Chapter 1724: The Holy Beast's Call for Help

This sacred beast was over ten meters long and four to five meters tall. Covered in golden-yellow fur, it bore some resemblance to the Red-Browed White Tiger. Even before it moved, it exuded a strong aura of bloodlust.

Many of the sacred beasts encountered before were high-level but lacked combat experience. This one, however, was clearly different. Its entire body radiated a murderous aura, and its eyes held vigilance, indicating at a glance that a significant number of sacred beasts had fallen beneath its claws.

Becoming the king of a territory relied on combat, not idle talk.

"You're truly audacious, daring to cause trouble here!" the Cloud Tiger's voice boomed as it surveyed its surroundings. To Zhang Xuan's surprise, it was speaking human language.

The Temple of Confucius ruins had not seen humans for tens of thousands of years. As such, the Golden-Masked Sky Wolf and Red-Browed White Tiger encountered earlier had only communicated using their innate beast language, or at most telepathically after being tamed. The fact that this massive creature could speak human words struck Zhang Xuan as rather peculiar.

"Don't waste time talking to it! Form the array!" Wu Changping's expression darkened as he roared. Its ability to speak human language indicated it knew a great deal about humans; the previous tactics had proven ineffective, likely because it was already prepared.

Whoosh! Several individuals simultaneously raised their weapons, surrounding the Cloud Tiger. A subtle connection seemed to link the auras of each person, as if by a fine thread. It was clear at a glance that they had not only formed an array but also utilized some powerful magical artifact. No wonder they hadn't allowed Zhang Xuan to follow; they were already well-prepared and naturally unwilling for others to snatch the fruits of their victory.

"Courting death!" Unfazed by their preparations, the Golden-Spirit Cloud Tiger let out a cold snort, then a fierce roar, its massive body leaping through the air to strike at one of the middle-aged men. It seemed to know they had formed a grand array and intended to break through it one by one.

Before the claw even reached him, a light flared on the middle-aged man, as potent power flowed from the surrounding threads, surging into his body. Feeling his power surge, his eyes shone brightly. The middle-aged man raised the broadsword in his hand and brought it straight down. The space seemed to tear as saber energy converged, forming a massive saber phantom in the sky.

The hoof-claw collided with the saber phantom, forcing the Golden-Spirit Cloud Tiger to retreat a step. "To be able to concentrate everyone's power onto a single person, impressive..." Zhang Xuan secretly nodded.

The middle-aged man alone naturally couldn't withstand the Cloud Tiger's attack, but by using the threads to channel everyone's power, it was a different story. In a short time, their combat strength surpassed that of a Grand Completion Immortal Realm expert; even with the Cloud Tiger's power, it couldn't break through their defense. "It seems to be a Grand Saint artifact!"

To be able to withstand the power of so many people and deploy it so smoothly, without any awkwardness, the treasure they were using had to be at least Grand Saint level. While not comparable to the Dragon Bone Divine Spear, it was no worse than Wumu's golden saber.

"No wonder you dared to come for me. You seem to have some tricks up your sleeve..." Unable to break through the defense, the Golden-Spirit Cloud Tiger snorted, yet remained unpanicked, and suddenly lashed out with its thick tail. The tail's attack power was even more ferocious than its hoof-claw, like a weapon, instantly breaking through the limits of time to reappear before the middle-aged man.

Seeing the immense power, the middle-aged man held his broadsword horizontally. The saber and tail clashed, causing him to turn pale and stumble back several steps.

The Cloud Tiger gave no time to breathe, continuing its assault with another claw swipe. To break a powerful combined array without knowing its structure and flaws, the most effective method is to target one opponent and continuously attack them. This Cloud Tiger clearly understood that.

"This move won't work..." Zhang Xuan shook his head, observing the Cloud Tiger's swift and powerful movements, and the middle-aged man clearly struggling to defend. If a Grand Saint-level artifact could be broken so easily, it wouldn't drive countless people to madness.

Indeed, before he finished speaking, Wu Changping, on the opposite side, flicked his wrist and made a gesture. Swish! In the blink of an eye, the fine threads in the air immediately retracted, and immense power radiated from everyone's bodies, making the threads even sturdier and unleashing formidable force.

"Fire!" At this command, the weapons in everyone's hands simultaneously flew up, darting along the fine threads towards the Cloud Tiger.

"Roar!" Unexpectedly, the opponent's treasure had such a function. The Golden-Spirit Cloud Tiger was startled for a moment, then quickly turned, its massive head suddenly rising as it roared. Swish! Countless golden sword qi shot out from its mouth, striking towards the fine threads.

"It can actually shoot out sword qi? This sacred beast's talent is truly formidable..." Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up. He had thought this massive creature would simply be captured, but to his surprise, it could unleash sword qi and exert offensive power comparable to humans. Wu Changping and the others, even with a Grand Saint artifact, might not have such an easy victory.

"The Golden-Spirit Cloud Tiger excels at gold-element attacks. Did it think we hadn't researched this? This is exactly what we were waiting for..." Wu Changping's expression remained unchanged; instead, he smiled faintly and pointed a finger. Sizzle!

In the blink of an eye, the fine threads in the air changed color, dazzling like molten lava, as if flames ignited instantly. Whoosh! The True Qi flowing into them from the cultivators ignited instantly, like gasoline encountering an open flame. In an instant, a continuously burning net of fire appeared in the air, completely enveloping the Cloud Tiger.

"They're truly well-prepared. The Cloud Tiger probably can't withstand this..." Zhang Xuan was momentarily stunned, then sighed with emotion. As expected of the Beast Tamer Guild's Grand Elder, truly extraordinary. Their understanding of sacred beasts was even superior to his own.

This Golden-Spirit Cloud Tiger belonged to the Metal element. In a normal battle, it would be difficult to surround it, as Metal is incredibly sharp and can pierce anything. Although the threads were sturdy, they would surely be torn apart over time. This was the power of the Metal element.

But... the opponents had prepared fire. Fire overcomes Metal! Once the flames appeared, the Metal-element power within the Cloud Tiger was suppressed, hindering it everywhere. In this way, even if its defense was invincible, it probably couldn't withstand the siege of these individuals.

"Indeed, one cannot underestimate the strong cultivators of the world..." Understanding this, Zhang Xuan secretly remained vigilant. Although he possessed abilities that made him nearly omniscient and omnipotent, he still needed to be careful and not overly arrogant.

If it were him, surrounded by these people, he probably wouldn't have any better option than to summon the ancient saint corpse.

"Roar!" Seeing the flames descend, the Golden-Spirit Cloud Tiger seemed to realize that its opponents were fully prepared and that it would soon fall into a passive state. It suddenly raised its head and roared again. This time, the sound was not an attack; instead, it carried a nuanced tone, as if conveying some kind of message.

"It's a sacred beast's call for help. Could it... have companions?" Hearing this cry, Wu Changping's expression changed.