Although it loves to fight, it isn’t a masochist!

...

Xu Ran once again mounted the back of the Peregrine Falcon, flying towards the depths of the Great Mountain.

Upon ascending, he noticed that amidst the towering giant trees, a sprawling area of light, perfectly illuminated, had unexpectedly appeared. Moreover, traces like those scorched by fire were found, pitch-black and utterly dark.

"Eh?" Xu Ran was extremely perplexed upon seeing this, "Little White, go there!"

Xu Ran pointed out the direction to the Peregrine Falcon.

"Screech!"

The Peregrine Falcon let out a long cry, flying swiftly in the direction Xu Ran pointed to, and quickly arrived there.

Upon landing once more, an indescribable stench assaulted his senses, making Xu Ran feel slightly nauseous instantly.

"What happened here?" Xu Ran’s fingers formed a gesture, releasing a thread of Innate Qi from within his body, enveloping him. The foul odor immediately dissipated.

Looking around.

In this black forest, aside from the unbearable stench in the air, the only thing remaining were black patches of ashes on the ground, whose origins were unknown.

Immediately, Xu Ran closed his eyes, threads of Innate Qi appeared at his fingertips, and suddenly a soul-piercing wail emerged from nothingness.

A pair of fierce tiger eyes appeared without warning in Xu Ran’s Sea of Spirit.

Those tiger eyes, resembling two blazing infernal fires from Hell, emitted endless black Spiritual Qi and carried a frenzied aura. Within their pupils, endless resentment and Evil Qi resided, deep as black holes. Such resentment seemed as though it could swallow everything around it completely.

The pair of tiger eyes hovered above Xu Ran’s Sea of Spirit, aligning with the Pocket-sized Flying Sword. The size of the tiger eyes just matched that of the Pocket-sized Flying Sword.

Xu Ran instinctively met the gaze of the tiger eyes.

Instantly, a chill like an icy cold serpent raced from the feet upwards along the spine, engulfing him in a bone-chilling cold.

But it lasted only a moment that the Pocket-sized Flying Sword burst forth with infinite golden light, shining upon Xu Ran like warm sunlight.

Suddenly, all the Innate Qi within the Sea of Spirit rushed towards the uninvited guest, causing it to disintegrate into nothingness, as if it never existed.

"Huh!"

Suddenly, Xu Ran opened his eyes filled with golden light, utterly bewildered by the scene before him.

Countless scorched souls, like wandering ghosts, floated in this black forest without a path forward.

"Why are there so many souls here... and all of them scorched?"

Speaking, Xu Ran’s gaze fell upon the most conspicuous two souls among the black ones.

One was as tall as ten meters, seemingly composed entirely of rock.

The other was extremely small, comparable to a small mouse.

A large and a small soul occupied the forefront of the black souls.

Xu Ran was about to approach to examine what special characteristics these two souls possessed.

"Swish---"

In an instant.

An emerald green figure abruptly darted out from the side, akin to a ghost, moving swiftly towards the large and small souls.

This emerald green figure, burly and tall, was as high as two meters, its outer shell akin to emerald green refined iron. Before it, what appeared to be two massive scythes revealed a strangely bluish-green hue, with thorn-like spikes still clinging to blood-red flesh, reflecting a terrifying light under the sun, with slender tentacles like agile whips, freely waving in the air.

Upon closer inspection, the newly appeared figure was a gigantic Mantis Demon.

Its velocity was unmatched, arriving suddenly before the two souls, inserting its tentacles into the black souls, instantly emerald green light erupted from its body, absorbing the two black souls into the Mantis Demon’s body.

Having completed this, the Mantis Demon appeared incredibly satisfied, looking at Xu Ran and the Peregrine Falcon, its small eyes emitting an emerald green glow.

"First a feast of souls, now a feast of human flesh. Today’s luck isn’t bad at all!"

In an instant, surges of emerald green Spiritual Qi erupted from within, rippling outward like waves, carrying an aura that chilled souls to the bone.

"Oh?" Xu Ran was intrigued, "I hadn’t expected to encounter a Demon Beast with such strong Spiritual Power here, a rare sight indeed!"

Demon Beasts typically cultivate physical strength only, pairing their invincible physical power with the innate bloodline talents, making them unbeatable.

Spiritual Power is incredibly challenging for Demon Beasts to cultivate.

"Wrong!" After contemplating briefly, Xu Ran remarked, "You are merely supplementing your soul cultivation, your priority remains physical strength!"

The Mantis Demon’s speed just now was akin to lightning, such speed is unattainable for soul-focused Demon Beasts.

"Such matters aren’t yours to know, you just need to understand, you shall be my blood feast, a hearty meal!"

The Mantis Demon impatiently stated.

Its small eyes radiated a brutal look, seemingly visualizing the grim fate awaiting Xu Ran and the Peregrine Falcon.

The Peregrine Falcon was about to step forward to block the Mantis Demon but witnessed Xu Ran’s gesture, chose to restrain its restless heart, slowly retreating backward.

The cultivation level of this Mantis Demon appeared equivalent to the White Ape’s, swift as lightning, its attacks mainly relying on the icy scythes at its front. Regardless, such Demon Beasts for Xu Ran were manageable easily, though this time it couldn’t grasp what Xu Ran intended exactly.

Nevertheless, as it was Xu Ran’s command, the Spirit Pet was obliged to follow without failure.

Seeing the retreating Peregrine Falcon, the Mantis Demon mocked, "Human, your Spirit Pet seems ready to flee, how cowardly that backward step was!"

In the Mantis Demon’s eyes, the Peregrine Falcon retreat signified preparation for escape.

Otherwise, would it wish to leave what appeared to be a mere infant to confront it?

Immediately, the Mantis Demon swung its front scythes, forming an ’×’. In the following moment, two emerald green beams rose, targeting the Peregrine Falcon.

When this ’×’ was about to reach the Peregrine Falcon, it vanished briefly before reappearing behind the Peregrine Falcon, expanding and enlarging, sealing its retreat path completely.

"I told you, today both of you are my blood meal, there’s no escape for you!"

The Mantis Demon laughed loudly, gaze fixated on the person and the falcon, consumed by a hunger for food.

The Peregrine Falcon remained expressionless.

Witnessing the Mantis Demon’s technique, Xu Ran nodded and stated, "Interesting, this is a Spiritual Technique, right?!"

"To escape your trap, one requires a stronger soul. Otherwise, they’ll forever remain confined within!"

Xu Ran immediately discerned the technique involved.

The Mantis Demon’s eyes turned vacant for a moment, disbelief written upon its tiny human observer.

"You... You actually discerned my technique?!"

Assuming a Great Demon or human with similar cultivation to it could perceive its technique, it accepted that, after all, skills and experience backed it.

However, before it stood a mere infant human, yet capable of recognizing its technique, it utterly shattered its worldview.

"Hmph!" The Mantis Demon sneered coldly, "Even if you unravel my technique, so what? Your Spirit Pet remains trapped by me. Even if it wasn’t trapped, it’s not a Great Demon, how could it possibly hinder me?"

Upon finishing, its gaze hardened, icy chills instantly swept across the black forest. The initially two-meter tall emerald green figure suddenly swelled, doubling to four meters tall, revealing previously unseen wings, half-spread, thin as cicada wings, engraved subtly with mysterious, dim runes.

It emitted a pervasive emerald green Spiritual Qi, sending chills down one’s spine.