First Meeting with Little One

The towering mountain peaks stretched on without end, and countless ancient trees pierced the sky. The breeze stirred the leaves with a rustle as a figure slipped soundlessly through the branches.

"Have we arrived?" Bai Yixin stopped among the treetops.

As soon as he entered this stretch of forest, he sensed a terrifying presence that pressed down on him.

The forest was silent as a grave. Only a collapsed stone mountain stood out as different.

There wasn't a single bird singing, nor a beast roaring. There was only utter stillness and a deathly aura that made one's blood run cold.

He chose not to venture farther. Bai Yixin knew exactly why he had come and wouldn't do anything unnecessary. His life came first.

After retreating several miles, Bai Yixin quietly climbed an ancient tree over a thousand meters tall and watched the forest from afar, keeping a close eye on what was happening there in hopes of spotting someone.

Before long, a group of people appeared in the distance and hurried toward the forest, charging straight in.

"Good. There are people here." Bai Yixin narrowed his eyes and breathed a sigh of relief.

The group arrived quickly and left just as fast. Before Bai Yixin could figure out how to approach them and trade for information, they seemed to sense something too and swiftly withdrew, climbing a mountain not far from him.

Bai Yixin nodded to himself. These people had some sense. They seemed to have noticed something, which saved him the trouble of going into that dangerous place to warn them.

Figures appeared, and shouts rang out. Three more groups arrived, entering the forest from three different directions and heading straight for the collapsed stone mountain.

"Is there some treasure inside that mountain? Are all these people eager to get themselves killed?" Bai Yixin silently crept toward the first group, who had come to a spot not far from him.

He made no effort to warn the three groups. Bai Yixin wasn't that kindhearted. He had come here to seek guidance and ask questions, and he wasn't about to do anything unnecessary.

Besides, fools were often the first to die!

Bai Yixin glanced at the three groups already clashing right in front of him. Their ear-splitting cries as they fought made him shake his head. He surveyed the distance, glanced up at the sky, then circulated the Breath Concealment Art and quickened his pace.

"Roar!!!"

Suddenly, several giant beasts appeared, each as large as a house, baring snow-white fangs as they lunged at the people. They, too, wanted to seize the stone mountain.

At the same time, long cries rang out overhead. Fierce winds howled as several ferocious birds swooped in, each five or six meters long, with wingspans of eleven or twelve meters. They plunged down and tore six or seven people apart on the spot, leaving blood everywhere.

"Well, would you look at that? The birds and beasts that ran off have come back?!"

The bloody scene only made Bai Yixin furrow his brow slightly. He had seen even bloodier sights. What bothered him was that this was the first time he had watched "people" torn to pieces right before his eyes.

For a time, the shrieks of birds and beasts rose and fell, and the entire mountain range erupted into chaos.

The beasts went berserk. Some were dozens of meters long, others only a few feet, and in the blink of an eye, hundreds had appeared. They were all powerful species, surging forward like a flood as they roared madly.

The sky was no different. Birds of all kinds filled the air, with iron beaks and sharp claws. They blotted out the sky and charged at the mountainside as if crazed, scales and feathers whirling everywhere.

Even Bai Yixin couldn't help feeling shaken by the sight. Seeing even more fierce beasts pouring this way, he didn't hesitate for a moment. He rode the wind and raced toward the first group.

He'd come all this way. There was no way he'd leave empty-handed.

And if that group ran into trouble, he could lend them a hand, then ask them a few questions afterward.

"There are too many fierce beasts. It isn't safe here either—we might get caught up in it!" an elder of the first group shouted.

"Roar..."

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a gale swept down the mountain. Two enormous beasts appeared together, each seven or eight meters long, with brown fur, vicious features, and wings growing from their ribs.

They were terrifying Biao—and two had appeared at once!

A Biao was a strange-looking, winged tiger, feared throughout the mountain forests and known for feeding on all kinds of fierce beasts.

Now that two Biao had appeared together, the sight was truly startling. They were far more vicious than ordinary beasts, and it was obvious that this group would struggle to deal with them.

With a rush of wind, one of the giant Biao moved, diving down with its jaws wide open. It bit two villagers in one go. With a crunch, half of one man's body fell to the ground as blood gushed everywhere. The sight was unbearable.

Several grief-stricken roars rose from among the villagers, and iron arrows flew forward like rain.

It had happened too suddenly. The savage Biao could fly, and it was seven or eight meters long. When such a massive beast appeared without warning, there was naturally no time to guard against it. A bloody slaughter began in an instant.

"Beast!"

The two burly men leading the crowd roared furiously. Both swung their broad swords and charged forward, leading a group of the strongest men as they attacked the savage Biao.

"Roar..."

The other Biao hadn't been idle either. It let out a mighty roar and pounced from the other side. Its claws swept through the air, flashing coldly with metallic clangs and sparks, knocking the broad swords, clubs, and other weapons from the villagers' hands.

Just as the giant Biao was about to swing those glinting claws and rip open the bellies of the people before it, a tiny foot shot out from the treetop above its head, propelling a dark figure that kicked the beast's hideous head.

"Boom!"

To everyone's astonishment, a small figure kicked the seven- or eight-meter-long giant Biao flying.

The newcomer was Bai Yixin, who had rushed over intending to earn their gratitude. Hearing roars he could understand, he shot forward like the wind and kicked the giant beast attacking the crowd.

Bai Yixin saw a Little One dart out from the crowd. Both his arms shimmered, as if stars were lighting up one by one. Glimmers of light danced between his fingers, then a Silver Moon appeared.

The moon looked astonishingly real, like a sacred moon that had fallen from the heavens, its pure radiance sparkling.

"I'll leave this one to you."

Bai Yixin exchanged a glance with Little One, whose face was a little dazed. He glanced at the Silver Moon, which carried a faint sense of menace, said nothing more, and charged straight at the other giant Biao.

A green whirlwind hummed around the blade in his hand. Bai Yixin twisted aside to dodge a swipe from the giant Biao's claws, then thrust his short sword into its neck.

The giant Biao's hide and flesh were tough. The short sword stalled for a second, then, with a pop, flesh flew.

Bai Yixin flipped over the giant Biao, and his short sword swept along its neck, cutting through most of it. The green whirlwind on the blade had turned red with blood.

With a casual flick, he sent the blood-red whirlwind away. Bai Yixin glanced at the giant Biao, whose head looked as if it had been sawn off by a chainsaw. Blood sprayed from the beast like a river. He took a couple of steps farther away to avoid getting splattered, then looked over to see how Little One was handling the other beast.

The Silver Moon wasn't just beautiful and radiant. It slashed into the other giant Biao's neck, and blood burst forth as its head was cut clean off.

"Why does this scene feel so familiar? Silver Moon, Little One—and if a Green-Scaled Eagle showed up too..." Bai Yixin put away his short sword and silently pondered to himself.