Chapter 1176: 【Island Storm】 (Part 1)

Hu Xiaotian never expected the situation to change like this; looking up, he saw a giant crossbow set up on the opposite cliff, and the pirates guarding it, seeing the flying eagle about to flee, decisively shot an arrow that hit its target.

The flying eagle that came to rescue let out a mournful cry; having already seen from above what was happening below, grief and concern for its companion had robbed it of reason, and it recklessly dove down from the sky.

Hu Xiaotian's flying eagle was ambushed again; without hesitation, he charged up and slaughtered the six pirates preparing the bird-catching net, then quickly approached the giant crossbow.

Luo Qianfu focused all his attention on the flying eagle in the sky, completely missing Hu Xiaotian, the spy hidden beside him, and shouted, "Get ready to launch the net!" He strode over to the fallen flying eagle, snatched out the spear lodged in its wing, looked up, and saw the eagle swooping down at astonishing speed, plummeting like a black meteor.

A bolt of lightning twisted across the night sky, illuminating Luo Qianfu's ferocious, ugly face; in the flash, he raised his spear and stabbed the flying eagle again, and the dying eagle lifted its head and let out a sorrowful cry.

The flying eagle in the air responded with an angry cry; Hu Xiaotian had already sneaked to the giant crossbow's position, seeing the archer re‑nock the bolt and aim at the eagle in the sky.

Luo Qianfu said, "You must not harm its life!" Before he finished speaking, he thrust again, and the eagle cried out once more; he wasn't trying to kill it outright, but kept torturing the dying eagle to lure the sky‑borne eagle to come rescue it.

Seeing this, Hu Xiaotian felt his eyes almost burst; such a vicious Beast Tamer was rare among humans, his heart too cruel. This man deserved death, so Hu Xiaotian rushed forward, covered the archer's mouth with one hand and stabbed a dagger into his back, the archer letting out no sound before Hu Xiaotian killed him.

Luo Qianfu was normally vigilant, but tonight's wind and rain were too strong, severely interfering with his situational awareness, and with all his attention fixed on the flying eagle in the sky, he failed to notice the changes around him.

Hu Xiaotian set up the giant crossbow, aimed at Luo Qianfu's back, and swore, "Damn it, today let you taste what it's like to be pierced in the chest by a bolt."

Luo Qianfu didn't know that the ambushers around him had all been killed by Hu Xiaotian; he watched the flying eagle draw nearer, breaking through the wind and rain to swoop down. Excitement and greed gleamed in his eyes as he shouted, "Get ready to launch the net!" After speaking, he realized there was no response, sensed something wrong, looked up and saw that the ambush site was empty. He turned behind him, seeing only Yang Yuan following him, then looked toward the crossbow position and spotted a dark shadow guarding it. The night rain was fierce, showing only a blurry silhouette; he could not make out the face.

Luo Qianfu shouted, "Unless absolutely necessary, you must not harm its life!" He sent Yang Yuan to check the net‑launching spot, then pulled something from his waist.

At that moment the flying eagle had swooped down; Luo Qianfu hurled the object in his hand onto the dying eagle. With a puff, green phosphorescent fire ignited on its body, the eagle struggled in the flames, becoming a huge burning firebird that flapped and twitched in the storm.

Seeing this, the flying eagle in the air issued a series of mournful howls.

Hu Xiaotian, furious beyond restraint, aimed at Luo Qianfu's back and pulled the trigger; with a bang, the bowstring thundered, and the giant bolt shot toward Luo Qianfu like a chasing wind.

Although Luo Qianfu did not turn, the bowstring's bang made his heart leap; acting on instinct, he shifted right, and that movement let him escape death—the giant bolt grazed his left side, flew on, and smashed heavily into the opposing boulder, its tip sinking deep into the rock; on impact sparks flew.

At the same moment Yang Yuan's terrified cry rang out—he had just discovered his companion's corpse.

Hu Xiaotian cursed his missed shot, his body having completed the Tendon Changing Bone Shifting as he fired the bolt; his visage shifted again, now appearing as a hunchback, he tapped his toe and leapt from the boulder, swooping straight at Luo Qianfu.

Luo Qianfu saw a hunchback wearing his own attendant's garb appear before him, feeling quite surprised; he did not think this was the human bait he had just captured, nor connect it to Hu Xiaotian, and judging by the opponent's approach he deemed their martial skill extraordinary, letting out a beast‑like howl from his throat.

From the Flying Fish Cave rushed four huge mastiffs, followed by a black‑blanket of bats.

Hu Xiaotian had long heard from Xia Zhangming that Luo Qianfu was a top‑rank Beast Tamer, so he was mentally prepared; his killing intent was clear—first eliminate Luo Qianfu, and the beasts under his control would naturally scatter.

Those mastiffs could not reach the airborne Hu Xiaotian on the ground for a while, but the bat swarm came from all directions, blocking his path; he drew his waist‑worn soft sword and unleashed the Spirit Snake Nine Swords given to him by Sumitian—sword light flared, instantly wrapping his body in an impervious luminous shield; bats that neared him were cut down at once, blood spraying and shrieks unceasing.

Luo Qianfu seized the chance to flee far away, while at that moment the flying eagle swooped down from the sky, its talons lunging for his face.

Luo Qianfu remained calm, launching a pellet into the air; with a pop it exploded before the eagle, a blinding yellow light like lightning flashed, the eagle's vision was blinded for a short time, and Luo Qianfu continued fleeing toward the right‑front.

After the brief blindness, the eagle swiftly recovered its sight, let out a long cry, and resumed its pursuit of Luo Qianfu.

Hu Xiaotian was forced to the ground by the overwhelming bat swarm; although he had sliced through a large number, their endless influx severely slowed his advance.

A mastiff lunged from the side; Hu Xiaotian timed a kick to its belly, sending it flying like a kicked ball into the still‑burning eagle, the mastiff yelped and green phosphoric fire also ignited on its body.

Hu Xiaotian saw Luo Qianfu already over twenty zhang ahead, the eagle still doggedly chasing him from behind, clearly blinded by hatred and craving revenge. Hu Xiaotian muttered, "Not good," thinking Luo Qianfu, sly and treacherous, surely had more traps; if the eagle kept chasing, it might fall into one. Unfortunately, Hu Xiaotian couldn't speak bird‑language to warn the furious eagle, so the only option was to rush forward quickly and kill Luo Qianfu early to thwart his plot. Hu Xiaotian flashed two swords, slaying more than ten bats, surrounded himself with sword light, leapt into the air, and dove forward using the Art of Soaring.

As the eagle neared Luo Qianfu, he suddenly stopped, grabbed a rope on a nearby tree, and the large net previously hidden there unfurled from above the treetops, blanketing the sky and ensnaring the eagle; the eagle, focused only on killing Luo Qianfu for revenge, ultimately fell into his trap.

But as the saying goes, "the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind," Hu Xiaotian had already closed in; Luo Qianfu snapped, "Hunchback! Who are you? Why do you oppose me?"

Hu Xiaotian snorted coldly, "The one who will take your life!" He shook his soft sword, which writhed like a spirit snake as he thrust toward Luo Qianfu's chest; Luo Qianfu's throat bellowed continuously, and two mastiffs that had climbed the cliff leapt down from the top, their gaping jaws lunging at Hu Xiaotian.

Hu Xiaotian glanced at the mastiffs, his soft sword slashing back and forth, two icy sword qi burst forth, cleaving the airborne mastiffs at the waist.

Seeing Hu Xiaotian's extraordinary valor, Luo Qianfu sucked in a cold breath, astonished that this person had reached the point of projecting sword qi; he no longer dared to linger in battle, turned and darted into the cave ahead.

Hu Xiaotian did not give chase right away; instead he cut the net and released the eagle, whose neck was missing a ring of feathers—clearly the same one he had encountered in the air earlier.

The eagle was quite perceptive; knowing Hu Xiaotian meant it no harm, and seeing its companion now reduced to a charred corpse after the phosphoric fire burned out, it let out a mournful cry.

Hu Xiaotian said, "Hurry up and leave! His reinforcements will be here soon!"

The eagle seemed to understand Hu Xiaotian's words; at that moment a large flock of bats pursued from the sky, the eagle flapped its wings and charged at them, emitting shrill cries; the bat swarm, intimidated by the eagle's aura, abandoned attack and fled in disarray, the eagle rose three zhang, then dove down, seized the mastiff gnawing on a corpse on the ground, and with powerful talons tore it in half.

In the distance, torches flickered like stars approaching; they must be other pirates rushing over after hearing the news.

Hu Xiaotian quietly slipped aside, took a small bottle from his person, poured out a pill and put it in his mouth—this was the Scent‑masking Pill given by Xia Zhangming, whose effect is to prevent animal tracking for a short time after ingestion and conceal one's scent. Then Hu Xiaotian restored his appearance and features to how they looked when he entered the Flying Fish Cave.

Not long after, over twenty pirates arrived at the Flying Fish Cave; their leader was a tall, purple‑faced man—Qin Dongluo, the Third Chief of Python Flood Island known as the Purple‑faced Yaksha. Being closest to Luo Qianfu, he rushed over at the first sign of disturbance, saw corpses strewn everywhere, frowned, and bellowed, "Search carefully—see if anyone is still alive!" (To be continued~^~)