Chapter 259: Uninvited Guest

'A Yu national?'

Li Rui's mind raced, and in an instant, he understood why the beasts had been moving north toward Yu.

'So who is that person?'

He had grasped the key to resolving this beast disturbance.

That was to find the Yu national and hand him over to appease the Beast Lord's wrath.

Beasts are not like humans.

Their hierarchy is utterly rigid; the Beast Lord holds a status in their hearts even higher than an emperor—just one word can make them act on instinct.

The kind that fear nothing, not even death.

Were it not for their inability to form formations like human armies, their power would far surpass that of any military force.

'Brother Li?'

Tan Hu stared at Li Rui, lost in thought, and called out.

The other soldiers all turned to look at Li Rui.

They did not understand beast speech, so naturally they had no idea what Li Rui had heard.

Li Rui snapped back to reality and called to his men: 'Clear the battlefield, resume patrol.'

A night of searching the mountains.

By the time Li Rui and his group reached the official road, daylight had fully broken.

Nearly half of them carried beast corpses—abundant spoils.

These were all military merits.

Moreover, beast bodies could be used in medicine; every part was precious.

The Anning Guard soldiers at the checkpoint watched Li Rui's group return, drooling with envy, wishing they were the ones carrying the beast corpses.

'Captain Li, back already?'

General Wang, hearing the commotion, stepped forward first to greet them.

Seeing Li Rui's achievements, he secretly admired him.

He had guarded this pass for over a decade; his most frequent encounters were not with humans, but with beasts—he understood better than most how formidable they were.

Li Rui had slain so many beasts in just one night—clear proof of his ability.

'General Wang.'

Li Rui smiled, glanced around, and noticed Jiang Lin's absence: 'Where's Master Jiang?'

General Wang explained: 'Master Jiang said he was going out to scout, then left the city.'

That was very much in keeping with Jiang Lin's elusive, unpredictable nature.

Though he was the army's commanding officer, Jiang Lin rarely led troops; he preferred acting alone most of the time.

That was the pride of the strong.

More importantly, the gap in strength was too great—ordinary soldiers were useless with him; it was simply more convenient to move alone.

Jiang Lin's strength meant Li Rui had no need to worry.

After giving instructions to Tan Hu, he chatted briefly with General Wang, then returned to the room prepared for him.

The fortress was roughly a thousand zhang square—not large.

To have even a single-room courtyard house was considered luxurious.

The two best rooms were naturally reserved for General Wang and Jiang Lin, but for Li Rui, it was more than enough.

Li Rui sat cross-legged on the bed.

He closed his eyes and began circulating his qi.

The cultivation he had missed last night had to be made up.

Time passed swiftly, day turned to night, night to day.

Li Rui, who had been lying with eyes closed and steady breathing, opened his eyes.

'Someone's here!'

Outside the room, an extremely faint footstep sounded.

'A master.'

The footsteps were so light they made almost no sound—but Li Rui's senses far exceeded those of ordinary men, allowing him to hear them and wake from his dream.

Li Rui rose from the bed with slow, quiet movements.

This was a frontier town of Yu—what thief would dare sneak in under cover of night to commit violence? Had he eaten bear's heart and leopard's gall?

Just as the figure outside used true qi to unlatch the door—

Li Rui's right hand shot out like a hawk's talon toward the doorway.

His palm had precisely gripped the person's neck, ready to crush their windpipe—

When he clearly saw the face at the door, his grip loosened.

'Miss Xia?'

Li Rui's eyes widened.

He never imagined the person sneaking into his room was the Wu boy, Xia Xiaotang.

'Wasn't she under house arrest?'

Xia Xiaotang was also startled by Li Rui's sudden strike.

But soon her big eyes sparkled with excitement.

'The Beast God has grown stronger—could it be the Soul-Returning Pill I gave him awakened his past memories?'

'Beast God, I've finally met you.'

Xia Xiaotang's long eyelashes fluttered, her face filled with worship.

Li Rui's expression turned odd: 'Miss Xia, weren't you under house arrest? How did you get here?'

Xia Xiaotang: 'I heard the Beast God was here, so I came specially.'

'.'

Li Rui: 'Then why didn't you use the front gate?'

Xia Xiaotang blushed: 'I actually sneaked out—if anyone found out, the Grand Witch would drag me back.'

'Never mind that.'

'Beast God, can the Soul-Returning Pill help you awaken your past memories?'

She had traveled thousands of li from the Wu imperial capital to sneak here—wasn't that precisely to ask this question?

At the mention of the Soul-Returning Pill, Li Rui's face flushed.

He felt the guilt of tricking a little girl out of candy.

He straightened his expression and decided to stop hiding: 'Miss Xia, I need to tell you something—I am not the reincarnation of the Beast God, nor do I have any past memories.'

Xia Xiaotang froze.

'Not the Beast God?'

Then her face twisted in confusion: 'But if you're not the Beast God, how could I—'

She trailed off, frowning as she pondered.

She recalled the scene in Qinghe.

She had been certain Li Rui was the Beast God's reincarnation because her bonded beast, the Azure-Eyed Golden Beast, had sensed on him an incomparable, terrifying aura—one only the legendary Beast God could possess.

That was why she had been so certain.

Xia Xiaotang was no fool; otherwise, the Grand Witch would never have taken her as a disciple.

On the contrary, she was very intelligent.

She looked at Li Rui again, her eyes now wary, stepping half a pace back.

Seeing this,

Li Rui had already prepared.

He had dared to reveal this to Xia Xiaotang today precisely because he had long prepared for it—did he really think he'd done nothing to respond to the Beast God reincarnation rumors while she was under house arrest?

Li Rui never acted on impulse.

Everything he did was planned long in advance.

He had originally intended to tell her when she came to Qinghe; since they met now, he saw no reason to continue deceiving her.

'No.'

'No.'

Xia Xiaotang murmured softly, repeating 'no' twice.

As Li Rui waited quietly for her inner struggle to resolve—

Xia Xiaotang suddenly lifted her head.

'He is a true genius!'

The Beast God was a beast who became a deity, but before becoming a beast immortal, it was merely an ordinary beast—rising step by step through cultivation.

Once it became a deity, there was no longer any distinction between beast and human.

If Li Rui was not the Beast God, the only possible reason his bonded beast trembled was this—he possessed the potential of a Beast God!

As the Grand Witch's disciple, she had seen many geniuses.

Yet even the Grand Witch herself did not radiate such terrifying potential as Li Rui.

'Though not the Beast God's reincarnation, this man has extraordinary talent—he might truly become a deity.'

'It's definitely a good idea to befriend him.'

Xia Xiaotang made up her mind.

She was utterly confident about it—everyone in the capital knew Xia Xiaotang had plenty of friends.

Li Rui spoke up: 'Miss Xia, I know the Soul-Nourishing Pill is priceless; I will repay you to the best of my ability.'

Before he finished speaking,

Xia Xiaotang waved her hand dismissively: 'It's just a pill—ate it, that's all.'

As she gestured, she secretly gloated.

'The Great Witch said, making friends starts with not being stingy.'

Li Rui blinked in surprise. That was a Soul-Nourishing Great Pill—she just gave it away like that? Even the Great Witch might not be this generous. He couldn't help repeating: 'Miss Xia, I really am not the Beast God.'

Xia Xiaotang beamed: 'I know! The Great Witch told me to be generous with friends—now we're friends!'

'Friends.'

Li Rui looked bewildered.

If the Great Witch knew his disciple had given away a Soul-Nourishing Great Pill just to make friends, what would he think?

'Fine, an age-gap friendship it is.'

After all, when you've eaten someone's food, you can't be rude.

Xia Xiaotang changed the subject:

'Senior Li, what are you doing here?'

Li Rui: 'Miss Xia, haven't you heard about the beast tide?'

Xia Xiaotang thought for a moment, then nodded: 'I heard about it a few days ago—the old river dragon from the Ten Thousand Mountains caused it.'

In one look/

'Old river dragon?'

Li Rui narrowed his eyes slightly.

He had heard rumors of that old dragon.

'In the Ten Thousand Mountains lurks a wicked dragon; beyond a hundred li, the scent of blood tide spreads.'

The old dragon was well-known in Yunzhou's martial circles—a terrestrial immortal-level dragon, immensely powerful, the undisputed overlord of a thousand li, with many beasts of the Ten Thousand Mountains under his command.

No wonder the beast tide was so massive.

Xia Xiaotang: 'Dealing with that old dragon would be tricky.'

Li Rui: 'Thank you for the information, Miss Xia.'

'Just call me Xiaotang.'

'Hmm, alright.'

Li Rui had no intention of confronting the old dragon himself, but now that he understood the situation, at least a solution had become possible.

'So who exactly is that person?'

Li Rui looked earnestly at Xia Xiaotang:

'Xiaotang, I need you to help me with something.'

Witch Nation, Imperial City.

Black Crystal Palace.

'Great Witch, Xia Xiaotang has left the capital and is now at Yugu Pass.'

A man clad in beast-hide robes spoke.

'Hmm, good.'

A weary voice echoed from deep within the palace.

The Great Witch sat silently atop a stone dais.

Xia Xiaotang thought she had slipped away unnoticed, but everything had been under her Great Witch master's control all along—her departure from the capital had been orchestrated by him.

Li Rui.

Falling in love?

The Great Witch naturally didn't believe Xia Xiaotang's claim.

He had already sent people to investigate Li Rui—he was nearly eighty. How could Xia Xiaotang possibly be smitten?

He knew his disciple well.

Giving away a Soul-Nourishing Great Pill must have a reason.

Xia Xiaotang was not frivolous or easily deceived—there had to be a reason. And her companion beast was the Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast, which could pierce illusions and possessed immense fortune.

He simply wanted to see what kind of person could make his disciple willingly give away a Soul-Nourishing Great Pill—and even help an outsider deceive him, her own master.

Of course,

if she'd truly been tricked, he wouldn't mind taking it back.

How would he reclaim it?

Refine it again.

A look of melancholy crossed the Great Witch's bark-like face:

'Daughters grow up and leave.'

Deep in the Ten Thousand Mountains.

Li Rui stared at the tiny, furry creature in Xia Xiaotang's palm—no bigger than a palm, resembling a puppy.

'This is the Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast?'

Xia Xiaotang nodded.

So small?

Li Rui grew even more curious.

The Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast, in terms of bloodline, was among the highest-tier creatures in all beastkind—nearly royal.

Then, something astonishing happened.

The creature leapt from Xia Xiaotang's palm—and the moment it touched the ground, it surged upward with the wind, growing rapidly until it reached a zhang in height.

Cute puppy?

A legendary beast of terror!

Its dominant aura made Li Rui's breath catch.

Xia Xiaotang patted the Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast's belly proudly: 'Xiaoqing, your turn now.'

Finished speaking.

She and Li Rui slipped into the distant forest to hide.

The Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast let out a thunderous roar—part lion, part tiger, majestic and solemn.

'Will it really come?'

Li Rui looked curiously at Xia Xiaotang.

The task he'd asked her to perform was to lure out the young dragon.

Not out of malice—simply to learn the truth. No one knew better than the young dragon what had truly happened.

Better to ask the source directly than speculate.

As the Great Witch's disciple, Xia Xiaotang had wide connections, so he'd merely hoped for a chance—and hadn't expected she'd confidently assured him it was no problem.

Now he saw her confidence came from her companion beast.

'Senior, don't worry—Xiaoqing is of the Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast royal bloodline, superior to that young dragon. They have some ties.'

Li Rui's brow lifted slightly.

The Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast was already remarkable—but with 'royal bloodline' added, it was extraordinary.

According to Dao Mo's words,

in southern Witch Nation, a beast overlord was none other than the Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast.

Presumably, Xia Xiaotang's companion Xiaoqing was the offspring of that royal Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast.

'What a terrifying background.'

Her master was the Great Witch; her companion beast's father was a beast lord—in Witch Nation, she could walk with impunity.

Xia Xiaotang had not told Li Rui

that she had bonded with Xiaoqing by chance, and only then had the Great Witch taken notice.

Not because she was of royal blood and received special treatment.

She hadn't lied.

She truly was just an obscure branch member of the Witch Nation's imperial clan.

There were countless such clan members in Witch Nation.

The Witch Emperor's lineage had endured ten thousand years—three out of ten Witch Nation citizens could claim imperial blood in their ancestry. Nothing unusual.

One hour passed.

'Could the young dragon have left?'

Xia Xiaotang stared at the silent forest, her confidence wavering.

She'd just sworn it up and down.

Just as she began doubting herself,

A shadow fell from the horizon.

A dragon, three zhang long, covered in white scales and bearing wings, appeared before the Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast.

Roar!

A sound like thunder exploded from the young dragon's mouth.

"Here it comes!"

Li Rui and Xia Xiaotang immediately perked up.

The Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast began chatting back and forth.

Xia Xiaotang stole a glance at Li Rui beside her.

She was secretly astonished.

"He can understand too?"

She could understand because her bond with the companion beast, the Azure Water Golden-Eyed Beast, was strong, and the companion beast's bloodline was sufficiently dominant.

In the entire Wu Nation, those who could communicate with beast spirits were exceedingly rare.

"He has no companion beast—how is he doing this?"

"No wonder he possesses the potential of the Beast God!"

Li Rui, standing beside them, listened intently to the beasts' conversation, unaware of Xia Xiaotang's gaze.

Soon,

his eyes narrowed slightly.

A name surfaced in his mind.

Duan Yu!

(End of Chapter)