Leo's golden eyes shone bright as he observed with interest his two disciples fighting each other. No movement could escape his all encompassing gaze. From a leaf drifting miles away to the faintest twitch before an attack, it was as if he could glimpse the very threads of the future.
Leo, as a beast himself, had now two disciples. It wasn't his first time as a teacher actually. For centuries in the Celestial Star Sect, he had taught techniques to countless students. Yet, just like his master, he had never taken a true disciple before, just a few followers but after they-
Leo shook his head, physically rattling the ancient, heavy memories away before they could cloud his mind. He focused back on the arena.
They were currently at the back of the white castle where an arena had been carved into the landscape. Massive walls, reinforced by Leo's own Qi, stretched for miles, protecting a town that currently housed only three residents: a red-haired man of divine origins, a lion with a mane like a dying sun, and a wolf with fur as bright as polished silver.
The arena was vast, designed to fit a thousand warriors side by side. The floor wasn't made of common dirt but of polished dark wood, its grain shimmering with an ancient energy, reminiscent of a legendary Japanese dojo from a forgotten era.
The air was still — until…
*CRASH!*
A sharp crack split the silence as an ice dart smashed into the stone wall, scattering shards like frozen rain. Chiyo-Saja had dodged the silver wolf's long-range strike by a hair's breadth.
Leo's disciples circled each other, tension coiling between them
On one side stood the lion—a towering figure over two meters tall. Opposite him was the newborn silver wolf. She was only half his size, yet she radiated a fierce, wild aura that filled the arena.
Even in this new world of "mutated beasts," these two were far from ordinary. Both carried faint traces of bloodlines from the primordial world that the unknown god once tried to forge. Because of this heritage, they grew faster, struck harder, and learned skills that others simply could not comprehend.
Mutated Animals, Beasts, Demonic Beasts—whatever people chose to call them— learned to fight and harness Qi through pure instinct, unlike humans. Even so, Leo was still able to teach them a thing or two as they developed their intelligence.
The silver wolf paced in a slow circle, her blue eyes locked onto her prey. Every step was measured and careful. She knew she was at a disadvantage against her stronger senior, but she wasn't going to give up without a fight.
The standoff didn't last long.
With a deep, rumbling growl, Chiyo-Saja lost his patience. His jaws parted wide, and a torrent of blazing flames burst forth. The fire roared across the wooden floor toward the smaller wolf.
The wolf was fast to react and immediately slammed its front paws onto the wooden floor, summoning a shimmering wall of ice before it. The barrier hissed under the assault, steam rising as the flames began to melt it away.
The difference in power was obvious. The wolf's ice wall wouldn't last more than a few seconds.
Any human cultivator watching this would have been frozen in shock. Not only was a lion spewing fire hot enough to char a man to ash, but his strength matched that of a Sixth Stage Body Tempering cultivator. Even more frightening was the silver wolf; barely a month old, she already possessed the strength of the Fourth Stage!
"Don't open your mouth so wide!" Leo barked, his golden eyes narrowing. "The flames won't hurt your tongue! But when you telegraph your move like that, your junior knows exactly what's coming. She can dodge you with ease!"
The ice wall shattered into mist. Flames roared through the spot where the wolf had been standing just moments ago. But before Chiyo-Saja could savor his attack, his junior was already on his left side. She had used the ice and steam as cover, slipping away the moment the lion got distracted.
The smaller beast lunged, fangs bared for the lion's neck. But Chiyo was still the stronger fighter. He reacted at the last moment, swiping her aside with a heavy right paw.
"Good, good…"Leo complied, but his tone and his face showed otherwise."If she were as strong as you, you'd be dead right now, Chiyo."
"Grrraw…" The Lion grumbled and lowered his head, dejected. His once majestic presence fading slightly as he felt bad for disappointing his master. The strongest lion in Earth's history now bowed like a guilty cub caught stealing meat. "Graw graww…""
"I know, I know." Leo waved his hand in a casual gesture. "You'll get there soon."
The truth was, it couldn't be helped. Both of his disciples had powerful bloodlines, but Chiyo had spent most of his life on a normal, Qi-less Earth. He was still learning how to fight using Qi and special abilities. The silver wolf, on the other hand, had been born and raised in this new world.
Even so, their progress was undeniable. It was nothing compared to the legendary geniuses of the Celestial Star Sect, but for this world, their talent was exceptional.
[There are a few talented humans here too…] Leo thought. He had been keeping an eye on some of them just in case his master ever asked for a report. [But now I have my own disciples. My duty to them is more than just teaching…] His eyes shifted toward the silver wolf. [Which reminds me… I never actually gave her a name.]
Leo walked over his second disciple and with a simple motion, grabbed the wolf by its collar. Unlike the first day as the wolf looked at him with fear, now there was awe and respect in those small blue eyes.
"From this day onward you'll be called Bellator, which in my culture means the warrior, or Bella as you are a female…"
Before he could even finish, the wolf let out an excited bark. Her tail wagged furiously, her mouth opening in a toothy grin. She was still a pup at heart, after all.
"Cutie…" Leo patted her head.
The silver wolf looked at him with pure happiness. In her simple mind, receiving a name meant she was finally recognized as a true disciple. It never occurred to her that Leo had simply forgotten to name her. She had just assumed she wasn't worthy yet.
While Bella was jumping up and down happily, promising herself to become a strong warrior to honor her name, Leo became lost in thought.
Even as he watched his disciples, his divine sense swept across the entire planet. A little over a month had passed, and Earth was beginning to resemble a newborn cultivation world. It was still unranked, but it was inching closer to becoming Tier 1.
Unfortunately, Leo saw how carelessly the humans were treating cultivation. They were unaware of its true importance. Furthermore, the general public knew very little about what was happening across the globe. This was mainly due to the governments controlling the flow of information to prevent a total collapse of society.
In a sense, the world was still far too peaceful. Even with the chaos of the Qi arrival, the forest, and the books, most people felt no real pressure to cultivate. People needed motivation to get stronger. And what better catalyst than fear of death or a strong villain?
That was one of the reasons he had spared Niyanyu. But the fish's schemes were slow, and Leo needed something immediate—something that would force the entire planet into motion, something no government could hide.
It was time to make things a little more interesting. To show the world a glimpse of the power a cultivator could achieve.
True power.
After deciding his next step, he immediately took action.
Leo lifted his right hand, gathering an immense amount of Qi at his fingertip. The air around him began to warp. The Qi became visible, but instead of pure white, it contained swirling black and purple particles.
His two disciples stared wide-eyed, their expressions filled with awe. The energy radiated such dense power that it could have advanced their cultivation by leaps and bounds!
"Don't even ask…" Leo said with a smirk, shaking his head.
*Whoosh~*
*Whoosh~*
*Whoosh~*
With a flick of his index finger, dozens of thin Qi threads shot out, vanishing into the horizon. In less than a heartbeat, they were already racing across the globe.
They traveled fast, silent, and unseen. By the time anyone noticed the change in the atmosphere, the threads had already reached their targets.