My lord, spare his life!

Tsk, they really are those two brats that cats and dogs hate.

The black python, no longer bothering to slack off, watched as the newcomer attacked the young lord. Hearing the latter's pitiful cries, it couldn't help but curse inwardly, "Serves him right! This brat was raised by the human king himself, yet he hasn't learned a single thing about the human's reverence for elders and care for the young. He clung to it so tightly just now, almost costing it its life, and now he's still in pain."

Zhang Daji never expected his friend to start a fight so suddenly.

He clutched his scalp with one hand and his groin with the other, curling up on the ground like a boiled shrimp, rolling around while pleading for mercy, repeatedly calling out, "Grandma, if you tear this hair out, I'll be bald!"

Zhang Jun obviously wouldn't like a bald man.

He should have kept quiet, because the more he spoke, the angrier Zhang Dagu became.

It abandoned pecking and instead used its wings to fan Zhang Daji, slapping and accusing him at the same time. A series of dense chirping sounds were denser than raindrops. Even people who did not understand the language of the Star Beasts could tell that Zhang Daji was cursing very filthyly.

In terms of seniority, it's Zhang Dagu who's more experienced!

In terms of strength, Zhang Dagu is stronger!

In terms of feelings for Zhang Jun, Zhang Dagu's are even stronger!

Why should a lowly bird be allowed to surpass it?! A barrage of profanities and questions left the black python stunned. Its long body floated upright in the water, only its head peeking out to watch the spectacle. The more it listened, the more something seemed amiss. Wasn't the transformation of a Star Beast simply a matter of reaching a certain level of strength and opportunity?

There's actually a first-come, first-served order system?

Zhang Daji thought the same thing: [Grandma Gu is unreasonable.]

Zhang Dagu coldly raised its claw, pressing it down on Zhang Daji's head, pulling his hair and forcing him to tilt his head back. Zhang Dagu lowered its head slightly, its sharp, hard beak almost poking Zhang Daji's nose. It said slowly and solemnly: 【Coo!】

Zhang Daji: 【…Grandma, I was wrong.】

But it will do it again next time.

Zhang Daji appeared to be showing weakness, but was actually provoking: "[Blame it on my mother and father being Star Beasts. I was born pure-blooded, so whether it's cultivation or luck, I always have a slight advantage.]"

Zhang Dagu is different.

At least their starting point wasn't as high as Zhang Daji's.

Zhang Dagu's eyes turned cold and sharp: [Gurgle!!!]

With a flap of its wings, a gust of wind sent Zhang Daji flying, rolling several times naked on the water before finally slamming into the face of the black python. The black python, caught off guard by the spectacle, was momentarily stunned and unable to dodge.

In truth, he didn't want to avoid it. He even took the initiative to catch the troubled young lord.

The result was retribution, forcing the black python to curse: "You ungrateful wretch, you deserve to be struck by lightning!"

Out of kindness, it caught the young lord without much suspicion. Unexpectedly, as soon as it rescued him, Zhang Daji suddenly turned on him, turning its previous disheveled rolling posture into a grabbing and attacking move, its hand moving like lightning to strike the black python's vitals.

Zhang Dagu also changed his previous infighting stance, and instead cooperated tacitly with Zhang Daji, attacking from both sides. This time, the black python was truly caught off guard. Just as it was gathering its strength to escape, Zhang Dagu's bird claw slammed down, and vast star power poured in through its snake scales.

The giant black python: [...]

Unlike the docile and obedient stellar energy of its own, the foreign stellar energy displayed immense destructive power the moment it invaded its body. It was as if thousands of thin blades were relentlessly slicing through its meridians, causing the black python to writhe violently in pain. Its thick body churned the water, causing it to boil violently, waves rising like mountains, and turbid river water splashing incessantly. Its thick, long tail slammed against the warship's hull, producing a deafening roar.

Two opposing stellar energies clashed and tore at each other within its body, turning its meridians into a battlefield. Feeling every inch of its flesh being torn apart, its muscles spasming in pain, the black python was certain it had truly been caught off guard. It tried to suppress the excruciating pain within its body with the pain from the impact, then focused its attention on mobilizing its own stellar energy to expel the foreign stellar energy from its body.

I tried twice, but the results were unsatisfactory.

The black python cursed.

It's true what they say, you can know a bird's face but not its heart. Zhang Dagu, this bird, seems quite honest, so how could he be so insidious? The opponent's star power is rather strange. If Zhang Dagu weren't a bird, the black python would have suspected that Zhang Dagu was from the Ministry of Justice, an expert in torture and interrogation.

However, Zhang Dagu's disadvantage was that he was too young.

The black python, being a seasoned veteran with deep experience, only struggled for a few breaths before forcibly expelling the unfamiliar star power, relinquishing its star beast form, and transforming back into human form. It rolled close to the ground, dodging Zhang Dagu's bird beak attack. Good heavens, this bird really wanted to eat me.

He knew that Zhang Dagu had entered hunting mode at this moment.

Star Beasts are always determined to get their prey.

Without hesitation, the black python grabbed a tattered cloth from the ground and wrapped it around itself as it fled. Halfway there, it encountered a fallen flag, and with one hand, it picked up the flagpole and hurled it at Zhang Dagu.

He felt quite heartbroken.

People generally consider snakes to be hateful, detestable, and terrifying, but in reality, their kind is stuck in an awkward position, easily bullied by many birds of prey. Before the black python was a Star Beast, it could only hide and flee from predators, picking at any prey that would fill its stomach, and even then, it dared not fight for food. It had finally gained intelligence and entered the Star Beast village, and its life had finally improved. Now, however, it was being chased and killed by its former master's child and another bird, the latter still coveting its delicious flesh.

Don't push your luck too far!

It's not like he can't beat this junior.

Zhang Dagu didn't care and immediately adopted a diving hunting posture.

The black python suddenly braked and chose to engage.

[If you're after my meat, you'd better have the guts to eat it!]

Little did they know, the black python's current predicament stemmed from Zhang Daji. Zhang Dagu had always believed that the first beast to transform, if not it, would be Zhang Dami, and had been secretly vying for its favor. Who would have thought that Zhang Daji would suddenly overtake it? This filled Zhang Dagu with anger, rage, and a sense of crisis. Driven by these emotions, it finally resolved to devour the black python. Perhaps its own chance to transform lay here.

boom--

Just as the black python was about to make its move, a shooting star fell from the sky. Upon closer inspection, it wasn't a shooting star at all, but clearly a bird burning red-hot. The bird was engulfed in a ball of blackish-red flames, the flames flickering like a candle in the wind, seemingly on the verge of extinction.

The black python recognized this as the current leader.

[Big Chick! Give it a hit!]

The health bar has been almost fully restored.

The black python reacted faster than Zhang Daji.

Without hesitation, it grabbed the bird by the neck with one hand and plunged into the water. Zhang Daji, who was a fraction too slow to react, missed his attack and slammed his head into the broken deck. Before he could even cry out, Zhang Dagu's wings flapped down forcefully!

Zhang Daji: [Aww—]

The wing hit him squarely on the buttocks.

Zhang Yang watched as the health bars above the black python and the current leader suddenly surged by over a hundred feet. She raised her hand, summoning a golden bow as tall as a person, and without hesitation, drew it in the direction the two beasts had fled. The bowstring was drawn taut, and an arrow, brimming with killing intent, materialized, accompanied by a whistling sound, and shot towards its target!

[You're just a sliver of health away, and you're still running away!] The arrow caught up with its target in an instant.

However, the health bar with only a sliver of health remaining wasn't cleared; instead, another health bar with over 70% health plummeted instantly, disappearing completely. In the blink of an eye, both red-named characters vanished, and Zhang Yang went forward to investigate.

Only a cloud of blood mist remained on the river surface.

And, a tattered python skin.

Zhang Yang glanced down at the system log and confirmed that the target whose health bar had been emptied was not the current leader, but the black python. Strangely, the system log didn't record that Zhang Yang had killed the black python, but rather how much health the arrow had deducted from its bar. Undeterred, she began searching other logs but found no record of the current leader being killed, meaning the current leader might still be alive.

The deadly arrow was blocked by the giant black python.

Zhang Yang's eyes darkened as he considered another possibility.

Perhaps it was a life-or-death moment, when the bird-man used his last strength to shield the black python from the fatal blow.

Time was of the essence, leaving Zhang Yang no room for thought.

The melee is not over yet.

She turned and plunged into the battlefield, only to find the balance of power rapidly tilting in her favor. The current leader could only flee to save his life, and the other mercenary star beasts naturally wouldn't linger in battle—no matter how generous the commission Zhao Chai offered, they couldn't risk their lives.

It's fine if you're winning, but why aren't you running away when you're losing? Why risk your life for such a small amount of money?

The Star Beast mercenaries chose to retreat, and the orcas and dolphins, no longer restrained, rammed the warships with unrestrained force, shattering Zhao Chai's defensive formations in just a dozen or so strikes. Seeing this, the human general commanding the navy decisively chose to retreat.

Saving lives is the most important thing.

Why would Yuan Xie and his men give them a chance to escape?

Their large warships, which were still operational, were all entangled and bound by ropes, while the smaller boats were heavily targeted by archers. The enemy soldiers had no choice but to abandon ship and jump into the water, but this was not a way out. Not only were there soldiers who were originally river pirates lying in ambush underwater, but there were also river drifters.

Many enemy soldiers knew they were doomed as soon as they jumped into the water.

The greatest advantage of the river floaters was their numbers; individual strength was not great. Weaker soldiers were entangled and nearly drowned, while stronger soldiers broke free, leaping several meters away on the current. Before the joy of imminent escape could even fully form, something curved and sharp hooked their shoulder: "Ah—"

Why are you running away?!

"You escaped! Who will claim our military merits now?!" If it weren't for the fact that a living prisoner is worth more than a dead head, the soldiers would have slit the enemy's throat. "Bah! I've caught two big fish!"

I caught one too.

Haha, I have some too...

【I've got my goods delivered too!】 The chaos of the battlefield hadn't subsided, and the joy of a bountiful harvest echoed from every corner. If you closed your eyes and ignored the mess on the river, you'd likely mistake it for a celebratory scene of a great fishing harvest. Zhang Yang returned with a sour face, casually clearing out a few low-health red-named attackers who had jumped out to ambush him.

Anyone could see that she was unhappy.

Zhang Daji staggered over, then knelt down with a thud and hugged Zhang Yang's leg, two streams of tears streaming down his face: "Zhang Jun!"

Zhang Yang raised his leg and kicked him away.

She opened her mouth to curse, but ultimately swallowed it back. She muttered, "Forget it, I still have a lot of poison on them; maybe their last bit of health will be killed by the negative effects."

He patted Zhang Daji's head.

[Big Chick, what happened to your hair?]

Zhang Yang then noticed that Zhang Daji had a bald patch on his scalp.

It's not big, only about the size of a fingernail.

But it just feels abrupt and doesn't fit Zhang Yang's aesthetic.

Zhang Daji frowned and said mournfully, "Grandma pulled it out."

"Waaah, his appearance is no longer perfect." Zhang Daji tried to elicit sympathy with a few more pitiful words, but suddenly felt a chill on the back of his neck. The flowing star power within his body abruptly stopped, its trajectory changed, and he reverted from human form back to beast form. Wang Qi grabbed the base of its wings with one hand, lifted it up, and stared at it for two breaths.

After a long while, those two lips opened and closed and uttered two words.

【waste!】

Zhang Daji bristled and wanted to retort.

Wang Qi pinched its beak, but it couldn't open its mouth.

Zhang Daji: [...]

Already feeling guilty for doing something wrong, Zhang Daji was now being stared at by Wang Qi with such a gaze. It suspected that it would be plucked naked and roasted by the other party—Zhang Jun said he would bring it to roast a bird, but the bird flew away. It suspected that it would become the star of the barbecue party.

Zhang Yang said, "Fine, let it go."

To be precise, it was also because she hadn't thought things through.

She was used to playing video games with the observed samples, and could coordinate to defeat opponents without verbal communication. However, Zhang Daji was just a bird, and at that time he was still not used to human form. It would be difficult to expect him to react immediately and kill the target instantly—for Zhang Yang, the current leader's health bar was indeed only a sliver of health left, but for others, it wasn't.

Even if Zhang Daji reacted quickly enough, he might not be able to kill the current leader in one strike: [The hatred for his mother's murder cannot be taken lightly. I learned from that black python that if Daji wants the villagers to accept his status as the young lord, he still needs to fight.]

Zhang Daji needs to challenge the leader to take his place. Even if Zhang Yang kills the bird now, the village will elect another leader, and Zhang Daji will still need to challenge that one.

but--

The more I think about it, the more upset I get.

Zhang Yang: [Gongsun, I'll leave this to you and Youzheng. I'll go after them and try my luck; maybe I can kill a few.]

Both the current leader and the Black Python were seriously injured.

Even if they used the star beasts' escape methods, it wouldn't last long, and they couldn't escape very far. Wang Qi wanted to refuse, but seeing Zhang Yang's expression, he hesitated for a moment before nodding.

Yes, please be very careful on your journey.

Zhang Yang also noticed that Da Gu rushed back halfway through.

"Big Gu, let's go."

Without saying a word, Zhang Dagu carried Zhang Yang on his back.

The star beasts' sensitivity to scent is unmatched by humans; no matter how careful the black python was, it still left some clues. After chasing for half a day, Zhang Dagu suddenly perked up.

Zhang Yang: "[Found it?]" Zhang Dagu replied cheerfully.

The closer the distance, the closer the breaths.

With over a hundred feet still above the ground, Zhang Yang, in his impatience, jumped down. Looking around, he saw no red names.

I only saw one yellow name.

A vulture was perched on a tree branch not far away.

He stared quietly at Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang looked up and stared at it for a few moments.

After a while, the vulture's body melted and transformed into a woman: "Zhang Jun, I do not wish to fight you."

Zhang Yang: [Did that python die?]

Woman: [A black python? It's still clinging to life. Star beasts are tough, especially one like it that can survive by shedding its skin.]

Zhang Yang: [Did that birdman die?]

"The leader is seriously injured, but not dead." The woman changed the subject, adding, "Zhang Jun hates it to death, but it is, after all, the leader. This concerns the dignity of the star beasts. If the leader dies at Zhang Jun's hands, the village's star beasts will surely be enraged and fight you to the death." "I don't care."

The vulture knew that humans would do almost anything for their pets: "Young Lord, you'll find this concerning. Although raised by humans, it's still a Star Beast. Must it even use its human owner to avenge its mother's death? How can the entire village accept this?"