"We'll follow the river channel in the Asgard Mountains. The environment here is pristine, magic is abundant, and there must be gold sand at the bottom of the river, and quite a lot of it."
"I can help you refine the gold sand, which will, to some extent, alleviate your problem of insufficient magic. If you control enough gold sand, there's hope for you to become a magic artillery platform."
Marcus was very tempted, but he still restrained his excitement and said, "Completing your entrusted task is the priority. I'm not in a hurry to find gold sand; there will be other opportunities. Besides, you've already paid with a B-rank flying Summoned Beast. If you were to pay with gold sand again, considering the reward for a B-rank task, it would be an overpayment."
Marcus sincerely said, "Many companions in the guild are stronger than me, but because of that, they are all busy with entrusted tasks and not in the guild. That's why I was able to take on this task. I'm happy to help my friend, and you don't need to pay anything extra."
Ezreal was silent for a moment, then stood up and patted the green-haired young man's shoulder, saying, "I said it before we set off, following the river channel increases the probability of finding a Titan Boa. And this river, named Midgard, has its main channel running through the entire Asgard Mountains."
"It is also the source of many rivers on the Earth Land continent. There's no need to search specifically; just have the Marsh Frog pay more attention to the riverbed underwater, and we'll likely have a harvest, or even encounter some rare materials."
"As for your concern about the task reward being excessive, I'll report it to Mira when we get back. During the mission, due to the overly powerful Summoned Beasts in the Asgard Mountains, we temporarily raised the task level to an A-rank commission, and the client agreed to pay the increased fee with gold sand. That should work."
"I can also save 100,000 yuan," Ezreal said with a wink and a smile at Marcus.
"Ez…" Marcus was moved to tears… Early the next morning, the three of them had a simple meal, washed up, and prepared to continue their journey.
Ezreal waved his hand, summoning his Summoned Beasts to form a defensive formation.
Cana also flicked her hand, releasing the Evil Crow King sealed in her card.
The nearly four-meter-tall Evil Crow King floated silently in the air, its wings flapping, creating a fierce wind. A pair of blood-red eyes revealed undisguised malice and ferocity.
In the morning sun, the half-meter-long sharp claws on the Evil Crow King's hands and feet glinted with a chilling light.
Before resting last night, Cana had channeled her magic power to the Evil Crow King in the card, helping it recover from its injuries.
This was the advantage of a semi-undead creature; as long as there was enough magic power, any damage received could be recovered by converting magic power.
Cana glanced at the Evil Crow King.
The Evil Crow King nodded, spread its wings, and flew into the air, stopping its flight at about a hundred meters above the ground.
The three of them rode their Crimson Feathered Demon Wolves and, under the protection of their numerous Summoned Beasts, walked towards the Midgard River.
Upon reaching the Midgard River, Ezreal released two Marsh Frogs. In their minds, he transmitted his memories regarding the material gold sand, instructing them to pay close attention while underwater.
Then the three of them continued along the riverbank. As they walked, they would often encounter various Summoned Beasts drinking water by the river, but in front of their large team, they all chose to retreat.
After walking for a while, Ezreal saw a strange sight from the Hextech Tracker's perspective: a seemingly tranquil lake appeared in the frame.
The lake water was a bizarre dark green, like a thick, poisonous soup, emitting a chilling aura.
The edge of the lake was black mud, surrounded by strangely shaped, rugged and protruding rocks, some resembling monstrous beasts with bared fangs, others eerie and terrifying skulls, as if they were malicious masterpieces of nature, full of unknown dangers and mystery.
Through the Hextech Tracker's perspective, Ezreal keenly noticed that near the edge of this lake, many large, black-skinned Swamp Crocodiles were dozing on the black mud.
Their black scales blended almost perfectly with the land. If it weren't for the Hextech Tracker's life detection function, even Ezreal wouldn't have noticed them.
Controlling the Hextech Tracker to fly a little higher, Ezreal roughly counted at least two hundred black crocodiles resting on the shore. As for how many more were in the lake, he wasn't sure.
Ezreal didn't dare to rashly control the Hextech Tracker to fly over and investigate. If he ended up in a chaotic battle with a large group of Ravens again like yesterday, it simply wasn't worth it.
Ezreal, riding on the back of his Crimson Feathered Demon Wolf, opened his eyes, turned to Marcus and Cana, and whispered, "Guys, I've found something."
Marcus and Cana looked over.
Ezreal pointed in a direction and continued, "There's a large black lake over there, inhabited by a group of Swamp Crocodiles, an ancient species of Summoned Beast. Adults are C-rank in strength and are the main food source for the Titan Boa."
Marcus said, "So, that means we can stake out near the Swamp Crocodiles' habitat and find traces of the Titan Boa!"
Cana shook her head, her delicate brows slightly furrowed, and said, "It's not that simple. A Titan Boa can go about two months without eating after one meal."
"If we're unlucky and happen to find it shortly after it's eaten, then who knows how long we'll have to wait to find its tracks. Moreover, Swamp Crocodiles are not to be trifled with; they are fierce and highly territorial. If we stake out near their habitat, a slight misstep could provoke their attack."
Ezreal stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Cana has a point, but this is currently the most likely method we can think of to find the Titan Boa. We'll proceed cautiously, make thorough preparations, and try to avoid direct confrontation with the Swamp Crocodiles."
After the three discussed their strategy, Ezreal sent the large and conspicuous Red and Blue Warriors and the Marsh Frogs back to the canyon, leaving only three Crimson Feathered Demon Wolves.
Urging the Summoned Wolf beneath him, Ezreal cautiously led the group slowly towards the mysterious lake.
As the distance gradually shortened, a strong, pungent, foul smell became increasingly intense, assaulting their nostrils. The odor was like a mixture of rotting corpses and putrid pus, making their stomachs churn and almost causing them to vomit.
Enduring the stench that went straight to their heads, they found a relatively secluded thicket.
Ezreal waved his hand, sending the three Crimson Feathered Demon Wolves back to the canyon.
Marcus gently placed his palm on the ground, and the soft black earth immediately turned into gold sand. In just two or three seconds, a sand pit large enough to accommodate three people appeared.
The three jumped into the sand pit, and Marcus waved his hand, sealing the top of the pit.
Ezreal took out a pile of Hextech Trackers, giving some to the other two and controlling some himself.
The three of them released the Hextech Trackers, using their assistance to observe the movements in the Swamp Crocodile habitat.
The Hextech Trackers, composed of machinery and energy bodies, were small in size and had no life aura, so they would not attract the attention of the Swamp Crocodiles.
Holding their breath, the three carefully observed the movements around the lake through the Hextech Trackers.
Time quietly passed, but the Titan Boa's figure never appeared.