Mist wreathed the Magical Beast Mountain Range, veiling its wooded slopes. The sun hung high overhead, spilling warm radiance that tinted the morning fog pale gold, like flowing sunset light.
At that moment, a tiny figure had stirred an uproar within the mountain range.
The commotion drew not only magical beasts, but also an old man nearby.
His hair and beard were white, and he wore a gray robe that fluttered in the breeze, lending him an ethereal air, as though he stood apart from the mortal world. His face bore none of the wrinkles an old man should have had. Instead, it resembled warm jade giving off a faint glow, while his deep eyes were like two fathomless pools.
"The magical beasts deep in the mountains are rampaging for no reason. Is it because of that meteor from beyond the heavens? Or has some heavenly treasure emerged?" The old man frowned, his profound gaze seeming to see the magical beast sovereigns in the depths of the mountain range.
"Whatever the reason, I should take a look. Otherwise, their rampage might threaten the academy."
Murmuring to himself, the old man strode through empty air. With every step, rings of ripples spread through the space beneath his feet. In the blink of an eye, his figure slowly faded and vanished, as though he had never been there.
In a distant forest, a little girl dressed in purple, her hair tied into two small ponytails, appeared out of thin air.
Literally out of thin air!
Her white clothes were filthy now, and her ponytails were somewhat disheveled. She took a large bite of the green fruit in her hand and muttered a curse. "Stingy 'big dumb dog'! They're just a few Jade Spirit Fruits! I told you I was only borrowing them and would pay you back later, but you just won't stop chasing me. Once I advance, just watch me pull out your teeth!"
Still grumbling, the little girl crunched down twice and swallowed the fruit, which glimmered with green fluorescence.
Once she finished, she patted her little belly and frowned. "It feels like I'm still a little short! What should I do?" After pondering for a moment, she muttered to herself with an air of "reluctance," "Should I go 'borrow' a few more from that 'big dumb dog'?"
"Hm?" Just as she made up her mind and was about to set off, reasoning that one errand should not trouble two hosts, she suddenly wrinkled her delicate little nose. Her eyes shone as she looked into the distance. "Is that...?"
"Wonderful! If I eat that, I'll definitely grow up!"
Her face flushed with excitement as she spoke. She had always possessed an intuition that had helped her find plenty of good things, but the feeling this gave her was stronger than anything she had ever experienced.
It even made her heart flutter with unease. She sensed several terrifying presences over there, but in the end, the temptation of growing up drove her to risk danger.
Still, she felt quite confident. With her innate spatial talent, she had already "snatched food from a tiger's jaws" several times and escaped with her life.
As long as she could ensure her safety, she thought she could go take a look!
"Stop chasing me! My meat doesn't taste good!" Lifting his little feet and pumping his short legs, Jiang Yun leaped and dodged frantically through the forest.
Behind him, an enormous, thick-skinned "Second Brother" was chasing him with bloodshot eyes, huffing and puffing.
Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined that the first enemy he faced in this life would be "Second Brother"-or that he would be beaten so badly he could not fight back at all.
While he was in the Evil Spirit Clan, the Saint Heavenly Demon Emperor had forbidden him from cultivating so that no one would detect any clues about their future plans. Other children his age were already being guided to sense the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Some had probably even entered the Sensing Realm or the Spirit Movement Realm.
Unlike them, he was still a "little weakling" without a shred of cultivation to his name. If he had not eaten so many spirit fruits over the years and developed a reasonably strong body, he probably would have died in a pig's jaws.
As he fled, Jiang Yun reached for the little tower on his chest several times. With his intelligence, it was not hard to guess that the Tower Spirit was aware of his predicament. Having rivaled Heavenly Sovereigns and fought alongside Jiang Hong throughout his life, the Tower Spirit stood at the pinnacle in both power and knowledge.
Since the Tower Spirit still had not intervened, the intent was clearly to train him. The strong were forged through blood and fire, and if he wanted to change the Evil Spirit Clan's fate completely, his enemies would be powerful beyond imagination.
So, from this moment onward, he would work hard at cultivation, building his foundation bit by bit as he awaited the day he would split stone and startle the heavens.
Had the Tower Spirit known Jiang Yun thought of the situation this way, the Tower Spirit would probably have been utterly dumbfounded. Was it a matter of not wanting to intervene?
The Tower Spirit was merely a humble "Immortal Grade Peerless Sacred Artifact." Without anyone wielding the tower, suppressing the Saint Heavenly Demon Flame had already consumed a great deal of strength.
Afterward, the Tower Spirit had even protected Jiang Yun on his journey to this special plane. Now, the Tower Spirit could only remain half asleep and half awake, absorbing energy from heaven and earth to recover what had been lost. Unless Jiang Yun faced a life-or-death crisis, the Tower Spirit would not awaken.
Once he understood, Jiang Yun acted decisively. He planted his feet to brake, and with his keen spiritual perception, he reacted the instant "Second Brother" opened its mouth to bite him: he turned sideways and swung his fist.
"Bastard... get lost!"
Jiang Yun roared. All the humiliation of being "hunted down" along the way turned into fury and erupted at once.
No one noticed that as Jiang Yun struck with all his strength, nine special meridians inside his body began vibrating and glowing. A faint suction force burst from within him.
At that moment, his body seemed to become a bottomless pit, absorbing the free-floating energy between heaven and earth as his aura began to surge.
"Saint Heavenly Fist!" Jiang Yun bellowed. His right arm erupted with dazzling light, and even "Second Brother" seemed to sense danger.
"Roar!" "Second Brother" let out an enraged roar. This annoying little thing actually dared to resist! Its scant intelligence drove it to charge at Jiang Yun.
At that instant, a breeze seemed to swirl beneath its feet. In the blink of an eye, it was right in front of Jiang Yun, its scarlet eyes fixed on him as its bloodthirsty tusks descended amid a terrifying, foul-smelling gust.
Boom!
A heavy impact rang out. Jiang Yun's face was covered in sweat. He had never expected "Second Brother" to fight so dishonorably and unleash a skill on the sly.
His "Saint Heavenly Fist" had only been something he shouted. Although he had seen plenty of divine abilities in the Evil Spirit Clan, he had no cultivation right now, so where would he find the energy to unleash one? Who would have thought his opponent's "Boar Charge" was the real deal?
Jiang Yun gritted his teeth. Staring at the enormous "Second Brother" before him and feeling the tremendous force pressing against his arm, he felt his heart pounding rapidly: thump! Thump! Thump!
The violent pounding sounded like a great drum!
"Go down!" Suddenly, strength surged into Jiang Yun from somewhere he could not explain. He seized the beast's enormous tusks with both hands and hurled it away with all his might.
Thud!
"Second Brother" hit the ground. In the end, Jiang Yun had won this clash by a narrow margin.
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