Ah Rou on the Brink of Death

Xiao Wu was dazed by the tremendous impact and terror. Curled up on Scarlet King's scorching tail, she trembled uncontrollably, her face streaked with tears.

However, the moment her gaze fell upon the nearby Nine-Colored Deer, an instinctive sense of closeness and trust surged from the depths of her soul beast nature.

The sacred halo surrounding the Nine-Colored Deer and its pure, peaceful aura, so tranquil it was intoxicating, were like the warmest candle flame in the darkness. In that instant, Xiao Wu saw it as her only salvation.

"Wah... wahhh—!"

Xiao Wu burst into anguished sobs. Desperately struggling to climb off Scarlet King's tail, she staggered toward the Nine-Colored Deer and tightly clutched its slender foreleg with her tiny hands.

"Please! Save my mother! Save Mom! Humans are attacking her! She's lost so much blood! Please, save her! Sob... sob..."

Seeing Xiao Wu's plea, the Nine-Colored Deer could not help but frown.

Kind by nature, it could not bear to see living beings suffer, much less a young life enduring the pain of losing a loved one.

Naturally, it could not refuse Xiao Wu's request.

"Alright," the Nine-Colored Deer replied to Xiao Wu.

The Nine-Colored Deer lowered its head and gently brushed Xiao Wu's tear-streaked face with its warm nose, offering comfort.

At the same time, the Nine-Colored Deer sent its thoughts to Scarlet King beside it through powerful spiritual intent.

"Scarlet King, take us there. We must save her mother! I can sense an innocent life being harmed."

All three of Scarlet King's heads displayed remarkably human hesitation and irritation.

"Auspicious beast, you cannot! That is the battlefield of powerful humans. It is far too dangerous, and Lord Di Tian has strictly ordered—"

Nine-colored radiance burst forth around the Nine-Colored Deer, its auspicious aura spreading almost tangibly. Its clear eyes stared directly into Scarlet King's largest central head, filled with both pleading and resolve.

"Take me there! Immediately! Otherwise, I will never be at peace!"

Scarlet King sensed the Nine-Colored Deer's compassion and persistence, then looked at Xiao Wu, who was crying so hard she was nearly fainting. With an irritated low growl, his three heads jerked sharply.

Lord Di Tian's order was to keep the auspicious beast safe, but its will was so strong right now...

Fine. With his strength, as long as they did not venture deep into human territory, protecting the auspicious beast should not be a problem.

If there truly was danger, he would simply take the auspicious beast away at once.

"Roar—!"

Scarlet King let out a roar, abruptly turned his massive body toward the battlefield, and charged forward at great speed, his four hooves pounding the ground.

The Nine-Colored Deer stood steadily upon his back, protecting Xiao Wu in its embrace with gentle light as it gazed resolutely toward the distant battlefield.

The instant Scarlet King set off, two earthshaking roars echoed from deep within the core region of the Star Dou Great Forest.

"Mooaang!" That was the roar of the Sky Azure Bull Python.

"Roar!" That was the roar of the Titan Giant Ape.

Both of them sensed that the Soft Bone Rabbit was on the verge of death. They tore through the dense forest at astonishing speed, racing toward Ah Rou.

On the battlefield.

Bibi Dong's Soul-Eating Spider Emperor scythe had already been raised to its highest point, locked onto Ah Rou's heart.

Meanwhile, Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo stood beside Bibi Dong, guarding against any unexpected developments.

A trace of relief and reluctance flashed through Ah Rou's eyes. She gathered the last of her strength, preparing to detonate her cultivation before death and win one final sliver of hope for her daughter.

At that critical moment.

"ROAR!!!"

A terrifying roar carrying a ferocious aura capable of incinerating the heavens and boiling the seas swept across the entire battlefield like an invisible tsunami.

Immediately afterward, a colossal crimson figure that blotted out the sky, wreathed in towering flames, crashed heavily down before Ah Rou like a falling meteor.

Scorching shockwaves surged outward like an overwhelming tide, forcing Bibi Dong and the other two to retreat again and again.

As the smoke and dust cleared, Scarlet King's true form was revealed, resembling a hellish flame demon.

Scarlet King's three savage heads glared furiously at Bibi Dong and the others, his six eyes filled with brutality and killing intent.

The terrifying pressure of his three-hundred-thousand-year cultivation erupted without restraint, pressing down upon Bibi Dong and the others like a tangible mountain.

"Humans! Get out of the Star Dou Core!"

Scarlet King's largest central head roared, its sound waves making the ancient trees around them shudder.

Bibi Dong's pupils suddenly contracted, and the phantom of the Death Spider Emperor behind her violently rippled.

Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo's expressions changed drastically. They instantly retreated several steps, nearly unable to maintain their Martial Soul Avatars.

"Another Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast?"

Bibi Dong's voice carried a hint of gravity and disbelief. She had not expected another Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast to appear now.

Moreover, this Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beast's aura was far more powerful than those she had hunted before.

It even made her feel a lethal threat!

Furthermore, she could sense that two more Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts were rapidly approaching from afar.

Scarlet King's arrival instantly shattered Bibi Dong's control over the situation.

Unwillingly, she glanced at the dying Ah Rou, then swept her gaze across Scarlet King, whose aura was terrifying, and the two powerful soul beast auras rapidly closing in from the distance.

Three Hundred-Thousand-Year Soul Beasts. If she insisted on fighting, she might not only fail to obtain the soul ring and soul bone, but even lose her own life here.

In that fleeting instant, Bibi Dong made her decision.

She shot a venomous glare at Scarlet King, the little deer on his back emitting strange light, and that little rabbit, then decisively gave the order, "Retreat!"

Before her words had even faded, Bibi Dong transformed into a streak of purple-black light and shot toward the edge of the forest.

Chrysanthemum Douluo and Ghost Douluo followed without hesitation, vanishing into the depths of the woods in an instant.

The other members of Spirit Hall also departed immediately.

With the powerful enemies gone, Scarlet King slightly restrained his aura, though he continued to scan the surroundings vigilantly.

Meanwhile, the Nine-Colored Deer had already lightly leaped down from his back with Xiao Wu.

"Mom!"

Xiao Wu cried out as she threw herself toward Ah Rou, who lay in a pool of blood.

Ah Rou was barely breathing. The destructive power of Eternal Wound had completely ravaged her heart and life essence.

When she saw her daughter rushing toward her, a faint glimmer appeared in her eyes. She struggled to raise a hand and touch Xiao Wu's cheek, but she no longer had even a trace of strength.

The Nine-Colored Deer hurried forward, its clear eyes filled with compassion.

Without hesitation, it lowered its head. The pair of nine-colored antlers atop its head, wreathed in specks of starlight, radiated soft, sacred brilliance that gently fell upon Ah Rou's ruined body.

Dense life energy and auspicious light attempted to disperse the purple-black death energy Bibi Dong had left behind.

But Bibi Dong had already begun the Rakshasa God Trial, and her Eternal Wound already contained a portion of Rakshasa Divine Power.

The Nine-Colored Deer, however, possessed only the cultivation of a thousand-year soul beast. Thus, even its Nine-Colored Healing Light could only slightly fade the purple-black energy lingering around Ah Rou's wounds; it could not remove it completely.