Chapter 882: Tribute
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Millman97
Every single one of the Ten Indomitable Kings of the Cloudmist Ridge had strength rivaling the Ten Great Master Teachers of the Master Teacher Academy!
Just what kind of reinforcements did School Head Mo"s student bring in to require the strength of nine of them?
Did he bring the other elders into the Cloudmist Ridge?
But that didn"t make sense either! If so many enemies had invaded the heart of their base, the Half-Saint and Nascent Saint beasts patrolling the area should have already reported the matter to him!
With eyes narrowed threateningly, the Golden Beartiger Beast glared at School Head Mo. "Mo Zhu, just what in the world are you up to?"
"I don"t know either. I have been here all along…" School Head Mo was on the verge of bursting into tears.
It was as if he was here to serve as a sidekick to the princ.i.p.al; he had no idea what the other party was up to…
Unsure of whether School Head Mo was putting on an act or not, the Golden Beartiger Beast threatened him once more. "You don"t know? You"d better not be trying to pull something. For my Cloudmist Ridge to survive right under the nose of the Master Teacher Academy for so long, it definitely isn"t as simple as you might think…"
"You have your men scattered throughout Cloudmist Ridge. Even if we do attempt to pull something, how can you possibly not know?" School Head Mo argued.
Hearing those words, the Golden Beartiger Beast glared at School Head Mo for a moment before eventually nodding slightly in agreement
This was exactly what had left him puzzled.
If something had truly happened, the other kings would have surely informed him. For them to call for the other kings to go with them instead, that meant that the problem was still within their means to deal with.
Forget it. As long as School Head Mo remains my hostage, the Master Teacher Academy won"t be able to take any drastic actions. As long as I have this card, I should be able to force them into compromising! The Golden Beartiger Beast rea.s.sessed his current situation, and feeling that he was still in a safe position, he heaved a sigh of relief.
Standing up, he was just about to force School Head Mo into accepting his terms once more when the Scarlet Flame Lion, the first king to leave, finally returned to the cavern.
Following behind him was the Steelbacked Bear, Tigerhead Beast, Steelfang Wolf… All nine of the kings had returned together, and sandwiched between them was a young man with a lowered head.
He was School Head Mo"s escaped student.
The Scarlet Blaze Lion stepped forward and reported loudly, "Boss, we have managed to bring back this fellow!"
"What happened that required all of you to head out?" the Golden Beartiger Beast asked doubtfully.
"It"s like this…"
The Tigerhead Beast stepped forward, pointed its steel claws at Zhang Xuan ferociously, and harrumphed. "I don"t know how that fellow did it, but he managed to find a few formidable master teachers to reinforce him, so we ended up fighting against them…"
"Master teachers?" The Golden Beartiger Beast frowned.
The Steelfang Wolf stepped forward and said in agreement, "That"s right!"
"Who are those master teachers? Are they the Ten Great Master Teachers of the Master Teacher Academy?" the Golden Beartiger Beast continued asking.
"That doesn"t seem to be the case. None of them look familiar to us… Why don"t I take out their corpses to show you? Here they…" the Steelbacked Bear said as he walked toward the Golden Beartiger Beast
At this point, the Steelbacked Bear was only three meters away from the Golden Beartiger Beast.
Without finis.h.i.+ng his words, he abruptly leaped forward with three other saint beasts to a.s.sault the Golden Beartiger Beast.
Hong long!
The Scarlet Blaze Lion, Tigerhead Beast, Steelfang Wolf, and Steelbacked Bear were considered the strongest saint beasts in Cloudmist Ridge after the Golden Beartiger Beast. Their combined might was so great that it felt like it could split mountains and reverse rivers.
Before the Golden Beartiger Beast could react, he was already struck squarely by four paws and claws.
Peng!
"What are you all doing!" the Golden Beartiger bellowed furiously as his figure was sent retreating into the distance. It knocked through a couple of stalact.i.tes before eventually cras.h.i.+ng into the wall of the cavern, and it spewed large mouthfuls of blood.
The other saint beasts had been together with him for over a thousand years, and he deeply trusted them. He never thought that they would suddenly make such a vicious move against him!
In just a moment, the Golden Beartiger Beast had already sustained severe injuries. His innards were so shaken by the impact that it would be difficult for him to recover in the short term.
Panting heavily, the Golden Beartiger Beast felt most of his strength sapping away from his body. With reddened eyes, he roared frenziedly, "Why? Tell me why!"
"Master!"
Ignoring the roars of the Golden Beartiger Beast, the Scarlet Blaze Lion, Steelbacked Bear, Steelfang Wolf, and Tigerhead Beast, having accomplished their mission, turned around and bowed to Zhang Xuan.
"Un." Chuckling softly, Zhang Xuan placed his hands behind his back and raised his head, revealing a faint smile on his lips. As he stepped forward with an entourage of saint beasts following behind him, it seemed as if he was a lofty emperor.
"Of the Ten Indomitable Kings of the Cloudmist Ridge, nine have already submitted to me. Golden Beartiger Beast, you have two choices before you; you can either submit to me, or prepare to die!"
"They have submitted to you?" The Golden Beartiger Beast widened its eyes as it glanced at the other nine kings in disbelief.
They were all proud saint beasts, how could they submit to a mere human… and not to mention, an insignificant Chrysalis realm cultivator?
He wasn"t the only one who was feeling frenzied by the situation; School Head Mo also felt like he was losing his mind.
He had thought that Princ.i.p.al Zhang was truly here to negotiate, and he had resigned himself to be cursed for this failure for generations to come. Who would have thought that the other party, in just a little more than two hours, would manage to tame nine of the Ten Indomitable Kings?
Furthermore, recalling how there was not a single beast who had come in to report the matter, the chances were that the Half-Saint and Nascent Saint beasts had become his tamed beasts as well…
He knew that the new princ.i.p.al was extremely skilled at beast taming, having witnessed it back in the entrance examination on Leiyuan Peak, but this… this power level was way off charts, way too overpowered!
If the other party were to continue taming beasts at this rate, would all of the saint beasts in the Master Teacher Continent become his tamed beasts and obey his commands?
While School Head Mo was in a daze, the Scarlet Blaze Lion and the others turned to their former boss, the strongest saint beast of the Cloudmist Ridge, and attempted to persuade him.
"Boss, you should just submit to him. Our master is a person of great capability. We will definitely achieve greater heights pursuing him!"
"Indeed. For many years, we have successfully repelled all enemies, including the forces of the Master Teacher Academy, and maintained a tight grip over the Cloudmist Ridge. But think about it, how different is this from being trapped in a cage? In any case, I have had enough!"
"There is no point resisting it; you will be killed if you hesitate any longer!"
…
"You want me to submit? Dream on!"
Seeing that all of his subordinates had betrayed him, the Golden Beartiger Beast shouted savagely, "Weren"t you all curious about why such a huge supply of Earth Vein Spirit Essence has acc.u.mulated here, never running out despite so many spirit beasts and saint beasts absorbing it over the years? Let me tell you the reason today!"
With a furious roar, the Golden Beartiger Beast struggled to his feet and leaped into the dried-up lake before speaking in a respectful tone. "My great emperor, please grant me the power to eliminate these traitors of the Beast Tribe…"
This time, he was speaking not in the human language but the Ancient Beast Language.
"Emperor?"
Hearing those words, Zhang Xuan frowned as an ominous premonition clutched his heart.
From the very start, he had been wondering how something as rare as the Earth Vein Spirit Essence could gather in such great quant.i.ty in the Cloudmist Ridge. Even considering the unique geographical terrain, it was near impossible for that to happen.
And more importantly, it was unnatural for there to be so many saint beasts gathered here.
Survival of the fittest. Resources were always in short supply, so the number of experts in a region was limited.
It was truly confounding to see so many powerful beasts gathering on this land.
At the same time, School Head Mo"s face also warped in astonishment.
As a 6-star pinnacle beast tamer, even though he wasn"t very fluent in the Ancient Beast Language, he was still able to decipher bits and pieces of the Golden Beartiger Beast"s words. It was apparent that the other party was trying to initiate some kind of ritual to summon a powerful being.
If the other party succeeded, the tables could very well be turned on them.
"Zhang s.h.i.+…" Anxious, School Head Mo immediately turned to Zhang Xuan.
Zhang Xuan raised his hand and said, "Calm down, let"s just watch for now. This could very well concern the mystery behind the disappearance of Elder Wu Yangzi…"
After taming the Scarlet Blaze Lion and the others, he had questioned them about the matter concerning Wu Yangzi"s disappearance two thousand years ago. However, they had only risen to power a thousand years ago, so they weren"t too sure about that incident either.
However, based on their description, it seemed like the Golden Beartiger Beast was the key to this mystery.
This was precisely why he possessed unparalleled authority in the Cloudmist Ridge, the number one figure of the innumerable beasts gathered here.
Hong long long!
Extremely high concentrated spiritual energy abruptly burst forth from the depths of the cavern. In that moment, it felt as if the sky was falling, and it left all present incapable of catching their breath.
The lake that had stored the Earth Vein Spirit Essence previously seemed to have become an altar for the Golden Beartiger Beast to make an offering in order to summon an overwhelmingly powerful being here.
"What power…"
Feeling the powerful energy drifting in the air, School Head Mo"s face paled. He couldn"t help but retreat several steps as he clenched his jaws in pain.
The pressure was simply too great, and it seemed to be crus.h.i.+ng his soul directly. Despite being a Saint 1-dan pinnacle expert, he still found himself unable to hold on for much longer.
"Zhang s.h.i.+…"
If even someone of his prowess was unable to withstand this pressure, what would become of their princ.i.p.al?
Alarmed, he quickly turned his gaze to Zhang Xuan, only to see the latter standing upright with his eyes gazing coldly upon the lake, as if he couldn"t feel the pressure at all.
School Head Mo"s body jolted in astonishment.
Even the Scarlet Blaze Lion and the other kings of the Cloudmist Ridge were lying feebly on the ground under that immense pressure, so how was it possible for their princ.i.p.al to be completely fine?
Hong long long!
Before he could a.n.a.lyze what was going on, the spiritual energy in the air suddenly gathered to form an illusory, mist-like Bluehorn Dragon Beast. Coiling in the air, its very presence seemed to exert immense pressure directly on one"s soul.
"My descendant, why have you summoned me?" A majestic voice boomed.
The Bluehorn Dragon Beast spoke in the Ancient Beast Language as well, but its words felt heavy, seemingly carrying a quality that left one feeling as if one had traveled back in time.
This is… the most authentic Ancient Beast Language! School Head Mo"s body turned cold.
It was possible for them to emulate the p.r.o.nunciation of the Ancient Beast Language, but it was impossible to bring out the same deep resonance as the ancient beasts of old.
Just this intonation in itself could bring one the loyalty of many spirit beasts and saint beasts. Without a doubt, this Bluehorn Dragon Beast was a legendary figure from the ancient era.
Turning around, he saw the Scarlet Blaze Lion, Tigerhead Beast, and the others trembling in fear, unable to bring forth the slightest intention to retaliate at all.
This was a result of the inevitable suppression of bloodline among saint beasts
Turning his gaze back to Princ.i.p.al Zhang, he was just thinking about how he could s.h.i.+eld the other party and send him out safely, when he saw the latter standing before the Bluehorn Dragon Beast with a frown, seemingly in deep thought.
The Golden Beartiger Beast kneeled to the ground and pleaded using the Ancient Beast Language, "My emperor, I ask of you to grant me the power to eliminate these traitors!"
"What can you offer me?" the illusory figure above asked impa.s.sively.
"I can offer you the fresh blood of this 6-star pinnacle master teacher of the Master Teacher Academy, the head of the Beast Tamer School!" the Golden Beartiger Beast replied respectfully.
"A 6-star pinnacle master teacher?" The figure above shook his head and replied, "That is not enough!"
The Golden Beartiger Beast pointed to Zhang Xuan and said, "And his student as well!"
However, thinking that it was unlikely to suffice as well, he added, "With my newfound power, I will immediately dispatch my army to slaughter more master teachers to offer them to you!"
"Granted. You should know the consequences if you renege on your promise."
Hong long!
With the words of the illusory figure above, overwhelming strength abruptly fell and surged into the body of the Golden Beartiger Beast, and its withered aura began to recover.