Deep beneath the Pond of Life, the massive cocoon was covered in countless cracks.
From within those fractures came a deep, ancient roar that echoed throughout the hidden chamber.
At the same time, the mysterious engravings carved across the cocoon began to glow brilliantly.
The runes etched into the crystals lying on the pond's bed suddenly detached themselves, transforming into streams of radiant light that flew toward the cocoon. One after another, they entered through the widening cracks as though returning to their rightful owner.
Watching this astonishing scene, Solanky immediately acted.
He threw ten transcendent grasses of eternity into the pond.
At the same time, he activated the Scroll of Portals and transported the chief far away from the cave.
In the blink of an eye, the chief appeared inside a hidden chamber beneath the temple where the king ape resided, a secret sanctuary filled with treasures and artifacts suitable for early-stage transcendent beings.
Only after ensuring the chief's safety did Solanky begin forming hand seals.
His disguised forsaken body dissolved.
In its place appeared his source-defying body, covered by his newly refined source-defying battle armor.
That armor had undergone countless refinements.
It had been forged by merging numerous military-grade armors together with rare artifacts and precious treasures collected from the hidden spaces scattered throughout the trial grounds.
Its defensive capabilities had reached an astonishing level.
Even a direct attack from a powerhouse such as the Third Venerable would no longer destroy it with ease.
Meanwhile, the ten transcendent grasses of eternity rapidly dissolved into streams of pure energy before being completely absorbed by the awakening cocoon.
The transformation accelerated.
The waters of the Pond of Life suddenly began flowing toward the cocoon at an incredible speed.
The seemingly endless pond shrank rapidly.
Within moments...
Not a single drop remained.
Solanky stared silently at the empty basin before shaking his head with regret.
"I should have stored more of that miraculous water inside my internal world and storage bottles."
Before he could dwell on the matter any longer, a familiar voice reached his ears.
"You are far too stingy."
A smile appeared on Solanky's face.
"You're awake."
"It seems your breakthrough is going to cause quite a spectacle."
He looked toward the cocoon and continued,
"But before that happens, I need to leave this space."
"I cannot allow the generals and the venerable ones to suspect that we have known each other from before."
"They have never seen your true form."
Elisa's amused voice echoed from within the cocoon.
"What about the chief?"
"He knows exactly who I am."
She laughed softly.
"Although I doubt he would reveal anything."
"He fears me far more than he fears anyone else in this realm."
A brief silence followed before her voice became noticeably calmer.
"My senses have completely transformed."
"I can perceive the life force of every being throughout this realm."
"The beasts..."
"The special lifeforms..."
"I can sense each of them with remarkable clarity."
"I can also feel them kneeling outside the trial grounds, waiting for my emergence."
She chuckled confidently.
"So tell me..."
"How could I possibly allow my birth to pass without making it a grand occasion?"
Solanky simply smiled and shook his head.
Activating the Scroll of Portals once more, he began manipulating the trial grounds.
Every remaining participant was quietly moved toward an exit.
Before expelling them, however, Solanky deliberately placed valuable treasures or precious herbs near each individual so that every survivor would leave with a meaningful reward.
As for two particularly talented contestants...
He secretly granted each of them a jade slip personally created by the forsaken god.
Although the techniques recorded within were merely entry-level inheritances from the forsaken god's perspective, they would become priceless treasures in the outside world.
Even transcendent beings would covet such techniques, hoping to learn anything left behind by an existence that surpassed their own cultivation.
Solanky himself ignored every jade slip remaining inside the trial grounds.
With the Scroll of Portals under his control, he could freely enter and leave the trial space whenever he wished.
There was no need to claim them now.
Once every preparation had been completed, Solanky expelled every remaining participant from the trial grounds.
He included himself...
...and the chief as well.
The chief had already awakened from his cultivation.
His aura had completely stabilized at eight hundred thousand times the strength of an Infinite Source God.
...
Outside the trial grounds, the surviving contestants emerged from the portal one after another.
Each wore a similarly bewildered expression.
At the same time, they could not suppress their excitement at having survived.
However, the scene awaiting them erased every trace of celebration.
Millions upon millions of beasts and extraordinary lifeforms filled the horizon.
Every one of them was kneeling toward the portal.
Above them stood the legendary barrier personally left behind by the forsaken god.
Beyond the barrier, every transcendent entity of the forsaken realm sat cross-legged in the sky.
The venerable ones.
The generals.
Every single one of them faced the portal in absolute silence.
The newly emerged participants hurriedly bowed in respect.
The female venerable immediately stepped forward and ushered them away from the portal.
"Put your armor on immediately."
"This place is no longer safe."
"What is about to happen is beyond anything you have ever witnessed."
The participants obeyed without hesitation.
Then...
Another roar shook the entire forsaken realm.
Unlike before, this roar did not render the peak-stage entities unconscious.
Instead, it caused their consciousness to waver violently for a brief instant before they regained control.
Only then did they realize...
Something terrifying was about to emerge.
A deafening tearing sound echoed through heaven and earth.
Space itself split apart.
From within the enormous spatial rift, a colossal claw slowly emerged.
The moment everyone laid eyes upon it, their hearts trembled.
Their breathing became uneven.
Even their wills began to shake beneath an overwhelming sense of dread.
Then...
Boom!
A gigantic dragon stepped through the shattered space.
An indescribable aura of absolute dominance swept across the entire forsaken realm.
Strange flames danced around its enormous body.
The moment Solanky saw those flames, his eyes widened in disbelief.
He recognized them immediately.
Those flames were the complete source of the defying flames he possessed.
Yet the flames surrounding Elisa burned with an intensity even greater than his own.
Her colossal body completely covered the skies above the trial grounds.
Her immense tail stretched through space itself, seemingly encircling every being present.
She slowly unfolded her magnificent wings.
With a single flap...
She disappeared.
No.
That was not entirely accurate.
To everyone watching, it appeared as though she had never moved at all.
Instead, another Elisa simply existed beyond the borders of the forsaken realm.
Even the transcendent entities failed to perceive her movement.
It was as though the instant her wings moved, she was already waiting at her destination.
Then Elisa opened her mouth.
A majestic roar erupted from her throat.
The sound traveled beyond the forsaken realm.
It crossed the endless dark abyss.
It reached the outer calamitous zone.
Finally...
It echoed throughout the beyond realm itself.
At that moment, the legendary Beast Ancestor announced its birth to all existence.
Gradually, Elisa's colossal dragon body began shrinking.
Her mountain-sized form condensed until she measured only several dozen meters in length.
She descended gracefully before the countless beasts and special lifeforms.
Opening her mouth, she exhaled a gentle stream of cool air.
The refreshing breath washed across the gathered creatures.
Every injury they carried disappeared instantly.
One after another, they rose from their kneeling positions, fully healed.
Moments later, Elisa transformed into her humanoid form.
The breathtaking sight captivated every being present.
Every being...
Except Solanky.
The First Venerable stepped forward.
He respectfully clasped his hands.
"Welcome..."
"...to the forsaken realm of our forsaken god."
Elisa smiled warmly before returning the gesture.
Although the First Venerable could clearly sense that her strength was extraordinary, he found himself unable to determine the limits of her power.
After a brief pause, he spoke again.
"If you are willing, would you spar with me?"
"I wish to witness your strength firsthand."
Before answering, Elisa looked toward the gathered crowd below.
Her gaze swept across the Beast Emperor's disciples.
Then it stopped on Solanky.
Turning back to the First Venerable, she smiled.
"Before we begin our spar..."
"I have two requests."
"I wish to take every disciple of the Beast Emperor under my guidance."
"I will personally train them."
She then pointed directly toward Solanky.
"And..."
"I am also interested in that young man."
The First Venerable showed no surprise.
Without hesitation, he nodded.
"So be it."
The countless spectators...
The gathered transcendent entities...
Every eye remained fixed upon Elisa.
All of them eagerly awaited the opportunity to witness the true strength of the legendary Beast Ancestor that had existed only in myths until this very day.