Chapter 420 - 276: Arriving Again

Unlike the fierce and mighty lightning of the Thunder Qilin Beast, this stream of cyan electricity was more graceful and swift, prioritizing speed over power.

Almost the instant it appeared in his line of sight, the name of the corresponding Pet Beast surfaced in Su Zhi’s mind—

Thunderbolt War Falcon.

But the speed of thought could never match the speed of light. In the instant Su Zhi registered the thought, the cyan electricity had already struck the Earthquake Beast’s mouth, leaving behind only a faint, curling cyan glow as the electrical energy dissipated.

Logically, for an Earthquake Beast so tough it could have a hole punched through it and still jump around, an attack of this level shouldn’t have even registered as a tickle...

But then, something happened that completely defied Su Zhi’s expectations:

The Earthquake Beast began to convulse as if it had been struck in a weak point. It thrashed about wildly, and the Golden Light that had been growing brighter on its body was instantly extinguished.

"ROAR!"

Another deep bear’s roar echoed from above. The Mud Rock Battle Bear, Fuyue, descended from the sky, its right claw slamming viciously into the Earthquake Beast’s body, tearing open a horrifyingly large wound on the spot.

Su Zhi looked up, both shocked and overjoyed.

[Pet Beast: Thunderbolt War Falcon (Zi Lu)

Attribute: Wind Element, Electric Element

Race: Middle Elite

Real-time Energy Value: 11031]

High in the heavens, a swift cyan shadow circled. The sleekly built Thunderbolt War Falcon weaved through the clouds, looking both elegant and heroic.

A man was riding on the Thunderbolt War Falcon’s back, his beige Beastmaster robes billowing in the wind like a battle flag!

"The Earthquake Beast is impervious to weapons. The only opening on its entire body is its mouth. An electric current sent through its mouth can disrupt it from the inside and interrupt its Vibration-Inducing Skills."

After speaking, the man leaped down to land beside Su Zhi, standing shoulder to shoulder with him to face the Earthquake Beast.

"You must be Su Zhi, young friend?"

"I am!" Su Zhi replied, sizing him up excitedly. "Are you... could you be..."

Tuoba Jing smiled gently. "Flying Shadow Alliance member Tuoba Jing. It’s a pleasure to meet you, young friend."

This was the first time Su Zhi had ever met a figure from history.

He looked no different from the portrait in the Alliance History Hall, though his beard was a bit longer. Combined with his elegant robes and tall hair crown, he exuded the aura of a Grandmaster.

Contrary to his previous impression, Su Zhi could also sense a scholarly air about the man—historically, Tuoba Jing had indeed been a Scholar for a time before becoming a Beastmaster.

Tuoba Jing, in turn, was sizing him up with a look of great curiosity.

’Why was this young friend dressed in such strange clothes he had never seen before? Why was his hair cut so short? Could this Su Zhi be a monk...’

It was a rare meeting between a man of the past and a man of the present, and both had many questions for the other. However, the roar of the Earthquake Beast quickly pulled their thoughts back to reality.

They would deal with the threat before them and talk later—that was the silent consensus reached by the two Beastmasters.

"KRRRAAA..."

The enraged Earthquake Beast launched a new round of attacks, this time locking onto Fuyue, who had drawn most of its ire.

Fuyue, relying on its relatively lighter and more agile frame, repeatedly dodged and counter-attacked, never allowing the Earthquake Beast to establish a comfortable offensive rhythm.

Though it had been in a sorry state when surrounded, a Fighting Pet Beast never shied away from a one-on-one, duel-like battle.

And whenever the Earthquake Beast got desperate and tried to unleash a major attack, Zi Lu, circling in the sky, would release a bolt of lightning, interrupting its cast with pinpoint precision.

For the moment, Tuoba Jing’s two Pet Beasts had the Earthquake Beast pinned down.

"Fuyue reported that as long as you either knock the Earthquake Beast over or get its feet off the ground, it will slowly die?"

Tuoba Jing cupped his hands in a gesture of respect. "It is shameful to admit, but I have fought Earthquake Beasts for many years and never discovered this. I have been utterly foolish. If only I had your sharp mind, young friend, perhaps I could have saved more people."

"It was just a lucky discovery, nothing more. You praise me too highly, Senior! After all, you discovered a clue that we missed."

Su Zhi shook his head with a wry smile. "I don’t have a good plan at the moment either. This Earthquake Beast is far stronger than my lineup of Pet Beasts, and its weight is beyond what we can handle. If you hadn’t arrived, we would have had absolutely no chance..."

"Rest assured, we are here now."

Tuoba Jing nodded. "My Sub-Pet is a Yu Dian Farm Dog, also at a Three-star level, and is currently at the front of Jinshi Village helping the villagers fight. Zi Lu and Fuyue are my Main Pet and third pet. If we combine our forces, we will surely be able to slay this Earthquake Beast."

It was only then that Su Zhi realized, and he asked in surprise, "You’ve already broken through to a Tier Six Beast Taming Space?"

"As the saying goes, one should see a man in a new light after only three days’ absence," Tuoba Jing replied with a light chuckle. "But, embarrassingly, my Beast Taming Space was actually stuck at Tier Five for many years. I only recently broke through to Tier Six."

As his gaze fell back on the Earthquake Beast, his expression grew grave again. "This Earthquake Beast is incredibly difficult to deal with. Unfortunately, Zi Lu’s strength isn’t in offense and can only restrain it, while Fuyue is still not fully matured... It’s truly strange. An Earthquake Beast of this caliber should be in that other place, so how did it end up wandering into the village?"

"No. We don’t need offense to defeat it."

A faint smile touched the corners of Su Zhi’s lips.

"You mean to make it fall and bring about its own demise?"

Tuoba Jing was suddenly curious. "Using technique to overcome brute force is indeed a good way to deal with an Earthquake Beast, but this one’s mass is simply too great. You yourself said you were powerless, so what is your plan?"

"I was powerless before. Now that we’re fighting side-by-side, one plus one is naturally greater than two. It’s true we’ll make the Earthquake Beast destroy itself, but it doesn’t necessarily have to fall down to do it."

Tuoba Jing narrowed his eyes.

"I would like to hear the details!"

...

"AWOO, AWOO, AWOO—"

Fuyue dodged another one of the Earthquake Beast’s bites, howling with excitement. Its footwork was like the wind as it quickly moved to the beast’s flank and landed a left hook.

’It wasn’t doing any real damage, but man, did it feel good to land punch after punch!’