaps between the rolling boulders as she advanced forward.

Amelia also used Elven Butterfly Dance to evade. Though her mastery of the technique, being only supplementary, had not progressed as quickly, remaining at the Seventh Movement, she had frequently received guidance from Carlotta and thus could execute it with great finesse, enough to dodge the attacks.

The others each used their own methods, remaining unaffected.

The Raging Bear’s two consecutive assaults proved ineffective, only allowing the group to close the distance further. This enraged the beast.

It raised its head and let out a deafening roar. The ground surged once more, forming layer upon layer of towering earth waves, each several meters high. This time it was indiscriminate, there was no way to dodge.

"Move faster! With this thing roaring so loudly, it might attract the Flaming Bird. We must end this quickly!"

Aubrey shouted.

They had chosen to deal with the Raging Bear first because they believed they could defeat it swiftly, avoiding having to fight two peak tier Listener-level monsters at once.

The group surged forward immediately.

With Ralph leading the charge, shield in hand, the others used their abilities to slash through wave after wave of earth, closing in on the Raging Bear and swinging their weapons at it from all sides.

Under such pressure, the Raging Bear could no longer sustain the earth waves. It gathered elemental power, forming additional layers of rocky armor around its body, completely encasing itself. Then, it swung its enormous palm down directly at Ralph, the closest target.

"Boom!"

The bear’s paw slammed against the artifact shield, producing a deep, muffled sound that left Ralph momentarily dazed and disoriented.

"Quick! This thing’s attack power is insane!"

Ralph shouted urgently, he couldn’t hold out for long.

The others naturally understood the urgency.

One after another, they unleashed fierce attacks, spells and knight techniques erupting in rapid succession, stripping away the beast’s rocky armor in mere moments.

Carlotta was also attacking, but cautiously. As an eighth-tier apprentice striking against a peak tier Listener, the gap was too great, too dangerous. She had to be extremely careful.

Fortunately, the Raging Bear was preoccupied with the others and paid her little attention. Most of its attacks were directed elsewhere.

Among the rest, there were several middle-tier Listeners, and the others were all low-tier Listeners. Though the Raging Bear was already injured, fighting it still brought frequent danger, but it wasn’t beyond their capabilities.

After seven sustained minor injuries and three serious ones, Aubrey seized his chance. He leapt high into the air, his sword blazing with brilliant light, and plunged it directly into the Raging Bear’s eye socket, piercing clean through the back of its skull, ending its life instantly.

"We did it!"

Seeing this, Carlotta instinctively relaxed.

But in that very moment of relaxation, a glint of cold light suddenly approached from behind her. Her skin tightened instantly, and an intense sense of danger enveloped her entire body.

Who?

Carlotta had no time to identify anything. She threw herself sideways with all her speed, but still felt a sharp, icy blade graze her waist, tearing open a bloody gash. The searing pain made her wince.

She was injured!

Even as she evaded, Carlotta swiftly cast Elven Butterfly Dance to create distance, then swung her sword behind her, clashing with an incoming blade. The sharp ring of metal echoed across the mountain wilderness.

"Watch out!"

Only then did she hear Amelia’s frantic warning.

She turned her head around, eyes blazing with fury, desperate to see who had dared to attack her at such a moment. But what she saw brought her to a stunned halt.

"Why?"

She stared at the person before her, utterly unable to believe it was her who had struck.

Around them, Aubrey, Simen, and the others stared in shock.

Yet there stood Jemina, sword in hand, blood staining the blade, her expression cold and unyielding as she charged at Carlotta once more.

Carlotta could never have imagined Jemina would be the one to attack. Just recently, she had guided Jemina in practicing the Elven knight path. And now, the very person who had thanked her profusely had ambushed her, nearly killing her.

Jemina was from the Phantom Adventurer’s Guild. Besides her, another low-tier Listener from the same guild had targeted Amelia, but all his attacks had been blocked.

"What reason do you have to attack me? Are you after something I possess?"

Carlotta parried while demanding answers.

The wound on her waist bled heavily, bringing excruciating pain, but she could only endure it now.

Jemina said nothing, only pressed her attack relentlessly, her eyes burning with hatred.

Did they have a grudge? When?

Before Carlotta could ponder further, or the others could react, the sky suddenly brightened. A long, piercing cry echoed through the air.

The Flaming Bird had heard the commotion and arrived. It soared like a phoenix across the sky, bringing waves of scorching heat.

Seeing the corpse of the Raging Bear and the gathered group, the Flaming Bird hesitated not a moment. It flapped its wings violently, summoning massive fireballs that rained down upon them, engulfing everyone.

Seeing this, Carlotta could no longer demand answers. She swiftly leapt backward, retreating quickly.

Jemina lunged to pursue Carlotta, but a fireball landed precisely between them, blocking her path.

Carlotta retreated rapidly to Amelia’s side. Meanwhile, Amelia’s opponent, the low-tier Listener from the Phantom Adventurer’s Guild, after a brief exchange, realized Amelia was no ordinary foe and quickly pulled back, creating distance.

"Carlotta!"

Amelia caught Carlotta as she arrived, her beautiful face first filled with worry, then hardened with icy fury as she glared at Jemina in the distance.