Chapter 179: Sacrifice

“Alright, we can go in now.” Priest Hu Tian said calmly and stepped forward first.

Xu Feng glanced at Hu Tian. The other was so calm that it made Xu Feng realize this Celestial Garden was probably not easy to enter. This light barrier didn’t really do much for defense if one knew the timing, just like now. So there must be a stronger defense stopping Hu Tian from entering. Otherwise, nothing would remain inside this Celestial Garden palace—Hu Tian would have taken everything long ago.

The Extraterrestrial Beastkin Tribe seldom stayed in one place for long. After enlightening all the beasts nearby, they would leave and move on to the next place to continue enlightening them. The only thing that could make Hu Tian stay here for so long was the rare treasures in the Celestial Garden. But why was he willing to share them with Xu Feng? For a moment, Xu Feng felt confused.

Hu Tian stepped onto the stairs and walked up step by step. Xu Feng followed closely by his side, while the Beastkin trailed behind respectfully.

The group stopped in front of a large gate. The palace had four large gates in total, surrounded by lattice walls and stone pillars. It seemed there was a mysterious energy linking the four gates, occasionally flashing with arcs of silver electricity.

“The first defense is this gate,” Hu Tian said. “The palace has one gate in each of the four directions: east, south, west, and north. To open them, they need to be nourished with fresh blood…”

Xu Feng’s heart tightened, and he turned to look at Hu Tian.

“Only human blood can open this gate!” Hu Tian revealed a fierce smile.

“Attack!”

Behind them, the Golden-Winged Great Peng roared, and all the Beastkin attacked at once, targeting Xu Feng.

Absolute Defense!

A faint golden barrier enveloped Xu Feng. Moving swiftly, he quickly fled into the distance.

Numerous attacks struck Xu Feng’s body, causing ripples in the golden barrier, but none could break through.

“He actually has such a defense method. I underestimated him. Catch him! We only have two quarters of an hour. To open this gate, we need the fresh blood of a strong human.” Hu Tian’s face turned gloomy as he watched Xu Feng’s retreating back and gritted his teeth.

“Don’t worry, Priest. He won’t escape.” The Golden-Winged Roc sneered, flapped its wings, and flew toward Xu Feng.

“Dammit, I thought we were partners, but it turns out I’m just a sacrifice!” Xu Feng felt furious inside. He wished he could turn back and slaughter Hu Tian and the others right then and there. The feeling of being tricked lingered in his heart, making him deeply frustrated. If he hadn’t felt something was wrong at the last moment, he might have fallen here.

“Kid, you can’t run…” The Golden-Winged Great Peng had already flown ahead.

Seeing the Golden-Winged Great Peng’s fierce smile, Xu Feng gripped his Flying Sword tightly and, instead of retreating, charged toward him.

“This kid is crazy. Shouldn’t he be running away while I chase after him? How dare he turn around and fight? I just need to hold him off for a moment until the others catch up and tear him to pieces…” The Golden-Winged Great Peng was surprised, but it didn’t stop him from swinging his long blade at Xu Feng.

His original Trident was too badly damaged, so the Golden-Winged Great Peng had switched to a long blade. This long blade was only Silver Quality, far inferior to his Gold Quality Trident. He found it hard to use but had no choice.

Just as the Golden-Winged Great Peng lunged at Xu Feng, he suddenly felt a chill. The fine feathers on his neck stood on end as he sensed danger approaching.

Whoosh~

A silver light cut through the air as a Short Spear, radiating a terrifying aura, shot toward the Golden-Winged Great Peng.

“Despicable!” The Golden-Winged Great Peng roared and tried to dodge, but the Short Spear was too fast, and he was too close to Xu Feng to evade completely.

Thud~

The Short Spear easily pierced through the Golden-Winged Great Peng’s shoulder, leaving a bowl-sized wound. Electric sparks flickered, and countless small currents spread through the Great Peng’s body. Stiffened mid-air, the Great Peng plummeted to the ground.

“Your luck is really bad!” Xu Feng mocked as he swung his Flying Sword and charged at the Golden-Winged Great Peng.

The Paralysis Effect of the Short Spear had a low activation rate, yet it triggered on the first hit. Clearly, the Great Peng’s luck was terrible.

“Die!” The Flying Sword left a trail of light as it swept toward the Great Peng’s neck.

Slash~

Paralyzed, the Great Peng could only watch as the Flying Sword came at him, unable to dodge. His eyes widened in fury, his face contorted with rage.

“Xu Feng, you will die today!”

Three seconds later, the Golden-Winged Great Peng clutched his neck and roared. His injured shoulder caused a sharp pain with every flap of his wings, making it impossible to fly.

The Great Peng retreated quickly. Not far behind him, the Beastkin horde was swarming forward. As long as he retreated into their midst, he would be safe.

But Xu Feng had no intention of letting the Golden-Winged Great Peng escape. Last time, he had to let him go because he needed to collect the Sacred Quality Treasure Chest. But now, Xu Feng saw no reason to spare him.

Even without the ability to fly, the Golden-Winged Great Peng was still fast on land. Seeing the Beastkin rushing over, excitement lit up his eyes.

“Dammit, he made me lose face in front of so many people. Xu Feng, you human must die today!” The Golden-Winged Great Peng snarled fiercely. Even a dozen Four Stars Beastkin would make him retreat, let alone a single human.

“Kuwa, don’t panic, we’re coming!” A bear-headed, human-bodied Beastkin roared, carrying a huge Spiked Club as he rushed over.

Seeing the bear-headed Beastkin, the Golden-Winged Great Peng felt a surge of joy.

“Bear-man, you fool, smash this human to death. I want to see him turned into mincemeat,” the Great Peng roared.

“Kuwa, watch your back…”

The Beastkin horde was still over three hundred meters away. Watching Xu Feng already closing in behind the Golden-Winged Great Peng, they screamed in panic.

“What…” The Golden-Winged Great Peng glanced back and saw three Xu Fengs—one real and two illusions.

All three figures lunged at him simultaneously, their Flying Swords gleaming coldly. The chilling aura of the blades made the Great Peng’s skin sting even from the sharp Sword Qi.

Thud, thud, thud~

Three sword strikes pierced the Golden-Winged Great Peng’s back at the same time.

“Impossible… Why do the illusions also deal so much damage…” The Golden-Winged Great Peng felt an intense pain in his back. The strength in his body seemed to drain away rapidly from those three strikes. His legs gave way, and he collapsed to the ground.

Boom~

The final explosive impact tore the Golden-Winged Great Peng’s body apart. By the time the Beastkin arrived, all that remained was his mangled corpse.