Two months passed in the blink of an eye, a mere instant on the long path of the martial dao.
Strangely, Azurewave Base City remained eerily calm during this period.
The Jiangnan Wang Clan seemed to have completely forgotten about the deaths of Liu Yun and Wang Heng, showing no signs of retaliation.
But Su Wu knew this was merely the calm before the storm.
Their inaction was only a prelude to a thunderous strike.
District A, the back mountain of Cloudtop Manor.
The clearing once used as a "fighting arena" was now pockmarked with craters, the surrounding alloy fences scarred with terrifying blade marks.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
A blur darted through the forest, moving so swiftly it didn't even disturb the falling leaves.
The shirtless youth wielded a black iron war blade, his movements as ghostly as a phantom as he leaped and shifted across the plum blossom stakes.
Each strike of his blade produced no sound, yet visible ripples shimmered through the air where the edge passed.
This was blade intent!
Sky-Piercing Blade—mastered to perfection!
"Hah!"
Su Yu let out a low shout, his body defying the laws of physics as he twisted mid-air. His toes lightly tapped a falling leaf, using the momentum to propel himself another three feet higher.
Leaf-Treading Footwork—Perfected!
"Slash!"
With a swift downward strike, a three-meter-tall boulder split cleanly in two, the cut as smooth as a mirror.
He sheathed his blade, landed gracefully, and exhaled deeply.
Wiping sweat from his brow, Su Yu's once-youthful face now bore sharp, defined features, his eyes radiating unwavering determination.
Two months.
Fueled by vast resources and the grueling training regimen of Su Wu, his "Martial Emperor-level private tutor," Su Yu's cultivation realm had skyrocketed to the late-stage Innate Realm!
If this progress were to become public knowledge, it would send shockwaves through the Federation's martial dao education community.
After all, even ordinary geniuses typically required at least a year to achieve such a breakthrough!
On the second-floor balcony, Su Wu watched his son's performance below, a faint smile playing on his lips as he held a purple clay teapot.
"Not bad," he murmured.
With a thought, the azure system interface materialized before him:
Host: Su Wu
Bound Descendant: Su Yu
Descendant's Realm: Late-Stage Innate Realm
Host's Realm: Late-Stage Martial Emperor Realm
Cultivation Art: Primordial Chaos One Qi Art (Perfected/Evolved from Qi Breaking Art)
Martial Techniques: Wild Bull Fist (Perfected/Fist Intent Manifested), Sky-Piercing Blade (Perfected/Blade Intent Manifested), Leaf-Treading Footwork (Perfected)
Combat Technique: Microscopic-Level
"Late-Stage Martial Emperor Realm..."
Su Wu clenched his fist, feeling the vast power coursing through his body.
Even without using his qi and blood, his spiritual telekinesis alone was enough to effortlessly obliterate Martial Emperors of the same realm.
As for the so-called Wang Clan Patriarch, the "Martial Saint"?
Su Wu narrowed his eyes, a flicker of battle intent flashing in their depths.
Just then, the manor's security system emitted a soft alert tone.
A sweep of Su Wu's divine sense revealed City Lord Pan Hong standing anxiously at the gate, pacing back and forth, hesitant to ring the doorbell.
"That old codger's back again."
Su Wu's figure flickered, vanishing from the balcony in an instant.
In the living room, Pan Hong held a cup of hot tea, perching nervously on the edge of the sofa, his expression a mix of anxiety and urgency.
Over the past two months, he had become a regular visitor to Cloudtop Manor. Caught between Su Wu and the Wang Family, he now walked on eggshells. But he was shrewd enough to realize that since he had already offended the Wang Family, his only option was to cling desperately to Su Wu's coattails. Find the original chapter at novelping dot com.
"Senior!"
"Enough with the formalities," Su Wu waved dismissively from the master seat. "You're here about the feral beasts outside the base, aren't you?"
"Senior's insight is unparalleled!" Pan Hong forced a bitter smile and pulled an extremely detailed electronic map from his pocket, projecting it onto the coffee table.
"Over the past two months, the feral beasts around the base have become increasingly erratic. High-tier ferocious beasts that should be deep in the mountains have been appearing frequently in the outer perimeter, even attacking several mercenary squads. With only half a month until the Martial Arts College Entrance Examination, this year's exam will not only include students from our city but also candidates from neighboring satellite cities converging on Azurewave."
"If chaos erupts during the exam, or a beast tide occurs..." Pan Hong wiped away cold sweat. "My losing my head as city lord would be a minor matter. But jeopardizing the futures of these young people—that would be a catastrophe."
Su Wu glanced at the map, which was dotted with countless red markers converging toward a single point.
He nodded.
Su Yu was about to take the Martial Arts College Entrance Examination, and Su Wu wouldn't allow any accidents to jeopardize his son's future.
"Senior, after our reconnaissance planes risked everything to investigate, we've finally pinpointed the source!" Pan Hong said, pointing to a deep crimson area on the map, about three hundred miles from Azurewave Base. His voice was grave.
"Deep within the Falling Sunset Mountains, a newly crowned beast king has emerged! It's a Mutated Thundercloud Tiger! Based on energy signature analysis, its strength rivals that of a peak Martial King, and it's even on the verge of becoming a Beast Emperor!"
"It's currently rallying all nearby beast hordes, seemingly preparing for a massive beast tide."
"A Mutated Thundercloud Tiger, huh..." Su Wu stroked his chin.
A peak Martial King-level feral beast would indeed be a catastrophic threat to Azurewave Base in its current state.
But to him, it was merely a matter of a single slap.
"Alright, I understand." Su Wu stood up, took the map, and his expression remained calm.
"Yes! Thank you, Senior! Thank you, Senior!" Pan Hong was overjoyed, his anxiety finally easing.
After leaving Azurewave Base, Su Wu directly took to the skies, leaving a white trail of compressed air in his wake as he sped toward the Falling Sunset Mountains.
The Falling Sunset Mountains earned their name from the perpetual crimson miasma that shrouded the region, resembling a breathtaking yet deadly sunset.
The mountains rose in jagged peaks, their slopes covered in ancient trees that towered over a hundred meters tall, their dense canopies blotting out the sun. This primeval forest was a natural paradise for feral beasts.
As soon as Su Wu entered the mountains, he sensed something was amiss.
The outer perimeter was eerily silent, not even the call of a single bird broke the stillness.
Yet the deeper he ventured, the more palpable the primal, bestial energy in the air grew.
Is this the beast king's aura of dominance?
Su Wu hovered above the treetops, his powerful spiritual telekinesis spreading out like a tidal wave, instantly covering a hundred-kilometer radius.
He quickly pinpointed the location Pan Hong had described.
Hmm?
Su Wu's brow suddenly furrowed.
Through his spiritual perception, Su Wu indeed sensed an extremely violent thunderous aura emanating from the valley—undoubtedly the Mutated Thundercloud Tiger.
But...
Beside that thunderous aura, another qi and blood fluctuation lay dormant!
This fluctuation was incredibly subtle. Had Su Wu not reached the Martial Emperor Realm and possessed microscopic-level perception, he likely wouldn't have detected it at all.
Though faint, its total quantity and quality were shockingly immense, bordering on the absurd!
"This qi and blood..." Su Wu's pupils narrowed slightly. "It's more than ten times stronger than the peak Martial King Thundercloud Tiger? Even... comparable to my current level?!"
Comparable to the qi and blood of a late-stage Martial Emperor?!
"Could this mountain be hiding an adult Beast Emperor?"
Su Wu instantly grew wary.
If it were an adult Beast Emperor, today's battle would likely be a fierce one.
Within a vast, circular crater valley, a massive, azure-green boulder shaped like a reclining ox lay at the center.
Beside the boulder crouched a terrifying beast the size of a truck.
Its body was covered in blue-purple striped fur, each hair standing erect like a steel needle, crackling arcs of electricity swirling around it.
With every breath, twin jets of searing lightning-infused fire erupted from its nostrils, scorching the surrounding rocks black.
A Mutated Thundercloud Tiger!
Guarding the Thundercloud Tiger were four C-grade peak Ironclad Giant Crocodiles, their armored bodies low to the ground, acting as sentinels.
This formidable array truly marked the Thundercloud Tiger as a regional overlord.
Yet Su Wu's gaze didn't linger on the Thundercloud Tiger for even a second.
His eyes were fixed on an inconspicuous corner behind the beast, where a small mountain of spiritual fruits and rare minerals had been piled high.
Perched atop this treasure hoard was a...
White furball?
It was a small creature, no larger than a house cat.
Pure white, without a single stray hair, it looked fluffy and utterly adorable.
Its pointed ears resembled those of both a fox and a cat, and two small, slightly raised bumps adorned its forehead.
At that moment, the little beast lay sprawled among a pile of spirit fruits, snoring softly, a glistening strand of drool hanging from the corner of its mouth.
The once majestic Thundercloud Tiger now acted like a docile housecat, occasionally flicking its tail to gently swat away mosquitoes and other insects buzzing around the sleeping creature.
"This..."
Su Wu, hidden behind an ancient tree a hundred meters away, felt his heart surge with shock.
The terrifying qi and blood, comparable to that of a Martial Emperor Realm expert, emanated from this very sleeping furball!
"The Thundercloud Tiger isn't the beast king..." Su Wu realized. "It's just a nanny! This little beast is the true 'ancestor'!"
This was no ordinary mutated beast.
Was it a case of atavism? Or a descendant of an ancient divine beast, carrying primordial bloodlines?
As Su Wu observed, the Thundercloud Tiger seemed to sense something. It abruptly raised its massive head, its copper bell-like eyes locking onto Su Wu's hiding place, and let out a low, menacing roar.
"Roar—!!"
The roar instantly startled the sleeping little beast awake.
The creature groggily rolled over, grumbling in annoyance, then, in an eerily human-like gesture, covered its ears with its paws.
Seeing its "master" awakened, the Thundercloud Tiger's eyes burned with even greater ferocity. It was convinced that the hidden insect had disturbed its master's rest.
Boom!
Lightning crackled around the Thundercloud Tiger as it unleashed a thunderous bolt as thick as a water bucket, aimed directly at the ancient tree where Su Wu was concealed.
Have I been discovered?
Su Wu snorted coldly. Now that he was exposed, there was no need to hide any longer.
"Vile beast, you seek death."
Su Wu took a single step forward, his figure vanishing instantly from its original position.
The terrifying thunderbolt shattered the ancient tree, yet it didn't even graze the hem of his robe.
In the next instant, Su Wu materialized above the mountain valley.
Facing the Thundercloud Tiger, a peak Martial King realm beast, Su Wu didn't even raise a hand. A mere glance was enough.
Hum!
An invisible blade of spiritual telekinesis sliced through the air.
The Thundercloud Tiger, poised to pounce, suddenly froze mid-motion.
A crimson line materialized without warning across its iron-hard skull.
Splat!
The massive tiger's head slid off its neck, blood gushing out like a fountain.
One strike, instant kill!
The four Ironclad Giant Crocodiles nearby were also caught in the spiritual storm, their internal organs pulverized, resulting in instant death.
The entire valley fell silent.
Only the newly awakened, fuzzy little creature remained, rubbing its eyes and staring blankly at its fallen "nanny" and "guards."