335 To Have the Heart of a Bear, And the Guts of a Panther (1/2)
”Tian Fa's power is incomparable! Tian Fa's power is the fiercest in the entire universe!” Long Crane shouted as he waved his arm. White Lion King and Golden Monkey King stood behind him. They also looked towards the sky and roared as they let-out their thoughts in their own manner.
”Tian Fa won't invade the lands on the interior since we don't wish to trouble the common people. This has always been our custom, and we won't break it. Big Bear — you will command the ground forces with Tiger King, Lion King, Monkey King and Snake King. And, you will attack the resistance in the Southern Heaven City. Long Crane — you will lead the areal forces with Eagle King, and be ready to coordinate at any time. We hit them first; we hit them fast, and we hit them hard. They will be badly hurt. Then, we will decide if we should go ahead with a full scale battle. But, the final decision will always be to allow them come to me! Do you understand?”
”Yes!” the two men replied in unison.
”Fourth Brother, how's your injury?” the shrouded person inquired.
”It's fine. It was healed when Eldest Brother transferred his efficacy,” Big Bear replied gratefully. ”That Elusive Heart and Vein Splitting Sword Attack might have killed me if it weren't for Eldest Brother.”
”Eldest Brother, there's one more thing… I think that Big Bear has been Li Jue Tian's main target this entire time,” Long Crane spoke-up in a cautionary manner.
”Oh? And, why is that? Li Jue Tian isn't an unwise man. He must know that brazenly killing the Fourth would tantamount to a never-ending enmity and hatred from this Lord of Tian Fa. Yet, he still dares to?” The shrouded person snorted.
Long Crane replied in a dispirited manner, ”Or maybe… it's because the others don't know what we do. The world uses the so-called phrase 'To have the heart of a bear, and the guts of a panther' to describe the might of a person's courage. We know that such is not the case… But, maybe Li Jue Tian had brazenly killed the Panther King and taken his core with that mindset…”
”And so… he wants to take Big Bear heart as well?” The shrouded man snorted in rage.
”Yes. A man's cultivation increases considerably if he takes a Xuan Core. But, one can't absorb it properly, and Li Jue Tian would have faced this problem as well. But, if he takes Big Bear's heart along with Panther King's… he wouldn't only be able to absorb the Xuan Core… but his Xuan cultivation would also double. And, his strength would double-up again if he were to ingest Big Bear's core as well. This would lead to four-fold increase in his present efficacy. And, who in this world would be able to rival Li Jue Tian if that were to happen? So, why would he consider the enmity from the Tian Fa in the lure of such strength?”
Long Crane's face was full of loathing, ”Li Jue Tian ignored me throughout the fight. And, he continued to target Big Bear. And, each of his attacks was meant to kill. So, his intention was clearly malicious! This was the main reason why Fourth Brother and I instigated this uprising!”
”Li Jue Tian!” The shrouded person trembled with anger. It seemed like he had forced those words from the space between his teeth. ”No wonder he surrendered his pride and issued the supreme summon! No wonder he didn't hesitate to use that Elusive Heart and Vein Splitting Sword Attack to kill the Fourth! He had intended to kill him with one strike! That man intends to use the strength of the half of the continent's Xuan experts to achieve his ill-intended and malicious ambitions. But, he has counted his chickens before they've hatched by using that attack!”
”You all must leave for now, and prepare for the attacks. Send the beasts of level seven or below to the Tian Fa forest. We won't use them for now. I will put them on a single-minded training schedule for now.” The individual gowned in a black robe continued, ”Green Hunter Snake King, your speed is comparatively slower. So, pay attention. Only level five and above Flying Thread Snakes, Golden Centipede and Seven Star snakes shall participate. The others don't need to get involved for now.”
He was talking about Flying Thread, Golden Centipede and Seven Star Snakes. These three were the fastest, the most poisonous, and the most ferocious snakes in all of Tian Fa. In fact, these snakes were so quick that an average person couldn't even track their shadows.
The green-clad young lady — the Snake King — bowed respectfully, and acknowledged the order.
”Third and Fourth… you had said that that this mysterious man was very strong. That… he might even be more powerful than me. How would you judge his cultivation compared to mine? And, be honest!” the shrouded person's voice was somewhat hoarse.
”That man's cultivation is very high. I figure it wouldn't be less than yours. His cultivation would be more or less at par with you,” Long Crane replied in a careful manner after he had considered it for a while.
However, Big Bear's head was perhaps stuffed with melon seeds. So, he didn't understand the meaning behind Long Crane's roundabout reply. And, he opened his big mouth, and spoke, ”Third Brother, you need to open your eyes before you speak such blind nonsense. That person's cultivation was profound mystery. Eldest Brother is indeed very strong, but let's be honest… he could easily beat-up several people like you to dust… uh… in fact, I think that he could easily destroy two such people with ease… I… uh… damn it… I… uh… damn it… I didn't mean that uh… I didn't say that damn it… You're the strongest there is Eldest Brother… damn it… I didn't mean that… damn it… I was just saying that the Eldest Brother could easily beat-up ten people like him… damn it…” lung-splitting screams were heard soon after…
He hadn't finished speaking when his entire body had started to tremble. He had then opened his eyes, and had returned to his senses. But, it was already too late. ”Bang!” his entire body was hurled upside-down into the ground under the shrouded person's leg. Soon, only a faint snapping sound could be heard. And, this was because he had hit a few subterranean tree-roots… and had broken them…
”So, form your words… I can gather that this man's strength is much stronger than mine? Is that what you mean…? There's no need to mince your words; speak in a straightforward manner, and don't waste my time!” the shrouded man sounded somewhat gloomy as he nonchalantly clapped his hands, and moved his leg. One could see the two soles of Big Bear's legs jutting-out of the spot in the ground where he had been hurled into. And, the fading sounds of Big Bear's painful groans could also be heard…
”Even the three Holy Lands and those reckless old men outside it can't match my cultivation. So what's the deal with this man? How can he have such high cultivation?” The shrouded man moved his legs to and fro for a while. He was somewhat perplexed. And, a mournful groan was heard every time his steps fell on the ground…