Goblin Dependency

"Shh! Shh! Shh!"

A furry long tail gently swings behind, used to maintain the body’s balance.

The lightweight figure of Sasha from the Spotted Cat race morphs into a phantom shadow, with soft and highly resilient pads at his feet allowing him to dissipate the impact energy of moving to the maximum extent. The power of the two short swords in his hands is fully unleashed, every slash bringing down a Fishman underling, reaping life with incredibly high efficiency.

With limited manpower, the half orc Alton no longer has the luxury to hide at the back of the battlefield playing the lyre to buff the group, now entangled in a struggle with an elite level Fishman guard with four arms.

His short stature grants him agile mobility, darting swiftly between the legs, his short dagger leaving wound after wound on the enemy.

Such slippery combat tactics agitate the Fishman guard immensely, recklessly thrusting the fish spear down, only for the spearhead to be lodged into the ship’s deck.

The four arms exert force simultaneously, attempting to pull the weapon out of the deck, yet causing a momentary rigidity in its combat stance.

"Buzz bang!"

The high-frequency whistling sound of energy resonates through the air.

Three reddish-brown Magic Missiles strike an extremely precise angle, consecutively hitting its face.

The force field energy’s special effect bypasses most defense resistances, and the first missile itself makes the target bewildered upon impact.

The subsequent two missiles inflict severe injury and death.

When the Fishman guard is brought to the ground by the impact force of the Magic Missile, its ugly face is smashed into a bloody, mangled mess, spraying a mixture of flesh and blood fiercely.

The spell casting was undoubtedly from Druid Hai Yin, the sole core caster on the field.

At that moment, she did not transform into an Albatross to escape to the sky, striving to lend support to her teammates, standing near the stairs leading to the ship’s stern under the protection of many sailors, leveraging her casting ability to assist her team.

Archer, Ranger, Minstrel, Druid.

With the main melee combatants having jumped into the sea, the four professionals collaborated, temporarily holding off the attack from the Sha Hua Fishmen alongside the crew on the deck.

"Whew!"

Another silver-white energy arrow charged with force is shot, helping Sasha from the Spotted Cat race eliminate an Elite Fishman guard.

Sarisa, tied to the mast, breathes heavily, her platinum locks messily adhering to the cheeks due to sweat.

The Silver Vein Longbow possesses the convenient feature of self-condensing arrows without bowstrings, but likewise, as a hidden drawback, it consumes stamina much higher than a regular bow, sometimes depleting the user’s mental focus and spirit.

Under normal circumstances, Sarisa usually only strikes at critical moments to create attack opportunities for her team.

But now, there’s no time for that.

Former teammates have been dragged into the sea by the damned Fishmen and sea beasts, even their corpses turned into sacrificial offerings.

Every arrow she shoots is vengeance for her teammates.

The Vengeance Blade Ship Group, having rescued her from the utterly destroyed Black Tide Hunter, entrusted her with weapons and equipment with ample trust;

If the Vengeance Blade, too, were defeated in battle, she would not feel lucky enough to survive by chance, let alone encounter another adventurer group willing to save her.

Sentimentally and logically, she ought to give her all in this fight.

Yet...

Sarisa pants, gazing with amber eyes at the sea surface not far from the ship’s side.

There, amidst the unusual undulation of the water, a massive outline of a black shadow is faintly visible under the brief illuminating flashes of the sky’s lightning.

The woman with Dragon Descendant blood knows clearly that the Sha Hua Fishmen they are dealing with now are not the primary adversaries.

If the teammates who jumped into the sea for interception failed, no matter how hard they fight here, they would eventually be caught by the tentacles of the Windkind Octopus and dragged into the sea.

"Aaaaah!"

While pondering, the sailors’ battle cries from below bring her back to reality.

Disregarding the already drastically consumed stamina, Sarisa gritted her teeth and pulled the Energy Bowstring with a trembling right hand once again.

But before she could aim, the sound of something piercing the air from the blind spot behind jolts her.

Before she even had a chance to turn her head and see what it was, her survival instinct pushes her to instantly untie the knot at her waist, using both hands to push off the mast vigorously, sending herself flying backward.

"Whish thud!"

In the corner of her eye, a fish spear made of energy, glinting coldly, grazes past.

–– 2nd Ring·Plastic Energy·Spiritual Body Weapon!

It’s foreseeable, had her reaction been slower by a bit, she’d have been pinned to the mast with the bow.

Yet, even then, the hurried dodge under instinct costs her her original vantage, falling off the mast.

As the sea waves surged, the ship tilted.

An ambiguous fortune.

She did not land on the deck, meaning Sarisa wouldn’t worry about falling damage.

Yet concurrently, being dropped into the sea full of vicious Fishmen isn’t a good prospect for a Ranger Archer specializing in ranged attacks.

"Splash!"

Water splashes burst out.

Cold seawater engulfs Sarisa’s body.

She still grips her Metal Longbow tightly, holds her breath, forcing her eyes open underwater.

What comes into view is a Sha Hua Fishman Priest swimming towards her, protected by two four-armed Elite Guards.

The Spiritual Fish Spear that followed her down into the sea, hovering next to the Priest, indicating the attacker was indeed the other party.

Filled with negative emotions, Sarisa never abandoned hope for survival, holding the longbow in front of her, attempting to draw the bowstring.

But quicker still, a Spiritual Fish Spear once again shoots towards her underwater.

The amber crystal eyes reflect the flickering Magic Radiance within the sea, indicating that even if she manages this shot, her chest would be pierced by the following fish spear.

As for dodging...

She wasn’t a fish; human limbs couldn’t support rapid maneuvering in the water.

In that instant, Sarisa’s eyes filled only with resoluteness.

As an adventurer, she’d long been prepared to die halfway through a mission.

She strives to pull the bowstring, aiming to shoot her career’s final arrow before death.

But at this moment, inexplicably, the empty seawater seems to be vigorously stirred by something invisible, bubbles swirl.

Sarisa only feels like an invisible hand grabs her waist and abdomen, forcefully pulling her sideways.

Though it causes the arrow to stray away, shooting out of the sea.

It also lets her dodge the Spiritual Fish Spear poised to kill her.

"Why!?"

Amazed silently, Sarisa has no time to ponder deeply.

A low wolf howl from the side captures all her attention.

The underwater setting is dim, coupled with the bubbles from turbulent sea currents, hindering her clear view of the happenings.

What Sarisa can see is, alongside the wolf howl, a blurred, sinister silhouette of a Wolf Beast.

Moving swiftly, seemingly possessing abilities for fast movement underwater.

Where once there was considerable distance, it’s now in front of those Fishmen swiftly within moments.

Bizarrely, the Fishmen guards and Priest who were once staring at her intently under the cover of the wolf howl, now displayed extreme panic devoid of prior bloodlust and rage, evident fear reflecting in their actions.

One even loses the will to fight entirely, turning to flee.

Awooo—

The wolf howl echoes eerily through the seawater.

As a reddish arc light bursts like fireworks, Fishmen’s shrieking abruptly cuts off.

Replaced instead by a few spinning, expression-frozen, dismembered heads in the water.