An Eighth-Rank Holy Beast

It was too powerful—its presence was more than ten times stronger than Thirteen, who had been a four-star Spirit Emperor back then. Sanbao had suspected that the colorful deer might not be an ordinary Spirit Beast, but he had never imagined it was a rare seventh-rank Profound Beast.

As for Spirit Cultivators and Spirit Beasts alike, reaching the Spirit Profound level—seventh rank—meant entering a wholly different realm.

To give the simplest example, any expert who advanced to Spirit Profound—or any seventh-rank Spirit Beast—could fly through the air. They had begun to wield the laws of heaven and earth, putting them far beyond the reach of ordinary Spirit Cultivators.

He steadied his breathing and circulated the spiritual power throughout his body. Only then did the crushing pressure begin to recede.

In an instant, Sanbao pieced together what must have happened that day.

Sanbao had been pursued by Zhao Hong and then collapsed beside the colorful deer. Zhao Hong caught up, saw him lying there, and swung his sword down without a second thought. The force and reach of the attack showed that he had paid no heed to the deer beside Sanbao. With a single breath, the deer sent Zhao Hong flying off the mountaintop, sword and all.

Xie Mei and the other woman had happened upon the scene as they came up after him. Terrified, they fled in disarray and told their father, Sect Leader Xie, what had happened.

Not long afterward, Sect Leader Xie had gone up the mountain himself to investigate. The result had been the same: the deer had left him gravely wounded.

That colorful deer was simply too powerful. It was so strong it didn't need to worry about anyone else being around. Of course, anyone foolish enough to attack it would pay dearly. Zhao Hong and Sect Leader Xie were proof enough.

And that strange gust of wind that had saved him on the mountainside that day? It must have been caused by the beast passing by. Together with what had happened on the mountaintop, that meant the mysterious Spirit Beast had saved him twice without his even realizing it.

Sanbao secretly congratulated himself for not having thought of eating venison that day.

The rings of light continued, growing from few to many, then fading from bright to dim.

After a full half hour, the colorful deer finally stopped blowing rings. Soon, a blue bead about the size of a walnut rose slowly from its mouth, its faint azure radiance spreading across the mountaintop.

The colorful deer had actually spat out its Life Core.

Sanbao had already been overwhelmed by its immense presence, his whole body gone weak. Now he lay sprawled on the ground like a puddle of mud, unable to move.

Boom, boom.

Then Sanbao saw something even more astonishing. The deer used its Life Core to pound its antlers again and again, each blow ringing out like thunder. It looked to be in terrible pain.

What was it doing? Was it trying to hurt itself?

The heart-stopping sight made Sanbao's breathing quicken. Just then, the colorful deer raised its head and roared at the sky.

Maaah...

With a cry of pain, one of its antlers broke off. A milky-white liquid dripped from the broken end into the pool beneath it, and the water immediately turned an even milkier white.

Sanbao had guessed right. The pool's milky water really was there because of the colorful deer. It must have been some liquid seeping from its antlers.

Seventh-rank deer antler—what a wondrous treasure. Even the residue inside it would be of boundless use to low-level Spirit Cultivators like Wang Liang and Sanbao.

After losing one antler, the colorful deer seemed to be in even greater pain and weakness. Its eyes grew unfocused.

But this still wasn't the limit of the colorful deer.

The thunderous crashes continued.

The blue Life Core kept pounding the other antler. It was a truly bizarre sight.

After the time it took an incense stick to burn, the remaining antler was wobbling as if it were about to fall off. At the same time, the blue Life Core slowed, and most of its light had faded, leaving only a faint glow.

The colorful deer kept its eyes tightly shut, its whole body seeming to tremble.

Clearly, it was in immense pain. Even its Life Core began to wobble, slipping beyond its control.

Just then, a streak of yellow light suddenly shot out from somewhere on the mountaintop, hurtling toward the colorful deer.

"Look out!"

Sanbao cried out before he could stop himself.

The deer seemed too weak to respond. It managed to summon its Life Core and send it flying forward, smashing it into the yellow light.

Bang!

The yellow light was knocked backward and turned into a man in his thirties. He held a huge yellow wheel, his face unusually grim.

The colorful deer staggered too, dropping to one knee in the pool. Its Life Core's light grew weaker still, nearly going out, and it drew the core back into its mouth.

"Die!"

The man showed no fear after his first strike failed. The enormous wheel in his hand turned into a streak of yellow light once more and came crashing down at the deer.

This time, the deer didn't dare use its Life Core, but it didn't move an inch either. It simply stood there, rigid as a post.

Perhaps it knew it was outmatched and had decided to surrender.

Sanbao's heart sank. It's over.

Just as the yellow light closed in, the deer tilted its head. Its one remaining antler met the yellow wheel head-on.

Pff!

The wheel sliced off the deer's other antler.

Then, as if freed from some sudden restraint, the colorful deer sprang backward. In the blink of an eye, two small, snow-white horns emerged slowly from its head.

As the little horns appeared, the deer's presence grew stronger and stronger. Amid Sanbao and the man's cries of shock, it abruptly transformed into a young woman with a striking figure.

Even the woman's hair was multicolored.

An eighth-rank Holy Beast? Sanbao was stunned, and so was the man who had attacked the deer. But he quickly came to his senses, spun around, and tried to flee the mountaintop.

"Do you think you can get away?" The woman's voice was soft and halting, yet it carried a thick, murderous intent.

She swept out one hand, and a streak of seven-colored light shot toward the man. With a scream, his upper and lower halves parted. One blow had cut him in two.

"Come out, little fellow," the woman said at last, addressing Sanbao with casual indifference.

Sanbao's face flushed bright red. Looking as though he were terribly reluctant, he finally shuffled out from behind the boulder.

"P-please forgive my presumption, Senior."

Sanbao didn't dare meet the woman's eyes. He lowered his head and stammered out the words.

She looked very young, yet her cultivation was monstrously powerful. She had even taken human form, reaching the Spirit Saint realm. Sanbao had no idea what to call her, so he'd fumbled for "Senior."

"What's wrong? Can't you even raise your head when you're facing me?" The woman seemed disappointed in him and asked listlessly.

"N-no, it's not that. Senior, you haven't put on any clothes yet. I-I really don't dare..." Sanbao lowered his head even further.

It turned out that after the colorful deer transformed into a human, she was completely naked. Her figure was tall and graceful, and Sanbao was a young man—how could he possibly look her in the eye? He was also afraid that if she took offense, she might blow him away with a breath.

"What!"

Now it was the woman's turn to feel awkward. With a thought, she conjured a multicolored gown from spiritual power, and it draped itself over her.

"Remember, you mustn't tell anyone what you saw tonight. I'll let you off because you warned me just now. These two antlers are yours to keep."

The colorful deer had only just transformed into a human. She wasn't especially embarrassed by having exposed herself, merely a little uncomfortable. In the end, she even gave Sanbao the two antlers she had shed.

"Thank you, Senior." Sanbao was overwhelmed with awe, admiration and envy written all over his face.

"You're a descendant of a Divine Beast too. Cultivate diligently, and one day you may attain the sacred divine rank!" With that, the woman drifted into the air and turned into a blue cloud, vanishing into the night.

If reaching Spirit Profound let one fly through the air, then an eighth-rank Holy Beast could do far more. Sanbao stared toward the direction where the colorful deer had disappeared, his heart churning like a stormy sea. It took a long time for him to calm down.

Now that was a true powerhouse. She could turn her opponent to dust while chatting and laughing—and soar through the nine heavens in the blink of an eye.

It took Sanbao a good while to come back to himself. Then he cautiously approached the slain young man and examined him closely.

The man's cultivation was extremely high. He must have reached the Spirit Emperor realm. What a pity that his judgment and luck had both failed him. Although the colorful deer's strength had plummeted as it advanced, it was still a peak seventh-rank Profound Beast. Most importantly, it had successfully advanced. For an eighth-rank Holy Beast, killing an ordinary Spirit Emperor was as easy as crushing an ant.

A seventh-rank Spirit Beast was a treasure from head to toe. The man had obviously come for that reason, but he'd ended up paying for it with his life. What a tragedy.

With cultivation so high, the man surely wasn't a nobody. Sanbao wondered whether he was from the Cloud Saint Sect. If so, he had to be one of its Sect Leaders at the very least. But which one was he? Sanbao had wanted to search the dead man's belongings, but he decided against it. He couldn't afford to provoke someone of such stature.

The red wheel in the man's hand was clearly no ordinary Spirit Weapon. Most people would have stashed it away at once, claiming it for themselves. But Sanbao had seen enough of the world to weigh the risks, and in the end, he chose to leave it alone.

Looking at the two milky-white antlers in his hands, Sanbao gave a dry laugh. Life was full of surprises: you could plant flowers with all your heart and watch them wither, then have a willow sprout where you never meant to plant one. Somehow, he'd come out ahead.

A quarter of an hour later, in a thicket at the foot of Lone Mountain, Sanbao carefully took a cloth pouch from the pocket sewn into his underwear. He opened it, revealing an orange-red ring.

As he steadily infused it with spiritual power, an unknown space began to draw closer to Sanbao.

Half an incense stick later, Sanbao quietly uttered, "Open."

He opened the Storage Spirit Ring for the second time, quickly placed the two precious antlers inside, then focused his thoughts and made the entire space disappear.

Although the Storage Spirit Ring was only a mid-grade Spirit Weapon, it was worth far more than ordinary high-grade Spirit Weapons.

With his current strength, Sanbao naturally didn't dare take such a treasure out carelessly. Besides, inside the ring was the True Spirit Feather, whose value was beyond measure.

After hiding the ring again, Sanbao hurried back to Fire Cloud Hall. He told no one what he had seen or heard on Lone Mountain. He simply kept his head down, cultivating as he waited for something.