Chapter 139: The Bargain of Beasts and Blood
With the help of mental detection, Xiao Qiang quickly grasped the unfolding events.
He saw Xuan Lao gripping the head of the auspicious beast tightly with one hand, clearly prepared to kill it at any moment to create a soul ring for one of his students. At the same time, he was swatting the Red King away with the other hand, sending the powerful soul beast scrambling in terror, unable to even tend to his own injuries.
"Stop! Don't kill the auspicious beast! We can negotiate!" the Red King roared, desperation cracking through his voice. "If you want a 100,000-year soul beast, we can provide one. But if you kill the auspicious beast, the entire Star Dou Great Forest will rise in war against Shrek!"
Hearing this, Xuan Lao's grip on the beast loosened slightly, but he still held the creature in firm control.
Originally, Xuan Lao had planned to obtain the fifth soul ring for one of Shrek's students and treat himself to a snack while he was at it. But he hadn't expected the random soul beast he captured to hold such significance. For the Red King to offer a 100,000-year soul beast in exchange… that spoke volumes. It made him pause.
If this beast was valuable enough to trade for a 100,000-year soul beast, then perhaps killing it would be a waste.
Not to mention the Red King's threat—just the potential trade itself showed how precious the auspicious beast was. It would be unreasonable to give such a treasure to a mere Level-50 student like Li Ming, despite his potential.
"You can really give me a 100,000-year soul beast?" Xuan Lao asked coldly, still gripping the beast as he cast a threatening glance at the Red King.
The Red King gritted his teeth. "Yes."
"Good. Then bring me a 100,000-year soul beast. But let me be clear—don't you dare give me some low-tier bloodline trash. I won't accept it. Also, fetch me a 15,000-year high-grade fire-attribute beast. One of my students needs it."
The Red King glared at Xuan Lao, fury boiling in his eyes, but ultimately nodded under the weight of the situation. "Fine. But you must not harm the auspicious beast!"
"Hmph. Go fetch my beasts, then!" Xuan Lao scoffed.
With clenched fists, the Red King turned and dashed toward the core region of the Star Dou Great Forest, clearly heading off to hunt down the requested soul beasts.
Watching him leave, the Snow Empress snapped in frustration, "Useless fool! What was that idiot Di Tian thinking, letting the Emperor's auspicious beast fall into this mess?"
She looked ready to attack Xuan Lao herself, but at this moment, the beast was still in the man's grasp. The situation was delicate.
"Calm down, Snow Empress," Xiao Qiang said, stepping forward. "Anger won't help us now. Tell me—is there anything that could make the auspicious beast see me as an ally? Something that could prevent it from resisting me?"
The Snow Empress narrowed her eyes. "Why do you ask?"
"Because if there is, I might be able to save it."
…
After the Red King left, Xuan Lao turned his attention back to the auspicious beast.
"You damned human!" the beast spat. "Dare to hurt me? You'll suffer a horrible death and endless misfortune!"
Xuan Lao chuckled darkly and pressed the beast's head into the dirt, forcing it to eat several mouthfuls of soil.
"Threaten me again?" he mocked. "Even though it's my first time seeing a creature like you, I know your type."
"You just have some ancient bloodline. All you can do is influence spiritual energy with your aura. This 'auspicious' title is a joke."
"You still think you can bring misfortune upon us? Don't make me laugh. I could torture you to death right now. Those so-called 'vicious beasts' treat you like a treasure? Please. If I kill you, they might retaliate. But if you stay alive, they'll back down."
"Don't think you're special. Those beasts that have cultivated for hundreds of thousands of years see you as a tool. That 'Emperor's Auspicious Beast' title? It's just for show. You should know your place."
"You… you're lying!" the three-eyed golden lion protested, but its voice faltered—Xuan Lao's psychological manipulation was taking effect.
Xuan Lao sneered. "Lying? I'm being generous. If your value ends, or if your meat granted immortality, those same beasts would devour you without hesitation."
He waved Huo Yuhao over.
"Xuan Lao, you called me?" Huo Yuhao asked, unsure of the situation.
"I've been enjoying my meals lately. So I'll give you an opportunity. Place your forehead against the third eye of this creature. Don't worry—it won't resist with me here."
"No! Absolutely not!" the three-eyed golden lion screamed and thrashed wildly, but Xuan Lao's grip suppressed it completely. The beast was powerless.
Attribute traction was a taboo for the auspicious beast. In the original storyline, if it had the power to resist, it would have chosen suicide without hesitation rather than be bonded through such force.
But this wasn't the original tale anymore.
As Xuan Lao pressed the beast firmly, not even giving it a chance to die, his vision suddenly blurred. A moment of trance overtook him—and in the next instant, he found himself in a completely different location.
This lapse was caused by Xiao Qiang's full-force mental impact, and in that split-second opening, he used Xuanming Replacement to swap places.
Though Xiao Qiang was still far below Xuan Lao in raw strength, the second awakening of his martial soul and buffs like Wangchuan Qiushuilu had propelled his spiritual power far beyond the average Spirit Douluo. He was now on par with the lower-tier Spiritual Title Douluo.
With that level of spiritual might, and the assistance of Tianmeng's million-year soul skill Mental Impact, Xiao Qiang had succeeded in his goal—not to injure Xuan Lao, but to create a critical moment of distraction for his escape plan.
In the instant the replacement occurred, Xiao Qiang appeared beside the three-eyed golden lion. With the beast's senses now free from suppression and overwhelmed by Xiao Qiang's aura—powerful and unmistakably beast-like—it instinctively recognized the figure beside it as an ally, a fellow soul beast.
Realizing that Xuan Lao had vanished, the suppression gone, and now facing an aura only slightly weaker than Di Tian's, the three-eyed golden lion understood.
Without hesitation, it turned toward Huo Yuhao, opened its maw, and unleashed a devastating beam of Extreme Light and Extreme Fire.
Caught off guard, Huo Yuhao couldn't react in time. But fortunately, the spirit in his mind—Alex—intervened. By sheer luck, his soul bone skill happened to be Invincible Golden Body. The attack hit, knocking him flying, but he remained unharmed.
Sensing that the auspicious beast was no longer in his hands, and the intense beast aura closing in, Xuan Lao's face changed. Something was wrong.
Wasting no time, he lunged forward, seized Huo Yuhao, and activated his soul bone ability to dive underground and escape.
His priority now was simple: protect Huo Yuhao. The mission couldn't afford another failure.
As for the rest of Shrek…