Infinite Paths: The Raging Phoenix

The monster's howl of pain echoed across the battlefield as the severed tentacles trembled wildly. Rain's calculated strikes were taking their toll on the creature, creating an opportunity for him to exploit its vulnerabilities and press his advantage as chunks of its body began to fall.

The Kraken dragon used its wounded tentacles to destroy the ice platforms, but Rain could create them on the fly, just when he wanted to change directions, so that was useless.

Without any other choice, the monster began to spin its body violently to stop Rain's attacks, and as if that wasn't enough, the monster also fired blasts of water through its suckers as well.

"Ugh… this certainly will keep me away. This thing sure is smart," Rain thought after he was pushed away by the attack.

It looked like the water cyclone was back but with much more power… Rain fired some Frost Swords at the beast, but he didn't notice any changes… the water shield was too strong.

It was an almost perfect defense… but there was an obvious opening. Rain jumped with all his might, and once he was one kilometer above the monster, he kicked an ice platform that he created and began to fall like a meteor. The monster was waiting for that and fired its concentrated blast of water toward him… it hit Rain instantly, but Rain passed through it by slicing the attack with his ice blade.

In the last moment, Rain fired the ice blade to pierce the water blast in two and create a path for him to fall… in the end, he had to finish things with a punch, and once the ice blade entered the mouth of the beast, the creature stopped attacking and groaned in pain, before Rain hit forehead with both of his elbows.

The creature trembled violently, and eventually, its eyes turned white, and the monster stopped moving… Rain only felt the resistance of the scales, not of the skull. Rain thought that the dragon would at least have bones in its head, but perhaps not even that… either way, the monster was knocked down, and Rain achieved his goal.

"This wasn't so hard… I guess the Greedy Vows really helped me," Rain thought.

Rain started to methodically chop off the limbs of the Kraken Dragon, preventing the massive creature from regaining its footing or launching further attacks. Each severed tentacle hit the ground, writhing and convulsing, as Rain moved on to the next target.

To further secure his control over the situation, Rain summoned a massive lock of earth and encased the head of the Kraken Dragon. This added layer of protection would serve as a safety measure; if the monster somehow managed to break free and become a threat once more, Rain would have the means to crush its head, neutralizing the danger.

His strategic thinking and combat prowess were on full display as he worked to subdue the Kraken Dragon. Still, soon enough, Rain saw the creature regenerating a bit at a time.

"Wow… does that mean that we can have infinite fried tentacles?" Rain wondered.

Rain was asking the real questions there… Still, he moved the creature back home with the tentacles. Since the monster didn't have bones, it was very light, even more so since its body was mainly filled with water.

As one would expect, Terra and Seara were completely speechless when they saw what Rain brought home… the kraken dragon was still alive. Still, it couldn't be helped considering his goal and the promise that he told them that they will have fried tentacles forever didn't please them. Moreover, they looked quite repulsed while seeing the tentacles.

"Their instincts are good…" Rain thought. "Anyway, send the message to Artisia, and we are going to interrogate this dragon."

"What do you mean by anyway?" Terra asked. "Did she even make that other dragon speak at any point?"

"Not that I have heard of," Rain shrugged. "Well, there is a first time for everything."

With a clear objective in mind, Rain shared his intentions with Terra and Seara after they sent the word for Artisia to come. He aimed to find the lair of the Kraken Dragon and secure its treasures, believing that these could potentially strengthen their group. Rain suspected that these treasures might also hold ancient relics with immense power, which would be valuable assets in their battles.

Furthermore, Rain was determined to unravel the mystery of why the dragons, including this evolved Kraken Dragon, were behaving like that all of a sudden. Their indiscriminate invasions had to have a reason, and Rain was eager to discover the motives behind them.

In the end, Artisia showed up the next morning and blinked several times when she saw the Kraken dragon… the other sea dragon was still under her control, so that job would be difficult… or so she thought anyway.

"I want you to make this guy reveal where its base is and why they are on the move now," Rain said.

"Yes, master," Artisia said.

"... Some day, I will truly think that you are picking a fight with me," Rain said after a long sigh. "Maybe your sole existence only has the purpose of testing my patience."

Artisia, not fazed by the sheer size of the Kraken Dragon's head, approached the massive creature. With a sense of purpose and confidence, she gently laid her hand on the colossal head of the beast. Her unique and powerful abilities allowed her to exert control over even the most formidable enemies, after all.

Surprisingly, despite the high damage Rain had inflicted on the monster's head during the battle, Artisia's touch had an almost miraculous effect. The Kraken Dragon, which had been unconscious since the end of the fierce combat, remained in a state of slumber, suggesting that her touch made it awaken.

"Three hours… southwest…" The dragon muttered while trembling all over as if its body was trying to fight back the mind control. "We are… because…"