At the Mara River, Black Typhon swam downstream.
The current pushed him along, saving Famu considerable effort.
He still had to save some strength to hunt the Titan Feather-Crested Heron.
These large raptors lived in the forest canopy and were extremely dangerous to provoke. They had vicious tempers, grabbing animals that disturbed their rest and dropping them from high in the air, then returning to the ground to carry the dead prey back to their nests.
Typhons were not afraid of these winged creatures, of course, but they also had a hard time hunting them.
Given a Typhon's weight, climbing into the canopy was something of a pipe dream. The upper branches could not support a Typhon's weight, and for them, smashing a tree down was easier than climbing it. That was how they had always done things.
In the muddy yellow river, Famu pondered how to hunt the Titan Feather-Crested Heron.
An ambush was still the best strategy. He could hide where the great birds drank and attack from underwater. With Famu's current physical strength, a single bite could incapacitate a Secondary Furnace-Core Creature.
But Famu's true objective was Earth Vein Energy.
Golden-Horn Dute and Colin represented the living conditions of Secondary Furnace-Core Creatures in the rainforest. Their groups had the potential to produce an Intelligent Species, but the conditions for that possibility to become reality were extremely demanding, requiring at least one baptism of Earth Vein Energy. The Titan Feather-Crested Herons were like the Horned Giant Rhino Family and the Nightmare Leopard family. This Furnace-Core Creature must have undergone a baptism of Earth Vein Energy, and it would know the location of an earth vein.
The narrow, shallow stretch in the Horned Giant Rhinos' territory had not only healed Famu's injuries but also helped him complete extensive physical adjustments to his Dead Sun Armor.
With this energy to draw on, Famu could attempt to experiment with a gravitational field within Bloodburn's high-temperature domain.
If he relied on his own Furnace Core energy alone, it would be exhausted before the force-field experiment even began.
"Your Excellency Jiuxun, we have entered the Furnace-Core Creature's territory," the scepter warned.
"Enter low-power mode," Famu said.
"Low-power mode entered. Creature detection system shut down."
Famu submerged in deep water.
Navigation was shut down, but he had already obtained detailed information about the Titan Feather-Crested Herons' habitat from the Scepter System.
Keeping close to the silt, Famu left the Mara River's main channel and entered a tributary.
Perhaps because of the rain a few days earlier, floodwater had swept downstream, and the tributary's flow was large enough for Famu to hide himself perfectly.
"Gurgle..."
Bubbles rose to the surface.
Famu lay hidden on the riverbed and began to wait.
Typhons had always been patient. Famu was a glutton, but he too could wait a long time for his prey.
He saw a great bird descend from high above.
It was a female Titan Feather-Crested Heron.
It glided through a gap in the canopy, its wings broad and its flight feathers distinct. It was white overall, with a few gray feathers, and its streamlined body was covered in fine, scale-like plumage.
Its most striking feature was its head. A crest of feathers swept backward from its crown like a diadem, giving the Titan Feather-Crested Heron its name.
It looked around, then lowered its head to drink. Famu did not disturb it. The female stood in the shallows and soaked its feathers in the flowing water, then flew high into the sky.
Famu knew this behavior. Birds would soak their feathers with water droplets and carry them back to the nest to feed their young.
But not long after the female flew away, another Titan Feather-Crested Heron landed.
It soaked its feathers in the same way and flew off, back and forth.
This was repeated more than a dozen times.
Hidden underwater, Famu could not observe carefully enough to tell whether the Titan Feather-Crested Herons were different individuals or a few birds making repeated trips. The frequency was too high; feeding young did not require them to soak themselves so often.
Night fell, and the females came no more.
At the riverbank, a pair of green eyes lit up. Muscles bulged, and dark purple fur looked bewitchingly beautiful in the faint moonlight.
Headscar had come.
Famu had followed the current here, but Headscar had searched for quite a while. He had hidden on the outskirts of the Titan Feather-Crested Herons' habitat, only coming to the riverbank after nightfall, when the females had gone quiet.
He stared at the water, knowing that the Black Typhon beneath it was watching like a tiger eyeing its prey.
But the Typhon had yet to bare his fangs.
Headscar lowered his head to drink. Looking at the faint ripples on the water before him, he saw the pale glow of points of light shining beneath the surface.
Headscar knew what he should do.
Daylight came, but the water where Famu hid remained damp and dark.
Titan Feather-Crested Heron habitats were often located in the canopy a hundred meters above the ground. The dense branches and leaves formed an island of trees, greedily absorbing sunlight and growing ever more luxuriant, so that almost no light reached the ground.
A great white bird glided in. It stood by the water and bent down just as it had the day before.
Behind it, a black shadow flashed past.
Headscar pounced on it from behind, pinning its wings with his claws before sinking his teeth into its neck.
A medium-sized female Titan Feather-Crested Heron had no chance of breaking free once a large Nightmare Leopard like Headscar had successfully attacked it.
It beat its wings and struggled incessantly, leaving the ground in a mess. At the same time, it stretched its neck high and cried out, calling for its companions.
Headscar paid no heed. He bit through the female's neck, and its wings beat twice more before falling limply into the water. Headscar picked up the female in his jaws and prepared to leave, but other white wings suddenly appeared among the trees. They flew in from every direction and surrounded him.
They were all females.
And none were Furnace-Core Creatures.
Headscar showed no weakness. He planted his paws on the female's corpse and roared at the flock in the air. His build was more powerful than that of an ordinary alpha male; he was no leopard cub a Titan Feather-Crested Heron could easily snatch up. If any female dared reach for Headscar with its talons, he could pounce on it first.
For a time, the two great predators were locked in a stalemate.
Headscar kept changing direction, watching the females that showed signs of attacking and letting out threatening snarls.
Above him, the females circled, unable to find an opening.
The Nightmare Leopard's thinking was simple: he was provoking the Titan Feather-Crested Herons, playing the role of bait in the family's hunt.
Among Savage Species, Headscar was already a rarely seen, powerful individual. Only an Intelligent Species, only a Furnace-Core Creature, could deal with him.
So the Titan Feather-Crested Herons would either let Headscar leave after provoking them, or that Furnace-Core Creature would show itself.
From Famu's understanding of these Secondary Furnace-Core Creatures, the other party would never tolerate Headscar's affront. Even after gaining intelligence, Furnace-Core Creatures still thought in terms of their own families, their own offspring, and their own territories. They still retained the wild nature of animals.
"Boom—!"
The air pressure around them suddenly dropped.
A fierce wind swept in through the trees.
Headscar whipped around and saw only a pair of iron talons and a pair of white wings that filled his entire field of vision.