「Inside the Secret Realm.」
A group of men and women clung to the legs of their Eagle Beasts, flying straight toward the battlefield.
It was another round of siege, an attempt to wear it down.
The wind from the Sky Splitting Eagle King’s wings was bitingly cold. With a single dive, it leveled a swath of trees, kicking up a massive cloud of dust and instantly shattering their formation.
A few of the Eagle Beasts had their throats pierced by the Eagle King’s beak as it dove.
When a soul beast was destroyed, its Beastman would let out a pained scream, clutch their head, and instantly vanish from the Secret Realm.
The soul beasts and their Beastmen were closely linked. If a soul beast died, its Beastman wouldn’t die, but their mind would suffer a massive shock.
They rotated in round after round.
The high-ponytail girl leading them never left the front lines. Her body was already covered in wounds.
She grabbed the leg of an Eagle Beast and soared into the sky. Seeing this, the double-ponytail Healer following beside her turned pale and cried out, "Sis, I can’t do it!"
The woman cursed, "Worthless! Get the next person up here!"
As she spoke, dagger in hand, she landed gracefully on the Sky Splitting Eagle King and stabbed down hard.
The next second, the Sky Splitting Eagle let out a sharp shriek. The woman was thrown off, and as she tumbled down, countless feather arrows shot toward her.
A Fiery Fire Eagle Beast swooped in to catch her, shielding her from the countless feather arrows.
The woman and the Eagle Beast crashed to the ground together, and she coughed up a mouthful of blood.
A male Healer hurried to her side to heal her.
Jiang You continued to watch from a distance.
’Firearms can’t be brought into the Secret Realm,’ she noted. ’I don’t know what the rule is, but it seems they can only rely on soul beasts, melee weapons, and their own physical strength. If someone wanted to use firearms, they’d have to hunt for the Eagle King in the deep forests outside the realm. After all, mutant beasts exist both inside Secret Realms and in the outside world’s forests and wilds. But it’s clearly easier to find a super-destructive Eagle King like this one inside a Secret Realm.’
This Eagle Clan continued to wear down the Eagle King.
Until night fell in the Secret Realm.
The Eagle Beastmen were growing tired, and it was clear the Sky Splitting Eagle King was exhausted as well.
The Sky Splitting Eagle King crashed to the ground again and again. One of its wings was clearly battered and torn, making it difficult for it to fly.
"Sister Tingyue! Now’s the time!" a young man shouted.
The leader with the high ponytail immediately launched herself toward the Eagle King. She plunged her dagger deep into its eye, then leaped onto its neck, grabbed hold, and snapped it with a powerful twist.
The Eagle King stopped moving.
"Fuck, it’s dead! Finally dead!"
"Damn, I’m exhausted. We lost so many people this time."
"Fuck, this Eagle King was so damn tough."
...
Ling Tingyue landed on the ground, collapsing to her knees as if all her strength had vanished.
Everyone started to relax.
Jiang You watched, the corners of her lips twitching. ’The Sky Splitting Eagle isn’t dead. What are these idiots cheering for? They haven’t even seen its soul body yet!’
Just then, Ling Tingyue realized it too. Her heart sank and her throat went dry. "Wait—"
The Sky Splitting Eagle’s eyes suddenly lit up, blood-red.
A sharp talon shot straight towards Ling Tingyue.
"Sis! Watch out!" a panicked cry rang out.
Ling Tingyue’s entire body felt as heavy as lead; she had no time to react.
Her heart pounded and adrenaline surged through her. Every muscle in her body was stretched to its breaking point.
A strange fragrance wafted over.
The scene before her bloodshot eyes blurred. Her thoughts slowed to a crawl, as if she were being dragged underwater.
The Sky Splitting Eagle’s approaching talons seemed to slow down, though she wasn’t sure if it was just her imagination.
The sound of footsteps came from beside her.
A figure in a black cloak strode past her, walking toward the Sky Splitting Eagle.
Ling Tingyue’s heart sank. ’We worked so hard to take it down, and now someone is just going to swoop in and steal the prize? I don’t need their help. The anti-death mechanic will just eject me from the realm. I’ll only be severely injured.’
"You..." Ling Tingyue’s fingers dug into the mud.
But her consciousness was muddled, and her vision suddenly went black.
The pink cat delivered the final blow.
The massive, translucent brown soul body of the Sky Splitting Eagle King burst forth from its corpse.
Jiang You walked over, reached out, and absorbed the Eagle King’s soul body.
’None of these people know how to use a soul body yet. Can’t let it go to waste. I might as well take it.’
After absorbing the soul body, Jiang You looked at the unconscious figures on the ground.
’They did work hard to wear down the Eagle King, after all. If both sides hadn’t exhausted each other, my cat wouldn’t have been able to mesmerize the Eagle King and all these people at once.’
Jiang You tossed a Healing Light Group to each of them.
The injuries they had sustained all vanished.
Finally, Jiang You left.
After absorbing the Eagle King’s soul body, her little red-eyed cat fell into a deep sleep.
Jiang You’s heart quickened. ’It looks like it’s about to evolve. I wonder what it’ll become.’
She cradled the tiny, sleeping red-eyed cat in her palm. Unable to resist, she gently poked its head with a finger. "You little thing," she murmured, "so you need to devour the soul body of a giant like the Eagle King to evolve? I’m curious to see what you turn into."
「Inside the Secret Realm.」
Ling Tingyue was the first to wake. Her black hair was a mess, her eyes bloodshot.
She instinctively looked toward where the Eagle King had fallen. She expected it to be gone, stolen by the opportunist, but the body of the Sky Splitting Eagle was still there.
She stared, stunned.
’The Eagle King’s body is full of materials that can raise a soul beast’s level. Its wing feathers can even be made into weapons. Our only goal was this Eagle King.’
Ling Tingyue quickly discovered that the Eagle King’s soul body was gone.
Her eyelid twitched. ’A soul body usually lingers for at least three days, though the exact time depends on the mutant beast’s level. It hasn’t even been an hour, and it’s already gone. No one knows how to use a Mutant Beast Soul Body. No one has ever found a way. Could that person actually use it?’
Ling Tingyue’s mind reeled with suspicion.
"Sister! Your injuries are all gone! Oh my god, my injuries are gone too!" the double-ponytail girl, Ling Tingyu, cried out in shock. "Oh my god, oh my god."
Snapped out of her thoughts, Ling Tingyue looked down at her own body. She remembered her shoulder being pierced through, but now there wasn’t even a scar.
’No Healer could do this.’
"Oh my god, was that a Divine-level Healer?" Ling Tingyu exclaimed. "Oh my god, how could they do that?! That must have been an incredible Healer!"
Ling Tingyue’s expression turned cold and indifferent again. She said nothing.
’Indeed. A very powerful person.’
"Let’s go. We’re moving out," Ling Tingyue said coolly.
As her party prepared to leave the Jiang Family estate, Ling Tingyue suddenly asked the Jiang Family’s Housekeeper, "Besides your main family, who else was given a key to this Secret Realm?"
The Jiang Family’s Housekeeper just replied politely, "This old servant does not know."