Han Sen watched, heart pounding, from his rocky perch as the grievously wounded Sacred Blood creature – the Bloody Butcher – staggered towards his position. He was debating a hasty retreat when Divine Scion's arrow struck, blasting the creature's chest open and sending it crashing to the ground, gasping its last breaths. A reckless impulse surged through him.
Now!
He exploded from cover, sprinting down the slope. As he ran, he summoned the Bronze Tusk Pike. Gripping it like a javelin, he put every ounce of his enhanced strength (courtesy of his eight Sacred Genes) into the throw. The heavy spear arced through the air and plunged deep into the ruin of the Butcher's chest, piercing its dying heart.
<< HUNT COMPLETE: SACRED BLOOD CREATURE - BLOODY BUTCHER >>
<< SACRED BLOOD SOUL BEAST ACQUIRED: BLOODY BUTCHER >>
*<< CONSUME FLESH TO ABSORB: 0-10 SACRED GENES >>*
The phantom voice boomed in his skull. A Sacred Blood Soul Beast! Joy, pure and electric, threatened to overwhelm him. The odds were astronomical! But there was no time for celebration. The Butcher's massive corpse was impossible to move, but the Golden Double-Bitted Battle-Axe... that was his real prize.
Sanctuary creatures sometimes nurtured unique treasures within themselves – Relics. Unlike Soul Beasts, Relics couldn't shapeshift; they were powerful, physical artifacts. This axe, capable of shattering Mutant-tier Soul Beasts with ease, was clearly a top-tier Sacred Blood Relic. The Soul Beast was a miraculous bonus.
He lunged for the fallen axe, hefting its colossal weight onto his shoulder. The sheer density of the metal surprised him – even with his enhanced strength, it was crushingly heavy, slowing him to a stumbling walk. Behind him, chaos erupted.
"MOTHERFUCKER!" Divine Scion's roar of pure, incandescent rage shattered the stunned silence. He summoned a Nightmare Steed and spurred it into a furious charge, his elite guard scrambling to follow, their enraged shouts forming a cacophony.
Han Sen glanced back. Less than five hundred meters separated him from the vengeful horde. The axe was an anchor. He couldn't carry it fast enough. He couldn't bear to leave it. Desperation sparked an idea. The Soul Beast! He focused inward, glimpsing its description: << SACRED BLOOD SOUL BEAST: BLOODY BUTCHER >> << TYPE: FUSION TRANSFORMATION >>
No hesitation. He willed it forth. The spectral form of the Minotaur Centaur materialized, minus its iconic axe. In a flash of brilliant light, it merged with Han Sen. His body contorted, bones shifting, muscles expanding beneath the Golden Carapace armor. The divine armor itself flowed and reshaped, encasing his rapidly transforming form. Within seconds, Han Sen was the Bloody Butcher – a towering, bull-headed centaur clad in shimmering, adapted gold.
Power flooded his veins – raw, primal strength that dwarfed anything he'd felt before. The impossibly heavy Golden Axe suddenly felt light as a feather in his grasp. He reared up, muscles bunched in his powerful equine hindquarters, then kicked off.
THUNDER!
The ground trembled as he launched forward. Speed – terrifying, impossible speed – propelled him away from his pursuers. He became a golden-black blur, hooves tearing divots in the earth, the massive axe held effortlessly. He devoured the distance to the mountain pass, then plunged into the dense, shadowed forests beyond, vanishing from sight long before Divine Scion's furious vanguard reached the tree line.
Silence descended on Sunset Slope, thick and stupefying. Then, murmurs began, swelling into incredulous chatter.
"Holy shit... who was that?"
"Stole the axe and scored the Soul Beast? Right out of Divine Scion's grasp!"
"The axe alone... but a Sacred Blood Fusion Soul Beast? That's... that's beyond priceless!"
"Priceless? Try unbuyable. Who'd sell that?"
"Divine Scion must be puking blood right now. Used a one-shot Sacred Blood arrow... lost his Mutant mount... and got the prize snatched!"
"Not just snatched. Humiliated."
"Talk about dumb luck! Dude lands the final poke and hits the Soul Beast jackpot? While we got our asses kicked?"
"B Bro? Did someone call him 'B Bro'? That fits. Dude's got balls the size of planets!"
"Anyone recognize that golden armor? Is there a new player in Steelhold?"
Less than an hour later, Divine Scion and his entourage returned, faces etched with volcanic fury. The outcome was predictable; tracking a Fusion-transformed centaur through rugged wilderness was impossible. Divine Scion's gaze immediately locked onto Su Xiaoqiao – his shouted "Coin!" echoing in memory.
Su Xiaoqiao was hauled forward. Under intense, dangerous scrutiny, he spilled everything: the Windblade deal, the alias "Gold Coin," the mysterious golden armor. He knew nothing else. Divine Scion, fuming but constrained (Su Xiaoqiao was technically under Qin Xuan's umbrella), couldn't extract more. He stormed back to Steelhold, slamming the gates shut and ordering a complete lockdown. Every corner would be searched. "Gold Coin" would be found. And when he was... the punishment would be legendary.
While "Gold Coin" remained elusive to most, the name coined in the chaos took root. "Butcher's Bane" – or simply "B Bro" – became Steelhold's overnight sensation. The tale of B Bro, the Sacred Blood Creature, and Divine Scion's spectacular, stolen victory was the only thing anyone talked about.