Treasure-hunting: Into the Unknown

Zachary studied Blazing Roc's opponent. The Swift Evil Ape had changed. It was able to stand on its feet, with a slender body and long limbs. It seemed like an ordinary ape with nothing special about it.

However, as soon as the fight began, the Swift Evil Ape had an enormous advantage. It was incredibly swift and agile. The Blazing Roc had the advantage in the air, but the ape's speed on the ground hindered the attempts of the roc to attack it. The roc was forced to fly at a lower height in order to be able to launch a strike that could reach its target before the ape darted off to a different spot. But the lower the roc flew, the higher the chance that the ape could launch a counterattack of its own, for the ape had an immensely powerful jump. When the roc swooped too low, the ape leaped up to attack it.

The Blazing Roc retreated to a safe distance, but this meant that neither the roc nor the ape could attack each other. The roc was in an unusually passive position, waiting to see what the ape would do instead of being the one to engage actively in battle.

"It seems that your Blazing Roc has no way of winning this battle," Linda observed, grinning at Zachary. She couldn't quite keep the gloating tone from her voice.

"I don't think so," Zachary said coolly.

Linda was unconvinced. "If it is under the command of a beast master, there may be a chance for it to win. However, without their masters engaged, the Swift Evil Ape is obviously the better fighter. Beast tamers are not allowed to participate in the fight, which puts the Blazing Roc at a disadvantage. Even if you tried to cheat by giving it orders secretly, I don't see how the roc would be able to hear your commands from such a long distance," she said, glancing shrewdly at Zachary, as though she had guessed the direction of his thoughts.

Zachary only smiled. "Are you sure?" he asked lightly. He gave Mimi orders to be conveyed to the Blazing Roc through the treasure beast system.

After a few moments, the Blazing Roc suddenly changed its style of fighting. Without warning, it swooped down and landed on the ground some distance away from its opponent.

Of course, the Swift Evil Ape was quick to respond, rushing without hesitation towards the Blazing Roc. As the ape approached, the roc spread its wings wide. Every movement raised a strong wind and scattered sand and stones throughout the arena. The air was soon congested with dust, blocking everyone's vision.

No matter how fast the ape was, it dared not act rashly when its eyes were unable to see its target clearly.

Suddenly, something heavy landed on the ape's back. The Blazing Roc had pounced on the Swift Evil Ape from behind. The ape snarled and turned to fight back, but the roc had already flown back up, too high for the ape to reach. After a few moments, it repeated the same tactics to deal another blow to the ape.

However,

e?" Evan Kong repeated. He looked critically at Zachary. He sensed that Zachary's aura was not strong, and looked down upon him. "Hey, you're lucky to have Linda personally bring you here," he said to Zachary with a mocking grin.

Zachary saw that Evan Kong was interested in Linda, and he did not hesitate to exploit that weakness. "Oh, Linda brought me here because we are close friends. No ordinary disciple would be lucky enough to get this kind of personal attention from her. I'm quite special to her," he said, giving Evan Kong a meaningful smile.

"Close friends?" Evan Kong scowled. His mood darkened at Zachary's words. Obviously, this disciple was flaunting the fact that he and Linda were "close friends."

"That's all we need to see for today. We'll be leaving now, goodbye," Linda said abruptly. She was aware that Evan Kong liked her and found it extremely exasperating. If she had to stay in his presence any longer, she might be tempted to lose her temper with him, so it was better to leave with Zachary now. Anyway, her purpose for bringing him here had already been achieved.

"Of course," Zachary said agreeably. He was tempted to wink at Evan Kong but decided that might be pushing him too far.

Evan Kong shifted so he was blocking Linda's path. "Why are you in such a hurry to leave, Linda? How about letting my treasure beast compete with your Dragon Finch?" he suggested. He smiled, hoping his proposal would be attractive to her.

"Forget it. If our beasts fight, there'll be gossip about us, and I hate it when that happens," Linda snapped, glaring coldly at him.

Evan Kong was undeterred. "Well, how about this? If my treasure beast loses the fight, I'll let you have something you might want—this treasure, which can increase a beast's strength by two grades." As he spoke, he took out a strange object. It exuded a strong magical aura, reminiscent of the essential power of a strong beast.