Though his protective battle aura managed to deflect the bulk of the bubble's destructive force, a significant amount of energy still managed to pierce through Mo Han's defenses and strike him directly, leaving him with no small amount of internal injury. The moment his feet touched the ground, Mo Han felt a wave of dizziness wash over him, his body swaying precariously as if he might topple over at any second. Seeing Mo Han injured, Xiao Mo, who was currently locked in a fierce struggle with two other tentacles, suddenly let out a furious roar.

Immediately, three concentric circles of yellow light bloomed outward—it was Xiao Mo’s signature Gravity Spell. The two tentacles grappling with Xiao Mo were instantly pinned down and sucked firmly toward the ground by the spell's crushing force. Then, with a swift kick for each, Xiao Mo stomped the front sections of the tentacles into pulp.

The giant squid responded with another agonizing shriek. Struck repeatedly, the creature was significantly wounded, especially by the damage inflicted by Mo Han’s Bright Holy Sword, which was bleeding profusely, pooling crimson blood across the ground. Once free from the tentacles' entanglement, Xiao Mo rushed straight to Mo Han’s side, whimpering continuously, its eyes wide with obvious anxiety over Mo Han’s condition.

Noticing this, Mo Han managed to force a strained smile and spoke, "I'm fine, don't worry. Your boss isn't going down that easily." Xiao Mo made a soft, understanding sound, and upon seeing Mo Han smile, its agitation visibly lessened. Just then, a cry identical to that of the great squid echoed from the distance.

Upon hearing this sound, the injured great squid immediately shrieked back toward the far-off call, as if desperately signaling for aid. Mo Han inwardly groaned at the sight; it seemed this monster wasn't alone. Now that he was heavily wounded, if another monster arrived, he would simply become an easy meal to fatten up this squid-beast.

With that thought, Mo Han quickly shouted to Xiao Mo, "Let's move! This monster might not be the only one—who knows how many more there are!" Hearing this, Xiao Mo whimpered in response, lowered itself to the ground, and pointed toward its own back. Mo Han understood immediately: Xiao Mo, seeing his injuries, was offering to carry him away.

Without any further ceremony, Mo Han smiled, patted Xiao Mo’s head, and climbed onto its back. As soon as Mo Han was settled, Xiao Mo spread its limbs and bolted forward at incredible speed, quickly clearing the great squid’s territory and heading back along their original path. On Xiao Mo’s back, Mo Han felt absolutely no jarring motion, as if he were sitting on level ground—he knew this smooth ride was undoubtedly Xiao Mo's doing.

They soon exited the valley, and Mo Han’s suspended heart finally settled. He spoke to Xiao Mo, "Little fellow, do you still remember the way back?" Xiao Mo nodded in affirmation. Seeing this, Mo Han smiled and said, "That's good.

I need to focus on recovery to have the energy for any sudden developments. Just keep heading back the way we came, and give me a reminder when we’re close." Xiao Mo nodded again and changed direction. Mo Han immediately cast a High-Level Healing Spell on himself to accelerate the mending of his wounds.

He then closed his eyes and entered a meditative state to restore his battle aura as quickly as possible. During the fight with the great squid, Mo Han had depleted more than half of his total battle aura reserves, so rapid replenishment was crucial. Battle aura was not like his injuries; one couldn't simply cast a healing spell and recover a majority instantly; it required slow accumulation.

After an unknown amount of time, Mo Han was awakened by Xiao Mo’s insistent calls. His battle aura had recovered to about seventy or eighty percent, but his physical injuries still required more time for complete healing. Even with the healing spell cast, his internal damage was severe and would not mend easily; the remaining recovery would take at least another day.

By this time, Xiao Mo had brought Mo Han back to the location where they had separated from Daili and the others. Upon seeing Mo Han return, Daili and the rest rushed forward. Mo Han hopped down from Xiao Mo’s back, and when the group saw him covered head-to-toe in blood, they were greatly startled and rushed over.

Daili was especially distraught, on the verge of tears, her eyes crimson with worry as she anxiously asked, "What happened? Are you hurt? How bad is it?" Murong Feixue also watched Mo Han with an anxious expression, her eyes filled with concern.

Seeing their reactions, Mo Han felt a warmth in his heart and managed a smile. "Heh heh, relax everyone, I'm fine. This isn't my blood; it’s the beast’s.

It splashed on me while I was killing it. I just don't have any spare clothes, so I had to wear it back. You wouldn't want your husband streaking through the Magic Forest, would you?

If I did that, I’d lose out big time." Hearing Mo Han’s explanation, and seeing that he could still joke and that there appeared to be no actual wounds on his body, Daili’s tension eased. She playfully scolded him, "You! Always scaring people.

If you had to kill a monster, fine, but why did you have to get yourself completely covered in blood? You looked so terrifying! You're always causing trouble." Mo Han offered a rueful smile in explanation, "Do you think I wanted this?

That monster was utterly monstrous! I’m lucky I managed to escape at all; I hardly had time to worry about whether my clothes were getting stained!" Daili and the others were stunned by this revelation. They were well aware of Mo Han’s and Xiao Mo’s combined strength—an undeniably formidable partnership.

Even a Sword Saint might not gain the upper hand against them, yet there was a monster capable of driving Mo Han and Xiao Mo into a hasty retreat. Just how terrifying must that beast’s power have been? Murong Feixue then spoke up, "Big Brother Mo Han, with your strength and Xiao Mo's, you couldn't defeat that monster?" Daili and Latin nodded quickly, echoing the question.

Jumping up...