Young Noble Be Monster Slaying-Chapter 793: Huh? (II)

Just as a battle seemed inevitable, a voice suddenly called out from within the forest. "Stop!"

This time, the Jiuli beastfolk who emerged wasn’t clad in armor. Instead, he wore a robe made of multicolored beast pelts, and his fox-like face was marked with intricate painted designs. He carried a bronze staff in his left hand and seemed to be the leader of these warriors.

"Honored Priest!" the Jiuli warriors greeted in unison. "We found these intruders here!"

"Do you not see the esteemed iron-eating beast over there?" the Jiuli priest asked, raising a hand to point. Only then did the fierce Jiuli warriors notice the small creature huddled at Tan Qingfeng’s feet.

It was barely half a person’s height and was likely frightened when the fight started. Now, it curled into a tight ball, covering its eyes with its chubby paws as it tried to hide behind Tan Qingfeng.

It seemed to believe that if it couldn’t be seen, it wouldn’t be attacked.

What appeared to be an innocent and adorable gesture was a sight of pure terror to the Jiuli warriors.

Thud, thud, thud!

The sound of knees hitting the ground echoed as every Jiuli warrior fell to their knees, shouting in unison, "Lord Iron-Eating Beast!"

Hearing its name, the little creature hesitantly peeked through the gaps in its paws. When it saw the warriors kneeling before it, its tiny black eyes blinked in confusion, clearly unsure of what was going on.

Kneeling on one knee, the Jiuli priest gazed at the iron-eating beast and asked in a solemn voice, "Lord Iron-Eating Beast, are these people your servants?"

Huh?

The iron-eating beast was clearly stunned by the question. Its beady eyes blinked vacantly, unsure of how to respond.

Chu Liang reacted quickly and answered, "Yes, exactly!"

Tan Qingfeng nudged the iron-eating beast gently with his foot. The little creature nodded rapidly, though it was unclear whether it truly understood what was happening.

"If that is the case, then you are qualified to enter Jiuli City," said the priest. As he lifted his head and stared at the group, his gaze was cold and indifferent. He continued, "But remember this—humans within Jiuli City must stay close to Lord Iron-eating Beast at all times. Otherwise, you won’t make it three steps before becoming food."

...

The largest city in the nine provinces was the Capital of Yu. Yet, compared to this bronze city, the Capital of Yu might not even measure up to one percent of its size. As Chu Liang gazed upon the immense expanse, he realized the city walls enclosed an area at least as large as an entire province, if not more.

Every building in the city was made entirely of bronze, gold, and steel. The sheer amount of materials used to build such a city was staggering, and it was unclear how long it took to forge a city of such immense size.

Of course, the city was huge for a reason.

The residents here were not humans but the towering Jiuli. The one-zhang-tall Jiuli warriors they had encountered earlier were considered average in size. Some of the beast-headed Jiuli stood as tall as two to three zhang. These beastfolk didn’t wear ordinary clothing; most of them were clad in either light or heavy armor.

The only person that had the right to wear beast-hide robes was the Jiuli priest, who occasionally appeared in the city.

The streets were filled not only with Jiuli Tribesmen but also with numerous domesticated demonic beasts. Many of these beasts were even larger than the Jiuli themselves, yet Jiuli Tribesmen and demonic beasts alike all knelt to clear the way for the iron-eating beast.

Cradling the iron-eating beast in his arms, Tan Qingfeng strode through the city with confident steps. Every Jiuli Tribesman they passed immediately dropped to both knees, chanting, "Lord Iron-Eating Beast!"

The little creature was initially terrified, keeping its paws over its eyes. But as it observed the strange behavior of the people around it, curiosity slowly took over, and it peeked out more often.

Tan Qingfeng gazed at the towering Bronze Mountain in the heart of the city and murmured, "We may need to go there to find the answers we seek."

Chu Liang stepped forward and asked, "Honored Priest, where exactly are we headed?"

The Jiuli priest replied, "To Lord Iron-Eating Beast’s palace."

As he spoke, he gestured toward a few slightly shorter black iron mountains near the Bronze Mountain. To the Jiuli people, it seemed that the definition of a palace was simply a massive iron mountain.

Chu Liang pressed further, "Then... may we visit the Bronze Mountain?"

"How dare you!" the Jiuli priest suddenly scolded. "The Bronze Mountain is the sacred resting place of God Jiuli! Even a glance from you humans would be a crime punishable by death! You should already be grateful to have set foot in Jiuli City, yet you dare to seek the divine palace?!"

"No, no, no..." Chu Liang quickly corrected himself. "It’s not that we wish to go. It’s just that the Lord Iron-Eating Beast wishes to visit it."

The Jiuli priest declared firmly, "Even Lord iron-eating Beast may only visit the Jiuli God once it has reached adulthood."

"What a coincidence," Chu Liang said with a smile. "Our Lord iron-eating Beast has just reached adulthood."

"Hmm?" The Jiuli priest frowned.

At that moment, as the conversation unfolded, they arrived beneath a black iron mountain. Suddenly, an enormous head emerged from the rocky depths. Like the iron-eating beast in Tan Qingfeng’s arms, its fur was black and white, but its eyes were like pools of ink, with an eerie fire burning in its irises. Its slightly parted jaws revealed several fangs, sharp and long like polearms. Even the visible part of its body was covered in thick, corded muscles, radiating sheer, unstoppable power.

The mere sight of its head sent an overwhelming wave of horror and pressure over them.

This chapter is updated by freēwēbnovel.com.

It looked like the same kind of creature as the little ball of flesh in Tan Qingfeng’s arms, but there was a sense that they were unrelated.

At this moment, Chu Liang was certain they had made the right choice by not acting recklessly. Had they charged blindly through the city, they would have had to face not only the priest and the powerful Jiuli Tribesmen but also the ancient iron-eating beasts at the city’s center. These were forces that they were in no position to handle.

This was truly the ancient city of the Jiuli Tribe!

The Jiuli priest knelt on one knee in deep reverence and called out, "Lord Destroyer, we are here to escort a newly returned Lord Iron-Eating Beast to the palace."

"Roar..." The massive iron-eating beast let out a low, rumbling growl before slowly retreating back into the mountain.

Once the beast retreated into the mountain, the Jiuli priest stood up and explained, "Lord Destroyer is an iron-eating beast that will come of age in another six months."

"...." The group fell into awkward silence.

Putting on the thickest skin he had, Chu Liang forced himself to say, "So, that means it’s half a year younger than our Supreme Harbinger of Doom, so it should be calling our lord Big Sis. Our Supreme Harbinger of Doom just happens to have a youthful face and looks smaller than she really is."

The Jiuli priest stared at him in silence for a long time. It was unclear whether the priest was speechless or simply processing what he had just heard.

It wasn’t just the priest. Jiang Yuebai and Xu Ziyang also felt a deep sense of secondhand embarrassment as they glanced between the tiny, round creature nestled in Tan Qingfeng’s arms and the monstrous beast atop the black iron mountain.

If that giant iron-eating beast really decided to eat their little one, it wouldn’t even be big enough to get stuck between its teeth.

After a long silence, the Jiuli priest finally spoke. "If you insist that your Supreme Harbinger of Doom has reached adulthood, then it may take part in the coming-of-age trial. If it passes, it will officially be considered an adult iron-eating beast and be granted the right to ascend the Bronze Mountain and meet our God Jiuli."

"Oh, why didn’t you say so earlier?" Chu Liang said with a grin. "What’s the trial? We’ll just get through it and be done with it."

The priest replied, "For an adult iron-eating beast, this trial should be easy. It simply needs to defeat a small golden peak beast."

...

A short while later, the group arrived inside one of the black iron mountains. The interior of the mountain was unexpectedly vast, almost like a small city hidden within the bronze city itself.

Inside the mountain, a large, enclosed arena was set up, serving as the site for the iron-eating beasts’ coming-of-age trials.

At the base of the towering fences stood what seemed to be a golden mountain, rising over ten zhang tall. However, as soon as they stepped inside, the "mountain" began to move. It slowly turned, revealing a vicious, menacing head.

It turned out to be a colossal vicious beast.

"You call that small?" someone said.

The beast was munching on a thick bundle of black iron chains, tearing through them as if they were soft noodles. Sparks flew with every crunch, and within a few crunches, it had swallowed the entire bundle.

Obviously, this was the "small" golden peak beast used for the coming-of-age trial.

For the terrifying Lord Destroyer they had seen earlier, this golden peak beast might indeed be an easy opponent. But for their so-called "Jiuli Supreme Harbinger of Doom"...

Chu Liang turned back to the little creature and asked with a smile, "Do you have the confidence?"

The Supreme Harbinger of Doom blinked its beady black eyes, filled with innocence and confusion.

Its blank stare seemed to convey a single thought—WOT?