"My man!"
Medusa's five simple words instantly plunged the entire group into dead silence.
The eight great tribal leaders and two elders stared at their Queen in utter disbelief. Their proud, aloof Queen Medusa—after only a few short years away from the tribe—actually…
Yet they had just personally felt the terrifying power radiating from that man, and even the silver-haired little dragon girl beside him gave off an aura that made their scales crawl. Perhaps… it wasn't entirely unacceptable for their Queen to have chosen such a man.
"Then… who is that little girl?" Yue Mei asked cautiously. As one of the few female leaders, she had always shared a closer relationship with Medusa than the others.
"She's not." Medusa immediately understood the implication—that they thought Zi Yan was her daughter—especially since she had been cradling the girl in her arms when she first appeared.
"Let's return to the Snake-People Temple first. I have an announcement to make."
Medusa waved her hand. In a flash of purple light, she and the ten experts vanished from the battlefield and reappeared inside the grand Snake-People Temple. She ascended the steps and sat upon her throne with natural authority.
…
High above Heishan Fortress, Xiao Huiying quietly brought Xiao Jietian to a vantage point in the clouds.
The battle below had already erupted into full chaos.
It was divided into two clear fronts:
The lower battlefield—ordinary soldiers, Dou Lings, and Dou Kings clashing in bloody melees.
And the high-end battlefield—where true powerhouses collided.
Xiao Yan was currently fighting three beast-headed old men alone. On another side, Yun Shan and a massive Magical Beast were jointly suppressing a Four-Star Dou Zong. Jia Xingtian, meanwhile, was single-handedly holding off several Dou Emperors.
Above it all, a platform of condensed clouds floated silently.
"Is that enough? Can I go down now?" Zi Yan pleaded sweetly. Her small face was flushed bright red as she lay limply in Xiao Jietian's arms.
The reason she couldn't leave was simple: her delicate jade feet were currently being toyed with by Xiao Jietian's fingers, rendering her completely immobile.
"Then go." Xiao Jietian finally felt he had teased her enough. Any more and the little warmonger would probably explode from pent-up battle lust.
The moment he released her feet, Zi Yan excitedly scrambled up, quickly slipping on her tiny leather shoes and socks. She stood and stretched.
The little dragon girl who had been quietly massaging Xiao Jietian's shoulders from behind seized the opportunity. With a soft rustle, she burrowed straight into his embrace, smoothly taking Zi Yan's former spot.
"Indeed, Hui Ying—you're the most considerate. Unlike a certain purple twin-tailed troublemaker."
Zi Yan turned her head, stuck out her tongue playfully at him, then flapped her small fiery-red wings and dove downward like a shooting star.
Xiao Jietian sent a faint wisp of his aura to attach itself to her as a protective measure.
"I can also tie twin tails."
Xiao Huiying lifted her small face, her soft, childlike voice carrying just a hint of grievance as she looked up at Xiao Jietian.
"No need." Xiao Jietian reached out and gently touched the two small dragon horns protruding from her silver hair, smiling. "I prefer your little dragon horns."
Xiao Huiying only revealed her horns when she was alone with him; otherwise she kept them perfectly concealed.
"Mhm mhm~ I also like it when Master touches my dragon horns~"
Xiao Jietian had always been especially fond of Xiao Huiying. A loli with an incomparably soft, childish voice, combined with her little dragon girl traits—it was simply top-tier perfection.
It was a pity she was only seventeen. Truly a crime against morality.
…
On the battlefield below.
A gigantic Four-Winged Heavenly Demon Scorpion was rampaging through the ranks, its massive pincers claiming countless lives with every casual sweep.
"Big guy—take this!"
A tender, childish voice rang out from above.
A small purple-haired girl appeared directly in front of the scorpion's head. She extended one seemingly delicate little hand and struck downward.
Duang!
A crisp, metallic clang echoed across the field.
The enormous scorpion's body was forcibly knocked backward by that tiny fist.
Its massive frame actually trembled slightly—clear proof of the terrifying strength contained within that small body.
Everyone nearby—soldiers from both the Three Great Empires and the Jia Ma Empire—stared in stunned silence.
Previously, even the sharpest swords and spears had merely scratched its carapace like tickles. Yet this little girl, bare-handed, had made the beast recoil and shudder.
Zi Yan gave it no chance to recover. She continuously swung her small fists, smashing them into its body again and again, forcing the giant scorpion to stagger backward repeatedly.
Enraged, the Four-Winged Heavenly Demon Scorpion swung its enormous pincers wildly at her.
Zi Yan's small figure danced through the air with strange, unpredictable agility—not even the corner of her dress was touched.
Her fists kept landing squarely on its head, making the beast see stars.
If this had been the old Zi Yan, she might have stupidly clashed against its pincers head-on. But after being "trained" (read: beaten into shape) by Medusa, Xiao Jietian, and the others, she had learned to target weak points.
"Nyah nyah~ Big guy, flailing around like that is useless. Why don't you just stand still and let me hit you properly? If I have enough fun, maybe I'll leave you with a complete corpse~"
While dodging and weaving, Zi Yan didn't forget to pull faces at the scorpion, completely unconcerned whether it could understand her taunts.
She was having far too much fun—finally venting all the frustration and embarrassment she had accumulated from being "bullied" by Xiao Jietian earlier.
Thinking of him immediately brought back memories of the past few days… and that particularly embarrassing incident.
Although she had secretly watched for a full half-hour before and seen quite a lot…
But that had been outside, and her best little friend Hui Ying had been right there. Luckily, Hui Ying didn't know… It was truly unforgettable. Maybe next time she could try…
Ptooey ptooey ptooey!
Zi Yan quickly spat several times in her mind. How could she have such thoughts? It must be because this stupid scorpion wasn't cooperating with the beating!
She glared fiercely at it, her small face full of displeasure.
"Dead scorpion—I'm very unhappy right now. So you're dead."
Four-Winged Heavenly Demon Scorpion: No—no, I'm the one getting beaten senseless here! And you're the one who's unhappy? Where is the justice? Where is the law?!
In the next instant, Zi Yan appeared beside the scorpion's enormous tail. Her delicate hands clamped down on its seemingly razor-sharp stinger.
A brilliant purple light suddenly erupted from her small body.
Terrifying power surged forth.
Under the horrified gazes of countless onlookers, Zi Yan executed a perfect over-the-shoulder throw—slamming the gigantic scorpion straight into the ground and sending up clouds of dust and shattered earth.
Feeling it still wasn't satisfying enough, she flapped her small wings and began swinging the beast back and forth like a ragdoll, smashing it into the ground over and over.
In her hands, the multi-ton scorpion seemed to weigh nothing at all.
Up in the sky, Xiao Jietian and Xiao Huiying watched the scene unfold. Both of them couldn't help but twitch the corners of their mouths.
"Master… Little Zi Yan seems quite violent. But I also want to try that—it looks like so much fun."
When Xiao Jietian heard the first half of her sentence, he thought warmly, My little Hui Ying is still the gentlest. But when the second half came out, he helplessly covered his face.
Still… he had to admit, the idea did sound somewhat appealing.
No—no! How could he have such thoughts? Damn it—bad company truly corrupts good morals. This little Zi Yan was poisonous. To determine whether she carried some kind of infectious corruption, he would have to give her a thorough, full-body examination later.
"Then go down and play too. I still have some things to handle."
Xiao Jietian gave her head a gentle pat, then playfully squeezed her cheeks.
"Really? Thank you, Master!" Xiao Huiying quickly smoothed down her dress, straightened herself, and then flashed downward in a streak of silver light.
She instantly appeared beside Zi Yan.
At this moment, Zi Yan was wildly swinging the giant scorpion and smashing it straight into the formation of the Three Great Empires.
Each impact crushed anyone who failed to dodge into bloody paste—including Dou Lings and even a few unfortunate Dou Kings.
"Little Zi Yan, let me play too~" Xiao Huiying said excitedly as she arrived at Zi Yan's side.
"Hm? Alright—I'll let you play for a bit. But you have to give it back to me later." Zi Yan thought for a moment. Since it was her best friend, she agreed. Then she suddenly noticed something odd. "Hui Ying… why is your face so red?"