Chapter 15: The Scarlet Fire Demon Ape

Ju Niao Mu Qin was deep in thought, trying to devise a plan to escape, when suddenly, a rustling sound came from the bushes not far away, as if some massive creature were approaching.

"Oh no! Those feathered beasts have caught up!"

Ju Niao Mu Qin exclaimed in alarm; a sharp pain shot through the wound on her wing, but she endured the discomfort, preparing to flee once more with her two children.

Zhang Yi also clenched his fists nervously, ready to deal with the sudden danger at any moment.

However, before they could even act, a fiery red figure suddenly lunged out from the bushes and headed straight for Zhang Yi.

"What the hell! What is that?!"

Zhang Yi was startled and instinctively dodged backward.

Looking closely, he discovered it was an ape with a body of fiery red, taller than he was, and radiating a scorching aura.

After this ape reached Zhang Yi's side, it did not launch an attack; instead, it rubbed against him very affectionately, like a large dog begging for attention.

"This..."

Zhang Yi was completely bewildered; what was going on?

Ju Niao Mu Qin, off to the side, was also stunned. She recognized this ape: a Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai!

This was a hegemon of the forest, a notorious and ruthless character!

Yet the one before them was clearly much smaller than an adult Chi Huo Mo Yuan; it looked like it hadn't reached maturity yet.

"Chi... Chi Huo Mo Yuan?!"

Ju Niao Mu Qin cried out, hurriedly blocking Zhang Yi's path, as if facing a formidable enemy.

Although this was only a cub, the Chi Huo Mo Yuan possessed innate Divine Power; even if it wasn't an adult, it was not something she could handle in her severely wounded state.

However, the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai showed no hostility, continuing to rub affectionately against Zhang Yi's body and emitting low "woo-woo" whimpers, as if trying to please him.

Zhang Yi also gradually relaxed; although this little guy looked fierce, it didn't seem to have any malicious intent.

He tentatively reached out his claw and patted the head of the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai; it felt warm to the touch, and the furry sensation was actually quite comfortable.

"This little guy seems to really like you."

Seeing that the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai had no intention of attacking, Ju Niao Mu Qin also slowly set her mind at ease.

"It might have been attracted by the fire-attribute aura on your body."

"Fire-attribute aura?"

Zhang Yi was taken aback, then immediately realized that he had previously awakened the Jinwu bloodline, which inherently gave his body some fire-attribute energy.

Coupled with the devouring ability brought to him by the system.

Now, even without deliberate cultivation, he could unconsciously devour various energies from the surrounding air for his own use.

Just as he was thinking this, Ju Niao Mu Qin spoke up again: "It looks like when we were fleeing earlier, we must have accidentally trespassed into the territory of the Chi Huo Mo Yuan, and this little guy likely mistook you for one of its own kind."

Ju Niao Mu Qin explained, "Although the Chi Huo Mo Yuan are fierce, they are very dependent on their elders during their cub stage; this little guy must have taken you as someone to rely on."

"So that's it."

Zhang Yi suddenly understood; no wonder this little guy was so affectionate toward him.

Upon learning that the massive creature before him had no ill intent, Zhang Yi became bolder and began to interact with the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai.

He gently patted the cub's head and scratched its chin, making it giggle with delight.

After the human and the ape had played for a while, the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai suddenly jumped up in excitement and accidentally bumped into Ju Niao Mu Qin's wing.

"Hiss—"

Ju Niao Mu Qin gasped in pain as the wound on her wing flared up again, and fresh blood seeped out.

"Mother!"

Seeing this, Zhang Yi felt heartbroken.

He hurriedly supported Ju Niao Mu Qin, his gaze falling on her bloody wound, and a surge of anger welled up in his heart.

"Damn those feathered beasts, they really struck hard!"

Zhang Yi cursed through gritted teeth.

He suddenly remembered that since he could devour energy, perhaps he could use this ability to help his mother heal.

No sooner thought than done, Zhang Yi placed his hand gently on his mother's wound, mobilized the faint devouring power within his body, and began to slowly channel energy toward the bird's wound.

As a strange energy flowed from the wound into Zhang Yi's body, he felt his own strength increase slightly.

At the same time, he noticed that the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai nearby was staring at him intently, its eyes revealing a trace of longing.

A thought stirred in Zhang Yi's heart: could this little guy also want to absorb this kind of energy?

He attempted to guide the devouring power to absorb the fire-attribute energy from the surrounding environment, convert it into pure energy, and feed it back to the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai.

Feeling this energy, the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai chirped excitedly, opened its mouth, and greedily absorbed the energy Zhang Yi had converted.

As it absorbed the energy, the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai's body grew slightly larger, and its strength also improved to a certain extent.

Because of this, it became even more affectionate toward Zhang Yi, constantly rubbing against him and making happy sounds.

Seeing this scene, Ju Niao Mu Qin felt both amazed and comforted.

She realized that this child of hers seemed to have even more potential than she had anticipated.

Perhaps this would be the hope for their family of three to survive in this cruel world...

Just then, a low roar came from the depths of the forest, shaking the ground until it trembled slightly.

The Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai suddenly stopped playing, pricked up its ears, and looked in the direction the sound came from.

The roaring grew closer, carrying a heart-palpitating pressure that even made Ju Niao Mu Qin tremble and emit an uneasy cry.

Zhang Yi hurriedly comforted his mother and the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai, looking vigilantly toward the direction of the sound.

"Roar—!"

Amidst a deafening roar, a giant ape, several times larger than the previous Chi Huo Mo Yuan, charged out from the dense forest.

Its entire body was burning with raging flames, and a pair of scarlet eyes stared fixedly at Zhang Yi and Ju Niao Mu Qin, filled with undisguised killing intent.

"The parent of this Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai has come looking! We're in trouble now!"

Ju Niao Mu Qin exclaimed, her eyes filled with despair.

"Squeak, squeak, squeak!"

After seeing the fiery red figure clearly, the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai immediately began to call out in excitement.

It struggled, wanting to run to the side of the giant ape, but was grabbed by Zhang Yi.

"Little guy, don't go over there, it's dangerous!"

Zhang Yi said in a low voice.

Seeing that its offspring was actually staying with a strange bird, the giant ape was instantly consumed by rage; it let out a roar and swung its massive fist, smashing toward Zhang Yi.

"You're courting death!"

A cold glint flashed in Zhang Yi's eyes; although he was still very weak right now, it did not mean he would sit and wait for death.

He threw the Chi Huo Mo Yuan You Zai onto the back of Ju Niao Mu Qin and charged forward to meet the giant ape's attack.

"Taotie Feast!"

"Three Thousand Blazing Flames!"

Zhang Yi let out a low growl, the energy within his body circulating frantically as the surrounding fire-attribute energy surged into him like a tide.

He felt his strength rising rapidly, but facing this adult Chi Huo Mo Yuan with its terrifying strength, this bit of improvement was still a drop in the bucket.

"Boom!"

The giant ape's fist smashed fiercely into Zhang Yi, directly blasting him away.

"Pfft—"

Zhang Yi spat out a mouthful of blood, feeling as if every bone in his body had fallen apart; the pain was excruciating.

But he could not care about the injuries on his body; he struggled, wanting to crawl up, but discovered the giant ape had already closed in before his eyes, its scarlet pupils burning with rage, filled with mockery and disdain.

"Little beast, you dare to hurt my child; I will tear you into ten thousand pieces!"