The Root-Forged Spirit Beast did not charge at once.
It unfurled.
Wooden sinews cracked apart like splitting earth. Bones groaned as the creature's stag-shaped frame rose to its full height, towering above the group. Scarlet fire pulsed through its hollow ribcage like a second, burning heart.
Its antlers sparked with embers that hissed into the air — embers that smelled like charred marrow.
Zu Tian narrowed his eyes.
"This thing is far stronger than the boars. Brace yourselves."
The guardian answered with a shrill, warping roar — like a forest screaming.
The Battle Unleashed
The beast lunged, its root-clad hooves slamming the moss-covered stairway. A shockwave blasted outward, tearing apart nearby shrubs and throwing dust like exploding shale.
"Bai Kuan — anchor it!" Zu Tian barked.
"On it!"
Bai Kuan roared, flame flaring from his fists as he slammed forward. His technique ignited:
Blazing Ram Strike — Third Form: Ember-Fissure Impact!
His flaming palms struck the spirit beast's jaw, snapping its head back and scorching bark from bone. But the recoil hurled him three paces away, boots carving trenches in the soil.
"Damn—! It's like punching a burning mountain!"
The beast retaliated, antlers sweeping outward like fiery scythes.
Li Xueyao's fingers danced through seals.
Her blade shimmered and dissolved — not into frost this time, but into a crimson haze.
"Flame Lotus Mist — Bloom."
A spreading veil of ember-red mist billowed from her body. Within it, faint lotus petals of fire floated like drifting embers. The air heated instantly, bending light.
The beast's antler swipe hit the mist — and slowed, as if moving through boiling tar.
The flaming petals clung to its wooden skeleton, sizzling deep into the cracks. A burning scent filled the air.
"Yen Mo!" she called. "Left flank — now!"
Yen Mo Moves Like Fire
Yen Mo darted through the shifting mist, fire gathering along his blade's edge. His steps flickered with red sparks — his movement technique:
Cinder-Step Footwork
He reappeared beside the beast's exposed leg and slashed upward.
Flare Edge — Second Cut: Ascending Ember!
The strike carved a molten line up the beast's root-woven limb, sending splinters flying like burning shrapnel.
The beast bellowed. A lash of root-tendrils shot from its abdomen, stabbing the ground like spears.
Yen Mo dodged — mostly.
One tendril sliced across his shoulder. Blood spattered the moss.
"Ghh—!"
"Keep moving!" Zu Tian shouted. "It can't pin what it can't see!"
Infuriated, the guardian slammed its antlers into the earth.
FWOOM—!
A ring of crimson flame surged outward, devouring moss and igniting the trees. The impact blew the disciples apart like scattered leaves.
Li Xueyao coughed blood, her ribs throbbing. Several of her lotus flames sputtered out.
Bai Kuan slammed against a tree, bark cracking behind him.
Yen Mo's knee hit the ground, breath ragged.
Zu Tian slid back six steps before planting his sword into the earth to anchor himself.
The beast rose again, charred wooden plates falling from its chest.
Its antlers reignited — brighter, hotter, angrier.
"This thing is absorbing the flame we use against it," Zu Tian muttered.
But his gaze sharpened.
"So we burn it faster than it can consume."
Zu Tian lifted the broken sword.
It glimmered faintly — not with flame, but with quiet, ominous resonance.
"Yen Mo — bait it left."
"Bai Kuan — break its right leg."
"Li Xueyao — prepare your Flame Lotus Mist: Blooming Cage."
The disciples did not hesitate.