Chapter Ninety-Three: Attributes

With a swish, Elder Xie’s golden greatsword cut through the sky, descending upon the golden-furred meat brown bear. The blade sliced along the bear’s side, tearing away a swath of fur and drawing a spray of blood. A glint of satisfaction flashed in Elder Xie’s eyes; this golden meat brown bear seemed far weaker than the king bear from before. With a casual strike, he had wounded it already.

“Children, this meat brown bear is no match for the king bear. There’s no need for our Golden Flame Talisman Array—this old man can take care of it alone,” Elder Xie boasted arrogantly.

Suddenly, a wretched roar echoed through the arena. The golden-furred meat brown bear lifted its head and howled at the sky, its voice as deafening as thunder crashing beside one's ear. In the distance, Jiang Yan was stunned by the sound, his mind reeling as he nearly collapsed to the ground.

The disciples of the Golden Flame Sect, who were closer, suffered even more. Elder Xie, nearest of all, was struck by the bear’s roar right at his ear, leaving him dazed and bewildered. Behind him, the disciples staggered and fell in disarray; the yellow-robed disciple who had suggested retreat now knelt in agony, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

The golden meat brown bear shook its head and tail, roaring again at Elder Xie. Abruptly, a piercing wave of explosive sound erupted in the arena. A semicircular shockwave, visible to the naked eye, radiated out from the two meat brown bears as centers, spreading rapidly in all directions. Where the wave passed, trees were cut cleanly in half, grass mowed down as if by a scythe.

Elder Xie’s golden greatsword, first in line, was struck by the soundwave. The seemingly sturdy blade shattered into fragments as if made of paper, scattering across the ground.

A resonant hum followed as the soundwave reached Elder Xie. Azure light flared around him, enveloping his body and attempting to resist the explosive force—it was the protective jade talisman he carried, suddenly activating to shield him from the impact. Yet the azure glow flickered uncertainly, and then with a crackling snap, the jade talisman failed to withstand the force and exploded.

With a rush, Elder Xie’s body was flung like a kite with its string cut, tracing a graceful arc through the air. Blood spurted from his mouth mid-flight, leaving a crimson trail across the sky. He landed far away, his body completing a perfect curve before hitting the ground. Judging by the blood streak in the air, Elder Xie would not survive.

Meanwhile, several disciples of the Golden Flame Sect also activated their azure shields. Though the glow was unstable under the shockwave, it held firm, unlike Elder Xie’s shattered talisman.

“Go!”

The disciples exchanged terrified glances and spoke in unison. In a flash of azure light, the five remaining disciples, sensing danger, took to the air and fled with their escape technique.

The golden meat brown bear roared once more, shaking its head as it unleashed a thunderous beast cry, pursuing the fleeing disciples in a semicircular wave.

Startled by the bear’s roar, the disciples accelerated their flight, escaping at speeds well beyond their usual travel.

Seeing the disciples escape, the golden meat brown bear raised its head and let out an indignant and resentful roar. It glanced at the fallen king bear, a look of sorrow flashing in its eyes, then its plump body quivered as it charged after the disciples.

…

Jiang Yan’s face was pale as he gritted his teeth to endure. The destructive power of the bear’s roar was immense, rivaling legendary lion’s roar techniques: the soundwave had killed a master at the peak of Qi Refinement. He was lucky to be at the edge of the battlefield—had he been closer, both he and Tang Wan would likely have perished.

Curiosity drew Jiang Yan’s gaze to the distant meat brown bear. The transparent information interface appeared:

Beast: Meat Brown Bear King
Grade: Second Rank, Lower Tier
Exclusive Skill: Soundwave Slash, Second Rank, Lower Tier Attack

The golden meat brown bear was indeed not a first-rank spirit beast. Thinking of its terrifying Soundwave Slash, Jiang Yan involuntarily shrank his neck. A second-rank spirit beast, powerful enough to kill a peak Qi Refinement master with one skill—no wonder second-rank beasts are invincible below the Foundation Establishment stage.

“Senior brother, are you all right?” Tang Wan opened her eyes, looking up at Jiang Yan who still held her, her cheeks flushed.

When the golden meat brown bear’s soundwave attack swept their way, Jiang Yan instinctively shielded Tang Wan in his arms. Though she was at the sixth layer of Qi Refinement, with Jiang Yan as a protective barrier, she escaped unscathed.

“It’s nothing, just glad to have survived a calamity,” Jiang Yan replied, glancing at the meat brown bear, Elder Xie, and several disciples from the West Mountain Sect lying in the distance.

“Senior brother, I’m fine now. Please help me up.” Tang Wan’s cheeks were crimson from being held so long, and she lowered her head as she spoke.

Jiang Yan’s gaze remained fixed on Elder Xie’s corpse. He remembered clearly that Elder Xie had placed the high-grade beast core into his treasure pouch. He wondered if the Soundwave Slash had damaged the pouch and destroyed the beast core.

“Senior brother? Senior brother?” Tang Wan raised her voice when Jiang Yan failed to respond.

“Ah, Wan’er?” Jiang Yan finally came to himself, noticing her clear eyes and the blush on her face. He flushed as well, realizing he was still holding her. Hastily, he helped Tang Wan to her feet. Rubbing his chin awkwardly, he said, “I was distracted, thinking about the beast core. Sorry for not hearing you, Wan’er.”

A hint of confusion appeared on Tang Wan’s lovely forehead. She looked at Jiang Yan in surprise. “Beast core? What beast core, senior brother?”

Brushing aside branches as he walked toward the center of the battlefield, Jiang Yan explained, “Elder Xie from the Golden Flame Sect took a high-grade beast core. Now that he’s dead, the beast core should still be on him.”

Tang Wan’s eyes brightened. She had seen Elder Xie put the beast core into his treasure pouch, though she hadn’t realized he’d died from the beast’s roar. Seeing Jiang Yan reach the battlefield, she hurried after him.

Jiang Yan approached Elder Xie’s body, noting the bloodied, contorted features, and cautioned Tang Wan, “Wan’er, keep watch from the perimeter. Those struck by the meat brown bear’s Soundwave Slash die horribly—better not come closer.”

“Fisherman’s gain, Elder Xie. Who would have thought your greed would lead to your doom? Had you not stolen the West Mountain Sect’s victory, had you not arrogantly attacked the golden meat brown bear, you wouldn’t have died so easily under Soundwave Slash,” Jiang Yan said, looking at the corpse with disdain. Good deeds are rewarded, evil punished; Elder Xie had just seized the sect’s spoils, and retribution had claimed him in the blink of an eye. Jiang Yan summoned his spiritual power, wrapping it around Elder Xie’s treasure pouch.

“Rise.” With a low command, the pouch landed steadily in his palm.

Examining the battered pouch, Jiang Yan frowned. Its surface was torn, clearly damaged by Soundwave Slash. If the beast core inside was ruined, it would be a great loss. The thought made his heart ache—a high-grade beast core!

Nervously, Jiang Yan opened the pouch, hoping for luck as he peered inside. The blue glow within was gone. Through the holes in the pouch, sunlight streamed in, illuminating the contents: a jumble of beast cores at the bottom, most damaged. With the help of the sunlight, Jiang Yan saw several beast cores had been ruined.

“Empty-handed!” Jiang Yan grumbled miserably. Judging by the state of the pouch, most, if not all, of the beast cores had been destroyed. But then, considering the Soundwave Slash—a second-rank lower-tier skill unleashed by a second-rank beast—it was no surprise.

He emptied the pouch completely, scattering the contents across the ground and tossing the pouch far away. Though it was a useful item, it was stolen property; if the Golden Flame Sect discovered it, they might blame him for Elder Xie’s death, and explanations would be futile. Jiang Yan discarded the broken pouch without hesitation.

The cores lay scattered, most damaged. The red ones belonged to the meat brown bears, the yellow to the spotted leopards—though there were only one or two yellow ones. Most were red, with several white cores, though Jiang Yan did not recognize their origin.

Elder Xie, following the sect master’s orders, had spared many lower-tier spotted leopards. Among the meat brown bears, there were many mid-tier beasts, so Elder Xie had slain quite a few.

Roughly counting, Jiang Yan found at least fifteen cores, though most were ruined, which pained him—they were excellent materials for alchemy and crafting!

Picking up a spirit sword, Jiang Yan carefully separated the damaged cores, searching for the high-grade core.

“One, two…”

After much searching, Jiang Yan found only three intact cores: one yellow spotted leopard core, and two red meat brown bear cores. None of the white cores were intact. Regretfully, he stored the yellow core in his pouch, then examined the two red cores.

Though both were red, their shades differed—one was deeper, one lighter. Which was the high-grade core? Unable to tell, Jiang Yan summoned the information interface to identify them.

Core: Meat Brown Bear
Grade: First Rank, Lower Tier
Attribute: Fire

Disappointed, Jiang Yan pinched the lower-tier core and put it in his pouch. It wasn’t the one he sought. Hopefully, the lighter red core would be the high-grade one…

His gaze fixed on the remaining core, Jiang Yan was about to summon the information interface when a thought struck him: “Attribute?”

He leapt up in surprise, exclaiming, “Attribute!”

PS: Keleiyu once again tipped, and Lihua Yuliang did so yesterday as well. You leave me no choice but to try for two chapters tomorrow, though I’d planned only one a day this week. Very well, I’ll work hard tonight and aim for a double release tomorrow in thanks…