Mission: Defeat the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King!

As the sun set in the west, the ever-present moon rose as promised, spilling its faint radiance and dissolving the lingering heat over the land, bringing a trace of pleasantly cool relief.

Under the moonlit night, inside a natural cave.

Dry firewood crackled as it burned, orange flames slowly rising. On the simple grill, tender magic beast meat had been roasted golden and glistening. Golden grease dripped into the fire with sizzling sounds, making the flames burn even more fiercely.

This natural cave was where Mu Chen had chosen to spend the night. Amid the vast mountain range, such caves were often the dwelling places of magic beasts. Sure enough, the "original owner" was currently being turned over on the grill, displaying its enticing form...

The tempting aroma of roasted meat drifted through the shallow cave. Mu Chen swallowed audibly as he looked at his handiwork. It seemed pretty decent.

Mu Chen was bare-chested, and the bandages wrapped around his left shoulder carried a strong medicinal smell. After five hours of recuperation, his left hand had mostly recovered.

"I only saw the tip of the iceberg of that magic beast tide. I wonder whether Qing Mountain Town has been affected. Probably not. The magic beast tide's advance has no direction at all—it's just charging around aimlessly.

"Still, I hope the Jia Ma Imperial Family takes it seriously and sends some troops over to defend the area."

Mu Chen's eyes were filled with deep concern as he worried about Xiao Yi Xian's safety.

"That silly girl isn't even a Dou Zhe. It's really worrying.

"I just hope that old Mu She hasn't lost his mind and taken his anger out on Xiao Yi Xian. Otherwise, I'll make him beg for death without being able to die."

Mu Chen made up his mind to return to Qing Mountain Town first thing tomorrow morning and settle matters there as quickly as possible.

Suddenly, a strange smell entered his nostrils.

"Damn it! It's burned..."

The next day, just as dawn broke, warm sunlight blanketed the earth. Emerging from the cave, Mu Chen gazed at the hazy mountain ridges in the distance. Qing Mountain Town lay to the east, making its direction easy to identify.

But just as Mu Chen was about to set off, the system's voice rang out in his mind.

"Mission triggered: Assist Yun Yun and defeat the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King.

"Mission reward: Unknown!"

"A mission? An unknown reward?"

Mu Chen frowned. This mission differed from the previous one to save Xiao Yi Xian. It had no clearly specified reward. To Mu Chen, it felt like a mystery box waiting to be opened.

At this point in time, Yun Yun had come to the Magic Beast Mountains to find the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King for the Purple Spirit Crystal.

According to the plot's development, Yun Yun would lose to the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King and be caught off guard by the Purple Crystal Seal, causing all her strength to be sealed away for several days.

Defeat the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King!

Mu Chen felt a toothache coming on. As the overlord of the eastern region of the Magic Beast Mountains, the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King's strength was at least around that of a five-star Dou Emperor. To defeat it, he would have to use one Battle Emperor Power Card.

"This is ridiculous. Why couldn't this mission be to steal the Purple Spirit Crystal? I only just got that Battle Emperor Power Card!"

With three uses available, Mu Chen had originally intended to save it as a final life-preserving measure and avoid using it whenever possible.

Unfortunately, he had no choice but to use it this time. Otherwise, Mu Chen could not imagine what other help he had that could defeat the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King.

"This is such a scam. Where am I supposed to find Yun Yun or the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King?"

Mu Chen stared blankly around him. Fine, the surroundings were completely unfamiliar. It would already be lucky if he did not get himself lost after entering deeper into them.

The Magic Beast Mountains were so vast. Leaving aside whether he could find the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King's cave in a short time, Mu Chen was only a one-star Dou Master. Deep within these mountains, he was at the very bottom. If he encountered any third-tier magic beast, he would have to run. He simply could not afford to wander around recklessly.

As if answering Mu Chen's thoughts, a violent energy fluctuation exploded like thunder. A vast aura surged into the clouds and scattered them apart. Mu Chen looked toward the distant sky, where waves of air rolled like the tide.

A savage lion's roar rang out, and the distant sky abruptly transformed into a brilliant sea of purple fire, like a heavenly curtain that covered the blazing sun.

Not long afterward, a layer of green light also emerged. Within it, countless tiny gusts of wind formed raging tornadoes, standing against the purple fire curtain.

Mu Chen speechlessly curled his lips. Purple flames, green gales, and that imposing lion's roar—clearly, Yun Yun was already fighting the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King.

"The battle is at least forty or fifty li away, yet it's causing such a huge commotion. A Dou Emperor truly deserves to be called the strongest force on the early-stage map."

Mu Chen sighed inwardly, his eyes filled with longing. With a movement of his feet, he followed the direction of the rolling airwaves and vanished into the forest.

High in the sky, a colossal creature with a savage appearance roared madly. Its entire body was covered in a layer of purple crystals, and it resembled a lion. Its wide mouth was lined with fangs, a red spiral horn stood atop its head, and a pair of enormous purple wings extended from its back. As the wings flapped, waves of pale purple flames carrying scorching heat swept outward, raising the temperature of the surrounding air considerably.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Dense purple pillars of fire shot toward a graceful figure as nimble as a breeze. The formidable energy contained within each fire pillar was enough to easily kill a Dou Ling expert, yet they could only pierce the afterimages left behind by the swiftly moving figure, unable to harm her in the slightest.

After evading every purple fire pillar, the graceful figure finally revealed her true appearance. She was a beautiful woman with a cool temperament and a graceful figure. She wore elegant plain clothes, and her breathtaking face was noble and dignified, yet carried an icy aloofness that kept others at a distance.

Yun Yun held an unusual longsword radiating a green glow behind her back. Her delicate jade-like hands formed a sword seal surrounded by flowing green wind, while a pair of magnificent green wings fluttered gently behind her.

Her picturesque brows were slightly furrowed, and Yun Yun's beautiful face was filled with grave seriousness.

Before coming to the Magic Beast Mountains, she had considered the possibility that the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King, renowned throughout the Jia Ma Empire, might be quite powerful. Yet she had believed her own methods would be enough to handle it. After this exchange, however, she had not expected the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King to be so troublesome. Its strength was actually faintly greater than hers.

After fighting for more than ten minutes, woman and beast hovered in the sky. The Purple Crystal Winged Lion King finally stopped attacking, and a trace of genuine regard appeared in its beastly eyes.

"Human Dou Emperor, why have you come to disturb this king's rest?" High in the sky, the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King spoke in human language, its booming voice like thunder, making the air hum.

"I came only to borrow the Lion King's Purple Spirit Crystal!"

Her autumn-water eyes fixed upon the fierce Purple Crystal Winged Lion King. Yun Yun's red lips parted, and though her cool voice was cold, it was as crisp and pleasant as pearls striking jade.

"Hehe, human Dou Emperor, do you know how precious the Purple Spirit Crystal is? Only after the Amethyst Winged Lion Clan nurtures it within our bodies for decades can a single piece fall away. Do you think you can simply borrow it because you say so?

"Since your strength is not bad, I do not wish to argue with you further. Leave the Magic Beast Mountains at once."

The Purple Crystal Winged Lion King roared. Unless necessary, it did not want to fight a foe of the same level to the death.

It might be the overlord of the eastern region, but that did not mean the Magic Beast Mountains were the territory of the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King.

The rise of magic beasts had always been far more brutal than that of humans. To reach the sixth tier, the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King had trampled over the corpses of countless magic beasts to ascend to the throne of king. After centuries of battle, it naturally had many enemies as well.

Like the two sixth-tier magic beasts yesterday that had fought each other over territory and triggered the beast tide, their relationship with the Purple Crystal Winged Lion King was equally hostile.