Three-Eyed Golden Lion

Scarlet King threw his head back and roared. The flames engulfing his body surged to their peak as he unleashed the full force of his 260,000 years of cultivation.

Dark red flames shot into the sky, dyeing the entire night crimson.

The surrounding trees instantly turned to charcoal. Lava churned across the ground, forming waves of fire that swept toward the four of them.

"Know your place, humans!"

The head in the middle roared, and a gigantic claw swept toward Xue Qingwu with enough force to scorch the heavens and boil the seas.

Xue Qingwu's gaze sharpened as she controlled Pride of the Ice and Snow Emperors and sent it to meet the attack.

Pale blue ice mist collided with the gigantic dark red flaming claw.

"Boom!"

A deafening explosion rang out.

A terrifying shock wave spread in every direction, tearing up a layer of the ground as countless rocks and burning splinters filled the air.

Xue Qingwu grunted and was sent flying backward, a trace of golden blood at the corner of her mouth.

The Snow Maiden form around her began to turn indistinct, and the two red Soul Rings beneath her feet dimmed considerably.

After all, she was only a Soul Grandmaster.

To unleash Soul Douluo-level combat power for even a moment was already the limit of her God-Level Martial Soul and Snow Empress's origin power.

Maintaining this state for long placed too great a strain on her body.

Xiao Xiao was in no better shape.

Scarlet King's flaming claw tore the Thirty-Three Heavens Storm apart. Her Dragon King True Body let out a pained roar, and countless cracks split the dragon scales covering her body. Green blood trickled between them.

Her body rapidly shrank, returning to human form. She staggered back a few steps and nearly fell to the ground.

"Xiao Xiao!"

Yu Mengdi hurried over to support her, worry written all over her face.

Scarlet King shook his claw and looked at the three of them in their sorry state, a trace of disdain flashing in his eyes.

"What's the use of having talent?"

"Even geniuses need time to grow."

"Before you do, killing you is as easy as crushing an ant."

He began walking toward the four of them, the earth trembling with every step. His flaming claw rose slowly, ready to deliver the finishing blow.

Just then, Xue Yuheng withdrew from Xue Qingwu's body.

His face was pale, clearly showing how much Soul Power the fusion support had cost him.

But his gaze remained calm, without a hint of panic.

The shadow beneath Xue Yuheng shifted slightly.

A stunning white figure silently emerged from it.

Heavenly Dancing Maiden hovered in midair, her long white dress fluttering gently in the night breeze. Her silver hair cascaded like a waterfall, and a suffocating pressure radiated from her.

The cool moonlight fell upon her, as though it had laid a sacred halo over her.

"Limit Douluo?!"

Scarlet King stopped abruptly. All three heads widened their eyes in disbelief.

He had never imagined that these seemingly insignificant human children had a Limit Douluo-level powerhouse among them!

Heavenly Dancing Maiden paid no heed to Scarlet King's shock.

She slowly raised her delicate hand, and a silver domain instantly enveloped the entire area.

As the moonlight flowed, time seemed to slow down countless times over. Even the flames burning on Scarlet King's body moved sluggishly.

The seven-attribute domain, Wind Flower Snow Moon.

Scarlet King stiffened, sensing a threat unlike any he had ever faced.

His 260,000 years of cultivation put him at about the level of a Super Douluo. Before a Limit Douluo, he stood no chance.

Just as he prepared to fight to the death, Heavenly Dancing Maiden casually flicked her hand.

A golden figure landed on the open ground.

It was a Soul Beast about the size of a fine horse.

Golden fur covered its body, and a vertical golden eye sat in the middle of its forehead. It looked both adorable and mysterious.

It was the Three-Eyed Golden Lion!

"Auspicious Beast!"

Scarlet King let out a piercing cry. His flames went out instantly, and he charged toward the Three-Eyed Golden Lion without a second thought.

"Stop."

Xue Yuheng spoke calmly.

A silver blade of light formed at Heavenly Dancing Maiden's fingertip and pressed against the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's neck.

Scarlet King froze in place, not daring to take another step.

All three of his heads stared fixedly at the blade of light at Heavenly Dancing Maiden's fingertip, their eyes bloodshot with terror and fury.

"Human! If you so much as touch a hair on its head, I'll tear you limb from limb! Every Soul Beast in Star Dou Forest will hunt you to the ends of the earth!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion was the embodiment of Star Dou Forest's fortune, as well as its Emperor Auspicious Beast.

If anything happened to it, the fortune of the entire Star Dou Forest would decline.

That was something Scarlet King and all of Star Dou Forest could never accept.

Watching him panic, Xue Yuheng let a mischievous smile curl his lips.

The moment Xue Qingwu sensed Scarlet King's presence, he had already contacted Heavenly Dancing Maiden and asked her to follow Scarlet King's aura and search the nearby area for the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.

He knew very well that trying to fight a Ferocious Beast of Scarlet King's caliber head-on would only leave both sides badly hurt.

The wisest choice was to seize his weakness.

In the original story, Scarlet King appeared because the Three-Eyed Golden Lion had wandered off.

So Xue Yuheng had guessed that Scarlet King had appeared at the outskirts because the Three-Eyed Golden Lion was nearby.

He had guessed right.

"Scarlet King, I think we can have a proper talk now."

Xue Yuheng's voice was calm.

Scarlet King gritted his teeth, his chest heaving violently.

He looked at the Three-Eyed Golden Lion with the blade of light pressed to its neck, then at Xue Yuheng's composed face. In the end, he lowered his proud head.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"Anything, as long as you let the Auspicious Beast go."

He had lived for tens of thousands of years, yet he had never been so humiliated. But he didn't dare to gamble. He couldn't afford to.

Yu Mengdi stood off to the side, completely dumbfounded.

She was from the respected Elite Hall of the Dou Ling Empire and had seen plenty of the world. She had even seen the Dou Ling Empire's royal family's consecrated experts.

But she had never seen—or even heard of—a royal family with a Limit Douluo-level powerhouse as a bodyguard.

This Prince Gan was unfathomable.

Just then, a sudden change occurred.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion, which had been lying on the ground trembling, suddenly raised its head.

The vertical golden eye in the middle of its forehead snapped open.

An indescribable golden light shot out from the Eye of Destiny at incredible speed, leaving no one time to react.

Grr! Damn humans! I'm going to kill you!

"Look out!"

"Yuheng!"

Xiao Xiao, Xue Qingwu, and Yu Mengdi cried out at the same time.

The golden light struck Xue Yuheng squarely between the eyebrows.

A sharp pain shot through Xue Yuheng's brain, and his vision went black.

The last thing he saw was the three women's panicked faces.

Then he lost consciousness completely and collapsed straight to the ground.

"My name is... Xiao Xiaoxiao. What's your name?"