“You there, human brat... you...”

“Hm?”

“N-no... Senior, I mean Senior! You, sir. You!”

“Senior? Do I look that old? I’m only sixteen.”

“N-no, not Senior. A great master! Yes, a great master...”

“Hm. That’ll do. You can call me that.”

“Y-yes, yes...”

As a Nine-Star Sacred Beast, the Black Sacred Dragon Emperor had never bowed its head to anyone.

Until now, everyone in the world had looked up to it.

This time, it had to admit defeat.

It had caught a glimpse from the corner of its eye of the bright, clean-cut surface of the Mountain of Heaven—and the sight of everything above it reduced to nothing. Combined with the terrifying pressure bearing down on it now...

At last, it was certain: the one before it was a living, breathing God Rank powerhouse.

Weren’t God Rank powerhouses supposed to never appear? This world had lied to me.

It still wasn’t willing to accept it.

It even thought that, though it was at a disadvantage now, it couldn’t let its face go after tens of thousands of years.

Right. You couldn’t back down in front of a powerhouse.

But the moment it addressed him as “human brat” in its usual tone, it regretted it.

That person in the distance gave it a casual glance.

The pressure weighing down on the Black Sacred Dragon Emperor instantly doubled.

Inside, it was practically screaming: What was that about not backing down?

Are you insane? Trying to get us killed?

What did face matter now? Was its life more important, or its pride?

That wasn’t even a question worth thinking about...

How could a body this stupid possibly be mine?

“...”

So it changed its tune in an instant, speaking humbly and addressing the other as “Senior.”

Unexpectedly, the other thought “Senior” made him sound too old.

The pressure doubled again.

Inside, it was cursing up a storm. On the outside, though, it couldn’t show the slightest displeasure.

Its limbs were completely numb and stiff now, and it was even feeling a little dizzy.

If the pressure doubled again, it was probably going to bite the dust. It had lived for tens of thousands of years and was about to break through to Divine Beast—how could it fall here?

It couldn’t afford to screw up again.

It finally saw reason.

In front of a God Rank powerhouse...

Pride, Saint Rank strength, secret techniques, face...

It was all worth jack shit.

The pressure from the other side was horrifying. In such a short time, it had already inflicted serious damage on the Black Sacred Dragon Emperor’s soul.

It couldn’t wait any longer. They said this was a sign it was about to become an idiot.

“Um... great master... could you... maybe ease up on... that pressure?”

The Black Sacred Dragon Emperor looked so cautious. It was pretty funny.

The Black Sacred Dragon Emperor had voiced what every beast present was thinking, Xiaobai being the only exception.

The intelligent beasts and the mindless ones alike were desperate to be free.

Even the Eight-Star Sacred Beasts could only think it. None of them dared speak.

If the other party had only been a Nine-Star Sword Saint, they might’ve had a chance to fight back.

But now? Heh. They didn’t even have the courage to open their mouths. What was there to say?

Xiaobai was no longer the weakling who only seemed to be at the One-Star Sword Saint level.

Because he was hungry.

Because he’d watched his food get destroyed right before his eyes, again and again.

The anger born of despair had made Xiaobai release his Sword God pressure automatically, while his realm recovered without him realizing it.

Xiaobai’s stats now read:

Realm: ???

Strength: ???

He was impossible to read in every way.

The lord of the Demon Beast Mountain Range finally spoke. All the beasts on the ground gazed up at Xiaobai, full of hope.

The beasts that were usually so violent were docile now.

“Honestly, having this pressure on feels pretty great.”

You may be enjoying it, but we sure aren’t, the beasts grumbled inwardly. They had to keep it to themselves. They couldn’t say a word.

“Want me to turn it off? Then tell me—did you do something wrong tonight?”

Facing the Black Sacred Dragon Emperor, Xiaobai was very serious.

“We were wrong, we were wrong! Great master, please turn off your pressure!”

Eager to be free, the Black Sacred Dragon Emperor nodded quickly and answered.

It was completely sincere—and its attitude was worlds apart from when they’d first met.

This was what the Black Sacred Dragon Emperor was really thinking:

If you’d just shown us your realm earlier, would we have dared attack you?

Are you insane? We’re not trying to get ourselves killed!

But it didn’t dare say any of that. What if the pressure doubled again?

“You really were wrong?”

“We were, we were...”

“Really, really?”

“Really.”

“Really, really, really?”

An indescribable fury welled up inside the Black Sacred Dragon Emperor. Under normal circumstances, anyone who said that to it would get a mouthful of Annihilation Dragonflame.

But the one in front of it was a God Rank powerhouse.

It thought of the Mountain of Heaven nearby and held back.

It swallowed its fury.

“Really.”

It repeated its answer once more, tears even welling in its eyes.

“Then I’ll turn it off.”

Xiaobai willed it, and the pressure weighing on all the beasts vanished in an instant.

“Roar~”

At last, the beasts were free. They roared with excitement, and the whole Mountain of Heaven—and the earth itself—trembled.

Just as things were about to get out of hand...

The world fell silent again.

That familiar pressure had returned.

The devilish words exploded beside the beasts’ ears.

“You’re so noisy. Maybe it’s better to leave the pressure on after all...”

Not again! I’ll bite you to death!

But the beasts thought of the Mountain of Heaven nearby, gritted their teeth, and endured it.

They exchanged glances. The beasts had already reached an agreement.

Did you see how purple our boss’s face was getting up there?

He was already in that state from just a few words. What would happen if we actually complained...?

So they had to bottle up every complaint. Not a word.

The boss was a Nine-Star Sacred Beast. He could take a few rounds.

If they said anything, it’d kill them outright.