"Chief and the others are frantic. They're getting ready to organize a search party." Shi Linhu looked worried. "That's the depths of the Great Wilderness. If they run into even one Fierce Beast, these children will..."
"Don't worry."
Ye Xuan patted Shi Linhu on the shoulder and spoke in a steady voice.
"I'll bring them back."
Before the words had even left his mouth, Ye Xuan pushed off with his toes.
Boom!
The ground trembled slightly, and a fading afterimage remained.
Deep in the Great Wilderness, ancient trees towered into the sky.
This was the domain of Fierce Beasts, filled with the primal stench of blood and slaughter.
At that moment, a group of children was racing through the forest.
At the very front was Little Shi Hao. He clutched a jade-green egg in his arms. It was bigger than his head, its surface covered in scale-like patterns.
"Run! The big guy's coming after us!"
Little Shi Hao called out in his childish voice, his stubby legs pumping at astonishing speed.
Though he was still young, he was already in the late stage of the Blood Moving Realm. He was even faster than the young of those Primordial Remnant Species.
Behind him, Pi Hou, Er Meng, and the other children were red in the face and panting as they sprinted for their lives, each carrying two bird eggs.
"Caw—!"
A piercing cry rang down from the sky.
A terrifying gale followed.
A huge shadow instantly covered the forest.
It was a Green Scaled Eagle!
Its wings spanned more than ten meters, and its entire body was covered in green scales that glinted coldly in the sunlight.
Its sharp eyes fixed on the little children below, blazing with overwhelming fury.
Those were its eggs!
It had only gone out to hunt for a little while, yet these two-legged beasts had dared to steal its children!
Whoosh!
The Green Scaled Eagle dived, its enormous talons like cast iron, smashing through the rocks and ancient trees in its path with ease.
"Oh no, oh no! It's caught up!" Pi Hou cried in terror.
"Split up!" Little Shi Hao shouted, clutching the egg as he darted toward a pile of rocks.
He wanted to draw the fierce bird away.
But the Green Scaled Eagle had already locked onto the little child with the strongest aura.
It beat its wings, raising a gale that tore the nearby trees from the ground.
The terrifying pressure of the wind made Little Shi Hao falter.
At that very moment—
Its talons were already above his head, their cold gleam stinging his skin.
"Beast, don't you dare hurt anyone."
A clear voice rang out abruptly in midair.
Then—
A slender hand appeared out of nowhere.
The hand looked pale and fragile, yet it firmly blocked the Green Scaled Eagle's talons, which were powerful enough to crush a mountain.
Thud!
A muffled impact rang out.
Air currents surged, and the surrounding plants instantly crumbled to dust.
The Green Scaled Eagle felt as though it had crashed into a Primordial Divine Mountain. The immense force sent it howling backward, and its huge body was hurled through the air. It tumbled several times before barely managing to steady itself.
When the dust settled—
A figure dressed in white floated silently in midair, robes fluttering like an Exiled Immortal.
"B-Big Brother?!"
Little Shi Hao peeked out from behind the rocks, still clutching the egg. When he saw that familiar figure, his big eyes lit up at once.
"Big Brother Ye Xuan!"
The other children stopped as well, shouting in delight.
Ye Xuan turned around and glared at them, exasperated.
"I'll deal with you when we get back."
Then he turned to face the Green Scaled Eagle, which had regained its balance.
The Green Scaled Eagle circled low in the air, eyeing Ye Xuan warily.
As a variant with the bloodline of a Primordial Demonic Bird, it was intelligent enough to sense how terrifying the human youth before it was.
Despite his small frame, his body held power that made it tremble.
"Caw!"
It let out an unwilling cry, but didn't dare attack again. It simply stared fixedly at the eggs in the children's arms.
Ye Xuan glanced at the three jade-green bird eggs and understood.
These were the three mutated Green Scaled Eagle chicks from the original story. They would also become important companions to Little Shi Hao early on.
"We didn't mean to take your life."
Ye Xuan spoke, his words infused with the Divine Sense of the Spirit Transformation Realm as they entered the Green Scaled Eagle's mind.
"We'll return your children to you."
Hearing this, the ferocity in the Green Scaled Eagle's eyes eased slightly, though it remained wary.
"However..."
Ye Xuan changed his tone. His Double Pupils glimmered faintly, Chaos Qi swirling within them as an overwhelming pressure emanated from deep in his bloodline.
"The Great Wilderness is dangerous. With three chicks to protect, you may not be able to keep them safe."
"Submit to me."
"I'll keep you and your chicks safe, and I can give your children a tremendous opportunity."
"They'll have a chance to return to their ancestral form and restore the glory of the Primordial Demonic Birds."
The Green Scaled Eagle shuddered.
Return to its ancestral form?
It was something every Primordial Remnant Species dreamed of.
It looked into Ye Xuan's deep, abyss-like Double Pupils, which seemed to contain the mysteries of Heaven Splitting and Earth Opening.
Its instincts told it that this human wasn't lying.
Besides, it had already tested Ye Xuan's strength with that last blow.
If it refused to submit, Ye Xuan could kill it as easily as turning over his hand.
After a moment of silence—
The Green Scaled Eagle folded its wings and slowly descended to the ground.
It lowered its proud head and let out a soft, obedient cry.
"Good. You know what's best for you."
Ye Xuan's lips curved into a slight smile.
With a flash, he landed on the Green Scaled Eagle's broad back.
"Get on, you little brats."
Ye Xuan beckoned to the children below, who were still staring in a daze.
"Wow! We're riding a giant bird!"
Little Shi Hao was the first to react. Clutching the egg, he scrambled up onto the eagle's back. The other children also whooped excitedly as they clambered aboard on all fours.
This was a Green Scaled Eagle! The aerial overlord of the Great Wilderness!
They used to be so terrified of one that they'd wet themselves. Now they were actually riding on its back?
They'd be bragging about this for the rest of their lives!
"Let's go. Back to the village."
Ye Xuan patted the Green Scaled Eagle on the neck.
The Green Scaled Eagle spread its wings, sending a gale roaring around them as it carried everyone into the sky and flew toward Stone Village.
High above the ground, the wind howled.
The children whooped with excitement as they watched the mountains and forests race by beneath them, their faces flushed red.
Ye Xuan sat cross-legged at the very front of the eagle's back, but he wasn't nearly as carefree as they were.
"Quiet."
Ye Xuan spoke calmly.
The children fell silent at once, shrinking their necks like a bunch of chicks caught doing something wrong.
"Do you know what you did wrong?"
"I... I know." Little Shi Hao held the egg and lowered his head, speaking in a small voice. "We shouldn't have sneaked out and made Grandpa Chief worry."
"What else?"
"We shouldn't... shouldn't have provoked such a powerful Fierce Beast."
"That's not all."
Ye Xuan pointed at the vast Great Wilderness below.
"You were brave, but you're still not strong enough. If I'd arrived even a moment later, these three eggs would have become your burial goods."
"Remember, courage isn't the same as recklessness."
"If you want to survive in the Great Wilderness, strength alone isn't enough. You also need to use your heads."
The children listened with only a vague understanding, but they all nodded obediently.
Ye Xuan said nothing more. Some lessons had to be learned through experience.
Just then—
"Roar—!"
A roar that shook heaven and earth came from the mountain range ahead.
It boomed like thunder, making the Green Scaled Eagle shudder and nearly plummet from the sky.
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