Defeat

The mountain forest shook. Dragon-Horned Elephants, Fire Rhinoceroses, tigers, Kui Beasts, Leopard Hous... herds of colossal beasts charged in, snapping countless great trees as though a mountain flood were surging forth, a vast black mass blanketing the land. Leaves whirled chaotically, boulders tumbled, and the earth shook in this place—the sight was terrifying.

"Ah..."

The people of Bei Village were actually hit first. Because of their position, more than a dozen of them were sent flying by savage beasts several meters tall in the blink of an eye, then trampled underfoot, their bones shattered and sinews torn as they were crushed into pulp.

The dozens of giant wolves turned and fled at once. The Bei Village people seated atop them went pale; those who had just died had all been kin they knew intimately, yet in the blink of an eye, life and death had separated them forever.

"Get ready!" Shi Yunfeng shouted.

The flood-like herd of giant beasts had arrived, charging straight at Shi Yunfeng and the others. They swept through all before them, snapping giant trees; nothing could halt their advance.

"Kill!"

Shi Linhu yelled and took out a dull beast bone. Runes flickered over his left arm. Then he fiercely pressed the bone against it, where it fused with his arm. Light immediately blazed forth as the beast bone melded with the flesh and blood of his arm, becoming one with it, inseparable.

With a thunderous boom, it was as though an ancient ferocious beast had come back to life. An overwhelming savage aura surged skyward, shaking the entire forest so violently that it seemed an earthquake had struck.

All the giant beasts were startled. They trembled instinctively, as if facing the king of ten thousand beasts, not daring to offend it. They swiftly stopped and detoured around them.

"Woooo..."

In the sky, that Fierce Bei let out a long cry, like an evil ghost wailing. The sound was terrifying. It was driving the giant beasts to attack, intending to wipe out the people of Stone Village. Some of the giant beasts were cowed and hesitated, but several suddenly reared up and strode forward, preparing to charge the Stone Village people.

"Open!"

Shi Linhu shouted. The patterns on his left arm flashed, dense and resplendent, finally transforming into a symbol that condensed into the primordial mark of an ancient beast king. It resembled a gateway, from which a massive ferocious beast was about to burst forth.

"Roar!"

A deep roar shook the mountain range. Shi Linhu's body abruptly shot up by a great deal, bursting through his clothes. His bronze-hued body now stood over three meters tall.

He threw a punch. With a rumbling blast, a giant beast ahead immediately shrieked as its entire body exploded, flesh and blood flying everywhere, shattered bones scattering in all directions. The scene was extremely bloody.

More importantly, the aura of a barbaric beast king spread out and blanketed everything, crushing the giant beasts until they trembled and shivered. They no longer dared to attack or advance.

"Woooo..."

A strange light flashed through the old Fierce Bei's eyes—surprise, greed, and even more cunning. It had figured out what Stone Village relied on. This truly made it deeply wary, but it would never give up. The Suanni's precious body was of the utmost importance to it; it could allow it to shed its mortal form and be reborn.

The old Fierce Bei launched its attack, but it did not charge Shi Linhu. Instead, it struck directly at the other people of Stone Village. Cunning and cruel, it wanted Shi Linhu to possess a precious artifact yet be run ragged dealing with everything, exhausting his spirit.

"Damn it!"

Explosive strength surged through Shi Linhu's three-meter-tall body. His muscles bulged, and brilliant light flared from his left arm as he punched toward the sky. With a hum, the phantom of a ferocious beast shot upward, transforming into a hurricane that soared into the heavens, snapping all the surrounding grass and trees as it swept through them.

The old Fierce Bei was startled and quickly dodged. Runes flashed in its mouth, gathering into a sheet of rosy light that it spat out. With a boom, it collided with the blurry ferocious beast.

Shi Linhu staggered, blood spilling from his mouth. The ancestral artifact was astonishing, but his mastery of Bone Script was not strong enough to control it. He could only unleash a portion of its power.

Even so, it was still shocking. The old Fierce Bei's body halted as the rosy light it had spat out was blocked. Surprise appeared on its face, while the fire in its eyes burned even hotter.

Now, it was not just the Suanni or the crimson treasure horn that drew it in. This ancestral artifact had also become something it craved, something it wanted to seize. Cold, vicious light flickered in its Bei eyes. With a howl, giant wolves appeared all around once more and charged at its command,

cooperating with its attack. The situation was perilous. The old Fierce Bei never came close, instead eyeing them like a tiger watching its prey as it launched killing strikes from the sky.

"Lame old wolf, dare you come down?" Shi Linhu pointed at it.

As a sacrificial spirit, it should have inspired fear in the human race of the Great Wilderness. Yet now it was being treated with contempt. The old Fierce Bei did not grow angry; its gaze remained cold, and it was never impatient or rash.

It was so powerful that it could ordinarily destroy a village with ease, yet now it was being this cautious. It left people helpless.

All around them, giant wolves howled and launched constant sneak attacks. The villagers were in grave danger, struggling to cope.

"Boom!"

The old Fierce Bei moved. Runes flickered, and golden rosy light flashed from its stunted foreclaw as a primordial treasure rune condensed and blasted downward. A giant golden claw could clearly be seen taking shape and sweeping through the air.

The people of Stone Village shuddered. This was the manifestation of a primordial mark, transformed into a golden claw that had left its flesh to suppress and kill them all.

"Lame old wolf, die!" Shi Linhu roared. He gave everything he had, driving the power of the Bone Script until his left arm resonated. A primordial symbol flashed, and the ferocious beast reappeared, far more solid than before. It looked remarkably like a Hou as it burst from the symbol, its savage might towering to the heavens.

"Roar..."

The earth-shaking roar slammed into the giant golden claw. Lightning flashed and thunder boomed, illuminating the dark sky in a horrifying spectacle.

The giant golden claw failed to descend. It swept past through midair and, with a crack, smashed apart a low stone hill in the distance. Thunderous rumbles echoed as enormous rocks rolled down.

Everyone stared in stunned silence. The old Fierce Bei truly was terrifying!

Shi Linhu panted heavily. He could barely endure any longer; the ancestral artifact was too powerful and too difficult to activate.

"Woooo..."

The old Fierce Bei howled. The wolf pack was roused and charged in with all its strength. At the same time, the giant beasts moved as well. Seeing Shi Linhu fall into a disadvantage, they once again began obeying the old Fierce Bei's commands.

The situation was incomparably dire. The people of Stone Village could all lose their lives at any moment.

Only then did the old Fierce Bei finally relax. Having learned what Stone Village relied upon, it no longer had any doubts and began swooping down without restraint, launching attacks from time to time.

"Whoosh!"

Little Dot made his move, bringing out that string of beast fangs. The precious artifact shone, every single fang as brilliant as a star, shooting skyward to pierce through the old Fierce Bei's flesh.

For the first time, the Fierce Bei grew angry. These were teeth it had shed itself, painstakingly refined into a powerful precious artifact exclusive to it. Yet now, they were under the control of a child.

It suddenly dove down, chanting a secret incantation as it prepared to forcibly reclaim the crystalline, snowy-white beast fangs.

All at once, Little Dot's entire body shone brilliantly. Bone Script spread over him like a spiderweb, all of it lighting up as he swiftly pressed a bloodstained ancient beast hide against his chest.

Stars glittered there as the beast hide fused with the flesh and blood of his chest, imprinting itself upon him and becoming one with him. A terrifying aura radiated outward, sweeping through heaven and earth like a hurricane.

Endless long howls rang out. Many giant beasts trembled all over in fright, and quite a few even dropped to their knees.

The beast hide transformed into Little Dot's own skin, shining brilliantly as it formed a pattern and transformed into an ancient rune. His entire small body became crystalline and radiant, like flames burning. An overwhelming ferocious might spread out, intimidating all directions.

This was Stone Village's second ancestral artifact. It had originally been meant for Shi Feijiao to wield, but Little Dot's mastery of Bone Script was deeper, so it had secretly been entrusted to him. At this moment, it became their trump card.

A barbaric beast's roar rang out, shaking the Great Wilderness. At Little Dot's chest, the runes transformed into a gateway, and a terrifying ferocious beast rushed out. It looked remarkably like a Bian Beast as it met the Fierce Bei that was diving straight down.

The old Fierce Bei was shocked. This had happened too suddenly; it was already too late to evade. It could only swing its sharp claws, forming another giant golden claw that came crashing down.

With a crack like a mountain collapsing, the giant golden claw shattered. The blurry ancient creature seized its true body and savagely twisted it apart, drawing a shrill scream from the sky.

The vicious and cunning old Fierce Bei's two-meter-long body was nearly torn into two. It struggled free with difficulty, but one of its hind legs was still struck by a sharp claw. With a crack, that leg twisted at once, completely deforming.

Little Dot's use of the ancestral artifact could not be mentioned in the same breath as Shi Linhu's or Shi Feijiao's. Its power rose by a great margin, though he still could not unleash the ancestral artifact's true might.

Clearly, Stone Village had once possessed a glorious past. These two ancestral artifacts could not see the light of day; otherwise, they might draw the covetous eyes of certain great clans and bring about a great disaster.

The old Fierce Bei flew into a rage and shot high into the sky, circling overhead. Not only had it failed to reclaim its precious artifact, it had also suffered grievous injuries. For one as cunning and vicious as it, one that had never been willing to suffer losses, this was intolerable.

It howled furiously as it circled overhead, but the other giant beasts and savage wolves no longer dared to attack. They did not immediately obey its command, terrified of the ancestral artifact in Little Dot's hands.

The old Fierce Bei went mad, circling relentlessly and occasionally diving down to launch killing strikes. It was incredibly fast, but its movements were difficult to track, and the ancestral artifact missed it several times.

"This is bad. It wants to wear down our strength before killing us. Activating the ancestral artifacts consumes far too much." Shi Yunfeng frowned.

Little Dot blinked at him, a trace of delight in his eyes.

This time, the Fierce Bei attacked again, nearly tearing apart more than a dozen people. That giant golden claw was too terrifying, its power immense. Fortunately, Shi Linhu blocked it.

Even so, golden light still fell upon them, sending seven or eight people tumbling away. Their flesh was mangled and bloody, and they looked miserable.

"Clang!"

Suddenly, the Azure-Scaled Eagle, which had been lying on the ground heavily wounded and near death, abruptly opened its eyes. It beat its wings, stirring up a wild gale, and soared into the sky. Blue light blazed from its bird beak, over half a meter long, as a moon took shape and flew out at high speed.

The old Fierce Bei never could have imagined that a half-dead bird would suddenly come alive and strike with such ferocity. It let out a wail like a ghost's cry and dodged at top speed, but it was still a step too slow.

With a splatter, blood burst forth as one of its hind legs was smashed apart by the azure moon, flesh and blood spraying everywhere.

"Bang!"

At the same time, the Azure-Scaled Eagle arrived. It thrust out a massive claw, equally dazzling with blue light and incomparably sharp, seizing the Fierce Bei and sending blood splashing out at once.

The old Fierce Bei was shocked and enraged. It struggled fiercely, nearly shattering the Azure-Scaled Eagle's claw. It broke free, golden runes interweaving across its body as it prepared to blast apart the ferocious bird.

"Boom!"

Suddenly, another startling change occurred. Drawing upon the ancestral artifact's power, Shi Linhu hurled Little Dot high into the air. Shi Hao's eyes were bright and clear as he wielded the beast hide's mysterious power to blast apart the Fierce Bei.

A Bian Beast rushed forth, its savage might terrifying the wilderness forest. Ten thousand beasts submitted, a hundred birds shuddered, and even heaven and earth fell silent.

"Boom!"

The ferocious beast struck the old Fierce Bei. Runes intertwined and divine radiance bloomed, like two comets colliding and releasing blinding light into the night sky.

A great rain of blood spilled down. The old Fierce Bei let out a shrill howl; its body was nearly shattered, part of its lower half gone in a gruesome sight. Without looking back, it fled into the distance.

The Azure-Scaled Eagle swayed as it caught the falling Little Dot. Then, wobbling unsteadily, it plunged headfirst into the forest and crashed down with a bang.

"Quick, back to the village!" Shi Yunfeng shouted.

Their victory this time had been sheer luck. The Fierce Bei had been careless and was grievously wounded by the Azure-Scaled Eagle, which had suddenly recovered some of its strength. Otherwise, every one of them would have died here.

They feared that once the old Fierce Bei calmed down, it would turn around and return to kill them. If that happened, they would still be in mortal danger; that ferocious beast's strength was astonishingly great.

The group surged toward Stone Village in a mighty stream, not daring to pause for even a moment.

As for the people of Bei Village, many had been killed or wounded. Under the giant beasts' charge, more than half had been crushed into pulp.

This was not the time to settle accounts. The people of Stone Village ignored them and fled at full speed, avoiding any unforeseen mishap.

Yet Stone Village was already in sight when, at that very moment, the old Fierce Bei—having lost nearly half its body—pursued them. It could not bear to lose the Suanni's precious body. If it obtained it, not only could it heal its wounds, it could make another breakthrough.

"This is bad. A wounded ferocious beast is the most terrifying—it is going to risk everything!" A shadow fell over the hearts of the Stone Village people.

They were still one li from the village, yet it seemed as if a heavenly chasm lay between them. The Fierce Bei blocked their path ahead, ready to attack with all its might.

"Sacrificial spirit, please protect your clansmen. Do not cling to old rules—please leave the village and shelter us." Some clansmen prayed.

A charred Willow Tree stood there, bearing only a single tender green branch. In the darkness of night, it gave off soft rays of rosy light, a hazy glow enveloping the entire village.

Suddenly, that tender shoot moved, transforming into a divine chain of green radiance. It stretched for more than a li, streaking toward them like lightning!