The death of the Blizzard Fox didn’t elicit a response as dramatic as one would imagine. There was no loud cheering or hollering, just a quiet calm as everyone finally relaxed. 

When it died, the several-day-long tide of beasts slowly subsided, leaving behind a battlefield where streams of blood flowed. In some places, it had already hardened into a dark purple with carcasses strewn across the land. 

In the past, a wild celebration would follow tides like this because beast parts were extremely valuable, along with body collection. Bodies and carcasses would start rotting if left out for too long, and nobody wanted a pandemic. However, no one cared about the battlefield that had been strewn with gold right now, they only cared about the dot, which was a ball of grayish black goo that contained a teenager fighting for his life. 

Before everyone had snapped to their senses from the death of the fox, a delicate figure rushed forward. 

“Hey, Fang Rou, slow down,” Wu Rui followed her. He was extremely worried, too, void of the joy that should follow the death of the Blizzard Fox. Half a year ago, Xiang Ning had almost died from a severe injury and that same goo had appeared. So why wouldn’t he be worried about seeing the goo again? Xiang Ning could survive once, but what about a second time? The last time, he had risked his life fighting a tier six beast, but the fox was a tier seven Beast King. They were very different; surviving a tier six Beast General didn’t mean you could survive a tier seven Beast King. 

Lu Shiyu followed closely behind, along with Liu Ruoxue and Li Zimo as they ran toward Xiang Ning’s location. The rest of the people merely watched from afar, because they knew they couldn’t help even if they were there. So they might as well make space for the people who could. But they didn’t leave. They wanted to wait until they could be sure that he was alright, then perhaps they could relax. 

People who hadn’t experienced war didn’t understand the brutality of it. But there was also a very human side to it. Do you think that all humans worked together to fight against the enemy? Well, yes and no. They had the same enemy, yes, but that was if everything was according to plan. What if the conditions were against them? 

There were many stories and fairytales about people staying behind to buy the rest some time to escape. Those people were named heroes, since they had no regard for their own life and death. But what happened more often was a chaotic run for their lives, no one wanting to be left behind because that person would be the one who died. As long as you ran fast enough, you could live. That had been a basic rule of life since prehistoric times. 

That was the truth of humanity. The insane courage that Xiang Ning displayed in battle was as impactful as it was because how many people would truly be so willing to stay behind for the benefit of the rest? That made him a character of legend, and everyone wanted to continue living alongside that legend. Although it was perhaps quite selfish, they hoped that a person like him wouldn't die. He was powerful and willing to sacrifice himself for others, and… he was sincere. They hoped he was alright. 

Humans were selfish. Although there was a saying that humans were innately kind, newborn children didn’t know good from evil. All their instincts told them was that they were weak, that they needed protection and enough nutrition to live. They knew how to alert others when they needed something, by crying and making a fuss. Did a baby care about the feelings of others? 

Of course, that wasn’t absolute. For example, Fang Rou, Wu Rui, Xiang Xiaoyu, Old Zhao, Grandpa Director, and so on.…

The lady who was protecting the ball of goo looked at Fang Rou, who had rushed over, and was about to move when Old Zhao arrived and pulled her back. 

“You… you’re Uncle Zhao!” Fang Rou suddenly made the connection when she saw his face. She knew this person! Then, when she correlated the face with her memory… wasn’t he the old man that had been taking care of Xiang Ning and his sister? So that old man was actually this powerful? Was Xiang Ning so strong because of this old man? 

Old Zhao didn’t know that his presence had made many people think that way, but it helped Xiang Ning keep his secret. 

“Oh, Zhenyuan’s daughter? You’ve grown.” 

“Uncle… Xiang Ning.…”

“He’s fine.” Other people might not be able to tell, but as one of the Eight Pillars, he could. 

There was a pool of fresh blood next to the goo that looked like it had been left behind not long ago. That mystery man’s appearance was also extremely strange… Regular people wouldn’t make the connection that it was actually Xiang Ning, who had activated the Disguise skill that he hadn’t used in a while. When everyone was distracted by the Blizzard Fox swiping its paw, Xiang Ning let the Devourer attack himself and forced a breakthrough to tier five, one-star. 

Then he activated Eight Gates to elevate his cultivation to tier six, nine-star. 

Unfortunately, he wasn’t successful. The seventh tier was like a stepping stone in the sky, it couldn’t be reached through external means so easily. That was why he was stuck at tier six, nine-star, which made him take out the beast core of the Devourer—at great risk to the weapon—and then use Reforge, which was a skill that inflicted huge damage to himself. Thank goodness the Devourer had absorbed three royal-blooded beasts beforehand or those two explosions would have been enough for the bioweapon to wilt and die. 

Fang Rou didn’t believe him, but this time, without Fang Rou’s intervention, the goo slowly receded and revealed a weakened Xiang Ning. 

Xiang Ning was surprised when he saw everyone, because while he sensed that a powerful person had arrived, he didn’t know who it was. 

From Old Zhao’s perspective, he was just impressed by the kid’s acting skills. So that’s how he hid his abilities so well. Since Xiang Ning didn’t say anything, he wasn’t about to expose him, either. Old Zhao bent over to help him up. 

“Uncle Zhao, why’re you here?” 

“Heh, I couldn't not come.” There seemed to be great meaning behind the words, though all he did was pat Xiang Ning’s shoulder. Since Fang Rou was watching, the old man decided to only talk to him when they were back. He should give the young people their space. 

It was imperative that he leave quickly, because his presence had alerted a terrifying presence in the wilderness. Although killing just one of its subordinates wouldn’t be enough for it to make an appearance, if he stayed any longer, he wasn’t sure if he could keep the entirety of Hang City from becoming a battlefield. 

Xiang Ning’s body only looked a little weaker, unlike his condition half a year ago. In reality, it was just like it had been then, but Xiang Ning had downed five vials of healing potions before the Eight Gates effect completely subsided. To an outsider, it looked like he was as hardy as ever, though in reality he had been on his last embers. 

Fang Rou best girl!