The more Ryan spoke, the more agitated he became.
"My overall abilities might not be anything special, but the Innate Talent I awakened is Rapid Fire. My accuracy against moving targets isn't great, but I can shoot fast enough to compensate with sheer volume. If I fire enough arrows, at least a few of them are bound to hit."
His expression darkened.
"If it weren't for that woman Scarlett Hayes, I never would've ended up like this. I should've reached Level 10 a long time ago."
"Who's Scarlett Hayes?" Ethan asked.
"She's the most talented and strongest person among everyone who was transported here with us. She was also the first to reach Level 10."
Ryan's voice carried obvious resentment.
"Originally, everyone on the island helped each other. We all benefited that way. But that woman gathered several of the most talented people and formed an elite team."
"After that, they started hunting high-quality Mystic Spirits on their own and stopped caring whether everyone else lived or died."
"The people accepted into her team leveled ridiculously fast. They obtained high-quality Spirit Pets, Secret Arts, Secret Techniques, and Mystic Treasures. They have so much good stuff that they can practically pick and choose whatever they want to use."
Ryan's expression became increasingly bitter.
"The rest of us can barely level up."
"Without powerful teammates, every Mystic Spirit hunt becomes a life-or-death gamble. Some people practically have to work like slaves for Scarlett's group just to exchange their labor for a few resources."
"If it weren't for that, I wouldn't still be stuck at Level 7."
"I would've reached Level 10 ages ago."
Ethan didn't respond.
Personally, he didn't think Scarlett and her companions had necessarily done anything wrong.
The strong survived and the weak struggled.
That was simply one of the fundamental laws of survival.
If Scarlett's group willingly helped weaker cultivators, that would certainly be generous of them.
But refusing to risk their lives and resources for others didn't automatically make them guilty of anything.
"I was actually part of that elite team in the beginning."
Ryan's anger immediately intensified.
"But Scarlett actually said my archery wasn't accurate enough to handle important battles."
"She kicked me out of the team!"
His teeth clenched hard enough to make an audible grinding sound.
"Just wait."
"Once I fix my accuracy, I'll go back to Demon Idol Valley."
"I'll kill that Peerless Mystic Spirit, obtain a Peerless Secret Art, Secret Technique, and Spirit Pet..."
Ryan's eyes burned with frustration.
"Then they'll regret ever kicking me out."
"Demon Idol Valley?"
Ethan's attention immediately sharpened when he heard the words Peerless Mystic Spirit.
"What's that?"
"Demon Idol Valley is one of the island's mysterious regions."
Ryan folded his arms.
"There's a type of black Demon Idol Mystic Spirit living inside. They're ridiculously powerful."
"Scarlett's group tried hunting one before and got absolutely wrecked. Based on what they observed afterward, they suspect it's a Peerless-grade Mystic Spirit."
Ryan gave a cold laugh.
"According to their research, the Demon Idol's defense is absurd. Unless you have a Peerless-grade Mystic Treasure as a weapon, you can't even break through its defenses."
"Forget killing it. You can't even hurt it."
Ethan frowned slightly.
"So there's no weakness?"
"There is."
Ryan pointed toward the center of his forehead.
"The vertical eye."
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"The Demon Idol has a vertical eye on its forehead. When that eye opens, it's apparently the only vulnerable part of its entire body."
"But there's a problem."
"The vertical eye only opens for an instant when the Demon Idol activates its Secret Technique."
"And whenever it uses that technique, it moves at extremely high speed."
Ryan shook his head.
"Scarlett's people couldn't even touch it."
"Forget injuring the eye."
"The only realistic possibility would be some kind of long-range attack. Something like archery might be able to hit the vertical eye during that tiny instant when it opens."
Ethan's eyes brightened.
"Tell me everything you know about that Demon Idol."
Ryan looked at him.
"Why?"
"Maybe the two of us can work together and kill it."
Ryan stared at Ethan for a moment before shaking his head with a bitter smile.
"I was just complaining."
"Even if my accuracy were good enough, the two of us still couldn't kill that thing."
"It's probably a Level 10 Peerless Mystic Spirit."
"You could tie both of us together and we still wouldn't be enough for one of its hands."
Ryan sighed.
"We wouldn't even have the ability to force it to use its Secret Technique. How are we supposed to make it expose the vertical eye?"
"My level might be low..."
Ethan gestured toward Rouge standing beside him.
"...but my pet isn't weak."
"If we combine its combat strength with your archery, we might actually have a chance."
Ryan finally looked more carefully at Rouge.
"That's a Rare-grade Evil Bunny, right?"
He frowned.
"It's a little bigger than normal."
"Don't tell me it's Exceptional-grade?"
Ryan shook his head.
"Even if it is Exceptional, there's no way it can fight the Demon Idol."
"Still, you're pretty lucky. Getting a Spirit Pet like this right after arriving means your chances of surviving on the island are much better."
Ethan smiled faintly.
"Take another look."
He gave Rouge a command.
The enormous white rabbit walked toward the tree where the black butcher knife was still embedded.
Rouge reached out.
Then—
Schlick.
It pulled the Bloodsucking Blade free.
Ryan froze.
His eyes immediately widened.
"That knife..."
He stared at Rouge.
"That's the Evil Bunny's Mystic Treasure?"
"I've never heard of Evil Bunnies possessing Mystic Treasures."
His expression suddenly changed.
"Wait."
"Don't tell me..."
"Is that thing Unique-grade?"
"Correct."
Ethan nodded.
"It's a Unique Mystic Spirit."
Ryan stared at Rouge in disbelief.
"If I raise it to Level 10..."
Ethan continued, "...and combine its strength with your archery, do you think we'd have a chance against the Demon Idol?"
There was one thing Ethan deliberately didn't mention.
His greatest trump card wasn't Rouge.
It was Cheerleader's Soul.
If he raised Rouge to Level 10 and then enhanced it with Cheerleader's Soul...
In a one-on-one battle, Rouge might actually be capable of killing the Demon Idol by itself.
"A Unique Mystic Spirit..."
Ryan was genuinely stunned.
He had survived on this island for an entire year and still hadn't obtained a single truly impressive high-quality Spirit Pet.
Yet Ethan had only just arrived and somehow already possessed a Unique-grade Mystic Spirit with terrifying combat strength.
"If that's the case..."
Ryan hesitated.
"Then maybe we do have a chance."
"But probably not a very good one."
His expression became uncertain again.
"And my accuracy..."
Ethan studied him carefully.
The Ryan standing before him was nothing like the person Ethan remembered from childhood.
Back then, Ryan had been fearless.
Confident.
Almost arrogant when he had a slingshot in his hands.
Now, that confidence was gone.
Ethan had another reason for wanting Ryan to come along.
This island contained too many mysteries.
Ethan didn't want to blindly explore everything by himself.
Having someone with an entire year's worth of experience could save him from countless unnecessary dangers.
There was also the Demon Idol itself.
Ethan couldn't be certain that Rouge, even after receiving Cheerleader's Soul's enhancement, would be capable of defeating it alone.
If Rouge couldn't finish the job, Ryan's arrows might be necessary to strike the Demon Idol's vertical eye and deal a critical wound.
Bringing him along would provide an additional layer of insurance.
As for whether Ryan might betray him...
Ethan had already considered that possibility.
Ryan was Level 7.
Yet judging from what Ethan had seen earlier, his combat strength wasn't even comparable to the Level 2 Rouge.
If Ryan developed any malicious intentions, Ethan could simply enhance Rouge with Cheerleader's Soul.
Dealing with Ryan afterward wouldn't be particularly difficult.
Having reached a decision, Ethan suddenly looked at Ryan with a serious expression.
"Old Bird."
Ryan blinked.
"What?"
"You should know this already."
Ethan's voice became solemn.
"Back in our neighborhood, you were basically the childhood idol of everyone our age."
Ryan stared at him.
Ethan continued.
"Do you remember that time you took me into the woods to hunt birds?"
"There were two old turtledoves sitting side by side on the same branch."
"You asked me if I believed you could knock both of them down with a single stone."
"I told you there was absolutely no way."
Ethan smiled faintly at the memory.
"But you didn't argue."
"You simply bent down, picked up a stone, loaded your slingshot..."
"And knocked both birds down with one shot."
"Do you know what you looked like to me back then?"
Ryan's expression shifted slightly.
"At that moment..."
Ethan stared directly into his eyes.
"You were a god."
"Something unbelievable."
Ryan smiled bitterly.
"Those were ordinary birds, Ethan."
"They weren't even moving."
"That's completely different from fighting Mystic Spirits."
"It's the same."
Ethan interrupted before Ryan could continue.
"As far as I'm concerned, your talent as a marksman is unique."
"No one is more suited to a bow than you."
"And no one can shoot as accurately as you."
Ryan opened his mouth.
Ethan raised a hand, stopping him.
His expression remained completely serious.
"I believe your talent with a bow is second to none."
"You can become the greatest archer."
"The reason you can't shoot accurately now isn't because you've suddenly lost your talent."
"It's because you've become too obsessed with how other people see you."
"You've lost yourself."
"You've stopped trusting the instincts that made you exceptional in the first place."
Ethan spoke calmly.
But beneath the surface—
He activated Cheerleader's Soul.
He wanted to know exactly how powerful his Innate Talent would be when used on a human cultivator.
Ryan stared blankly at Ethan.
As he listened, an inexplicable heat began rising inside him.
His blood seemed to be warming.
Something long buried beneath a year of frustration and self-doubt began stirring again.
Yet Ryan still gave a bitter smile.
"Ethan..."
"You're giving me way too much credit."
"I'm really not as good as you remember."
"You're not?"
Ethan bent down.
"Then let's test it."
He picked up a pebble roughly the size of a pigeon's egg.
Then he looked at Ryan.
"I'll throw this."
"You hit it with an arrow."
Ryan frowned.
"Wait, Ethan, that's—"
Ethan had already thrown the pebble.
It spun through the air.
Ryan felt something surge inside him.
His body moved almost instinctively.
His hand flashed toward the quiver.
Draw.
Nock.
Pull.
Release.
The arrow left the bow.
Whoosh!
It cut through the air—
And struck the flying pebble dead center.
The stone dropped from the sky.