The crocodile's eye widened.
Lían's sword was already approaching.
**SHING!**
At the final moment—
the crocodile's head suddenly twisted.
The blade passed across the edge of its eye.
A thin line of blood appeared.
Lían's expression changed.
*...I missed.*
The crocodile reacted instantly.
Its enormous jaws opened.
Lían's pupils contracted.
*Too close!*
He kicked against the water.
A platform instantly formed beneath his feet.
He pushed off.
**BOOM!**
His body shot backward.
The crocodile's jaws snapped shut where he had been.
The violent force sent a powerful current through the lake.
Lían stabilized himself several meters away.
His eyes remained fixed upon the creature.
*Its eye is definitely vulnerable.*
He looked at the faint wound.
The attack had actually injured it.
Unlike his previous strikes against the scales—
this one had drawn blood.
*So I'm right.*
*I just need a better opportunity.*
The crocodile suddenly roared.
The sound shook the surrounding water.
Its massive body turned.
Then—
it charged.
Lían immediately moved sideways.
The crocodile passed him.
Its tail followed.
**BOOM!**
Lían raised his sword.
**CLANG!**
The impact sent him spinning through the water.
He quickly gathered the surrounding current around his body and slowed himself.
His gaze remained focused.
*The tail is too dangerous to ignore.*
*The mouth is even worse.*
*If I want to reach its eyes...*
*I need to control its movement first.*
Lían looked at the surrounding lake.
A thought emerged.
*I don't need to overpower it.*
*I only need to make it unable to react.*
His spiritual energy began circulating.
The water around the crocodile quietly shifted.
The beast suddenly slowed.
Its massive body continued forward—
but the currents around its legs began twisting in different directions.
The crocodile struggled.
Lían's eyes sharpened.
*Now.*
Several streams of water shot toward its head.
The crocodile violently shook itself.
Two streams broke apart.
Another wrapped around its jaw.
The creature snapped its mouth open.
The stream shattered.
But—
for one brief moment—
its movement slowed.
That was enough.
Lían shot forward.
His sword was already raised.
The water beneath him surged.
His speed increased.
The crocodile's eye turned toward him.
Too late.
Lían's blade thrust forward.
**SHHK!**
The sword pierced directly into its eye.
The crocodile convulsed violently.
A massive roar shook the lake.
Lían immediately released the sword and retreated.
The creature thrashed wildly.
Its tail smashed through the water.
**BOOM!**
The lake churned violently.
Lían watched from a distance.
Blood slowly spread through the surrounding water.
One of the crocodile's eyes had been completely ruined.
Lían's breathing remained heavy.
*...One eye.*
*Now I only need the other.*
Lían's gaze remained fixed upon the thrashing crocodile.
His sword was still lodged within its ruined eye.
He slowly raised his hand.
The surrounding water immediately responded.
It gathered around his palm.
Compressed.
Condensed.
Then—
a sharp, needle-like blade of water formed within his grasp.
Lían stared at it.
*...I don't have my sword.*
*But I don't need it.*
His fingers tightened around the condensed water blade.
His gaze shifted toward the crocodile's remaining eye.
*I only need to take away its other eye.*
But—
his thoughts suddenly stopped.
Lían remained motionless.
*...Then what?*
He stared at the enormous beast.
Even if he blinded it completely—
he still couldn't kill it.
Its scales were simply too tough.
His previous attacks had already proven that.
*I can blind it.*
*Then I can leave the lake.*
*Even if another opponent appears later while this thing can no longer see...*
*It won't be able to find me.*
The thought seemed reasonable.
But—
Lían's expression gradually became serious.
*That means giving up this advantage.*
This lake was his greatest source of strength.
The Water Control Art.
His Aquatic Water Body.
His ability to recover spiritual energy through the surrounding water.
Everything worked in his favor here.
If he left—
that advantage would disappear.
And there was another problem.
*If I leave it alive...*
*What happens when the next opponent appears?*
He didn't know.
The rules had only told him that another opponent would appear.
He couldn't assume the crocodile would simply disappear.
Lían's grip tightened around the condensed water blade.
*No.*
*I can't leave it alive.*
His eyes slowly hardened.
*I need to kill it.*
But how?
He had already attacked its scales.
Its belly.
Its limbs.
Even its eye.
Nothing had been enough.
Then—
his gaze slowly shifted toward the crocodile's mouth.
Its jaws opened.
Rows of enormous teeth flashed through the water.
Lían's expression became thoughtful.
*The outside is too tough.*
*Then...*
*I need to attack what's inside.*
His eyes narrowed.
*Its organs.*
*Its throat.*
*Somewhere beneath those scales...*
*There has to be something vulnerable.*
The crocodile suddenly turned toward him.
Despite losing one eye—
it had already located his position.
Its massive body surged forward.
Lían didn't retreat.
Instead—
his grip tightened around the condensed water blade.
*If I can't break through its defenses from the outside...*
*Then I'll enter through the one place it can't protect with scales.*
Its mouth.
Lían's gaze became completely focused.
*I'll kill it from the inside.*
The crocodile charged.
Its enormous jaws opened wide.
Lían didn't retreat.
Instead—
he deliberately moved closer.
*Come.*
The crocodile's remaining eye locked onto him.
Its jaws snapped forward.
Lían waited until the final instant.
Then—
he dove.
The massive teeth slammed shut behind him.
**BOOM!**
For a moment—
everything became dark.
Lían's expression tightened.
*I'm inside.*
The crocodile's throat contracted violently.
The surrounding water was dragged deeper.
Lían immediately raised his hand.
The water around him condensed into several sharp blades.
He thrust them forward.
**SHHK! SHHK!**
The condensed water pierced into the soft flesh within the crocodile's mouth.
The demon beast convulsed.
A violent roar erupted.
Lían was thrown against the inside of its jaw.
*It works!*
He immediately moved deeper.
His eyes searched for anything vulnerable.
The scales outside were almost impossible to penetrate.
But inside—
there was no such protection.
Lían gathered more water.
It compressed into a thin spear.
He thrust it into the creature's throat.
**SHHK!**
Blood immediately spread through the surrounding water.
The crocodile went berserk.
Its body twisted violently.
Its jaws snapped open and closed repeatedly.
Lían struggled to maintain his position.
*Hold on!*
He planted his foot against the inner wall.
Water wrapped around his body.
Then—
the crocodile suddenly slammed its head against the lake floor.
**BOOOOOOM!**
Lían's body was crushed against the inside of its mouth.
His vision blurred.
Before he could recover—
the jaws closed again.
**CRUNCH!**
Pain exploded through his body.
Lían's eyes widened.
He looked down.
His leg—
was gone.
Blood immediately spread through the water.
For a moment—
his mind went blank.
*...My leg.*
The crocodile opened its mouth.
Lían was thrown outward.
His body spun through the water.
He clenched his teeth against the pain.
*Not now.*
He immediately controlled the surrounding water.
A current caught his body.
He stabilized himself.
The crocodile turned toward him.
Its remaining eye burned with rage.
Lían's breathing became ragged.
Blood continued drifting from the wound.
Yet—
his gaze remained fixed upon the beast.
*I lost a leg.*
His fingers tightened.
*But I found its weakness.*
He glanced toward the blood spreading from its mouth.
*It can be hurt from inside.*
The crocodile charged again.
Lían's eyes sharpened.
This time—
he wasn't going to enter blindly.
He had already learned what waited inside.
And now—
he knew exactly where to strike.