Night fell. Representatives of all the spirit beast tribes in the ancient forest had gathered near the Sacred Tree within the Monarch Stag’s territory.
Xueji, Shaya, and Scar-Eye moved together. Even after obtaining Fenrir’s heart, Scar-Eye still chose to go by his old name. Shaya had been displeased with her younger brother’s choice since daytime, but his temper was even more stubborn than hers, and he insisted on keeping the name Scar-Eye to the outside world.
Before the Monarch Stag appeared, the other spirit beast representatives unanimously regarded him as their leader.
Among them were the old ape and the explosive bear that Xueji had seen when she first arrived in the secret realm. Back then, each of these tribes could stand as equals to the Cloud Wolf Tribe, yet now they revered Scar-Eye as their leader.
Watching her brother, so full of dignity and might, Shaya felt incredibly moved.
“Look at my brother, isn’t he amazing!” Shaya said, placing her hands on her hips, lifting her chin proudly.
“He really is impressive. Not only did he withstand the heart’s backlash, he even managed to subdue the lingering aura of Fenrir.”
Back when Shaya had yielded the heart to her brother, no one expected that it would be completely conquered by Scar-Eye. Because of this, there was hope that Scar-Eye might one day become a powerful existence akin to the Fenrir of old.
“Do you have any more powerful artifacts? Get me one too,” Shaya said, seeing Scar-Eye’s transformation. Naturally, as someone who pursued strength, she was filled with envy.
“There are no more demon god relics suitable for the wolf tribe. After we finish here, I’ll take you to search other secret realms.”
After speaking, Xueji looked at Shaya’s swaying tail and couldn’t help but reach out and stroke it.
“Ah!” Shaya let out a soft gasp, immediately stepping back two paces and hugging her tail to her chest.
“Don’t just touch my tail like that!” Shaya’s face flushed red, her expression a mix of feigned fierceness and cuteness that was utterly endearing.
“Sorry, the way you were wagging your tail just now was too adorable, I couldn’t resist,” Xueji said, pressing her palms together in repeated apology.
“Then pat my head instead,” Shaya said, stretching her head forward. “I’ve seen it done like that in those anime shows.”
It was hard for Shaya to truly get angry with Xueji. Even this time, Xueji’s act of touching her tail in public held significant meaning within the Cloud Wolf Tribe.
‘A-Ji, touching the tail is a sign of affection, you know.’
Shaya was about to say those words aloud but suddenly swallowed them back. Or perhaps… it was fine to keep things as they were?
So Xueji reached out and ruffled Shaya’s head. Shaya seemed to enjoy it immensely, closing her eyes and letting out a soft, content hum.
Just as the last tribal representative arrived, an immense presence shook everything within Xueji’s sight. Even the hundred-meter-tall Sacred Tree trembled slightly.
At the edge of Xueji’s vision, a mountain was slowly moving towards them.
With the mountain’s movement, immensely heavy sounds echoed at intervals.
Footsteps. They were the footsteps of that “mountain”!
As the “mountain” drew nearer, the surrounding trees began to grow wildly. Trees nearly a hundred meters tall became commonplace, and the Sacred Tree itself stretched upwards, reaching a height of kilometers, piercing straight into the clouds.
The spiritual energy within Xueji’s body also seemed affected, its flow accelerating. The phoenix feather within her soul frantically poured spiritual energy into her body, causing Xueji’s own aura to surge dramatically as well.
The surrounding spirit beasts also underwent their own changes. Primal powers were awakened. Shaya directly shifted back to her beast form, her sleek silver-gray wolf fur glistening with a flowing light.
The brawny explosive bear grew in size once more, its nearly fifty-meter-tall frame startling the nearby spirit beasts, causing them to scatter.
The lean, tall old ape began to resemble a human more, a hint of compassion appearing between its brows, carrying an air of immortal grace.
Scar-Eye let out a howl, and it actually began to snow around him. The frost-like power similar to Fenrir’s surged within him, starting to influence the weather.
Such transformations far surpassed the spiritual energy revival occurring in the outside world.
And that mountain had, at some point, arrived near the Sacred Tree. After its arrival, the Sacred Tree emitted a faint glow, a light as insignificant as a firefly’s.
Yet it was this faint light that caused the mountain’s form to gradually dissipate.
The peak vanished first, revealing a pair of antlers that seemed to blot out the sky. A green light swirled upon the antlers, dyeing the rock that encased them from top to bottom, leaving behind green, rune-like traces.
Time in the secret realm passed unnoticed by most; only Xueji sensed the change in its flow.
By the time night fell, the other spirit beasts belatedly realized the shift in time.
A strong wind blew. Beneath the antlers, the rock encasing the giant creature’s true form rapidly weathered, flying into the sky and transforming into twinkling stars.
Even though Xueji had seen many colossal beings in other worlds, witnessing such a mystical entrance still left her profoundly awestruck.
The Monarch Stag’s gigantic form, reaching for the heavens, stood behind the Sacred Tree like the legendary giant Kua Fu who separated heaven and earth.
High above, at an altitude of ten thousand meters, the mobile base of the Special Abilities Corps, the Canglong, faced the Monarch Stag head-on.
Inside the command room, Commander Ye and the others, who were discussing battle plans, felt an intensely powerful gaze upon them. Looking at the main screen and seeing such a colossal being staring directly at them, everyone except Commander Ye, who managed to stay calm, pressed their hands to their foreheads, nearly fainting on the spot.
[People of the Secret Realm Spirit Tribes, I sense the changes in heaven and earth. Following the ancient decree of the Immortals, I break the seal and return to you your true forms.]
The Monarch Stag’s voice resonated across heaven and earth. The auras of countless spirit beasts in the secret realm surged simultaneously. The spirit beast leaders who had waited with Xueji and the others for the Monarch Stag became more terrifying one after another. Any single one appearing in the outside world would warrant a city-wide Catastrophe Alert.
The Catastrophe Alert was now also used by the Special Abilities Corps to warn of extraordinary threats.
If the corps stationed in a city sounded this alarm, it meant there was a high probability they could not prevent the target from destroying the city, and only an emergency evacuation was possible.
If they could ally with these beings to jointly subjugate the main body of the Bloody Brambles occupying City A, things would become much simpler.
Forget that Xinor; even that self-proclaimed god, Cain, along with all his clans, would be destined to be crushed underfoot if they encountered the Monarch Stag.
On the ground, the Monarch Stag once again conversed with Xueji using a smaller, manifested form.
“I naturally agree to your request. However, the spiritual energy environment in the outside world cannot yet support too many spirit tribe members walking the mortal realm.”
After understanding the full situation, the Monarch Stag agreed to help but still offered a dose of reality.
“I certainly cannot leave this place. And of these leaders, you can take at most three with you. Furthermore, I need you to do something for us.”
“What is it?” Xueji asked, curious what matter the Monarch Stag would specifically entrust to her.
“I have a connection with that fragment of the Boundary Stele you took. Through it, I sensed that another fragment has appeared in the world.”
“What! There’s news about the Boundary Stele fragment!”
“Correct. After you complete your business in the outside world, I ask that you go and retrieve the Boundary Stele. I have a premonition that a major event is about to occur in the outside world. That stele fragment is likely in the hands of the evil being you call Cain. Through the connection between the steles, I sensed a profound scent of blood. And through reading the stars, I learned that a bloody calamity approaches the Western world.”
After hearing the Monarch Stag’s information, the unease in Xueji’s heart resurfaced.
‘Ling Xiaoxiao is in danger.’
At the same time, on the other side of the world, the group tasked with subjugating Cain was in position outside a castle shrouded in crimson. Since entering the Vampire Sacred Nation, they hadn’t seen a single “person.”
Attempting to retreat the way they came only led them inexplicably back to the same spot. They had been trapped under the scarlet sky for several days now, and their contact with the outside world had been cut off. Left with no choice, they could only proceed with the subjugation plan.
Ling Xiaoxiao took out her communicator, pulling up a selfie of Xueji giving the middle finger. Her tense expression over the past few days finally relaxed a little.
“Xiao Ji, wait for me to come back.”
On the other side, Xueji finally couldn’t hold back any longer.
“Ling Xiaoxiao, I’m coming to find you right away.”
At this moment, the two distant individuals simultaneously recalled their final parting a thousand years ago. Their thoughts, by coincidence, bridged the vast distance between them.