98: Chapter 98 Like a Tiger with Wings

Da Bai curiously examined the newly sprouted wings on its back, occasionally turning its head to gently touch them with its nose, tentatively flapping them.

Watching Da Bai use its wings clumsily, Benboba switched into chatterbox mode: "This is hilarious! We both evolved, but my muscles make me feel powerful, while you growing wings is purely for comic relief!"

Da Bai let out a muffled, unconvinced roar, but the sound was soft, weak, and devoid of any menace, instead revealing a sense of grievance.

Xue Rong, standing nearby, considerately stepped forward to sweep the dust off Da Bai's face with her tail, while Xiao Hei lay where it was, watching Da Bai's social death.

Mo Yufei stood to the side with his arms crossed and said with a smile, "Ease up a bit. Give it some face as a beginner; after all, it's a rookie pilot."

Benboba didn't restrain himself at all, arguing righteously, "The spirit pet team cannot have any weak links! I am providing professional supervised training!"

Da Bai shook off the dust covering its body, lowered its waist, bent its knees, focused its mind, and tried to control its wings once again.

This time, it was extra cautious, slowly flapping its wings and gently leveraging the airflow. A faint spiritual energy lifted its body, and it actually began to hover.

The sudden lift-off made Da Bai freeze instantly; its tail went straight as a rod, and it was even careful with its breathing. The few spirit beasts on the ground all looked up, their eyes filled with anticipation.

Just as Da Bai was about to stabilize itself, Benboba, from the treetop, started its noisy urging again: "Don't go AFK! Fly forward! Are you just going to be a statue in mid-air?"

The noisy voice instantly disrupted Da Bai's focus; the flow of spiritual energy lost its rhythm, and the strength in its wings became completely unbalanced.

Its massive body tilted sharply, its limbs kicked wildly in the air, and like an out-of-control white ball, it slammed heavily against the stone wall, rolling down to the ground, covered in limestone dust and grass clippings.

Benboba laughed until his red feathers trembled: "A perfect recreation of the wall-slamming pose! Other people practice technique during test flights, but you practice impact resistance—that's too hardcore!"

Mo Yufei walked over, rubbed Da Bai's drooping head, and gently comforted it, while specifically exposing the Parrot: "When you first met me, you were trembling with fear. Da Bai was much braver than you back then."

Benboba was instantly speechless.

The gentle comfort of its companions helped Da Bai regain its confidence. It shed its impatience, lay quietly in place to review its mistakes, and silently memorized the rhythm and force required for flapping its wings.

A moment later, Da Bai stood up again, focusing completely, and allowed its spiritual energy to flow steadily into its wings.

Its wings spread evenly, capturing the airflow precisely, and it flapped them repeatedly without haste. This time, it completely stabilized its balance. Its body rose steadily into the air, hovering firmly at a low altitude without tilting or losing control.

A gleam of excitement lit up Da Bai's eyes. It carefully adjusted its force and glided forward slowly. Although its movements were slightly stiff and clumsy, it had steadily accomplished true flight.

Seeing this, Mo Yufei revealed a satisfied smile, and the few spirit beasts also chirped and cheered.

Only Benboba remained unchanged, true to his sharp-tongued nature. He flapped his wings, dove, and circled around Da Bai, flying chaotically while giving instructions from a distance: "Lift your wings, control your tail, accelerate! You're so slow, it's like a snail taking a walk!"

Distracted by his chaotic instructions, Da Bai, who had just mastered flight, wobbled slightly and almost fell again.

Watching Da Bai's panicked adjustments, Benboba didn't forget to be stubborn and shift the blame, refusing to admit it was his own fault.

Da Bai used to be a little kitten, but after its berserk mutation, its body and appearance resembled a ferocious tiger. Now, it had broken free from the shackles of the ground and unlocked the ability to soar through the sky.

In the secret realm, the clumsy and serious winged tiger practicing flight, the chatterbox and mischievous Parrot, paired with the gentle and healing spirit beasts—the noisy scene became the most vivid and warm scenery in this place.

After several falls and explorations, Da Bai gradually shed the awkwardness of its first flight.

It was no longer panicked or tense; its body was relaxed and stable, and the rhythm of its wing flaps became increasingly smooth and natural. Hovering in mid-air, it held its breath and focused, trying to mobilize the mutated spiritual energy stored within its body, gathering all its strength onto the wings on its back.

As the power continued to gather, deep within the patterns of its originally pure white feathers, faint, fine golden light began to shimmer.

"Hey? Something's not right! It looks like it's charging up a big move!"

Benboba, who was circling and gossiping in mid-air, instantly stopped his chatter, flapped his red feathers to retreat two meters, his tone a mix of surprise and the nervousness of someone watching a spectacle.

Xiao Hei, Xiao Bai, and Xue Rong on the ground also looked up in unison, their gazes locked tightly on Da Bai in the air, their expressions focused.

Mo Yufei raised an eyebrow slightly and watched quietly, knowing this was the exclusive ability Da Bai awakened after completing its gene fusion—the bloodline of the Saintly Judgment Thunder Bird.

Spiritual energy continued to pour in; the golden light on its wings grew increasingly intense. Fine electric currents crackled, and tiny golden arcs of electricity leaped and traveled between the feathers, with sizzling thunder sounds constantly spreading out.

In just a few seconds, countless golden electric arcs wrapped around its wings, rapidly rotating along the contour of the wings and condensing into a refined, sharp bolt of golden lightning.

The next instant, Da Bai subconsciously flapped its wings!

"Whoosh—!"

A dazzling golden bolt of lightning suddenly tore through the air, shooting straight toward the towering tree directly in front!

It was so fast that there was no time to blink.

"Boom!"

A violent explosion erupted. The thick, sturdy giant tree could not withstand this bolt of thunder power at all; the trunk was instantly pierced and shattered by the lightning.

The hard wood grain cracked inch by inch; branches, bark, and wood chips flew everywhere. The entire tree split apart at the sound, collapsed with a crash, and kicked up a cloud of dust.

The entire scene fell into instant silence.

Da Bai, in mid-air, was stunned in place. Its wide wings were slightly frozen, and its tiger head stared blankly at the chaotic clearing ahead, its amber pupils filled with confusion.

It just wanted to try to fly steadily; it never expected that its wings could unleash such an exaggerated attack!

The silence lasted only half a second before Benboba's loud voice exploded, startling his red feathers: "Holy cow!! You're hiding your true strength, aren't you!"

"Not bad, Da Bai! After falling eight hundred times, you finally flew under my guidance and even awakened a new ability. You really are worthy of being my, Benboba's, companion!"

Benboba chirped and shouted wildly while circling Da Bai at high speed. His eyes were full of shock; there was no longer any of the mockery from before, and he even carried a bit of pride.

Xiao Bai on the ground shrank back a little, its round eyes widened. This golden lightning carried a special attribute, and its destructive power was even stronger than its own.

Xue Rong let out a soft meow, her eyes full of amazement. Even Xiao Hei, who was usually aloof and calm, raised its head slightly, and a low, approving whimper escaped its throat.

Mo Yufei looked at the scattered wood and debris on the ground, then at the adorably dazed Da Bai in mid-air, who looked like it was thinking, "I'm super powerful, but what did I just do?" He couldn't help but smile and shake his head.

It seems that this deep genetic mutation not only gave Da Bai wings to soar through the sky but also gifted it the thunder power of a bloodline awakening.

The clumsy flight novice had, without realizing it, unlocked a highly destructive exclusive ultimate move.

Da Bai recovered its senses and instantly felt full of confidence.

It raised its head and proudly flapped its glowing wings. Tiny golden electric arcs were still jumping gently between its feathers, looking majestic.

All the grievances from being mocked by Benboba just now were completely swept away at this moment.

It flapped its wings gently and circled steadily into the air, its posture calm and imposing, looking every bit like a newly ascended aerial combat expert.

Benboba flew over to its side, still unable to keep his mouth shut: "Not bad! From now on, you're the team's damage dealer! Next time, can you be a little more careful? That lightning bolt almost singed me!"