Walker Of The Worlds

Chapter 3145: Call Of The Bloodlines

For many cultivators, the path was narrow, dictated by their natural affinity and limited by their talent. But Meng Bai was different.

Like Lin Mu himself, he carried the rare burden of freedom... the luxury of choice born from overwhelming talent.

Lin Mu had recognized that spark in the boy’s eyes, a familiar fire he had once carried when pondering his own Dao Embryo. Without hesitation, he had granted Meng Bai the jade slips, urging him to read, study, and let inspiration find him in the most unexpected of places.

The boy had bowed with gratitude, his resolve firm, though the shadow of indecision still clung to him. Lin Mu hoped that somewhere within that mountain of knowledge, Meng Bai would find the seed that would crystallize his Dao path.

Elyon too was pushing himself. No longer tasked with weaving networks of intelligence, he had shifted his focus entirely onto cultivation and combat. Lin Mu had heard from Meng Bai that Elyon was sparring against some of the elders of the Xian Sword Sect.

The wolfkin’s roots as a beastkin were resurfacing, and his desire to sharpen his edge was clear. For him, intelligence gathering had been a task born of necessity, but fighting was his truest nature. With the mission drawing near, Elyon clearly wanted to be at his sharpest.

Lin Mu’s beasts were also immersed in their own cultivation.

Little Shrubby, ever restless and brimming with searning energy, had returned to the Huo Lin Transcendent Will Valley. There, alongside the twin serpents Xiao Yin and Xiao Yang, he absorbed the potent energies that the valley exuded.

The twin snakes thrived in the environment, their dual affinities resonating with the land’s essence, while Little Shrubby hungrily pulled in fire energy, tempering his body and spirit.

Ashy, the little black bird, had chosen a different path.

After gorging herself on the qi-rich delicacies of the banquet, she had retreated into the Sleepscape. Lin Mu could sense her presence dimly, as though tucked safely away in another pocket of reality, her qi steadily compounding. Her foundation was solid, and Lin Mu felt certain she would soon break into the peak of the Dao Treading realm.

What amused him was the speed with which Ashy had grown. What had once been a small, mischievous bird was now a true cultivator, wings spread wide on the path to power. Lin Mu wondered how strong her Dao Embryo would be when the time came.

The thought made him smile faintly.

His smile faded as his mind drifted toward Little Shrubby. The beast had yet to cross the third tribulation stage of the Immortal realm. Lin Mu knew that every beast had its own pace, yet part of him worried.

Little Shrubby was strong, but Lin Mu could not help but compare his progress to the others.

"When will he take that next step?" Lin Mu wondered silently. The question lingered in his heart, heavy with both concern and anticipation.

While Little Shrubby had thousands of years of lifespan left, Lin Mu did not think the beast would wait years for his breakthrough.

Unbeknownst to him, the answer was closer than he imagined.

Back in the valley, Little Shrubby was deep in his own trial. His flames had grown denser, their colors more vibrant, shifting between crimson and gold as they layered over his fur. His breathing came in steady bursts, each exhalation carrying waves of heat that distorted the very air.

The energy of the valley responded to him, drawn into his body with every inhale, refining his qi further and further. The bottleneck that had held him back for so long was beginning to crack. Soon, he would face the thunder once more.

And as Lin Mu meditated in serene calm, oblivious to the storm brewing for his companion, the world of his circle spun with quiet industry. Every friend, every ally, every beast was walking their own path. Each one, in their own way, was preparing for what lay ahead.

The Hidden Cave Sect mission loomed on the horizon like a gathering shadow. Yet within that shadow, seeds of growth were already sprouting. Lin Mu’s eyes remained closed, his mind still immersed in Sutras and strategy, but deep within his chest he felt it—the faint stirring of destiny, pulling all of them closer to another trial.

The calm before the storm never lasted long.

HUALA

The valley trembled as if awakened from a deep slumber.

Rocks shifted, Lava waves rose, ground shook, and streams of qi surged through the land like rivers breaking their banks.

At the center of it all, Little Shrubby’s body radiated waves of violent energy, his fur bristling with alternating arcs of firelight and crackling sparks. His once steady breathing turned deep and rumbling, until with one final surge his eyes snapped open, glowing like twin embers.

ROARRRR

A roar erupted from his throat—so deep and primal that it reverberated through the very bones of the valley. It was not merely a cry of dominance, but a proclamation of change. The air thickened, bending under the pressure of his aura, before bursting outward in a tidal wave of immortal qi.

The twin snakes, Xiao Yin and Xiao Yang, jolted awake from their coiling meditations. Their black and white eyes gleamed as they lifted their heads in unison, hissing softly in recognition.

"Big brother..." Xiao Yang’s voice trembled with awe.

"He’s... transforming," Xiao Yin whispered, her forked tongue flickering at the tense air.

Above Little Shrubby’s towering ten-meter body, a brilliant orb of seven-colored light manifested, whirling with condensed qi. It pulsed like a beating heart before splitting apart, unraveling into seven distinct illusory forms that hovered in a circle around him.

The phantom beasts took shape one after another—the rugged Fume Wood Panther wreathed in smoke wood energy, the imposing Brood Mane Lion whose mane brandished the images of lions, the razor-clawed Scorch Claw Tiger exuding violent heat, the swift Flash Fire Liger coursing with dual flame and speed, the shadowy Midnight Lynx hidden half in dark mist, the Hundred Mirror Leopard with its Crystalline mirror-like spots radiating reflective brilliance, and finally, the crackling Thunderbolt Cheetah whose very presence made the heavens groan.

Their roars and cries overlapped in a symphony of ancient bloodlines, echoing across the land.