At the same instant Kang's bone spines rose, Shi Hou's right hand had already settled on Black Pig's back.
His front hooves didn't paw the ground. His tail didn't swish.
Only his nostrils flared twice, his tiny eyes fixed on the black speck rapidly approaching ahead.
There was no hostility.
He knew him.
Under the moonlight, the boy's silhouette drew closer and closer. His bow was still on his back, and he had run so hard his trouser legs had twisted out of place.
Yu Fengjun barreled up to Shi Hou, bent over with his hands braced on his knees, and gasped for breath.
"You're... back."
Sweat and mud mingled into a smear across his face.
"The Sacrificial Spirit woke up."
"The Fierce Beast that nearly killed it is coming from the east. The Sacrificial Spirit said we have one incense stick's time at most."
Yu Fengjun crouched, pressing both hands to the ground. His knuckles turned white.
"Of over six hundred able-bodied adults, more than five hundred died. My father stood at the very front, and that thing's horn pierced his stomach. A Red-Maned Flame Rhinoceros, crimson all over, its armor harder than refined iron, its three horns wreathed in black flames-"
"Wait."
Shi Hou turned his head.
Kang had already stood up on his shoulder.
His Demon Flesh Wings spread fully, his bone spines shone blue, and a compressed rumble had already begun deep in his throat.
He was charging up.
There wasn't a trace of nervousness in his tiny eyes.
Only yearning.
New species. Tasty.
Shi Hou looked at Shi Hao next.
Shi Hao's nostrils fluttered rapidly as he rose onto his toes and craned eastward.
The night wind from the east carried the faintest rich, gamey aroma.
With a smoky note.
Shi Hou's pupils narrowed slightly.