Chapter 180: Nick's Conviction

After a night of rest, everyone woke up around dawn. Aron and Irving communicated once more. Once both confirmed that everyone was ready to set off again, they continued down the path of the Desolate Canyon.

Since the sun had yet to rise, the entire Desolate Canyon appeared quite eerie. As they moved forward, the group occasionally heard various sounds made by nearby monsters. Irving and Aron, of course, paid no mind to these sounds. However, Wendy felt a little frightened.

Next to Wendy, Anna offered her reassurance. "You don't need to be scared. Both Captain Aron and Irving can protect you."

Wendy nodded and gradually calmed down.

After a while of walking, a massive wall suddenly appeared in front of them. Aron pulled out the map and examined it closely; there was no indication of any wall marked on it.

"What's going on? The map doesn't show any walls here. Has it become outdated?" Aron muttered to himself, puzzled.

Just then, Nick suddenly dashed out. He sprinted toward the wall at top speed while calling out to the others, "That's not a wall up ahead; it's a monster!"

Upon hearing Nick's words, Aron folded the map and looked toward the wall.

Sure enough, after receiving the warning, Aron finally realized that the wall ahead was a part of a monster's body.

"Be careful! The monsters here are extremely powerful!" Aron cautioned Nick, still feeling uneasy about him.

Without even turning around, Nick shouted back, "You don't need to worry! I'm very confident in my abilities. I can take down this monster quickly, and then we can move on."

Nick truly believed in himself. He thought the monster he was facing wasn't very strong. Although the creature appeared massive, he figured it wasn't as powerful as the elders of the Night Blades. Nick was convinced that he could defeat this monster with ease, earning everyone's respect for his strength.

However, all of Nick's earlier confidence vanished the moment he made contact with the monster. The expression on his face quickly darkened as he realized that the creature was far stronger than he had anticipated.

Before Nick could react, the monster slammed him to the ground with great force. Yet, in the face of danger, Nick's reflexes kicked in. He quickly pulled a bell out of his pocket.

The bell he pulled out was the most powerful item he had obtained in the Shelter Game. When he rang this bell, he could slow down time around him, allowing him to evade the monster's attacks.

As the sound of the bell echoed, the monster's movements began to sluggishly slow. However, Nick suddenly realized that his own speed was also diminishing. Although he had the ability to avoid the bell's effects, the monster before him had stripped that ability away.

At that moment, the monster had fully emerged from the ground. It was enormous, with a head resembling that of a crocodile. The creature's eyes were fixed intently on Nick.

The monster opened its massive jaws, revealing rows upon rows of sharp teeth right before Nick's eyes.

Nick's thoughts were in turmoil. Aside from fear, his mind was filled with regret and sorrow. He regretted trying to show off. If he hadn't been so reckless, he wouldn't have found himself in such grave danger.

In Nick's view, neither Aron nor Irving could possibly help him now, as they were still quite far away.

His regret stemmed from the fact that Nick felt he could no longer rely on his own strength to help others. He could no longer be the hero he had always wanted to be in his heart.

Just as Nick was lost in these complicated thoughts, a familiar figure appeared before him.

Irving positioned himself between Nick and the monster. As the creature's massive jaws descended upon Irving, he swiftly brandished his staff and unleashed a fireball. The powerful fireball exploded inside the monster's mouth, causing the enormous creature to let out a pained wail before collapsing to the ground.

With Irving's help, Nick successfully evaded the monster's attack.

Standing in front of Nick, Irving urged, "What are you waiting for? Now that you're safe, retreat quickly! Let me handle the fight from here."

Upon hearing Irving's words, Nick snapped back to reality. He glanced at Irving and then the distant monster, hesitating for a moment before ultimately choosing to fall back to a safe position.

As Nick retreated to safety, Anna, slightly frustrated, said to him, "I told you before, never try to show off when you're in danger. If Irving hadn't stepped in to help, that monster would have already taken you out."

Nick nodded in acknowledgment.

This time, he would not continue to be stubborn. After the recent battle, he had already realized that there was a significant gap in strength between him and Irving.

"You're right," Nick admitted. "I was indeed showing off a bit. I also need to apologize to Irving; I was wrong to underestimate him."

Nick's admission surprised both Wendy and Benjamin. They had always seen Nick as a rather stubborn person, so for him to directly acknowledge that he was inferior to Irving was beyond their expectations.

Anna noticed the astonished expression on Wendy's face and smiled as she explained, "Nick isn't a bad person. He underestimated Irving because he genuinely believed that his own abilities were stronger. But after the recent battle, he has come to respect Irving's strength. So naturally, he won't continue to underestimate him."

Wendy and Benjamin accepted Anna's explanation, albeit with some reluctance. However, they soon shifted their focus back to the ongoing battle.

Although Irving had saved Nick, he had not yet managed to quickly eliminate the monster that was blocking their path. At that moment, Aron also joined the fight.

With the cooperation of the two, the monster quickly found itself in a dire situation. After half an hour of intense battle, the massive creature let out a final wail before collapsing to the ground.

"I can't believe this giant monster didn't give us any experience points, and there were no kill rewards either," Aron exclaimed in surprise after defeating the creature.

Aron was merely puzzled at this revelation, but Irving had already entered a state of heightened alert. He sensed that defeating such a powerful monster without receiving any rewards was a very dangerous sign.

"We need to be prepared to engage in battle at any moment," Irving cautioned Aron.

Aron, slightly confused, asked, "But we just defeated that monster, didn't we? Why do we need to be ready for another fight?"

Before Aron could finish his sentence, a figure clad in black clothing and wearing a hood appeared slowly in front of him and Irving.

"He's right. You must always be ready for battle," the cloaked figure spoke in a raspy voice directed at Aron and Irving.

In an instant, Irving recognized the figure's identity; it was undoubtedly one of the Elders of the Night Blades. Without any hesitation after confirming this, Irving launched an attack.

He swung his staff, conjuring one blazing fireball after another. As these fireballs hurtled toward the foe, Irving also commanded the exotic beasts he had summoned to attack the enemy ahead.

Before Aron could fully process what was happening, Irving had already unleashed several rounds of attacks.

However, none of Irving's attacks were able to defeat the enemy standing not far away. The cloaked figure simply raised his left hand, generating a black barrier in front of him that blocked all of Irving's assaults.

"Young man, don't be too hasty," the figure said. "I did not come here to fight you. I came here to negotiate." Sёarch* The NôᴠelFirё.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

In response to this statement, Irving coldly replied, "I have nothing to say to anyone from the Night Blades, and I absolutely will not cooperate with you. You Night Blades are my sworn enemies, and I must eradicate you completely."

Upon hearing Irving's words, the cloaked figure smiled slightly. "You should hold off on making conclusions too early. Before we begin our negotiations, let me introduce myself. You can call me Lawrence, or if you prefer to show me some respect, you may refer to me as Elder Lawrence.

Your assumptions are indeed correct; I am one of the Elders of the Night Blades. However, I am completely different from the other Elders. I do not operate in the real world. My responsibility lies solely with the Night Blades in the Shelter game."

Elder Lawrence spoke in a calm tone as he introduced himself. Aron and Irving both remained on high alert, pondering the purpose of this figure's appearance.

"As you may have guessed, the monster you encountered was actually summoned by me. If you had chosen not to proceed, you would not have encountered that creature. So, you cannot consider me your enemy. What I wish to negotiate with you is simple: do not continue forward. If you can return the way you came, I will ensure a peaceful coexistence."

Elder Lawrence delivered this threatening proposition in a calm manner. After hearing these words, Irving coldly responded, "And what if we refuse? Do you really think you can defeat us?"