"Leave? Yes, we’re leaving, but..." Jin Li pointed a finger at Sunxiao. "As for you lot... will you come willingly, or do I have my men drag you along?"

Sunxiao’s voice was icy. "Other than him, no other beastman here will be going with you."

Jin Li’s expression darkened. "It seems you won’t know fear until some blood is shed. Seize them for me—"

"Wait!" Before Jin Li could finish, Fengxuan urgently cut him off.

Jin Li was displeased, but out of respect for Fengxuan’s position, he swallowed his anger. "What do you wish to say, Priest?"

Fengxuan went to Jin Li’s side and lowered his voice. "The plan has changed. We’re leaving now."

At this, Jin Che and the others glanced over, their curiosity piqued.

"Priest, what’s wrong? Our entire purpose in coming here was to capture them. How can we leave before we’ve succeeded?"

’Of course I know we shouldn’t leave, but if I don’t, I’ll die!’

He had spent the last few days locked in a water prison. He had no idea what kind of drug they’d fed him, but every day, like clockwork, he would be wracked with a pain so intense he wished for death.

At first, he could bear it. But as time went on, the pain grew stronger and more unbearable. Yet, every time he was on the verge of being driven mad by the agony, they would feed him another pill to alleviate his suffering.

He had spent the last few days enduring this inhuman torture, and in the end, he had yielded.

"My female said that if you don’t want to die, you’ll make them obediently turn back. In return, we’ll give you a thirty-day supply of the antidote."

Fengxuan had agreed. That was why he was so desperate to convince Jin Li and the others to retreat. That female was more uncanny than any he had ever met!

’Once I get back and figure out this antidote, I’ll personally lead the charge to raze the Divine Leopard Tribe to the ground!’

"The plan has changed. I need you all to turn back immediately."

Yun Qi and the others exchanged a look, all finding Fengxuan’s reaction very strange.

"Priest, did something happen?" 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Fengxuan shook his head, his face grim. He didn’t want too many people to know that he’d been poisoned.

"It’s nothing. I just think they’ve likely made significant preparations. I’m afraid they’ve set a trap for us, so for now, it’s best we leave."

Songyan had witnessed Sunxiao’s strength firsthand, so he didn’t object to Fengxuan’s suggestion.

Yun Qi and Jin Che also remained silent.

Jin Li, however, was furious at the thought of retreating. In his eyes, taking down Sunxiao and his people would be an easy feat. If they gave up now, he couldn’t imagine how the other Beast Cities would mock them.

"Jin Li. We’re leaving. Now."

Jin Li stared coldly at Fengxuan. He sensed something was off with the Priest, but Fengxuan was highly regarded by his father. He had no choice but to obey his words.

"Withdraw."

Seeing Jin Li lead the troops in a retreat, Fengxuan let out a huge sigh of relief.

The male beastmen of the tribe, who were in formation and ready for a fight, were astonished to see Jin Li and his forces simply turn and leave.

"Tiger Beast City has come looking for trouble before, and they’re always so aggressive. Why would they just turn around and leave this time?"

"I know, right? This... this is too strange."

Sunxiao watched their retreating figures, not letting his guard down for a moment.

"Don’t lower your guard. Strengthen the patrols."

"Understood."

Jin Li’s forces had been divided into three squads. He hadn’t withdrawn all his beastmen; without informing Fengxuan, he had left one squad hidden near the mountain behind the tribe.

Night fell, but Songyan felt it wasn’t dark at all. In fact, an intensely dazzling light was illuminating the path before them.

He looked up, confused, only to see that the seven-colored clouds that had been circling above the Divine Leopard Tribe were growing denser, bathing the entire tribe in light.

Songyan was utterly astonished.

Suddenly, a fierce wind kicked up, and the colorful clouds floating over the tribe began to rotate.

The brilliant clouds formed a massive vortex, spinning rapidly in the sky. The gale felt as if it were sucking the energy right out of their bodies; even beastmen as strong as them could barely stay on their feet.

"What’s happening? Where is this wind coming from?"

"Look over there! What’s happening above the Divine Leopard Tribe?"

All the beastmen looked up, and they were stunned by the celestial phenomenon unfolding before them.

"What... is that?"

A look of regret crossed Fengxuan’s face as a thought struck him. ’If I hadn’t been poisoned, I would’ve ordered them to charge in and investigate. But I can’t do that now.’

"Alright, the wind is too strong. We should get moving."

Everyone had no choice but to look away and continue their journey.

But they hadn’t gotten far when a massive shadow fell over them from the sky.

Jin Li and his men looked up to see Jin Wei descending upon a Golden Eagle Beast.

"It’s the City Lord! Why is he here?"

Jin Wei leaped nimbly from the back of the Golden Eagle Beast.

"City Lord."

Jin Wei’s gaze swept over the group before finally settling on Jin Li. "What happened? Where are Sangze and his people?"

Jin Li quickly glanced up at Jin Wei before lowering his head again. "City Lord, we were about to capture Sangze when the Priest ordered us to leave."

Jin Wei’s piercing eyes narrowed as he turned to Fengxuan. "Fengxuan?"

Fengxuan had never expected Jin Wei to show up now. He scrambled to think of an excuse, but Jin Wei knew him too well. The moment a hesitant look crossed his face, Jin Wei knew he wasn’t planning on telling the truth.

"Priest, you know I’ve always trusted you. But... Tiger Beast City can manage without you."

’A threat. That was definitely a threat!’

"City Lord, I only ordered the retreat because I saw the strange phenomenon over the Divine Leopard Tribe. I was worried something bad would happen."

Jin Wei looked up, an irrepressible, excited glint in his eyes. "A celestial phenomenon means a beastman of extraordinary talent is about to be born. Relay my orders! Attack the Divine Leopard Tribe and seize every last one of their cubs!"

"City Lord, you... you really intend to annihilate the Divine Leopard Tribe?"

Jin Wei stared at him grimly. "And you think they’ll just hand over all their cubs?"

’Of course not.’

Jin Wei sneered. "Attack!"

Jin Li’s face lit up with unconcealed excitement. His claws were itching for a taste of blood!

「The tribe’s inner city.」

Qiao Xixi lay in bed, unable to fall asleep.

She kept reviewing all the preparations they had made for the coming battle.

First, there was the plan to use Fengxuan to force the troops from Tiger Beast City to retreat. Qiao Xixi wasn’t entirely confident in that move, as she wasn’t sure how much sway Fengxuan held over the other beastmen.

That’s why they had to have a backup plan: to fight.

The enemy had several times more high-level beastmen than they did, so a direct confrontation was out of the question. Therefore, she had set up numerous ambushes both inside and outside the tribe...

Qiao Xixi tossed and turned, her thoughts a tangled mess. She then remembered the Wing Clan beastmen she’d sent to the coast to find salt fields; there was still no word from them.

"Sprite, with the few points I have left, what can I still exchange for?"

"Host, why are you still awake so late? Too much anxiety is bad for you and the cub."

"I can’t sleep. Just tell me."

"Host, if you use up all your remaining points, you can get one Instant Teleportation Card."

"Then do it."