Chapter 363

Tie Ba Xiu, shocked and cold, replays what just happened: every word and action from “little beast king” was an unfathomable trap that lured all seven Tie clansmen in, and his unexpected mastery of flight let him retreat and advance at will until the fight became a one sided slaughter. What frightens Tie Ba Xiu most is not the flying but the mind behind it: he judges the youth’s scheming ability so far beyond his years that, turned toward the righteous path, he could have become its brightest star, but instead chose the demonic path, calling it a disaster to the people of the world. He has a premonition that this young man will one day become a calamity across the whole southern border, that blood will dye the land red, and that uncountable lives will fall to him. ^{ch. 363}

Weighing his own exhausted state, Tie Ruo Nan’s incapacity, and his thin ranged options against Fang Yuan’s freedom to attack or flee at will, Tie Ba Xiu decides to retreat toward San Cha mountain and the four old timers. His long fame has never clouded his judgment, and he accepts the disgrace of retreating from a junior rather than risk death; he silently vows to someone he calls big brother Xue Leng that he will not let his child die in front of him, and drags Tie Ruo Nan away. ^{ch. 363}

Fang Yuan senses danger in letting them reach reinforcements and presses the attack instead. His beast phantoms, raised through all out effort Gu and strength qi Gu, block Tie Ba Xiu, who scatters them with bare fists, so Fang Yuan redirects them at Tie Ruo Nan. Tie Ba Xiu, cursing him as despicable, turns to shield her, a Gu Master built for offense forced into a defense he was never built for. Fang Yuan cannot be reached in return, and Tie Ba Xiu, defending her the whole way, absorbs blow after blow that pile from light wounds into heavy ones. Unknown to him, Fang Yuan’s liquor worm and heavenly essence treasure lotus give him primeval essence to match a rank four upper stage cultivator. Beast phantoms keep coming without pause, and thunder boar and rock crocodile phantoms in particular threaten Tie Ruo Nan. ^{ch. 363}

As Tie Ba Xiu nears San Cha mountain, the four old timers are nowhere in sight; the same hidden route and early departure that kept their approach secret now works against him. His wounds pile from light to heavy, and Tie Ruo Nan struggles so hard against him that he knocks her unconscious to carry her. Gu Masters near the mountain’s foot spot the pursuit and recognize both fighters, and disbelief spreads through the crowd: righteous path onlookers are chilled to see the “present age overlord” reduced to fleeing like a beaten animal. ^{ch. 363}

Nearby, Li Xian and Hu Mei Er wait beside the purple light barrier holding Bai Ning Bing, still trapped by the four Tie elders’ iron cabinet Gu. Li Xian insists his information is sound even as he privately fears Fang Yuan means to abandon her, until the commotion reaches them and he realizes, tongue tied, that little beast king went to intercept the Tie clan reinforcement rather than rescue her directly. Hu Mei Er is stunned that he advanced to rank four middle stage and learned to fly in so short a time. ^{ch. 363}

The four elders abandon Bai Ning Bing’s cage and race to save Tie Ba Xiu. They arrive a step too late. Battered and near death, Tie Ba Xiu regrets only that Fang Yuan never came down to fight him in close combat: with the trump card he never got to reveal, he is certain he would have killed him. He has kept every attack off Tie Ruo Nan the whole way. As the elders close in, Fang Yuan throws his head back and laughs, taunting that Tie Ba Xiu has failed by a single step, and a rock crocodile phantom explodes into him, sending him rolling. With his last strength, Tie Ba Xiu seals Tie Ruo Nan inside iron cabinet Gu; a beast phantom then tears him apart while she survives inside, untouched. The four elders reach the scene howling in grief and rage, and swear that Tie clan will not rest until Fang Yuan is dead, glaring at him with a look that wishes it could bite him to death. Fang Yuan tells them coldly that six of the seven Tie clansmen he fought, Tie Ba Xiu included, are already dead by his hand, and invites the four of them to fly over and try their luck. ^{ch. 363}