"This is getting really interesting now."
In the depths of the Magical Beast Mountain Range, the Amethyst Winged Lion King was in a standoff with a woman. Not far away in the mountains, a slightly ethereal old man was watching the battle with a young boy. Seeing the Amethyst Winged Lion King display a beast-form phantom, a smile grew on the old man's face.
"Master, what's going on?"
The young man watched the sky intently. Hearing the old man's words, he realized that the change in the Amethyst Winged Lion King was not simple and humbly asked for an explanation.
"The Amethyst Winged Lion King has cultivated a cultivation method, a Dou Qi cultivation method suitable for a magical beast," the old man replied with a smile. "Generally speaking, magical beasts, without some great stroke of luck, can only take human form after reaching Tier 7. Only after taking human form can they cultivate human Dou Qi cultivation methods and achieve faster progress."
"But nothing is absolute. There are some beast-mimicking Dou Qi cultivation methods in this world. Because they are related to certain magical beasts, they allow a magical beast to cultivate a Dou Qi cultivation method before achieving Tier 7. Such methods can greatly boost a magical beast's cultivation and are quite rare and precious."
The young man wasn't foolish. Looking up at the sky, he muttered to himself, "So... a fight is most likely going to break out."
Just as he predicted, after the Amethyst Winged Lion King revealed its trump card, the woman let out a soft sigh. She slowly raised her strange long sword and said resignedly, "If the Lion King is still unwilling, then I will have to take it by force."
"Hahaha..."
The Amethyst Winged Lion King let out a roar that shook the very earth, but its voice quickly turned cold. "I know you are also a Dou Emperor expert, but if we truly fight, it's questionable whether you will leave the Magical Beast Mountain Range alive."
"You need not worry about that, Lion King."
The woman responded faintly. She lightly raised her hand, and a small, green tornado suddenly appeared in the sky. The whirlwind grew against the wind, and in the blink of an eye, it became a massive tornado over ten zhangs tall.
The Amethyst Winged Lion King let out a low roar. Accompanied by a lion's mighty roar, the purple crystal light on its body erupted. A torrent of purple flames gathered into a massive pillar of purple fire and shot straight into the sky.
…
In the Magical Beast Mountain Range, the long battle between the Dou Emperor and the Tier 6 magical beast was nearing its end. As the sun set and the daylight gradually faded, the Amethyst Winged Lion King finally grew impatient and wanted to end the battle quickly.
"Amethyst Seal!"
With a low roar, the Amethyst Winged Lion King unleashed a dazzling pillar of amethyst light that streaked toward the Dou Emperor. It contained a profound and mysterious power.
"Whirlwind Dance of Splitting Wind!"
Accompanied by a pleasant female voice, the space opposite the Amethyst Winged Lion King rippled slightly. Countless deep green wind blades, each over ten zhangs tall, materialized out of thin air. Tangled together like a column of blades, they spun rapidly and charged forward in a spiral.
BOOM!
The purple pillar of light and the tornado of wind blades collided. The space warped slightly, and the overflowing aftershocks directly re-plowed the already scarred ground.
The purple pillar of light had the upper hand in the clash. In just a moment, it destroyed the wind tornado. The purple light dimmed slightly, but its momentum was unstoppable. It tore through dozens of wind shields, piercing directly through the Dou Emperor's body.
The Amethyst Seal entered her body, but it didn't immediately cause the Dou Emperor to lose her ability to fight. Her Dou Qi still surged powerfully. Facing the Amethyst Winged Lion King, who had closed in on her, she unleashed her final, deadly move.
"Extreme Wind Annihilation!"
The strange long sword trembled violently, and a tiny, almost thumb-sized beam of deep light instantly shot out, striking towards the Amethyst Winged Lion King's head.
CRACK!
As soon as the beam of light appeared, the very space around it trembled and twisted slightly, as if cracks were forming. It was clear that the power of this move was truly immense.
"Roaring Lion's Roar!"
Though shocked, the Amethyst Winged Lion King did not panic. It unleashed an extremely powerful Xuan-tier Dou Skill. Accompanied by a roaring lion's roar, the spatial vibrations from the sound waves directly sent the woman flying. Even the precious sword in her hand was lost somewhere.
These sound waves also obstructed the forward movement of the sword light beam, buying enough time for its next burst.
Endless purple flames surged, forming a lion-shaped phantom. With a massive explosion, the overwhelming purple flames engulfed the sky. As countless fire meteors fell, the Amethyst Winged Lion King's battered figure reappeared.
The Amethyst Winged Lion King's voice echoed throughout the mountain range, "That woman was seriously injured by my half-complete Dou Skill. She can't have gotten far. Find her for me!"
The mountain was filled with magical beasts, which began to search frantically under the Amethyst Winged Lion King's command.
Among the many magical beast lords in the Magical Beast Mountain Range, the Amethyst Winged Lion King was a special existence.
While the original Amethyst Winged Lion King was not weak, its strength was somewhat affected after having a child. It could only barely maintain its original territory.
But several years ago, the Amethyst Winged Lion King's strength increased greatly. It launched several large-scale battles, defeating the magical beast lords who had tried to take advantage of its weakened state and expanding its territory. Its child had also successfully transformed a month ago, adding a Tier 5 magical beast to its territory.
Battles between magical beast lords depended on the strength of their upper echelons. The addition of a Tier 5 magical beast was an absolutely overwhelming factor in any battle. After multiple expansions, the Amethyst Winged Lion King's forces were beginning to take on the form of a regional magical beast overlord.
With the Amethyst Winged Lion King's command, not only its own territory but even the neighboring magical beast lords began to mobilize. They were terrified of being implicated by this unknown woman and of being summarily destroyed by the enraged Amethyst Winged Lion King.
In the chaotic Magical Beast Mountain Range, a young man, protected by an ethereal figure, was heading back to the waterfall when he suddenly stopped.
In the river below the waterfall, a beautiful woman in a simple dress was floating. Her eyes were closed, her face was pale, and her lips had no color. She seemed to be severely injured, but that wasn't the point. The key was that on the bank beside the woman, a young man seemed to be about to crouch down.
"Gulp... Yan... What a coincidence..."
Xiao Yan glanced at the woman in the river and then at the young man. He instinctively swallowed hard. He recognized the woman, and he also recognized the young man. But connecting the two together, he sensed a huge amount of information and felt that he might be silenced!
"Brother Xiao, Senior Yao, it's been a long time!"
Yan Qingshan held the precious sword he had found somewhere in one hand. As he spoke, he used his Dou Qi to gently lift the unconscious beautiful woman into his arms.
Xiao Yan didn't dare to speak, but Yao Lao had fewer reservations. "Yan kid, so you were the one who made that move just now! But, what are you doing here? Even though you live near the Magical Beast Mountain Range, I feel like something isn't right."
"I came specifically for her. I was originally hoping to create a chance encounter, but I never expected such a heaven-sent opportunity."
Yan Qingshan smiled openly. He lowered his head, gesturing that he was here for the woman in his arms. In the final moments of the battle, if Yan Qingshan hadn't sent out a burst of Dou Qi to carry the woman away, she would have likely been torn to shreds by the enraged Amethyst Winged Lion King.
"Hehe... You're... up to no good!"
Yao Lao chuckled, pointing at the unconscious woman in Yan Qingshan's arms. The old man's smile was quite lewd, probably thinking of something unhealthy.
Yan Qingshan showed no sign of embarrassment. "You can't blame me for this. You can only call it a heaven-sent opportunity. A debt of gratitude for saving her life is not easy to repay, especially since I'm someone who always expects a favor in return for a good deed."
"Xiao Yu said you acted with decorum. She must have been smitten. A life-saving favor? You obviously saw a golden opportunity. Your heart is truly black..."
Xiao Yan glanced at the beauty in Yan Qingshan's arms and muttered under his breath. It was hard to tell if he was envious, jealous, or even more envious and jealous.
"Brother Xiao, you just don't understand. Being a romantic man isn't easy. You have to know how to manage your time and present different sides of yourself to different people..."
Yan Qingshan didn't get angry. Instead, he smiled and said, "For beauties like Yu'er and Miss Xun'er, who are like buds waiting to bloom, you can't be in a hurry. You have to savor the moment, enjoy the process, and become soulmates. Of course, that requires a certain demeanor."
"But for a mature beauty like this one, who is at her most captivating... tsk, tsk. Besides, this is a Dou Emperor expert. If I can win her over, how many years of struggle can I save? With my background, of course, I have to find a powerful backer to latch onto."
Xiao Yan smacked his lips, completely speechless. How could he argue with that? The more important thing was that after hearing Yan Qingshan's words, he felt a little tempted himself. Everything he said made a lot of sense.
He thought back to his previous life. Weren't there many people who sought out rich older women? How did the saying go? "Auntie, I don't want to work hard anymore."
"Brother Xiao, actually, you're the one I admire the most. To think you, at just six years old, would sneak into Miss Xun'er's room to perform that... tsk, tsk... Compared to you, is my heart really that black?"
Yan Qingshan spoke again. Xiao Yan's face turned beet red. Sneaking into Xiao Xun'er's room at six to use Dou Qi to help her warm her meridians and gain a childhood sweetheart in the process.
This could be dismissed as a childish indiscretion, but when Yan Qingshan brought it up now, almost repeating his own words back to him, it was like being publicly executed on a tree. It was utterly embarrassing.
The more crucial thing was that inside Xiao Yan's seemingly young body was the soul of a man over thirty. An ordinary young boy could use the excuse of being a clueless child, but Xiao Yan knew in his heart that he had been fully aware of his inappropriate behavior at the time. This…
Just as Xiao Yan was feeling intensely awkward and Yao Lao was looking amused, the distant forest was filled with the faint roars of magical beasts.