Leyvi blinked. "Right. He might do that. What a hassle. This is why a cockroach villain is so annoying. If I didn't see him flashing by into that wood just now, he might still be lurking around the island waiting for the chance to cause trouble."
"Even if he's still lurking, he couldn't do much alone. I already told Lilian to secure the perimeter with her Demonic Plants." Anda said.
"Is that so? Hahaha! My introvert wife is so reliable now! Maybe I can live off my women very soon." Leyvi joked.
"Actually, I found the title you gave him quite amusing. How about we call him Cockroach Villain from now on? Hehe." Anda said and giggled.
"What if more cockroach villains appear later? What do we call them?" Leyvi asked.
"No big deal. Just call them Cockroach Villain B, Cockroach Villain C, and so on."
"True, true. Then what about a womanizing villain?"
"Hmph! I'll mobilize all efforts to kill him! I can't let a villain like that harm any ladies. They're all potential sisters after all."
"Hahaha! I knew you'd reply like that."
Leyvi and Anda fell into their usual tangent and continued chatting happily.
Some time later, they returned to where they had left Bodo, but he was nowhere to be found.
"Huh? Where is he? What was his name again? Ah right. Bodo. Did he wake up already? No, that can't be. That was a full-powered metal bat. He should be sleeping for days at least," Leyvi wondered, looking down from the cloud.
"Leyvi, look around. Some demonic beasts have awoken, and they're using this chance to prey on the others that are still sleeping," Anda said.
"Hmm? You're right. They got free meals today thanks to me. But... this situation feels familiar. Oh right. It's like when Tantan caused chaos and they all started preying on each other. Except, I didn't do this on purpose. Hahaha!" Leyvi laughed.
But his laughter came to an abrupt halt as he smacked his forehead. "Wait a minute. Don't tell me that big guy got eaten by a demonic beast? Shit! We were in such a hurry we forgot to consider that!"
Anda nodded in agreement. "Quite possible. He was sleeping after all, so he couldn't defend himself... no, no, no. I forgot he can defend himself in sleep. Then where did he go?"
Just as Leyvi was about to locate Bodo using his Spiritual Imprint connection, a loud boom echoed in the distance, immediately catching both of their attention.
When they turned their gazes toward it, they saw a hill crumbling. Anda quickly controlled the cloud and flew closer.
Below them, a jaw-dropping spectacle unfolded, leaving Leyvi and Anda utterly stunned. Bodo, still deep in slumber, tore into the massive corpse of a freshly slain demonic beast, its hulking frame sprawled across the shattered remnants of a hill. His enormous hands ripped through the beast's thick, scaly hide with primal ferocity, effortlessly peeling back layers of muscle and sinew. He discarded the glistening, foul-smelling digestive organs with a casual toss, as if sorting through scraps, and began shredding chunks of raw, blood-dripping meat. With mechanical precision, he shoved the glistening flesh into his mouth, chewing voraciously, his jaw working like a relentless machine, droplets of crimson splattering across his broad chest.
Once the meat was gone, he grabbed the beast's splintered bones, their marrow exposed, and crunched them between his teeth with a sickening crackle, as if they were mere twigs. Finally, he plucked the demonic core—a pulsating, fist-sized orb glowing with eerie violet light—and popped it into his mouth like a ripe fruit, swallowing it whole without a hint of hesitation. All of this unfolded while Bodo's eyes remained shut, his loud snores occasionally punctuating the grotesque feast, his body moving with an instinctual savagery that belied his unconscious state.
Leyvi and Anda exchanged glances, their thoughts aligned in silent agreement: this Bodo was far too barbaric. Not only did he counterattack in his sleep, but he hunted and devoured an entire large demonic beast alone while unconscious. It was clear he consumed the meat not for its taste but for its potent essence power. But the real question is, how did he do all these while asleep?
"What should we do now?" Leyvi asked.
Anda shrugged, at a loss. She had initially wanted to recruit Bodo for his strength and innocent nature, but witnessing this display, her enthusiasm evaporated like mist. He'd be too much trouble when asleep. Who could guarantee he wouldn't devour a person in his sleep?
"Hmm… let's wait until he wakes up first," Leyvi suggested.
"Okay," Anda replied. Though she'd lost interest, if Leyvi still planned to recruit him, she wouldn't object.
And so, the couple picked a nice spot to park their modified carriage and stay.
Leyvi continued his training to master the Spiritual Touch. This time, he decided not to use his arms at all, letting every task be done by his invisible hand to deepen his familiarity with it. To achieve complete mastery, he needed to handle both heavy and delicate tasks, not just rely on it for combat.
When he grew bored, Leyvi sought out Bodo and used his sleeping self-defense mode as a sparring partner. However, aside from Bodo's strength, his body's toughness and rapid regeneration were astonishing, which greatly surprised Leyvi.
His Big Bang attacks left only bruises, and even the stronger ones merely caused Bodo's thick skin to bleed slightly, wounds that healed within moments.
It made Leyvi wonder just how strong Bodo truly was.
Finally, after five days, the metal bat's effect wore off, and Bodo woke up.
"Eh? What's going on? Did I fall asleep while searching for the greatest treasure? Oh no, Master will get mad at me if I slack off! I need to work right away!"
Bodo scrambled to his feet but suddenly stopped and tilted his head, looking confused.
"Weird. Why do I feel like I don't need to obey Master anymore? What's going on?"
"Let me tell you what's going on," a voice interrupted his monologue.
Bodo turned around and saw a man in a red jacket and a panda-like woman approaching him.
"You… are you a King Level Demonic Giant Panda?" Bodo blurted out after seeing Anda.
Anda smiled, while Leyvi beside her chuckled at the question.
"What makes you think that?" Anda asked.
"Actually, I was raised by a bunch of King Level Demonic Beasts. They all achieved human form but kept a few features of their animal origin. You have panda eyes and panda ears, so you must be one, right?" Bodo answered honestly.
Leyvi and Anda were shocked. Raised by King Level Demonic Beasts? No wonder he was abnormally strong. But why would they raise a human?
As for her appearance, they had both seen Senior Lapin, so they understood what he meant by "origin features."
"You're mistaken. I'm human. These aren't my ears, they're part of my hairstyle. And this is my birthmark," Anda replied.
"Eh? A human? I really thought you were a transformed demonic beast. My bad. Dohoho!" Bodo laughed innocently.
"Oh. That was rude of me. The chief named me Bodobodur. Bodo for short. Can you tell me why I don't need to obey Master anymore?" he asked politely, his huge figure and barbaric display from a few days ago a stark contrast to his gentle tone now.
Leyvi was about to explain everything to Bodo, but Anda stepped forward and spoke first. She told him the truth about the Slavemaker Pill, but slightly twisted and exaggerated certain parts to make it sound as if Leyvi had been Bodo's savior, hoping to increase the emotional impact.
Leyvi couldn't help but roll his eyes. His panda wife, with her usual emotional manipulation tactics.
Look at him, Anda. This hulking guy is a seasoned fighter, a warrior tempered by countless hardships. As if he would react to your pandawashing.
But after Anda finished her story, Bodo was already crying a bucket of tears, snot dripping, as he knelt and bowed to Leyvi, overcome with emotion.
Leyvi was speechless. Why are you so emotional? Where is the tempered warrior?
"Brother Bodo, don't be like this. I'm not that good a person. It just kinda happened this way," Leyvi said.
"Boohoo! Savior Leyvi, thank you for saving my life! I didn't know that the Master was trying to get rid of me because he wouldn't be able to control me anymore! I owe you my life! Ever since I left my home mountain, you are the only person who treats me nicely. Everyone else just scolds and laughs at me all the time, taking advantage of my stupidity to scam and trick me. I'm not smart, so I always fall for it. Savior Leyvi, let me join your party to repay your kindness! I can do any physical work. Look at my body, I'm not smart, but I'm strong," Bodo said while crying.
Leyvi turned his gaze to Anda. Feeling his eyes on her, Anda grew a little embarrassed because she had also tried to take advantage of this innocent big man.
Husband, don't look at me like that. I'm not a villainess.