The two juvenile Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagles charged at him on instinct. If Zhang Junbao's body had been uninjured, he could have easily defeated them with Tai Chi Chuan alone.
But the bloody hole in his left shoulder was still there. Though he had stopped the bleeding by controlling his muscles, the wound still affected his movements.
And because he had just attacked the adult Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle, both his fists were a mangled mess of flesh and blood.
He had no time to think. The two juvenile Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagles were already pouncing on him.
Zhang Junbao slipped one step sideways, executing the Roaming Dragon Startled Swan Steps. His body became a blur as he weaved through the two juvenile Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagles' attacks.
Though the two juveniles had inherited the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's talents and could already fight with their sword beaks shortly after hatching, their physical capabilities were also comparable to those of human Intermediate Warriors. Driven by their survival instincts, they were exceptionally vicious.
Such talent would surely have made humans who had spent their whole lives striving without becoming Beginner Martial Artists green with envy. That was the advantage of their race.
But to a martial arts grandmaster like Zhang Junbao, their innate fighting instincts were far too crude. They had strength to spare, but were like two children wielding treasured swords, swinging them about at random without any method.
That was all well and good against martial artists weaker than them who knew only how to fight with brute force, but if they thought they could gain the upper hand against Zhang Junbao, they were far too naive.
The two juveniles attacked desperately, flapping their fleshy wings and swinging their sword beaks again and again. Their speed and strength were astonishing, but unfortunately, they achieved nothing. With such a monotonous method of attack, they could not even touch Zhang Junbao's clothes.
After a bout of fighting, Zhang Junbao had seen through the two juveniles' attack patterns completely.
Being young, they most often used their sword beaks to peck at high speed, with something of the flavor of a martial arts expert thrusting a sword. But that was as far as the resemblance went. Fighting entirely on instinct, they could not even be said to be using subtle techniques.
The two juveniles grew angrier the longer they fought. Their mother usually caught prey and brought it back to feed them, and none of that prey could match them in speed or strength. To train her children, the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle usually did not kill the prey, instead letting them try to hunt it themselves.
But today's prey left them unable to get so much as a bite. He dodged back and forth too quickly, and their mother showed no intention of catching him for them.
Perhaps, in the eyes of the two little creatures, their mother was still testing them. They did not understand the meaning of death at all.
The two juvenile Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagles were cruel by nature, hardly mild-tempered demonic beasts. They were ferocious beasts that ate human flesh and blood.
The angry little creatures suddenly revealed their ferocity. Crying out incessantly, they sped up and charged at Zhang Junbao. They even split up, one to the left and one to the right, attacking him from both sides in a simple coordinated tactic.
Though Zhang Junbao's injured hands could not attack, his fighting instincts remained. Such a simple tactic could never work against him.
As the two juveniles attacked from both sides, Zhang Junbao jumped and turned upside down, supporting himself on the ground with his right hand, which could still exert force. He kicked both legs out, one at each juvenile's sword beak.
Zhang Junbao borrowed the two juveniles' strength to spin his body, pushing with his feet. He used his feet to execute Tai Chi's technique of using four ounces to deflect a thousand pounds. The two juveniles knew only how to use brute force and had no idea how to neutralize the sudden force, so their bodies crossed paths and flew outward.
Unable to control themselves, the two juveniles drove their sword beaks straight into the wall.
If a Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's sword beak were used to forge a treasured sword, it would be a very good material. My long sword is broken, and it would be rather troublesome to kill the two little creatures with fists and feet alone.
But the adult Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's sword beak is a fine thing.
Zhang Junbao looked around and noticed that the larger Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's head was caught among some seats, its sword beak raised and exposed in the air. A cold gleam flickered along the beak. Was it not a divine weapon?
Though it's a little cruel, this is a battle for survival. You want to eat me, and I want to live. The laws of nature are this bare and brutal. There's nothing to complain about.
Zhang Junbao was not so kindhearted as to show mercy to a few demonic beast young, especially when these two had their mouths open, ready to eat him.
The roles of prey and hunter were never fixed. While hunting, one had to be prepared for the prey to turn the tables and kill the hunter. This law was the same for humans and demonic beasts alike.
Using their outstanding physical strength, the two juveniles pulled themselves out of the wall. This time, they were utterly enraged.
A piece of food had failed to obediently offer itself up to their mouths. It had dared to resist and even hurt them. That was unforgivable.
The two juveniles charged again, having even learned to flap their wings to accelerate. Their fleshy wings, dotted with a few tufts of down, spread open. Though that was not enough to let them fly, it gave them a considerable burst of speed.
One spread its wings, and the other copied it. Zhang Junbao felt as though he were watching two plucked hens charging at him with fierce momentum-if he ignored their bloodshot eyes and the cold gleam of their sword beaks.
Since you won't leave me a way to live, don't blame me!
Zhang Junbao gave a low shout, then turned and fled. He intended to lead the two juveniles to the large Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle.
When the two juveniles saw their food run away, they grew even angrier. Their craving for food drove them to charge recklessly, and they failed to notice Zhang Junbao's intention.
Good, they followed me!
Zhang Junbao came to the large Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's sword beak and discovered that it had not yet breathed its last. Its injuries were simply too severe for it to move, but its eyes still gleamed with intense killing intent.
"Don't stare at me. I'll send your whole family on its way soon. A family should stay together."
The Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle still did not know what Zhang Junbao intended to do. It only saw its two children charging this way at great speed. Suddenly, it seemed to realize something and tried to struggle, but its neck was broken, and its body would not obey.
Seeing their food stop, the two juveniles rushed forward excitedly, completely unaware of the danger.
Just as they were about to swallow Zhang Junbao whole, he vanished eerily before their eyes.
His neural reflexes and evasive footwork were at the Perfect Level. The two juveniles' movements appeared in full in his mind, and he narrowly dodged just before their sword beaks struck his body.
The two juveniles were still imagining the satisfaction of food entering their mouths, only to find that their beaks closed on empty air. They had bitten nothing.
More importantly, why was the strength draining from their bodies? Why was the sight before them slowly turning black? What was this feeling? Was it pain?
The two juveniles looked down at their chests, which had been pierced clean through. What had pierced them was their mother's sword beak.
Zhang Junbao did not remain idle. Once his plan succeeded, he flashed behind the two juveniles and leaped high, kicking them hard in the backs of their heads with both feet.
Even with the tenacious vitality of demonic beasts, there was no chance of surviving such injuries.
Zhang Junbao went behind the large Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle, intending to end its life, only to discover that the force of the two juveniles' collision had been so great that it had completely severed the tiny section of its neck that had still been connected. It saved him the trouble.
"Demonic beasts or humans, we're all trying to survive. You weren't wrong, but neither was I. The world is just that cruel."
Zhang Junbao slumped to the ground and murmured.