Chapter 462 Wild Shape

The Blade of Vengeance Ship was a team built with Adventurers at its core.

Perhaps its captain had a different motive when forming the team, and the name "Blade of Vengeance" reflected that to some extent.

Under normal circumstances, however, they were not fundamentally different from the other Adventurer fleets in Barracuda Bay. They followed the same cycle—"accept commission—collect reward—rest—accept next commission"—relying on quest bounties to keep the entire team running.

Even so, in Xia Nan's eyes, none of the members were bad people. They each had their own quirks, and their performance during the storm proved just how reliable these teammates were in battle.

But if strictly categorized by alignment, the "Blade of Vengeance" as a whole would fall somewhere between "Lawful Evil" and "Chaotic Neutral."

Driven by self-interest, they appeared free on the surface, but in reality, they operated as a collective to enforce the principles they believed in.

Lorraine had seen too many Sahuagin and knew their habits perfectly well, harboring a deep disgust for them. As for the fishermen on Hare Island, she had interacted with them in the past and had some friendly ties with their village chief, but they were far from actual friends.

Given this premise, facing the reality of fishmen slaughtering an entire fishing village, she obviously wasn't going to rush in blindly to avenge people she barely knew, dragging herself and her teammates into danger. Moreover, the worldview she had formed over years of sailing the seas did not align with human supremacists who viewed all non-humans as sworn enemies; she would not fly into a rage simply because humans had been killed by monsters.

She simply considered the current situation from the perspective of herself, her teammates beside her, and the entire fleet behind her.

First and foremost, of course, was the threat level of these fishmen.

There were thirty-six of them in total. The vast majority were ordinary fishmen with a Challenge Rating of "0.5." However, the six Sahuagin kneeling at the very front of the altar each had two pairs of arms and visibly bulkier physiques. The weapons in their hands and the armor on their bodies also looked far less primitive. They were clearly elite-tier existences, with Challenge Ratings estimated to reach "lv2," or perhaps even "lv3" and beyond.

Furthermore, the Sahuagin priest clutching a strange conch in its webbed hand elevated their overall strength by another tier.

This made things extremely delicate.

It was true that Lorraine was an lv7 Class Holder, but Class Level and Challenge Rating were two entirely different concepts. A monster in peak condition usually required four Class Holders of the same level—with complementary roles and established teamwork—to safely eliminate.

The thirty-six fishmen before them might have fallen within the range of what Lorraine could handle alone. But factoring in the presence of a Spellcaster and the fact that the beach was right next to the ocean, the actual outcome of a battle was somewhat ambiguous.

If she were younger, she might have just charged right in.

But now, she had much more to worry about.

They had only come to Hare Island to inspect and repair their ship. Since they had no fundamental conflict with these fishmen, there seemed to be no reason to fight them.

However, ship maintenance took quite some time. Even if everything went smoothly, the earliest they could depart would be this evening. Right now, it was only dawn, leaving an entire day in between.

Sahuagin were naturally hostile toward humans, and the ones before them were even more extreme. They hadn't even bothered looting the village; they just left no survivors.

Under these circumstances, who could guarantee that over such a long stretch of time, these Sahuagin wouldn't discover the Blade of Vengeance Ship docked at the pier less than a thirty-minute walk from the village?

If that happened, the fishmen certainly wouldn't fight them on land like they would now. With the ocean as their home turf, the initiative would fall entirely into the enemy's hands.

Given Lorraine's personality, she obviously wasn't going to let her team suffer a potential disaster just because of a little wishful thinking.

Since the enemy's overall strength was within a range they could handle, she decided to take the initiative and nip the danger in the bud.

"I'll stay here," she said. "Xia Nan, you take Hein back first and call Sasha and the others over."

In Lorraine's eyes, the safest course of action was naturally to wait until all the Class Holders in the team were assembled before launching a surprise attack on the fishmen.

She would have Xia Nan escort the Spellcaster Hein to the pier for backup, while she, as the captain, stayed in the most dangerous spot to monitor the fishmen below.

Her approach was perfectly fine, and could even be called prudent.

If Xia Nan put himself in her shoes, he probably couldn't have thought of a better solution either, and as a temporary member, he had no intention of challenging her authority as captain.

But right now, his experiences on Cliff Rock Island gave Xia Nan a different perspective.

"Captain, these Sahuagin should be conducting some kind of ritual. I've seen it before," Xia Nan said.

"The monsters they summon are incredibly tough to deal with. From here to the pier and back—the situation could change drastically in that time."

It wasn't that Xia Nan was overthinking things; after all, the image of that Shark Beast slaughtering the Silver Claw Osprey Squad was still vivid in his mind. Even he had barely managed to kill it.

With the fishmen throwing such a massive ritual right now, if they summoned a few more Shark Beasts, or even stronger monsters, the Blade of Vengeance Squad might not be able to safely resolve this even if everyone gathered.

He had only just joined the team and didn't want it to end so soon.

Therefore, a word of warning was absolutely necessary.

Right on the heels of that, the Druid Hein's words further corroborated the credibility of Xia Nan's warning.

"The water elemental energy by the sea is indeed showing signs of gathering toward the altar. While I can't be absolutely certain it's a summoning ritual, that fishman priest is definitely casting a spell," she said.

Hearing this, Lorraine frowned deeply.

Of course, she wasn't the kind of arbitrary dictator who refused to let her authority be questioned.

With both of her teammates saying so, she realized the unique urgency of the current situation.

When wiping out this group of fishmen became a necessity, and going back for backup was too slow and prone to causing complications, it seemed they were left with only one choice.

Her furrowed brows suddenly relaxed. With a sway of her fiery red hair, Lorraine made her decision.

It was just that their numbers were truly limited right now. Including herself, there were only three of them, and one was a vital Spellcaster who needed close-quarters protection.

After pondering for a moment, Lorraine nodded at Hein with pointed meaning. "You go on up first. I might not have time to look after you in a bit."

'Up?' Xia Nan wondered, taken aback, but then he saw Hein suddenly take two steps back.

Hum—

An emerald magical brilliance flashed and vanished.

The woman with cold, pale skin and shoulder-length brown hair stretched out her arms and stood slightly on her tiptoes.

The swirling emerald light in the air compressed inward, clinging tightly to the surface of her body.

Her facial features blurred under the glow of the light. Her already slender arms stretched outward under the effect of the magical brilliance, and her center of gravity gradually shifted downward.

Like clay made of pure green light, her originally bipedal human form rapidly shifted with every breath. Amidst the flickering light, a sharply elongating beak and manifesting feathers could faintly be seen.

"Whoosh—"

A gentle breeze swept past, blowing away the verdant glow covering Hein's body.

As specks of light scattered, the human Druid who had been standing there was gone.

In her place was a Short-Tailed Albatross, noticeably larger than its peers, covered in pure white feathers with a layer of brown down over its back and neck.

As a Druid of the Coral Society whose Class Level had reached lv3, Hein had naturally unlocked her "Wild Shape," allowing her to transform into a beast just like the common stereotype of the Druid profession.

Seeing a Druid transform right in front of him for the first time, Xia Nan felt a sense of novelty and examined her closely for a few moments.

His staring made the usually composed Hein feel a bit embarrassed, and she flapped her wings, intending to take to the sky.

Although her spellcasting abilities were significantly weakened in her Wild Shape, she gained the avian ability to fly. With the advantage of altitude, she no longer needed the two of them to protect her.

Looking at the massive wings of the albatross Hein had turned into, Xia Nan suddenly had a thought.

Unlike the cramped environment of the cavern on Cliff Rock Island, the beach they were on was incredibly wide open. He could use [Fang Hunt] to dodge and maneuver without restraint, fully utilizing his mobility.

However, the excessively wide open space also gave the fishmen plenty of time to react. They would be able to spot Xia Nan's group from far away. Even if he used [Fang Hunt] in advance to close the distance, he would still be discovered very quickly.

This made Xia Nan's usual tactic—executing a decapitation strike against the enemy Spellcaster at the start of the battle—extremely difficult.

He had been wondering if there was any other way, perhaps trying to flank them from the side.

But now, looking at this Short-Tailed Albatross that was much larger than normal, Xia Nan suddenly had an idea.

"Wait a minute," he said.

"Can you—"

"Gah—roo—"

The guttural, sticky voice carried a certain rhythm. The Sahuagin priest stood atop the altar, swaying its body with two conches clutched in its hands.

One could faintly see the mucus secreted over its dark blue scales, which helped it retain moisture and survive outside the ocean environment for short periods.

A late-arriving elite Sahuagin casually tossed the completely lifeless human corpse it had dragged all the way from the fishing village into a pit that was already nearly overflowing with dead bodies.

Then, relying on a physique much stronger than its peers, it forcefully squeezed its way to the closest spot in front of the altar and groveled on its knees.

Just as it zealously and piously tried to keep up with the priest's chanting to join the ritual...

The low voice of the priest in front of it suddenly stopped.

It subconsciously looked up.

The fishman priest, who had been completely absorbed in the Sacrificial Ritual just moments ago, had now stopped what it was doing.

Its fishy eyes were staring into the distance.

Over there, at the border between the beach and the jungle, a tall figure was leisurely strolling over.

Her fiery red hair rippled gently over her shoulders as she moved, and every step of her pointed leather boots left a clear footprint in the sand.

"Crackle."

Sparks popped in the air around her.

She gripped a sharp scimitar tightly in her hand, its surface shimmering with flames.

"Gah-roo!!!!"

The shrieks of the fishmen suddenly erupted across the beach.

The Sahuagin, who had been groveling obediently like the most devout believers just a few breaths ago, now acted like sharks that had caught the scent of blood. Roaring, they charged in swarms toward Lorraine.

Lorraine showed absolutely no sign of panic.

Her expression was completely calm. She even had the time to light another cigarette for herself.

As her full red lips parted, a pale plume of tobacco smoke drifted out.

"Fwoosh."

A crimson light flashed and vanished.

In the blink of an eye, the [Scale-Fire Scimitar] in her hand completed a full arc through the air.

A bit of ash fell from the cigarette hanging at the corner of her mouth, and at the same time, the Sahuagin charging at the very front of the pack was cleaved squarely in half by the fiery blade.

She didn't even need to use any combat techniques. The absurd physical attributes granted by her lv7 Class Level were more than enough for Lorraine to completely crush the ordinary fishmen using pure Strength and Agility.

To some extent, the title of "monster" that the world gave to these fishmen would have been far more fitting for her.

Facing this human who had crashed their ritual, the already brutal Sahuagin lost whatever rationality they had left, their minds swallowed entirely by rage at the sight of the flickering flames in the air.

The encirclement that had been gradually forming around Lorraine thanks to their sheer numbers suddenly fell into chaos, and they charged at the woman like a moth flying into the flame.

A subtle curve lifted the corners of her mouth.

Lorraine took a light half-step back.

And right as the heel of her boot struck the ground, a blistering crimson air current suddenly erupted from the [Scale-Fire Scimitar] in her hand.

Centered on the scimitar, it formed a circular zone with a six-meter radius.

As the streams of flame spread out, the temperature skyrocketed!

Even the air faintly distorted from the extreme heat.

Just a single step away, the drastic temperature difference—like stepping out of the freezing cold straight into a desert—caused plumes of white smoke to rapidly spread across the beach, accompanied by a sizzling sound.

[Scorching Heat Domain], Mastery.

Visibly, any fishman that dared to charge into this high-temperature zone had the mucus on its body evaporate in a single breath. The edges of the scales on their skin gradually charred, curling up and turning as brittle as potato chips.

The scorching air drawn into their bodies with every breath was also destroying the monsters' flesh from the inside out.

Meanwhile, Lorraine, standing at the very center of the domain, was entirely unaffected.

She simply stood in place, her chin slightly raised.

Her reddish-brown eyes, reflecting the firelight, gazed up at the sky with keen interest.

Against the vast, cloudless azure sky, a Short-Tailed Albatross—much larger than its peers—was soaring high above.

The pure white feathers on her belly made her look like a fast-drifting white cloud.

At this moment, however, it was obvious that she was struggling to flap her wings, her flight dipping and bobbing unsteadily.

As for the reason—

It was naturally because of the pitch-black figure currently clutching her talons tightly, dangling in midair.

While Lorraine drew the enemy's attention, Xia Nan had used [Gravity Control] to reduce the gravity acting on his body to the absolute minimum. Hitching a ride on Hein's albatross Wild Shape, he had flown right over the fishman guards and arrived directly above the altar.

The next second, he let go.

A deep, resounding wolf howl echoed in midair.