A Proper Battle

Meanwhile, Juhua silently withdrew its paw, feeling utterly refreshed.

It had wanted to do that for a long time. This Little Slave had gotten far too bold whenever he was drunk.

All along the way, this little bastard had been causing trouble in endless ways. If that old man Dugu Bo had not been chasing so closely and it had not been too occupied to spare a paw, Juhua would have smacked the hell out of him long ago.

Now that it finally had the chance, Juhua naturally was not going to indulge this bad habit of his.

Just behave yourself for a while, little slave. Once this kitty has dealt with that old man Dugu Bo, it can settle the score with you properly.

"Good hit!" At the very moment Juhua knocked Li Yuan unconscious, Dugu Bo felt a surge of clarity and silently praised it in his heart.

He had long wanted to shut Li Yuan's filthy mouth, but the brat was too slippery, and Juhua was simply too fast. He had never found an opportunity.

Now that Li Yuan had finally gone quiet, Dugu Bo was so moved he nearly cried on the spot. At last, his ears were at peace. At last, they could have a proper battle.

That little bastard Li Yuan had completely thrown off the tone of the whole fight.

"Good hit!" Dugu Bo was not the only one. At the same moment Li Yuan was knocked unconscious by Juhua, a group of Ten Thousand Year Spirit Beasts from the Sunset Great Forest all praised it inwardly.

Dugu Bo was far from the only victim. Along the way, they too had suffered plenty under Li Yuan's torment, with all sorts of trash talk ringing endlessly in their ears. If they had had a paw to spare, they would have swallowed Li Yuan whole long ago.

Li Yuan really was something else. In a single battle, he had somehow managed to offend both allies and enemies at once. Seeing him suffer, whether friend or foe, everyone could not help wanting to applaud. There was truly no one else like him.

Still, they were on a battlefield, and both sides were busy dueling, so there was no awkward scene of both sides applauding together before turning enemies into friends.

After a brief silence, battle swiftly erupted.

Without Li Yuan, that troublemaking nuisance, the battle immediately became much more proper. The atmosphere returned to the normal style of the Douluo world. Soul rings flashed as all manner of powerful soul skills were unleashed without pause.

A moment later, the fierce battle ended. Dugu Bo, who had been surrounded and battered by a group of spirit beasts, charged left and right before finally cutting his way out of the encirclement.

However, Dugu Bo was not in good shape. His already green face had turned even greener, his clothes were in disarray, his eyes were somewhat unfocused, and blood stained the corner of his mouth.

He looked exactly like a young wife who had been ravaged by a gang of burly men.

After finally breaking free, Dugu Bo, who had already been in poor condition, did not continue trading blows with the group of burly spirit beasts. After tossing out a few threats, he fled at once.

Though he looked somewhat bedraggled, he had at least preserved the dignity and face of a Titled Douluo.

Once the battle ended, the spirit beasts merely watched Dugu Bo leave, their eyes carrying faint wariness.

If they truly fought desperately, it was not as though they could not keep Dugu Bo here, but there was no need for that.

He was, after all, a Titled Douluo. If they drove Dugu Bo into a corner, they would gain nothing from it either. Dugu Bo might perish in the Sunset Great Forest, but more than half the spirit beasts present would probably be buried alongside him.

None of those who had become Ten Thousand Year Spirit Beasts were fools. Every one of them was shrewd as a monkey, and no one wanted to risk their life against Dugu Bo.

So, it was enough for both sides to put on a show. Once it was over, they could exchange a round of polite boasting. Perfect!

Of course, this no longer had anything to do with Li Yuan. At this moment, he was still unconscious.

Juhua had not held back with that paw strike. It looked like Li Yuan would need to sleep for quite a while before waking up.

Well, sometimes waking up was not necessarily a good thing. At least, that was certainly true for Li Yuan.

Because it meant he would have to face Juhua's anger. Thinking it over carefully, Li Yuan had caused no small amount of trouble along the way.

Four years later, in the core region of the Sunset Great Forest.

As the most central region of the Sunset Great Forest, its danger level could not compare to the core region of the Star Dou Great Forest, but ordinary soul masters would never dare come here and make trouble.

Although there were no Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts here, there were quite a few Ten Thousand Year Spirit Beasts, including many powerful spirit beasts with more than Fifty Thousand Years of cultivation.

Untouched and undisturbed by humans, the scenery here was exceptionally beautiful. Verdant mountains and clear waters surrounded lush green plants everywhere, making it seem like a paradise on earth.

Yet there was a structure here that was utterly out of place with its surroundings: a crude-looking wooden cabin.

The cabin was rough and far from exquisite—one could even call it ugly. If there was anything special about it, it was that it was enormous. It stood more than ten meters tall, looking less like a human dwelling and more like a giant's house from a fairy tale.

"Three Titled Douluo, with one soul master."

"Can't beat that."

"Three Level Two Gods, with one Soul Elder."

At this moment, the wooden cabin was far from quiet. Even from a great distance, shouts could clearly be heard rising from inside from time to time.

If any human entered now and saw the scene within, they would surely be scared out of their mind.

Five or six gigantic spirit beasts had gathered inside the cabin. Every one of them radiated an extremely terrifying aura, and each appeared to be a spirit beast with more than Fifty Thousand Years of cultivation.

Even an ordinary Titled Douluo might not be able to withstand such a lineup. A typical Titled Douluo could not defeat so many high-level spirit beasts.

Yet at this moment, the spirit beasts gathered together in remarkable harmony. Among them, a plump orange tiger-type spirit beast, a black Curly Baboon, and a golden lion-type spirit beast were seated together, each holding cards made from wooden chips.

They were deeply focused on... playing cards.

Besides them, a white-furred elephant spirit beast and a purple fox were playing dice together.

The scene appeared exceptionally harmonious, yet it gave off an absurdly bizarre feeling.

"Alright, a pair of Soul Sages. Hehe, this round belongs to this kitty." The Orange Cat spirit beast played the last cards in its hand, looking very pleased.

It grinned at its two card-playing companions, then seemed to think of something and asked, "By the way, where is this kitty's Little Slave? It should be time to eat soon. What are we having today?"