Adam's tail lashed out with precise force, not to kill, but to stun. The small, amphibious fish-creature with needle-like teeth flopped onto the rocks, dazed and terrified. "Alright, Lilith. See what you can get."

"Of course," Lilith murmured. She approached, and with a terrifyingly gentle motion, one of her slender, needle-sharp legs extended and tapped lightly against the creature's forehead, a faint crimson glow emanating from the tip as she attempted to brush its primitive mind.

She was silent for a long moment, her red eyes distant. Then, she retracted her leg, a flicker of distaste in her graceful demeanor. "It is as I feared. Its mind is a swirl of instinct—hunger, fear, the direction of the current. There are no maps here, only the echo of its last meal. It is too... simple."

Adam sighed, then gave a quick, merciful squeeze with his Constrict. The creature went still.

[ Minor Amphibian Predator Defeated! +15 EXP | +40 EP ]

"Worth a try," he said. "But it seems we need a more... sophisticated subject. Something from deeper in this lake that might have a broader territory and sharper senses."

They moved further along the rocky shore. Adam focused his Hunter's Tri-Sense, layering the perceptions. He filtered out the faint hum of the lake's ambient mana and the small, skittering lifeforms. He was searching for a signature that felt strong, larger, and more cognitively complex.

There.

Out near the center of the vast, glowing lake, he felt it. A dense, cold, patient presence resting in the profound depths. A mind that felt more like a silent, calculating sentinel than a simple beast.

"Found one," Adam announced. "Let's see if we can get its attention."

He took aim with his maw, mana condensing. "Ember Shard Shot!" The superheated obsidian shard cut through the air and pierced the violet water with a sharp hiss, diving deep towards the sensed presence.

For a moment, nothing happened.

Then, the water bulged. The surface parted, and a head emerged. It was massive, with a broad, flat skull. From its brow extended a long, stalk-like appendage, at the end of which glowed a bioluminescent orb that cast a cold, blue light over the water. Its eyes were large, black, and intelligent, fixing on Adam with unnerving focus. Its body followed—powerful, streamlined, and covered in overlapping, dark blue scales as hard-looking as sapphire. It moved not with fins, but with four powerful, paddle-like limbs that churned the water. The system tagged it instantly.

[ Cascano Belgrum Lv 39 ]

It didn't roar. It simply stared, its lantern-like appendage bobbing slightly. It seemed more curious than enraged, studying the creature that had dared to strike it from above.

Adam met its gaze, a slow, challenging grin spreading across his features. "Hello there," he rumbled. "You look like you know your way around. Let's have a chat."

He fired another Ember Shard Shot, this time aiming to skim just past its head, a deliberate insult.

The Cascano Belgrum's black eyes narrowed. Curiosity vanished, replaced by cold, territorial wrath. With a surge of its powerful limbs, it began cutting through the water towards the shore at an alarming speed, its bioluminescent lantern leaving a trail of eerie light.

"Perfect," Adam said, coiling back. "Everyone, be ready to subdue, not kill! We need it alive and talking! Lilith, get ready for your guest!"

Adam beat his wings, staying just out of reach of the churning water as the enraged Cascano Belgrum charged the shore. But the creature was no fool. As soon as it hit the shallows and felt the restrictive pull of the air on its body, its survival instincts screamed. It tried to pivot, its powerful limbs digging into the gravel to launch itself back into the deep, safe gloom.

"Not so fast!" Adam roared. "Phantom Onslaught!" He vanished from the air and reappeared right in front of the monster's path, his massive body a living barricade. He slammed his tail down, creating a wall of stone and spray with Earthshaker, further cutting off its retreat.

The Deep Watcher shrieked in frustration, a sound like grinding stones, and lunged at Adam with its formidable jaws. Adam twisted aside, the teeth scraping harmlessly off his Monarch's Aegis. The fight became a battle of attrition. Ignis harried it from above with gouts of searing Solar Wind, not to burn but to disorient and heat its scales. Alice darted in and out with Void Steps, leaving shallow, sizzling cuts that stung and bled. Adam used his coils and weight, grappling and constricting, slowly sapping the creature's strength.

It was a tiring, muddy brawl. The Belgrum fought with the desperate strength of a cornered beast, its lantern flashing erratically. Finally, panting and wounded, it overextended a lunge. Adam saw his opening. He struck like a viper, biting deep into its shoulder and injecting a massive dose of Venom of the Void.

The neuro-paralytic toxins took effect almost instantly. The creature's violent thrashing turned into weak, uncoordinated twitches, its limbs locking up, a low moan of despair escaping its throat.

«Looks like the big fish is all tuckered out,» Alice quipped, landing lightly nearby and shaking mud from her paws. «Took you long enough.»

"Lilith, now!" Adam ordered, maintaining his grip.

Lilith skittered forward, her movements serene amidst the chaos. She sprayed strands of incredibly strong Pale Silk, weaving them around the monster's head and limbs, further pinning it. Adam then used his strength to fully haul the massive, paralyzed form out of the water and onto dry rock.

«It is ready,» Lilith said, her crimson eyes glowing with focus. She approached the creature's head, where the scales were slightly thinner near the eye ridge. One of her needle-sharp front legs rose, poised. With a swift, precise motion, she drove it down, piercing through the tough, sapphire-like scale and into the flesh beneath.

Schlick.

The sound of the penetration was wet, crisp, and horrifyingly intimate. Lilith froze for a second, a soft, shuddering sigh escaping her. «Ohh... what a sound...» she whispered, a tremor of pure, dark delight in her gentle voice. She closed her eyes briefly, savoring it, before refocusing with ruthless discipline. Her leg glowed crimson as she began her psychic dive.

The team watched in silence as Lilith delved into the Cascano Belgrum's mind. The creature's body spasmed occasionally, and its lantern flickered wildly. After a full minute, Lilith smoothly withdrew her leg, a thin string of viscous fluid snapping from its tip.

She took a moment to compose herself, the predatory gleam fading from her eyes, replaced by analytical clarity. "It is done."

"Well? What did you find?" Adam asked, releasing his bite.

"The creature's primary intelligence revolves around territory and predation," Lilith began, her voice back to its gentle melody. "However, buried within that is a deep, instinctual fear of a region in the lake's deepest trench. It is a place it avoids. A place where the water grows black and the pressure is immense. That place is not empty. It is guarded."

"Guarded by what?"

"By what its mind interprets as 'The Many-Armed Darkness.' A creature of immense size and age that dwells in the abyss. It does not hunt the open waters. It guards. And what it guards... shines. The Belgrum has glimpsed it from a distance a cluster of stones or crystals that pulse with a light that pierces the black water. A treasure trove of concentrated aquatic mana. The 'Many-Armed Darkness' is undoubtedly another Dungeon Lord of this aquatic realm."

Adam's star-lit eyes gleamed. A hidden treasure, and another Dungeon Lord? The risk was monumental, but the potential reward... suitable for exploring later.

He looked at his team, then down at the paralyzed Cascano Belgrum. It had served its purpose. With a quick, merciful Constrict, he ended its suffering, absorbing the modest EXP and EP.

[ Cascano Belgrum Defeated! +220 EXP | +290 EP ]

[ Ding! Level Up! ]

[ You are now Level 44! ]

[ Next Level: 148/220 ]

[ Skill Point: +1 ]

[ Evolution Points: 659 -> 949/3500 ]

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