Xiao Hua and the others raced onward at high speed for nearly half an hour. After rounding a high slope, they saw a vast swath of black branches covering the entire mountain peak for several miles ahead. Then, several enormous "buzzing" beast cries rang out from ahead, deafeningly loud, followed by several "caw caw" bird cries from midair. More than a dozen ferocious birds, each some thirty feet across, spread their enormous wings and flew toward them as though black clouds were pressing down overhead! At the same time, several dozen enormous beasts of the same size charged down from the mountain peak.
These ferocious birds had small heads like venomous snakes, slender necks, and bodies some six feet long. Eagle-like talons swayed beneath their bodies in midair. Soul warriors stood upon the backs of every bird. The soul warrior at the forefront was unexpectedly an old man, his hair and beard snow-white and his face covered in wrinkles. Though short and thin, his skin was not black. He looked somewhat similar to a cultivator from the Three Cultivation Kingdoms!
As for the ferocious beasts, they were several times larger than the soul beast beneath Xiao Hua. Their four legs were like massive pillars, fangs protruded from their gaping jaws, and their long tails stretched ten feet. Behind those tails were sword-wings several feet long, making them appear exceptionally savage.
Soul warriors likewise stood atop these ferocious beasts. Their attire resembled that of the soul warriors riding the birds, with patterns exposed upon their skin. Yet their skin was slightly yellow, completely unlike the natives running behind Xiao Hua.
Of course, behind these soul warriors and ferocious beasts, natives practically flooded out across the mountains and plains. No one knew how they had appeared, but in any case, following several