The pure looking spirit beast surprised Ming Ren. The pegasus, a horse-type flying spirit beast with innate True Wood Element lineage. It avoided combat, living in seclusion in the many worlds, its pure bloodline with healing and purifying properties, making it a prime target for hunters and cultivators alike.
The hundred-eyed colossal pegasus had a calm exterior, but a hidden ferocious nature, distinct from common pegasi. It specialized in eye techniques, augmenting battle prowess in mysterious and deadly ways. As a rare variation species, it also carried Darkness and Light True Elements, a tri-elemental, powerful ancient spirit beast capable of shaking worlds.
In this world, darkness and light elements were not linked to holy or evil. Any element could be holy if it carried [sacred intent], or evil if it carried [unholy intent]. A [holy wood] element leaned towards yang and [evil wood] element to yin, yet they were an indivisible whole.
Without yang, there would be no yin, without holy, no evil. Yang by itself could never be holy and yin by itself could never be evil, even at their extremes. A demonic cultivator could cultivate extreme yin but not evil arts. Only those which reached [unholy intent] would be truly evil.
This mythical pegasus took many lives in revenge, its Dao heart already shifting to extreme yin but never becoming evil. In its true appearance, a thin baleful aura of murder surrounded the once pure white stallion.
“I am called Jana. Young man, I want to form a pact with you,” the pegasus gave out its [true name]. To a spirit beast, especially an ancient one, it meant trusting the other party completely.
Ming Ren didn’t fear trouble but also didn’t jump into it without thought. Against a power at the Upper Realms, capable of threatening such an existence, how could he make promises lightly? He disdained slavery, but in this world of strength, it was unfortunately common.
“I want you to make a vow, if someday you can help the descendants of the Sacred Tree Clan, and take them under your wing, you must do so without hesitation! In return, I, Jana, will swear my loyalty, and even grant you my bloodline.”
Ming Ren blinked. The pegasus asked him to protect them and not to wipe his enemies out, this alone proved the majestic spirit beast had not lost its way in fury and despair, “Senior, aren’t you thinking too highly of me? I, Ming Ren, can’t even protect my clan, when will I be able to shake the Upper Realms? Senior’s enemy is definitely a great power.”
The pegasus nodded, “Compared to this small world, the Wind Axe Clan is powerful, but it matters not. I’m only gambling in you. If you fail, I will wait for another opportunity. If you succeed, my suffering will end.”
A sincere wish from the heart. Ming Ren felt a familiarity with this vow somewhere deep inside his soul. As if, long ago, he promised something similar. He thought about it and then clasped his hands, “I, Ming Ren of the Bright Clan, swear to the Heavens I will help the Sacred Tree Clan descendants. If I break this vow, may the Heavens condemn me!”
“Good!” Jana brimmed with expectation and his wings fluttered with happiness. For too long it waited for a chance. The beast’s sharp wings cut its body, and several drops of dark red blood flew to Ming Ren. A thought of the pegasus turned the blood into mist, and the youth slowly absorbed it, “Be careful, I diluted my blood enough so you should be able to absorb, but it is still dangerous.”
The blood of a living creature who far surpassed the limits of mortals was not something to be taken lightly, even with only a fraction of its true power. The youth sat cross-legged and cultivated, absorbing the creature’s blood and its powerful spiritual energy.
Jana wasn’t aware Ming Ren cultivated the One Breath Luminescence law, a peerless supreme-grade law in the Body Tempering Realm as he didn’t use Qi or circulated the law in front of the pegasus. Ming Ren reached an unfathomable amount of control over the spiritual energy inside his incomplete spirit sea, avoiding any waste.
“This is… heaven-grade Body Tempering cultivation law? Wait, almost perfect, supreme grade. As expected, this inheritance of the Bright Clan is too fearful.”
The cultivation law allowed Ming Ren to exploit the senior’s blood to the limit, extracting everything possible. He circulated spiritual energy strengthening meridians, purifying, and tempering the body, breaking through the shackles of the fifth layer. Sixth layer of the Body Tempering Realm!
It still didn’t stop there. Peak of the sixth layer!
“Incredible!” Ming Ren needed an enormous amount of energy to break through, a lot more than any common cultivator, but still reached the peak of the next realm. With each breakthrough, his body became much stronger.
Compared to the tempering by the low-grade laws, Ming Ren’s physique rivaled those at the Spirit Sea Realm. He also felt changes to his eyes and in the [Bright Eyes] technique as the colossal pegasus bloodline matched well with the Divine Light Dragon Physique and his unique soul.
Ming Ren chose not to reveal the Divine Light Dragon Physique. Jana didn’t seem greedy for power, but he wasn’t sure it wouldn’t fall into temptation. What if something in Ming Ren’s body could help him break through? Could he hold back?
The youth knew too well ambition laid dormant in all things under the Heavens, only a few could resist the enticement of greater power. Absorbing his physique could cause a mutation and bring great benefits, even to an ancient spirit beast.
“Good!” Jana was sure it made the right choice. This heaven-defying peerless talent only used a few minutes to cultivate and already broke through. The tempering by that law was tyrannical, bringing envy even to those top-ranked influences of this lower realm. Aside from those, he also showed excellent perception.
Ming Ren could continue cultivating and achieve another breakthrough in a few hours, yet chose not to. The abundant spiritual energy in this place would instead be harmful to the body in the long run. Only someone with special characteristics or at the Spirit Gate Realm could be free from worry.
How could this youth have matured to this extent?
Because of his master, the Sacred Warrior Tree, the spiritual energy in that place merged with the [holy wood] Element. Only those with an innate attunement to true wood could absorb energy freely, and it would still be dangerous.
“You must remember, before the Sacred Tree Clan is safe, I cannot leave this place,” Jana wouldn’t budge in this condition. If he left and something happened to his master’s descendants because of it, how could it repent?
Ming Ren nodded, “Senior, how’s outside?”
The formation isolated the inside from any external influence, but Jana could sense everything in the forest if he wanted to. He hadn’t done it much in thousands of years since he had no interest. When the spirit beasts came in by mistake last time, he scanned the forest but found nothing strange.
Jana stealthily extended his immortal sense and frowned after, “These many spirit beasts hunting? One of those beasts, a very strong one for its realm, is even standing outside. Is this what you ran from?”
Ming Ren nodded once more, “A frenzied spirit beast led the hunt but I thought it was strange.”
“What was?”
“The timing, the execution, was too perfect. If a spirit beast became frenzied, it wouldn’t have the mind to plan that far. They cut off all escapes from the outer perimeter as if it wanted everyone to run inside. Even if it was an unusual two-headed lioness queen with dual-cores, would it be this intelligent?” Ming Ren questioned.
“Heh, you are correct, it isn’t capable of such a fine strategy. They are not the brightest species.”
“That means…”
“As you already thought, it is not a wild one, but a tamed beast!” Jana cleared Ming Ren’s suspicions. A tamed spirit beast with two monster cores and at the fourth layer of the Spirit Sea Realm? Only a peerless beast taming talent or someone at the Spirit Gate Realm could do so. The reason the spirit beast sat outside waiting, even without understanding where they went to, was its inability to disregard a command.
“There are several other spirit beasts like that one throughout the forest, and they are all particularly strong,” Jana completed.
Ming Ren’s head hurt. They could only leave through the same spot, and couldn’t stay too long because of the unusual spiritual energy and Jana’s baleful aura. Someone controlled the spirit beasts, leading the hunters in. What was their goal? To kill a few hunters or a specific one?
Ming Ren shook the head. That would be a waste of the tamed beasts.
To gather cultivator blood for some evil purpose?
Possible, but this method was too bold and direct. Devil cultivators feared exposure and acted with hidden organizations and methods. With this kind of big event, the neighboring clans would send teams to deal with the matter.
The city lords of the neighboring cities also had a duty to act and the beasts would be eliminated completely. So, why would someone trade powerful tamed spirit beasts for a few loose cultivators?
Unless…
Ming Ren thought of a possibility…
They wanted the clans to send their people in!