Evan Chu stared speechlessly at Selena, the Dream Maiden, who was sitting with her eyes closed to rest, and thought to himself, "If only Alex Xiao and Old Goldwing could come out and help me right now. Just having to keep watch down here is seriously uncomfortable."
"Boss, just wait one more hour. Once that's up, I can come out and take care of this job for you. You and sister-in-law can take your time flirting—don't worry, I won't interrupt you." Goldwing's voice echoed in Evan's mind.
"Goldwing, are you itching for trouble? I don't mind plucking all your golden feathers to see what a featherless bird really looks like." Evan retorted, annoyed—this guy was actually teasing him now.
Goldwing fell silent, probably realizing his last comment had made Evan angry. If he kept talking, he might really end up as a bald vulture.
With nothing else to do, Evan used his spiritual sense to check on the Violet Thunder Fox inside his storage belt. What he saw instantly startled him—the Star Crystal was now only the size of a peanut.
In other words, Alex Xiao would hatch in just two or three days. But Evan couldn't help worrying—he remembered her saying that a single Star Crystal should be enough to fuel her rebirth.
The process was supposed to take a month, but it had only been about twenty days so far. He was afraid she might need to absorb energy from regular Starstones. If the storage belt ran out of Starstones, she wouldn't be able to hatch; but if he left Starstones in there and she hatched inside, she'd suffocate to death.
Evan was stumped for a moment. The only solution was to take her out once the Star Crystal was drained, and let her absorb the power from Starstones outside.
But right now, with the two armies locked in battle, where would he find the time to watch over her? The thought made him even more anxious.
"Lin Feng, the little fox still has a while before she hatches. Stop worrying! With big sister here, what are you afraid of?" Luna, the Sword Spirit, spoke up just then.
Luna's words instantly soothed Evan, making all his worries vanish. He replied right away, "I knew it, Sis Luna is the best! With you here, I can totally relax."
"Enough with the bootlicking, brat. When have you ever let me rest easy? When we get back, make sure you grab me plenty of soul medicine—there should be tons in the imperial palace." Luna snarked.
"Got it. I won't forget your big request." Evan laughed.
Everything was ready except for the east wind. Evan stood up and checked the situation at the foot of the mountain—everything seemed normal, and there was still no sign of the convoy transporting the Skyshaker Bombs.
Soon, Goldwing's voice sounded in Evan's mind again: "Boss, I've consolidated my realm. I can come out now."
With a thought, Evan summoned Goldwing, who instantly appeared before him. Evan looked Goldwing over carefully—he definitely seemed different than before.
"Old Goldwing, you look pretty changed. You don't even seem like a vulture anymore. What's going on?" Evan asked.
"Boss, you really are the boss. I only found out after breaking through to King rank—turns out I've got some ancient Spirit Beast blood in me too, though not much of it.
But I did get some inherited memories. This time, I went inside to study that inheritance." Goldwing explained.
"Seriously?" Evan was shocked. Was he really this lucky—every random beast he recruited turned out to have ancient bloodlines? Who would believe that?
"Turns out my ancestor was a hybrid of a Golden-Winged Roc and a Gold Demon Vulture. That's why I have a bit of Golden-Winged Roc blood in me. Only a small part of the inherited memories came through—probably because my cultivation isn't high enough yet," Goldwing explained.
"Golden-Winged Roc? You have Golden-Winged Roc blood?" Selena, who had been resting with her eyes closed, suddenly spoke up.
"Yeah, but just a little. You seem to know a lot about Golden-Winged Rocs?" Goldwing asked.
"A Golden-Winged Roc has a special kind of feather called a Goldenwing Plume. Each plume contains a strange energy—if you refine it, you gain the ability to fly without using any stellar power, and at speeds several times faster than normal flight," Selena explained.
"Seriously? If I get the chance, I have to pluck a few Goldenwing Plumes off Old Goldwing. You wouldn't mind, right?" Evan grinned mischievously.
"No way, Boss! I'm not even a Golden-Winged Roc yet. According to my inherited memories, I won't evolve until I break through to Saint rank. Right now, I don't even know what a Goldenwing Plume looks like," Goldwing said, still shaken.
"That's right—he shouldn't have any yet. A true Golden-Winged Roc has a very unique energy signature, and you can't just pluck Goldenwing Plumes whenever you want," Selena said.
"A Golden-Winged Roc only has three Goldenwing Plumes. You think they're cheap stall goods you can grab by the handful?" Selena added.
Evan chuckled, "So that's how it is. Old Goldwing, work hard and break through to Saint rank soon so I can pluck your feathers. For now, go scout and see if anyone's coming. Remember to fly high and check the whole five hundred li radius."
Goldwing felt as if all his feathers were about to fall off. His boss was way too ruthless—always obsessed with plucking his feathers.
With a flash, Goldwing transformed into a tiny golden bird and shot up into the sky, vanishing in an instant.
With Goldwing scouting, Evan felt completely at ease—Goldwing's eyes could spot things a thousand li away.
"Selena, I wonder how the battle's going right now. Can General Roland and the others hold out until we get back? It's really worrying," Evan said.
"Worrying won't help. Roland Lowell became Great General for a reason. Even if his strength hasn't recovered, he can still command and manage the big picture," Selena replied.
Evan glanced at the sky. "It'll be dark in two hours. If the convoy passes through here at night, ambushing them could get tricky."
"If I'm right, they won't show up until at least tomorrow before noon. Just focus on absorbing stellar power quietly. You're close to a breakthrough—more strength means more safety. Yuetian Wu himself will be escorting the Skyshaker Bombs, and I won't have time to protect you. He's a fifth-layer Divine Martial expert," Selena said.
Evan looked at Selena in surprise. "How confident are you about killing him?"
"You're worried about me?" Selena smiled.
"I guess I am. So, what's your confidence level?"
"A bit over sixty percent. If I kill him, I'll probably get hurt, but I won't die—so don't worry!" Selena smiled.
Hearing that, Evan finally relaxed. He pulled out two high-grade Starstones, sat down, and started absorbing their power...