A girl at prayer

Several days later, fresh turmoil stirred in the mountains.

Every great clan within fifty thousand li was shaken. They learned that their clansmen had inexplicably suffered a crushing defeat in the Vast Mountains and retreated in disgrace.

A strange mountain village, a girl of unknown origins, an extraordinarily powerful Treasure Artifact, suspected possession of Suanni's precious bones, and a mysterious Sacrificial Spirit.

Together with the Mountain Treasure in the Great Wilderness, these things tugged at the hearts of many.

The powerful figures of every clan could no longer sit still. One after another, they left their clans and came to this land in person.

Meanwhile, a beast tide erupted deep in the Great Wilderness. The ground trembled as vast herds of enormous beasts stampeded, trampling the mountain terrain flat as they fled from deep within the ranges, packed tightly together.

"Good heavens, what happened? How could there be so many vicious beasts?"

A party of experts from various clans, assembled to search for the Mountain Treasure, ran straight into the beast tide as it surged like a mountain flash flood. They cried out in alarm, their hearts quaking, and dared not linger even a moment.

The astonishing beast tide destroyed great swaths of mountain forest, converging into a torrent that charged out of the mountains and stirred up an enormous uproar.

Not only were the mountain villages on edge, but even the experts who had traveled from afar could not remain calm. They believed that something must have happened deep within the mountains to send every beast fleeing.

Seen from afar, the skies above the mountains were filled with dark silhouettes as countless vicious birds spread their wings and fled.

The lord of Luofu Marsh, the chief of the Golden Wolf Tribe, Thunder Marquis, and Purple Mountain Marquis had all arrived in person. Even they looked startled at the sight of the Demon Ape King driving the vicious beasts before him.

They knew their own limits. With kings among the Primordial Remnants fighting over the Mountain Treasure, they feared they could not intervene. Still, now that they had come all this way, surely they could not return empty-handed?

The people of all four clans converged on Stone Village and looked down upon the unremarkable little mountain settlement. Only the four clan leaders sensed something unusual and ordered their people not to act rashly.

Stone Village was peaceful. In a courtyard at the far end of the village, Shi Zhao was simmering beast milk, adding supplementary ingredients to a large clay pot. Without a sound, she also forced out a drop of her own blood essence and mixed it in.

Little Shi squatted beside her, his large eyes blinking. He was eager, but very well-behaved.

"It smells so good! Your beast milk tastes even better than Grandpa Chief's!"

Over the fire, the beast milk in the clay pot gradually came to a boil. He twitched his little nose, his large eyes half closed in bliss, looking utterly adorable.

"Grandpa Chief would be very upset if he heard you say that." Shi Zhao smiled.

Little Shi blinked and chuckled. "That's why I'm only whispering it to you, Sis!"

Suddenly, birds rose in alarm from the forests on every side. The little fellow was clever and soon realized that people or vicious beasts had surrounded the village.

"Don't worry. The Willow Deity will act," Shi Zhao reassured him.

"Huh? The Willow Deity?" Little Shi tilted his head. He had never seen the Willow Deity act before and had no idea what that meant. "Is the Willow Deity stronger than you, Sis?"

"Of course the Willow Deity is much stronger than me right now... uh, and will stay incredibly, incredibly strong for a very long time to come. So all we need to do is have faith," Shi Zhao said.

Little Shi blinked his large eyes, looking thoughtful.

The siblings came to the village entrance. The villagers were vigilant too; they had immediately sensed that something was wrong and gathered with their weapons.

Shi Zhao reassured them, then led them in offering sacrifices to the Willow Deity.

A girl at prayer...

In the surrounding mountains, the four clan leaders had all arrived. Each occupied one side, looking down upon Stone Village.

To the west, beside a great river, the lord of Luofu Marsh attacked first. He stirred his blood essence and used the moisture in the air to painstakingly manifest an enormous vicious flood dragon, more than two hundred zhang long.

"Roar!"

The Gray Vicious Flood Dragon roared. Its enormous body blotted out the sky amid surging gray mist as it dove toward Stone Village. Opening its jaws, it spat out a great wash of light, shattering the rocks below with its tremors.

"What a powerful Precious Technique!"

"Wait, something's wrong. That village is unharmed?"

In the distance, everyone was first stunned by the Precious Technique, then realized something was amiss.

At the village entrance, a verdant branch shone upon the charred willow, releasing a hazy halo that enveloped the entire village and effortlessly blocked the vicious flood dragon's assault.

Then the willow branch rapidly extended, shooting into the sky to pierce the vicious flood dragon.

At the same time, a blaze of black lightning appeared due north. Thunder Marquis, lord of the Thunder Clan, had acted, unleashing his most powerful Precious Technique to intercept the tender willow branch.

To the south, a wolf's howl rang out. The Golden Wolf Tribe's Sacrificial Spirit and chief attacked together.

In the east, hazy purple energy filled the sky, forming a Purple Cloud Giant that stomped toward the village entrance. Purple Mountain Marquis, the foremost expert within fifty thousand li, had made his move.

"Willow Deity!" the villagers cried.

The willow was attacked by enemies from all four directions at once, and the situation appeared dire. Only Shi Zhao remained utterly unruffled; she even felt a little like laughing.

Sure enough, that lone, seemingly delicate willow branch struck at the enemies on all four sides. First, it pierced the vicious flood dragon's forehead. Then it extended farther, splitting the lord of Luofu Marsh in two and draining his essence, energy, and spirit in an instant.

Next, it swept up Thunder Marquis and used him as a power bank. It let him unleash his lightning Precious Technique, absorbing the electricity in an unending stream until he had been squeezed completely dry.

The Golden Wolf Tribe's Sacrificial Spirit, an old wolf, was rather cunning. It used a shed pelt as an avatar and tried to dig up the roots, only for its claws to snap on the spot. A sweep of the roots buried it in the earth, turning it into fertilizer then and there.

The Purple Cloud Giant manifested by Purple Mountain Marquis was also whipped apart as the willow branch swung Thunder Marquis through the air. The Golden Wolf Tribe's chief turned to flee, but escape was impossible. Even bringing out his so-called Ancestral Artifact was useless, and his life and cultivation ended there.

In the end, only Purple Mountain Marquis, hailed as the strongest expert within fifty thousand li, and the old wolf, hailed as the foremost Sacrificial Spirit within fifty thousand li, fled simultaneously.

"Willow Deity, they're taking advantage of you having only one willow branch right now." Shi Zhao's bright eyes shifted as she offered a suggestion. "As the saying goes, press on with your remaining valor and pursue the beaten foe. Use my Treasure Artifact to shoot them dead and leave no future trouble!"

She took out her Big Peng Treasure Bow and two Roc Feather Arrows.

The Willow Deity said nothing, merely wrapping the willow branch around the girl's waist. Shi Zhao immediately felt an incomparably powerful force pour into her body, and her eyes lit up.

She had no time to savor it. Seizing the lingering traces of those two foes' auras, she drew the bow into a full moon. The arrows flew like shooting stars, each toward a different direction.

Together, the bow and arrows formed a Treasure Artifact comparable to the Venerable Level. Now, at last, their true terror was revealed. The two arrows shot forth and actually transformed into two Golden-Winged Rocs in midair.

The golden rocs battled the heavens, their speed astounding. Although the man and wolf had already fled toward the Primeval Mountains, the two streaks of golden light still caught up and brutally nailed them dead amid the mountains, rivers, and vast marshes.

All the onlookers stood far away.

Their hair stood on end, and they were utterly terrified. Most wished they could flee immediately and did not want to remain here even a moment longer.

Yet some saw red and lost all reason, determined to exact revenge.

The Willow Deity showed no intention of attacking unprovoked. After adding a little fertilizer, the willow fell quiet, though radiant light still enveloped the village.

"They're so mean! Those people still haven't left. Are they trying to surround us and starve us to death?" Little Shi waved his small hands, indignant.

"As the saying goes, since you've come, settle here. Since they've come, let them be buried here." Sensing the power inside her gradually fading, Shi Zhao charged out without the slightest hesitation.

She carried a Purple-Gold Great Hammer, dazzling lightning coiling around her entire body. She swung it with tremendous force, thunder and lightning surging in every direction as though the heavens were collapsing and the earth caving in.

An entire mountaintop was smashed to pieces. Those who stubbornly refused to leave, swearing to avenge their clan chief, fell in swaths as blood sprayed.

The people of Luofu Marsh, the Golden Wolf Tribe, and the others met the same fate. Many stubborn holdouts were killed. Wherever the great hammer passed, a graze crippled and a blow killed, sending great showers of blood flying.

Before they died, these people were terrified beyond measure and filled with regret. They had never expected an incomparably ferocious girl to charge out as well, killing without batting an eye. She was far too cold and bloody.

"You... you witch..."

After killing the key figures, Shi Zhao stopped. She did not indulge in wholesale slaughter.

Her gentleness was reserved for the friends and family around her. As for enemies, she would simply kill them all!

Suddenly, a voice carried by divine sense rang out in her mind. "Come back. Bring those mounts back as food too. A great calamity is coming. Prepare yourselves."