As soon as his voice fell, he leaned back slightly, and his entire body plummeted rapidly towards the 27th floor!
A sharp, cold glint instantly flashed in Enwei's scarlet eyes.
Without a moment's hesitation, she lightly tapped the edge of the cliff with her toes, and her figure transformed into a black streak of light tearing through the air, closely following Rhode's descent!
"Follow!"
"Yes!!!"
Dozens of Shadow Soldiers let out a unified low roar, unhesitatingly following their master and commander, leaping into the abyss like black raindrops!
Just as Rhode's figure passed the middle section of the waterfall—
Splash!!!
A massive tentacle covered in slimy green liquid suddenly burst through the turbulent water, like a giant python, rushing towards Rhode in mid-air with a air-rending shriek, quick as lightning!
However, the next second.
"Roar—!!!"
Accompanied by a roar that could shatter the sky, Kamish's enormous dragon shadow suddenly appeared out of nowhere!
Its gaping maw, capable of tearing the sky, forcibly ripped out the giant octopus tentacle along with its body hidden behind the waterfall, instantly biting it into a rain of flying flesh and blood!
Immediately after, Kamish violently twisted its head, and destructive flames surged from deep within its throat.
Scorching Dragon's Breath erupted like a divine punishment, transforming into an unblockable torrent.
Dozens of attacking monster fish, which had just broken through the water's surface to launch a sneak attack, along with the turbulent waterfall currents around them, were all evaporated into nothingness!
The Shadow Soldiers naturally did not fall behind!
Their figures traced elegant arcs in the air, landing precisely on the backs of the flying dragon shadows that had appeared at some unknown moment.
Then they transformed into streaks of black light, charging in all directions, unleashing a bloody slaughter in this three-dimensional space!
A group of metal blue crabs with highly developed pincers and shells harder than killer ants had just crawled out of a cave in the cliff; before they could even attack, they were instantly shot into porcupines by the black "483" short spears descending from the sky!
Their bodies didn't even have time to fall before countless black arms extending from the rock wall dragged them into the shadows, waiting for Rhode to convert them into new power!
A standard funeral, recovery, and resurrection process was completed in one go.
Just as Rhode was about to plunge into the bottom of the deepest pool.
A giant snake opened its terrifying maw, bursting out from beneath the water's surface without warning, almost engulfing Rhode's body the moment it opened its gaping mouth.
The Great Water Snake, a large monster with pale green scales and a length of ten meters, had large fins on either side of its head, making it look somewhat like a dragon.
However, Rhode merely glanced at it calmly.
"Don't block the way."
Lightly gripping the two Kamish's Furies, Rhode's body transformed into a high-speed spinning death top in the air.
Wielding his twin blades, he spiraled downwards like a drill, along the Great Water Snake's lunging body.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—!!!
The sound of blades cutting flesh became a continuous blur.
The moment Rhode hit the water, the giant water snake, suspended in mid-air, its body... disintegrated with a crash.
Countless chunks of flesh, mixed with organs and blood, rained down like a bloody downpour, splashing back into the pool.
The rich scent of blood, like a bomb dropped into the water, instantly detonated the entire pool.
The monster's feast had begun!
The first to arrive were a group of ugly mermaids.
Their hair was dull like withered seaweed, their pale eyes showed no hint of life, and their bluish-white skin was covered in repulsive spots.
Their appearance was a world apart from the intelligent Xenos; even the most compassionate saint would feel no pity upon seeing them.
One of the mermaids moved the fastest, shrieking as its crystal spear sliced through the water, thrusting at Rhode like an arrow, moving with the speed of a fleeting light!
Rhode narrowed his eyes slightly in the water.
In their home territory, the strength of these aquatic monsters would likely increase by at least one level from their original grade.
Although this was his first time fighting underwater, Rhode's movements showed no hesitation.
He merely swayed his body slightly, as if merging with the current, dodging the opponent's fatal thrust by a hair's breadth.
In the monster mermaid's astonished gaze, Rhode passed by it expressionlessly, striking with a backhand.
Pfft!
Head and body separated automatically.
The ugly head was carried away by the turbulent current.
Another mermaid, seeing this, let out an angry and high-pitched shriek, weaving an eerie song of destruction, attempting to charm Rhode.
But the next moment, a black light flashed, and its throat was mercilessly pierced.
It stared with bloodshot eyes, disbelievingly at this... "kindred" who was many times more beautiful than itself, seemingly completely unable to understand why the other party would attack it.
Consciousness passed through an instant in endless darkness, and when it awoke again.
In the mind of the reshaped beautiful mermaid, there was only one thought left.
—For Lord Rhode, kill all these annoying monsters!
She let out a delicate cry, and she and her companions turned without hesitation, fiercely charging towards their former kin who were constantly being drawn in!
In the turbulent current, dozens of fish-men, covered in green scales, were brandishing hammer-spears crafted from natural crystals of the lower levels, roaring as they charged.
In the high sky, ugly Songbirds and Harpies, resembling old witches, circled, their sonic attacks like invisible blades, disturbing the mind, and their launched feathers were comparable to arrows!
On land, hundreds of bullet-like Flash Swallows transformed into streaks of silver light, launching suicidal attacks from all directions, fearless of death!
Crystal Sea Urchins rolled at high speed on the ground, slicing the metal blue crabs in their path into a rain of fragments.
In the blood-soaked mist, they charged towards Rhode without stopping, at explosive speed!
Even in mid-air, dozens of rare species, the Vortex Emperor Fish, two meters long and usually only found in specific waters, floated defying gravity, surrounding and intercepting Rhode!
Facing such an epic monster army alone, ordinary adventurers would instinctively panic and flee, wouldn't they?
However, Rhode merely smiled faintly, gripping his twin blades, his dark eyes shimmering with excitement.
"Although I could clear you all in an instant, my stats haven't reached their current limit yet, so I'll use you all to train!"
...
Ten minutes later.
The 27th floor was quiet and peaceful, as if no battle had ever occurred.
Rhode was leisurely riding a water beast horse (Kelpie) that was flicking its beautiful azure mane.
He was currently holding a small, cat-like beast by its fluffy scruff, looking at the little thing desperately trying to act cute with a somewhat speechless expression.
"You're saying you didn't willingly attack me?"
"Guchu!"
The small beast, called Carbuncle, nodded vigorously, its watery eyes staring pitifully at Rhode, the plea for mercy practically overflowing from its gaze.
It had fluffy emerald green fur and a small, cute body like a kitten.
Most striking was the ruby-like protrusion on its forehead, which was now filled with a beautiful magical glow.
This was precisely the rare phantom beast, Carbuncle, renowned alongside unicorns and difficult to encounter.
Even among monsters, Carbuncle was known for its exceptional magical power.
They are one of the few races capable of manipulating powerful magic walls using the secret crystal on their foreheads as a medium. Their defensive strength is even comparable to a barrier cast by a high-ranking Archmage at full power.
Not only is their absolute number scarce, but the defensive power of their magic walls and their exceptionally agile potential are also why they are called secret beasts with a pitifully low number of successful defeats.
Among the monsters that attacked earlier, there were at least three Carbuncles.
But this one wasn't captured by Rhode; instead, it proactively came to him.
This silly little fellow was forcibly summoned during the previous "Monster Banquet" due to the Dungeon's malice.
As a result, it, which should have been one of the attackers, froze on the spot after seeing Rhode's elegant, dance-like killing in the midst of the monster horde, and immediately became utterly captivated.
Its pure eyes seemed to have seen a supreme treasure, countless times more beautiful than the secret crystal on its own forehead, and had its heart stolen.
It was also like a princess encountering her fated Prince Charming, completely falling into a state of infatuation.
It wasn't until the Monster Banquet ended that it suddenly snapped back to reality.
Then, it didn't know what kind of mindset it had, but it ambled over to Rhode, gently bumped his foot with its small head, and then, as if completing some sacred ritual, contentedly prepared to sneak away.
The result was that Rhode arrested it on the spot.
"Are you... a Xenos?"
The Carbuncle tilted its fluffy little head, seemingly not understanding what Rhode was saying, and just extended its pink little tongue to gently lick Rhode's hand.
"Guchu?"
Its adorable appearance made it hard not to laugh.
Rhode shook his head helplessly, extended a finger, and gently tapped its forehead, transmitting a contract.
The contract had the power to make even unevolved Magical Beasts understand its meaning.
The Carbuncle blinked its big eyes, carefully read the contract, then looked up at Rhode, and then happily chirped, signing the soul contract without hesitation.
Rhode smiled and stroked its fluffy head, then casually placed it on his shoulder.
"Carbuncle... Bon Bon Carbun... Hmm, from today on, your name is Alice!"
Rhode, who was terrible at naming, casually gave this little beast an unrelated name, but she seemed quite satisfied.
"Guchu!" Alice happily rubbed her cheek against Rhode's neck.
After all this, Rhode, riding his Water Beast Horse, looked back at his brand new aquatic unit with a satisfied smile.
On the shore, dozens of Mermaid unit members, who could freely switch between fish tails and legs, were lying there.
They gazed at Rhode with sparkling, adoring eyes, and when they saw their master's gaze fall upon them, they immediately waved their arms excitedly, letting out joyful cheers.
[Water Unit · Mermaid Legion]
[All Members Estimated Level: Lv4]
[Number: 50]
[Basic Materials: Mermaids, Fishmen, Great Beavers, Walrus Monsters, Great Water Snake...]
[Fusion Traits: Crystal Giant Turtle's Defense, Floating Crystal's Laser, Carbuncle's Magic Wall, Vortex Emperor Fish's Float, Songbird's Sonic Wave...]
The Songbird's sonic ability, combined with the Mermaids' inherent enchanting singing, gave their charm ability an epic boost. Now, they can even control some weak-willed lower-tier monsters from extremely long distances.
Of course, compared to their power, Rhode's purpose in transforming them was more for aesthetic pleasure.
No one dislikes keeping a group of lovely Mermaids, right?
And on the other side of the land, there was the Naga unit, who were combing their "little snake" hair with their fingers.
They were enchanting and alluring, throwing flirtatious glances at their master, full of exotic charm.
[Water Unit · Naga Legion]
[All Members Estimated Level: Lv4]
[Number: 50]
[Basic Materials: Lamia, Fishmen, Great Beavers, Walrus Monsters, Great Water Snake, Giant Octopus.]
[Fusion Traits: Crystal Giant Turtle's Defense, Floating Crystal's Laser, Carbuncle's Magic Wall, Vortex Emperor Fish's Float.]
It's worth mentioning that, out of a bit of Rhode's mischievousness, he made the hair of these Nagas into real, living little snakes, and they could also proliferate and grow like octopus tentacles.
As a result, after integrating the Floating Crystal's ability to emit lasers, their combat power unexpectedly received an unimaginable boost.
Now, these Nagas, although they cannot petrify people with their gaze, can shoot lasers from their eyes like Azu!
Not only that, but the eyes of the little snakes on each of their hairs can do the same!
If they unleashed their full firepower, they could instantly transform into masters of clearing, with almost 360-degree coverage.
It's just that this move consumes a lot of magic power, and they easily become listless after using it.
Because the effect of combining the Floating Crystal's laser ability with humanoid creatures was unexpectedly cool.
Rhode even, for the first time in a while, used Prayer Points to copy this ability.
"Steel body plus laser eyes? Heh, am I Superman?"
"But compared to Superman, I still prefer Superman."
In addition to these two main units, other Shadow Soldiers also received significant enhancements.
The Purple Moth was infused with the blood-sucking ability of Devil Mosquitoes, going further and further down the path of underworld venomous insects.
The Crystal Giant Turtle, Crystal Sea Urchin, and Vortex Emperor Fish were merged to form a "Floating Spinning Turtle" that could float in the air and spin at high speed.
They can destroy everything in front of them like a chainsaw, and can even be used as a tunnel boring machine for high-speed digging.
Dungeon Worms were given the abilities of the Great Water Snake and the Vortex Emperor Fish, advancing towards the noble realm of disgusting people in all three environments: sea, land, and air.
The Swift Swallows were infused by Rhode with the hardening blue crab shell, as well as the Crystal Sea Urchin, Vortex Emperor Fish, and Surprise Attack Fish.
This allows them to spin at high speed while dashing, instantly transforming into drills that pierce the heavens, penetrating everything!
They can even exert the same power underwater!
Rhode's Water Beast Horse was also infused with the flying function of the Harpy and the floating ability of the Vortex Emperor Fish, directly transforming it into a Pegasus for sea, land, and air travel.
As for the Songbird and Harpy, Rhode reorganized them into a new race: the Winged People.
Aside from an extra pair of pure white wings on their backs, their overall appearance was no different from ordinary people.
One could even say that, except for lacking a halo above their heads, they looked no different from angels.
The girls of the original covert unit naturally also received corresponding enhancements, and the strength of all members steadily stepped into the Lv.4 rank.
This wave was an epic upgrade for everyone!
"And, although it's only a little, I also feel that my agility and strength attributes have indeed increased."
Rhode clenched his fist, feeling the slight increase in power within his body, but frowned slightly with dissatisfaction.
"But this also confirms one thing: without BUFFs, relying solely on training and combat to improve attributes is still too inefficient."
After temporarily noting this down, he casually pointed at a Winged Person.
"These magic stones, send all of them to the Xenos' base, and leave them for Unit 6324 to exchange for contribution points for their stronghold."
The Winged Person girl bowed gently to Rhode with a gentle expression, then waved her hand, and the mountain of magic stones on the ground were all collected into the Shadow Space.
Afterward, she also quietly slipped into the shadows and disappeared.
Rhode gazed at the enormous waterfall, which remained motionless, his eyes flickering.
"This expedition has been quite fruitful, but I still haven't found any trace of that Twin-Headed Dragon."
"Although I could wait for the next refresh, I really dislike trouble."
A dangerous arc curved on his lips.
"I might as well use that move to forcibly make her manifest... After all, this is no longer the upper layer covered by Uranus's divine power."
However, before that, Rhode's gaze penetrated the water's surface, seeing the intricate and interconnected waterways at the bottom of the waterfall pool.
"This should lead to Lake Rollog outside Meren Town."
"I remember there are Leviathan's remains there..."