The sun bled out across the horizon, painting the sky in shades of bruised purple and orange as Han Ying thundered back towards Cangshan County. He pushed his horse mercilessly, finally reaching the town walls just as the last light of day failed.
In the county's northeast quarter sat a sprawling estate, a place known to all: the formidable headquarters of the Cangshan Brotherhood.
In this frontier territory, the Brotherhood was law. They were the strongest warriors, the first and last line of defense. Cangshan County sat in the shadow of the formidable Duankong Mountain Range, a place teeming with powerful demonic beasts. These creatures, driven by primal hunger, would often descend from the peaks to hunt, and without the Brotherhood standing as a shield, the town would have been overrun and devoured long ago.
The Brotherhood boasted dozens of members, but its heart and soul—its unyielding core—were the three Han brothers.
Han Xiong, Han Ying, and Han Ming. All three were masters of the Qi Martial Realm, warriors whose names alone commanded respect. The two eldest, Han Xiong and Han Ying, had ascended even further, reaching the formidable mid-stage of their training.
As twilight settled, the guards at the Brotherhood's manor moved to bolt the heavy gates. Just then, the sound of pounding hooves cut through the quiet. A single horse and rider approached at a desperate gallop. The animal was slick with sweat, its sides heaving, but it was the man on its back who drew their attention.
It was Han Ying.
"Second Master?" a gatekeeper called out, his voice laced with confusion. He hurried forward, but stopped short when he saw Han Ying's condition. Battered, bloody, and barely upright, he was a ghost of the powerful warrior who had ridden out days before. "My god, Second Master, what happened to you?"
"Less talk," Han Ying rasped, his voice a dry whisper. "Get me inside."
A flurry of motion erupted. "Right away! You there?" someone yelled, "run and get Master Xiong and the Third Master! Now!"
They carried Han Ying inside and, after forcing some potent medicine down his throat, he collapsed into a deep, exhaustive sleep. Han Xiong and Han Ming rushed to his side, their faces grim, but he was already lost to the world. They tried questioning the guards who brought him in, but no one had any answers. They were left to wait, surrounded by a fog of anxious uncertainty.
Five days passed. Fortified by endless rest and powerful herbal remedies, Han Ying's strength slowly returned. The light came back to his eyes. As soon as he was coherent, his brothers were at his door.
"Master Xiong, Third Master," the servants attending to Han Ying said, bowing as they entered.
"You've done well," Han Xiong acknowledged with a nod. "My brother is in your debt." As the eldest, he should have been called "First Master," but he'd always detested the title, preferring the simple authority of "Master Xiong." His brothers, in turn, were known as Second and Third Master.
He turned to Han Ying, who was now propped up in bed. Before he could speak, his brother's voice, though still weak, cut through the room. "Big Brother," Han Ying said, "send them out. I need to speak with you and Third Brother alone."
Han Xiong gave a slight nod, and his gaze swept over the servants. They took the hint immediately, bowing and slipping out of the room, closing the door softly behind them.
When they were alone, Han Xiong's voice was low and urgent. "Second Brother, tell us what happened. Who did this to you?"
A bitter smile touched Han Ying's lips. "I ran into a demonic beast. A particularly nasty one."
"A beast?" Han Ming, the youngest, scoffed in disbelief from the side. "Second Brother, you're a mid-stage Qi warrior. What kind of monster could leave you in this state?"
"He's right," Han Xiong agreed, his brow furrowed. "Even the two Demonic Wolf Kings of the mountain couldn't take your arm in a fair fight. Not unless they worked together."
"This wasn't some mindless brute from the Duankong range," Han Ying said, shaking his head. He met their eyes. "Do you remember the job I took in Huangye Town? The one with the five three-hundred-year-old herbs as payment?"
"Of course. What of it?"
Han Ying's exhausted face broke into a grim, triumphant grin. "On that mission… I found a Spirit Beast."
The words hung in the air for a moment, then the impact hit. Han Xiong and Han Ming shot to their feet as if struck by lightning. "A Spirit Beast?!"
Even Han Xiong, the most worldly of the three, looked pale with shock and a hint of terror. He took a ragged breath. "You encountered a Spirit Beast and you're still alive? Your luck is almost unbelievable."
"They're terrifying," Han Ming added, his voice trembling slightly with the memory. "I saw one two years ago in the Royal Capital. The raw power rolling off it… It was enough to make your bones ache with fear."
Suddenly, Han Ying let out a raw, unexpected laugh.
"What's so funny?" Han Xiong asked, bewildered.
"Big Brother, Third Brother," Han Ying said, his voice dropping to an intense, excited whisper. "We are about to become incredibly wealthy. Every Spirit Beast we've ever heard of has been an adult, a fully grown terror with power rivaling a Spirit Martial Realm expert. Right?"
"Yes, in their prime. So?"
"So, the one I found," Han Ying leaned forward, his eyes burning with a feverish light, "was just an infant."
The room fell silent again, the shock even deeper this time.
"An infant..." Han Xiong repeated, the words tasting foreign. Then, understanding dawned, and his eyes began to gleam with avarice. Beside him, Han Ming's fear was rapidly being replaced by the same raw ambition.
They weren't fools. They knew exactly what an infant Spirit Beast represented.
It meant it was vulnerable. It meant that three Qi Martial warriors had a chance—a real chance—to capture a creature of legend. A single adult Spirit Beast was worth a fortune, enough to buy an entire county. But an infant… an infant was priceless.
Adult beasts were wild, untamable things, their spirits already forged and hardened. They were too proud to be mastered. But a young one was a blank slate. Its mind was still malleable. If they could capture it, they could raise it, train it, and forge it into an unstoppable, completely loyal weapon. A demonic beast, once bonded, was more faithful than any human warrior could ever be.
And its lifespan would far outlast their own. It would be a legacy. A guardian that could protect the Han family for generations, just as the ancient beasts of the great houses and the Royal Family had done for centuries. The King's own guardian beast had defended the nation for three hundred years.
For the Han family, a small power in a backwater county, this was the key to true greatness.
"What kind of beast was it?" Han Xiong demanded, his voice tight with anticipation. "How strong is it now?"
"It's a spirit snake. Or, given its size, more like a spirit python," Han Ying answered. "As for its strength, I'd put it at the early stage of the Demonic Qi Realm."
"That's all?" Han Xiong asked, a frown creasing his face. "Then how did it wound you so badly? Did you fight it to a standstill?"
"No," Han Ying said, shaking his head. "This creature is... different. It can sprout crystalline wings from its back and command the water, summoning spells from thin air."
Han Xiong and Han Ming stared, dumbfounded. "A snake that grows wings and casts spells?"
"Damn it all," Han Ming swore under his breath. "That's no snake. That's a dragon in disguise."
For the next six hours, the three brothers were locked in intense discussion. Their goal was twofold: capture the miraculous serpent, and do it in absolute secrecy. The Han family might be kings in Cangshan County, but beyond its borders, they were small fish in a vast, dangerous ocean. A creature as rare as a Spirit Beast would attract predators from across the kingdom, warriors so powerful they could crush the Han family without a second thought.
Finally, a plan was forged. Han Xiong and Han Ming would take a small, handpicked group of their most loyal men and ride for the Foggy Marsh near Huangye Town. They would strike fast and hard. Han Ying, with his severed arm and weakened state, would remain behind to guard the manor and maintain the illusion of normalcy.
Ideally, they would have waited for Han Ying to heal, to bring the full force of all three brothers to bear. But a wound like his would take months to recover from, and time was a luxury they didn't have. Every day that passed increased the risk of their secret being discovered. The prize was too great to let slip through their fingers.
And so, under the cloak of a moonless night, Han Xiong and Han Ming led their death-sworn followers out of the manor, their horses' hooves muffled as they galloped toward destiny.
…
Meanwhile, the spirit python, Luo Zhen, slid silently into the Duankong Mountain Range.
Unlike most warriors and beasts, who radiated their power uncontrollably, Luo Zhen was learning to master his aura. But for now, a wave of pure, primal energy rolled off him—a silent proclamation of his arrival that sent the lesser creatures of the mountain scattering into the shadows. Within minutes, the ten-li radius around him was eerily devoid of life.
The beasts here are far more skittish than the ones in the marsh, Luo Zhen thought, his forked tongue tasting the air. Have the other two lords of this mountain bullied them into submission?
He consulted the map in his mind, a gift from the strange system that guided him. It showed two glowing red icons deep within the mountain range, marking the lairs of the other two Demonic Qi Realm beasts. The glow was faint, indicating they were a threat, but a manageable one. It meant he could challenge them.
But fighting wasn't his goal. He scanned the map for what he truly needed: medicinal herbs and, more importantly, essence stones. This was an essence mountain range—low-grade, perhaps, but rich enough to fuel his evolution. Finding a true essence vein would solve all his problems.
The map revealed that of the dozens of peaks, only three glowed with the faint white light of essence. Two of those peaks were already overlaid with the red icons of his rivals. They had claimed the best territory for themselves. Of course, they had. Whether human or beast, all who sought power were drawn to sources of worldly energy.
Two of three are taken. That leaves me only one choice.
Ignoring the occupied peaks, Luo Zhen retracted the shimmering wings on his back and began to slither toward the last remaining source of power. He wasn't here to start a war; he was here to grow.
He moved quickly, his powerful demonic aura clearing a path before him. Soon, he arrived at the base of an earthy, yellow-stoned mountain. It wasn't the largest peak, but it stood several hundred meters high, lush with vibrant flora. Without hesitation, he began his ascent, making no effort to conceal his presence. This would be his new domain.
The beasts living on the slope felt his aura and fled in terror. By the time he reached the summit, the entire mountain was his. He methodically circled his new territory, leaving his scent, his unique spiritual trace, as an undeniable claim. Even a common dog marks its territory; a Spirit Beast like Luo Zhen could etch his very will into the stone and soil.
He found an outcropping of exposed essence stones near the peak. As he prepared to devour them and begin his cultivation, a deafening roar ripped through the air from the base of the mountain.
"ROAR!!"
It was a challenge. Thunderous and raw, it echoed again and again, growing closer with each passing second.
A tiger, Luo Zhen mused, a cold stillness settling over him. To ignore my claim so brazenly, it must be confident in its strength. He checked his mental map. One of the red icons was moving rapidly toward his position. It was one of the two mountain lords.
Did my taking of this peak provoke it? He wondered. No matter. I will not seek conflict, but I will not flee from it.
He closed the map, his gaze fixed on the slope.
A moment later, a blast of wind heralded its arrival. A massive, yellow-furred tiger with a white-crowned head and ferocious stripes burst from the treeline. It was the size of a water buffalo, a mountain of striped muscle and fury, and it closed the distance in a few heartbeats. Its eyes burned with a vicious light.
Mid-stage of the Demonic Qi Realm, Luo Zhen noted, his tongue flicking out to taste the energy in the air. That explained the system's warning. A beast of the same rank as himself would be no match for his unique abilities. Even a mid-stage warrior like Han Ying had barely escaped with his life. This would be a real fight.
As he tensed for battle, a rustling in the undergrowth caught his attention. A horde of smaller demonic beasts—pigs, monkeys, and a score of leopards—emerged from the forest, fanning out behind the massive tiger. They weren't strong, but they stood their ground, snarling and baring their teeth at Luo Zhen as if to bolster their champion.
He scanned the motley crew, and a flicker of recognition passed through him. These were the very beasts he had just driven from this mountain.
So, these are its underlings, he realized. I kicked them out, and they ran to get their boss.
The great tiger had finished its assessment. Deciding Luo Zhen's power was not insurmountable, its ferocious posture intensified. With a ground-shaking roar that tore through the air, it dug its claws into the earth and launched itself forward, becoming a blur of striped fury aimed directly at him.