Chapter 39: Lizard 7

It was a massive lizard nearly five meters long.

Its body was covered in rough, rock-like grayish-green scales, exuding formidable defensive strength at a glance; eight short, muscular legs supported its bloated, heavy frame.

Brown bone spikes, resembling underground crystals, extended from the tip of its snout to the end of its tail; its eerie green slit pupils flickered faintly, glowing like ghostfire in the misty air.

Petrifying Lizard—“Basilisk.”

Unlike my previous world, a technological realm devoid of supernatural forces where the danger of a creature could often be judged by its size alone, in this fantastical world of dragons and magic, who could tell if a thumb-sized flower fairy was a high-level professional or wielded a high-tier spell capable of destroying a small town?

Thus, to differentiate creatures of varying sizes and danger levels, a concept was introduced—

“Challenge Rating!”

Typically, a magical creature with a challenge rating of “1” could, under ideal conditions with adequate equipment, sufficient supplies, and proper rest, be defeated by a well-coordinated team of four level-1 professionals without casualties.

Of course, this was merely a cold, theoretical rule from my previous life’s gaming perspective for distinguishing creature strength tiers.

In reality, factors like the creature’s development, physical condition, surrounding environment, and inherent behaviors significantly influenced its danger and strength.

Sometimes, for creatures with a degree of intelligence, their combat experience against human adventurers and the equipment they carried also had to be considered.

Even so, a creature’s challenge rating still provided a rough gauge of its strength.

For example, the rust monsters our half-elf team encountered last night had a challenge rating of “0.5.”

The bear goblin that wiped out the Rotten Fish and Shrimp Team had a challenge rating of exactly “1” (slightly less).

Using this as a benchmark,

the petrifying lizard now lumbering toward me, Xia Nan, not far ahead, had a challenge rating of—

“3!”

It required four level-3 professionals, with adequate preparation, to hunt it down without casualties.

This massive creature, clad in thick scales, possessed an innate ability called “Petrifying Gaze” from birth.

Its eerie green eyes, wherever they looked, could trigger this ability, affecting any living creature in its line of sight.

Only those with robust physiques or resolute willpower could avoid being turned into a statue.

This extremely dangerous ability allowed it to dominate the arid regions it inhabited.

A single glance, and unprepared prey would become an immobile statue.

At that point, the naturally lazy petrifying lizard would leisurely crawl forward, using its powerful jaws to crush the statue and swallow it.

Secretions in its stomach would then convert the food back to its original form for digestion.

Without a doubt,

regardless of the state of the petrifying lizard before me, with my current strength—

facing it meant death.

Thus, even though I hadn’t yet fought this creature, the sight of Larry and Doris petrified in an instant, and Hai’an and Wood fleeing without looking back,

was enough to make me, the moment I regained my senses, spurred by the blaring alarm of approaching death in my mind, turn and sprint!

The beheading longsword I had just drawn was sheathed again, bushes on both sides blurring past in my vision.

I swung my arms furiously, my legs racing across the leaf-strewn meadow in the forest.

“Huff… huff…”

I panted heavily, my brain slightly dizzy from the surge of adrenaline.

Occasionally, I heard the warning hisses of snakes and insects as I brushed past bushes.

But I couldn’t care less, blindly running deeper into the forest.

I prayed in my heart that the petrifying lizard wouldn’t pursue.

However, I underestimated this greedy creature’s hunger for flesh.

Watching me and the half-elf split off in different directions,

a glint of calculated thought, like that of an intelligent being, flickered in the lizard’s eerie green eyes.

Though one side had more prey, they were clearly faster, their presence obscured and hard to track in the dense forest.

Coupled with the vibrant green light that had blocked its petrifying gaze earlier…

The massive grayish-green lizard, driven by its hunting instincts, made its decision almost instantly.

Its eight stout, pillar-like legs bent, gathering strength.

“Bang!”

Its bloated, heavy body, in a stark contrast to its bulk, unleashed an explosive force far beyond what its size suggested.

Like a tank clad in stone armor,

tough, tangled bushes and fleeing snakes and scorpions were crushed to bits;

dense tree canopies shook violently, startled birds barely flapping twice before turning to stone and falling to the ground.

Trees were toppled, grass flattened.

Wood chips and grass seeds swirled in the air.

I felt the ground tremble violently, a deafening roar like a passing train coming from behind.

My heart pounded wildly; I didn’t dare look back, only pushing myself to run faster.

But the sound of snapping branches, like the footsteps of an approaching reaper, grew clearer in my ears.

Finally, as a grayish-green shadow flashed in the corner of my eye,

a fierce gust, carrying the stench of the creature’s saliva, surged from behind like a gale.

A maw capable of crushing iron and stone snapped shut!

“Buzz!”

The only magical item on me, the [Deadline] ring, triggered automatically—

[Deflection Force Field]

Neither light nor gas, the ambient energy in the air instantly coalesced into a translucent ochre-red shield, enveloping my body.

“Crack!”

The petrifying lizard’s bite missed under the force field’s deflection, its powerful jaws snapping shut.

A teeth-gritting sound echoed through the air.

It was only defense.

The [Deadline] ring’s “Deflection Force Field,” with its 24-hour cooldown, could be a decisive trump card in evenly matched battles.

But now, against such a vast disparity in strength,

it only bought me a couple more steps.

The next second, the petrifying lizard’s tank-like massive body slammed straight into me.

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