The Ink-Snow Thunderhawk beat its wings, its sharp gaze fixed intensely on the dense forest, a high-pitched cry of confusion issuing from its throat once more. Nie Kong secretly speculated that this spirit beast must have detected him when he was still outside the woods.

However, the moment he deployed his Golden Needles, the beast suddenly lost track of him; otherwise, it would have likely swooped down and torn him to shreds by now. As expected, the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk soon retracted its gaze and began sweeping its vision across the valley, its body circling lower and lower.

In no time, its altitude above the ground was less than thirty meters. “Screech!” The Ink-Snow Thunderhawk suddenly let out a jubilant cry and darted swiftly toward the cliff face on its left, its call conveying clear excitement.

Nie Kong followed its trajectory and saw that the cliff was an eerie green, seemingly covered in moss, yet within a fissure about a meter above the ground, several points of red light were shimmering brilliantly. Unfortunately, the distance between them and Nie Kong was too great; even straining his eyesight to the utmost, he could not make out the details clearly.

“Looks like wild fruit!” Nie Kong muttered under his breath, and his heart gave a sudden lurch. Anything that could attract a fifth-grade spirit beast like the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk must be something valuable.

Could the medicine the little fellow had found earlier be exactly that? Nie Kong felt a pang of regret but was powerless to do anything.

He wasn't impulsive enough to try snatching food from the jaws of a fifth-grade spirit beast. “Caw?” The Ink-Snow Thunderhawk’s downward dive abruptly halted, and it let out a cautious trill, the flower-like fleshy crown atop its head rippling like water.

Its massive snow-white wings slowly beat the air, sending gusts of wind sweeping downward, churning the surface of the pool into whitecaps. “Crack!” Suddenly, the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk clapped its wings once and surged upward.

Simultaneously, a deafening thunderclap exploded as a purple lightning bolt, thick as a child’s arm, shot from its open maw, slamming directly into the pool below. For a moment, the heavens and earth seemed filled with a violent aura.

“Roar!” From the swirling waves, a fierce, surging roar suddenly burst forth. Immediately following this, a thick, awl-shaped crimson beam pierced the pool water, shooting towards the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk high in the sky.

Nie Kong focused his gaze and saw that what emerged from the water was a blood-red tail, entirely covered in scales. “Crack!” Another bolt of lightning split the pool.

The Ink-Snow Thunderhawk skillfully evaded the powerful strike of the massive tail and dove down again, its claws hooked like grappling irons, aiming for a fierce grab. “Roar!” An enraged roar filled the air, soaring straight to the clouds, the pool water churning violently.

Almost the instant the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk seized the giant tail, a crimson light shot out from the tail’s tip, tightly coiling around the Thunderhawk’s legs. Then, with a whip of the massive tail, it slammed the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk against the cliff face on the right with lightning speed.

“Boom!” Stones shattered, dust flew, and snow-white feathers drifted away. As if deeply humiliated, the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk let out a sharp shriek, its left wing bending slightly, slicing through the void below like lightning.

A burst of purple light shot out, cutting into the tail like a blade. In the next instant, blood gushed forth, and the very tip of the tail was severed clean off.

“Roar!” A heaven-shaking cry of agony erupted, sending waves ten meters high crashing over the valley pool. Freed from its bonds, the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk spread its wings and instantly soared dozens of meters upward.

“Splash!” At this moment, a loud watery sound echoed, and the pool surface suddenly bulged upward, the water pouring away to the sides, revealing more than half of a colossal body. Then, a roundish head emerged from the pool, its skin similarly covered in scales that shimmered with red light.

At this sight, Nie Kong froze, stunned. After the spirit beast's head appeared, it kept stretching longer and longer; in just a few seconds, it had reached over ten meters, rearing high into the void, its blood-red eyes glaring furiously at the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk circling above the valley.

“Screech!” The Ink-Snow Thunderhawk let out a sharp cry, flapped its wings, and its snow-white form became like a streak of light, pouncing toward the red dots in the opposite cliff face. The spirit beast in the pool, driven to utter madness by the Thunderhawk’s maneuver, suddenly opened its mouth wide, and a torrent of crimson light shot out like arrows loosed from a bow, hurtling toward the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk.

“Thud!” Simultaneously, the beast’s massive body leaped high, landing heavily on the edge of the pool with a resounding impact, its full form now visible. A slender neck, a spike-like long tail, a body several meters high, and scales the vibrant red of fresh blood; most bizarrely, it possessed eight legs!

Columnar, thick, and sturdy, “Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast!” The moment Nie Kong saw the spirit beast’s eight limbs, these words finally flashed through his mind. He had once heard Nie Qingyun mention this spirit beast—another fifth-grade creature.

Just as the Black Cloud Scarlet Serpent used vital blood to cultivate the Serpent Coil Blood Lotus, this Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast favored guarding a spirit herb called the ‘Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine.’ The fruits borne by the ‘Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine’ had miraculous effects on the Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast, rumored to aid its advancement. Generally, where there was a ‘Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine,’ there was a ninety percent chance of finding an Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast hidden nearby.

However, while these fruits were beneficial to the beast, they were also immensely useful to other fifth-grade spirit beasts. Just as now, the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk and the Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast were locked in a fierce struggle over them.

“Those red dots must be the ‘Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine’ fruits!” Nie Kong glanced toward the cliff face, feeling immense relief. It was a good thing the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk had appeared in time to force him into hiding.

Had he recklessly rushed out to pick the ‘Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine,’ he would have certainly enraged the Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast lying dormant in the pool, putting himself in grave danger. “Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine…” Nie Kong murmured the words to himself.

Initially, he had planned to observe a little longer before quietly retreating to search for the ‘Crescent Moon Green Hook.’ But after determining what the two spirit beasts were fighting over, Nie Kong desired this medicine with an overwhelming urgency, solely because it was involved in the ‘Blood Coagulation Divine Fire Pill.’ In the recipe for the ‘Blood Coagulation Divine Fire Pill,’ the Serpent Coil Blood Lotus and the Crimson-Backed Sky Net were indispensable, but the fruit of this ‘Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine’ was equally crucial. Although only a small quantity was needed during the refinement of the spirit medicine, it could maximize the medicinal power of the Serpent Coil Blood Lotus.

The ‘Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine’ was exceedingly rare. If he failed to acquire it this time, he didn't know when he would ever see it again!

Moreover, the little fellow was also very focused on this medicine, suggesting its uses might extend beyond merely being a supplemental ingredient for the ‘Blood Coagulation Divine Fire Pill.’ “Roar!” A surge of agitated roaring erupted, and the scene in the valley suddenly shifted dramatically. Nie Kong then realized that the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk’s initial lunge toward the medicine was merely a feint to draw out the enemy.

As the Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast charged, the Thunderhawk executed a bizarre aerial flip, positioning itself above its foe, evading the crimson beam, and then diving down, its sharp iron talons sinking into the opponent’s spine. However, the speed of the Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast was also extreme.

Before the Thunderhawk could gain altitude, its partially severed tail swept across diagonally. “Ah!” The Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast’s tail struck the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk’s thigh viciously.

Amidst a tremendous roar, the Thunderhawk was flung away like a cannonball, but its talons had also ripped a chunk of flesh from its opponent's spine, causing it to howl in pain. “Oh!” After tumbling several dozen meters through the air, the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk finally arrested its retreat, violently beating its snow-white wings and returning above the Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast once more.

That last strike seemed to have enraged it beyond measure; streams of purple lightning spewed forth, shrouding the beast below in an overwhelming deluge. “Roar!” The Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast shrieked wildly, its surrounding spiritual energy elements fluctuating violently, a thick crimson glow bursting from its body as if its entire form were engulfed in raging flames, neutralizing the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk’s attacks time and again.

Its long neck swayed left and right like a spirit snake, searching for an opening to strike. “Boom!” “Boom!” “……” The sounds of fierce impact rose and fell incessantly.

Gradually, smoke and dust tens of meters high began to billow in the valley, obscuring the silhouettes of the two spirit beasts. From a distance, Nie Kong could only see purple and red neon lights crisscrossing, dazzling rays shattering, and the roars and shrieks shaking the void.

Compared to Spirit Masters, the control fifth-grade spirit beasts exerted over the elemental forces of heaven and earth seemed somewhat crude. Yet, even so, Nie Kong was mesmerized, his spirit stirred.

The constant lunging and flashing forms of the two beasts in the valley ahead offered him an immense spectacle. “Roar!” Following a piteous, tragic scream, the hazy red shape within the valley dust suddenly stilled; the body of the Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast crashed heavily to the ground.

“Screech!” But at the very instant the Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast fell, a beam of blood-red light shot from its mouth, striking the enemy’s abdomen. The Ink-Snow Thunderhawk cried out mournfully, its body tumbling like a kite with a broken string, crashing against the cliff face on the right before slowly sliding down to the base of the precipice.

Nie Kong continued to gently knead his Heavenly Needles, his eyes unblinking as he watched the valley. Several minutes later, the churning clouds of dust finally dispersed, and the blurred figures of the two spirit beasts became somewhat clearer.

The Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast lay motionless, the ground around it dyed deep crimson with blood, and the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk at the bottom of the cliff also showed no signs of movement, its snow-white plumage stained with bloody patches, a shocking sight. “Mutual destruction?” Nie Kong inwardly rejoiced.

The two spirit beasts fighting furiously to the bitter end resulted in this outcome, precisely what he had hoped for. If neither beast had eliminated the other, how could Nie Kong possibly seize the ‘Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine’?

When the snipe and the clam grapple, the fisherman profits; Nie Kong intended to be that fisherman. In the next moment, Nie Kong’s eyes turned to the cliff face on the left, where several points of red light still flickered.

During the fierce battle between the Ink-Snow Thunderhawk and the Eight-Legged Blood-Armored Beast, both had deliberately avoided colliding with this steep wall, thus sparing the fruits of the ‘Hundred-Silk Dragon Blood Vine’ from collateral damage. The medicine was safe, and Nie Kong breathed a sigh of relief.

After waiting a few more moments, he lightly slipped down the embankment and employed the ‘Flower-Shifting Evasion’ technique, drifting toward the valley like a phantom. However, the closer he got to the valley entrance, the more cautious Nie Kong became; even though the two beasts showed no signs of life, he still had to guard against potential threats!…