Douluo: Glory of the Unrivaled Angel

Word Count: 2,980 Words

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Ling Bai released the Angelic Domain. Radiant golden light swept outward as waves of immense holy power washed over the ground, erasing all traces of the Twin Cyclops' corpse and the Death Abyss Bone Dragon.

The domain slowly converged, forming a golden sphere of light about two meters in diameter that enveloped both Ling Bai and the Three-Eyed Golden Lion. Unless one forcibly broke through it, no spiritual or spirit power could penetrate this barrier.

Inside the sphere, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion lay unconscious, its three eyes spinning in circles and its tongue lolling out.

Time was short and the task urgent. The Three-Eyed Golden Lion was a spirit beast with dual Ultimate attributes and was protected by the power of destiny. To subdue it, the Death Abyss Bone Dragon had to rely on the element of surprise, naturally using a bit more force in its attack.

Ling Bai took advantage of the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's unconscious state and preemptively sealed its spirit power. Pressing his right hand against its massive head, a black vortex continuously devoured the Ultimate Light bloodline within its body.

Necromancy, Attribute Deprivation!

Man and beast became almost transparent as golden light flickered intermittently. The Seraphim silently manifested, and a faint smile seemed to play on the hazy face of its illusory figure.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's physique was exceptionally robust. It wasn't long before it groggily awakened from its stupor, only to realize in horror that its light-attribute bloodline was rapidly draining away. The culprit turned out to be a human, the mortal enemy of all spirit beasts!

"Damn human! What... what have you done to me?!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion was utterly terrified. It remembered chasing the Twin Cyclops when, out of nowhere, a ghastly white, thick dragon tail had lashed out. Caught completely off guard, it had spectacularly fainted. Now awake and clear-headed, it found this repulsive human pressing down on its noble head while holy power sealed its spirit power.

"My body! No! Let go of me!" The Three-Eyed Golden Lion began to struggle, its four paws flailing desperately.

"Be good now. It'll be quick. I've already sped it up—it'll be over soon!"

The voice carried outside the Angelic Domain. Elder Song and the four youngsters exchanged bewildered glances. Wang Dong swallowed hard and said cautiously, "It can speak human language… that must be a 100,000-year spirit beast..."

Xiao Xiao clasped her hands together piously. "They have my respect and blessing!"

Wu Feng fumed, "You scoundrel! Are you really that hungry? You won't even spare a spirit beast!"

Elder Song gave a helpless smile. "It seems Ling Bai isn't in any mortal danger. That puts my mind at ease."

The Angelic Domain signified that Ling Bai wished to keep his actions confidential. Elder Song wouldn't rashly intrude.

Huo Yuhao pressed his lips together tightly. The bond of destiny tugging at him grew stronger and stronger. The object of his fate was currently in Ling Bai's hands, its voice filled with tragic suffering, clearly enduring inhuman torment.

"ROAR—"

Three furious roars pierced the clouds as a dark red figure lunged toward them. Elder Song's expression turned grave. The Greenshadow Godly Eagle flashed abruptly, its sharp eagle eyes instantly locking onto the trajectory of the dark red figure.

BOOM!!!

Elder Song soared into the air, the razor-sharp talons of the Greenshadow Godly Eagle embedding themselves in the shoulder of the dark red figure. Wu Feng, Huo Yuhao, and the others finally got a clear look at this spirit beast.

The creature stretched over five meters in length with an extremely imposing build. Three identical heads sat upon its shoulders, and terrifying fangs gleamed with a scarlet-golden luster.

"Ranked eighth among the Ten Great Beasts—the Three-Headed Scarlet Devil Mastiff, Scarlet King?!"

Elder Song was momentarily stunned. The Scarlet King's territory was the deepest part of the Core Region, near the Lake of Life. How could it appear in the Hybrid Region where 10,000-year spirit beasts gathered?!

All three of Scarlet King's massive heads roared in unison. Within a ten-mile radius, every spirit beast prostrated itself on the ground, not daring to move. It growled:

"I saw you during the last beast tide, Greenshadow Douluo of Shrek Academy. What are you planning to do to the Emperor Destiny Beast!"

"Emperor Destiny Beast?"

Elder Song flung the Scarlet King away and landed back in front of the five, staring bewilderedly at the enraged creature.

The Scarlet King pointed at the golden sphere of light that was the Angelic Domain, shouting angrily, "I can sense the Emperor Destiny Beast right here! Greenshadow Douluo, I advise you to release the Destiny Beast immediately, or else the denizens of Star Dou Forest will wage unending war against Shrek!"

"Uncle Scarlet King... Wuu wuu! Save... Save me, wuu—"

At that moment, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's cry for help rang out from within the Angelic Domain, only to be abruptly cut off as if its mouth had been stuffed shut.

The Scarlet King's face grew darker than the bottom of a pot. Its three heads spat out wisps of dark red hellfire.

Elder Song felt a headache coming on. She knocked on the sphere of light and said, "Um... Ling Bai, you heard that, right? You really can't kill the Emperor Destiny Beast!"

The Sea God Pavilion's records contained descriptions of the Emperor Destiny Beast. In spirit beast habitats where one resided, the growth rate of all other spirit beasts would double, as would the chances of 100,000-year spirit beasts breaking through their bottlenecks. The Scarlet King's threat was no joke. If the Three-Eyed Golden Lion were to die, the Star Dou Forest would undoubtedly unleash an endless beast tide.

The Angelic Domain quietly dissipated, revealing Ling Bai and the Three-Eyed Golden Lion. A large lump had swollen on the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's forehead, and its aura was feeble. Yet it still bared its fangs, glaring at Ling Bai with utter hatred. Ling Bai, however, looked completely content, as if a great weight had been lifted from his heart.

He had deprived the Three-Eyed Golden Lion of its Ultimate Light attribute, which Electrolux was temporarily storing. He had preserved its Ultimate Fire bloodline because draining both Ultimate attributes at once would be like removing both of a human's kidneys. The Emperor Destiny Beast's body would suffer unpredictable, severe trauma.

Removing one bloodline, however, was like cutting a stalk of chives; the remaining bulb could regrow the leaves, though it would require a large amount of resources for nourishment.

If the Three-Eyed Golden Lion wanted to fully replenish its light-attribute bloodline, relying solely on cultivation would likely take ten thousand years.

Elder Song looked at the Three-Eyed Golden Lion thoughtfully. Ultimate Light and Ultimate Fire—perfectly matching the requirements for the Seraphim's spirit ring. No wonder Ling Bai sought out this Emperor Destiny Beast.

"Human, release the Destiny Beast!"

The Scarlet King breathed a slight sigh of relief seeing that the Three-Eyed Golden Lion wasn't severely harmed. With the Emperor Destiny Beast in Ling Bai's hands, it was hesitant to attack and could only resort to verbal threats.

Having secured the Ultimate Light and knowing he could visit the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Well to 'chat' with the Infernal Delicate Apricot about life—thus obtaining the Ultimate Fire and fully resolving the Death Abyss Spider Emperor issue—Ling Bai felt as if dawn had broken in his life. He gently stroked the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's head. Indeed, the Emperor Destiny Beast lived up to its name. Its fur felt as smooth and soft as the finest silk, making one reluctant to let go.

"That won't do."

Ling Bai shook his head with a light laugh. "Your Destiny Beast is so fierce it almost killed me just now. I need to take it home and educate it properly."

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's eyes widened to the size of saucers.

He's slandering me! Uncle Scarlet King, he's slandering me!

I didn't even see this damned human before I was knocked out!

"Impossible!"

The Scarlet King retorted. "The Destiny Beast only eats the brain matter of light-attribute spirit beasts. It wouldn't attack humans."

"My Martial Spirit is the Seraphim. This fellow probably mistook me for a light-attribute spirit beast."

"Hmm..."

The Scarlet King furrowed its brows. It had heard of the Seraphim's fearsome reputation. A God-level Martial Spirit with Ultimate Holy and near-Ultimate Light and Fire attributes. The Three-Eyed Golden Lion might indeed target the brain matter of a Seraphim Spirit Master. Slowly, it said:

"If you release the Emperor Destiny Beast, I'm willing to apologize on its behalf."

With the Three-Eyed Golden Lion at Ling Bai's mercy and Elder Song's strength far surpassing its own, the Scarlet King had no choice but to lower its head to a human.

"Mmph mmph mmph!!!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion flailed its four paws desperately. Its earlier cry for help had led Ling Bai to seal its ability to speak. The Emperor Destiny Beast was on the verge of tears, a look of tragic indignation in its eyes as it tried to convey that everything the human said was utter nonsense.

I never wanted to eat his brain matter!

This is such a grave injustice!

Only the one who wronged you knows how wronged you truly are. Ling Bai cleared his throat, pressed down the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's front paws, and calmly said, "A mere verbal apology won't suffice. Find a 100,000-year spirit beast as a gift of atonement, and I'll let it go."

Elder Song and the four youngsters gasped. They vaguely sensed that the Three-Eyed Golden Lion was being wronged and couldn't help but admire Ling Bai's ability to shamelessly demand a 100,000-year spirit beast as ransom with a straight face.

The Scarlet King was furious enough to explode. It cursed loudly, "A 100,000-year spirit beast? Why don't you ask for me instead? I'm going to kill you, greedy human!"

"Calm down, calm down. I haven't finished speaking yet."

Ling Bai made a placating gesture, signaling the Scarlet King to be patient. "Your Star Dou Forest is vast and boundless, encompassing countless spirit beast species. There must be quite a few evil spirit beasts residing there, right?"

"Indeed."

The Scarlet King took a deep breath, managed to quell its anger, and nodded.

Just as there were Evil Spirit Masters among humans, there were Evil Spirit Beasts among the spirit beasts. The most infamous was undoubtedly the Dark Demon Evil God Tiger, whose status among spirit beasts was comparable to the God-level Martial Spirit Seraphim among humans. Each appearance brought disaster to the Star Dou Forest. Another example was the Man Faced Demon Spider, which was also an Evil Spirit Beast, the type that both humans and beasts would attack on sight.

The Star Dou Forest was the largest spirit beast gathering place on the Douluo Continent. Ling Bai believed that 100,000-year-level evil spirit beasts must live there. He persuaded:

"When the Seraphim slays Evil Spirit Masters and Evil Spirit Beasts, it can purify a portion of their spirit power for its own use. An Evil Spirit Beast is like a bomb, and a 100,000-year Evil Spirit Beast is a super bomb.

Scarlet King, I won't make things difficult by asking you to kill an ordinary 100,000-year spirit beast. If you capture a 100,000-year Evil Spirit Beast alive and hand it over to me in exchange for the Destiny Beast, it will be a win-win for Star Dou Forest and me. Even Di Tian won't blame you if he finds out. He might even praise you for being clever."

"Fine, I agree."

The Scarlet King couldn't help but laugh, its sharp fangs moving slightly. "You little brat, I can tell you have a bright future!"

Ling Bai smiled as well. "Star Dou Forest and Shrek City are neighbors. Neither side wishes for war to break out. Scarlet King, we'll wait for you at the outskirts of Star Dou Forest."

The Scarlet King didn't delay any longer and rushed toward the territory of a certain 100,000-year Evil Spirit Beast etched in its memory.

A swirl of rich green light enveloped the five people and one beast. The formidable power of Elder Song, a Rank 97 Super Douluo, allowed her to swiftly ascend even while carrying people and a beast. When they landed again, the group had arrived at the outer edges of the Star Dou Forest.

They waited on the spot for the Scarlet King's return. Wu Feng sidled up to Ling Bai and lowered her voice. "Why didn't you be bolder and ask that guy for a 100,000-year light-attribute spirit beast?"

"A 100,000-year spirit beast has already touched the Scarlet King's bottom line."

Ling Bai explained. "If we specifically requested a light-attribute spirit beast, I'm afraid it might summon the Golden Eyed Black Dragon King Di Tian. At that point, the losses would outweigh the gains.

It's better if it's good for you, good for me, good for everyone. The Scarlet King will gladly eliminate a troublemaker for Star Dou Forest in advance, while I can increase my spirit power by killing the evil spirit beast and incidentally obtain a 100,000-year spirit bone."

Wu Feng nodded subconsciously upon hearing this. Beside them, Elder Song's eyes shone with appreciation. What Ling Bai said indeed made perfect sense.

In fact, Ling Bai was telling the truth, but he concealed one fact: his second Martial Spirit, the Death Abyss Spider Emperor, could absorb the spirit rings of evil spirit beasts!

Spirit power, spirit rings, spirit bones: three birds with one stone!

A tremendous profit!

Meanwhile, Huo Yuhao sneakily approached the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, observing this Emperor Destiny Beast that made his heart and soul tremble.

"Get lost, you filthy, despicable human!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion could finally speak and hurled a torrent of abuse at Huo Yuhao. Completely unfazed, Huo Yuhao's Spirit Eyes glowed with golden light. Following the guidance in his heart, he suddenly leaned close to the vertical eye at the center of the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's forehead.

Thwack!

"Ouch!"

The crisp sound of a head being flicked and a cry of pain rang out one after the other. Huo Yuhao sat on the ground, clutching his head, and glared at Ling Bai, who stood before him like a towering mountain. He demanded, "Why did you hit me?"

"I should be asking you, what were you trying to do?"

Ling Bai had been prepared from the moment Huo Yuhao approached the Three-Eyed Golden Lion. He decisively blocked the destiny-linked Elemental Transfusion.

"I have a gut feeling, I want to touch its third eye!" Huo Yuhao got up, seemingly determined to get close to the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.

"Shameless! Vulgar! You think you're worthy of touching me?!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion was furious and roared nonstop. It desperately struggled against the spirit power seal Ling Bai had placed on it, even coughing up golden-red blood from the corners of its mouth.

"Touch its third eye?"

Elder Song gently rubbed her chin, realization dawning. "Ancient texts record that 'where the Destiny Beast resides, ten thousand beasts receive its blessing. Its attributes are supreme. Humans can receive Elemental Transfusion, enjoying auspicious blessings and limitless prospects.'

The Destiny Beast protects spirit beasts, greatly increasing their cultivation speed. Elemental Transfusion uses its attributes to refine a human's attributes, adding an aura of auspiciousness, which brings immense benefits to future cultivation.

Although the Emperor Destiny Beast possesses dual attributes of Ultimate Light and Ultimate Fire, its primary attribute is actually spiritual. Yuhao likely resonated with its spiritual attribute, giving him the intuition for Elemental Transfusion.

Ling Bai, I believe Yuhao should give it a try."

"You... you dare!"

Having lost its spirit power, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion now appeared fierce but was weak at heart. If it had even a shred of strength left, it would unhesitatingly commit suicide. The side effect of Elemental Transfusion was that the destinies of both parties would intertwine from then on. It was a noble beast of destiny and would absolutely not allow a human to defile its fate!

"What you say might be correct, Elder Song."

Ling Bai's tone remained as calm as water. "But that's just what's recorded in ancient texts. No one has truly achieved Elemental Transfusion. No one knows what the consequences might be. If the Elemental Transfusion causes the Emperor Destiny Beast to die unexpectedly, and the Star Dou Forest unleashes a beast tide to attack the Douluo Continent, causing widespread devastation, who can bear that responsibility?

If Shrek is willing to bear it, then go ahead."

Ling Bai proactively stepped back, clearing a path for Huo Yuhao. At the same time, he secretly gave the Three-Eyed Golden Lion a kick.

"You... mm... ah, yes, yes, yes!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion was about to let loose a string of curses when it suddenly caught on. It spat out a large mouthful of blood, its breath becoming incredibly faint, as if it might die in the next second.

"Elem... Elemental Transfusion is a method of forcing a spirit beast to sacrifice itself! Let that kid come over! Uncle Di Tian will avenge me anyway!" The Three-Eyed Golden Lion flopped down, putting on an air of 'do as you please, kill me or skin me'.

Not bad, quite clever.

Ling Bai inwardly gave it a thumbs up.

"This..."

Elder Song and Huo Yuhao instantly chickened out. There was no precedent for Elemental Transfusion. If the Three-Eyed Golden Lion really kicked the bucket, everyone would have to be buried with it. It was better to wait for Scarlet King to return and exchange the hostage.

Realizing that Huo Yuhao had given up on the idea of Elemental Transfusion, a glimmer of light returned to the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's eyes. It stopped struggling. Its gaze toward Ling Bai still held anger and hatred, but there were also indescribable, complex emotions...