Seeing Jiang Qingtong give her a thumbs-up, Bi Ji smiled and said:
"It was nothing at all."
Jiang Qingtong had no objections to Bi Ji putting Xiao Xiao back to sleep earlier—on the contrary, it was exactly the right thing to do.
After all, it was for Xiao Xiao's own good. If she had woken up alone to see Di Tian, the fabled number one ferocious beast, the psychological scar would probably haunt her for life.
Looking at the still-unconscious Xiao Xiao, Jiang Qingtong muttered:
"Come to think of it, we came here to get a spirit ring, didn't we?"
At this, Di Tian spoke firmly:
"Best put that thought aside! You may not need to kill a soul beast to obtain spirit rings, but this human does, doesn't she? And in my presence, I will never allow you to kill a soul beast for one."
For Jiang Qingtong's sake, and also to ensure the upcoming negotiations with Shrek Academy went smoothly, Di Tian would not harm Xiao Xiao. But as for her getting a spirit ring in the Star Dou Great Forest this time—that was out of the question.
Jiang Qingtong nodded.
"Of course, I understand completely!"
After all, it would be unthinkable to kill one of their kin right after striking an alliance.
That would be sheer treachery.
She then turned to Bi Ji and asked:
"Senior Bi Ji, could you wake her up now? It doesn't seem right to keep her asleep like this."
Bi Ji glanced at Di Tian, and when he gave a small nod, she replied:
"Of course. Chi Qiu, take the Sacred Beast away first…"
"No! Why should I leave?" the Three-Eyed Golden Lion protested indignantly.
Bi Ji shook her head and said gently:
"You are the Sacred Beast. It would not do for other humans to see you. Chi Qiu, take the Sacred Beast away."
"Yes." The Scarlet King nodded, and without caring whether the golden lion liked it or not, led it away from the area.
Bi Ji raised her hand toward Xiao Xiao, and as emerald light washed over her body, Xiao Xiao slowly stirred. She blinked awake, confusion clouding her gaze as she looked around the unfamiliar place.
The moment she saw Jiang Qingtong, she scrambled up, stumbling as she rushed to her side.
"Qingtong!" she cried.
Clutching tightly at Jiang Qingtong's arm, trembling, she refused to let go. Jiang Qingtong patted her hand and tried to calm her.
"Don't be afraid—we're safe. Also, could you ease up a bit? You're squeezing pretty hard—it hurts."
At her words, Xiao Xiao quickly loosened her grip a little, then asked nervously:
"Where… where are we? I think I woke up earlier and saw soul beasts here, but then…"
Her mind was still hazy.
Jiang Qingtong smiled and introduced her companions:
"Let me introduce you. This is Senior Bi Ji, leader of the Emerald Swan Clan. And this is Di Tian—the Beast God."
At that, Xiao Xiao's vision went dark and she fainted backwards in dramatic fashion.
Jiang Qingtong hastily caught her, shaking her gently.
"Hold on—don't faint again!"
Brought back by Jiang Qingtong's voice, Xiao Xiao burst into tears and clung to her.
"What do we do? Are we going to be eaten by soul beasts? Qingtong, what do we do…? Elder Xuan, save us!"
Her sobbing cries rang harshly in the tranquil setting of the Lake of Life. From their hiding place, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion muttered to the Scarlet King:
"She's so noisy! Qingtong is way better."
The Scarlet King nodded in agreement.
Di Tian cast just a single glance at the crying Xiao Xiao, and instantly she fell silent, too terrified to make another sound. Yet she still clung to Jiang Qingtong's clothes, shaking, as tears continued to flow uncontrollably.
Jiang Qingtong soothed her:
"Don't worry—Senior Di Tian and Senior Bi Ji don't eat humans. They won't harm us."
"R… really?" Xiao Xiao asked in a trembling voice, not daring to even glance in Di Tian's direction.
Di Tian said nothing further, but Bi Ji smiled warmly and reassured her:
"Of course. What Qingtong said is true—we do not eat humans. Besides, we have an agreement with Shrek Academy. We will not harm you."
"An… agreement?" Xiao Xiao blinked in confusion. She had never heard of such a pact between the Academy and the soul beasts. But if Bi Ji herself said so, then it must be true.
Her faith in Shrek Academy gave her some measure of comfort. If there really was such an agreement, then surely nothing would happen to them.
With this thought, she finally relaxed a little.
From the distance came the faint sounds of battle—the clash between Elder Xuan and the Bear Lord. Di Tian glanced in that direction, then said to the group:
"Let's go. It's time we spoke properly with the people of Shrek."
Bi Ji nodded, then addressed Jiang Qingtong and Xiao Xiao.
"Stay close to me. Little one, you needn't be afraid."
As an Emerald Swan, Bi Ji's nature was gentle and kind. She was not like the other ferocious beasts. Xiao Xiao had heard of the Emerald Swan's reputation before, and Bi Ji's gentle manner put her more at ease.
"Th-thank you, Senior Bi Ji." Xiao Xiao bowed quickly in gratitude.
In the outer region, the battle between Elder Xuan and the Bear Lord had already devastated a vast area of forest. The once-green land was overturned, stripped of life, reduced to barren brown earth.
After blocking Jiang Qingtong and Xiao Xiao earlier, the Ten-Thousand-Demon King had not joined the fray. His original intention was to fight alongside the Bear Lord to restrain Elder Xuan—but the Bear Lord had refused.
He wanted a duel.
The Bear Lord's dream was to one day defeat Di Tian. If he needed help just to subdue a rank ninety-eight human, then he might as well abandon that dream altogether.
But after such a long fight, neither side was unscathed. Elder Xuan's robes were torn, and several bloody claw marks marred his chest—wounds left by the Bear Lord's savage strikes.
If not for the unique power of the Dragon God's descendant bloodline within his Taotie Divine Ox martial soul, any other rank ninety-eight human would likely have been incapacitated by such blows.
Even so, Elder Xuan's strength had diminished considerably.
The Bear Lord, too, was not unharmed. His right arm's black-gold fur had been stripped away, flesh torn open, blood soaking the ground, with even the dark-golden gleam of bone faintly visible.
Such wounds were nothing serious for the Darkgold Terror Claw Bear King. But to him, they were a humiliation. That a mere human had injured him so badly!
Burning with rage, he prepared to unleash his full strength and kill Elder Xuan outright—
But just then, Di Tian and Bi Ji arrived on the battlefield with Jiang Qingtong and the others, putting an end to the duel.
The Ten-Thousand-Demon King quickly stepped forward to greet them.
"Di Tian, what brings you here?"
The Bear Lord growled in frustration.
"Di Tian! Why are you stopping me? I was just about to finish off this damn human! Move aside!"
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