Chapter 65: The Twin Eagle Kings—The White Eagle King

“The news has arrived!”

Not long after Zhou Weiqian’s golden sword was sent out, a similar golden sword was launched from somewhere outside Snow Eagle City.

Unlike Zhou Weiqian’s sword heading east, this one flew south—

And landed within Blade King Pass!

Seeing the golden sword speeding toward him, the Sunset Blade Master didn’t need to check its contents; he knew that the message he had been awaiting had finally come.

Gazing at the martial masters before him, and at the countless, surging beasts outside Blade King Pass, the Sunset Blade Master turned to a refined gentleman beside him and asked:

“Tianhe, can you handle these beasts, and the Flame Tiger King behind them?”

The Flame Tiger King, a red tiger at the peak of the fifth tier, was one of the current rulers of the mountain domain.

As a tiger of ordinary bloodline, its path had not been as smooth as that of the Heart Fox King, who possessed the blood of the divine Moon Fox. For a time, it was even used as a henchman by the Heart Fox King, leading ignorant people to call it “the fox borrowing the tiger’s might.”

Now, though the Flame Tiger King had reached the fifth tier’s peak, it still obeyed the Heart Fox King’s orders, coming to Blade King Pass to stall the Sunset Blade Master.

“A fifth-tier peak beast—I can’t guarantee victory,” Tianhe replied, “but it’s not fast. As a grandmaster, I can fly and vanish at will. With the Long River Blade, I can easily hold it off!”

His eyes shone with confidence.

As the head of the River and Mountain Sect, and now ranked third on the Celestial Rankings, Tianhe had come to Blade King Pass months ago at the urging of his grandson, Zhengfei—currently ranked first on the Celestial Rankings. Shortly after arriving, and consulting the Sunset Blade Master on matters of cultivation, news of the six-grade snow lotus appearing in the snowy mountains spread quietly through the Western Lands.

In pursuit of the snow lotus, and wary of the alliance between the Fire Sovereign and Sea Sovereign, the Sunset Blade Master, recognizing that Tianhe was only a step away from grandmastery after their discussions, decisively brought out the legacy blade left by the Long River Blade King for him to study.

As the sect leader, Tianhe was no stranger to the insights of powerful predecessors, thanks to the River and Mountain Stele left by Emperor Jing. Moreover, his own “Celestial River Heart Sutra,” gleaned from the stele, shared many principles with the “Long River Blade Sutra,” offering much inspiration.

In less than half a month, Tianhe’s inspiration blossomed. Under the Sunset Blade Master’s protection, he achieved grandmaster status at the age of 103.

Now, armed with the sixth-tier legacy blade, Tianhe was confident he could entangle even the Flame Tiger King for a good while.

That was all the Sunset Blade Master needed!

———

“As long as you can stall it,” he said, “the Flame Tiger King may not give its all!”

Sweeping his gaze across Blade King Pass, the Sunset Blade Master raised his brows and declared boldly:

“Blade King Pass has stood for centuries; it won't fall to a mere fifth-tier beast.”

“Tianhe, guard this place for a few days—”

“I’ll return soon!”

With a sharp whistle, a great horned eagle beast soared down from the sky. The Sunset Blade Master rose lightly onto its back and flew northward.

Soon after he departed, a two-headed flying eagle followed from near Blade King Pass, trailing the horned eagle beast.

This was another mountain domain overlord: the fifth-tier Twin Eagle King.

After the Snow Eagle Beast’s transformation, it had become the ruler of the mountain domain’s birds. Its speed was unmatched, and with two innate abilities, even the Heart Fox King treated it with respect.

This time, drawn by interest in the Snow Eagle Beast’s lotus transformation, the usually aloof Twin Eagle King came to meddle—a move the Sunset Blade Master hadn’t anticipated.

Yet, though following the Heart Fox King’s orders to intercept the Sunset Blade Master, it was not entirely obedient. Instead of chasing directly, it circled westward around the mountains, aiming to reach the destination ahead.

———

Meanwhile, in the Flaming Mountains, the Sea Sovereign and Fire Sovereign, upon receiving Zhou Weiqian’s golden sword, wasted no time. They flew up, riding a fourth-tier Roaring Sea Eagle, racing toward the snowy mountains.

As a newly minted grandmaster, the Fire Sovereign had not raised a fourth-tier flying beast for a mount. Third-tier birds were slower than grandmasters themselves, and could even be a burden.

Thus, the Fire Sovereign did not bring his own third-tier fire crow.

Yet, grandmasters are at one with heaven and earth. Though their bodies are heavy, when riding beasts, they seem as light as a feather.

Not just fourth-tier beasts—even ordinary birds could serve as their mounts if they wished.

Moreover, after vanishing into the void, their tracks were nearly impossible to detect.

Many grandmasters had ridden white cranes and other elegant birds, traveling across the land.

For grandmasters, raising fourth-tier flying beasts served more as auxiliary combat power than for speed.

Now, the Roaring Sea Eagle beneath the Sea Sovereign and Fire Sovereign proved its worth.

———

“White Eagle King, you are worshipped by the Azure Hawk Tribe. Do you intend to aid the beasts as well?” The Sea Sovereign’s face revealed neither joy nor anger as he addressed the white falcon before him.

This fifth-tier falcon, revered by the Azure Hawk Tribe of the plains, was once the mount of a grandmaster. That grandmaster had long since died, but the falcon, thanks to its bloodline, lived on, reaching the fifth-tier’s peak. Known as the White Eagle King, it was recognized alongside the White Elephant King as one of the northern beasts’ twin rulers—the tribe’s greatest strength.

The tribe’s ancient ties to eagle beasts, combined with the falcon’s frequent interaction with humans, had long enabled it to mimic human speech.

At that moment, the Sea Sovereign and Fire Sovereign saw its throat ripple as it uttered a sharp, piercing voice:

“I owe Snow Eagle King a favor from years past. Now I must repay it—”

“Leave the sea eagle behind; you two can go on alone!”

Truth be told, the White Eagle King had no desire to be entangled in the matter of the Snow Eagle Beast’s lotus transformation. Worshipped by the Azure Hawk Tribe for years, bound by contract, it considered itself part of the tribe.

It naturally did not wish to risk disaster for the tribe.

But, having once received Snow Eagle King’s help, and now summoned by the Heart Fox King, it had no choice.

Otherwise, if the Snow Eagle King succeeded in its transformation and mastered the sword intent left by the White Emperor, disaster would befall it.

“Favor? Beasts speak of favors?” scoffed the Fire Sovereign. “What a ridiculous notion!”

In the Western Lands, he styled himself the Fire God. Though aware his strength was bottom-tier among grandmasters, the adulation of his followers had inflated his sense of supremacy.

Now, confronted by a beast invoking favors, he laughed in disdain.

“Gah!” The White Eagle King shrieked angrily, ignoring him, and addressed the Sea Sovereign:

“Qian Baozhen, do you agree to what I said?”

It knew that of the two, the more powerful Qian Baozhen was the decision-maker.

As a disciple of Lu Wanshan, and backed by the greatest force in the world, the Sea Sovereign’s experience far exceeded that of the Fire Sovereign.

In the Central Plains, he had interacted with many high-tier beast grandmasters, and knew that their conduct was almost indistinguishable from humans.

Human customs, including the concept of favors, applied to them as well.

Though not afraid of the beast, considering its speed and persistence, the Sea Sovereign replied:

“Very well, I’ll grant you this courtesy and let the sea eagle return.”

“But you must not harm it, nor interfere with us!”

He and the Fire Sovereign then left the Roaring Sea Eagle, allowing it to fly back on its own.

Seeing this, the White Eagle King nodded. Once the sea eagle was gone, it flapped its wings and disappeared into the sky.

Afterwards, the Sea Sovereign and Fire Sovereign resumed their journey toward the snowy mountains.