Chapter 175: Storm Fierce Eagle

"You kill decisively and without batting an eyelid... Have you killed many people before?" The Little Fairy's voice, seemingly from nowhere, sounded in Yun Che's ear. Yun Che's steps faltered slightly as he replied, "I have indeed killed many people... You won't dislike me because of that, will you?"

"You only kill evildoers and actively save the innocent; I have no reason to dislike you. On the contrary, I dislike those who are indecisive and forgive villains in the name of kindness and righteousness."

Remembering the Little Fairy's method of killing that night, Yun Che involuntarily shivered. Burning with Phoenix Flame would at least leave some scorched remains, but the old man who died by the Little Fairy's hand that night left not even a trace of ash...

Yun Che sped up, continuing deeper into the Death Omen Wasteland.

The deeper he went, the fewer people he encountered. By the time he neared the edge of the Spirit Profound Beast territory, there were no longer any cultivators to be seen. At the same time, as he delved deeper, the profound beasts Yun Che encountered were of higher levels and in increasingly denser numbers, gradually making him feel the strain.

Bang, bang, bang, bang... A series of explosions erupted as over a dozen Iron-Armored Lizards were swept away by Yun Che's sword, their armored defenses completely shattered. No sooner had Yun Che retracted his sword than another dozen Iron-Armored Lizards appeared from all directions, launching a terrifying ground-shaking assault.

Each of these Iron-Armored Lizards had strength equivalent to an eighth-level True Profound Realm practitioner.

The Iron-Armored Lizards' enormous tails swept horizontally like steel whips. Yun Che leaped up, and before reaching his apex, he used "Star God Broken Shadow" for an anti-physical sudden dive. Phoenix Flame shot out, directly knocking over the nearest Iron-Armored Lizard.

Fire seemed to be the bane of these Iron-Armored Lizards. The one that took the Phoenix Flame screamed in prolonged agony, its vitality rapidly diminishing. Yun Che's gaze sharpened, and he charged into the pack of Iron-Armored Lizards like lightning. His entire body ablaze with Phoenix Flame, the greatsword in his hand seemed to transform into a crimson fire dragon swirling and dancing. With each downward swing of the heavy sword, flames surged outwards, gradually igniting a large area of fiery domain that quickly melted the Iron-Armored Lizards' armor...

Within dozens of breaths, Yun Che weaved through the Iron-Armored Lizard pack twice, completely eradicating all newly appearing lizards.

"Hoo..." Yun Che propped his greatsword on the ground and let out a long breath. After a brief rest, he resolutely moved forward, stepping into the Spirit Profound Beast territory.

After cresting a low hill, seven Iron-Backed Azure Wolves, exuding a violent aura, appeared in his sight. Iron-Backed Azure Wolves had extremely sensitive noses and immediately caught the scent of a living human. Seven pairs of azure wolf eyes locked onto Yun Che's position almost simultaneously, then they howled and charged forward.

Seven Iron-Backed Azure Wolves, each with the strength of a first-level Spirit Profound Realm practitioner... This was undoubtedly the most formidable lineup Yun Che had faced so far.

Yun Che showed no intention of retreating. He drew his greatsword from his back, just about to engage, when he suddenly heard answering howls from all around. Following this, dozens of light blue shadows appeared from all directions, all charging towards him.

They were all Iron-Backed Azure Wolves.

"Oh crap..." Yun Che's hands, gripping the sword, trembled instantly, and cold sweat immediately streamed down his face. He turned and ran without a second thought... It was a joke; he could easily eliminate one, and seven or eight he could barely manage to wipe out completely, perhaps even sustaining some injuries. But more than ten? He couldn't even think about dealing with that many... His only option was to flee.

Only after he had stepped out of the Spirit Profound Beast territory did the wolf howls behind him gradually fade. Yun Che leaned against a thick, withered tree, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.

"Why are the profound beasts in this Death Omen Wasteland so dense?" Jasmine suddenly asked.

"I heard that this has been the territory of profound beasts since ancient times; otherwise, it wouldn't be called the profound beasts' paradise," Yun Che replied.

"Dense concentrations of profound beasts, their exclusion of outsiders, and their long-term residence in one place are never without reason. The profound beasts in the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range are also extremely numerous and highly xenophobic. The reason is clearly the presence of a phoenix aura at the mountain range's center. As profound beasts, they possess an innate fear and reverence for such a divine beast's aura. The phoenix aura becomes a presence akin to faith in their hearts, drawing all beasts to gather. If humans step into their sacred ground, they will naturally attack with all their might."

"Yet, the profound beasts here are even more numerous and ferociously xenophobic than those in the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range. Could it be that the center of this Death Omen Wasteland also harbors a divine beast's aura, similar to a phoenix?"

Yun Che didn't pay too much heed to Jasmine's words. After calming his mind and preparing himself mentally, he dragged his sword and charged back into the Spirit Profound Beast territory.

By this time, the Iron-Backed Azure Wolves had dispersed. This time, without waiting for them to start howling, he instantly dashed forward and unleashed a heavy sword strike from ten paces away...

"Sky Wolf Slash!"

Among all the profound arts Yun Che possessed, the Sky Wolf Slash consumed the most profound energy and wielded the greatest power. It was a trump card he had always kept deeply hidden, only ever using it once before, in front of Ling Jie. When this sword strike was unleashed, its might was truly earth-shattering. The flat, hard ground was instantly torn open by a gully nearly twenty zhang long. At the points where the gully passed, the bodies of six Iron-Backed Azure Wolves were brutally ripped into twelve segments by the impact.

That single move consumed nearly a third of Yun Che's profound energy, yet he didn't retreat. Instead, he proactively charged into the quickly gathering pack of Iron-Backed Azure Wolves, wildly swinging his heavy sword, which unleashed waves of wolf howls and scattered blood stars through the air...

An hour later, Yun Che was five li away. He sat on the ground, carefully sprinkling medicinal powder onto the various wounds on his body. The longest one stretched from his left chest all the way to his right ribs, so deep that bone was visible.

Behind him, dozens of Iron-Backed Azure Wolf bodies lay scattered evenly across those five li, each wolf corpse utterly mangled.

After applying the medicinal powder, Yun Che sat upright on the ground and closed his eyes. As the Great Way of the Buddha began to circulate, his external injuries visibly healed bit by bit at a speed discernible to the naked eye.

He knew very well that the current area was the limit of what he could handle. If he continued further and encountered profound beast packs with strength comparable to second-level Spirit Profound Realm practitioners, his only option would truly be to flee.

After all his wounds had healed, a vast chorus of wolf howls once again erupted around Yun Che. He opened his eyes, didn't bother changing, simply tugged at his tattered clothes, grabbed his greatsword, and coldly eyed the dozen-plus Iron-Backed Azure Wolves that had appeared around him at some unknown time.

A single Iron-Backed Azure Wolf wasn't frightening; what was terrifying was their collective attack and their endless numbers.

Two days and two nights passed, and Yun Che had battled here for two days and two nights. Countless Iron-Backed Azure Wolves had fallen to his sword, yet the Iron-Backed Azure Wolves here seemed endless. Every time he finished off all the wolves and sat down to heal, no more than a quarter of an hour would pass before large packs of Iron-Backed Azure Wolves appeared in his sight again.

These two days and two nights of constantly perilous battles had also caused Yun Che's profound energy, which had grown rapidly with the aid of medicine, to become increasingly stable.

Just as Yun Che was contemplating whether to venture deeper, a clear eagle cry suddenly echoed from the sky.

Yun Che instinctively looked up. In the eastern sky, a pitch-black giant eagle was slowly flying at a low altitude. Even from such a distance, Yun Che could clearly see its incredibly sharp eagle eyes and the chilling glint reflected from its talons.

It wasn't Yun Che's first time seeing this giant eagle; he blurted out its name...

"Storm Gale Eagle!"

The Xiao Sect's branch in New Moon City kept a Storm Gale Eagle. It was the same day Xiao Zaihe had ridden that Storm Gale Eagle to pursue him and Lan Xueruo, who were on a Giant Snow Condor, ultimately forcing them to fall into the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range.

Among profound beasts, the Storm Gale Eagle's strength was equivalent to a second-level Spirit Profound Realm practitioner, but its greatest asset wasn't its aggressiveness; rather, it was its astonishing aerial ability. In terms of both flight speed and altitude, almost no other beast in the Spirit Profound Realm, or even the Earth Profound and Sky Profound realms, could match it.

When Yun Che spotted the Storm Gale Eagle, it was gliding slowly. However, just as it flew diagonally above Yun Che, its massive body suddenly tilted, then plummeted down abruptly, its two formidable talons reaching straight for him.

Yun Che hadn't expected it to suddenly attack him. He reacted instantly, raising his greatsword, and a surge of wild sword energy rushed to meet it...

However, just as he swung his sword, he suddenly realized that the Storm Gale Eagle's talons weren't aimed at him, but at a spot slightly to his left. He glanced left and saw a bloody Iron-Backed Azure Wolf corpse, instantly understanding that what it wanted to snatch was the wolf's body!

But Yun Che's greatsword was already in motion and couldn't be recalled. The heavy sword storm slammed fiercely into the Storm Gale Eagle's massive body, sending it tumbling several times in mid-air... This instantly and completely drew its hatred.

The Storm Gale Eagle let out a long shriek, its furious eagle eyes locking onto Yun Che. With a flap of its wings, a storm brewed, completely enveloping Yun Che. It then plummeted down like lightning, its talons aiming directly for his chest.

The oncoming wind blades sliced cuts into Yun Che's clothes but couldn't injure his body. Yun Che neither dodged nor retreated; he met the storm, unleashing a sword strike... However, he had still underestimated the Storm Gale Eagle's speed, and with the storm's suppression, by the time his sword strike was unleashed, the eagle's talons were already close to his chest. The gleaming claws had even pierced his clothes...

*Thud!!!*

The Overlord's Greatsword heavily struck the Storm Gale Eagle's massive body, eliciting a miserable shriek as it rapidly tumbled backward through the air. It rolled for dozens of turns, only managing to steady itself just as it was about to hit the ground.

This fierce blow was enough to instill fear in the Storm Gale Eagle. After swaying precariously in mid-air for a long time, it finally regained its balance but dared not attack Yun Che again, flying away into the distance.

"Hmph, good thing you're sensible, otherwise I'd have to give you a taste of fire." Yun Che tugged at his chest clothes, looking at the holes made by the four eagle talons, and secretly thought to himself, *That was close.*

His clothes were truly tattered beyond repair, and with too much wolf blood staining them, the smell was also quite pungent, making them impossible to continue wearing. He quickly tore off all his ragged clothes and put on a new set...

The moment he finished changing, his expression suddenly shifted slightly. He swiftly reached up and pressed his hand against his neck, his face instantly turning even uglier.

Because the pendant he had worn around his neck since childhood was gone.