Chapter 300 - The Horrorclaw
Triton received transmission through his messaging talisman. After putting it away, he told Damien, "They have found the ethereal beast known as the "Horrowclaw". We are going there right now and will hunt it down when we get there."
"Wow, they found it? Nice," Damien knew that the Horrorclaw was a hawk-like bird that was not only one of the fastest ethereal beasts among other Heaven Ethereal Realm beasts but also had poisonous claws that could kill a Sky Ethereal Realm practitioner within seconds once scratched.
Ana had a shocked expression, "Horrowclaw? That's one of the most dangerous ethereal beasts in the Venomous Grove. In fact, the whole forest was named like that because it is the king of that region. Not even other ethereal beasts approach that area. I know you two are very powerful, but that beast is rumored to be at the powerful Heaven Ethereal Realm."
Damien understood that anyone with the Heaven Ethereal Realm cultivation was like gods to her due to the power difference. So, it was natural for her to feel apprehensive about them approaching it.
Damien was only more delighted to hear that and said, "Then that's great. I guess it is indeed more powerful than I thought."
Triton chimed in, "You don't have to worry. We have experts with us."
Ana felt relieved upon hearing that they had experts accompanying them. She then knocked herself in the head for worrying like a fool since people like these two would definitely have senior experts accompanying them for protection.
She could only imagine how powerful these experts would be. However, seeing how both of them were confident of hunting it down, she thought that these experts should be at least at the Heaven Ethereal Realm!
She looked at Triton's back and wondered what his mysterious background would be.
Soon enough, they came upon a rocky region situated near a grassland. There they saw Blaze and Shania standing atop a hill while looking into the distant forest, which only had a few trees in sight.
They got down from the mount, and both the seniors looked towards them.
Looking at Damien's clothes, Blaze commented, "Looks like somebody caused some trouble."
Damien pointed at Triton and said, "He started it, and I just helped him out."
Triton gave a side glare at Damien, only to see him smirk at him.
Shania's brows raised, and she asked skeptically, "Really? He was never the type to cause any kind of commotion."
Then she saw Ana nervously hiding behind Triton and asked, "Wait, who is she?"
Ana couldn't feel anything from these two seniors standing before her, but she knew better than to be fooled by looks and knew that these two were more powerful than she could imagine.
However, her notion of a senior expert seemed to change since these two didn't seem to show any loftiness or arrogance but instead seemed like two normal people sightseeing.
Triton explained, "Some frog was harassing her and her baby. So, I stopped them and had to take her away for her safety. Otherwise, those we offended would target her after we are gone."
Shania sighed and came forward, making Ana step back due to her nervousness.
"It's fine," Triton reassured, making Ana relax.
Shania saw the baby and felt bad for Ana after seeing her condition. She could clearly see signs of overwork and how she was struggling to earn money while looking after her child.
She took Ana's hand and said in a gentle tone, "Don't worry, everything will be alright now."
Just hearing that one soothing sentence and seeing her smile made Ana feel as if her heart was caving in.
Her body trembled as she broke down into tears, releasing all the pent-up worries and tension she had in her heart all this time. Thinking about all the sufferings she had to undergo for nothing and to deal with its consequences had left her heart in shambles.
"Shh, it's fine. You are safe now," Shania pulled her in for an embrace and comforted her. Shania could only imagine how much Ana had to suffer. Seeing the baby with her, she could understand why Triton took action.
Damien realized again how crappy the world was seeing Ana cry, 'Sigh...the world never plays fair...unless we are powerful enough for the world to not affect us,' Damien thought as his eyes shined with a determined glint.
After a few moments, Ana felt embarrassed to raise her head since she never expected to break down like that.
Meanwhile, Damien was talking with Blaze about the Horrowclaw beast.
"Right now, it's in the forest. But we heard that it would go into a state of slumber soon. We are waiting to attack at that time since it might make things easier. But if its reflexes are too fast, then I guess it won't make much of a difference," Blaze said as he looked at the distant forest.
Damien nodded, "That's fine. There's no hurry." Damien wanted the two seniors to take down the bird in their own sweet time rather than rushing it.
Ana's apprehensions dissolved away as she got comfortable with Shania, who had a motherly charm. Shania had a lot of experience dealing with kids and youngsters with lots of problems or those that had internal demons.
So, she was able to make Ana relax, and since Triton already wanted to be responsible for his actions, Shania decided to support him till the end.
Soon it was time for them to attack. Damien, Blaze, and Shania set out for the distant forest while Triton stayed back with Ana.
Ana couldn't help but steal glances at Triton from time to time. But then she would shake her head as if trying to throw out any ridiculous thoughts.
Damien and the two seniors were subtly traversing the forest till they stopped at a distance away from a huge rock.
Because atop that rock rested a huge bird with at least twelve feet in length and had razor-sharp dark purple claws.
Its features were similar to that of a hawk but only way larger than the ones Damien knew. It had a hooked beak, and Damien was sure that just a single peck from it could tear out flesh like paper.
And its claws were even more dangerous since one scratch can even be dangerous for Heaven Ethereal Realm cultivators. If they do not treat it in time, they could die.
Damien was impressed that Shania and Blaze didn't seem hesitant about killing this ethereal beast for him.
"Damien, you stay here. Don't get close till we kill it," Blaze said in a cautious tone.
Damien nodded.
Blaze and Shania then proceeded forward to try and take the huge bird by surprise. Damien maintained a safe distance since he only needed to rush in after they had killed it.
*SCREEEE!!*
Damien almost had to seal his ears because of the powerful shriek of the bird and knew that the two had begun their assault on the ethereal beast.
He couldn't even get a clear sight since waves and waves of ethereal energy were being sent out, and he had to take cover to not get caught up in one of those shockwaves.
Even if it was him, he was sure that one of these shockwaves would leave him with broken bones and damaged organs all over.
Trees were being sliced off like butter with each blow, while some were shredded into bits. Gales of wind stormed throughout the whole region, and the shockwaves rippled through hundreds of meters.
Booming sounds reverberated throughout the forest, and many smaller birds in the sky even dropped dead because of the powerful shockwaves of ethereal energy pulverizing their bodies.
Damien gulped, thinking that this was how powerful a Heaven Ethereal Realm cultivator was. They were indeed a league above the Sky Ethereal Realm cultivators. He could even feel the earth shaking from such a distance.
And the fact that Blaze and Shania were still fighting the Middle-Level Heaven Ethereal Realm beast was only proof of how powerful it was. After all, Blaze and Shania were at the Peak Level of the Heaven Ethereal Realm.
Damien spread out his spiritual perception to the maximum, and he could only vaguely see that Blaze and Shania were trying to avoid the Horrowclaw's claw attacks and were merely trying to tire it out.
Soon enough, it took into the skies, and Damien could vaguely see bloodied cuts and wounds on its body while Shania and Blaze didn't sustain any injuries at all, surprisingly.
Damien knew that these two were taking more time to kill it was because they had to avoid its poisonous claws and also because its body was tougher and thus more difficult to injure it without dealing it a heavy blow.
If only one of them was present, then it wouldn't be impossible for them to defeat, but it would be difficult.
However, since both Blaze and Shania were working together, they could take it more easily. It would only be a matter of time before they strike down the bird.
The Horrorclaw had taken to the skies to escape, but alas, it had no idea that these two were powerful enough to even fly.
It could only bitterly put up a fight before soon enough, Shania and Blaze released a finishing attack on it at the same time, crumbling its defenses and crushing its organs.
Damien smiled, seeing the silhouette of a large bird plummeting onto the ground.. He instantly executed Mirage of Myriad Phantasms, and one could only see a bright purple streak heading towards the forest at an insane speed.