Chapter Seventy-Five: A Remarkably Imaginative Mind (Second Update!)

Hearing that she wouldn't have to confront the eighth-tier magical beast head-on, Catherine's expression eased ever so slightly. She took ten deep breaths in succession to forcibly calm her pounding heart, then managed a smile more miserable than tears at Ling Mo and said, "I'm ready, Master. Let's go."

Ling Mo nodded and strode forward, crossing several steps to arrive beneath a segment of the Sky Pillar. With a nimble leap upward, each jump carried him dozens of meters higher, and before long, he had ascended to a considerable height where clouds and mist began to swirl around them.

Pressed almost against the surface of the eighth-tier beast, Catherine was extremely tense. To relieve the sensation, she whispered to the viewers in her livestream, distracting herself:

"The feeling right now is absolutely terrible. I can sense a faint, indistinct pressure that makes my limbs stiff and causes my body to tremble uncontrollably. And this intimidation isn't from Antuen releasing any aura—it comes from inside me! After millions of years of human evolution, the fear of eighth-tier magical beasts is deeply etched into our genes. If I had to fight in this environment, I doubt I could even display half my strength! Thinking back to the predecessors who resisted eighth-tier beasts centuries ago, it's truly… remarkable!"

"We must have ascended at least a thousand meters now, and we're still on this segment of the pillar! Does that mean just one of its legs exceeds a thousand meters in height? Antuen truly deserves to be called a genuine eighth-tier magical beast! Moreover, judging by the scene I glimpsed when the black mist dispersed, the height of its back is twice that of its legs, and its length is two or three times its height! I can't even imagine how immense it truly is!"

"With such a colossal magical beast, what does it eat? Surely it doesn't go hunting, does it? An entire magical beast rainforest wouldn't be enough to sustain it! And how does it move? For a creature as gigantic as a mountain, each step must consume astronomical amounts of energy. Is it really a living being?"

Ling Mo tapped Catherine's head with his finger and said, "Why do you have so many questions?"

"Master, can't you explain? It's rare to have such an opportunity!" After talking for a while, Catherine's mood evidently improved, and she grew more energetic. "I might be the closest person to an eighth-tier magical beast in decades, right? I can record untold amounts of precious footage. Thinking about it, that's actually quite an honor! Though I'd prefer only honorable deeds and not to become honorably dead!"

"You won't be. Like I said, Antuen is a remarkably gentle eighth-tier magical beast." Ling Mo spun lightly to dodge a fireball that smashed down nearby. "You should know, although the magical beast rainforest sits at the continent's center and severely obstructs travel, causing many problems, its vastness brings countless benefits to the continent's air quality, doesn't it?"

"Yes, that's right. I remember my middle school textbook calling the magical beast rainforest the 'lungs of the continent.' But what does that have to do with Antuen?"

"It has everything to do with Antuen! The rainforest exists precisely because Antuen lies here." Ling Mo suddenly spoke astonishingly. He stretched out his arm, grabbed a protrusion on the Sky Pillar, and quickly moved sideways to the inner side of the giant column. Pointing toward the base of the mountain elevated by Antuen—its abdomen—he said, "Do you see that terrifying geothermal fire?"

Catherine focused intently, and the magic eye sprite switched to ultra-telephoto mode. Sure enough, beneath Antuen's massive abdomen was not solid ground, but a gigantic hollow with a diameter exceeding a thousand meters! From this cavern, flames erupted, soaring hundreds of meters high! As these flames rose, they scattered in all directions, but once they reached about a hundred meters, an inexplicable suction drew them in, twisting them into fiery vortices. These vortices continually absorbed surrounding energy and eventually grew into enormous fire tornadoes that connected to Antuen's underbelly, where they were absorbed into its body!

Catherine watched for a while, then blurted out, "Master, doesn't this scene look a lot like an old turtle being simmered on a gas stove?"

Ling Mo's mouth twitched at her words, and his normally flawless grip faltered—he grabbed at empty air and nearly fell off Antuen's leg! He quickly stepped onto nothing, using the counterforce to bounce back onto the Sky Pillar, then reached out, pinched Catherine's collar between two fingers, and shook her in front of his face, exasperated. "What on earth goes on in your head?! Such a magnificent sight, and all you can think of is a gas tank simmering an old turtle?!"

Though Catherine was shaken dizzy, she still muttered, "I never said it wasn't magnificent—a magnificent gas stove simmering a magnificent turtle. Look at the ring of flames around that big round cavity; doesn't it look eighty percent like a gas stove…"

Catching Ling Mo's fierce glare, Catherine finally wisely shut her mouth. Meanwhile, the barrage of comments exploded with laughter thanks to her remark!

"Sister Catherine, your thought process is truly legendary!!"

"I always knew the streamer was carefree, but this is on another level!"

"Instantly became a fan with that one sentence!"

"Damn it, that line totally broke my immersion! I was here to witness history!"

"Why does Antuen suddenly seem a little cute?!"

"Supreme Golden User 'Ferryman of the Underworld' rewarded the streamer with ten Meteor Fire Rains! Message: This little girl is just my type—come be my apprentice someday!"

"Supreme Golden User 'Soul Reaper' rewarded the streamer with ten Meteor Fire Rains! Message: If I'd had her attitude during the siege of the Golden Fortress, I wouldn't have lost a leg!"

"Supreme Golden User 'Time Wanderer' rewarded the streamer with ten Meteor Fire Rains! Message: Old Bai, have you ever thought of joining the martial arts school? With your smarts, you'd surely achieve something—and maybe even grow your leg back!"

"Supreme Golden User 'Soul Reaper' rewarded the streamer with one Meteor Fire Rain! Message: You get me, kid! I'm actually pondering it. Once I retire, I'll give it a try!"

"So many big names showing up, newbies are trembling in fear…"

"Honestly, if not for Catherine's livestream, I wouldn't even know Supreme Golden Users exist in the magic web!"

"Viewer 'Rich and Idle' rewarded the streamer with three Meteor Fire Rains! Message: These golden IDs are gorgeous! Where do you get them? How much do they cost? Anyone knowledgeable care to explain?"

"From the way you talk, I can guess your level—probably never gonna happen in this lifetime!"

"…"

(ps: This afternoon we got six recommendations! Dear readers, please cast your precious votes for the author! Also, per the new schedule, starting tomorrow, updates will be between 7 and 10 pm. Special notice: don't assume the author has stopped updating if you check in the morning and see nothing! Though my hands are clumsy, I've never missed a single day since the book began!)