ROAR—
The savage bellow rolled on like thunder chewing mountains, and the blood leopards behind Nana Toki flattened like grass in a storm, shivering and whining for mercy.
A few weak ones flipped onto their backs like capsized boats, limbs jerking, a stench of beast filth spreading like swamp fog.
What monster lurked ahead, to make a fourth-tier Golden Core blood leopard pack tremble like autumn leaves?
Nana’s face shifted like clouds in wind; she hadn’t even parsed what was happening when another sky-splitting roar burst from the forest ahead, a crushing aura slamming her like a landslide.
A tidal surge of feral demon-qi chased it, and the thick trees around her withered on contact like gourds sucked dry, collapsing into spindly black twigs.
Such a strong beast.
She felt Spirit Energy ripples fanning from the valley like rings on a moonlit pond.
Per the System’s map, the entrance to the Wildbeast Wasteland should be right ahead, yet this dense spiritual pressure was a banner of war.
Rush in, and nine times out of ten she’d be dragged into the storm.
What in the world happened there to make the Wasteland’s beasts burn with such rage, like wildfire in dry reeds?
She moved to carry Blue Magpie and check it out, then looked up—and her breath iced like a winter stream.
What the hell is that?
A colossal monster towered in the near forest like a jade cliff: a serpent, skin green-blue like riverstone, every inch scaled, its length near a thousand meters like a winding mountain road.
Seven heads reared with snarling maws, crimson tongues tasting the air, and even at a distance, a chill crept up her spine like frost.
There’s a beast this high-tier in the Wildbeast Wasteland?
She set Blue Magpie down, lips twitching as she eyed the seven-headed serpent.
Her gut never lied: its aura was beyond mere body cultivation, maybe even brushing a Void Hollow realm like the edge of a night sky.
Break one sword formation, and this level shows up?
How many secrets sleep in this Wasteland like old bones under dunes?
Ding! Hidden pre-quest triggered: Eve of War.
Accept?
Default: accepted.
Quest: Learn about the Three Realms Turmoil five thousand years ago via the Heavenswallow Serpent in the Wildbeast Wasteland.
Nana’s face went dark like a stormfront.
What kind of pre-quest is this? And a Three Realms war? That’s a massive pit!
Er… host, think of it as a step that guarantees the hidden quest will trigger if completed, said the System like a wooden fish knocking water.
For real? Just issue the hidden quest straight!
You want me to poke a beast that might be Void Hollow? That’s like a mouse licking a cat’s nose—asking to die!
Host, calm down! This quest wasn’t from me!
Calm down, my ass!
Boom—!
Explosions boomed from the forested valley like drums in a siege, Spirit Energy waves rippling out and making the Wildbeast Wasteland tremble like a waking beast.
Sis, look—what’s that!
Under the dark leaves, Nana glanced up.
Several figures cut across the sky like hawks, clashing with the seven-headed serpent, neither side able to press the other like two storms deadlocked.
Great Vehicle Stage folks?
She watched one figure get swatted away like a twig, her brow arching as her tone turned odd.
These aren’t mundane-world cultivators.
In this plane, once a cultivator reaches the Great Vehicle Stage, they’re forced to ascend to the Immortal Realm like a kite pulled by heaven—unless they willingly give up ascension, fixing themselves at half-step Great Vehicle to linger.
This bunch, most likely, came down from the Immortal Realm—native Immortal Realm cultivators.
But Immortal Realm elites descending… why?
Trouble up there, like cracks in jade?
She slapped a breath-hiding talisman on her sister like snow over tracks.
As she pondered, the fight surged like a turning tide.
One white-robed man stepped out, momentum arcing like a rainbow; for a heartbeat, mountains and rivers felt stirred.
Spirit Energy rolled around him like floodwater, as if he’d pin the seven-headed serpent beneath his heel in one strike.
Bold serpent!
You trespassed into the Immortal Realm, stole the Azure Crow Fairy’s reincarnation embryo, and hid it in the mundane world—that alone is a grave sin.
Now you harm our Immortal disciples and erode the Immortal Realm’s foundation—sins stacked like stones!
If you have even a shred of remorse, hand over the Azure Crow Fairy’s reincarnation embryo!
Come with me to the Emperor Immortal and confess!
Otherwise, when this blows wide, the cultivation you’ve sweated for thousands of years at Azure Crow Fairy’s side will wash away like sand in a flood!
Heh.
This old body isn’t yours, Immortal brats, to order around.
The Heavenswallow Serpent’s seven pairs of eyes were cold as deep wells.
Its seven feral heads flicked crimson tongues like flames, terror sharpening every line.
Even if the Emperor Immortal comes in person, this old body will never hand you Azure Crow Fairy’s reincarnation embryo!
Its words fell like hammer blows, and a devouring might burst from its body, heaven-swallowing and earth-eating like a black tide.
Countless scales flared, casting seven-colored light like a storm of rainbows.
Bad—this serpent means to fight to the death!
A white-robed man tried to set a formation, fingers sketching seals like flying cranes, but before the mudra closed, a titanic tail streaked in like a falling cliff.
Boom—!
He flew, slammed, and his Nascent Soul shattered like glass under a mallet; not even a scream, just blood misting the Wasteland’s sky like crimson rain.
Bold serpent!
So stubborn—don’t blame us for striking hard!
The other Immortal Realm cultivators wore stormy faces, their eyes on the Heavenswallow Serpent cold as iron.
If you don’t hand over Azure Crow Fairy’s reincarnation embryo today, we’ll lift this Wasteland like a roof and smash it!
You dare!
Seven heads roared, sky-shaking like a quake; demon-qi howled like winter knives.
Nana huddled with Blue Magpie and the System behind a boulder like a turtle in rock, mind buzzing.
By that serpent’s words, the start of this mess was it trespassing in the Immortal Realm, stealing some fairy’s reincarnation embryo, then hiding her in the mundane world like a pearl in mud, right?
What was that name again?
Azure Crow Fairy?
Is there such a figure who ascended from the mundane world like a phoenix?
Nana pinged the System, had it scour the history database of mundane-world cultivators like a net through reeds.
No record on Azure Crow Fairy.
And the Immortal Realm?
The System dove the database like a carp, then surfaced empty-handed.
Er… insufficient permissions. I can’t check that, the System said, scratching its head like a guilty monk.
…
This broken System loves dropping the chain at key moments.
In the distant valley, the Heavenswallow Serpent’s war was nearing its endgame like twilight falling.
Its power rivaled cultivators close to ascension, but numbers pressed like snow, and wounds from trespassing the Immortal Realm still crisscrossed its body like old scars—its strength cut down.
At its peak, these Immortal brats wouldn’t last three moves under it.
Looks like the serpent’s about to fold.
Nana clicked her tongue behind the rock like a pebble.
Hey, lousy System, if the serpent dies, can my hidden quest still trigger?
If yes, I’m bolting; when gods brawl, a Foundation Establishment newbie gets ground like dust.
… Host, are you even human?
The System knew exactly what she was thinking.
But in this flimsy human form and lacking any real power, it didn’t dare scold, just answered plain.
It can’t.
…
Figures.
Then what do we do?
It’s about to drop.
You can’t expect a chicken-tier Foundation Establishment scrub to jump in and save the stage—that’s pushing a sapling to hold a mountain.
… Emmm, that is a bit much.
But host can spend points on a tool.
I’ve got something called the Skyshroud Cloth—it reflects attacks from all cultivators except True-Form Immortals, like a mirror in stormlight.
Effect lasts one hour.
Is that reliable?
A non-permanent item makes me nervous, like stepping on thin ice.
Rest easy, host!
The System’s gear quality is rock-solid!
Tsk.
Hearing that makes me even less at ease.
…
