Chapter Fifty-Four: The Cthulhu Octopus

The tentacle that lashed out bore unmistakable features of a sea creature—smooth, slick with mucus, yet absurdly thick. The visible portion alone stretched over fifty meters, resembling an octopus tentacle magnified many times, its surface covered in disgusting, gaping suckers. The tentacle itself was a dark gray-black, but the suckers glowed blood-red, lending it an eerie appearance.

Its blow landed squarely amid the clusters of Iron Hammer Orchids and Voodoo Lilies, shattering swathes of flowers into fragments that drifted through the air. These shards were instantly sucked up by the tentacle’s suckers, transforming into a bizarre crimson mist and drawn deep within. The strange flowers seemed stunned by the display; silence hung over the scene until a second tentacle lashed out, wreaking even greater havoc. Only then did the Iron Hammer Orchids and Voodoo Lilies awaken as if from a dream and scatter in frantic escape.

Their methods of fleeing were peculiar. The Voodoo Lilies, their scarlet, corpse-like tongues snapping back into their gaping mouths, shut their upper jaws with a sudden clap. In the blink of an eye, they appeared as ordinary green fruit. Beneath each fruit, two serrated broad leaves spun and contracted upward, acting as tiny drills, burrowing the fruit swiftly into the earth where it vanished without a trace.

The Iron Hammer Orchids’ escape was stranger still. The lewd little figure formed from their stamens placed its purple-black fruit beneath its rear, then began to chatter in panic, its anthropomorphic face adopting a comically stoic expression. Immediately, the fruit beneath it began to glow. After a few seconds, it exploded with a bang, sending the humanoid flower stamens skyward with shrill cries, vanishing at once over the horizon.

Apparently, the monstrous tentacle had not expected the bizarre flowers to flee so quickly. The third tentacle whipped through the air in vain, catching only a few severed bits from the Naked Man Flowers, but nothing more. From the pale mist came a disgruntled grumble, then a massive inhalation. All the mist, along with any strange flowers lingering too close to escape, were sucked away, and a gigantic octopus emerged in midair!

Its entire body bore a terrifying, ashen hue; only its bulging ringed eyes and the suckers on its tentacles glowed blood-red. Each tentacle was estimated to be over a hundred meters long, its head towering several dozen meters high. As the mist vanished, Catherine saw clearly that the giant octopus was not fully summoned—the Voodoo Lilies’ spiritual gateway was not large enough, allowing only half its head and several tentacles through. Four enormous arms flailed wildly outside the gateway, while four more struggled to grip its edges, holding the gateway open lest it snap shut.

Structurally, it resembled a normal octopus, but with one significant difference: beneath its horrific ringed mouth hung a colossal sphere, its diameter easily several dozen meters, even larger than the octopus’s head. Two tentacles cradled it tightly against the head. The massive orb pulsed slowly, contracting and expanding in rhythm, like a beating heart.

This meatball was clearly a precious treasure to the octopus. The prey it sucked in—the Iron Hammer Orchids, Voodoo Lilies, and so forth—were dissolved in its mouth into revolting slush, then expelled and smeared onto the surface of the meatball. The orb’s surface shimmered transparently as the greenish slush was absorbed.

Yet such a meager offering could hardly satisfy the meatball’s needs; its pulsing grew frantic, and the giant octopus’s face twisted into a pained, almost human expression. One tentacle gently stroked the orb, soothing it until its heartbeat slowed. Then, its enormous scarlet eye swept downward and instantly locked onto the Dancing Grass—those blissfully oblivious plants still spinning and twirling in joy.

But the octopus was still far from them; even with its tentacles extended, it could not reach. After a moment’s hesitation, it resolved to repeat its earlier tactic: four tentacles pushed, lifting its head, and its ringed mouth opened wide, poised for another powerful inhalation. Suddenly, a change occurred.

The Dancing Grass, spinning in pairs, accelerated their twirl. The weaker of each pair was flung high by its partner, straight toward the gaping maw of the octopus, while the stronger one spun away, propelled by the force of the throw, and fled to safety. Once in the safe zone, the surviving strong Dancing Grass paired up anew, soon appearing as loving couples once again.

“These grasses... truly heartless,” Catherine remarked, then asked, “What is that creature? Ever since entering the depths of the magical beast rainforest, I feel like an idiot, knowing nothing. And it’s clearly a marine species—how is it floating in midair so contentedly?”

“That’s a Cthulhu Octopus. Its semi-phantom nature and the writhing, elongated tentacles resemble the evil gods of Cthulhu mythology, hence the name,” Ling Mo explained. “Its habitat is the Shadow Sea of the Demon Plane. Though called a sea, it’s actually a vast cloud of negative energy and impurities, suspended in the sky of the Demon Plane. So, this creature is naturally adapted for life in the sky.”

“The Voodoo Lilies’ spiritual summoning is so impressive! They can even bring forth such monsters,” Catherine marveled. “But what’s their aim? Summoning this thing only to have it devour them—what a waste!”

“Ordinarily, the Voodoo Lilies’ summoning ritual couldn’t call forth such a powerful demonic entity—a Night Demon would be the most they could manage. But... see that giant orb beneath its mouth? This is a female octopus, and the orb contains her gestating offspring. The fifty-year egg-carrying period is nearly over, and she urgently needs vast amounts of food. That’s why she responded to the summoning and arrived in the Material Plane. Luckily, the gateway isn’t large enough for her to fully enter, or we’d be in real trouble.”

Ling Mo grinned wickedly. “I imagine there are viewers in the stream who practice shadow magic or demon curses? Congratulations! You’re in luck. A single Cthulhu Octopus can birth ten thousand young at once. Though most won’t survive to adulthood, it’s not hard to snatch a juvenile in the Shadow Sea of the Demon Plane within a month or so. With careful cultivation, it could be a formidable magical minion!”

“Viewer ‘Illidan Dies and His Entire Household’ tipped the streamer with an Armageddon! Message: Thanks for the heads-up, Professor Ling! I’ll start prepping for the Demon Plane. My Hellfire was destroyed by some idiot, and I desperately need a powerful pet. This Cthulhu Octopus is perfect! Thanks again, Professor Ling! If it works out, I’ll send you a big gift, and once more: Death to Illidan’s family!”

“Viewer ‘Gul’dan Deserves Heavenly Wrath’ tipped an Armageddon! Message: Many thanks, Professor Ling! I’ve been to the Demon Plane twice without any luck, but this time I’ll hit the jackpot! By the way, Gul’dan, your Hellfire is so damn fragile—how was I supposed to know it’d fall apart at a touch? If I ever meet you in the Demon Plane, I’ll break your legs and your Frost Giant’s too!”

“Viewer ‘Interpol Officer Maiev Shadowsong’ tipped the streamer with a Chaos Meteor! Message: Thanks for the clue, Professor Ling! Funding is tight lately, so this is all I can offer—don’t mind the small amount! Now I finally know where to hunt those two bastards. I’ll wait for you both in the Demon Plane—if you dare, don’t come!”

“Salute to the big shots who can travel to the Demon Plane! Poor folk who’ve never left the Material Plane shiver in fear!”

“Shivering in fear, never left the country, poor folk +1!”

“Shivering in fear, never left my own province, poor folk +2!”

“Shivering in fear, never left my village, never ridden a train, poor folk +3!”

“The last time I saw a magical car in this poor valley was ten years ago!”

“...”

As Ling Mo watched the barrage of increasingly off-topic messages, Catherine’s trembling voice came through: “Master... Master, I think that giant octopus has spotted us!”