Chapter 448 A series of shocks left him speechless... Liu Qingyun was utterly speechless...

Outside the mystic light mirror.

Liu Qingyun and Elder Liu Lan were still immersed in the lingering resonance of the conversation they just had.

Although both of their gazes were fixed on the mirror's surface, the emotions churning in their eyes were completely different from before.

To be more precise.

They no longer knew what kind of emotion to use to face the young man before them.

However, Jiang Yun knew none of this.

At this moment, all of his attention was firmly locked onto the battlefield within the Trial Space.

All the clamor and shock of the outside world had nothing to do with him.

In his eyes, there were only the two figures of Little Fire and Little Skylark shuttling through the Purple Lightning Thunder Prison.

In this battle, he did not want a single mistake to occur.

Although he claimed it was easier than the last match.

That was only relative.

An opponent at the Peak Amethyst Seventh Tier.

Higher by a full eight minor stages.

The slightest carelessness would result in severe injury.

He had already let the two Little Fellows get injured once.

This time.

He absolutely could not let such a thing happen again.

“Little Fire, left wing direction, use Dragon Flame Burst Kill to Seal its movement!”

Standing at the edge of the Domain, Jiang Yun spread his Divine Sense like a net, precisely capturing every subtle change in the battle, and issued commands like flowing water.

“Little Skylark, the moment it's forced back, strike the seam of its neck scales!”

“Chirp!!”

Little Skylark let out a clear, high-pitched cry.

It traced an almost impossible arc through the sky full of purple lightning.

Its figure flashed through the gap between two intersecting power grids; the Wind-Thunder power on its right wing was already primed, waiting for Little Fire’s Dragon Breath to force out a flaw in the opponent.

Little Fire’s dragon mouth opened wide as the golden flames of Dragons Wrath were frantically compressed in its throat. Dragon Flame Burst Kill once again transformed into a torrent of purple-gold blazing flames, slamming fiercely toward the left wing of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros.

The Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros instinctively dodged to the right. Just as its massive body turned, the seam of the scales at the back of its neck was exposed to the air.

It was in this instant.

Little Skylark’s figure fell straight down from mid-air like a silver-gray blade.

Storm Wings slashed heavily onto that scale seam.

“Screech!!!”

The cyan-purple Wind-Thunder light tore through the surface thunder shield.

A small Wind-Thunder vortex exploded within the scale gap.

Although it didn't break through the flesh, that violent Wind-Thunder power drilled into the meat through the scale gap.

The Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros let out a muffled roar of pain.

It suddenly swung its head, wanting to use its single horn to ram Little Skylark.

But Little Skylark, having succeeded in its strike, had already used the reaction force to flap its wings and drift back.

Its figure flashed three times in mid-air.

It easily avoided the single horn that the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros swung back with.

Little Fire seized this moment of its Divided Soul; the sea of golden flames in the Water-Fire Dragon Domain suddenly surged, and countless golden flame chains shot out from the Domain, coiling toward the four thick legs of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros like fire dragons reaching out their claws.

Fire Domain Cage!

Although the golden flame chains didn't completely bind it to death, they were enough to make its movements sluggish by several degrees.

The Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros roared repeatedly, its four hooves exerting sudden force in an attempt to break free. The thunder-scale armor around its body flickered wildly, shattering the golden flame chains wrapped around its legs one by one.

But for every one it shattered.

Little Fire would add two more.

One dragon and one rhinoceros engaged in a contest of pure strength within the Domain.

The Bluestone Battle Stage let out an overburdened groan under the pulling of the two great forces, and cracks spread in all directions like a spiderweb.

Little Skylark wasn't idle during this struggle of strength either.

It shuttled back and forth in the blind spots of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros's vision. Every time it passed, it left a slash of Wind-Thunder light on the rhinoceros's hind leg joints, the scale seams at the base of its tail, and the soft scales behind its ears.

Taken individually, these attacks were not enough to break its defense.

But they couldn't withstand Little Skylark's attack frequency, which was fast enough to be hair-raising.

Within three breaths, it had already circled this giant rhinoceros a full seven times.

Each lap left three to four precise strikes.

The Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros felt stinging pain and numbness everywhere on its body brought by the erosion of the Wind-Thunder power.

When it tried to concentrate on dealing with Little Fire, Little Skylark would output damage frantically from behind.

When it tried to turn around to first solve this annoying feathered beast, Little Fire’s Dragon Flame Burst Kill would slam into its face.

It wanted to use its Purple Lightning Thunder Prison to cover the entire field, but the dual-attribute suppression of the Water-Fire Dragon Domain had already compressed the thunder prison's range to less than a third of its original size, and the density of the electric arcs had also thinned significantly, making it completely unable to trap the full-speed Little Skylark.

The Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros fought with more and more frustration, and the more frustrated it became, the more violent it grew.

It was, after all, a Vicious Beast phantom at the Peak Amethyst Seventh Tier.

Being suppressed and beaten by a Peak Gold Rank 9 and a Gold Rank Eight beast.

Even if only combat instinct remained, the ferocity in its bones was completely triggered.

“Roar!!!!!”

The Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros suddenly looked up to the sky and let out an earth-shattering roar.

The single horn on its forehead suddenly lit up with a purple light so dazzling that one could not look at it directly.

Within the light, the patterns on the surface of the horn lit up one by one, spreading from the base all the way to the tip. The entire horn seemed to transform into an activated ancient lightning spear.

Heavenly Thunder Body Piercing!

A bolt of thunder suddenly exploded out of the Void Realm.

A bucket-thick bolt of purple heavenly thunder descended from the sky, striking directly onto the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros's own horn.

The lightning power poured through the horn into its entire body.

The thunder-scale armor on its body surface suddenly expanded and thickened under the infusion of this power. The originally fine electric arcs turned into finger-thick lightning snakes, wandering frantically over the surface of the scales.

Its aura surged by nearly thirty percent in this instant.

Its four hooves kicked off suddenly, and the entire Bluestone Battle Stage collapsed into a deep pit several meters in diameter.

Its massive body actually charged toward Little Skylark in mid-air with an incredible speed.

Thunder Horn Piercing Strike!

The thunder power condensed on the horn had already materialized, forming a high-speed rotating purple lightning drill at the tip. Everywhere it passed, the air was torn apart with a piercing screech.

The speed of this strike was far faster than before.

Even with its speed at full capacity.

Little Skylark could not possibly avoid it completely.

Jiang Yun's pupils suddenly constricted.

“Little Fire! Golden Scale Protection, intercept it!!”

Little Fire had already moved by the time Jiang Yun shouted the first word.

Its dragon body swung suddenly, and the Taiji Light Wheel within the Water-Fire Dragon Domain erupted behind it, pushing its speed to the limit in an instant.

The massive dragon body was like a golden wall standing between Little Skylark and the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros.

The golden light shield of Golden Scale Protection lit up on its body surface.

A perfect trigger!

“Rumble!!!!!”

The moment the horn hit the golden light shield.

The entire Trial Space shook violently.

A visible shockwave exploded from the center of the energy collision, plowing a circular trench into the ground of the Bluestone Battle Stage.

Purple lightning and the golden light shield ground against each other, producing a piercing metallic friction sound.

The full-force strike of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros was perfectly blocked by Golden Scale Protection.

And because the force of its ram was too fierce, it instead fell into a brief state of stiffness.

Now is the time!

“Little Skylark! Divine Roc True Form!!”

Jiang Yun's voice exploded amidst the aftershocks of the energy explosion.

Little Skylark's wings suddenly fully unfurled.

The Bloodline of the Ancient Wind-Thunder Divine Peng was completely activated at this moment.

The three purple plumes on its head stood high, and ancient pale purple patterns appeared on the silver-gray divine feathers.

These patterns seemed to come alive as they spread across its body, sketching a magnificent and profound Wind-Thunder totem on its wings.

An ancient, vast, and noble pressure that was suffocating erupted from its body.

Divine Roc True Form!

The massive Divine Peng phantom appeared behind it.

Little Skylark's figure suddenly expanded in mid-air. Under the enhancement of the Divine Roc True Form, its wingspan became even wider, and the Wind-Thunder totems on its wings suddenly lit up, as if an Ancient Divine Peng had truly crossed time and space to possess it.

The suppression of life level crushed toward the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros like something tangible.

This suppression was different from a difference in Realm.

It was a crushing force from the lowest level of the Bloodline.

It was the innate restraint of an overlord standing at the top of the beast life hierarchy toward an ordinary beast.

The massive body of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros actually began to tremble uncontrollably at this moment.

Its Bloodline was issuing a cry of instinctive fear.

Even if it was just a phantom projected by a Formation, the combat instinct copied from the original body still felt this fear originating from the deepest part of its life level.

“Little Fire! Water-Fire Dragon Breath!”

Jiang Yun gave the order again.

Little Fire’s dragon mouth suddenly opened.

In the left half of the dragon's mouth, the essence of the sea of golden flames condensed; in the right half, the cold breath of the deep blue waters gathered.

Two completely opposite attributes were compressed together under the command of the True Dragon Bloodline.

And then.

Explode!

The dual water-fire breath transformed into a destructive pillar of light woven with gold and blue, slamming fiercely into the side ribs of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros.

“Crack!!!”

Under the direct impact of the Water-Fire Dragon Breath, the thunder-scale armor finally split open a gap.

Little Skylark’s Divine Roc True Form seized this opportunity, its wings suddenly flapping downward.

The Bloodline Power of the Ancient Wind-Thunder Divine Peng transformed into a sky full of cyan-purple Wind-Thunder feathers, raining down overwhelmingly toward that cracked scale gap.

Summon Thunderstorm!

With that crack as the center.

A violent lightning storm exploded frantically on the side ribs of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros.

The thunder-scale armor was peeled away layer by layer, revealing the phantom body composed of spiritual power underneath.

The Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros let out a painful hiss.

It wanted to counterattack, but its body was doubly locked by the life-level suppression and the constraints of the Water-Fire Dragon Domain; moving even slightly was incredibly difficult.

It wanted to use a lightning stomp, but as soon as its front hoof was raised, Little Fire used a dragon tail sweep to knock the leg back.

It wanted to condense the Purple Lightning Thunder Prison, but Little Skylark's Storm Wings had already slashed seven times at the base of its single horn, making it impossible to gather lightning power at all.

It was already at the end of its rope.

Jiang Yun's gaze quickly swept across the battlefield.

The aura of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros was frantically declining, and the phantom body composed of spiritual power had already shown unstable fluctuations.

It was time to end this.

“Little Fire, Dragon Flame Burst Kill, full power!”

Little Fire’s dragon eyes erupted with dazzling golden flames.

In the dragon's mouth, a purple-gold energy ball expanded to its limit at a speed visible to the naked eye; golden flames and deep blue water vapor frantically circulated and entangled on the surface of the energy ball, emitting a destructive aura.

Dragons Wrath fully activated.

The compression of the dual water-fire attributes was pushed to the extreme at this moment.

Then its dragon mouth suddenly snapped shut, and the purple-gold destructive torrent, like a spear piercing through heaven and earth, accurately slammed into the gap in the side ribs of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros where all defenses had been stripped away.

“Boom!!!!!”

The massive body of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros suddenly stiffened.

The next second.

Purple-gold destructive energy burst frantically outward from inside its body.

Its body began to disintegrate inch by inch under the destructive power of the Dragon Flame Burst Kill, starting from the gap in its side ribs and spreading in all directions; purple spiritual power fragments flew everywhere like shattered crystal.

“Roar...”

The Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros let out a final, unwilling low roar.

Its massive body exploded with a bang.

It transformed into a sky full of purple light spots.

They fell upon the Bluestone Battle Stage like a rain of stars.

As the light spots drifted away, that phantom of the Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros completely dissipated into the air.

Leaving only a deep, charred pit in the center of the battle platform, proving the intensity of the battle that had just occurred.

Victory.

Jiang Yun slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air, and his tensed shoulders finally relaxed.

He walked to the center of the Bluestone Battle Stage.

Looking at the two beast pets that were still panting slightly.

A gentle smile appeared on his face.

"You performed very well."

He reached out and patted Little Fire's lowered dragon head, then nodded toward Little Skylark as she circled down.

"You two Little Fellows worked hard; that was a beautiful fight. One hard and one soft, advancing and retreating with measure—your cooperation has become much more seamless than the last match. Especially Little Skylark, your timing in activating the Divine Roc True Form was handled perfectly. The defense-breaking window created by the Bloodline suppression combined with Little Fire's Water-Fire Dragon Breath was nothing short of perfect."

Little Skylark landed beside Little Fire.

She shook her feathers and let out a proud, soft chirp.

Little Fire also gave a low snort, his dragon tail lightly tapping the Bluestone Battle Stage twice.

"Alright, return to the Beast Taming Space and get some rest."

After speaking, he recalled Little Fire and Little Skylark into the Beast Taming Space.

Inside the Beast Taming Space.

Abundant Spiritual Qi nourished the exhausted stamina of the two beast pets like a sweet spring.

Given their level of consumption this time, it wouldn't take long for them to return to their Peak state under the nourishment of the Beast Taming Space.

Jiang Yun withdrew his Divine Sense.

The surrounding Trial Space began to slowly recede.

The hazy white mist dispersed, the Bluestone Battle Stage vanished, and the teleportation light membrane that had sent him here reappeared.

With a flash of light.

He was already standing in front of that display case on the sixth floor of the Star Pavilion.

The Formation Restriction on the display case had already disappeared.

The thunder soul crystal lay quietly in the center of the display case.

Its entire body was a deep purple, and inside the crystal, countless fine lightning patterns flowed and jumped, as if an entire thunderstorm were sealed within it.

Just by getting close, one could feel the pure-to-the-extreme thunder power radiating from the crystal.

Jiang Yun reached out and picked up the thunder soul crystal. The moment he touched it, a numbing sensation spread through his palm. He turned it over and over, looking at it repeatedly, his eyes flashing with excitement and joy that were hard to conceal.

The three core Materials needed for Little Skylark's second evolution.

seven-colored immortal feather, void plume, and thunder soul crystal.

Now, the final piece, the thunder soul crystal, was in his hands.

The three Materials were all gathered.

Furthermore, Little Skylark's body had also fused with that wing bone of the Ancient Wind-Thunder Divine Peng.

That was no ordinary wing bone.

That was a wing bone truly originating from an Ancient Divine Peng.

It contained a trace of the Ancient Wind-Thunder Divine Peng's Origin Bloodline.

At the critical moment of evolution.

This wing bone would be completely fused.

When that time comes.

The evolution would bring not just a leap in Realm, but a transformation of the life tier itself.

After the evolution is complete.

Little Skylark will directly obtain three new skills.

One of them is the Domain skill gained from evolution.

Wind-Thunder Calamity Domain.

Moreover, the Ancient Divine Peng wing bone contained within that wing bone has a probability of allowing Little Skylark to awaken a Legendary skill.

It might even bring other unexpected benefits to Little Skylark.

For instance, some sort of Natal Divine Ability of the Ancient Divine Peng, or perhaps a segment of Bloodline Legacy memories from ancient times.

As for what specifically it would bring.

That could only be revealed at the moment of evolution.

Jiang Yun took a deep breath.

He solemnly placed the thunder soul crystal into his storage space.

He suppressed the excitement in his heart.

Now was not the time to be excited.

Little Skylark's evolution would inevitably cause a massive Heaven and Earth phenomenon, and might even attract the prying eyes of powerful experts.

Once the evolution succeeds, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi for dozens of miles around will be stirred; that kind of commotion simply cannot be hidden.

Although the Liu family are allies, one must always be wary of others.

He didn't want to expose Little Skylark's true trump cards on the Liu family's territory.

It would be better to wait until after leaving the Liu family to find a secluded, uninhabited place for Little Skylark to evolve in peace.

At the same time, he could let Little Fire swallow and refine that eclipsing moon-level beast core, allowing him to successfully Breakthrough to the Amethyst Rank.

Little Fire is currently at Peak Gold Rank 9.

Breaking through to the Amethyst Rank would not be a problem.

One evolving into a Wind-Thunder Sky Sparrow with Radiant Sun top-tier Aptitude.

The other breaking through to the Amethyst Rank.

When that time comes.

The combat power in his hands will undergo a qualitative leap.

Jiang Yun suppressed these thoughts.

He turned his gaze back to the sixth floor of the Star Pavilion.

Currently, he had already obtained three treasures from the Star Pavilion treasury.

Beast taming armor condensation: Knee Pads, dark-attribute origin law crystal, and thunder soul crystal.

Of the five chances, two remained.

He hadn't finished looking at the treasures on the sixth floor.

But he knew clearly in his heart that the grade and rarity of the treasures on the seventh floor would surely far exceed those on the sixth floor; of course, the challenge difficulty would also be higher.

Since there were only two chances left.

He might as well go up to the seventh floor to take a look first.

To see exactly what good things were on the seventh floor.

If there really was a treasure that moved him deeply, and the challenge difficulty was within controllable limits, he would naturally give it a try.

If the challenge difficulty was too high and he was truly no match, he could also directly recall his beast pets and exit the Trial Space.

At that time, he could return to the sixth or fifth floor and select two suitable items from the treasures he had already scouted; that would also be a steady choice.

Able to attack when advancing and defend when retreating—he wouldn't lose out either way.

After pondering for a moment, Jiang Yun had reached a decision.

He set off, walking along the circular corridor of the sixth floor toward the deeper parts.

The stairs leading to the floor above in the Star Pavilion were always at the innermost part.

The bluestone steps made a slight friction sound under his feet. Jiang Yun's pace was neither fast nor slow, possessing a calm sense of certainty.

Meanwhile, in front of the mystic light mirror.

Liu Qingyun watched Jiang Yun's back as he walked toward the passage to the seventh floor, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.

Then.

He shook his head.

It was the kind of head-shaking that came from utter powerlessness.

It wasn't anger, it wasn't regret; it was a kind of helplessness after being repeatedly crushed into complete numbness.

"I'm truly convinced..."

Liu Qingyun squeezed out a sentence from his throat that didn't sound like something a family head would say.

He turned to look at Elder Liu Lan.

Elder Liu Lan also happened to turn and look at him.

The two exchanged a glance, simultaneously seeing the same emotion in each other's eyes.

Calm.

An extremely eerie calm.

It wasn't because they weren't shocked, but because they had been shocked beyond their threshold.

It's like a person being struck by lightning for the first time will jump in fear, will scream in agony the second time, but if they are struck dozens of times in a row, they will probably just silently glance at the sky and continue on their way.

At this moment, Liu Qingyun and Elder Liu Lan were in exactly this state.

Three challenges.

The first time, Little Skylark insta-killed a Purple Crystal Second Stage Peak; they cried out that it was impossible.

The second time, Little Fire and Little Skylark returned to full health to crush the Amethyst Eighth Tier Shadow Hunter; they suspected secret medicine was used, and their psychological defenses completely collapsed.

The third time, the two beast pets returned to full health once again within half a stick of incense, and then with even more seamless cooperation, they cleanly and efficiently slew the Amethyst Seventh Tier Peak Purple Thunder Black-Armored Rhinoceros.

Each time was more shocking than the last.

Each time was more absurd than the last.

Each time exceeded their understanding more than the last.

And then.

They became numb.

Truly numb.

"I no longer know what to say."

Liu Qingyun's tone was so calm it felt a bit unbelievable even to himself.

"Half a stick of incense ago, I was still thinking that since those two beast pets were injured to that extent, he might settle for the next best thing and just pick two safe treasures from the lower floors. In the end, not only did he not retreat, he returned to full health again, suppressed an opponent eight sub-stages higher than them again, and won again. You tell me, what else can I say?"

He gave a self-deprecating laugh.

"I feel now that if he weren't such a Prodigy, if he weren't so Heaven-Defying, if he didn't create some kind of miracle, I would actually find it abnormal. After all, he is Grand Tutor Dongxuan—the Grand Tutor Dongxuan who made Old Mo feel inferior in the Dao of Runes, and the Grand Tutor Dongxuan who made Great Master Master Fu Shan admit defeat in Formation Comprehension Ability. Such a person simply cannot be measured by Common logic."

Elder Liu Lan nodded in deep agreement.

"The Family Head is right; I feel the same way now."

Her gaze fell upon Jiang Yun's back in the mirror as he walked toward the seventh floor, her tone carrying a hint of lament.

"Every time we think we've seen his limit, he manages to pull out a new hidden card and tear our guesses to shreds. Once or twice could be called luck, but three or four times isn't luck—it's because he truly has this foundation, this strength. Since that's the case, what's the point in trying to guess his limit? No matter how we guess, we'll just end up getting slapped in the face."

Liu Qingyun gave a bitter smile.

But he was even more curious about another matter.

"How on earth did he do it?"

Liu Qingyun's voice carried deep confusion.

"I saw those two beast pets' injuries with my own eyes; they definitely weren't faked. With the power of dark erosion corroding them to that degree, even with the highest-grade healing Medicinal Pill, it would take at least several hours to recover. But what about him? Half a stick of incense—no, the first recovery didn't even take half a stick of incense. This kind of method has completely exceeded my understanding; no, it has exceeded the understanding of the entire Liu family."

He paused, his voice taking on a touch of cautious gravity.

"What does this indicate? It indicates that the background behind him is far beyond our imagination. This level of recovery method—forget my Liu family, looking across the entire Central Province, which power could achieve this? Perhaps those ancient Sects that have remained hidden for ages?"

Elder Liu Lan was silent for a moment before slowly speaking.

"Family Head, we previously guessed there might be some great power behind him; I'm afraid that judgment needs to be expanded even further. He dares to act this way in the Liu family and dares to expose so many trump cards one after another because he isn't afraid of our greed at all. Because before the power behind him, our Liu family's greed poses no threat whatsoever."

Liu Qingyun did not reply.

But his silence already said everything.

He no longer thought Jiang Yun was some junior who had just stumbled into some dumb luck.

This Heaven-Defying talent, these endless hidden cards, this unheard-of recovery method, and that composure that hadn't wavered from start to finish.

Only a true foundation could cultivate such a person.

And that foundation was likely an existence the Liu family couldn't even begin to compare with.

"Fortunately, Elder Liu Lan stopped those brutes like Liu Lie back then."

Liu Qingyun felt secretly relieved in his heart.

"If we had truly offended Grand Tutor Dongxuan to death back then, our Liu family would probably not be this peaceful right now."

Just as he was thinking this.

In the mirror, Jiang Yun had already stepped onto the stairs leading to the seventh floor.

Liu Qingyun looked at that composed back, and the corner of his mouth twitched once more.

"He's going to the seventh floor."

He paused, his voice already carrying a sense of resignation.

"Today, my Liu family's treasury is destined to suffer a massive loss..."

Hearing this, Elder Liu Lan could only respond with a helpless, bitter smile.

The two did not speak again.

They just silently watched the mystic light mirror, waiting to see what kind of world-shaking commotion this youth would stir up on the seventh floor.