Chapter 18: The Iron-Eating Beast of the Primordial World

Within a majestic, undulating mountain range, Tian Yuan emerged from a mountain peak.

Gazing at his surroundings, he wore a look of frustration: "Strange! I have been flying for over a hundred years, so why have I not encountered a single tribe of the Wu Clan?"

Some Wu people had already scouted Mount Buzhou, and this time, Tian Yuan intended to make his trip worthwhile before returning.

Who would have thought that after leaving Mount Buzhou and traveling along the way, aside from a few scattered small tribes at the beginning, he would gain nothing thereafter.

His cultivation level was not weak, and the Wu Clan possessed vigorous blood and Qi; even without fully releasing his Divine Sense, it was difficult for anything within a million miles to escape his perception.

Along the way, there were many fairly strong members of the Demon Race, yet in over a hundred years, he had not encountered a single member of the Wu Clan.

The Wu Clan lived in tribes; if no Wu people were out hunting, it was highly probable that there were no tribes nearby.

With a dark expression, he scanned his surroundings, yet Tian Yuan continued to fly straight ahead.

The Primordial World was too vast, so naturally, the probability of finding something was higher by searching in a straight line; otherwise, darting around aimlessly would only lead to missing them.

After flying for several more decades, Tian Yuan's eyes suddenly lit up.

Blood and Qi! The unique blood and Qi of the Wu Clan!

Tian Yuan's face was filled with joy, and with a 'whoosh', he streaked toward the northeast.

From afar, he saw dozens of Wu people in the forest below, sprinting while carrying the massive corpses of Demon Beasts.

Following the direction those Wu people were heading, Tian Yuan saw a vast expanse of crude stone houses. They were distributed across a boundless plain, stretching as far as the eye could see.

On the endless plain, stone pillars stood tall, piercing the sky; he estimated them to be hundreds of thousands of feet high.

Such a massive, magnificent altar—a large tribe, the largest Wu Clan tribe he had ever seen!

"Hoo!" Tian Yuan took a deep breath and hurriedly restrained his own aura, though a conjecture formed in his mind.

An Ancestral Witch tribe—this must be the tribe of the Ancestral Witch Houtu! This would also explain why there hadn't been a single small tribe nearby for such a long time.

Glancing at the several figures below, Tian Yuan suppressed the urge to capture them and flew toward the plain.

Houtu had gone to the Purple Heaven Palace, but there were still Great Witches left behind, the most familiar among them being Kuafu and Houyi.

The twelve Ancestral Witches were all still at the Great Luo Golden Immortal stage, and these Great Witches were likely around the Great Luo level as well—either at the peak of Taiyi Golden Immortal or just having entered the Great Luo stage.

Being merely a Taiyi Golden Immortal was fine, but if they were at the Great Luo level, that would be somewhat troublesome.

Over these past hundred years, he had cleared and purified two more Branch Veins, but he still had not broken through.

The gap between a Taiyi Golden Immortal and a Great Luo was far beyond his imagination.

More importantly, Houtu had truly gone to the Purple Heaven Palace, but the status of the other Ancestral Witches was unknown.

For safety's sake, it was better to be careful; if an Ancestral Witch were to suddenly pop out, that would be trouble.

Just as he neared the plain, Tian Yuan frowned, a trace of doubt in his eyes.

He had restrained his Divine Sense, but there was no need to scout the blood and Qi of the Wu Clan; one could feel a scorching heat from far away.

Upon getting closer, Tian Yuan did not detect many powerful fluctuations, and the Wu people entering and exiting the tribe gate were sparse and few.

"Could it be an empty shell?" Tian Yuan muttered, feeling something was amiss.

With a flash of his figure, he appeared within the tribe.

The surroundings were deathly quiet, which immediately made his expression extremely dejected.

Aside from the few Wu people walking on the path, many houses were simply empty, and Tian Yuan felt a sense of disappointment.

His Divine Sense spread rapidly underground, and it was just as he had thought.

The tribe stretched for hundreds of thousands of miles, yet the clansmen living within were few and far between, mostly concentrated in the center, numbering less than fifty thousand.

This number exceeded any tribe he had encountered earlier, but based on the scale of the tribe before him, there should definitely be no fewer than a million Wu people living here.

Without needing to think, these fellows had surely gone off to vie for supremacy in the Primordial World. There were many Wu people at the Taiyi Golden Immortal stage in the tribe, and there was even one at the peak of Taiyi Golden Immortal.

Although there was a small disappointment, Tian Yuan was still very happy.

Throughout the entire tribe, more than half of the Wu people were above the Golden Immortal stage, which could be considered a great harvest.

Tian Yuan, who had emerged from the earth, opened his mouth and spat, and immediately, rolling yellow dust surged out, rapidly permeating the tribe.

The sudden appearance of dust shocked the many Wu people, all of whom thought a Great Demon was attacking.

Amidst roars, a massive figure flew over from afar; it was precisely that Wu person at the peak of Taiyi Golden Immortal.

The opponent had a leopard's body and a human head, with six legs and a long tail dragging behind him—he was neither the giant Kuafu nor Houyi from his memories.

Tian Yuan, feeling slightly dejected, had no intention of stepping forward to fight.

A golden light flashed within the yellow dust, and before the Taiyi Golden Immortal peak Wu person could get close, he was already submerged within it.

With his Divine Sense shrouding the area, the entire tribe was under Tian Yuan's perception; not a single Wu person could escape.

The yellow, hazy dust rolled over, and all Wu people at or above the Golden Immortal stage were taken away.

"Eh!" Tian Yuan exclaimed in surprise, appearing at the altar in the very center.

On the open ground next to the pillar that stood like a Heavenly Pillar, a furry fellow was lying there.

The fellow was sprawled out in a pile of rubble, drooling while fast asleep, with half a broken stone still held in the corner of its mouth.

Those stones were colorful and shimmering with divine light; they were actually all rare treasures.

Tian Yuan naturally looked down on them, his gaze fixed tightly on the adorable little fellow.

An Iron-Eating Beast! He had been wondering just now how there could be the aura of the Demon Race in a Wu Clan tribe; he hadn't expected it to be this guy.

The Iron-Eating Beast, which was the panda, the national treasure of China in later generations.

Tian Yuan vaguely remembered that the Iron-Eating Beast seemed to be a pet kept by Houtu.

With such a huge commotion, this guy actually didn't have any reaction at all. It's good to have a big tree to lean on—having food and drink, and not a single sense of crisis.

The Iron-Eating Beast, which had been fast asleep, suddenly smacked its lips and flipped over abruptly.

Jumping up, it immediately widened its eyes and stared at Tian Yuan.

The drool that had been flung away began to flow again, and with its small eyes looking over intensely, a look of joy was clearly visible on its naive, adorable face.

"This simpleton isn't taking me for food, is he?" Meeting the opponent's gaze, Tian Yuan wore a strange expression.

Having consumed quite a few heavenly treasures over these years, his physical body is likely rare in the Primordial World.

Iron-Eating Beasts love to eat spirit iron and Spirit Stone; isn't he exactly its favorite?

Sure enough, that little fellow, only half a meter tall, immediately scrambled and pounced over.

Tian Yuan pursed his lips and swept it away with a wave of magic power.

Excited and thrilled, the Iron-Eating Beast kicked its four limbs wildly and immediately let out a low, roaring growl.

It is the favorite pet of the Ancestral Witch Houtu; no one has ever dared to treat it this way, let alone someone who is also food.

While still in mid-air, the Iron-Eating Beast already expanded rapidly, instantly transforming into several dozen zhang in height.

With a loud boom, it landed on the ground, its fur dancing wildly, radiating a surging Fierce Beast aura, and it also possessed the cultivation of the early stage of a Taiyi Golden Immortal.

Just a moment ago it looked adorable, but now it is like a Primordial Fierce Beast, ready to choose someone to devour.

This is the true Iron-Eating Beast of the Primordial World!

Looking at the fellow that was taller than him, Tian Yuan's eyes lit up, though this fellow did not seem to have clearly assessed the situation around it yet.

(End of this chapter)