Chapter 661: The Reverse Fate Deserves Death

As the Heavenly Fated Black Bird, Xiao Hei was naturally well aware of Xu Ke's extraordinary destiny. His purple-gold destiny was one in a billion. Wherever he went, he could almost always turn misfortune into good fortune, find opportunities, and effortlessly acquire numerous treasures. How could a person like him possibly die so easily?

Admittedly, destiny is not omnipotent. Even those with great destiny are not immortal; they still face the risk of demise if they encounter a tribulation too great for their fate to bear. However, beyond his own destiny, Xu Ke also had the protection of Mr. Bai's red string. Even a single thread from the red string was powerful enough to gravely injure Chi Jiutou, a top-tier expert among the demon beast race. Mr. Bai's strength was truly unfathomably formidable. Xiao Hei had learned from his last conversation with Xu Ke that there was still some red string remaining on his wrist. Xiao Hei firmly believed that no matter what danger Xu Ke encountered in the Xuanhuang Realm, the remaining red string would help him escape.

Therefore, Xiao Hei found Xu Ke's inexplicable death utterly incomprehensible and unacceptable. It swore to uncover the cause of his demise.

Once the restriction imposed by Emperor Sanmo loosened, it disregarded the world's limitations on itself and forcibly departed the Beast Seed Realm. It sought to trace Xu Ke's life trajectory to uncover the secret of his death. The Xuanhuang Realm had countless subsidiary small worlds, and piecing together the truth from mere fragments of information from years past would naturally be incredibly difficult. However, as the Heavenly Fated Black Bird and Xu Ke were once master and servant, Xiao Hei was guided by a mysterious destiny. After a millennium, Xiao Hei coincidentally entered a rather vast small world. The sight of Chi Jiutou's floating corpse in the sky confirmed to Xiao Hei that it had finally found the right place.

Upon meeting its old friend, the Azure Luan bird, Xiao Hei learned what had truly transpired.

After the fleeing Beast Taming Sect settled in a small world called the Lingxu Realm, they experienced a period of relatively stable development. Although the spiritual energy concentration in the Lingxu Realm was somewhat weaker than in the Xuanhuang Realm, it was sufficient to sustain the sect's disciples. Since the restriction that "different cultivation methods cannot be practiced concurrently" still existed, the Beast Taming Sect devised two parallel future plans. The first was to gather the most talented disciples within the sect, and have the sect master and elders collectively impart their lifelong knowledge, hoping that this group could eventually deduce new cultivation methods for the sect members. The second was to research a way to achieve spiritual communication with demon beasts without needing to cultivate the "Beast Taming True Art."

One was "Deducing Techniques," and the other was "Taming Beasts." These two methods, pursued concurrently, could potentially allow the Beast Taming Sect to reclaim its former glory, given enough time.

Although Xu Ke's talent for enlightenment was not exceptional, he possessed a natural affinity for various demon beasts. Thus, at the sect master's behest, he became a member of the organization tasked with researching new beast-taming methods. He spent his days observing the Beast Taming Sect's supreme treasure, the Ten Thousand Beasts Wheel, becoming so absorbed in his studies that he lost all sense of time.

One day, however, Xu Ke suddenly received the shocking news that his senior brother, Lu Ya, was severely injured and unconscious. Deeply distressed, he ignored everyone's objections and quietly returned to the Xuanhuang Realm alone.

At that time, a horrifying miasma emerged from the bodies of mortals, pervading the entire cultivation world. After returning to Xuanhuang, Xu Ke inevitably contracted this illness. Fortunately, he was lucky; he inexplicably recovered after seven days. At this moment, the dying Lu Ya seemed to sense Xu Ke's presence and suddenly awoke. His complexion was rosy, bearing no signs of severe injury. Yet, Xu Ke knew this was merely a final surge of vitality, a sign that Lu Ya's time was almost up, and a deep sadness welled within him.

With a gentle expression, Lu Ya dismissed everyone else and called Xu Ke to his bedside alone. That night, no one knew what the two of them discussed.

From that day forward, Xu Ke remained at the old site of the Beast Taming Sect in the Xuanhuang Realm. Later, when the Great Migration Plan was initiated, he served as the representative of the Beast Taming Sect's last remaining members, tasked with relocating countless mortals to the Spirit-Barren Small World.

A hundred years passed swiftly. The final group of mortals was relocated to the small world where he had first encountered Chi Jiutou.

After assisting all mortals with their final relocation, Xu Ke, for reasons unknown, never returned to the Beast Taming Sect in the Lingxu Realm, and even actively severed all ties. From that point on, he lived in seclusion, adopting a common identity as a mortal. Of course, his life was not purely that of a mortal.

Unbeknownst to those around him, he used the six heads of Chi Jiutou that had been severed and fallen into this world as culture mediums. Using some mild-tempered demon beasts he had brought from the Beast Taming Sect as breeding stock, he began to cultivate and propagate various mutated demon beasts. Xiao Qing and Xiao Hong, two fortunate birds that remained constantly by Xu Ke's side, did not comprehend his ultimate goal. Nevertheless, they consistently assisted him by meticulously documenting all his research findings.

After several generations of cultivation, the diversity and numbers of mutated demon beasts steadily grew. While these mutated demon beasts were considerably weaker than their original counterparts, the ferocity in their bloodlines had also decreased proportionally. At the very least, they would not attack humans without provocation. Many years passed in this manner, and the number of newly emerging mutated beast species in this world reached an extremely flourishing state.

One day, for reasons unknown, Chi Jiutou reappeared in this world. Seemingly still traumatized, it hovered in the sky, observing for a long time. Only after perceiving no threats did it finally relax. Accompanying it was a large brown roc. Both appeared disheveled, bearing multiple charred marks on their bodies.

"If only I'd known, I would have gone with Lord Di Yi. Why endure such indignities in the Xuanhuang Realm!"

"Without Lord Di Yi's great leadership, we demon beasts truly decline year by year. We originally thought humanity would swiftly perish after the great tribulation. Instead, powerful individuals just keep emerging! It's simply unfair!"

"That guy from the Purple Cloud Sect wasn't bad, but he wasn't absurdly powerful. Speaking of true experts, it was right here, back then..."

"Tsk, tsk, these scars on my head still occasionally ache!"

The two fearsome demon beasts conversed freely in the sky, treating the numerous mortals of this world as mere sustenance to replenish their vital energy.

"Heh heh, Brother, don't fret. Once we've devoured this world and recovered our strength, we'll go settle scores with those fellows!" The roc's eyes fixed on the trembling mortals below, saliva nearly dripping from its mouth.

However, a strict hierarchy existed among demon beasts.

"Big Brother, please, you first!" the roc said ingratiatingly, suppressing its hunger.

Chi Jiutou snorted coldly, its body instantly expanding again. Its only three heads opened their massive, blood-red mouths, preparing to swallow the entire world. However, just then, it spotted that familiar hint of red once more.

"How could this be?..."

This time, Chi Jiutou's luck had run out. The thread pierced directly through its body, dragging it down from beyond the world. Witnessing its elder brother instantly slain beside it, the roc was immediately terrified to its core. Disregarding any sense of kinship, it transformed into a streak of black light and fled in panic.

Mortal eyes could not perceive the full scope of events. They only believed that the two exceptionally fierce demon beasts in the sky had been slain by an immortal just as they were about to wreak havoc. Grateful to be alive, they erupted in cheers, extolling the immortal's benevolence and power. Only Xu Ke, amidst the crowd, silently stroked the red string, which had become visibly thinner.