After a whole morning of back and forth, the group had only managed to kill four crocodiles, and there were still more than a dozen paddy fields that hadn't been explored.
Sun Wukong, who was in charge of luring the monsters, was now exhausted and lying on the ground.
"Let's rest first and have lunch while we're at it."
Hao Yun decided to take a break first and continue cleaning up the crocodiles in the paddy fields in the afternoon.
A campfire was set up on the shore. Hao Yun cut off the tail of a crocodile. After cleaning it, Hao Yun cut the crocodile tail into pieces, marinated it simply with seasonings, and then put it in a pot to fry.
The other four people stood around, their mouths watering.
"Is it not ripe yet?"
Time Machine wiped the drool from the corner of his mouth, stared at the crocodile meat in the pot, and his stomach rumbled with craving.
"It'll be quick, just a little longer."
Hao Yun, focused on cooking, practically shone in Ye Zi's eyes.
Hao Yun flipped the crocodile meat over, listened to the sizzling sound in the pot, and thought it was almost done, so he quickly plated it.
To prevent any fighting, Hao Yun divided the crocodile meat into five portions.
"The dry food heats up on its own; you can just put it on a fire and eat it."
No one answered Hao Yun's question because they were all eating crocodile meat.
The meat was extremely hot when it came out of the pot, and the four of them were sizzling and laughing from the heat, but no one spat it out.
Hao Yun shook his head and sat down to taste the crocodile meat he had fried.
The crocodile meat has a subtle creamy flavor and a chewy texture, somewhat similar to dried beef jerky, but slightly softer.
Chapter 192 Camping in the Wilderness
Hao Yun wasn't entirely satisfied with the pan-fried crocodile meat; he had overcooked it, causing the meat to become tough.
Next time I can try making stewed meat; the taste should be better, and the meat should be more tender.
The other four people enjoyed their meal and were quite satisfied.
"Time machine! You're stealing my flesh, or I'll get angry!"
While Six-Wa was roasting his rations, the Time Machine secretly stole a piece of meat from his tray, almost shattering their strong friendship.
"Don't be so stingy. I'll just share a piece of my barbecue with you next time."
Lunch ended amidst the two playfully bickering. After a short rest, the five of them continued their quest to lure monsters and kill crocodiles in the afternoon.
After a busy afternoon, as darkness fell, they still hadn't finished their task; five paddy fields remained to be cleared.
"Looks like we'll have to go camping tonight, how annoying!"
The time machine sat on a crocodile carcass and angrily kicked it twice.
"There's nothing we can do. This paddy field is too big. We've already killed nine crocodiles. Who knows if there will be more?"
The idle Sixth Brother, much like a time machine, sat on a crocodile carcass, waiting for Sun Wukong to lure the monster over.
"What do you have to complain about? We should have thrown you down to lure the monsters too, so we could go back to the hotel to sleep tonight."
As a woman, Yezi takes a bath every day. But today, she is sleeping outdoors and has no way to take a bath. She finds it hard to stand the smell of her own sweat.
"I can't swim, and the water is so deep, I'll drown if I go in."
The time machine spread its hands, indicating that it really wanted to help, but genuinely couldn't.
As for Liuwa, he had already hidden to the side and kept quiet to avoid being affected.
This morning I went into the water to lure the monster and almost got bitten to death. Six-Wa would never go into the water under any circumstances.
Just as Ye Zi was about to say something, the time machine interrupted her.
"We've got a job. Prepare to attack."
Ye Zi glared at the time machine, then raised her shield, ready to provide support.
Sun Wukong, carrying a crocodile, ran straight to the shore. But this time, unlike before, the crocodile stopped at the shore and didn't foolishly rush ashore.
"What's going on? Why isn't it coming ashore?"
The time machine tentatively fired a wind blade, which struck the crocodile's armor, leaving only a small gash.
Having failed to lure the monster, Sun Wukong found it strange, so he swung his iron cudgel and smashed it down on the crocodile's head.
With a muffled thud, the crocodile was knocked down several centimeters.
'Gurgle!'
The crocodile let out a series of low growls, twisted its body, and turned to swim back.
Hao Yun, who was standing aside waiting for his chance, quickly figured out the reason. They had killed nine crocodiles today using this method. Even if the crocodiles were mindless, they would be on guard and would not easily come ashore.
"Wukong, don't let him get away, stop him!"
Following Hao Yun's instructions, Sun Wukong jumped into the water and struck the crocodile with his staff.
When attacked, the crocodile turned to bite him, but Sun Wukong nimbly dodged it.
Hao Yun hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth and jumped into the pool. He approached the crocodile from the side and, during a lull in its attack, leaped onto its back.
Having killed nine crocodiles in a row, Hao Yun was already experienced and easily killed it.
With Sun Wukong's help, the two worked together to drag the crocodile carcass ashore.
Hao Yun sighed as he shook off the seaweed.
"It seems our method of luring the monsters is no longer working; they probably won't swim ashore so easily."
"What should we do? There are still four paddy fields left. Are we going to fight in the water?"
Sun Wukong scratched his head, thinking that fighting in the water was not a good idea.
The underwater area is full of silt, which greatly affects movement speed. If your feet get stuck during a fight, you will definitely be bitten by a crocodile.
A crocodile's sharp teeth are no joke; one bite could turn a person into a sieve.
"There's no other way. Let's rest and recover our strength. Let's try to finish the remaining four paddy fields tonight and head back to the city first thing tomorrow morning."
Hao Yun sat on the shore, wiping the mud off his legs, too tired to get up.
After fighting on and off all day, even with Hao Yun's excellent physique, he couldn't take it anymore. After all, he was a melee fighter, not a mage.
If you're a mage, even if you're lying on the ground casting spells, no one will say anything to you.
An hour later, Hao Yun stood up and took a deep breath.
“Keep going, Sun Wukong. You continue to lure the monsters. I'll wait on the shore. If the crocodile still turns around and leaves, you go up and entangle it. I'll take care of killing it.”
Sun Wukong nodded, indicating that there was no problem.
Sun Wukong jumped into one of the remaining four paddy fields and started smashing it randomly with his iron rod. After circling around, he found nothing in the paddy field.
"continue."
Following Hao Yun's instructions, Sun Wukong jumped into another paddy field.
This time, there was still nothing. Hao Yun even suspected that they had killed all the crocodiles in the paddy field.
If so, they could easily return before the slime town closed its gates.
After checking three paddy fields without finding any crocodiles, Sun Wukong immediately jumped into the fourth. If there were still no crocodiles this time, they could call it a day.
Bang!
As soon as Sun Wukong swung his iron rod, a crocodile leaped out from the water, indicating that it had been lying in ambush for a long time.
"May the Holy Light protect you!"
Ye Zi reacted quickly and immediately used her defensive skill.
Even so, Sun Wukong still paid the price; his waist was slashed by the crocodile's sharp teeth, leaving four deep wounds.
Sun Wukong, with his rich combat experience, carried the iron rod on his shoulder and used it to press against the crocodile's upper jaw, preventing it from closing its mouth.
"Wind Blade!"
The time machine's attack was swift, accurate, and ruthless; more than a dozen wind blades pierced directly into the crocodile's belly.
The crocodile struggled desperately, and its immense force sent Sun Wukong flying, the iron rod disappearing into the distance.
The sixth brother, who was assisting in the attack, aimed at the crocodile's eyes and quickly fired two arrows.
Pfft!
The crossbow bolt pierced the crocodile's eyes, blinding it. The red blood fell into the pool, turning the green water a pale red.
"charge!"
With a burst of power from his legs, Hao Yun sprang off the shore like a spring, heading straight for the crocodile.
Seemingly sensing danger, the crocodile lowered its head, turned around, and swept its tail horizontally.
Bang!
Hao Yun was sent flying like a badminton shuttlecock.
The two forces collided, and Hao Yun felt a tightness in his chest, saw stars, and couldn't stand up.
Kneeling in the pool, Hao Yun watched helplessly as the crocodile opened its blood-red mouth and bit at his head.
Whoosh!
A heavy object landed in front of Hao Yun, splashing dirty water everywhere.
Carrying a heavy shield, Ye Zi held it in both hands and used her shoulders to brace it, blocking the crocodile's strangulation attack.
At this moment, Hao Yun's gaze towards Ye Zi changed. He realized that this little girl was quite reliable. The combination of a heavy shield and a little girl created a strong sense of contrasting cuteness.
Are you alright? Can you still move?
While braving the crocodile's attack, Ye Zi took a moment to inquire about Hao Yun's physical condition.
Shaking his head, Hao Yun took a deep breath and finally regained control of his body.