Mount

The person and her pet had failed to reach an agreement.

Dongfang Minghui wore an icy expression. Besides clinging to the heroine's golden thigh, she now had another monumentally difficult task: how to change her magic pet's sex!!!

Neither of them spoke along the way.

They did encounter plenty of level-three magic beasts, though, all easily dispatched by the heroine. The energy cores inside the beasts' skulls could help the heroine raise her level.

Watching the heroine struggle against the magic beasts using earth abilities each time, Dongfang Minghui keenly noticed a trace of lightning mixed into her earth energy. Remembering the earlier thunderstorm, she realized that the heroine must have strengthened her lightning spiritual power considerably.

While Dongfang Wanyu killed the magic beasts, she trailed behind and cracked open their skulls. As a doctor, she found this sort of thing exceptionally easy.

"A water energy core. I can't use it, so you take it."

Dongfang Wanyu glanced at it before tossing it straight to Dongfang Minghui, who caught it securely. Gentle, lake-green ripples emanated from the level-three water energy core. Unfortunately, she couldn't use it either.

"Thank you, Seventh Sister." She could sell it for money. Dongfang Minghui decided to collect them diligently, imagining the fortune she could make someday.

Dongfang Minghui began dismembering the magic beast, stripping it of everything valuable. Just as she was about to take some of its meat along, Dongfang Wanyu suddenly stopped her. "There's fighting up ahead. Let's take a look."

In a clearing not far ahead, three people had surrounded an enormous winged magic beast. A tall man stood atop its head, while the beast shook its head wildly, trying to throw him off.

The tall man drove a heavy punch straight into its skull.

"Aooo-"

The winged magic beast's cry was deafening, making their eardrums ache. Apparently hurt by the blow, it struggled even more violently.

There were only three of them, all dressed alike. Aside from the one on the winged magic beast's head, the other two held its hind legs tightly bound with locking ropes, though their hold was clearly about to give way.

An elephant-sized head, thick limbs, wings on its back, and a mouth that breathed blazing fire-this was the level-five Winged Elephant described in the novel.

Dongfang Minghui hid behind a tree and watched them furtively. The three wore matching blue-green robes and carried swords. They looked like disciples of the Azure Mist Sect.

The man standing on the Winged Elephant's back was probably Mu Qing, the renowned senior personal disciple of an Azure Mist Sect elder. He had come to the Purple Demon Mountains specifically to hunt this Winged Elephant.

Winged Elephants made excellent mounts, and Mu Qing had come to capture one alive and take it back to form a contract. His two companions were his junior brother and junior sister. Both admired him greatly, and when they heard he was coming to the Purple Demon Mountains, they tagged along to broaden their horizons.

But they had never imagined that capturing a level-five magic beast would be so hair-raising.

True to its rank, the level-five Winged Elephant lifted its hind legs and kicked backward, catching both of them off guard and sending them flying. With no one pulling them taut, the locking ropes fell loose.

Once freed of its restraints, the Winged Elephant struggled to escape, sensing that it was no match for Mu Qing.

It flapped its wings and soared into the air.

Mu Qing wasn't about to let it leave so easily. Standing on its spine, he tore at the down on its back.

"Roar-"

A huge fireball erupted from the Winged Elephant's mouth, aimed straight at Mu Qing's junior brother and junior sister. The pain along its spine had enraged it.

The two on the ground rolled frantically aside, barely avoiding being burned.

"Roar, roar-" The Winged Elephant craned its neck, banking and tilting through the air, trying every trick it could think of to shake Mu Qing off its back like a beast gone mad.

Mu Qing gripped the flesh at the back of its neck tightly and pressed himself flat against its back. Again and again, he hammered vicious punches into its forehead. Unable to shake him off and in terrible pain, the Winged Elephant grew increasingly agitated, occasionally spewing huge fireballs at the ground below.

The two below were the primary targets of its attacks. As they dodged in disarray again and again, their clothes inevitably caught fire.

"Senior Brother, my clothes are on fire!" It was the girl in blue-green.

Her senior brother immediately extinguished the flames with a jet of water, but two more fireballs soon came hurtling toward them.

"Get out of the way!" The fireballs separated them, forcing them to flee in opposite directions.

Before long, the battlefield spread outward. Dongfang Minghui, who had been watching the show from behind a tree, was caught in it and nearly swallowed by a fireball.

She had almost met the fireball head-on and could even feel the searing heat rushing toward her face. Had the heroine not pulled her aside in time, her soul might well have departed for heaven.

"Seventh Sister, should we leave first?"

Dongfang Minghui looked at her scorched hem. This place was a little dangerous.

There was no point staying anyway. Mu Qing of the Azure Mist Sect was already a third-level Great Spirit Master, more than capable of taming this level-five young Winged Elephant.

Dongfang Wanyu pushed her head lower, her beautiful eyes coldly tracking Mu Qing's every move. "Shut up. Say another word and I'll throw you out there."

"She's got personality. I like her." The damned magic plant in Dongfang Minghui's mind started getting ideas again.

Dongfang Minghui desperately wished she could stuff it back into her belly and remake it from scratch.

As the battle raged overhead, Dongfang Minghui looked around. Knowing the author's usual antics, she didn't believe for a second that she would get through a fight like this without incident.

There was bound to be a scene where the mantis stalked the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind it.

Sure enough, beyond the tree where they were hiding, Dongfang Minghui spotted a corner or two of clothing. She lowered her head and tugged at the heroine's clothes.

Dongfang Wanyu shot her a vicious, knife-sharp glare. If the circumstances had allowed it, she would have kicked Dongfang Minghui out long ago.

"People-there." Dongfang Minghui mouthed silently, gesturing in several directions.

"They've been lying in ambush for a while, since before you arrived. They intend to wait until the Azure Mist Sect disciples exhaust themselves, then swoop in and capture the Winged Elephant." Qing Mo's voice suddenly rang out. Seeing the Azure Mist Sect disciples had brought back unpleasant memories, which was why he hadn't warned her sooner. What he hadn't expected was that the Dongfang family's Ninth Miss would notice first.

The Ninth Miss seemed rather different from the rumors. It appeared he would have to observe her carefully.

Dongfang Wanyu counted the people lying in ambush nearby. There were roughly six or seven.

"How about I take the opportunity to kill Mu Qing?" That was precisely why she had stayed.

She had always drawn a clear line between gratitude and grudges. Since she had promised Qing Mo she would avenge him, she would naturally keep her word.

Her words made Qing Mo laugh. Countless years had passed since his soul returned to the Seven-Colored Stone. It was rare that anyone was still willing to stand up for him, and he hadn't felt this kind of warmth in a very long time.

Even if their relationship was merely a transaction.

"Never mind that he's a third-level Great Spirit Master-you couldn't kill him even if he were a third-level Spirit Master. If you try to kill him, you'll certainly draw the Azure Mist Sect's attention. Once your identity is exposed, you'll invite a fatal disaster." Qing Mo laid out the risks and benefits with complete clarity.

"Even if I can't kill him, I can at least cause him some trouble," Dongfang Wanyu said with a cold laugh.

While they were chatting, Mu Qing had beaten the airborne Winged Elephant senseless. Finally, its wings folded, and it plummeted from the sky with Mu Qing on its back.

Thud.

The Winged Elephant was enormous. Its fall gouged a huge crater straight into the ground.

Seeing that Mu Qing had completely subdued the level-five Winged Elephant, the other two Azure Mist Sect disciples hurried forward to congratulate him. "Congratulations on acquiring a mount, Eldest Senior Brother!"

"Congratulations, Eldest Senior Brother!"

A sudden glint flashed into Mu Qing's eyes. He shoved the two away and rolled across the ground. Several throwing knives struck the spot where they had just been standing.

"Who's there?"

Mu Qing rose, surveying his surroundings gravely. "Friends, since you're already here, why not come out and meet us?"

Dongfang Minghui buried her head even lower, terrified of being discovered.

The people lurking in the shadows exchanged glances, then emerged from their hiding places. There were seven in total, positioned at seven different angles, surrounding the three disciples.

"Boy, we're taking this magic beast. Get lost if you know what's good for you." One of them, carrying a large saber over his shoulder, shouted at Mu Qing.

The seven eyed the three Azure Mist Sect disciples like hungry tigers, each looking fierce enough to devour them.

"Eldest Senior Brother, there are seven of them and only three of us. What do we do?" The greenhorn, newly out gaining experience, clearly lacked confidence.

Naturally, the seven heard him, and the brutes burst into laughter.

Mu Qing glared fiercely at him, then smiled. "You dare steal what belongs to the Azure Mist Sect? You've got some nerve."

The seven exchanged smiles, utterly unconcerned by his words. "So what if it's the Azure Mist Sect? It's the Azure Mist Sect's stuff we're robbing! Since you won't leave, don't blame us for showing no mercy."

The battle was poised to erupt at the slightest spark.

Dongfang Minghui hid in the grass, trembling and trembling.

Her sixth sense told her that if she didn't leave, trouble would surely find her soon. But if she left and the heroine asked why, she couldn't come up with an excuse.

"What the hell are you afraid of? To think my lifetime of glory has been ruined in the hands of a useless fool like you." For once, the damned magic plant in her mind said something resembling human speech.

As far as Dongfang Minghui was concerned, it would have been better off saying nothing.

"Easy to talk when you're not the one breaking your back. If you're so capable, come out and fight yourself," Dongfang Minghui couldn't help retorting. She had no real fighting ability, nor even a weapon to protect herself. It was perfectly normal for her to be a little timid. If she had an overpowered cheat like the heroine's, she too would charge ahead regardless of the consequences.

"Huh? Where did Seventh Sister go?"

In that brief moment, Dongfang Wanyu had already slipped close to the group. While they fought until heaven and earth seemed to darken, she secretly aimed a bolt of lightning at the winged beast.

"Roar, roar-"

The level-five magic beast, which had been lying in the crater drawing more breath in than it let out, was struck by the lightning. The extraordinary pain stimulated its survival instinct. It spat two bursts of fire into the air, then staggered out of the crater.

"Damn beast!"

Two people were caught by the flames, and the Azure Mist Sect disciples naturally seized the chance to intensify their counterattack.

The level-five magic beast already possessed the intelligence of a young child. It knew it couldn't beat these people, and with that troublesome human no longer on its back, it flapped its wings, shot into the sky, and fled.

"Damn it." Mu Qing gritted his teeth. The cooked duck had flown away right before his eyes.