Lu Changsheng took a look around. "No one is to come within ten zhang!"

His voice echoed through Wolf Howl Gorge. Despite the roaring winds, it rang clearly in everyone's ears. The Divine Fortification martial artists all stiffened. Those closest immediately retreated, even giving up their steps. They would rather leave it empty than risk stepping within his range. If they crossed that boundary, the consequences would be severe. If even a Divine Treasury martial artist had fallen to him, they stood no chance.

Lu Changsheng took a Dao Comprehension Pill. The moment it entered his stomach, a cool sensation enveloped his mind, and he slipped into an epiphany. His Sense Domain spread out ten zhang around him. If anyone stepped inside, he would awaken instantly. Moreover, he was already seated amid the raging winds of the gorge, and his Sense Domain could perceive every fluctuation of the storm without disrupting his comprehension of the Storm Domain.

One day, two days, three days...

In the blink of an eye, three days had passed. Lu Changsheng had taken six Dao Comprehension Pills in total, and the effect proved excellent. He even began to feel he might not need all twelve; perhaps eleven would be enough to bring the Storm Domain to Perfection.

At first, many martial artists paid attention to him. But as time passed, he sat cross-legged like the others, motionless as he quietly comprehended his Domain. There was little difference between him and the rest. Gradually, their interest faded. Instead, more and more martial artists gathered, all trying to comprehend wind-related Domains. Still, given Lu Changsheng's formidable reputation, no one dared to draw near him.

Not long after he took the seventh pill, a massive black eagle appeared in the sky. Its feathers were like steel blades, and it was over ten times the size of a normal eagle. It spread its wings and circled above the gorge.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, the eagle seemed to spot something. It dove straight down toward the gorge. From above, it was not too striking, but once inside the gorge, its massive form was overwhelming.

"Uhh... What is that?"

"What a huge eagle. Could it be a demon?"

"No, it's not a demon. It hasn't undergone demonic transformation. But it clearly has intelligence, and at that size, it's probably a spirit beast."

"A spirit beast?"

The martial artists in the gorge were filled with uncertainty. Demons and spirit beasts were fundamentally different creatures. Demons were bloodthirsty and could cultivate and grow strong enough to contend with human martial artists and Immortal Masters.

Spirit beasts, however, were another matter entirely. They could not truly cultivate, and their strength was largely determined from birth. Put simply, they were ordinary beasts transformed by abundant spirit energy, their bodies strengthened and their intelligence awakened. Still, they could now compare to humans or demons.

"How dare you harm people, you vile beast!"

Some Divine Fortification martial artists grew furious and attacked. Sword light tore through the air and struck the eagle, only to shatter on impact. It could not even breach the eagle's defenses.

"What? What kind of spirit beast is this? Even Xu Zhen's sword can't break through its defenses?"

"Xu Zhen has condensed a top-tier divine fortification and two ordinary ones. His body is enhanced forty times over. A single strike can unleash forty thousand cauldrons of force. How could he fail to harm a mere spirit beast?"

"This spirit beast is no ordinary creature."

Many were stunned. Xu Zhen's strike seemed to enrage the eagle. It locked onto him and plunged straight down. With its wings spread wide, it moved at terrifying speed and reached Xu Zhen in the blink of an eye. Xu Zhen's expression changed drastically.

Whoosh, woosh, woosh!

Xu Zhen unleashed several sword lights in rapid succession. Each carried the force of forty thousand cauldrons. Yet when they struck the eagle, they did no more than stir faint pale ripples across its body. Only then did everyone see clearly.

"An enchanted artifact? The spirit beast has one?"

"It looks like a defensive enchanted artifact that's specially crafted for a spirit beast. This beast most likely has a master."

"Could it belong to some Immortal Master?"

At the mention of an Immortal Master, the Divine Fortification martial artists immediately backed away from the eagle. In the Ancient Region, immortal and martial sects ruled together, and the two paths seemed evenly matched.

Individually, Immortal Masters held a higher standing than Divine Treasury martial artists, the reason being their extremely diverse arsenal: artifact creation, alchemy, spells, talismans, and even formations. Given how many crafts they cultivated, gauging their strength was difficult.

In a clash between an Immortal Master and a Divine Treasury expert, the former usually held the advantage. Even if the Divine Treasury martial artist gained the upper hand, killing the Immortal Master would still be exceedingly difficult.

For that reason, no one wanted to provoke a spirit beast that might be tied to an Immortal Master, so everyone in the gorge decided to keep their distance. However, Xu Zhen could not take back what he had done. His sword lights had all struck the eagle, and now the creature was upon him, its talons raking down with force.

Splurt!

The eagle's talons tore away a large chunk of flesh from Xu Zhen. The wound itself was not fatal, but it looked nasty.

"Aaaaagh!" Xu Zhen screamed and fled at once, no longer daring to fight.

The eagle seemed almost pleased with itself. It continued circling above the gorge and let out light cries of victory. Spirit beasts possessed intelligence, though usually no more than that of a child. This eagle spirit beast was clearly toying with the martial artists.

"This spirit beast is insufferable..."

"Whose spirit beast is this? Why isn't its master keeping it in check?"

"With that eagle here, can anyone even focus on comprehending anything?"

"Damn it. That spirit beast has a defensive enchanted artifact. Ordinary attacks can't hurt it."

Though many were furious, none could deal with it. The eagle circled for a while and noticed someone was sitting on the steps, completely disregarding it. It could not tolerate that, so it dove straight toward the lone figure halfway up the gorge.

At this point, only Lu Changsheng remained on the steps. Despite the chaos, he was in a deep state of epiphany, completely unaware of the outside world. After all, no one had entered his Sense Domain, so he had not been awakened.

Seeing him still deep in focus, some martial artists' expressions changed. "That's Lu Changsheng, right?"

"He's having an epiphany. Could he be in danger? Hmm... Someone like him wouldn't come here alone without preparation. Still... that beast is not easy to deal with."

Most of the martial artists were not too worried. After all, Lu Changsheng was the foremost Divine Fortification martial artist, someone who could even defeat a Divine Treasury expert. And indeed, the moment the eagle charged into the range covered by his Sense Domain, he was instantly jolted awake.

A sharp glint flashed in Lu Changsheng's eyes. "Vile beast!"

Shing!

The next moment, Lu Changsheng drew his saber. A crimson saber light split the air, and more than one hundred thousand cauldrons of force erupted in an instant. At such close range, the strike landed on the eagle almost at once.

A dazzling white light flashed across the eagle's body.

An enchanted artifact!

As it turned out, the eagle was protected by an enchanted artifact. So long as the enchanted artifact was not broken, no amount of force could harm the eagle in the slightest.

A spirit beast, huh? Lu Changsheng understood at once.

The spirit beast had to have a master. Such creatures were usually kept by Immortal Masters or even Dao Lords. Though his strike had failed to break the enchanted artifact's protection, the force of one hundred thousand cauldrons couldn't simply be brushed off.

The massive eagle momentarily halted, but it seemed more enraged than anything about the blow. It spread its enormous wings, each feather like a sharpened blade, and lunged at Lu Changsheng once more.

"Beast, you're courting death!" Lu Changsheng snarled, a fierce glint flashing through his eyes. "Sever!"

The invisible and formless Heart Sword struck out at once, sinking into the eagle's body. The eagle let out a miserable cry, beating its wings frantically in an attempt to rise again. However, Lu Changsheng kept striking with his Heart Sword, continuously shaving off the eagle's mental strength.

The enchanted artifact could block many attacks, but it was useless against mental techniques. Lu Changsheng's Heart Sword True Mantra was so fearsome that even peak Divine Fortification martial artists struggled to resist, let alone a mere spirit beast.

At last, after more than a dozen strikes, the eagle's mind collapsed.

Plurt!

The eagle fell from the sky to the foot of the mountain. All trace of life was gone from its body. Just like that, a spirit beast had perished without a single wound on its body.

The surrounding martial artists looked at one another in shock.

"It died... just like that?"

"It doesn't look hurt, so it must've been a mental technique or something."

"Wait, I heard that Lu Changsheng had mastered some terrifying mental technique."

"An ordinary Divine Fortification martial artist should be able to withstand a mental technique. At worst, their minds would be shaken, and they'd be in unimaginable pain, but they wouldn't die just from a mental technique alone. Spirit beasts are different. Their bodies are strong, but their mental strength is weak. They may not be able to withstand that kind of mental assault."

"This is bad. That spirit beast must've had a master. Whoever it is, they won't let this go."

"The beast's master is at least a Qi Refinement Immortal Master, maybe even a Foundation Establishment Dao Lord! Lu Changsheng has the Ancient Region Heavenly Sect behind him, so he has nothing to fear. But we don't have that kind of backing. If that Immortal Master flies into a rage, we'll be the ones in trouble."

"You're right. Let's get out of here, now! There's nothing to see here that's worth risking our lives..."

The martial artists in Wolf Howl Gorge all turned pale. They left one after another. This matter involved an Immortal Master, and no one dared to linger and risk facing their wrath.