"It's no good for him to continue like this. If he exhausts his strength, he'll be in danger," Xu Dongjin commented, as he watched Han Sen zip around the sky. Continuing to talk, he said, "Queen, ought we provide him aid?"
Xu Dongjin's offer to support Han Sen was not out of the kindness of his heart. He saw that Han Sen had attracted the attention of countless murderous birds, and with the majority pre-occupied in the pursuit of Han Sen, he and Queen would be free to bag plenty of easy kills.
While he was happy to sit and watch, the suggestion of going over there and getting free kills was incredibly self-centered. That was why he extended his offer to Queen.
"There is no need. Within thirty strikes, the Sky Falcon King will be no more," Queen responded coldly.
To the eyes of those who watched, Han Sen was a free-spirited bird himself. He soared the skies with no formation, diving and rising on a whim. Queen was the only one who did not see things like that, however. She could see that Han Sen was calculating each movement and every time he swerved, turned, or twirled, it was at a destination he had planned. Within thirty strikes, the formation would be complete, and the Sky Falcon king would be slain.
"Thirty strikes? That doesn't seem likely." Xu Dongjin continued to watch Han Sen getting chased by the flock of birds. He thought he was doing okay, provided they did not catch him.
Chen Ran remained quiet and motionless. He stood off to the side, watching in silent contemplation. An old man like him, unlike Xu Dongjin, was able to understand such intricate situations a lot more. That was why he was so surprised at what he was witnessing.
"How does this kid know how to perform Heavenly Go? Did the Huangfu family teach another? That is impossible! Huangfu Xiongcheng took a vow, so how could someone else I have no knowledge of or relation with, know how to perform Heavenly Go?" Chen Ran spoke with a strange look on his face, as his eyes continued to trace Han Sen's movements in the air.
A few of the evolvers that watched were counting how many strikes Han Sen had performed, not putting much stock into Queen's claim of him being able to do it in thirty or less.
"Yeehaw!" After the count of twenty-four, Han Sen shouted. Without any prior indication, Han Sen performed a brutal counter-attack on the Sky Falcon king.
The Sky Falcon king was flying at incredible speed, flapping its wings with a new tenacity in an attempt to dodge Han Sen's incoming strike. It managed to dodge the first sword, but upon doing so, found itself caught up in the pursuing crowd of birds. At that precise moment, Han Sen's second sword came down on it.
The silver snake sword was imbued with incredible power and brought down on the Sky Falcon king with a mighty thrust. The Sky Falcon king's greatest asset was speed, but that came at the sacrifice of strength – its body was weak. When it was hit, its entire backside was sliced open to expose its organs. A hit such as that was guaranteed to ensure its death.
Xu Dongjin and the others could not move. Han Sen had performed twenty-four strikes to slay the Sky Falcon king.
Now, Han Sen swerved to dodge the next assault of the flock of birds. He made a quick turn and went after the falling Sky Falcon king. He hadn't yet heard the notification tone, confirming his slaying of the beast, so it had to still be alive to some degree.
The Sky Falcon king descended directly into the crown of the tree. When Han Sen raced there, the branch that the Sky Falcon king landed upon rebounded.
Han Sen reached out his hands to grab the near-lifeless body of the Sky Falcon king and used his Yin Force to throttle it. After a vigorous squeeze, the notification finally played.
"Sacred-Blood Creature Hunted: Sky Falcon king. The beast soul was not acquired. Consume its flesh to obtain a random numeric amount of sacred geno points, ranging from zero to ten."
Han Sen's inability to claim the beast soul did not come as a surprise. The probability of obtaining one was incredibly low, so it would have been highly unlikely to get it on his first kill.
Han Sen was prepared for this, so he wasn't disappointed. With the Sky Falcon king's flesh, he was sure to gain at least eight sacred geno points, and eight sacred geno points from a single meal was a generous amount.
Han Sen circled the crown of the tree while avoiding the flock of birds that continued to pursue him. He caught a glimpse of what lay beneath the foliage, and when he saw what was there, his pupils shrank in shock.
Beyond the dense dressing of leaves, Han Sen saw a bird nest that had been built from branches. The nest itself was not remarkable.
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But inside the nest, he saw a bird that looked like a raven. It was inky black and all it did was stare coldly back at Han Sen. Han Sen looked into its eyes and felt a chill. He figured if the raven decided to move and come after him, he'd be gutted alive in no time at all.
But the raven did not do anything. It remained where it was, comfy in its nest, watching Han Sen fly past.
Han Sen was soaked in cold sweat. He only looked into its eyes, but with his highly-attuned senses, he was able to determine how powerful it was. It brimmed with energy, and Han Sen just knew that it had to be a super creature.
Han Sen believed he should immediately remove himself from the area and start praying to the gods above for a blessing. He had been so close to the super creature, yet it had done nothing at all. It was a miracle.
The more Han Sen mulled over the situation, though, the more he felt something wasn't quite right. The raven super creature was only a few meters away from him, so there was no chance it had not seen him. But if it had indeed watched Han Sen, why would it choose to ignore a free meal?
"Unless the raven cannot move?" This thought flashed through his mind. "If the raven is laying eggs, is that why it did not choose to kill me?"
Aside from that, Han Sen could not think of any other reasons he would be allowed to escape from the raven. But that did not matter to him right now; what was most important was his need to leave the area and return to safety. If the raven did decide to leave its nest, he would be in trouble.
Han Sen soared off in the direction of Queen, shouting, "Leave! There is a terrifying creature atop the tree! You have to leave!"
After that, he swooped down to hit the ground running and return his wings.
Queen, without hesitating, joined Han Sen in his hurried departure.
"Pah, surely you jest! If there is indeed a terrifying creature aloft in the tree, explain to me how you have returned with nary a wound upon your person!" Xu Dongjin did not believe Han Sen's words.
Chen Ran only frowned, wondering whether or not he should leave and follow Han Sen's unnerving warning. But then, a deafening screech pierced his ears. It was the frightening cry of a raven.
Caw! Caw!
After sounding, a pitch-black raven emerged from the crown of the tree. When it flew out, the rest of the birds that were still airborne, panicking, calmed down and retreated into the tree.
The raven creature spread its wings and flew down with its beady eyes peering at them.
"Go!" Chen Ran felt a chill run down his spine and issued his command without hesitation. He was the first to start running.
Xu Dongjin and his people did not dare loiter any longer, and they took off behind Chen Ran.
The raven casually glided down towards them, in no apparent rush. It coldly watched Han Sen and the others flee for their lives, its eyes viewing them all like a joke.
Its eyes were sullen voids, and after it took off into the air, the mountain descended into an oppressive silence.