Chapter 008
Chapter 8: The Struggle for Control
Hong Jian had already arrived at the eastern side of the base, stepping through the filthy, murky water as he gazed at the screen ahead. On it, the image of the mutated eagle appeared, its cold golden eyes locked on Golden Hill Base, hovering above the cloud layers in the eastern sky, waiting for the right moment to strike.
“It’s gotten bigger,” Hong Jian muttered.
Far to the east of Golden Hill Base, Wang Jie moved toward the direction of the eagle’s earlier screech. Soon, he came upon a collapsed skyscraper, its ruins concealing a massive eagle’s nest. The nest was vast, built of interwoven branches, complex and tangled. Wang Jie rushed toward it, quickly scaling one of the branches to enter.
Suddenly, the sound of rushing air pierced his ears.
He struck the branch with his palm, using the recoil to push himself backward. At the same time, he pivoted on his right foot, grabbing another branch, just as a shadow streaked past, cutting the very branch he had held onto moments before.
Wang Jie turned around. Countless shadows soared through the air, rushing toward him. They were mutated hummingbirds.
Though small in size, these hummingbirds were incredibly fast and capable of tearing a person apart with ease.
Wang Jie leaped downward, abandoning his climb, his body plummeting rapidly. The hummingbirds followed in pursuit.
Though suspended in midair, Wang Jie dodged and weaved with remarkable agility. The scene caught the attention of Lian Fei, who watched from a distance in awe.
As the daughter of Lian Qin, one of the Five Extremes, Lian Fei had seen many powerful martial artists. Yet, she knew few who could evade a swarm of hummingbirds so effortlessly in midair—at least, she had never witnessed such a feat herself.
Her mother could easily eliminate the hummingbirds, but dodging them midair? That would be far more difficult.
Who was this person?
The eagle’s nest cast a shadow over the moon, plunging the surroundings into darkness. Wang Jie hadn’t noticed anyone else until a hummingbird suddenly darted toward Lian Fei. Only then did he spot a group of people hiding beneath the ruins of the skyscraper.
Wang Jie recognized one of them—the young man from the southern hunting team. They had come here.
Shadows flitted by, leaving trails of cold light.
Wang Jie landed on the ground without hesitation, darting off in another direction. Since he was alone and smaller than the others, the hummingbirds abandoned him in pursuit of the larger group.
“Brother, wait! Let’s work together to deal with these hummingbirds!” someone shouted, but Wang Jie didn’t pause for even a moment. In the blink of an eye, he had vanished.
“Damn it, this person has no intention of working together!” another voice cursed.
“The hummingbirds are troublesome. Let’s deal with them first.”
“But what about those young mutated eagles in the nest? He might steal them.”
Lian Fei’s cold face stared in the direction Wang Jie had vanished. “You all hold off the hummingbirds. I’ll go after him.”
“No, Young Miss, that person is very strong,” someone tried to stop her.
Lian Fei leapt forward. “Senior Sister will be here soon. Let her go into the nest to find me. I’ll hold him off.” She spoke as she chased after Wang Jie, her path cleared by others blocking the hummingbirds.
With the group distracting the hummingbirds, Wang Jie didn’t have to work hard to evade them. Looking up, he saw the hummingbirds turn toward the others, their numbers still overwhelming. Even if he killed them all, it would take time—and he didn’t have the luxury of wasting it.
The mutated eagle had evolved into a formidable opponent. If Hong Jian couldn’t hold it off, Golden Hill Base would be in grave danger. Wang Jie might be able to interfere with the eagle’s movements, but there was no time to waste.
He climbed higher, soon reaching the top of the eagle’s nest. Looking down, his eyes gleamed. Now it made sense—no wonder the mutated eagle had been clearing its territory.
There were three young mutated eagles in the nest.
Though they were small, each one was larger than a human. The hummingbird swarm had disturbed them, and they now opened their mouths, crying out for food.
Wang Jie stared at them, unsure of what to do.
Should he kill them outright?
That would send the mutated eagle into a frenzy.
Not killing them… but how could he disrupt the mutated eagle without killing its offspring? These mutated beasts were difficult to tame, especially eagles. In peaceful times, people could train them, but in the apocalypse? Who could tame such a bird? Not even the Five Extremes could.
He glanced toward the west, where the distant Golden Hill Base was engulfed in flames. The mutated eagle had yet to make its move.
His gaze sharpened. He would wait.
He needed to wait until the eagle and Hong Jian clashed.
Otherwise, attacking the young mutated eagles now would only summon the parent eagle back, and he would end up fighting it head-on.
A disturbance came from nearby, and Wang Jie turned to see a woman climbing up the nest. Under the moonlight, her cold and beautiful face appeared pale, her eyes fixed on him.
Wang Jie instinctively covered his face with a black cloth.
“Who are you?” Lian Fei asked coldly. “Hiding your identity… I don’t recall any such expert from Golden Hill Base.”
Wang Jie suppressed his voice, responding, “No one to protect you? Aren’t you afraid I’ll kill you?”
Lian Fei sneered. “You’re fast, able to evade the hummingbirds in midair, but that doesn’t mean you’re strong. The Low Extreme hunting team wouldn’t be scared of you.”
Wang Jie raised an eyebrow. The Low Extreme hunting team? No wonder she was so arrogant.
Among all the hunting teams in Hua Xia, the Low Extreme hunting team was absolutely top-tier. It recruited young talents who had recently risen to prominence, many of whom were descendants of the Three Gods or Five Extremes. Only those with substantial strength were accepted.
The team’s leader was Bai Xiao, the daughter of Bai Yuan, one of the Three Gods. With Bai Yuan backing her, and Bai Xiao’s own abilities and beauty, she had managed to gather the finest young martial artists in Hua Xia. The Low Extreme hunting team’s motto was: The future of Hua Xia.
It was clear—right now, the Three Gods and Five Extremes held power, but in the future, the Low Extreme hunting team would dominate.
Being a part of this team meant that, regardless of background, one had to be strong enough.
Wang Jie remained silent, appearing to confront Lian Fei, but in truth, his attention was focused elsewhere.
As soon as the mutated eagle and Hong Jian clashed, he would make his move.
Lian Fei frowned, still staring at him. “Who exactly are you? You look young. I can introduce you to the Low Extreme hunting team.”
Wang Jie didn’t respond.
Lian Fei continued speaking, alternating between persuasion and intimidation, but Wang Jie remained unmoved.
Suddenly, she stopped talking.
Wang Jie’s eyes narrowed. She was stalling for time. The southern hunting team was likely pursuing Hu Guan, and they couldn’t be without powerful reinforcements—at least someone at the Six-Seal level. Realizing this, Wang Jie dashed toward Lian Fei. Her eyes widened in surprise as she raised her arm. A hidden arrow shot out from her sleeve, but Wang Jie dodged it effortlessly. She quickly drew a white straight-edged sword, her imprint energy surging as the sword gleamed with white light, slashing toward him.
Wang Jie took a step to the right, his figure shifting to the left, then took another step to the left, positioning himself behind Lian Fei before she could react. Staring at the empty space in front of her, Lian Fei was left stunned.
What kind of movement technique is that?
A loud crash sounded.
Lian Fei collapsed to the ground, knocked unconscious by Wang Jie. He turned back toward Golden Hill Base.
He saw a white blade of light slashing upward from below, like a meteor falling from the sky—Hong Jian had made his move.
A screech rang out as the mutated eagle descended, its sharp claws tearing through the blade light, heading straight for Golden Hill Base.
Wang Jie exhaled slowly. It’s time.
He moved in front of the three young mutated eagles. The ground beneath him still soaked in the blood of a half-eaten man, these young eagles were feeding on human flesh.
Standing in the blood-soaked ground, Wang Jie grasped one of their feathers and yanked it hard.
A shrill screech echoed across the land, traveling far.
Below, the hummingbird swarm immediately went wild, abandoning their previous targets to rush toward the nest. The others, worried about Lian Fei, tried their best to hold them off.
Wang Jie yanked more feathers from the young mutated eagles, each screech growing more desperate.
Meanwhile, at Golden Hill Base, Hong Jian soared into the air, his blade flashing in eight wind-breaking slashes. A violent gust of wind pushed him higher with each strike. The clash of his blade against the mutated eagle’s claws sent a shockwave, creating a white burst of energy that rippled across the battlefield.
With every blow, Hong Jian pushed higher, each cut bringing him closer to the mutated eagle. The wind helped propel him, his strikes relentless, like wildfire spreading uncontrollably.
The mutated eagle, unable to avoid the onslaught, let out a piercing cry. Its golden eyes locked onto the eastern horizon. When the eighth strike landed, it severed the eagle’s head, sending it plummeting to the ground, its blood spilling into the air.
Hong Jian, drained of energy, fell from the sky.
Below, the rat tide surged forward. Iron hooks flew out, one of them catching Hong Jian and pulling him toward Golden Hill Base.
With the mutated eagle dead, the beast tide stalled for a moment, but many of the mutated beasts scattered in fear.
To the east, in the eagle’s nest, Wang Jie was unaware that the mutated eagle had been slain. He had done everything he could to cause a distraction. Now, it was time to leave.
The hummingbirds, no longer chasing him, began to retreat.
As Wang Jie moved, he felt the warmth of the egg in his arms. If Hong Jian hadn’t been able to stop the mutated eagle, he would have no choice but to use the egg against it.
I hope Golden Hill Base is okay.
To the west, at Golden Hill Base, Hong Jian was pulled into the city, his body too exhausted to move. At least the mutated eagle had been killed.
“The beast tide hasn’t retreated,” someone reported. “We thought the mutated eagle’s death would stop them, but something still seems to be driving them forward.”
Hong Jian asked to be taken to the city wall, where he gazed down at the ongoing battle. Thousands of cultivators were fighting for their lives, still battling the mutated beasts. There was something else at play, something still controlling the tide.
Hong Jian tried to rise, but he had no strength left. “Alert all cultivators in the city. If the walls fall, no one will survive. Everyone fight with everything they have.”
“Yes.”
At that moment, a series of fire-red streaks cut through the sky, landing among the beast tide with a deafening explosion. Each burst of flames devoured dozens of mutated beasts within a radius of several dozen meters.
Hong Jian’s face changed as he looked toward the horizon. The power was immense.
Other cultivators turned their gaze as well.