Spirit Feather Champion!

"My fruit!" Alarm bells rang in Xiao Yu's mind, and his rage flared instantly! These were the rations he had worked so hard to earn by "acting cute"! This death-defying lion actually dared to target them?

Almost as a reflex, Xiao Yu flapped his wings violently. His small body transformed into a blurred white shadow, accompanied by a sharp sonic boom. Moving faster than the eye could follow, he arrived just in time to block the pile of fruit, narrowly avoiding the Scarlet Mad Lion's descending giant claws!

"You're courting death!" A cold glint flashed in Xiao Yu's eyes as the power within him surged.

He didn't care what you wanted to do; even if you wanted to kill someone, he could ignore it. But you absolutely, under no circumstances, should have touched his things!

The Scarlet Mad Lion's giant claw, carrying a foul stench, was only half a foot away from the fruit pile! A cold light exploded in Xiao Yu's eyes, and the air around him instantly solidified—

"Flash Strike!"

Hum!

Amidst the shrill scream of air being torn apart, a dazzling blue light suddenly pierced through the head of the Scarlet Mad Lion!

Splat—!

A mist of blood mixed with brains exploded under the sunlight! The massive lion body was struck as if by an invisible giant hammer, flying backward several yards and crashing heavily into the bushes.

That hideous lion head was left with nothing but a hollow cavity!

Dead silence.

The sneer on Xue Beng's face froze completely, his eyeballs nearly popping out of their sockets.

The two Soul Ancestor guards shook violently, the light of their Martial Soul Possession fading instantly, as if an invisible hand had gripped their throats.

They hadn't even seen how that blue light appeared!

"Those who steal my food must die." Xiao Yu hovered in the air, flicking the crimson blood from his claws, his icy gaze sweeping over Xue Beng. There was no fury in those eyes, only the indifference of someone crushing an ant.

"Yo-your Highness... it... it just killed a thousand-year Scarlet Mad Lion..." One guard's teeth chattered as he pointed at the twitching corpse in the bushes.

Xue Beng snapped back to reality, a chill rushing from the soles of his feet to the top of his head!

His carefully prepared "trump card" had been insta-killed by this "beast cub" as if it were a fly?!

Humiliation and fear swallowed him instantly. He pointed at Xiao Yu, his face twisted as he roared: "Beast! How dare you kill this prince's pet?! Kill it for me!!"

"Presumptuous!" Xue Qinghe's sharp shout rang out like a thunderclap! She stepped forward, blocking the space between Xiao Yu and Xue Beng, her soul power erupting as four soul rings—yellow, yellow, purple, purple—rose brilliantly!

The pressure belonging to the Crown Prince poured down like a mountain: "Xue Beng! You incited a beast to commit violence, and now you dare to spout nonsense at my honored guest?! Take your men and get out of the Royal Forest immediately!"

"Honored guest?! It's just a beast—" Xue Beng's roar came to an abrupt halt.

The undisguised coldness in Xue Qinghe's eyes made him feel as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.

He had never seen his "Imperial Brother" look at him with such terrifying eyes!

Xiao Yu, however, couldn't even be bothered to lift his eyelids.

He swooped down, his small claws pushing aside the fruit pile contaminated by lion blood. He picked up the two remaining intact crimson berries, casting a look of disgust at the corpse of the Scarlet Mad Lion and the ashen-faced Xue Beng.

"Liu-ao~ (How unlucky)."

With a flap of his wings, he flew toward the top of the giant tree without looking back, never sparing the humans below another glance.

Xue Qinghe watched that resolute white shadow disappear into the canopy, her heart tightening as if she had pushed something precious away with her own hands.

She took a deep breath, turned to the pale-faced Xue Beng, and spoke each word like ice:

"If a single word of today's events leaks out... you know the consequences."

Ignoring the collapsed Xue Beng, she said to her two trusted soldiers in a low voice: "Clean this place up. Tomorrow... prepare more fruit and bring it here."

After such an incident, Xue Qinghe knew that staying here any longer would likely annoy that soul beast.

Thinking of the culprit behind all this, Xue Qinghe glared at Xue Beng once more.

As the soldiers cleared the battlefield, Xue Qinghe looked up toward the tree peak, but she could no longer see that pure white figure, and she sighed.

After Xue Qinghe and the others left, Xiao Yu gnawed on a berry as a crisp system notification rang in his ears:

[Congratulations to the host for completing the monthly mission "Defeat one thousand-year soul beast"]

[Rewards: Cocoa Fruit *10, Wing-Type Essence *1, Leo's Memory *3, Water Blade Skill Stone *1, Light Spear Skill Stone *1, Flame Charge Skill Stone *1]

"Three skills, quite generous. I didn't expect to complete the monthly mission by accident," Xiao Yu muttered, his brows arching. "So what exactly were they here for? Don't tell me they came specifically to help me finish my mission?"

Unable to figure it out, Xiao Yu shook his head and stopped thinking about such trivial matters.

The most important thing right now was not that.

Xiao Yu casually pulled out a Cocoa Fruit and ate it.

[Consumed Cocoa Fruit *1, gained 100 experience points.]

[Current level: lv20 (50/200)]

[Energy saturated, bloodline awakening conditions met!]

[Consume Leo's Memory *2 to evolve into "Spirit Feather Champion"?]

Xiao Yu licked the last drop of sweet juice from his claw, a brilliant light flashing in his eyes. It really did require level twenty to evolve!

"Evolve!"

Hum!!!

An indescribable force of wind, as if originating from the very source of heaven and earth, erupted violently from Xiao Yu without any warning!

A brilliant, dazzling cyan-white light instantly swallowed Xiao Yu's small body! That light was pure and vast, carrying an aura of supreme majesty and freedom, as if a miniature storm core had suddenly formed!

Powerful energy fluctuations formed circles of visible cyan ripples, spreading outward from Xiao Yu as the center.

Wherever they passed, gale-force winds rose, causing the surrounding trees to shake violently and sending fallen leaves dancing across the sky.

At the center of the storm, Xiao Yu felt the power throughout his entire body surging, his originally petite frame beginning to change and elongate!

"Ao~!"

It was no longer the immature voice from his Leo stage; the sound in the wind now carried a sharp, youthful quality.

The storm quickly dissipated, and Xiao Yu had undergone a heaven-shaking transformation.

He hovered half a meter above the ground, his physique nearly twice as large as before, his lines more fluid and robust.

His entire body was covered in pristine, holy Void Feather, their edges shimmering with iridescent black and white; those shifting plumes were like the gilded edges of a ceremonial robe, flowing with deep black and white starlight.

Two pairs of massive Spirit Wind Wings on his back flapped slowly, each stroke generating a gentle yet immensely powerful current of air that kept him steadily suspended in the air, his posture elegant and majestic.

His eyes were no longer round as before, but had become sharp as an eagle's, flashing with the light of wisdom and power.

An invisible force of Wing-Type Affinity, originating from his bloodline, quietly permeated the area along with his gaze.

Within a radius of several dozen miles, all soul beasts possessing the ability to fly, regardless of their level, felt something at this moment and simultaneously lowered their heads in this direction, expressing an awe and submission born of instinct.

The forest, at this moment, seemed to hold its breath.