"Have you heard? There was a battle of kings at the Sacred Academy. Eight of the ten Beast Kings showed up, and they fought until the sky nearly collapsed!"
"Yes! I heard that the floating continent where the Sacred Academy is located was shattered, with many fragments falling to the ground."
"White Crane King is incredible! He fought seven other kings by himself and didn't fall behind at all. Those were seven kings of equal rank!"
"Tsk tsk tsk, my grandfather always said that White Crane King had the bearing of an emperor. Now, after tens of thousands of years, he truly stands peerless."
"He's not just an emperor anymore, you know..."
"Hmph, so what if my grandpa was wrong? You're just here to argue, I'm done talking to you!"
"Fine, no need to keep talking."
Such conversations were heard everywhere across the Beast Clan's territory.
Even though it had only been a month since the incident at the Sacred Academy, the news had already spread far and wide — or rather, beast-wide.
Everyone was stunned.
A battle between the Beast Clan's Ten Kings — what kind of scene would that be?
A fight capable of shaking the heavens and the earth!
Especially the image of White Crane King fighting against seven other kings. That peerless demeanor, that invincible aura, just thinking about it made one's blood boil.
At the same time, there was a sense of relief that they had stopped in time. If the battle had continued, the consequences would have been dire.
Each of the Ten Kings was a towering pillar of the Beast Clan. Losing even one would be a massive blow to their strength.
"A king is truly a king. They are always thinking about the tribe as a whole. They know that if even one king falls, the impact on the Beast Clan would be catastrophic. So both sides held back, avoiding a life-or-death struggle."
"Or maybe they were just afraid of dying?"
"Hey, can you put it a little more elegantly? Can you really say that an extreme realm expert is afraid of dying? At most, you could say… they cherish their lives."
"Right, right! Cherishing their lives! Besides, if the Ten Kings fought until both sides were badly injured, the Human and Demon Clans would surely take advantage of it. In the end, they were fighting for the safety of the entire Beast Clan."
"Well said. Let me give it a try too!"
The discussions continued to spread across the lands.
None of these conversations were meaningless. Every debate hinted at underlying truths and insights.
Meanwhile…
In the White Crane Palace, the residence of the White Crane King.
Qin Zi slowly opened his eyes after a long period of slumber, finding himself lying on a bed made of cold jade.
He was in an ice cave!
Around him was a dense white mist, filled with the energy of life. Not far from his cold jade bed was an icy pool, where warm water bubbled up. Several green lotus flowers floated in the pool, swaying gently and emitting a faint glow.
"Where am I?"
"Wait, my body!!"
Suddenly, he raised his hands, inspecting his arms, his torso, and then focusing inward.
In the end, he was shocked!
"I… how did I become so much stronger? My muscles, bones, and organs have all strengthened several times over!"
He gasped.
He had a super divine physique! Before, he had already reached the limit of the human body, but now he had become even stronger.
This was beyond extraordinary.
It was downright explosive!
If before he had been a scrawny weakling, now he was a muscle-bound behemoth, like a walking version of Arnold Schwarzenegger.
It seemed like he could easily tear apart a fellow genius of his realm with his bare hands. Even if the opponent had a divine or super divine physique, it wouldn't matter.
"The heart… it's the power of the Beast God's Heart! It's fused with me, replacing my own heart. Every time my blood circulates through it, it absorbs some of its mysterious power and nourishes my entire body."
Qin Zi's breathing quickened.
What a monumental stroke of fortune! The Beast God's Heart had empowered countless Beast Clan Martial Emperors and possibly even extreme realm experts — and those experts had only bathed in its glow. But he… had taken the whole thing, making it a part of himself.
This meant the benefits he received surpassed those of every Beast Clan expert over the past tens of thousands of years combined!
These benefits would continue to reveal themselves over the coming years, allowing him to evolve and rapidly increase his cultivation.
"But… now that the Beast God's Heart has fused with me, what will happen to my father? If I rip it out now… can it still be used?"
Soon, Qin Zi was troubled again.
Nothing was more important than his father! If it meant saving his father, he would willingly give up this massive fortune.
But the problem was, the Beast God's Heart had already merged with him, becoming his real heart. Would it still possess its former miraculous properties?
Moreover…
Even a tiger doesn't eat its own cubs.
He was certain that even if he somehow managed to extract the Beast God's Heart, his father would never accept it — he knew his father too well!
For him, his father would do anything. But his father would never do something that would harm him.
That was a father's love.
That was why he had such deep respect and reliance on his father. Only genuine care could evoke such loyalty.
"Junior Brother Qin, you're awake?"
At that moment, the stone door of the ice cave opened, and Princess Bai Lu entered. Although she forced a smile, her emotions were clearly downcast.
"Sister-in-law, where is this?"
Qin Zi asked.
"This is the White Crane Palace," Bai Lu replied, then sternly warned, "You must not call me sister-in-law while we're here."
Qin Zi noticed her strange mood, so he furrowed his brows and asked, "Bai Lu, does your father… really dislike Senior Brother Jin?"
Bai Lu had mentioned before that if she could obtain the Beast God's Heart, her father would allow her to be with Jin Zhi. Since it had become a condition, it meant the White Crane King was clearly opposed to their relationship.
"Yes."
Princess Bai Lu nodded, her expression troubled.
"Why?"
Qin Zi asked.
"I don't know either."
Bai Lu pursed her lips, her gaze becoming distant. "I met Brother Jin in a dangerous place, and he saved me. I brought him back, thinking my father would like him."
"But to my surprise, my father treated him coldly. After giving him some rewards, he promptly showed him the door."
She paused, her eyes unfocused as she continued, "In my memories, my father has always been magnanimous and broad-minded. Even if he didn't like someone, he wouldn't treat my savior this way. I think there's a deeper reason."
"A deeper reason?"
Qin Zi blinked. He felt like he was grasping at something, but when he tried to think more deeply, it slipped away.
Finally, he took a deep breath and said, "Maybe your father just feels that you and Senior Brother Jin aren't suitable for each other."
"How would he know if we're suitable without even trying?"
Princess Bai Lu retorted instinctively.
Qin Zi thought for a moment and replied uncertainly, "Maybe… some things are clear with just one look. And your father cares about you too much to let you take the risk."
"That's just his judgment! He doesn't even know what kind of happiness I want!"
Princess Bai Lu's rebellious side was stirred, and she angrily growled in a low voice.
"Calm down."
Qin Zi raised his hands to placate her and weakly said, "In the end, everyone is simply following their own judgment. You believe you and Senior Brother Jin are a good match, while your father thinks the opposite. Both are personal opinions, neither is inherently right or wrong."
Princess Bai Lu trembled.
She looked at Qin Zi, her clear eyes filling with tears, and whispered, "Is it wrong that I love Brother Jin? And Brother Jin loves me, too. What's wrong with that?"
"You're not wrong."
Qin Zi sighed. "But if your father dislikes Senior Brother Jin, then he just doesn't like him. What can we do about it?"
"I refuse to accept this!!"
Princess Bai Lu bit her lip, her voice filled with indignation. "My father looks down on Brother Jin. But Brother Jin has the True Dragon Physique. How is he lacking in any way? Why must my father assume that Brother Jin's future achievements will fall short of his own?"
The True Dragon Physique!
A thought sparked in Qin Zi's mind, and a strange expression crossed his face. He hesitated for a moment before muttering:
"Maybe… the issue isn't that Senior Brother Jin falls short. Maybe your father thinks Senior Brother Jin is… too exceptional in some ways…"