A massive crimson beast stood atop a rocky cliff.
Its scarlet scales reflected the sunlight like burning flames.
It resembled a gigantic lizard, but its tail was covered in countless sharp quills like those of a porcupine.
Yu Weiwei guessed that tail was one of its deadliest weapons.
Its golden eyes burned with madness.
Every breath it exhaled carried overwhelming pressure.
Standing opposite it were three purple creatures.
One enormous male covered in grievous injuries.
One slightly smaller female with only minor wounds.
And a tiny cub no larger than a puppy.
The cub hid behind its mother, occasionally peeking out before immediately retreating again.
Despite the life-and-death battle unfolding around it, it seemed completely unaware of the danger.
The comments section immediately reacted upon seeing the little one.
[Wow, there's a baby?!]
[It's so tiny... It's hiding behind its mom.]
[I know it's dangerous, but it's actually adorable.]
[No! Don't let the little one get hurt!]
Yu Weiwei's eyes narrowed.
The moment he saw the purple creatures, a distant memory resurfaced.
He had seen this species before.
Not in this life, but during one of the countless worlds he had traveled through.
A prehistoric world.
Back then, this species had stood at the very top of the food chain.
They resembled a fusion of dinosaurs and eastern dragons. In the East, they were known as the Primordial Dragon Beasts because of how ancient they were. No one knew exactly where they had come from, yet they thrived in every type of environment.
Only after reaching the peak of their strength would a Primordial Dragon Beast grow wings.
They possessed terrifying physical power, unmatched loyalty toward their families, and an instinctive drive to protect anyone they accepted as their own.
Countless tribes had attempted to tame them.
Most had failed.
Because once these creatures acknowledged someone as family or a companion, they remained loyal for life.
Even death could not change that.
Unfortunately, this world doesn't rely on spiritual qi.
Instead, these creatures relied solely on mental power.
As a result, they had never reached the heights their bloodline was truly capable of achieving.
Yu Weiwei's gaze settled on the heavily injured male.
A faint sense of danger made his instincts tremble.
This species had yet to reach its true potential.
Not even close.
ROOOAAARRR!!
The crimson beast suddenly lunged forward.
The male Primordial Dragon Beast immediately intercepted it.
Their collision shook the entire forest.
Violent shockwaves tore through the battlefield, uprooting countless trees.
The surviving nobles screamed in terror.
Only then did Yu Weiwei piece everything together.
The unconscious girl had likely attempted to take her own life after realizing what awaited her if she fell into the nobles' hands.
The scent of her blood had attracted the crimson beast.
There was clearly something unusual about it.
Although he didn't yet know why, Yu Weiwei could instinctively sense that her blood was irresistibly attractive to magical beasts.
The evidence was right before him.
While Yu Weiwei was thinking, the battle continued.
The crimson beast's claws tore through the male creature's chest.
Blood sprayed into the air.
The female let out a heart-wrenching cry.
Without hesitation, she threw herself between her mate and the enemy.
The crimson beast seized the opportunity.
One of its claws pierced deep into her side.
The female staggered.
The male roared furiously and launched himself forward once more.
His attacks became increasingly reckless.
He was no longer fighting to win.
He was fighting to buy time.
Yu Weiwei sighed softly.
If this continued, both of them would die.
With a single step, space folded beneath his feet.
He vanished.
The next moment, he appeared directly between the combatants.
The crimson beast barely had time to react.
A spatial blade sliced across the battlefield.
A massive wound instantly opened across its body.
The beast screamed.
Before it could retreat, dozens of spatial cracks surrounded it.
Its enormous body froze.
Then it was torn apart.
Silence descended.
The surviving nobles stared blankly.
The guards stared blankly.
The comments section fell silent.
Even the cub stopped moving.
No one understood what had just happened.
But they all knew they had been saved.
Then the comments exploded.
[THAT WAS SO COOL!!]
[I know he's SSS-rank, but... THAT WAS INSANE!]
[Did anyone else get goosebumps?!]
[The way he ended the fight was so clean!]
[No wasted movements... Every attack was perfect.]
[Host looked like he was dancing rather than fighting.]
[THAT FINISHING MOVE WAS ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!]
[This is the most amazing battle I've ever watched live!]
[Someone clip that! I need to watch it a hundred more times!]
[Who needs action movies when Host exists?!]
Yu Weiwei ignored them.
His attention was focused entirely on the female creature.
Her condition was extremely poor.
The male's condition was even worse.
Using his Nature Authority, Yu Weiwei carefully guided life energy into their bodies.
The female's wounds slowly stabilized.
The male's breathing became steadier.
Seeing this, Purple Star, Evander's alias, who had been watching since beginning of the livestream commented.
[He won't live.]
The viewers immediately erupted.
[What do you mean?! Weiwei is using his Nature Authority! That's SSS-rank! Even the latest healing pods and medical machines aren't this effective!]
[Yeah! Are you cursing the beast to die? Even though it's rated as one of the most dangerous Star Beasts, it's actually relatively gentle. It's just extremely difficult to tame.]
Yu Weiwei glanced at the comments section.
He knew exactly why Purple Star had said that.
There were two ways someone could suffer a mental riot or die because of their mental power.
The first was for their mental core to shatter.
The second was to completely exhaust their mental power.
The people of the interstellar era didn't know why completely overusing mental power resulted in death.
Yu Weiwei did.
Once all the mental power inside a mental core was depleted, it normally took days to recover.
However, if someone continued using mental power after it had been exhausted, they would begin consuming their soul instead.
Soul power was the very essence of one's life.
Every bit consumed shortened one's lifespan.
The only way to replenish it was by advancing to a higher rank.
This was where spiritual power surpassed mental power.
When spiritual power was exhausted, a cultivator could draw energy directly from nature instead of consuming their soul.
The male Primordial Dragon Beast had been forced to burn his soul power.
The crimson beast was two ranks stronger than both him and his mate.
It had been the only way for him to survive long enough to protect his family.
Yu Weiwei didn't explain.
Even after pouring an immense amount of Nature Authority and spiritual power into the male's body, it wasn't enough.
Suddenly, the male trembled violently.
Yu Weiwei's eyes widened in surprise.
Then disappointment filled them.
Too late.
It seemed his Nature Authority had managed to restore a tiny portion of the lost soul power.
But there simply wasn't enough time.
It seems mental power isn't entirely useless after all.
The male, realizing his life was coming to an end, looked at his mate one final time.
A low rumble escaped his throat.
The female gently pressed her head against his.
Neither moved.
Neither made a sound.
Several moments later, the male's life force disappeared completely.
The forest fell silent.
The female remained motionless beside him.
Her golden eyes quietly stared at her mate's body.
The cub approached hesitantly.
It nudged its father.
Then nudged him again.
Confused.
Waiting for a response that would never come.
Many of the spectators lowered their heads.
Even the comments section was filled with grief.
For the first time, they no longer saw terrifying monsters.
They saw a grieving family.
The female slowly turned toward Yu Weiwei.
There was no hostility in her eyes.
Only sorrow, and perhaps trust?
Then something unexpected happened.
She gently pushed the cub toward him.
The little one stumbled forward.
Yu Weiwei froze.
The female looked at him quietly.
As though making one final request.
As though entrusting him with something more precious than her own life.
The cub seemed to realize what was happening.
It immediately ran back to its mother.
The female lowered her head and gently rubbed against the little one.
The gesture was incredibly tender.
The cub cried out repeatedly.
Refusing to leave.
Refusing to understand.
Even the surviving nobles felt their throats tighten.
The female looked toward the sky.
Then toward her mate.
Yu Weiwei knew what it was going to do but didn't stop it. Even if he did, he can't help someone who is determined to die.
The primordial dragon beast are the kind of beast that rarely mated, when they do they spend the rest of their lives with that partner. If anyone of them died before the other, they would commit suicide.
A faint rumble escaped female primordial dragon throat.
Soft.
Gentle.
Almost affectionate.
Before anyone could react, she drove her own claw into her heart.
Blood splashed across the ground.
The cub let out a desperate cry.
The female collapsed beside her mate.
Their bodies rested together.
Like a family peacefully asleep beneath the forest canopy.