The four of them abruptly looked up.
Above the Ninth Heaven, the sea of clouds churned.
A towering phantom of a white tiger stood majestically atop the clouds!
It was not physical; its body was condensed from the purest Geng-Metal Qi and killing intent.
Pure white all over, its figure was semi-transparent, yet it exuded a heart-palpitating sense of dread more real than a mountain of corpses and sea of blood.
There was no emotion in those golden tiger eyes. They merely gazed indifferently at the endless Insect Tide beneath its feet, as if watching a mass of wriggling dust.
The White Tiger Celestial God!
Opposite Him, several mountain-sized Mantisfolk Broodmothers let out piercing screeches.
Their abdomens pulsed, spraying torrents of ink-green corrosive acid, while their compound eyes simultaneously fired blinding energy beams, bombing down on the White Tiger like a deluge.
Faced with such world-destroying attacks, the giant tiger phantom didn't even bother to lift its gaze. It simply extended a front paw and swiped casually.
Screech!
The acid that could melt steel struck an invisible wall, exploding into rolling green toxic mist in midair, unable to get even a fraction closer.
The energy beams that followed immediately after were easily neutralized by the Geng-Metal Qi His paw swipe had unleashed.
Then, as if finally annoyed by a fly, He slowly raised His other giant paw and waved it gently downward.
A pure white claw mark materialized out of thin air.
Soundless.
Scentless.
Where the claw mark passed, tens of thousands of flying Mantisfolk vanished into thin air, leaving only clumps of green energy mist in the sky.
Immediately after, the White Tiger Phantom opened its bloody maw and let out a silent roar at the slightly smaller swarm commanders below.
Visible white sound waves rippled outward, violently distorting space itself.
The incredibly hard exoskeletons of those Mantisfolk leaders instantly covered in spiderweb-like cracks, then violently disintegrated, turning into fine powder.
With His strength alone, He fought the main force of the Insect Swarm!
He had intercepted the enemy's highest-end combat units and over ninety percent of their troops!
This Celestial God of the West, who presided over slaughter, demonstrated the meaning of Divine Might in the most direct and violent manner.
Even so...
The "cannon fodder" that slipped through the gaps in His defense line still pressed down heavily on the allied front like an unyielding dark cloud, leaving them unable to catch their breath.
This was the trial of the White Tiger of the West?
This was the "brute" who only knew how to use brute force, as the Azure Dragon had described?
Lin Xiyue looked at the giant tiger in the sky, an incarnation of a God of War, then at the river of blood on the battlefield below, and muttered to herself.
"This art style... is just too hardcore..."
On the battlefield, every inch of land wailed in agony.
Lin Qingyue and her three companions stood at the fortress exit. The fierce wind, carrying the stench of blood, whipped their long hair into a wild frenzy.
In the distance, the phantom of the White Tiger Celestial God was wreaking havoc among the clouds. Every attack brought a visually stunning display of world-shattering power.
The storms kicked up by the collision of Divine Power changed the very color of the sky.
His combat style was exactly as Qingxuan had described: simple, crude, and filled with pure violent aesthetics.
There were no flashy techniques, only the most primitive and direct tearing and pouncing.
But He could not ignore the attacks of those Broodmothers, and He was being completely pinned down.
Below, the allied defense line was already on the verge of collapse under the endless assault of the Insect Tide.
The number of Mantisfolk was simply too vast, seeming infinite.
This grand yet tragic tableau plunged everyone into a brief silence.
"We have to find a way to reach the White Tiger's main body."
Lin Qingyue withdrew her gaze.
"His Temple should be at the end of this canyon, on that highest peak."
Su Wan looked in the direction she pointed. At the deepest part of the canyon, a peak carved entirely from white jade pierced the clouds. The White Tiger Phantom was manifesting with that peak as its center.
"To get there, we have to carve a path through this entire battlefield."
Between them and the Temple lay countless Mantisfolk!
In the sky, swarms of High-Rank Insect Guards circled like vultures, ready to swoop down and reap.
Lin Xiyue licked her dry lips. Her black eyes showed no fear, only a burning, excited fighting spirit.
"Stealth is out of the question."
Just as the four were formulating their battle plan, a golden quest window popped up before them all at once.
[Trial of the Heavenly Gods: Quest Progress Updated.]
[Current Stage: Three.] [Quest Objective: Satisfy the inner desires of the Celestial God: White Tiger.]
[Quest Hint: He craves ultimate release and fulfillment. Please ensure He is satisfied to His heart's content.]
"..."
"..."
Every word in the quest window shimmered with golden light, exuding a sense of holiness.
But put together, they created a strangely suggestive atmosphere.
For a moment, the deafening roars and screams of the battlefield seemed to fade into the distance.
Xia Lian's face instantly flushed crimson all the way to her ears. She lowered her head sharply, staring fixedly at her toes as if a flower were blooming there.
What... What kind of nonsense is this?!
Release?
Fulfillment?
Heart's content?
Is this really the kind of hint a proper quest should have?!
Lin Xiyue was stunned for a moment, then a strange excitement flickered in her large eyes.
She gave Su Wan a secret nudge with her elbow, her gaze darting around with a suggestive wink. Her expression said it all: Thrilling!
Finally, she looked at her sister thoughtfully, her eyes seemingly saying: Sis, you're an expert at this kind of work.
"Shameless."
Su Wan's reaction was the most direct, a flicker of undisguised contempt appearing on her cold and beautiful face.
It was unclear whether she was despising the quest or her two teammates, whose thoughts had already strayed.
She even reached out a finger and flicked the golden panel in the void, as if trying to send it flying.
Only Lin Qingyue, the one with the most abnormal thoughts in the team, stroking her smooth chin, fell into deep thought.
Soothing the Azure Dragon's emptiness had resulted in solving her writer's block and finding a channel to publish her novel, thus she became a web novel mentor.
Now this White Tiger... craved "release and fulfillment"?
"Qingxuan said He is a violent maniac."
Wisdom's light, the kind unique to a mischief-maker, sparkled in her pink eyes as she analyzed with a straight face.
"Then the so-called release is probably referring to the release of battle? Let Him fight to his heart's content, fight until He's satisfied?"
She paused, a flash of inspiration striking her mind, and came up with an even more outrageous guess.
"Or... White Tiger, after all, is a feline. Is there a possibility it's petting the cat?"
"Pfft—"
Lin Xiyue couldn't hold it in and burst out laughing.
Petting the cat?
Only her sister could come up with that!
"Stop messing around."
Su Wan interrupted their wild imaginations with a cold face.
"No matter how outrageous the quest prompt is, the goal is clear: we need to reach the White Tiger's true body, but we still have to carve a path through the battlefield first."
However, before they could delve deeper into this philosophical question concerning the dignity of a God, danger had already descended.
Their appearance was like a jarring splash of color, instantly contaminating this painting composed of slaughter and death, attracting the attention of the Mantisfolk scouts circling in the air nearby.
"Hiss—!"
A piercing hiss came from above.
An elite patrol squad consisting of a dozen or so High-Rank Mantisfolk had discovered these uninvited guests.
These High-Rank Insect Guards were larger in size, their shells possessing a metallic luster, the wings on their backs vibrating at a higher frequency, and the hisses they emitted becoming even more ear-piercing.
They vibrated their membranous wings, carving out a dozen black arcs of death as they dove down from the high sky, their target clear.
Cut them to pieces!
"Be careful!" Xia Lian was the first to sound the alarm.
"The Dungeon's 'Non-Violent Non-Cooperation' rule probably won't work against these cruel and bloodthirsty bugs!"
Lin Qingyue advanced instead of retreating, the curve of her lips full of pleasure, the excitement of a mischief-maker who had finally found a new toy.
"Sisters, the house-playing drama is over!"
"Get ready to work!"