Chapter 44: The Chief and Pearl

The Chief of the Black Wind Stronghold was very angry.

Today was his wedding day.

He had originally been in the Hall of Righteous Gathering, happily drinking wedding wine with his subordinates.

He had planned that after a good round of drinking, he would go to his bridal chamber and enjoy a spring night with his beloved.

He had already lost two lovers in succession, and the feeling was not easy to bear.

For this reason, he had decided to treat his third lover well. At the very least, tonight he had to be gentle enough to leave his lover with an unforgettable memory.

Although this lover had been kidnapped by him, he firmly believed that under his influence and caresses, she would surely recognize his affection for her.

However, just as the Chief was already dead drunk, fantasizing about his lover, their night, and their future, a commotion came from outside the Hall of Righteous Gathering.

On such a joyous day, it was common for a few drunken lads to make trouble. The Chief had originally thought so too.

But soon, he realized something was wrong.

Once he stepped outside the hall, one piece of bad news after another pierced into his drunken mind like snowflakes, freezing his burning thoughts cold.

The sentries had all been killed in extremely gruesome ways.

The guards arranged outside his bridal chamber to protect his lover were also dead.

Even the bride-to-be inside the chamber had vanished.

From the wounds on the corpses, at least one python had slipped into the Black Wind Stronghold.

And to have silently killed even the sentries on the watchtowers—this was surely a python demon that had gained intelligence.

Each and every revelation made the Chief’s rage harder to contain.

Since when could even a mere python demon barge into our Black Wind Stronghold?

Did it not know that within ten li of this place, snakes and pythons were forbidden?!

“Pearl!!”

“Cry–!”

A piercing eagle’s cry tore through the skies, suppressing all other sounds in the stronghold.

Outside the hall, an eagle that had been resting opened its eyes. Its wings spread wide, casting its shadow over the Chief and everyone else beneath.

In its gaze shone human-like wisdom and a sinister sharpness.

This was a transformed white-headed eagle.

The bandits at the Chief’s side, upon seeing the eyes of the eagle demon Pearl, could not help but shiver, even though they knew it was not aimed at them.

In this stronghold, some had followed the Chief into rebellion, some had been forced to join after being plundered, and some had come willingly.

But no matter their origins, everyone knew that the most powerful being in the stronghold was not the Chief, but the eagle Pearl he had raised.

If it wished, Pearl could slaughter every last person in the stronghold within the time it took for a single stick of incense to burn.

Fortunately, the eagle demon Pearl was deeply bonded with the Chief and followed only his commands.

The Chief clenched his teeth:

“Pearl, take to the skies! See which blind python dares to intrude on my wedding day, in our Black Wind Stronghold.”

“I will use its blood to add a touch more celebration to my marriage!”

The eagle demon Pearl gave its wings a light sweep, and all those beneath were instantly blinded by the wind and dust whipped up.

Pearl soared into the sky, rising to more than a hundred meters in an instant.

Its eagle eyes, capable of seeing prey thousands of meters away even in the dark of night, locked onto a direction in but a blink.

The next moment, Pearl dove straight toward it.

Seeing the direction Pearl had flown, the Chief’s face turned ashen.

That was where his treasure was hidden!

Could it be that python demon already knew the location of his treasure vault?

But he quickly composed his expression.

All his subordinates were gathered around him—he could not let them know the location of his vault.

Moreover, the Chief believed that no snake could survive Pearl’s talons.

Before taking the mountain, he had already known that his Pearl was a rare Great Demon.

Had he not raised it with his own hand, it would have ruled the wild without bowing to anyone.

Thus he immediately gave orders to his men:

“The python demon is already being dealt with by Pearl, but for it to dare attack the Black Wind Stronghold guarded by Pearl, it must have accomplices!”

“Find them all! Kill every last one of the python demon’s helpers!”

After dispersing his men, the Chief alone crept toward the direction of the treasure vault.

Of course, he did not forget to bring his weapon—a ten-stone bow.

With this ten-stone bow, the Chief was the strongest in the entire Black Wind Stronghold, second only to the eagle demon Pearl.

……

While the Chief made his way toward Mo Lin, Mo Lin had already clashed with the descending Pearl.

“Cry–!”

The golden pupils of the black eagle Pearl flared. Its iron feathers glinted with bronze light in the moonlight as it dived at Mo Lin at a speed imperceptible to the human eye.

Almost the very moment Mo Lin saw the black eagle above his head, it was already upon him.

The massive black eagle struck with both talons and beak—its claws seized for his seventh inch, its beak pecked for his eyes.

Had it been any other python, it would already have been torn to shreds in that instant, killed outright by the eagle’s assault.

But Mo Lin, also a Profound Demon, contracted his pupils and tensed his muscles, evading the eagle’s beak at an incredibly narrow angle.

Yet the eagle’s talons were so swift and vicious that they still left three bloody gashes on his body.

Mo Lin’s battle-hardened body had actually been wounded in the very first exchange!

The black eagle Pearl returned to the sky, circling as it sought its chance.

Mo Lin’s face twisted grimly:

“No wonder you are a python’s natural enemy—every strike goes for the kill.”

After circling thrice, the eagle let out a shrill cry, flapped its wings, and once again dived for Mo Lin.

But this time, just as it reached him, it suddenly twisted its body, its iron feathers slicing past Mo Lin like a spinning blade.

Mo Lin did not retreat but advanced instead. The eagle’s feathers pierced into him at greater speed, nearly cleaving him in half.

The eagle’s momentum faltered as its feathers embedded into Mo Lin’s body.

Seizing the chance, Mo Lin’s tail coiled tightly around the eagle’s feathers, squeezing with all his might.

“Cry–!”

The bound black eagle instantly struggled to flap its wings.

Its entire skill lay in its speed—its creed was to strike once and retreat far—but in raw strength, it was no match for Mo Lin.

If Mo Lin held it fast, even as a black eagle, it might not withstand his bind.

That was exactly why Mo Lin had risked being cut in two—close combat was his domain.

But Pearl was, after all, a Profound-level demonic beast. With constant struggle, it eventually tore itself free of Mo Lin’s coils.

Still, the black eagle did not escape unscathed.

Its feathers, once silver-bright in the moonlight and as perfect as works of art, were now half torn away by Mo Lin’s scales. Even flying became unsteady, its body covered in wounds.

Two exchanges—first, the black eagle had the upper hand with its agility; second, Mo Lin’s reckless ferocity forced a mutual injury.

“Hissss~”

Mo Lin flicked his tongue at the eagle, taunting it to launch a third assault.

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