"Shi Yi, you call yourself a prodigy, yet you've got no shame! Calling in two Human Emperors is bad enough, but you even dragged in the Vermilion Bird and Zhu Yan?" the adult Pixiu roared, the first to break into a tirade.
It wasn't overly afraid of the two ancient nations' Human Emperors. Outside their territories, without the blessing of imperial dragon aura, they were merely peak Venerables—hardly a match for the three brothers.
But the Vermilion Bird and Zhu Yan? They were among the four mightiest ferocious beasts of the wilderness, the strongest of the lot. When those two clashed, the other two great beasts didn't dare make a peep.
"A living prodigy is a prodigy. A dead one's just bones," Shi Yi said, ignoring the Pixiu's murderous glare. He felt no shame in calling for help.
He preferred teamwork over going it alone and had no interest in single-handedly taking on the adult Pixiu, Bi'an, and Yazi.
If you always carry the load alone, no one will help you. Eventually, everyone will expect you to bear it all.
Be the savior of all?
Shi Yi didn't have that kind of power.
"Stupid Pixiu, what are you yapping about? You set up an ambush, and you've got the nerve to talk about honor?" the little red bird chirped, brimming with smug arrogance.
"This is the Desolate Domain's business. Yazi, Bi'an—you shouldn't be meddling," the golden monkey said, arms crossed, exuding an aura of unyielding resolve.
"Words are useless. Only strength speaks," Bi'an growled. Unlike the despairing Pixiu, it sensed the Vermilion Bird and Zhu Yan's power but wasn't ready to surrender.
Killing Shi Yi to eliminate future threats was now impossible. To survive, they'd have to carve a bloody path out.
"So what if we meddled? We three brothers are far better than you two traitors who sold out to ancient human nations. What's worse than becoming their sacrificial spirits?" Yazi snarled, its four limbs tensing as a chilling killing intent solidified around it.
Yazi always settles scores.
With a personality that held clear grudges and loyalties, Yazi wouldn't stand by while its brothers were in trouble. Proud as it was, it also despised the Vermilion Bird and Zhu Yan for aligning with human nations.
"Don't bring race into this. Even among ferocious beasts, we're not the same. A divine bird soaring through the skies isn't something you ground-crawling beasts can compare to," the little red bird chirped, still hopping on Shi Yi's head. To it, Shi Yi's head was a second nest—perfect for bouncing around.
It sounded childish.
Because it was childish.
The Vermilion Bird was young. In human terms, it was barely six years old, still a playful little girl.
Unlike humans, who aged yearly, pure-blood ferocious beasts like the Vermilion Bird were true long-lived species—one year for every century, reaching adulthood at a hundred.
"Ground-crawling beasts?"
The phrase hit hard. The adult Pixiu, Bi'an, Yazi—even Shi Yi, Shi Hao, the Stone Nation's Human Emperor, the Fire Nation's Human Emperor, and Zhu Yan—all turned to look at the Vermilion Bird.
"They're one thing, but why are you all staring at me? You're two-legged beasts. I meant four-legged beasts," the little red bird—Vermilion Bird—huffed proudly.
Shi Yi's eyes narrowed thoughtfully.
Near vermilion, one turns red; near ink, one turns black.
Perhaps Huo Ling'er, the Fire Nation's princess, had been influenced by the Vermilion Bird. How else could the Stone Nation's Sixteenth Princess be so refined and cultured, while the Fire Nation's princess was so fiery and unreasonable?
"I've always hated self-righteous birds like you," Bi'an snarled, unable to hold back. It lunged forward, kicking off the prelude to a chaotic wilderness battle, charging straight at Shi Yi.
"Hmph, you think I'm scared of you?" The little red bird stomped its foot. With a piercing cry, it transformed into its hundred-meter Vermilion Bird true form. A flap of its wings unleashed a torrent of flames that engulfed Bi'an's body.
"Bi'an's yours. Yazi's mine," the golden monkey on Shi Yi's shoulder said, pulling a tiny iron needle from its ear. It glanced at Shi Hao behind Shi Yi before leaping toward Yazi.
In midair—
The golden monkey's body swelled, expanding into its hundred-meter Zhu Yan true form. The tiny iron needle in its hand grew into a massive iron rod, over ten meters thick.
Ten meters was the rod's width, not its length. Towering taller than Zhu Yan itself, it resembled a divine pillar stabilizing the seas, its swings shaking mountains and rivers.
"Take this!" Zhu Yan roared, swinging the massive rod down at Yazi's head. Unfazed, Yazi, ever headstrong, met it with a direct headbutt—only to be knocked dizzy, stumbling as stars spun in its vision. It wisely dodged the next swing.
The Fire Nation and Stone Nation's Human Emperors didn't stand idle. Though outside their domains, without the imperial dragon aura's boost, they were still among the Lower Realm's top Venerables. Exchanging a glance, they prepared to team up against the adult Pixiu.
"Despicable, shameless humans! If you've got the guts, fight me one-on-one!" the adult Pixiu bellowed, turning tail and sprinting away like a gust of wind.
"One-on-one? Sure. Pick one—Fire Nation or Stone Nation," the Stone Nation's Human Emperor laughed heartily. With the imperial dragon aura's protection, he was confident he could skin and dismantle the Pixiu.
"Pick your mother—"
The Pixiu kept running, hurling insults at the Stone Nation's Human Emperor.
A Human Emperor with imperial dragon aura was nearly invincible in the Lower Realm's Eight Domains. Unless the Upper Realm sent a divine being, neither Venerables nor pure-blood ferocious beasts could challenge one.
"Filthy mouth, utterly uncivilized. A beast is a beast," the Fire Nation's Human Emperor said, shaking his head and stroking his beard. In the next instant, his body erupted in flames, and he blocked the Pixiu's path with lightning speed.
"Burn you to ashes! Burn you to ashes!" the Vermilion Bird taunted, unleashing a torrent of flames on Bi'an. As one of the strongest pure-blood ferocious beasts, its sacred, scorching Vermilion Bird fire was far beyond what most beings could withstand.
"Mere flames? What can they do to me?" Bi'an scoffed, charging through the fire toward the Vermilion Bird. But as a divine bird, the Vermilion Bird's speed was unmatched. With a graceful glide, it dodged Bi'an's ferocious lunge, then spat another gout of flame, leaving Bi'an scorched and disheveled.
Enraged, Bi'an unleashed its Bi'an Technique. Golden chains surged from the void, aiming to bind the Vermilion Bird in midair for a fatal strike. But the Vermilion Bird, adept at size-shifting, alternated between its true form and its tiny red bird guise, effortlessly slipping through the omnipresent chains.
Unlike the Vermilion Bird and Bi'an's dance of evasion, Yazi and Zhu Yan's battle was a brutal slugfest—pure, unrelenting force. Neither knew the meaning of dodging.
Yazi rammed its head into Zhu Yan's chest, sending the monkey flying.
Boom!
A massive mountain range collapsed under the impact, Zhu Yan embedded in the rubble.
"Zhu Yan, you disgrace pure-blood ferocious beasts by serving humans!" Yazi snarled, baring its fangs.
"Serving humans? Hahaha! At least I'm the Stone Nation's current sacrificial spirit. But you, my friend—you're the Upper Realm's lapdog, wagging your tail for them," Zhu Yan shot back mercilessly.
Others might not know Yazi and Bi'an's true nature, but Zhu Yan did. If they weren't loyal dogs to the Upper Realm, they'd have been harvested as "great medicine" long ago—or, at best, reduced to mounts.
_
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