Chapter 193: Devouring — It’s Growing Stronger

Beast Fighting Arena, Second Trial.

The two Beast Masters switched positions. This time, Lian Mu stood much closer to Bai Su and Silver Crane, and was a bit surprised to see the two standing side by side.

So Silver Crane was someone from within the Flying Sea Pavilion? No wonder—when Silver Crane smiled, it had the same feel as Bai Su’s. Birds of a feather, indeed.

Bai Su noticed Lian Mu’s gaze and smiled gently. “You’re going to win, aren’t you?”

People around them turned to look—was even the Pavilion Master of the Flying Sea Pavilion siding with General Bean?

“Thanks for the auspicious words, Pavilion Master,” Lian Mu replied with a smile.

Bai Su said, “If possible, I’d like to see the full extent of General Bean’s strength. I believe once everyone sees it, they’ll be thoroughly convinced.”

Lian Mu responded casually, “Whether I can go all out doesn’t depend on me—it depends on my opponent.”

Silver Crane smiled but said nothing.

The moment she said this, the crowd’s gaze toward her shifted dramatically. Especially Gong Yu’s supporters—they looked like they wanted to tear her apart with their eyes.

Was she implying that Gong Yu wasn’t even worth her full strength? How arrogant.

Even though Gong Yu didn’t have a top-tier Spiritual Root, he was still a standout in the Beast Master world. Just the high-level demonic beasts under his command put him far ahead of others.

Someone who started off by running away—how dare she talk so big?

“Gong Yu, crush General Bean!”

“Blow them up!”

“Just because you’re a sword cultivator, you think you’re better than everyone? When it comes to beast mastery, you might not even be a match for Gong Yu!”

Of course, there were still a few voices cheering for her:

“General Bean, I bet on you to win—you better not lose!”

“You said you wouldn’t go all out, so finish him in one move!”

Gong Yu’s prestige in the Flying Sea Pavilion was sky-high. In an instant, the cheers from the crowd surged like a tidal wave, nearly drowning out the entire Beast Fighting Arena. Anger, excitement, frustration, resentment—emotions collided and swirled together.

Amid the noise, Lian Mu turned her eyes to the Red-eyed Five-form Beast inside the demonic beast cage. Its eyes were bloodshot, its breath came in thick, ragged gasps, and its tail thumped restlessly against the cage, producing a low, dull thud.

Lian Mu gathered spiritual power beneath her feet, circulating the energy in her dantian, and swept her senses over the flame beast again. This time, she saw something different.

Centered around the Red-eyed Five-form Beast, countless red threads extended throughout the arena and into the spectator stands. One end of each thread was tied to the beast, the other end connected to various people in the audience, each with different expressions.

A steady stream of golden energy flowed along the threads, feeding into the flame beast’s body.

Just as she suspected—after reaching the Extreme Grade, this flame beast didn’t just resonate with Gong Yu’s emotional fluctuations. It was also absorbing the anger of those nearby to strengthen itself.

The way Extreme-Grade demonic beasts evolved had already diverged from that of ordinary demonic beasts.

Lian Mu had consumed many demonic beast inner cores in the past. Her Flame Blade could only be summoned under the influence of a beast’s berserk aura, which created a subtle connection between her and all demonic beasts.

It was through this connection that she could now see the Red-eyed Five-form Beast devouring the emotions of others.

She suddenly recalled the Extreme-Grade Flame Beast she had encountered in the White Tiger Western Illusion Realm. The spiritual pressure that beast gave off was nothing like this one.

By comparison, the Red-eyed Five-form Beast was downright pathetic.

Both were Extreme-Grade Flame Beasts, and this one’s cultivation had already stabilized. It had been continuously absorbing emotional energy—its spiritual pressure should be even stronger than the one in the Illusion Realm.

Could it be that Gong Yu’s contract with it was suppressing its power?

Lian Mu locked eyes with the Red-eyed Five-form Beast. In its gaze, she saw a smoldering, restrained fury.

Yet Gong Yu seemed unaware. He reached into the cage and stroked its horn, as if trying to soothe it.

Lian Mu clearly saw the beast’s eyes shift to Gong Yu’s hand. It opened its mouth slightly, but after a moment, it quietly closed it again.

A sudden thought struck Lian Mu. She turned to Bai Su and said, “Pavilion Master, I suggest you add a barrier to the Beast Fighting Arena. A Spirit Pet like Gong Yu’s—ugly and terrifying—would be a real problem if it broke loose.”

Bai Su replied, “Don’t worry, young friend. All high-level arenas are covered by protective barriers. With Beast Masters present, incidents are rare.”

Lian Mu said, “Your barrier’s too weak.”

“You jest,” Bai Su said with a smile. “This barrier was crafted by a Heavenly Spirit Root Talisman Cultivator. It can withstand any grade of demonic beast.”

Lian Mu shrugged. “Whatever. Suit yourselves.”

The only person she’d seen create a barrier strong enough to contain a berserk Extreme-Grade demonic beast was Sect Master Shen. She’d encountered the Beast Fighting Arena’s barrier before—it wasn’t nearly as strong as they claimed.

Lian Mu had only warned Bai Su because she was worried something might go wrong mid-match and Ji Mingyue, who was watching from outside the arena, might get hurt. But if Bai Su wouldn’t listen, there was nothing she could do.

She steadied the spiritual energy surging within her. At the last moment, she saw the Red-eyed Five-form Beast close its eyes.

With only two matches left, hopefully nothing would go wrong… After all, absorbing emotional energy took time.

“Second Trial of the Beast Fighting Advancement Tournament, Match One—begin!”

With a command from the silver-masked official, the demonic beast cage opened once more.

The Red-eyed Five-form Beast shot out the instant the cage door vanished, like a bolt of lightning, and in the blink of an eye, it was already upon General Bean.

Gong Yu had learned his lesson and opted for a swift assault. He immediately commanded the beast to raise a hoof and stomp down on Green Bean.

With a heavy thud, the hoof-like leg slammed into the ground—General Bean took the full brunt of the blow.

Spectators: “!!!”

They were finally starting to fight for real!

The Red-eyed Five-form Beast lifted its hoof. A deep crater had been smashed into the ground where it had stomped, but contrary to expectations, General Bean wasn’t crushed. It remained completely intact—not even its shell had cracked.

Without hesitation, the Red-eyed Five-form Beast opened its mouth and spat out a mouthful of fiery red liquid. The moment it hit the ground, it ignited into flames, engulfing General Bean.

The fire blazed fiercely, reflected in the eyes of the crowd.

“So fast? If I’m not mistaken, that’s the beast’s inner fire fluid. Once ignited, it becomes Red Lotus Fire—it can melt even a metal-type beast’s spirit armor in an instant.”

“General Bean’s an earth-type beast, right? Only earth-types have scorpion forms. If Red Lotus Fire can melt metal-type spirit armor, wouldn’t an earth beast be reduced to ashes on the spot?”

Lian Mu remained calm. She said quietly, “Come out.”

As soon as she spoke, the ground of the arena began to tremble. The surface cracked, a mound of earth pushed upward and traveled across the field before bursting open.

Green Bean had returned to its main form. Not only was it unharmed, it had successfully escaped the Red Lotus Fire’s encirclement.

Now, Green Bean was nearly as massive as the Red-eyed Five-form Beast. Its glossy black scorpion shell gleamed, its tail stinger arched high, and its giant pincers exuded an imposing presence—it truly looked like a general now.

Everyone had remembered that earth beasts lacked defense, but they’d forgotten one thing—earth beasts can dig.

Green Bean might not be an earth-type beast, but it had eaten more than its fair share of them.

The Red-eyed Five-form Beast seemed to have anticipated this. It immediately gave chase, but General Bean dove underground, smashing its pincers into the soil and tunneling away at lightning speed.

“Running again? Boring. First it flew away, now it’s digging holes. What’s the difference?”

“Gong Yu should have a countermeasure.”

The spectators guessed right. When he saw General Bean burrow underground, the ever-stoic Gong Yu finally revealed a faint smile. “You’ve fallen into my trap.”

With a flick of his wrist, the Red-eyed Five-form Beast abruptly changed course. Instead of chasing the trail of raised earth, it stopped beside the hole General Bean had dug.

Lian Mu didn’t know what he was planning, but her main goal in the previous matches had been to study his tactics. So she didn’t have Green Bean charge in or hide deep underground. Instead, it left partial traces on the surface—just enough to lure the Red-eyed Five-form Beast into launching a force-based attack.

Sure enough, the Red-eyed Five-form Beast grew irritated at its repeated failure to catch Green Bean. It shook its body like a mountain rumbling, then leapt into the air and came crashing down.

The arena floor couldn’t possibly withstand that kind of weight. The moment it landed, the entire field trembled, and the ground beneath it shattered into rubble.

It let out a roar, and fiery red liquid spewed from its body like molten lava, flowing along the cracks in the earth.

“A sea of lava?” Lian Mu watched as the flames below turned into a river of red. “Not bad.”

She showed not the slightest hint of fear.

“Too bad you used it too early.”

“Oh? That depends… on whether you can handle it,” Gong Yu replied.

Because he always spoke in short, broken phrases, even his harshest lines lost some of their bite.

Gong Yu knew mere words wouldn’t intimidate her. He clenched his palm, and the flame markings on his neck grew hotter.

Suddenly, a surge of spiritual energy erupted from the Red-eyed Five-form Beast. Flames rose beneath its hooves, and fire-elemental energy condensed on its antlers, radiating the pressure of an extreme-tier beast.

The arena inside the barrier was completely destroyed. The ground sank by a full foot, and the gaps between shattered stones were filled with magma formed from the red fire liquid. There was no solid footing left.

“Let’s see where you run now.”

Lian Mu didn’t waste a word. She commanded Green Bean’s body to vaporize—wisps of black smoke rose from its shell as it disintegrated.

General Bean had finally revealed its counterattack!

The massive scorpion turned into a cloud of black mist, rising like a thundercloud.

Anyone who had seen General Bean fight before knew—once it took this form, it was time to devour its opponent.

Gong Yu: “So it’s come to this. Is this… your final move?”

As expected, the black mist condensed into a gust of wind and surged toward the Red-eyed Five-form Beast.

At the critical moment, the Red-eyed Five-form Beast let out a furious roar. The red rock-like layer on its back suddenly cracked open, and a pair of flame wings burst forth. A wave of scorching heat swept out in all directions, even blasting Lian Mu on the high platform with a faceful of hot wind.

The temperature inside the barrier soared, even affecting the area where the Beast Masters stood.

“The sixth form?” Lian Mu wiped the sweat from her forehead.

So this was the change that came after evolving from first-tier to extreme-tier. Originally limited to five beast forms, it had broken through its constraints and forcibly grown wings.

At this point, Gong Yu’s flame beast looked more like a modified demonic beast than a regular spirit pet. The only difference was that his had evolved on its own, while others were modified by human hands.

Could such a powerful demonic beast really be content to kneel at a human’s feet, obeying someone who suppressed its true strength?

Lian Mu looked at Gong Yu. He didn’t seem affected by the heatwave, but it was clear he was suppressing something with great effort.

“You call yourself a cultivator, and yet you can’t even withstand… this little bit of pressure?” he questioned. “Seems like you cultivators… aren’t as strong as the world believes.”

Of course not.

Lian Mu had a primary fire Spiritual Root and had always been tolerant of heat. Back in the Thousand Mechanisms Pagoda, she was constantly stuck to the Red Fire Green Phoenix—she was long used to it. What bothered her wasn’t the heat, but the way it disrupted her spiritual energy, stirring up a strange urge to punch something.

She’d eaten way too many demonic beast inner cores.

Lian Mu tried to regulate her breathing, suppressing the agitation in her heart. She smiled sweetly and said, “I’m really starting to feel like slicing you twice. You’d better shut up now.”

Gong Yu thought he’d finally hit a nerve. “Heh.”

But before the word had even left his mouth, the Red-eyed Five-form Beast, which had just sprouted flaming wings, suddenly erupted with spiritual power and shot into the sky.

Fiery red liquid burst from its body and ignited across its surface. Suspended high in the air, it blazed with a brilliance that seemed to rival the sun itself.

With fire beneath its hooves, the Red-eyed Five-form Beast dove straight toward the black mist. The mist didn’t dodge. The two collided with a deafening boom that rattled the scalp and sent waves of spiritual force rippling through the arena.

Sensing the beast’s sudden surge in power, the black mist quickly darted aside. After a few rapid exchanges, the two beasts were locked in a stalemate.

“That’s strange… when did Gong Yu’s Spirit Pet learn to fly? I’ve never seen it fly before.” One of the Silver-masked Persons, who had been ejected from the arena due to the ground collapse, stared in disbelief.

“Don’t tell me Gong Yu had it modified like those altered demonic beasts?”

Another Silver-masked Person kicked him. “Who cares if it’s modified or not? Quit gawking! Go activate the Sky-shielding Barrier! If that thing flies out, the Pavilion Master will skin us alive!”

The Beast Fighting Arena’s protective formation had two layers: the Ground Concealment Barrier below, and the Sky-shielding Barrier above. The upper barrier was only activated when both Spirit Pets could fly. For ground-based beast battles, the lower layer was enough. No one had expected Gong Yu’s Spirit Pet to suddenly sprout wings.

Meanwhile, Bai Su and Silver Crane had also witnessed everything.

Bai Su looked surprised. “Gong Yu’s Spirit Pet actually advanced a rank?”

She finally gave the Red-eyed Five-form Beast a proper look. Amid the residual spiritual shockwaves absorbed from the protective formation, she could indeed sense traces of an apex-tier beast’s aura.

“He never told Flying Sea Pavilion,” Bai Su said.

Silver Crane replied, “It happened just in the past two days. Two days ago, it was still a first-rank beast. Gong Yu probably spent the last couple of days feeding it a ton of spirit treasures. Half the high-grade spirit treasures on Flying Sea Street were suddenly bought up. That buyer was likely Gong Yu.”

Bai Su’s expression turned serious, her delicate brows knitting slightly. “If it were just a first-rank demonic beast, General Bean could’ve easily won. But if it’s apex-tier… then the outcome is uncertain.”

“The Pavilion Master seems to know that beast quite well,” Silver Crane noted, sensing something deeper.

Bai Su said, “Its former master and I have some unresolved history.”

Silver Crane froze. When it came to the Pavilion Master’s personal matters, he knew better than to pry. Everyone knew Bai Su hated being asked about her private affairs.

“Sorry, I spoke out of turn,” Silver Crane said.

Bai Su gave a faint smile, though her eyes revealed nothing of her true feelings. “It’s just some old dust from the past. It’s not that I don’t trust you—just that if I told you, you might laugh.”

With that, her gaze shifted to the devastated arena. She stared at the two figures locked in midair, falling silent.

Nine-star Heavy Scorpion… after all these centuries, with your spiritual body diminished and half-demonized, do you still have the strength to face an apex-tier demonic beast?

Her hidden hand clenched tightly around her sleeve.

“After this match, don’t bother cleaning up the mess. We’ll use this arena for the final bout.”

Silver Crane blinked in surprise. The arena was in ruins, and they were still going to use it?

He couldn’t help but glance again at General Bean.

“……”

So the Pavilion Master didn’t come here just to watch a few matches after all.

Silver Crane wasn’t particularly invested in whether General Bean won or lost. He was just here to show support. Win or lose, he wouldn’t be hurting for money. What he really wanted was to talk with General Bean’s Beast Master after the match.

But judging by Bai Su’s tone, it didn’t sound like General Bean had the upper hand.

Silver Crane silently hoped that General Bean wouldn’t get seriously hurt. If Gong Yu ended up crippling it, all the time and effort he’d put in over the past few days would go down the drain.