Chapter Thirty-Seven: Signs of the Beast Tide

Beneath the scorching midday sun, the pure yang true energy within Yi Tian's dantian condensed to its limit. The space within his dantian trembled violently, then suddenly expanded outward, undergoing a sixth transformation.

In that moment, Yi Tian broke through to the seventh stage.

This time, his dantian's space was more than ten times larger than before, resembling a vast lake, stretching for hundreds of miles.

In the days that followed, Yi Tian consumed over ten thousand lower-grade spirit stones before his dantian was fully saturated with pure yang true energy, forming a massive pure yang fireball suspended in the air. However, to break through to the next stage, he still needed to continually temper his pure yang true energy, pushing it to the newly expanded dantian's limit—a process that would require time for consolidation.

Having reached the seventh stage, Yi Tian attempted to cultivate the Sky Sword Qi.

Yet he failed once again.

The difficulty of cultivating the Sky Sword Qi far exceeded his expectations.

Though he did not succeed, he found some comfort. Under the deduction of his Star Mud Avatar, the Pure Yang Art was steadily developing new meridian routes, and the pure yang true energy he cultivated grew increasingly refined and potent, its tempering effect now rivaling that of the post-advancement stage.

Half a month later, his Star Mud Avatar was undergoing another cultivation session after deducing the Pure Yang Art.

Boom!

The pure yang true energy within this avatar surged through meridians, activating acupoints one after another. Mysterious runes formed, blazing with intense flames.

The pure yang true energy underwent a stunning transformation, becoming even more condensed and radiating an overwhelming heat.

The Pure Yang Art had advanced!

Yi Tian had not expected his Pure Yang Art to progress to this stage so swiftly, successfully advancing to a mid-grade Earth tier technique.

He immersed himself in cultivation.

The members of the Samsara Squad were also training hard, especially after cultivating their advanced Earth tier techniques, which allowed them to refine the world's energy at an astonishing rate.

However, three months later, disturbing news arrived, shattering the tribe’s tranquility.

For reasons unknown, a number of fierce beasts were appearing around the periphery of the Fulong Mountains. During a recent hunting expedition, the tribe’s hunting party was ambushed by four ferocious beasts.

Caught off guard, more than a dozen warriors were killed or injured before they managed to slay the four beasts.

This was one of the tribe’s heaviest losses in decades.

As time passed, more and more fierce beasts began appearing on the mountains’ outskirts, making the area increasingly perilous.

This alarmed the tribe’s leaders.

If these beasts lingered around the outskirts, the tribe would be unable to hunt for a long time.

For the Yi tribe, whose survival depended on hunting, this was a devastating blow. The coming days would mean tightening their belts.

What worried the chieftain and elders even more was that if the mining area was discovered by fierce beasts, the warriors stationed in that valley would be in grave danger.

At the same time, there was a far worse scenario they dreaded: a beast tide erupting from the depths of the Fulong Mountains.

If a beast tide broke out, tens of thousands of ferocious beasts would surge from the mountains.

The entire region around Black Dragon City would be plunged into catastrophe.

Even as a great power in the region, the Yi tribe would be gravely weakened if it survived at all. Countless forces, towns, villages, and settlements would be wiped out by the beast tide.

Usually, there were signs before a beast tide erupted.

Beasts rarely seen on the outskirts would begin appearing more frequently, and once the tide broke out, all living things around Black Dragon City would be devastated.

The outbreak of a beast tide followed no pattern—typically occurring only once every few centuries. Yet, it had been less than ninety years since the last eruption, far too soon for another.

At this time, the tribe’s chieftain summoned the Great Chief, the deputy chief, and others—Yi Tian among them.

It was still unclear whether a beast tide was imminent.

Nevertheless, the chieftain and elders unanimously decided not to sit idly by. They resolved to send several elite teams into the mountains to hunt the fierce beasts, reducing their numbers on the tribe’s flank.

Even if a beast tide were to erupt, this would lessen the pressure.

Naturally, the Samsara Squad was included in the operation.

“Chieftain, perhaps the Samsara Squad should not participate in this operation. If anything happens to them, the loss would be severe,” the Great Chief said.

“You need not worry. The Samsara Squad is not nearly as weak as you think,” the old chieftain replied, refusing to underestimate Yi Tian’s team.

“We, the Samsara Squad, will take part in this mission,” Yi Tian declared without hesitation.

Within the tribe, his team was considered only an ordinary elite squad, not even among the most distinguished. This time, he intended to make the Samsara Squad’s name known throughout the tribe, forging them into a true force to be reckoned with.

Though the squad had only six members and was not yet renowned, they believed that one day they would become a team that struck terror into the hearts of their foes.

Yi Tian summoned his teammates—Yi Feng, Yi Shan, Yi Li, Yi Kuang, and Yi Hong.

They were well prepared this time, and with their storage pouches, everything was convenient. They quickly left the tribe and ventured into the deep mountains.

In recent days, after expending a large quantity of spirit stones, Yi Feng and the others had cultivated to the peak of the sixth stage, ready to break through to the seventh—a high-level warrior.

This achievement alone placed them in the top fifty within the tribe.

Upon advancing just a dozen miles into the periphery of the Fulong Mountains, they encountered no fewer than ten dangerous beasts. This made Yi Tian's heart sink.

The situation looked grim.

They did not launch a massacre.

These beasts posed little real danger; their true targets were the powerful fierce beasts. Killing one such beast was equivalent to slaying hundreds or even thousands of ordinary dangerous beasts. Only these fierce beasts posed a threat to the tribe’s defenses.

Moreover, the more beasts they killed, the stronger the scent of blood, which would easily incite other beasts into a frenzy.

Nonetheless, as they pressed deeper, any beast that attacked them was dispatched without mercy.

When they reached fifty miles into the mountains’ outskirts, they finally encountered a fierce beast—a Stone-Armored Bear, a low-tier fierce beast capable of manipulating earth energy and transforming its body into stone armor. Most low-tier fierce beasts could not penetrate its defense.

This Stone-Armored Bear stood over five fathoms tall, like a steel tower, emanating a powerful and baleful aura. Within several hundred yards, not another beast could be seen.

As soon as Yi Tian and his companions came into view, the Stone-Armored Bear spotted them instantly.

A roar shook the forest for miles around.

In the next moment, the bear’s eyes gleamed with murderous intent. It thundered across the ground towards them. Despite its massive size, its speed was no less than that of any other low-tier fierce beast.

Yi Li was the first to act.

He wielded a lower-grade spiritual bow, drawing the string into a full moon. Suddenly, an Armor-Piercing Arrow shot out like a beam of light, aimed straight at the bear’s colossal head.

Sensing danger, the Stone-Armored Bear’s body radiated a yellowish glow at the last second.

In an instant, thick stone armor encased its entire body, making it even more formidable.

The arrow pierced a hundred yards of air, punctured the stone armor, and lodged itself deep within, blood seeping from the wound.

The bear was wounded.

Injured, the beast became even more savage and furious, intent on tearing Yi Li and his companions to pieces.

It roared, striding several yards at a time, charging at them with blinding speed. In the blink of an eye, it was less than thirty feet away, and the ground trembled beneath its steps.

Yi Tian stamped down and swiftly drifted away into the distance.

Yi Li, Yi Feng, and the others each performed the Feather Flight technique, scattering in all directions.

With a thunderous crash, the bear’s paw—broad as a grindstone—smashed down where they had stood moments before, gouging a pit three yards wide and four or five deep. One could well imagine the bear’s terrifying strength; anyone struck by such a blow would be reduced to a bloody pulp.

The Stone-Armored Bear pursued Yi Li, the one who had wounded it.

Now, Yi Feng, Yi Shan, Yi Kuang, and the others retaliated. Drawing their spiritual bows from their storage pouches, they unleashed a barrage of Armor-Piercing Arrows, each one tearing through the air with a thunderous boom, breaking through the stone armor and embedding themselves in the bear’s body.

Soon, the Stone-Armored Bear was bristling like a porcupine with the squad’s arrows.

Yet even so, it barely seemed affected; if anything, it grew more savage and ferocious. Unable to catch Yi Li and the others, it changed tactics, seizing giant boulders from the ground and hurling them at its attackers.

The boulders flew like catapult stones, leaving the land in utter devastation.