Difficult Struggle to Protect the Master
Leon Li took the strange mirror and left the tower, then disappeared with the four others.
In the underwater space, Evan Yang had no idea what was happening; he was still resting, while Elena Dreamer continued teaching Megan Rain how to cultivate.
Time slowly passed. Ember Yang wandered around on the surface of the water, finding it interesting and drifting here and there.
"This is the place." Leon Li, who had come from the Chaos World, muttered at a certain spot within the plane.
"Vice Sect Master, who exactly are we looking for this time?" one of them asked.
"The one who killed Reverend Fang Buyi," Leon Li replied.
Hearing that Fang Buyi had been killed, all four were shocked. Though their strength was comparable to Fang Buyi, there was still a gap. Now, being told to hunt down the one who killed Fang Buyi, they were very curious about who this person could be.
Soon, guided by Leon Li, the four arrived at a stretch of water. The surface looked calm; the four glanced around, and one asked, "Vice Sect Master, where is he?"
"He should be somewhere nearby. Everyone, start searching," Leon Li said.
After all, Leon Li couldn't pinpoint the exact location, so they could only search around this part of the sea for traces of Evan Yang. At first, they found no one, until they saw Ember Yang playing on the surface atop the Flame Behemoth.
"Could it really be her?" someone exclaimed in shock after spotting her.
"The Flame Behemoth? Looks like it really might be her." Seeing the person atop the Flame Behemoth, Leon Li assumed Ember Yang was the one who defeated Reverend Fang Buyi—and it wasn’t impossible, since she had a Flame Behemoth. This terrifying beast made the others feel a bit intimidated.
Leon Li said, "What are you afraid of? I’m here."
Hearing Leon Li’s words, the four relaxed, and so the five of them surrounded Ember Yang, who was still playing.
Ember Yang frowned. "Who are you? You dare to surround me?"
"We’re from Golden Heaven Temple. Hand over the Heaven-Seeking Compass and Reverend Fang Buyi, and we’ll spare your life," Leon Li said.
Ember Yang recognized the name Golden Heaven Temple—it sounded familiar. She asked curiously, "Fang Buyi? Is that the one whose body was mostly destroyed?"
"Damn it." Leon Li hadn’t expected this girl to deliberately bring that up, and she acted completely unafraid, which made him angry.
"Are you here to die too?" Ember Yang asked curiously, seeing the five of them exchanging glances.
"Here to die? You sure talk big. I’d like to see how you’re going to kill us." Leon Li snorted coldly, then said to the four, "You deal with the Flame Behemoth, I’ll handle the girl."
Ember Yang saw they were about to attack and wasn’t afraid at all. She asked the Flame Behemoth, "Do you think we can take them on?"
"Never been afraid." The Flame Behemoth knew that this Fire Phoenix was not easy to deal with; ever since Ember Yang absorbed half its power, her strength was far from simple.
"Alright, let’s take these guys down together." Ember Yang laughed.
The Flame Behemoth let out an excited roar. Ember Yang stood atop its back as the enemies tried to attack them separately, but Ember Yang and the Flame Behemoth merged into one, both wrapped in flames. The blazing fire shielded them, and with the Flame Behemoth’s tough scales, they launched a direct counterattack.
Their attacks were blocked by the combined flames of Ember Yang and the Flame Behemoth. At the same time, they had to defend against the sudden assault of the beast’s armored scales.
But that wasn’t what they feared most—there was something else. Even though the Flame Behemoth’s strength was halved, its roar hadn’t changed. It let out a thunderous bellow.
Leon Li and the others felt a brief headache from the roar. That moment of pain gave Ember Yang a chance—her flames suddenly closed in on them, making their bodies tremble. But they quickly reacted, diving underwater, which weakened the flames.
"Not so tough after all." Leon Li snorted after submerging, then sent a message to the four, "Next, let’s deal with the Flame Behemoth first—its roar is terrifying."
The four naturally agreed.
Ember Yang and the Flame Behemoth, seeing their enemies vanish underwater, became wary. "Be careful—they’re strong. If we can’t win, we’ll retreat and find my dad," Ember Yang said.
"Mm." the Flame Behemoth replied.
Just as it finished speaking, Leon Li and the others suddenly leapt out of the water and launched their attacks, all aimed at the Flame Behemoth. The beast rolled across the water’s surface, and Ember Yang, clinging to its scales, tumbled with it for a moment before things settled down.
Seeing the Flame Behemoth bleeding, Ember Yang cried out in alarm, "What’s wrong?"
"They’re not easy opponents. I’ll take you back right away," the Flame Behemoth said, gravely wounded, and carried Ember Yang away.
Seeing Ember Yang and the Flame Behemoth trying to leave, Leon Li sneered, "I told you to hand them over earlier, but you refused. Now let’s see where you’re going to run!"
"Damn you all, I won’t let you get away with this!" Ember Yang was furious and didn’t want to leave, but the Flame Behemoth was already carrying her away. However, they were quickly caught up by the five pursuers.
Thinking Ember Yang was the beast who killed Fang Buyi, Leon Li said, "I still don’t know how Fang Buyi lost to you."
"Vice Sect Master, I think it was the Flame Behemoth’s doing—she’s not much to worry about," one of them said.
"I agree," Leon Li said with a smile. Seeing the wounded, bleeding Flame Behemoth and their mocking comments, Ember Yang grew angry—the flames around her intensified.
All five of them felt something strange. Suddenly, Ember Yang transformed into a phoenix, her entire body wreathed in flames. The fire she spat from her mouth was terrifying.
"Fire Phoenix!" Everyone was shocked and terrified.
At that moment, Ember Yang spat flames at them. They didn’t dare take the attack head-on, afraid of being roasted, so they dodged, diving underwater and then surfacing again.
This cycle repeated. Finally, underwater, Leon Li said to the four, "A Fire Phoenix—that’s a divine beast. But she’s still immature. If we kill her now and take her inner core, it’ll be worth a fortune."
"Vice Sect Master, just tell us what to do and we’ll do it," one of them said.
"Alright, I’ll use the Thousand-Layer Lock to bind her. Then you all attack with everything you’ve got. If you don’t seriously injure her, you’ll be burned by her flames," Leon Li said.
The four dared not be careless—this was their first time fighting a Fire Phoenix. Luckily, she was still immature, so her power wasn’t overwhelming.
At least, together they could handle her. At Leon Li’s command, he leapt up, releasing a treasure that looked like a thousand ropes, binding Ember Yang.
Enraged, Ember Yang spat fire at Leon Li, while the other four burst from the water and attacked her from all sides.
After Ember Yang spat fire, she was severely wounded by their attacks—her feathers now stained with blood. The Flame Behemoth, seeing this, was shocked and lunged at Leon Li.
Seeing the badly wounded Flame Behemoth, Leon Li snorted, "You want to die too? I’ll grant your wish!" He punched the beast’s head. If not for its armored scales, its skull would have split open. Even so, the beast was dizzy, nearly fainting, and blood streamed from its head—its injuries worsening.
Ember Yang was both angry and heartbroken, but she was powerless—she herself wasn’t in much better shape. At this moment, Leon Li said to the four, "Alright, you can just watch. She’s finished now."
The four withdrew their auras and stood aside to watch. Leon Li laughed, "I thought you were all so strong, but this is all you’ve got."
Ember Yang, in her Fire Phoenix form, let out an angry roar. Leon Li only laughed louder, "Go ahead and scream. My Thousand-Layer Lock will slowly devour your power, and your inner core will become mine. I wonder what a divine beast’s core looks like."
"None of you will get away!" Ember Yang shouted angrily.
"Still so stubborn, little girl. Are all phoenixes this proud? Well, I suppose so—you phoenixes are born as terrifying divine beasts. Too bad you’re not fully grown, so your power is lacking," Leon Li sneered.
"Golden Heaven Temple, if you have the guts, stay here—don’t run. I’m telling you, today is your death day," Ember Yang said.
"Worry about yourself first—so arrogant," Leon Li laughed.
At that moment, with no one watching, the Flame Behemoth—thought to be badly wounded and unconscious—used its remaining strength to slip underwater and disappear.
"Vice Sect Master, it escaped!" one of them said.
"That beast ran away at the last minute? So this is your Flame Behemoth? Ridiculous. You—go catch it. The Flame Behemoth may not be as mighty as a divine beast, but it’s still a fierce monster of the Chaos World. Its inner core must be valuable," Leon Li said with a sneer, unwilling to let the beast go.
The man smiled, "No problem, I’ll go right now."
With that, he vanished in the direction of the Flame Behemoth. Ember Yang silently prayed, "Flame Behemoth, it’s up to you now. You must reach my dad safely and tell him about my situation."
Just now, Ember Yang had taken advantage of the distraction to let the Flame Behemoth escape. The beast, ignoring its injuries, slipped away while no one was watching, using its last bit of strength.
But the wounded Flame Behemoth’s blood stained everywhere it passed. The pursuer, treating it like a game, laughed, "I’ve never played with a Flame Behemoth before—now I finally get to."
The Flame Behemoth was covered in wounds. It stared at a small underwater hill—the entrance it needed to reach—but was blocked by the damned pursuer.
"Roar." The Flame Behemoth roared, but its voice was now so weak it posed no threat.
The man laughed, "You were so arrogant before, but not anymore, huh? Tsk tsk."
"Despicable human, you won’t end well," the Flame Behemoth said angrily.
"Me? Ridiculous—I’m just fine, aren’t I? But you two—a divine beast and a fierce monster nearly as strong—your inner cores must be worth a fortune," the man said, smiling at the Flame Behemoth.