Only I am Venerable

At that moment, Shiyu spoke softly from the side, "My love, what if I eliminate all the Spirit Beasts hiding on this mountain? That should infuriate the Great Witch Master, right?"

Qin Li frowned at Shiyu and said softly, "Don’t be reckless. That pack of Spirit Beasts below is not to be trifled with. If you provoke them all, forget about whether we can escape—not a single one of those humans will likely survive."

Shiyu bit her lower lip and looked at Qin Li with a stubborn glint in her eyes. "My love, this is the first time in my entire life that I’ve wanted to kill someone this badly! No, not people—*brutes*!"

Qin Li considered this for a moment, then suddenly asked, "How are you progressing with the Lightweight Step Technique I taught you?"

Shiyu chuckled. "You’ve seen for yourself, haven’t you? I’m not that far behind you, am I?"

Qin Li rubbed his nose. ’Even if it’s true, you don’t have to be so merciless about it, do you?’ he thought. But he was just letting his concern get the better of him. While Shiyu’s current Combat Power wasn’t quite on his level, she was still far stronger than the average Martial Artist at the Shattered Void realm. Inside this Spirit Beast lair, the strongest enemy was the Great Witch Master. Aside from that one, the others, though powerful, were not a major threat to her.

With that in mind, Qin Li said in a solemn voice, "Shiyu, remember: do not get drawn into a prolonged fight. If you can’t win, run. No matter where you go, I will find you!"

As he spoke, Qin Li sighed inwardly. ’If I’d known it would come to this, I would have brought Bai Zhongshan along.’ But then again, he was about to kill Spirit Beasts. If he had really brought that stubborn Old Ape with him, it might have just led to a different kind of trouble.

Slightly shaking his head, Qin Li let out a long breath. He rarely did things he wasn’t sure about; even when facing an unbeatable opponent, he would always plan an escape route beforehand. There was only one time he’d ever acted with absolutely no certainty: the incident at the Paradise Celestial Palace. Today was the second.

This was because the Spirit Beasts before them were completely different from ordinary ones. They were more cunning, vicious, and cruel than even humans. If it were simply a matter of Spirit Beasts and humans being natural enemies who killed each other, that would have been easy to understand. Neither Qin Li nor Shiyu would have found it so hard to accept.

But these Spirit Beasts had actually enslaved a group of humans, forcing them to do their bidding... ’Are these... are these really Spirit Beasts anymore?’

’Besides, these damned, ugly freaks have the nerve to call humans ugly. They really have a fucked-up... sense of beauty!’

Soon, on the mountain, the first Spirit Beast was slain by Shiyu. It happened without a sound, but Qin Li felt it. The heart that had been lodged in his throat finally settled a little.

He then gave a self-deprecating smile. ’Didn’t I bring Shiyu away from Profound Island precisely so she could gain training and combat experience? And yet, I’ve been hovering over her like a nanny this whole time. How can she ever be truly tested this way?’

’How can you see a rainbow without weathering the storm? Only by surviving a true life-and-death battle can one be genuinely tempered! Besides, with Shiyu’s power, as long as she doesn’t run into the Great Witch Master, escape won’t be a problem!’

At this thought, Qin Li’s tension finally melted away completely. After taking a deep breath, his body seemed to merge with his surroundings, gradually vanishing into thin air.

On the massive plaza outside the castle, a swaggering Be grinned viciously. It walked over to the tightly bound human Martial Artists, extended its tongue to lick its lips, and said with relish, "Soon, all of your hearts will become food for me, the great Be, second only to the magnificent Great Witch Master. Are you... ready?"

The human Martial Artists knew their fate. They remained silent, not even uttering a curse. They simply shut their eyes, refusing to even look at Be.

This infuriated Be, who had been anticipating their pained curses and was ready to savor the pleasure. It felt like throwing a punch and hitting nothing but air. All the rage it had been suppressing since being severely injured earlier that day had no outlet, thanks to the humans’ refusal to cooperate.

An idea flickered in Be’s eyes. It snatched a whip from a nearby subordinate, and with a vicious grin, swung it hard across one of the human Martial Artist’s faces.

CRACK! The lash instantly split the man’s skin, turning his face into a mangled, bloody mess. Be hadn’t used any Primordial Power; otherwise, a single strike would have shattered the human’s skull, and the heart would no longer be fresh.

"Curse me! Are you all mute?" Be bellowed arrogantly, its voice carrying far in the silent night. "Heh heh, you ugly, weak little humans, don’t you love to run your mouths? Why so quiet now?"

Just then, a suppressed sob came from the group of human captives nearby. A look of glee spread across Be’s face as it turned its gaze toward them.

Under its cruel gaze, the humans all bowed their heads. Someone was desperately trying to muffle a child’s mouth.

The sob had come from a little boy. The man who had been whipped was his father.

A thrill of pleasure shot through Be, and it roared with laughter. "Heh heh, you ugly little human whelp, are you scared? In a little while, I’m going to carve out your father’s heart and eat it!"

The little boy immediately burst into tears, and this time, even his mother couldn’t stifle his wails.

The louder the boy cried, the more delighted Be became. "Go on, cry! Cry your little heart out! When you’re all grown up, I’ll eat your heart, too! A child’s flesh is decent, I suppose, but their hearts are a bit lacking. Not nearly as tasty as a strong adult’s!"

At this, the human Martial Artist with the mangled face slowly opened his eyes. They were completely coated in blood, a horrifying sight to behold.

The whip had struck with chilling precision, cutting a diagonal gash from his forehead down to the corner of his mouth. Clearly, this brute, Be, had done this sort of thing countless times before.

"Don’t cry!" The Martial Artist’s voice was as steady and calm as ever, carrying an almost magical quality. His son, the little boy, instantly fell silent.

"Son, what have I always taught you? You are a man! A man bleeds; he does not cry! You must remember who our enemies are. Burn it into your heart, and never forget, not even in death! One day, these hideous brutes will all die by human swords! So, even in the face of death, you must hold fast to this conviction. Do not be afraid, and above all, do not cry!"

The man’s voice turned stern as he asked, "Do you hear me?"

The little boy’s face was a mask of misery. His lower lip jutted out as he fought back his sorrow, desperately trying not to cry out. His small body trembled as he answered in a choked voice, "I hear you!"

"Heh, quite the educator, aren’t you," Be sneered, its eyes darting about. Its chilling gaze swept back and forth over the little boy, as if it were mulling something over.

After a moment, it turned its head to the one standing beside it and ordered, "Go. Crush that little whelp for me. So I’ll be short one ripe heart? I can live with that! Hmph, I can always go out and capture a new batch of humans later! You want to raise your successor? I’ll make damn sure you don’t get your wish! Defeat us? In your dreams!"

"You dare!" The mangled human Martial Artist roared, his body suddenly erupting with a shocking aura. He glared at Be with monstrous fury. "You animal! You won’t even spare a child!"

"Heh heh heh, so you’re finally angry? Good. I love this reaction." Be cackled with glee. "Later... when all of you are reacting just like him, then I’ll be truly happy. An animal, am I? Call me what you want!" It laughed smugly, then shot a cold, grim look at the person beside it. "Well? What are you waiting for? Go!"

The figure beside Be hesitated for a moment before slowly walking toward the crowd of humans. A sudden volley of curses erupted from among them.

"Wang! You’re a human too! Are you really going to slaughter your own kind?"

"You animal! A traitor who sides with animals! You’re worse than a beast!"

"Wang Huo, I never should have saved your life back then! It would have been better if you’d just died, then you wouldn’t be here harming us now!"

So, the servant beside Be was a human—just like the Martial Artist Qin Li had killed earlier that day. He was one of the humans who had sworn allegiance to these ugly Spirit Beasts.

The man named Wang Huo lifted his head, a twisted, vicious grin spreading across his face. "If you want to blame someone, blame yourselves for not knowing your place! This was always the Spirit Beasts’ territory! Humans were the ones who occupied it and even tried to steal the Sacred Medicine from the great Spirit Beast lords! For that, all humans deserve to die! As for me... I am now Lord Be’s servant. I wield far more power than any of you! I’m living quite well!"

"Traitor!"

"Animal!"

"Scum of the earth!"

Furious shouts erupted from the crowd.

Be laughed heartily. It loved watching humans turn on each other. In fact, Be hadn’t even known human hearts were a delicacy until Wang Huo had taught it. For that reason, this man named Wang Huo had earned a great deal of Be’s favor.

The Great Witch Master sat high above, its eyes slightly closed and its expression impassive, as if the scene unfolding below had no effect on it whatsoever. It let Be do as it pleased. It, too, was furious about what had happened to Be earlier that day. Give these humans the slightest glimmer of hope, and they thought they could see daylight, daring to act with impunity. If they weren’t taught a harsh lesson, they would never learn!

By now, Wang Huo had slowly, step by step, reached the little boy. A savage grin was plastered on his face. A young woman beside the child—likely his mother—was already pale and trembling, desperately trying to hide him behind her.

But the defiant little boy bravely stepped in front of his mother, staring at Wang Huo without a trace of fear.

"Little whelp, you’re about to die. Aren’t you afraid? Do you have any idea what it feels like to die?" Wang Huo said grimly, baring his teeth.

"Why don’t you try dying? Then you’ll know what it feels like. I’m not afraid to die! And I’m certainly not afraid of a traitor like you who sides with animals!" The boy’s clear voice rang out in the night sky, echoing for a long time.

"Good! That’s my boy!" the man tied to the post roared with laughter, his face a bloody ruin.

———