Though enchanting, the Golden Behemoth was extremely particular about its appearance. So, during its transformation, it naturally conjured a seductive, long dress made of golden fur, which both concealed and revealed its perfect, fiery figure.
She walked with graceful, lily-like steps, the hem of her dress swaying from side to side. It seemed as if a tantalizing glimpse of skin was about to be revealed at any moment, yet it remained hazy and indistinct, impossible to see clearly. Looking at the somewhat stunned Elder Mu in the sky, the Golden Behemoth, now in human form, gave a radiant smile. "Well? A thousand years have passed. Has this Emperor’s beauty not changed one bit?"
Mature, domineering, enchanting, and willful, yet she possessed an unforgettable charm.
"Ahem..." Hearing her words, Elder Mu turned his head away, looking a bit awkward. It was undeniable that the current Golden Behemoth was a world apart from her previous form. But as someone who had known the Golden Behemoth for several thousand years, Elder Mu understood the conditions for a Magical Beast’s transformation quite well. First, the appearance a Magical Beast took in human form was not something it could freely choose. Rather, it was a direct reflection of its beauty among its own kind. In other words, the Golden Behemoth’s original appeal in the eyes of other Magical Beasts was exactly what her human form now possessed—second to none!
"What’s wrong?" Seeing Elder Mu’s strange expression, the Golden Behemoth hurriedly touched her cheek. ’Is there something wrong with my face?’
As she spoke, the Golden Behemoth leaped lightly with her enchanting figure and peered at her reflection in the calm lake water. "Hm? Nothing seems to have changed. ’Could it be that this appearance isn’t considered beautiful in your human eyes?’"
Just as she finished speaking, Elder Mu shook his head. "No, in the eyes of us humans, you are already very beautiful. At the very least, this old man has never seen a woman who surpasses you."
"Really?" The Golden Behemoth was overjoyed. Her expression and movements were nearly identical to a real human’s. ’Hehe, so this is what it feels like to be praised by a human? It feels pretty good.’
"Golden—"
"Call me Yue Ru. It’s the human name you gave me."
"..."
Elder Mu sighed. "Yue Ru, I didn’t come here to discuss the Human-Beast War Pact. The final outcome of this battle is irrelevant; ultimate victory will remain in our human hands regardless. I came here to warn you: be wary of the Divine Hall of Light. They... they are not nearly as simple as you imagine. It’s almost impossible to see you on a normal day, so I had to tell you today. If you trust me, send some Magical Beasts to investigate. As one of the Nine Emperors, that shouldn’t be too difficult for you, right?"
As he spoke, Elder Mu glanced at the Golden Behemoth one last time from the corner of his eye before turning and taking a single step forward. His figure dissipated like smoke, vanishing in the blink of an eye and leaving the Golden Behemoth alone, staring blankly at the sky.
’He’s gone... He left in such a hurry...’ A faint trace of disappointment flashed in her eyes, but in the next moment, her expression turned serious. ’The Divine Hall of Light? What kind of power are they, exactly? It seems this Emperor truly needs to investigate.’
With that, the Golden Behemoth’s slender, fair arms slowly spread out, and her figure gradually dissolved into a wisp of smoke. Just like Elder Mu, she vanished from the mountain rock in the blink of an eye.
...
RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE!
A violent, rushing sound suddenly erupted from the Demon Beast Forest outside Luofeng City’s north gate. Just as the five Sect Realm martial artists from the Imperial Capital were still fighting to annihilate the Thousand Eyes Eight Blades, an earth-shattering roar echoed from deep within the forest! The sound of this stampede surpassed even the clash of Primordial Power between Emperors! Everyone froze in place, stunned!
On the high defensive walls north of Luofeng City stood several thousand elites from the Mu and Wang families, none of whom had reached the Martial Spirit Realm. When the Thousand Eyes Eight Blades first appeared, terror and helplessness had driven them to scramble onto the walls under the leadership of Mu Gu Tian and Wang Mo. They had resigned themselves to becoming food for the disgusting Magical Beasts, but the five Sect Realm martial artists from the Imperial Capital had successfully exploited the mindless nature of the creatures, managing to wear down and kill a full half of them!
If things continued like this, the Thousand Eyes Eight Blades would eventually be completely wiped out. But as they waited, they also understood that if another wave of Magical Beasts were to charge out of the Demon Beast Forest now, everything would change. As long as a single one of the Thousand Eyes Eight Blades remained, they would relentlessly attack any human on the ground, making it impossible for the defenders to leave the walls! This created the perfect opportunity for other Magical Beasts to assault the city!
"Patriarch! What do we do?"
A member of the Mu Family leaped over to Mu Gu Tian’s side. Staring at the dust cloud that seemed to swallow the entire Demon Beast Forest, his eyes filled with despair.
Mu Gu Tian’s expression was calm, but his back was already drenched in cold sweat. "What can we do? There’s nothing. If we charge out now, we might at least kill a few Magical Beasts to take with us. That would be a worthy death. If we try to retreat, it’s already too late. With the speed of those Magical Beasts, I’m afraid we’d be caught and devoured before we could even reach the secret chamber in the Mu Mansion. That would be too pathetic a way to die!"
"The Patriarch is right."
The Mu family member glanced at Mu Gu Tian, then returned to his unit, his expression hardening with resolve!
"ROAR! AWOO! GRRRAH!"
The furious roars of beasts echoed from the Demon Beast Forest, followed by the appearance of tens of thousands of High-level Magical Beasts. Most of them had surpassed the Spirit Realm to reach the Sect Realm, and there were even many at the Emperor Realm! And the Venerable Realm! Seeing a Beast Tide of this scale, the faces of all the Imperial Guards defending Luofeng City’s north gate turned ashen.
"HOWL!!"
Suddenly, a tiger-like Magical Beast leaped high from the pack, locked onto the stern-faced man, and charged. As it lunged, the beast launched sharp blades of claw energy at the other four men. These Wind Attribute blades were exceptionally sharp, forcing all four men back! At the same instant, the Wind Attribute Elemental Power in the air converged in the beast’s mouth, forming a massive green orb!
"Watch out! It’s an Elemental Power Cannon!"
The stern-faced man saw that the Elemental Power Cannon was locked onto him and immediately tried to dodge. But the tiger-like Magical Beast seemed to be following a meticulous plan, firing the cannon from its mouth without hesitation! An intense green beam of light streaked through the air, leaving a long, fiery tail that dyed the entire sky green!
HISS!
Even though the stern-faced man had prepared himself, in the instant the tiger beast fired the Elemental Power Cannon, he realized he had still underestimated its strength. The blast was simply too fast! So fast that even as he moved to evade, the cannon still struck his body! Or rather, his arm!
SPLAT!
With a sickening thud that sounded like searing flesh, a sharp pain shot through the stern-faced man’s side. He turned his head to look, and his pupils dilated in horror... The entire left side of his body had been almost completely obliterated!
"AHHH!!!"
The intense pain made the stern-faced man scream instinctively, but the cry was cut short mid-air. The scene had unfolded too suddenly. Everyone looked up toward the source of the sound...
The stern-faced man was gone. In his place was an enormous, ink-green tiger. The giant beast was seven meters long and stood about three meters tall. Its entire body was covered in ink-green fur, interwoven with countless crimson markings that converged to form the massive character for "King" all over its body.
And clamped in the massive tiger’s jaws was a human figure, hanging limply. Fresh blood streamed from his mouth and nose, and his eyes were completely devoid of light. His left arm dangled uselessly as his trembling lips managed to utter six words!
"Roy... Royal Beast... Roar-Roaring Celestial... Tiger..."
CRUNCH!
The instant the man’s words faded, the giant tiger snapped its jaws shut. A fountain of fresh blood sprayed down onto the earth. Scraps of flesh fell from its maw, landing on the ground only to be ravenously devoured by the disgusting Thousand Eyes Eight Blades. A mighty Sect Realm expert had been devoured like an ant, without a chance to resist.
"ROAR!!!"
After swallowing the stern-faced man, the Royal Beast known as the Roaring Celestial Tiger threw back its head and let out a furious roar. Four other ferocious beasts, none smaller than the tiger itself, shot into the sky. Before the remaining four Sect Realm martial artists could even react, the beasts tore them to shreds. Their strength! It was on a completely different level!
"We... we’re done for..."
The deaths of the four Sect Realm martial artists shattered the fighting will of all the Imperial Guards present. Facing Emperor Realm Magical Beasts they were powerless to resist, they were like candles in the wind, liable to be extinguished at any moment.
"ROAR!! AWOO!! GRRAAAH!!"
As the humans fell back, the countless Magical Beasts seemed to enter a frenzy, charging as one toward Luofeng City. They were only about ten thousand meters away—a distance they could cross in a matter of seconds!
Looking at the overwhelming tide of ferocious beasts, Wang Mo gave a bitter laugh. "Old Gu, it looks like we’ll have to discuss our children’s affairs in the underworld."
Mu Gu Tian replied with a resigned laugh, "You old coot. Hah, we can talk about it when we get down there!"
With that, Mu Gu Tian was about to charge into the Beast Tide when an utterly terrifying Spatial Rift suddenly appeared before him! It was terrifying because it was enormous—a full dozens of meters wide!
"ROOOOAR!!!"
Without any warning, a roar so powerful it seemed capable of shattering space itself erupted from the Spatial Rift, freezing every Magical Beast in its tracks!
’It can’t be...’ Mu Gu Tian stared at the Spatial Rift in the sky, listening to the roar that came from within it. His heart lurched. ’Has an even more terrifying Magical Beast appeared?’