The looming war between cats and dogs had not put the Dog Tribe Fortress on edge. If anything, the atmosphere was livelier than ever.
The Dog Tribe's three elders stood quietly on a rocky outcrop, gazing down at the two Dog Yokai fighting below, each with a different gleam in their eyes.
Beneath a cliff hung with icicles, the ends of Red Evil Ogre's crimson hair traced blood-blade arcs through the bitter north wind.
She planted one foot on an ice-covered rock frozen to a glassy sheen, her fingers hanging loosely. Three inches of golden light gathered at her claw tips-a sign that she had pushed Iron-Reaver Soul-Stealer to its limit.
"Red Evil Ogre, don't think learning Lord Tōga's Iron-Reaver Soul-Stealer and beating a few people gives you the right to be so arrogant!"
Opposite her, Hiranmaru, who had attained humanoid form long ago and stood just a step away from becoming an intermediate yokai, let out a furious shout and slammed both palms into the ground. Two blue claw marks streaked his face.
His yokai power blasted a web of cracks across the ice. Dozens of ice spikes reared like venomous snakes and shot straight at Red Evil Ogre.
Cold light flashed at their tips, as though they would pierce her body in the very next instant.
Among the hundreds of Dog Yokai watching, Qitian stood at the very front, his heart suddenly tightening.
The developments over the past few days, after he had finished dealing with the yokai power in the Leopard Cat Fifth Elder's heart, had left him utterly dumbfounded.
All the Dog Yokai originally assigned to Tōga's squad had attained humanoid form. With Tōga's permission, Red Evil Ogre had passed Iron-Reaver Soul-Stealer straight on to them.
Seeing this, the other Dog Yokai had felt curious, but more than anything, a fierce competitive spirit had welled up within them.
One sparring match after another had followed, and amid that fierce competition...
With her considerable talent and tireless effort, Red Evil Ogre had distinguished herself among the many low-level Dog Yokai.
"That's rich. You're the one who challenged me!"
Red Evil Ogre's lips curved in scorn. Facing the barrage of ice spikes she could hardly dodge, she swept the fingers of both hands through the air as though plucking a zither.
Ten crescent-shaped golden claw slashes burst through the air. Every ice spike in their path was shredded into countless fragments, which scattered down like a glittering shower of ice.
But the impacts of the ice spikes and the clash of yokai power also left Red Evil Ogre a little pale, all ten fingers swollen, aching, and bleeding.
Knowing she fell short of her opponent in raw strength, Red Evil Ogre gave him no chance to launch another yokai-powered attack. She drove hard with both feet, cracked the ice beneath her, and charged.
Everyone had witnessed the power of Iron-Reaver Soul-Stealer over the past few days. Hiranmaru had no desire whatsoever to test it with his own claws.
He retreated at top speed and drew the utterly ordinary human katana at his waist, a hint of helplessness entering his eyes.
Within the tribe, only intermediate yokai could forge a Fang Sword from their own teeth. Most low-level yokai relied on their claws and fangs, along with ordinary swords.
But blades forged from ordinary iron conducted yokai power very poorly. If not for their future development, almost no low-level Dog Yokai would have devoted themselves to swordsmanship.
A series of crisp, grating cracks rang out.
Beneath the streaming light of Red Evil Ogre's five fingers, the katana in Hiranmaru's hand buckled like flimsy paper, instantly twisting into a heap of useless scrap.
Broken blade fragments scattered across the ice, reflecting a cold gleam.
Facing Red Evil Ogre's eyes as they trailed streaks of bloody light, Hiranmaru went pale. Images flashed through his mind of the companions who had fallen to those golden claws over the past few days, their flesh torn and bloody.
Damn it! If I get scared now, I'll lose every scrap of dignity. At worst, I'll be laid up for three or five days!
Gritting his teeth, Hiranmaru met her attack with his own claws, yokai power gathered around them.
The instant Hiranmaru's claws touched Red Evil Ogre, a muffled thud sounded.
It sounded like a blade sinking into flesh. Red Evil Ogre's attack tore straight through Hiranmaru's defenses.
Half of Hiranmaru's body was ripped open in an instant. Blood gushed out like a fountain, immediately freezing into a bloody mist in the frigid air.
A moment later, Red Evil Ogre's charging figure scattered it, sending it splashing everywhere.
"The winner is Red Evil Ogre!"
The Dog Yokai Captain serving as the temporary referee shouted the verdict, setting off excited cheers from the surrounding Dog Yokai!
Qitian stared blankly at Red Evil Ogre as the crowd chanted her name. Standing amid the drifting bloody mist, she licked her claws and fangs, fierce and striking, and his heart pounded harder than ever.
I love this dog so much!
"You all saw that, didn't you?"
With his hands clasped behind his back, the Great Elder withdrew his gaze from the plaza below, looking rather pleased.
He raised his head slightly, glanced at the Second Elder and Third Elder beside him in turn, and continued.
"Once the Iron-Reaver Soul-Stealer Tōga developed spreads, it will bring an immediate improvement to the fighting strength of our tribe's lower and middle ranks!"
"From Human Transformation to Iron-Reaver Soul-Stealer, these are enough to make our pups stronger fighters than the Panther Cat. Given time, we will surely widen the gap between us."
"And this is only the beginning. Once Tōga develops secret techniques suited to our captains, that will be the true beginning of our tribe's rise!"
After listening to the Great Elder's leisurely vision of the future, the one-armed Second Elder found somewhere to sit.
He gazed at the white clouds in the sunlight, his expression calm, yet mercilessly threw cold water on those hopes.
"That is true. But the more our tribe flourishes, the more restless the Leopard Cat Lord will become. Even if our king agrees, can you judge how far to take this, Great Elder?"
The Second Elder sighed heavily. "Which of the three of us doesn't know our king's condition?"
After a brief silence, the Third Elder, Zi Yan, broke it with a yawn.
"What's there to worry about? Even if we stop developing, would the Leopard Cat stop targeting us? We just need to keep a little hidden!"
"Strength rules everything anyway. Rather than die stifled and frustrated, I'd much rather die charging forward on the road to becoming stronger!"
The other two elders looked at the emphatic Zi Yan and soon adjusted their outlooks.
"The Third Elder is right. We mustn't be overly optimistic, but neither should we be too pessimistic."
The Great Elder stroked the beard on his chin and thought of Tōga and the others before speaking slowly.
"And that suggestion of hers, to 'keep a little hidden,' has given me an idea. Once I've worked it out, I'll discuss it with you in detail."
"As long as you have an idea, Great Elder."
The Second Elder then offered his own thoughts. "The essence of Iron-Reaver Soul-Stealer lies in releasing, retracting, and circulating yokai power."
He flicked his wrist, sending five golden crescent arcs through the air and carving five claw marks into the nearby rock face.
"To be honest, I truly admire Tōga's mind. I have no idea how he came up with it. How could an ordinary person ever conceive of such ingenious pathways for yokai power?"
"The circulation of yokai power in Iron-Reaver Soul-Stealer differs only slightly from ordinary circulation. Yet that tiny difference is an unbridgeable gulf in destructive power!"
The Second Elder looked deeply impressed. "Most importantly, as long as we don't let these techniques spread outside the tribe, including Human Transformation, others will find them very difficult to imitate!"
Only something unique held strategic value, and the three elders themselves had benefited greatly from that value.
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