The Eagle King’s foot was abruptly planted in mid-air, freezing there as if transformed into an eternal, ancient statue! Only his head continued to wrench backward with great effort, slowly, fixing upon his Fourth Brother lying still on the ground—a gaze of despair and deep reluctance.

I can’t rest easy… “Fourth Brother… wake up quickly, I truly can’t hold on anymore… Ah…” The Eagle King let out a desperate plea, his voice sinking so low even he could barely hear it. Then, his body suddenly fell still.

Not another sound escaped him. But his turned head, his eyes, still spoke volumes of his anxiety, despair, and utter helplessness!

Fourth Brother, I could not protect you. The Eagle King’s gaze was fixed, saturated with grief, regret, and gnawing anxiety.

The Bear King remained lying there quietly, utterly oblivious to the chaos surrounding him; he was simply too exhausted! His body had been completely spent, pushed beyond its absolute limit.

The Heavenly Tribulation had struck precisely then, nearly stripping the very bones from his frame. In the profound silence, his spirit seemed to drift listlessly through the void.

There was something, a presence, but he couldn't recall it, couldn't grasp it, couldn't see it clearly… All he wanted now was a deep, long sleep, to let go of everything, to simply sleep without concern or thought! But just then, a heart-wrenching sound seemed to pierce the quiet: Fourth Brother… wake up… It sounded like his Ninth Brother calling him—it was the Eagle King!

The Bear King jolted violently! Xiong Kaishan strained with every fiber to open his eyes, yet could not manage it!

He persisted in his effort, but his eyelids felt as heavy as towering mountains! My brother!

My brother is calling for me! Xiong Kaishan thought frantically, struggling with desperate, futile effort… but nothing worked; his entire body felt limp and soft, like a pile of cotton fluff… “Fourth Brother… wake up… wake up…, I can’t hold on any longer…” It was the Eagle King’s voice again!

Xiong Kaishan’s soul roared in furious, futile struggle… Ninth Brother! Ninth Brother, what has happened to you?

Ninth Brother… Fourth Brother is coming… Fourth Brother will be there in a moment… At that instant, miraculously, an image of the Eagle King flashed into Xiong Kaishan’s mind. Xiong Kaishan seemed to finally succeed in prying his eyes open, and seeing his brother’s mangled form in his mind’s eye sent a sudden, excruciating pain through his heart.

It felt as if his own viscera had shattered into fragments at that very moment! The spectral Eagle King in his vision looked at him with profound despair, his lips barely moving as he managed to mouth the words in a voice almost too faint to hear: “Fourth Brother… wake up… Ah……………” Then, the vision of the Eagle King vanished just as abruptly as it had appeared!

Xiong Kaishan threw back his head and roared to the heavens, suddenly leaping up from the ground! He was finally awake!

Amidst a battlefield where blood and fire mingled, the Bear King, having just survived the lightning tribulation, had awakened as if by a miracle! But the bleary eyes he first opened widened instantaneously to their absolute limit, his gaze splitting with fury!

An ineffable, nameless sorrow and rage surged into his heart like a terrifying tidal wave! Before him, there was only darkness, yet a tall, imposing figure stood silently blocking his way!

Unmoving! Drip, drip, drip—thick, viscous blood constantly oozed from this figure, trickling down onto Xiong Kaishan.

His own roar upon waking had sent the surrounding alien tribesmen shivering in terror, but this figure blocking him… why wouldn't it move? Why wouldn’t it turn around to look at him!

The silhouette felt so terribly familiar, yet none of his brothers possessed such a frame! Did it resemble the Ninth Brother?

A little, perhaps, but this figure lacked the Ninth Brother’s broad wings… Wait, no wings… Ah? No wings?!

A terrifying thought dawned upon him, and Xiong Kaishan felt his heart clench violently! An indescribable heartache flooded him, rising up like a tsunami!

He cautiously straightened up, taking slow, deliberate steps to circle around to the front of the figure. When he finally saw the face clearly, his vision swam with golden sparks!

For a moment, it seemed countless colossal hammers were wildly striking his head and his heart! Smashing his body, bones, heart, and soul into dust!

“Ninth Brother! Ninth Brother, no……………” Xiong Kaishan rubbed his eyes in utter disbelief, then erupted in a maddened, sky-splitting bellow!

The person before him was indeed the Ninth Brother—the Aerial Sovereign—the Eagle King! A thick, round column of blood suddenly erupted from his mouth with a poof!

The Eagle King’s broken body still stood rigidly, his face stern—his eyes fierce and determined, his posture perpetually leaning slightly forward, as if poised to spring forth at any second, delivering the sharpest, most fatal strike to protect his brother… “Ninth Brother…” Xiong Kaishan tremblingly extended his hands, wanting to embrace the brother before him, that body already growing cold. But he hesitated, afraid to disturb the final vestiges of his brother’s peace.

“Brother! Little Eagle!

Ah… Ah… AAAAAAAH!!!” Xiong Kaishan wailed to the sky, feeling his heart shatter into countless pieces at that moment. He was more than twenty years older than the Eagle King.

He remembered when the Ninth Brother was born, he himself was just a medium-sized cub, squatting by the den, watching that milky-white eagle egg, curiously listening to the peck, peck, peck sounds from within. Then the shell cracked suddenly, revealing a tiny, sharp beak first… And then emerged a hatchling, wet and covered in downy, tawny feathers.

It tumbled out like a chick, its gaze timid yet curious as it surveyed the world… That was the Ninth Brother’s first look… His brother, his brother for life! As the Ninth Brother grew, learned to fly, gradually ascended in rank—eventually becoming a Rank Nine Xuan Beast just like him, reaching the pinnacle, gaining the ability to transform… What a long stretch of time, what cherished memories those years held… Among all his brothers, he had always been closest to the Tiger King, both being equally coarse and reckless.

With the Ninth Brother, they had quarreled almost constantly since before either had fully transformed, quarreling for centuries, nearly half a lifetime… Even up until today, until just moments ago, they had still been arguing… The Bear King’s thoughts drifted like smoke, winding back through memory. He recalled the journey here, riding on the Eagle King’s back, both of them burning with urgency.

Bear King: Stupid little eagle, you fly so slowly! When will we reach Tianzhu Mountain?

Eagle King: Why don’t you fly? Damn it, get off!

I can fly twice as fast alone! You weigh two thousand pounds with your blade and armor; a bear is just a bear.

Bear King: Uh, maybe I should just toss this blade, I’ll travel with just my sword. Eagle King: Nonsense!

Being able to transport this blade proves it’s an absolute weapon! What foolish talk before a major battle?

After all these years, you haven't matured a bit! Bear King: I’m your Fourth Brother, yet you’ve scolded me your entire life!

Are you blind to your own conscience…? Eagle King: Conscience my foot!

Thinking of this, Xiong Kaishan’s eyes overflowed with tears: Little Eagle… Fourth Brother wishes he could argue with you just one more time. Thoughts raced, and it seemed he was still sitting on the Eagle King’s back.

The Eagle King’s voice grew serious: “Fourth Brother, this battle is crucial to life and death. You absolutely, absolutely must not act rashly.

Even if your temper flares beyond control, you must restrain it!” Bear King laughed loudly: “Ninth Brother, Fourth Brother understands. But you must also take care!

Don’t worry, Fourth Brother will stake this life to ensure you return safely to Tianfa.” “Nonsense!” The Eagle King became angry: “Who asked you to stake your life? What kind of depressing talk is that at a time like this?” After speaking, the Eagle King whispered something quietly.

At that time, misty clouds drifted past them, making the Bear King feel refreshed and lighthearted as he looked around. He hadn't clearly heard what the Eagle King had said.

Recalling it now, Xiong Kaishan felt as if clouds still swirled beneath his feet and around his ears, the wind howling sharply. The sentence the Eagle King had spoken, which he missed, suddenly rang in his ears like a thunderclap.

“Fourth Brother… even if I have to sacrifice my life, I will not let you die!” Now, the Eagle King had fulfilled that vow with his own life! Anyone sustaining such devastating injuries would have died long ago, dozens or hundreds of times over!

But the Eagle King, this proud Skyfall Eagle, held on desperately, supported by some unknown reservoir of strength, clinging to life until Xiong Kaishan awoke! For no other reason than: For my brother!

Even if I die, I will not allow him to be harmed before my eyes! Brother!

Brother! Brother!!

This is what brotherhood means! I’d rather die than see you suffer injury before me!

I’d rather die first than see you hurt in front of me! This—this is brotherhood!

Xiong Kaishan’s heart suddenly ached with immense sorrow. Ninth Brother, Ninth Brother!

It is Fourth Brother who has implicated you. I had fully intended to ensure your safety, but in the end, it was you who used your life to defend me!

With you gone, what face do I have left to show the world! What face do I have left!!

When they were together, they argued constantly, yet Xiong Kaishan had never truly been angry. He knew that this constant bickering was the very manifestation of their deep fraternal bond.

The Eagle King usually disliked speaking much. He was generally silent, but toward Xiong Kaishan, he seemed to find endless faults, as if exasperated by slow progress—hating iron for not becoming steel!

Who else but a true brother would speak with such harshness? Sometimes, he admitted, he truly was too simple, too clumsy… The Eagle King had always worried he would suffer losses.

Every time Xiong Kaishan ran into trouble, the Eagle King would first berate him, then charge to the forefront… No matter the situation! Regardless of who was right or wrong!

Today, it was still the Ninth Brother, Little Eagle, who, in order to protect him, had spilled the very last drop of his blood right before his eyes! The last drop of blood shed for him!

Even in death, his body still guarded him, still worried over him! His chest felt sticky—Xiong Kaishan scraped a handful away, revealing bright crimson.

This was the Ninth Brother’s blood! The Ninth Brother’s fresh blood!

Xiong Kaishan’s expression instantly twisted into an extreme, savage fury. The Ninth Brother’s blood cannot be spilled in vain!

It absolutely cannot be in vain! Ninth Brother, Ninth Brother… Fourth Brother… I am sorry!

If only I had woken up one moment sooner! Just one moment would have been enough… Looking at the Eagle King’s body—riddled with wounds, shattered in pieces, even his prized great wings gone, scattered iron-like feathers lying dozens of feet away—Xiong Kaishan suddenly struggled to breathe!

For the sake of protecting me, what manner of assault did the Ninth Brother endure? Such grievous injuries were more tragic than being slowly dismembered!

“Ninth Brother…” Xiong Kaishan finally groaned out in deep pain, pouring all his heart, spirit, and being into those two words that tore his gut apart! The Eagle King’s body remained impassive, his circular eyes still fiercely and cruelly warning whatever lay around them… Xiong Kaishan choked back a sob, suddenly turning his head, fixing a gaze of terrifying, abnormal calm upon the five alien Mad Blade Ninjas standing nearby.

The thick veins on his temples pulsed violently. Slowly, step by step, he began to walk towards them.