"Liu Ye is quite extraordinary. The Desolate Beast Clan was one of the Ten Great Beast Clans back in the day, you know," Mo Xiao Hong praised. She was about the same age as Rui Feng, and her plain appearance suited her name. She had the look of a young woman sent to the countryside during the Down to the Countryside movement.
"The Ten Great Beast Clans?"
"You don't know? They're the ten strongest beast races in the world today. The Desolate Beasts rank right behind the dragons."
I nearly spat blood.
Dragons? Weren't they the most powerful divine beasts to appear in every fantasy and xianxia novel? Dragons had always been the source of power—of cheat-like advantages—for all those Proud Heavens and Proud Roses. And the Desolate Beast came just after them? Had I really killed such an insanely powerful creature?
"I never expected the Desolate Beasts to be second..."
"Second? How could that be? They're clearly ninth."
Ninth... ninth? Wait, did that mean dragons only ranked eighth? The race universally assumed to be the strongest in countless worlds was only eighth? Were you kidding me?
"Just to be sure, when you say dragons, do you mean the long, serpent-shaped kind, or the long-necked, barrel-waisted kind with wings?"
"What does that have to do with anything...? The serpent-shaped ones mainly live in the east, while the barrel-waisted ones mostly come from the west. There isn't much difference in their strength. They're the same race, and both rank eighth."
...It felt like my entire worldview had been turned upside down.
"...Then what about phoenixes?" If there were dragons, then there had to be phoenixes. As the divine beasts—or cheat-like advantages—in all those fantasy stories with powerful female leads, they ought to have made first or second place.
"The most authoritative ranking puts them at sixth."
I nearly spat blood again.
"They didn't even make the top five? Then who's ranked between dragons and phoenixes?"
"You don't even know that? The Ghost Clan. They're arguably the beast race most similar to humans, and they're also the race with the closest ties to humanity today."
"What the heck..."
Back underground, the others had gathered in a circle around the Desolate Beast core, absorbing the surging vitality it released. They were doing so very slowly, evidently trying to leave more for Rui Feng.
We laid Rui Feng right up against the core. "Brother, can you hear me?" Rui Xin asked anxiously. "Of course..." Rui Feng replied, his consciousness returning little by little. "You don't have to do anything. Let me absorb the vitality myself..."
As he spoke, the vitality pouring from the core began streaming into Rui Feng in great quantities. His deathly pale, cracked skin regained its color at a speed visible to the naked eye. As the seconds ticked by, his complexion steadily improved. Even the bones he'd injured in battle began to crack and click as they joined back together on their own.
Seeing him improve so much, we finally relaxed. The Desolate Beast core truly was a priceless spiritual medicine. It worked wonders without needing any processing at all. Thank goodness I hadn't absorbed the core along with the Desolate Beast's blood essence, or this mission would have been a complete failure.
"At this rate, with some other spiritual medicines, I'll be fully recovered by the early hours of the day after tomorrow. You should rest up too. If we pick up the pace starting then, we can still complete the mission on time."
"Okay!"
Not far from the cave, two figures stood beneath a mound of earth.
"I never would've guessed, Sunny. There was a Desolate Beast hidden underground here."
"Yeah, Lorraine... If I'd known beforehand, I wouldn't have tested it here."
"But the results were a success, weren't they? If it could drive out a Desolate Beast, then the other beasts would be no problem."
"We almost got ourselves killed, and if we hadn't had the Shielding Device, we'd have been discovered long ago."
"But we're fine, aren't we? And if the beasts happened to take out a few of the Si Nan Family's higher-ups..."
Sunny's expression changed. He seized Lorraine by the collar and growled, "Don't even think about it! How many times do I have to emphasize this? Si Nan Ying and Si Nan Hong are surrounded by bodyguards now, and every one of them is on high alert! The odds of a beast taking them out are lower than your chances of winning over the Tartaglia Family's young lady!"
"You're so mean, Sunny..."
"But," Sunny said, releasing Lorraine, "when they finish investigating and return to Winter Arrival City for the festival, they'll be at their most relaxed. That's when..."
Meanwhile, over with Si Nan Ying...
"Ahh, I'm so tired... I don't want to walk anymore..." Si Nan Ying panted as she complained.
"The third survey point is just ahead. We're currently leading every other team, so please keep going," Si Nan Yuan replied coolly. As the main team, they had to reach the finish before everyone else. They couldn't afford to waste even a moment.
"Besides, wasn't your whole reason for coming to the Winter Mountains to train yourself? Learning to endure is part of the training."
"But you never let me fight whenever we run into beasts. What's the point of me coming along, then?"
The other team members turned away, looking a little ashamed. It was true that Si Nan Ying hadn't had a single chance to fight since entering the mountains. They all felt a bit guilty about it, but there was a reason...
"Hmph! Little Ying, before you blame anyone else, look for the reason in yourself! If you still couldn't control your ability, how could the guards let you fight?" Si Nan Hong—Elder Hong—glared and blew out his whiskers. As an upright elder of the family, he was extremely strict. The Patriarch had personally appointed him to discipline Si Nan Ying. He'd scolded her ever since she was little, but she was still carefree and unwilling to be constrained, which gave Elder Hong a constant headache.
Normally, as soon as Elder Hong spoke, the Second Miss would either mend her ways or at least shut up. But this time...
"Yes, yes... I know why, but my ability just won't stabilize! What am I supposed to do about that?!" Si Nan Ying shouted, completely out of character.
"Miss..."
"Do you think I want to keep carrying the nickname 'Humanoid Mobile Bomb'? I've worked hard so people wouldn't laugh at me!"
"Working hard is no use if you have nothing to show for it!" Elder Hong shot back without yielding.
"But I..."
"No buts! You're always so disobedient! The same thing happened a few days ago—you snuck out and even brought back a suspicious person! Who knows what she was after!"
"Don't you dare talk about Xiao Ye like that!!!"
The team members stared at them in shock. Their earlier arguments had been routine, but that final shout from Si Nan Ying was far beyond what they were used to. Anyone could tell she was truly furious.
"Ah..." Si Nan Ying realized how badly she'd lost control and immediately fell silent.
An oppressive silence spread. No one said a word. After a moment, Si Nan Ying shook her head hard, as if trying to fling all her sadness away, then bowed deeply to Elder Hong. "I'm sorry, Grandpa Hong. I got carried away! I know everyone's only looking out for me, but I was still so willful. I'm sorry!"
Elder Hong finally nodded and said no more. He'd spent years teaching Si Nan Ying traditional virtues, but she'd only learned one: admit your mistakes and apologize sincerely. Well... she might not actually change, but she'd always apologize.
"...All right, I went a little too far, too." Elder Hong softened his tone, which was rare. He paused, then continued.
"You should know that your father—the Patriarch—has been assigning you tasks lately for a reason. His health is steadily worsening, and he has no choice but to prepare to step down ahead of time. If you have no accomplishments to your name by then, your path ahead will be difficult."
"But I've never had any interest in becoming Patriarch. My brothers can fight over it all they want..."
"You make it sound so simple," Elder Hong sighed. "There are things you don't get to choose! Of all the Patriarch's children, you have the weakest faction. So weak that only I and Xiao Yuan truly support you! Being weak means being at the mercy of others! The Patriarch can protect you while he's still in power, but what happens when he steps down? Without his protection, you'll only be able to live as a tool of the family. Being sacrificed in a marriage alliance would be the best-case scenario. If Third Young Master takes power, he may well kill you just to be safe! How will you stand up to them then?"
"..." Si Nan Ying fell completely silent. Elder Hong was talking about the truth she least wanted to think about, but couldn't avoid—the fate awaiting her as a member of the Si Nan Family. She'd be swept into the whirlpool to protect herself, forced to turn against her own family for power. But as a child, she'd dreamed of becoming an adventurer who traveled the world. All she'd ever wanted was a carefree life. Why did she have to...
"What should I do, Xiao Ye?"
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