An opponent like this, a monster like this—and that despair-inducing ability to absorb energy from the Everstream, allowing it to remain at its absolute peak at all times—left the hunters unable to see even the slightest hope of victory.
Yet even so, they still maintained their high-spirited charge.
After another breath attack sent several hunters flying, Safi'jiiva felt a faint unease stirring within.
It was not that it believed the hunters posed a mortal threat to it. Rather, it had not expected that, after unleashing energy output at this level, the hunters would still charge again and again like indestructible cockroaches.
This battle had dragged on for far too long. It had likely already drawn the attention of certain watching eyes.
A thread of unease began to surface in its heart.
It wanted to withdraw.
In its full critical state, Safi'jiiva's attack power was indeed outrageously overwhelming—merely brushing against it could cost a hunter their combat capability. But at the same time, its nauseatingly tough hide had finally improved; the excessive energy flooding its muscles had instead caused flaws to appear in what could not even be called defense, but rather damage mitigation.
Hunters like Darren, wielding weapons of Elder Dragon tier or higher, were now capable of inflicting some effective damage upon Safi'jiiva.
However, this battle—one that Darren had vaguely judged to be prolonged and almost impossible to win—came to an abrupt halt after one of Safi'jiiva's massive wide-range breath attacks.
It did not follow up the breath with the terrifying predatory pursuit as it had before. Instead, it spread its wings, endured the hunters' ranged attacks head-on, and launched itself upward into flight.
It was retreating.
"What is this? What is this?! Get back here!!"
Eyes bloodshot, Darren leapt high into the air. The launcher on his left wrist fired the Clutch Claw, but because of the distance, it slipped past beneath Safi'jiiva's feet as it reached its maximum range.
"Damn it!"
With a dull thud, Darren landed heavily, dropping to one knee. Through the narrow gap of his helmet, he watched helplessly as the crimson figure flew toward the next platform. The wingdrakes raised and managed by the Research Commission dared not approach due to Safi'jiiva's current position.
"Is it over?"
Such a question echoed in the hunters' minds. Looking at the charred, blood-red land beneath their feet, they felt fear, relief—but even more so, anger and unwillingness.
Safi'jiiva's current position had already exceeded even the farthest effective range of the heavy bowguns. There was nothing they could do anymore.
Whoosh!!
A piercing sound rang out from overhead.
Several massive ballista bolts tore through the air, firing from a blind spot in Safi'jiiva's field of view, and slammed into its flank in an instant.
Because of Safi'jiiva's scales, only a few barely managed to break through its damage mitigation and land a hit; the rest rebounded amid crisp clashing sounds.
But even that caused Safi'jiiva's body to briefly lose balance, halting its momentum in flight.
Immediately after, more than a dozen hunters—only just healed and returned to the battlefield—leapt from that tier of platform. Roaring with fury, they used hunter knives to pry into the gaps between Safi'jiiva's scales, jamming themselves into its wing joints and forcibly yanking it down.
Boom, boom, boom!
A rapid chain of energy explosions erupted. As Safi'jiiva hit the ground, the hunters clinging to its body were blasted away in the explosions, their bodies falling into the crowd—whether they were alive or dead, no one knew.
Yet it was precisely this life-for-life interception that let the hunters see hope again.
"AAAAH!!"
Before Safi'jiiva could even haul itself up from the ground, the assault led by Darren and the recommended-team hunters arrived first.
This time, their targets were unmistakably clear: Safi'jiiva's wings!
Even at a cost, they had to stop it from leaving again!
On the desolate second-tier platform, the Commander calmly issued orders while winding in the rope of the ballista, directing the cats to hurry and carry out the next round of loading.
With the battle having dragged on to this point, there were no spare hunters left on the item-team side to operate ballistae like these.
Therefore, under the Commander's resolute command, the Fourth Fleet's logistics personnel had all withdrawn, and he had personally brought these ballistae here together with those hunters who had just recovered from their injuries.
Now, at this moment, only these cats remained at his side.
Safi'jiiva was truly enraged. It had clearly already chosen to withdraw, sparing these weak creatures a path to live.
But it had not expected that they would stop it by means that were practically suicidal.
As confusion surged in its heart, that intense unease also continued to deepen.
And what it manifested as was sharper, more violent attacks. It had to clear away whatever was entangling it in the shortest possible time, and then hurry to leave this already-useless area.
Darren frantically charged his power. Even though the muscles throughout his body ached and the fighting spirit surging through him made his tendons throb with pain, the movements of his hands did not slow in the slightest—all for the sake of completely severing the flight of the creature before him.
However, while fighting, Safi'jiiva continued absorbing what little Everstream energy remained within the earth to replenish itself. The wound Darren tore open one second was healed again the next.
It could be said that, under insufficient output, as long as Safi'jiiva could continue absorbing Everstream energy, they would be unable to inflict truly effective damage upon it.
As they watched Safi'jiiva break free of its restraints once more and beat its wings to rise into the air again, the hunters were truly plunged into despair this time.
There would not coincidentally be another group of hunters returning to the battlefield waiting above for Safi'jiiva. Moreover, with Safi'jiiva's intelligence, it would certainly be on guard against the same method being used again.
This hunt—they had failed.
The Commander roared for the cats to fire the bolts. But after Safi'jiiva disengaged its critical state and shielded itself with its wings, the massive ballista bolts all rebounded, and it even had enough time to exhale a breath attack toward the ballista position.
As the Commander was knocked down by the cats, he could only watch helplessly as the bolts—so arduously transported here—were shattered within the breath.
That crimson figure, no longer obstructed, climbed toward the sky above the valley.
Close—closer and closer!
As long as it flew out of the valley, it could conceal itself once again. It, too, only wished to survive!
Red!
Crimson light filled the vision. The temperature in the air surged violently in an instant. On the topmost first platform of the Secluded Valley—already completely desolate and dead—the withered vines began to burn under the extreme heat, while the hunters and cats below, bewildered, took out Cool Drinks and consumed them.
Having already reached the exit, Safi'jiiva felt a sudden palpitation. In the next second, it saw a cluster of mysterious crimson light tear across the sky, diving straight toward it.
Boom!
"ROAR!"
Amid a tremendous crash, the crimson light carried Safi'jiiva's body downward, smashing through the desolate first layer, piercing through the already "dead" second layer, and slamming heavily onto the ground of the third layer.
The exaggerated impact force, along with a heatwave hot enough to evaporate the moisture from the air, spread in all directions.
Within the dense smoke and dust, the two colossal beasts locked horns against each other, unleashing thunderous dragon roars that shook the heavens.