First-Order Companion Beast

It had been ten days since he received that letter of divorce.

After ten days, Li Tianming finally stood before Li Zifeng on the Wind-Listening Platform. His gaze was resolute, his fighting spirit soaring into the heavens!

Li Zifeng, on the other hand, had nothing but a cold sneer in his heart. He was not worried about anything going wrong.

Taking down this so-called older brother before him would probably take only two breaths.

He had already reached the Seventh Layer of Beast Pulse Realm, even stronger than Li Tianming had been four years ago. What did he have to fear?

"A few days ago, I said you were a stray dog reeking to high heaven. I never expected you to stink your way here today. Sure enough, you stink terribly—the entire City Lord's Mansion reeks of your fishy stench." Li Zifeng covered his nose, putting on an expression as though the smell was unbearable.

After his father left, his companion beast, the Purple-eyed Double Pupil Bird, rose to its feet and stared murderously at Li Tianming. Before it, Li Tianming was no more than a little bug.

"Younger brother, I didn't dislike you before. I even thought your youthful recklessness had some character. But now I see I was wrong. You're just like him—a heartless tyrant who only throws his weight around at home." Li Tianming had finally seen these people for what they truly were.

What was family affection? In all of Lihuo City, only his mother had ever made him feel it.

"Younger brother? Cut the crap. What right do you have to be my older brother now? After today, Father will probably drive you and your mother out himself. For the rest of your lives, the farther away you die, the better."

Li Zifeng was in a foul mood. Because of Li Tianming's appearance, the Yanhuang Order had yet to fall into his hands.

"Li Tianming, I can't be bothered to waste words on you, lest you take an inch after being given a foot. Just get the hell out of here. Beating a dog that has fallen into the water is what I enjoy most." As Li Zifeng spoke, he abruptly quickened his pace and lunged toward Li Tianming.

He formed his hand into a blade and appeared behind Li Tianming in an instant, chopping toward the back of his neck, intending to knock him unconscious and drag him away.

They were no longer people of the same world. Saying even one more word seemed like a waste.

At least, that was what his mother, Lady Mo, had told him. So long as Li Tianming lived, he would never have a chance to rise.

Once this hand blade fell, the world would become quiet.

"Father will be pleased with how swiftly and decisively I act!"

Before everyone's eyes, his attack landed on Li Tianming in an instant.

Clang!

In that flash of sparks and lightning, a fierce impact rang out. To everyone's astonishment, Li Tianming whipped around with astonishing speed, raised his left arm, and directly blocked Li Zifeng's hand blade!

Normally, Li Tianming's arm should have been crippled.

Yet, to everyone's disbelief, Li Zifeng was the one forced back several steps!

His face twisted as he clutched his right hand with his left. A closer look revealed that his palm was trembling. The blade-like edge of that palm had turned bright red, even bruised purple-blue!

"You wrapped your hand in a layer of iron?" Li Zifeng gritted his teeth. But on second thought, that was impossible. Even a layer of iron should not have been able to block a hand blade infused with his Beast Essence.

"Your hand is simply too weak." Li Tianming's voice was low.

The hot blood in his bones gradually began to boil. Especially after using the dark arm that had just appeared to block that attack, he felt as though his entire body had begun to burn.

The blood-red eye hidden beneath his glove had turned savage as well.

"Playing tricks!" Having failed in one move, Li Zifeng's impatience was written all over his face. Yet he was still baffled. Narrowing his eyes, he asked, "Didn't you lose your Beast Essence? Then why can I still sense the power of Beast Essence from you?"

"It's simple. I used a Blood God Contract to find another companion beast. Otherwise, how could I test you? Did you really think I came here to die?" Li Tianming said.

People began to see him differently. Before this, everyone had believed he had come to throw away his life in order to disgrace his family.

The odds of succeeding with a Blood God Contract were extremely low, nearly one in ten thousand. Many beast tamers who had lost their companion beasts had tried it, but almost all had failed.

"How interesting. Then bring out your new companion beast and let everyone see what rank of ferocious beast it is. Seeing how confident you are, could it be a companion beast beyond the fifth order, one that has reached the sixth order?" Li Zifeng burst into laughter.

He truly had not expected Li Tianming to challenge him. If Li Tianming had not been crippled, then at Li Tianming's age, Li Zifeng indeed would not have been his match. But times had changed!

Without another word, Li Tianming summoned the "Eternal Purgatory Phoenix" from the Companion Space.

Just as expected, when Little Yellow Chick made its earth-shaking entrance, leaped onto Li Tianming's head, and glared viciously around itself, the entire City Lord's Mansion nearly fell silent. Then, a roar of laughter erupted.

This tiny little thing, standing before the Purple-eyed Storm Swallow, was adorable beyond measure no matter how one looked at it.

"What a cute little chick!"

"This is a companion beast? Hahaha!"

People laughed until they bent over, and even some figures of great status could not hold back their amusement.

"You have to admit, Li Tianming has a good attitude. He must have come here to make everyone laugh, to add to the festivities of the City Lord's wedding with his talent for humor."

"We misunderstood him. It looks like this kid is turning over a new leaf. Will he make a living from his sense of humor from now on?"

Even Li Zifeng was stunned. He stared wide-eyed at Little Yellow Chick, which was pretending to look fierce, then laughed so hard he nearly cramped up.

Even his Purple-eyed Double Pupil Bird froze for a moment before displaying an oddly human-like fit of laughter.

"Brother Tianming, that chicken isn't even enough to stir-fry into one dish, and you brought it out as a companion beast?" Li Zifeng laughed until he was nearly out of breath.

But Li Tianming was very serious.

Little Yellow Chick was equally serious.

At a speed visible to the naked eye, Little Yellow Chick's eyes turned blood-red.

"You dare look down on me? I'll beat you until all four limbs cramp up and foam spills from your mouth!" In that flash of sparks and lightning, Little Yellow Chick became a streak of yellow light and shot toward Li Zifeng.

That blazing streak came too fiercely. Li Zifeng was still laughing, and by the time he sensed the danger, it was already a little too late.

Bang!

Li Zifeng was sent flying as if struck by a colossal beast, smashing hard into the ground. Worse still, a patch on his chest had been charred black, and the center was a bloody mess of torn flesh.

"Your meat tastes terrible. Too sour!" In the next instant, people saw Little Yellow Chick perched atop Li Tianming's head, a small piece of meat dangling from its beak.

There was no need to say it aloud. Everyone knew it had been torn from Li Zifeng's body.

"Seeking death!" Li Zifeng finally stopped laughing. Pain made him bare his teeth in a grimace. He had gone through countless battles, yet no one had ever torn flesh directly from his body!

That sight, along with Little Yellow Chick's brutality, plunged the entire place into silence. Many people still wore smiles on their faces, but those smiles had already stiffened.

Without anyone noticing, the smell of gunpowder had grown thick in the air!

Li Zifeng had had a piece of flesh bitten off, and his face had turned purple. At that moment, the Beast Essence of the Seventh Layer of Beast Pulse Realm erupted from him. Beside him, the Purple-eyed Double Pupil Bird also spread its wings, its gaze becoming exceptionally sinister!

"You have already lost all sense of propriety—spoiled, willful, cold-blooded, and heartless. Since someone refuses to discipline you, I will." Li Tianming said.

"Don't make me laugh. What kind of dogshit are you? You're relying on a First-Order Companion Beast with only a single star in its eyes?" Li Zifeng exchanged a look with the Purple-eyed Double Pupil Bird, then once again pressed toward Li Tianming and Little Yellow Chick with a sinister aura.

Li Tianming was communicating with Little Yellow Chick in his mind.

"Brother, you go teach him a lesson. Leave that big bird to me. I'm definitely going to pull its guts out." Little Yellow Chick fixed its gaze on the Purple-eyed Double Pupil Bird, which was countless times larger than itself, and spoke with complete confidence.

"Young man, don't be so violent." Li Tianming said.

"You're thinking too much. My methods are very gentle. But are you sure you can defeat your opponent?" Little Yellow Chick looked at Li Tianming with disdain.

"If we only compare Beast Essence, even though our Eternal Purgatory Beast Origin is stronger than Li Zifeng's Beast Essence, a difference of three full realms cannot be bridged by the nature of Beast Essence alone. His Beast Essence is far more vast than mine. Unfortunately, he is fire-elemental. It is impossible for him to take me down."

Fire immunity was the reason Li Tianming dared to challenge Li Zifeng across three realms!

"Then stop talking and get on with it!"

At that moment, Little Yellow Chick was like it had been injected with chicken blood. It was a battle-crazed fanatic that loved fighting foes larger than itself one-on-one, and the Purple-eyed Double Pupil Bird suited its tastes perfectly.

"Trash chicken, come out and fight me one-on-one. Come feel your grandpa's warmth!" it directly shouted.

Hearing that, people could not help laughing again. They had not expected this little chick to speak like a parrot.

Other companion beasts could generally communicate only with their beast tamers through their minds.

Though the Purple-eyed Double Pupil Bird could not speak, it understood Little Yellow Chick's words.

The moment it was provoked, it flew into a rage. Before Li Zifeng could say anything, it had already shot into the air, spreading its enormous wings as it locked onto Little Yellow Chick.

"Get over here." Little Yellow Chick sprang into the air and darted into the distance. Anyone unaware of the truth might have thought it was fleeing, but it was actually creating more space for Li Tianming to fight.

When the Purple-eyed Double Pupil Bird gave chase after Little Yellow Chick, only Li Zifeng remained before Li Tianming.