Chapter 11 - Magical Beast Mountain Range 2

Between Heaven and EarthAcross the countless planes of existence, divine beasts existed in uncountable numbers. Some species were so plentiful they defied reckoning, while others were so rare that only one roamed the cosmos.Take the God-Eating Rat, for instance—throughout the endless epochs across all planes, only Beirut had ever existed.The Azure Dragon divine beast was no different. Since the dawn of creation, only Reading had ever claimed that title. As for the members of the Reading clan, they bore Azure Dragon blood, but none of them were true Azure Dragon divine beasts.Roar!Baruch let out an exhilarated roar—a dragon's cry that echoed through the mountains. An overwhelming dragon's might pressed down on every magical beast within a ten-li radius, forcing them to prostrate themselves on the ground. The weaker ones simply shattered apart, their souls annihilated instantly.Baruch's dragon roar did not distort the flow of time, however—for he was not yet a god-tier powerhouse, and could not unleash the Azure Dragon's innate divine ability, Dragon's Roar.Moments later, Baruch transformed back into his human form. He found the Velociraptor King lying motionless on the ground—dead."I have to leave, now. That commotion was far too loud!" Baruch quickly regained his senses. He knew the disturbance would have drawn the attention of powerful beings. Without hesitation, he sliced open the Velociraptor King's skull, retrieved its crystal core, and darted into the depths of the forest....A deafening crash suddenly split the sky. A purple lightning serpent streaked across the clouds and struck the earth, followed instantly by a torrential downpour.Clad in animal-hide clothing, Baruch pressed onward into the heart of the Magical Beast Mountain Range. Thanks to his Wind of Detection spell, no magical beast could hide from him, no matter how dense the undergrowth.Half a month had passed since Baruch's dragon transformation. The continuous heavy rain had washed away all traces of his presence—not even a Saint Mage or Saint Warrior could have tracked him from the scene of his battle."Damned weather! Not a single sign of clearing up!" Baruch felt his temper flaring. Two weeks of nonstop rain had left him feeling stifled and irritable."Damn it! I finally broke through to Eighth Rank, and I was just about to find a decent magical beast to test my skills against—only for the heavens to ruin everything!" Baruch lashed out with a tree branch, channeling a surge of cyan Dou Qi. The massive tree before him split cleanly in two, snapping like a twig.Five days after his dragon transformation, Baruch's Dou Qi had advanced naturally to Eighth Rank, elevating him to the level of an Eighth-Rank Warrior. His physical body had reached the same tier as well.More importantly, he had mastered the profound art of Effortless Might—every strike he unleashed contained ten thousand jin of raw power, making him more than ten times stronger than any other Eighth-Rank Warrior.Whoosh!A figure suddenly lunged out of the tall grass—a man clad head to toe in black, wielding a dagger that stabbed viciously toward Baruch's heart.The assassin's speed was blinding—faster even than the Velociraptor King's. He closed the distance in the blink of an eye, leaving Baruch with no time to block."What? Impossible—his body is too tough! My dagger can't even pierce his skin!" The flash of triumph in the assassin's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by shock. Without the slightest hesitation, he abandoned his dagger and fled back into the undergrowth."Running? If it weren't for my invincible physique, I'd be a corpse right now! You think you can kill me and get away with it?" Baruch's rage flared. He had never imagined that someone could evade his Wind of Detection—which covered a hundred-meter radius—and launch a sneak attack that nearly cost him his life.Baruch's movements became impossibly swift as he chased after the retreating assassin."Damn you! If I find out which organization sent you, I'll annihilate every last one of you!" Baruch roared with fury, slashing his palm toward the assassin. The black-cloaked man was surprisingly agile for a mere Fifth-Rank Warrior—he dodged the attack and used the force of Baruch's palm strike to propel himself two meters farther away."Die!" Baruch shouted.He doubled his speed, throwing a punch that tore through the air. The assassin's eyes widened in terror as he fled without looking back, but Baruch was faster. His fist slammed into the man's back, sending him flying into a tree with a sickening crunch. The assassin crumpled to the ground, struggling weakly."Aaaargh!" Despair etched itself across the assassin's face. He let out a final scream, and black blood trickled from the corner of his mouth—he had swallowed poison to take his own life."Dammit! A dead man walking!" Baruch cursed. He knew his hopes of extracting information from the assassin were dashed, leaving him frustrated."Wonder how many people this bastard has killed. His pack is bulging with loot." Baruch noticed the assassin's leather pack was stuffed full. Curious, he knelt down and opened it. Inside were two sets of clean clothes and dozens of Fifth and Sixth-Rank crystal cores.Baruch's eyes lit up—not at the crystal cores, which he cared little for (his own pack contained an Eighth-Rank core worth far more than all of these combined), but at the clean clothes.His original garments had been incinerated during his battle with the Velociraptor King. The animal-hide outfit he wore now was something he had cobbled together from magical beast pelts—and it was nowhere near as comfortable as proper cloth clothing."Nice blade. Extremely sharp." Baruch picked up the assassin's discarded dagger and examined it with approval. Though it had failed to pierce his skin, there was no denying its keenness. He tested it on a tree branch; the wood split cleanly with a single stroke.Whistling a cheerful tune, Baruch's mood improved significantly....Night fell, but the sky remained as dark and overcast as it had been during the day. Baruch arrived at a narrow canyon, where sheer cliffs rose vertically on both sides. Looking up from the bottom, the sky was reduced to a thin, slit-like line.Suddenly, a colossal shadow descended from above. A giant dragon beat its wings, its gleaming talons extended to seize Baruch's head. The beast was over ten meters long and three to four meters tall, its sharp eyes glinting with cold malice as it exhaled clouds of sulfurous dragon breath."A Wyvern! Peak Eighth-Rank Fire Attribute Magical Beast!" Baruch's heart skipped a beat as he tensed, entering a state of full alert. Wyverns were members of the dragon clan, born to dominate the skies. Even the lowliest wyvern possessed peak Eighth-Rank power, making them the undisputed kings of Eighth-Rank magical beasts."Get lost!" Baruch struck out with his tree branch, slamming it toward the descending talons.The branch shattered into splinters upon impact with the wyvern's claws. The beast soared upward, then dove back down again, its eyes blazing with killing intent."Damn it! Will you just quit already?!" Baruch cursed loudly. Flying magical beasts were notoriously troublesome opponents—their ability to take to the skies gave them an unassailable advantage. After all, aside from Saint-tier powerhouses, no human could fly.In other words, even if Baruch defeated the wyvern in combat, the beast could simply take flight and leave him staring helplessly from the ground."Effortless Might!" Baruch threw a punch, sending the wyvern flying. Yet there was no trace of relief on his face—he knew the blow had not inflicted any real damage. "I definitely need to forge a heavy sword!"Baruch felt a surge of frustration. With a suitable heavy weapon in hand, combined with his mastery of Effortless Might, his combat power would double at the very least."Stay down!" As the wyvern swooped toward him once more, Baruch reached out with both hands and grabbed its hind legs. The wyvern let out a shocked screech, flapping its wings wildly in an attempt to ascend—but Baruch's strength was too great. He slammed the beast down, pinning it to the ground."Die, you overgrown lizard!" Baruch's pent-up anger exploded. He threw punch after punch as the wyvern struggled frantically to take flight—for the sky was its domain. But Baruch held it firmly trapped on the earth, denying it any chance to escape.Its dragon breath washed over Baruch's body, leaving not a single mark. Its powerful wings beat against him, but he remained unharmed.Baruch rained hundreds of blows upon the wyvern, until the beast was covered in wounds and too exhausted to even lift its wings.Pant... Pant... Finally, Baruch paused, gasping for breath. "Wyvern! Will you submit to me and become my mount? Refuse, and I'll finish you off right here!"There was no hesitation in the wyvern's eyes. It nodded its massive head in agreement. In the world of magical beasts, strength ruled supreme—and they willingly pledged allegiance to those stronger than themselves.The wyvern began to chant an incantation. A moment later, a magic circle appeared beneath it, and a hexagonal star shot out, merging into Baruch's body.The wyvern had sealed a master-servant contract with Baruch, becoming his familiar."Asath greets his master!" The moment the hexagon entered his body, Baruch heard the wyvern's weak voice resounding directly in his mind."Your name is Asath?" Baruch patted the wyvern's head gently. "Asath, it is your honor to become my familiar. I shall raise you up to the Saint Rank—and beyond, to the divine beast realm!"Seeing Asath covered in injuries, Baruch cast a Fifth-Rank Light Magic spell—Heal. A warm golden light enveloped the wyvern, and its wounds began to mend at a visible pace. In moments, no trace of injury remained on its body.Still, Asath remained weak—after all, it had endured hundreds of Baruch's punches.