Chapter 128: Little Hei’s Growth

Chapter 128: Chapter 128: Little Hei’s Growth

At this, Yun Mengling’s face flushed red again. With a coquettish huff, she quickened her pace and walked ahead, leaving Yi Xiaoyao behind.

She had been confessed to by countless people and had long grown used to the feeling, but for some reason, hearing Yi Xiaoyao’s words made her heart pound wildly. She even felt a faint sense of joy, a feeling she had never experienced before.

’Jerk! Jerk! Jerk! I was just trying to be nice and help him, and he goes and takes advantage of me again!’ Yun Mengling stomped her foot and walked even faster.

Yi Xiaoyao chuckled and quickly followed her.

...

A moment later, the roars of beasts and the sounds of battle echoed through the forest.

A pack of crimson giant lions spat flames, burning the surrounding ancient trees to black charcoal.

And in their midst, a phantom, almost impossible to track with the naked eye, weaved through them.

A few breaths later, Yi Xiaoyao sheathed his sword and stood still. All around him, the flaming giant lions collapsed with a crash.

After collecting the Demon Fire from the pack of Demon Beasts, he then extracted their Demon Cores.

Just then, Little Hei, who was in Yun Mengling’s arms, suddenly woke up, waving his limbs at Yi Xiaoyao and squeaking.

"He seems hungry," Yun Mengling said, her beautiful eyes twinkling.

Yi Xiaoyao was also quite surprised. The little guy did nothing but sleep all day and hadn’t eaten in many days. His current behavior certainly looked like he wanted to eat.

"Little Hei, what do you want to eat?" Yi Xiaoyao asked.

"SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK!"

Little Hei pointed at the Demon Cores in Yi Xiaoyao’s hand, his two big, dark, glistening eyes shining brightly.

"You want to eat Demon Cores?"

Stunned, Yi Xiaoyao walked over and handed a Demon Core to him.

Little Hei snatched the Demon Core, put it in his mouth, and with a CRUNCH CRUNCH, crushed and swallowed it.

"SQUEAK SQUEAK!"

"You want more?"

Yi Xiaoyao smiled faintly. He took out all the Demon Cores he had collected on their journey and fed them to Little Hei as he and Yun Mengling continued on their way.

"I wonder if this little guy will be as powerful as the Red Ape Great Demon when he grows up," Yi Xiaoyao said with a faint smile, looking hopefully at Little Hei, who was intently eating the Demon Cores.

Yun Mengling also chuckled. "Little Hei is the son of the Demon Emperor. In the future, he will surely be the most powerful Demon Beast!"

Yi Xiaoyao nodded and suddenly said, "I want to make a pact with you."

"What kind of pact?"

"We promised the Red Ape Great Demon that we would one day return Little Hei to the Demon Race and help him ascend to the throne of the Demon Emperor. But if you ever leave, regardless of who Little Hei stays with, the three of us must go to the Demon Race together!" Yi Xiaoyao said.

Something flickered in Yun Mengling’s beautiful, limpid eyes as a thought seemed to cross her mind.

A moment later, she looked at Yi Xiaoyao and gave him a beautiful smile. "Alright!"

The two of them firmly committed this shared pact to memory.

Gradually, Little Hei ate an unknowable number of Demon Cores; it was hard to imagine how his tiny, round belly could hold so much.

After eating his fill, Little Hei fell asleep in Yun Mengling’s arms once again.

On the rest of their journey, Yi Xiaoyao collected a good amount of Demon Fire. After absorbing it, his Heaven-Shattering Demon Flame Palm entered the initial stage of Great Success, its power increasing significantly.

Demon Fire wasn’t like Demon Beast Essence Blood; not even one in ten Demon Beasts possessed it. As a result, the process of improvement was rather slow.

However, after so many days of fighting, coupled with the energy being released from the Great Demon Essence Blood within his body, Yi Xiaoyao gradually began to show signs of breaking through to the Golden Core Realm.

One day, Little Hei suddenly woke up and let out a howl.

Yi Xiaoyao and Yun Mengling both looked over in astonishment. They discovered a faint golden light flowing within the little guy’s eyes, swimming in his pupils like a tiny dragon.

The next moment, Little Hei jumped to the ground, and a series of strange cracking sounds came from within his body.

POP POP POP!

At a speed visible to the naked eye, Little Hei began to grow. From his original palm-sized form, he shot up to the height of a seven- or eight-year-old child.

But this form lasted only a moment before he shrank back to his original palm size.

Yi Xiaoyao and Yun Mengling exchanged a look, their eyes filled with wonder.

Just then, Little Hei stood by Yi Xiaoyao’s feet, held out a small paw, and uttered a few muddled words.

"Eat... eat!"

This time, Yi Xiaoyao and Yun Mengling couldn’t hold back any longer and exclaimed in unison.

"The little guy can actually talk!"

They were both shocked and delighted. After all, a Demon Beast could only speak after taking human form and becoming a Great Demon.

But Little Hei wasn’t even a Rank-One Demon Beast, yet he could already speak.

Although his speech was muddled, it was enough to prove he was no ordinary Demon Beast. Truly worthy of being the son of the Demon Emperor.

At this thought, Yun Mengling excitedly scooped Little Hei up, and Yi Xiaoyao quickly took out a Demon Core to feed him.

"I think this growth spurt is related to all the Demon Cores he’s been eating," Yun Mengling said.

Hearing this, an idea sparked in Yi Xiaoyao’s mind. He took out the giant, skull-sized Demon Core he had obtained before and offered it to Little Hei.

The moment Little Hei saw this Demon Core, he became incredibly excited, pouncing on it and beginning to gnaw away.

In just a few moments, the Demon Core, larger than his entire body, had been eaten clean.

Then, Little Hei fell into a deep sleep once more.

Having discovered Little Hei’s peculiarity, the two became even more attentive to him. Yi Xiaoyao began hunting Demon Beasts with greater fervor, collecting Demon Fire and Demon Cores.

Both of them were filled with anticipation for Little Hei’s growth.

However, before Little Hei could grow up, Yi Xiaoyao found himself on the verge of breaking through to the Golden Core Realm.

A few nights later, Yi Xiaoyao sat cross-legged under an ancient tree. He consumed a Gold Condensing Pill and officially began his breakthrough to the Golden Core Realm.

Yun Mengling stood guard by his side. She released a Holy Light Shield that enveloped Yi Xiaoyao, acting as his Protector.

Several hours later, a subtle fluctuation emanated from within Yi Xiaoyao’s body.

"Did you succeed?" Yun Mengling asked joyfully.

Yi Xiaoyao could barely contain his excitement. He nodded with a smile. "I did!"

Then, he took off his long robe and spread it on the ground. He stood up and pulled Yun Mengling over.

"What... what are you doing?" Yun Mengling asked nervously.

’Alone in the jungle late at night... a man and a woman... the atmosphere was already a bit delicate, and Yi Xiaoyao’s actions were just bizarre.’

Yi Xiaoyao smiled. "You haven’t rested much on this journey, and acting as my Protector just now was hard work. You should get a good night’s sleep. I’ll keep watch."

Yun Mengling’s beautiful eyes flickered. ’How could I possibly sleep with him watching over me? It’s too embarrassing.’

"We’re leaving the forest tomorrow. Do you really want to show up at my home with dark circles under your eyes?" Yi Xiaoyao added with a smile.

Hearing this, Yun Mengling’s gaze turned shy, but she obediently sat down on Yi Xiaoyao’s robe and lay down to rest.

As she caught the faint, unique scent of Yi Xiaoyao from the robe beneath her, her face felt like it was on fire.

’Tomorrow, I’m going to meet his family.’

...

(PS: These last few Chapters may have been a little slow, but the plot is about to pick up. The third update will be posted after midnight.)