There were enormous talons from some kind of bird, gleaming with a metallic sheen; broken golden feathers as long as spears; and several snapped horns that radiated terrifying pressure.
Most astonishing of all was a big yellow dog that happened to be passing by. It was gnawing away in a corner, relishing a crystal-clear leg bone that gave off an aura comparable to that of a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast.
The crunching sound made Qian Renxue's scalp prickle.
"That dog is actually eating a Soul Bone?!"
At that moment, Qian Renxue's worldview was utterly shattered.
She thought of the Angel Soul Bone she had absorbed. It was a treasured heirloom passed down through her Qian Family for countless years, and they normally kept it nourished with the finest Soul Tools.
But now she realized that the treasured inheritance she had once been so proud of might be nothing more than a chew toy for a dog in this village!
"What kind of place is this...?"
At that moment, Qian Renxue had none of the pride of Spirit Hall's young mistress left.
She looked at the villagers sitting on their doorsteps, eating from bowls made of the skulls of some kind of Primordial Remnant Species;
then at the children wielding Beast Tooth Daggers powerful enough to rival Douluo divine weapons, using them to whittle wood for fun;
and at the shriveled eyeball hanging on the wall as a charm against evil—one that looked like it had belonged to a several-hundred-thousand-year-old Soul Beast...
She couldn't help shivering. She was overcome with terror.
Only now did Qian Renxue finally understand why Tang Hao, a level-99 Peerless Douluo, had been sent flying with a single slap.
In a village built from the bones of Primordial Fierce Beasts, what did level 99 even mean?
He probably couldn't even beat that big yellow dog gnawing on bones!
"Miss Qian, don't just stand there gawking."
Seeing Qian Renxue's wide-eyed, sheltered look, the old village chief assumed she was frightened and quickly explained with a hearty smile:
"These are all prey the village children hunt to practice. We use the hides to make clothes, and the sturdier bones to pave roads or make tools."
"The useless scraps of bone left over go to Da Huang as snacks."
"Life in the Great Wilderness is like that. There's nothing particularly good here. Please excuse our humble surroundings."
As she listened to the old village chief's shamelessly boastful explanation, Qian Renxue's lips twitched uncontrollably.
Practice?
Prey?
Useless scraps of bone?
She swallowed hard as she spotted the faint glimmer of a leg bone among those "useless scraps."
That was a top-grade torso Soul Bone, enough to drive even a Titled Douluo mad!
"Elder, you... you're too modest..."
Qian Renxue's voice trembled. For a moment, she felt as if she hadn't come to the mortal world at all, but had accidentally trespassed into the heavens.
And not just any part of the heavens, either. This was a place that didn't even take its treasures seriously.
"Please don't be so formal, Miss Qian. Once you're in Stone Village, you're as good as home."
Old village chief Shi Yunfeng glanced at the still-stunned Qian Renxue beside him, then turned back with a kindly smile:
"You're a guest acknowledged by the Sacrificial Spirit. We people of Stone Village may be rough around the edges, but we're never stingy with our guests."
As he spoke, the old village chief turned toward the brawny Shi Linhu, who had just thrown Tang Hao out, and gave him an order:
"Lin Hu, we have an honored guest. We can't be discourteous."
"Go deal with the little beast we just brought back from the hunt. We'll start a fire tonight and prepare a simple meal for our guest."
"Sure thing! Leave it to me, Chief!"
Shi Linhu answered cheerfully, then turned and headed toward the back of the village.
Only then did Qian Renxue feel a little relieved.
"A little beast? A simple meal?"
Mm... The village may be well off, but its people really are simple and honest.
All right, I am a little hungry. I might as well try some wild game from this other world.
But the very next moment, the ground beneath her feet seemed to tremble.
Rumble! Rumble!
Qian Renxue turned at once—and froze at the sight.
At the back of Stone Village, the brawny man named Shi Linhu was dragging an enormous creature toward them with one hand!
It was a giant rhino, fifty meters long, covered from head to toe in crimson scales, with two fearsome heads!
It was already dead, but its corpse still radiated a monstrous, bloodthirsty aura!
The sheer strength of that aura made the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul inside Qian Renxue tremble.
"This... What is...?"
Qian Renxue's scalp went numb. Her teeth chattered wildly, and her voice had become a trembling mess:
"That aura is definitely beyond a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast!"
"It might even... even be beyond two hundred thousand years!"
On the Douluo Continent, a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast was an overlord—a creature even Titled Douluos had to steer clear of!
Yet this terrifying beast was being dragged along with one hand, then tossed to the ground like garbage?
And they called this thing a little beast?!
They called eating it a simple meal?!
Thud!
Shi Linhu dropped the creature—a descendant of the Primordial Remnant Species known as the Two-Headed Fire Rhino—heavily onto the ground, sending up a cloud of dust.
Then he scratched his head sheepishly and gave Qian Renxue a warm, honest smile:
"Heh, Miss Qian, I'm sorry about this."
"We weren't very lucky today. We didn't run into any decent big game. We only caught this little rhino—it hasn't even reached adulthood yet."
"The meat might be a little tough, so please don't mind. Just make do with a bite."
"Not... fully grown? Just make do?"
Looking at the corpse, which towered higher than the gate of the Pope Palace, Qian Renxue felt the world spin around her.
She remembered her grandfather, Qian Daoliu, the level-99 Peerless Douluo. When he had once gone to hunt a Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast, he had spent nearly forty-nine days preparing—bathing, changing clothes, and making all the proper arrangements.
Then she looked at the honest-faced uncle before her, casually claiming they'd had bad luck.
Qian Renxue felt utterly overwhelmed. For some reason, looking at these villagers even made her feel a little inferior...
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
The Upper Realm, Hehuan Sect.
Beside a quiet pavilion outside the mountain gate.
Hu Liena had been kneeling there for three whole hours. Her once-tender knees were swollen and red, and her forehead was beaded with sweat, but she didn't dare move even a little. She didn't dare use Soul Power to shield herself, either. All she could do was endure through sheer willpower.
She knew this was a trial—and an opportunity.
Just as she was about to pass out from exhaustion,
"Hehehe..."
A silvery, bell-like laugh rang out. A fragrant breeze, enough to make one's bones melt and flesh tingle, swept toward her.
Hu Liena forced herself to lift her head.
A beautiful young woman in a gauzy pink dress approached with graceful steps. Her figure was stunningly voluptuous.
The gauze was almost transparent, outlining her breathtaking curves in alluring glimpses. Every frown and smile seemed capable of stealing a person's soul.
"Well, aren't you a stubborn little girl?"
The beautiful young woman stopped in front of Hu Liena, then raised her chin with a jade-white finger painted with nail polish and looked her up and down with sultry eyes:
"That natural bewitching physique of yours makes you a promising prospect."
"Since you're so sincere, the stewardess in the Outer Sect has agreed to meet with you."
With that, the beautiful young woman turned around, her slender waist swaying like a water snake:
"Get up. Come with me."
"Remember, once you're inside the sect, don't look at what you shouldn't, and don't ask about what you shouldn't."
"Otherwise, you won't even know how you died."
"Yes! Thank you, senior!"
Delighted, Hu Liena struggled to her feet. Ignoring the pain in her knees, she hurried to follow respectfully behind the beautiful young woman.
As they walked, Hu Liena gaped at everything like a country bumpkin visiting the Grand View Garden.
The pavilions and towers in the Hehuan Sect were all built from pink jade, red lanterns hung everywhere, and the air was filled with a sweet fragrance that made one's cheeks flush.
Every so often, she spotted lightly dressed female disciples practicing some kind of dual cultivation technique among the flowers with handsome men. The sight made Hu Liena's face burn, and she quickly lowered her head.
"Um... Senior..."
After they had walked for a while, Hu Liena couldn't hold back her curiosity any longer and asked cautiously:
"Please forgive this junior for asking."
"By chance, I've heard of a place called the Primordial Immortal Court."
"May I ask what kind of place the Primordial Immortal Court is? And compared with our Hehuan Sect, which is stronger?"
At the mention of the Primordial Immortal Court,
the beautiful young woman, who had been walking ahead with a flirtatious sway and a sultry expression, abruptly stopped. Her face changed drastically!
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