Monster Hunter: I can accept monster quests!

Chapter 17 Preparing to Escape Africa and Enter Europe

A dozen minutes after leaving the forest, the blue-glowing bubble in Chen Yan's mind popped, realizing that the Anjanath wouldn't see the sun rise tomorrow.

Thanks to Azure Star, Chen Yan got a free reward from a Poisonous Bird quest.

This time, he was fully prepared. First, he respectfully washed his hands by the stream, then carefully wiped them clean on the cleanest part of the cat's skin. He prayed to every god and Buddha he knew, and when the roulette wheel stopped spinning, it indeed stopped at the point he most desired: the activation of the poison.

next door.

[Task completed.]

[Developed Tongue]: Your tongue muscles are highly developed, allowing you to control airflow and tone more precisely, pronounce complex syllables more clearly, and significantly improve the efficiency of food delivery and chewing in your mouth. If you are not too tired, you don't have to worry about snoring.

Chen Yan cursed and threw the few smoldering tree branches he was clutching onto the ground.

At night, in the open-air warehouse.

Xialong lay on a pile of damp logs, half a mushroom-shaped pig in its mouth, waiting for the meat to soften with venom before sucking it.

Chen Yan sat on a small stool and told Xia Long in a long, rambling manner what had happened that day.

Naomi stopped coming with him yesterday, saying the survey team detected traces of an underground lava dragon's activity, and they were preparing for an ambush operation in a certain canyon. She'd been incredibly busy lately. Her exact words were: "You're closer to the Chameleon than to me! Then why would I need to come along!"

"Boss Xialong, you have no idea, you almost didn't see me today. It all started the moment I boarded the ship bound for the New World..."

After Chen Yan developed his tongue muscles, he spoke even faster. He didn't care whether Xia Long could understand him or not; he just spoke with great enthusiasm.

In his highly watery narration, he said that he had already fought alongside Azure Star, with him at the forefront, and together they were fighting against the Anjanath.

While talking nonstop, her eyes kept glancing at the claws of the Xialong nestled under its belly.

It's been several days since I massaged Xialong, but the golden bubbles I saw when I massaged Him are still in my mind.

The bubble size and its contents remained unchanged, leaving Chen Yan, who was eyeing the rewards from the Xialong quest, completely baffled.

Is one massage not enough, and do I need to have several more?

Xialong's eyes, capable of focusing and rotating independently, were incredibly sharp; it had long ago noticed Chen Yan's furtive glances at it.

Seeing that this was the seventh time he had peeked at it, after trying to eliminate the possibilities by shaking its wings, sucking its belly, and wagging its tail, it finally realized that Chen Yan wanted to see its claws.

Although she didn't understand why, she still stuck out her tongue and clung to him, placing her front paws in his arms.

If you want to watch, then watch.

Chen Yan was somewhat taken aback as he held Xialong's purple jade feet. After his meticulous scrubbing and massage last time, the thick calluses and dead skin on its claws had been mostly removed, revealing the slightly purplish soft scales.

In addition, He is not fond of moving around and spends all day with His paws tucked under His belly, with His belly on top and a damp log underneath, which is equivalent to being covered in leather and kept in a steam room.

So now it feels soft and damp to the touch, and I can even smell a unique fragrance...

For some reason, Chen Yan swallowed hard. He obediently placed his paws on his lap. Since he was idle anyway, he might as well practice his massage technique a little more.

He used all ten fingers to feel around on His claws, and then found a few small hard lumps in the center of His claws and began to work on them.

As the hardened mass gradually melted away, Xialong's stiff body seemed to soften a bit.

It wasn't until the next day, when Chen Yan consulted the knowledgeable old dragon scholar, that he learned, strictly speaking, that in addition to its four legs, the two sharp claws protruding from the joints of the Xialong's wings could also be called its claws, or more precisely, its toes.

Chen Yan suddenly realized that it wasn't a problem with the mission, but rather that he hadn't finished giving the massage!

He was eager to finish pressing the claws on the dragon's wings tonight, but his immediate priority was to prepare the items needed for the lottery ceremony!

This is the first Ancient Dragon-level quest reward he's about to receive; he's been eyeing the Mimicry Invisibility ability for ages!

...

At the conference table, discussions were in full swing regarding the first ambush operation against the Lava Dragon.

"The basic interception network has been set up, and the ballistae and artillery on both sides of the canyon have been deployed in a near-complete manner. Ammunition supplies are still being delivered continuously. At the current pace, all preparations can be completed ahead of schedule before the Lavasioth appears."

Naomi, with a serious expression, finished reporting the situation regarding supplies to the Commander-in-Chief.

The commander-in-chief's perpetually furrowed brow relaxed slightly.

"With you here, I don't have to worry about logistics much at all, which is great. Also, Shota, just say what you want to say. Why are you always peeking at Naomi?"

Shota, the squad leader of the combat squad, blushed. Standing at the end, he looked at Naomi several times, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopped. He thought no one would see, but the observant commander-in-chief noticed it nonetheless.

Faced with Naomi's suspicious gaze, Shota coughed twice and began to explain.

"It wasn't peeking, it was openly and honestly looking..."

The moment the words left his mouth, they seemed even more suspicious.

"Ahem, Commander-in-Chief, it's like this. Although we are very well prepared, both the ground deployment and the recommended hunter teams have been arranged very well."

He pointed to the sketch on the table, his fingertip lingering on the brief intelligence description about the Lava Dragon.

As an ancient dragon monster carrying the fiery mountain on its back, the Lava Dragon is larger than imagined. It is over 250 meters long and its body width is also quite astonishing. It is practically a walking active volcano.

Even though this monster has not yet shown any offensive capabilities, it can easily flatten forests and towns with just a few steps, and even widen tectonic plate fissures, triggering unimaginable earthquakes and tsunamis.

When faced with a threat, He doesn't even need to defend Him; almost no weapon can penetrate His volcanic rock armor, so...

"Sniping Naomi—no, snatching the Zorah Magdaros—does seem like a sure thing on paper, but it is, after all, the largest Elder Dragon ever created, so I think it's necessary to use every means at our disposal, including the one after that..."

"No!"

Before Shota could finish speaking, Naomi interrupted him sharply.

"Are you trying to use Chameleon against Zorah Magdaros? Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely not!"

Although Naomi was only the head of the logistics squad and didn't have much combat power, and was usually amiable and always smiling, her aura when she was angry was truly terrifying, so much so that Shota dared not say another word and could only look to the Commander-in-Chief for help.

The Commander-in-Chief stroked his stubble, looked at Naomi, and then at Shota.

"Speaking of Chameleon, it is indeed an interesting ancient dragon. I have seen intelligent Chameleons before, but this is the first time I have seen one that is this intelligent."

"I heard that He not only stole a lot of our supplies while invisible, but also got along very well with a young man named Chen Yan in the stronghold, so well that Xia Long has even allowed Chen Yan to touch His body?"

"Humans befriending ancient dragons is unprecedented. The New World truly lives up to its name, always bringing us surprises."

The middle and senior management attending the meeting were in an uproar. They knew that a dragon was lurking behind the stronghold, but they really didn't know who Chen Yan was.

Naomi glared at Harley, who was huddled in the corner with a sheepish grin on her face. It must have been that big mouth who told the tale.

You're in for a beating tonight! I'll spank your ass until it's swollen!

Harley, who received different information from Naomi's left and right eyes, trembled and hurriedly pulled down the brim of her harpy hat to play dead.

The commander-in-chief's few words broke the tense atmosphere of the meeting. Facing Shota's eager gaze, he shook his head and made his final judgment.

"The location for intercepting the Lava Dragon is special. Although the venom of the Chameleon is powerful, it may not be effective in the high-temperature environment of a lava volcano, and may even injure our own people."

"According to our meticulously planned strategy, even without Chameleon, we should be able to keep Lavasioth out. Therefore, the plan remains unchanged; this time, we will capture Lavasioth again using our own strength!"