Bear Lord suddenly shuddered, his entire body jolting as he stiffly turned his head.
"Not good, Di Tian heard me."
Di Tian stood with his hands clasped behind his back, a strand of golden hair falling over his forehead. His golden eyes, devoid of emotion, stared coldly at Bear Lord.
That deep, penetrating gaze made Bear Lord feel a wave of unease in his heart.
Bear Lord forced a smile. "Di… Di Tian, you're here too."
"What do you think?"
Di Tian said expressionlessly, "Well, well, Bear Lord, I didn't realize you've been plotting to usurp my position all this time."
"No, no, not at all! Absolutely not!"
Bear lord shook his head so fast it looked like a rattle drum. Was he joking? Admitting to that now would get him beaten.
This was all learned through blood and pain.
He had once dared to act tough, but after being thoroughly beaten by Di Tian, he'd learned his lesson.
Di Tian didn't hold back when he fought.
Since he couldn't defeat Di Tian right now, Bear Lord had no choice but to endure.
"No?"
"That's not right. Didn't you say you'd surpass me someday?"
"Why don't you try it now? If you win, the title of Beast God will be yours."
Di Tian spoke lightly.
Bear Lord wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, feeling even more anxious.
Fighting Di Tian? That would just be asking for a beating.
"Useless fool. Not much capability, but plenty of ambition," Di Tian said coldly, casting a disdainful glance at Bear Lord.
In the Star Dou Forest, Bear Lord was probably the most restless of all the beasts.
If it weren't for his decent bloodline and reasonably strong power, Di Tian would've dealt with him long ago.
And yet, Bear Lord dared to dream of taking his position. He didn't even know how many eyes the King of Hell had.
On top of that, his brain wasn't exactly sharp—he couldn't even distinguish between good and bad situations.
Did the young master value such a fool?
Most likely, he was just stringing Bear Lord along for amusement. And the fool believed it.
With intelligence like that, it was clear he had no future.
Still, since the young master enjoyed teasing him, keeping Bear Lord around for some entertainment wasn't a bad idea.
With that thought, Di Tian said coldly, "What are you standing around for? Are you going to keep the young master waiting?"
"Get moving already!"
As Di Tian's words fell, Bear Lord wiped the sweat off his brow, secretly letting out a sigh of relief.
Thankfully, it seemed he'd gotten through this.
If the young master weren't waiting, Di Tian probably wouldn't have let him off so easily, right?
In his heart, Bear Lord felt a twinge of gratitude, but he also resolved that he would take Di Tian down one day.
The young master had said he was the first Beast King—it was his duty not to disappoint the young master.
As for now… uh… what was it called?
Oh, right, "biding his time."
Yes, Bear Lord was currently biding his time.
Just you wait, Di Tian.
Bear Lord's rebellious determination grew stronger, and overthrowing Di Tian became his ultimate pursuit.
A group of fierce beasts arrived at the Lake of Life. Su Yu, who had been flirting with Di Mingli, noticed the commotion and turned his head.
"Ah, you're all here. Perfect timing."
Su Yu clapped his hands, stood up, and walked forward. Di Mingli followed closely behind him.
Su Yu's gaze swept over the group—Scarlet King, Zi Ji, Myriad Demon King, Bear Lord—they were all here.
Bi Ji stood to the side, wearing a long, water-green dress. Her demeanor was gentle and elegant, her expression calm and serene.
"Greetings, young master."
The fierce beasts all bowed in unison.
Su Yu accepted their salute and said calmly, "There's no other reason I asked Uncle Di Tian to gather you all here. I simply want to use you as sparring partners to test how far my current power has progressed."
"You don't need to worry about hurting me. I have a protective treasure granted by Nana, so there's no danger to my life."
"So, who wants to go first?"
Su Yu's gaze sharpened as it swept across the group of fierce beasts.
The reason he'd asked Di Tian to gather these fierce beasts wasn't just to test his strength.
Another purpose was to intimidate them.
Previously, these beasts only respected him because he was the reincarnation of the Dragon God, because of Gu Yuena and Di Tian.
In other words, he wasn't much different from Di Mingli.
He had status and identity, but not the genuine loyalty of the beasts.
In the world of soul beasts, no matter how noble your identity was, it couldn't compare to raw power.
Su Yu planned to use this opportunity to display his strength and earn their sincere submission.
He wanted them to willingly follow him.
Within the soul beast ranks, he needed to establish his authority.
This was why Gu Yuena and Di Tian allowed Su Yu to make such an ostentatious display.
It was Su Yu's first step toward subjugating the soul beasts.
Under Su Yu's gaze, the fierce beasts glanced at each other. None of them wanted to be the first to step forward.
"Zi Ji, why don't you go first?"
Su Yu directly called out, naming Zi Ji.
Zi Ji had a closer relationship with him, so Su Yu chose her.
"Ah, me?"
Zi Ji pointed at herself, startled.
"Alright, come on up," Su Yu said.
Zi Ji froze for a moment, looking at Su Yu with a trace of grievance in her eyes.
He kept calling her "Sister Zi Ji," but when it came down to it, she was the first one he chose to fight.
Young Master, do you even have a heart?
Zi Ji slowly walked up to stand opposite Su Yu, her beautiful face drooping, wearing an expression of pitiful heartbreak.
"Young Master, please go easy on me," Zi Ji said with a bitter expression, looking every bit like a seductive enchantress capable of deceiving anyone.
Su Yu smiled faintly. "Don't worry, Sister Zi Ji."
"Everyone, step back," Di Tian ordered with a wave of his hand, prompting the fierce beasts to retreat.
Di Mingli cautiously backed away while watching Zi Ji. After all, her impression of Zi Ji had always been that of a bad woman.
Zi Ji had tried to seduce Su Yu more than once or twice, and Di Mingli had kept a mental note of it.
"Sister Zi Ji, please," Su Yu gestured.
"Are we doing this?" Zi Ji blinked her enchanting eyes, her face radiating charm and allure.
Su Yu chuckled and struck without hesitation, a golden dragon tearing through the air as its mighty aura surged.
"What the—" Zi Ji hurriedly dodged, but Su Yu was already closing in.
With a single punch, the surrounding space rippled and twisted, a terrifying force erupting instantly.
Zi Ji raised her tender, white hands to block, but the overwhelming force sent her flying dozens of meters away.
Zi Ji felt as though she had been hit by a mountain. The terrifying power that collided with her was utterly overwhelming.
She couldn't believe that Su Yu's punches could pack such weight.
And to think, she was such a delicate beauty, yet Su Yu had no hesitation in striking her.
In truth, she had a vague idea of Su Yu's intentions and understood why he had chosen her first.
It was all to send a message to the likes of the Bear Lord and the others.
If Su Yu could strike her—someone he had such a close relationship with—then it would be reasonable for him to go all out against the other fierce beasts later.
But understanding was one thing. Facing Su Yu's sandbag-sized fists was another matter entirely—there was no mercy at all.
No way. After this fight, she had to make Su Yu compensate her. The sacrifice she was making was just too great.
"He's fighting her," Bear Lord muttered in shock, his mouth gaping open.
Su Yu's punch was no joke.
"Roar!"
With a dragon's roar, Zi Ji transformed into her true form.
A massive, dark purple dragon appeared, exuding an aura of destruction and aggression.
The Abyss Demon Dragon.
That was Zi Ji's true form.
While she couldn't rival Di Tian, Zi Ji was undeniably a true dragon.
And the Abyss Demon Dragon's offensive power was nothing to scoff at.
Revealing her true form meant that Zi Ji was ready to go all out.
Su Yu's expression remained unchanged as an icy blue light began to radiate from his body.
A proud, emperor-like figure materialized faintly behind him, and the surrounding temperature plummeted.
Red, red, gold, red, red, red, red—six red rings and one golden ring. This astonishing soul ring configuration shocked everyone present.
The fierce beasts watching were well-versed in such matters and could see just how extraordinary Su Yu's setup was.
Out of the seven soul rings, four were from fierce beasts.
Only two were ordinary 100,000-year soul rings.
The third soul ring, in particular, had surpassed the realm of fierce beasts—it was a million-year soul ring.
When his soul rings activated, Su Yu's aura skyrocketed, reaching an intimidating level.
Even the Bear Lord couldn't help but grow serious. Su Yu's current aura was no joke.
As the Abyss Demon Dragon charged at him, Su Yu raised a single finger, and his first soul ring lit up.
In an instant, a layer of ice appeared on the Abyss Demon Dragon's body, freezing her completely.
The Abyss Demon Dragon plummeted from the sky, and Su Yu clenched his fist as his sixth soul ring lit up.
An icy blue beam of light, like a falling meteor, shot down from the heavens and struck the frozen Abyss Demon Dragon.
"Boom!"
Ice shards flew everywhere, and dust filled the air.
When the dust settled, Zi Ji emerged, her body battered and bruised, limping as she walked out of the chaos.
Her face was pale, and she looked at Su Yu with dark purple eyes full of grievance.
Seeing the golden dragon spear faintly glowing in Su Yu's hand, Zi Ji quickly raised both hands and shouted, "Stop, stop, I can't go on anymore!"
"I surrender!"
Zi Ji's heart was filled with nothing but bitterness.
Did Su Yu think of her as an enemy?
He came at her with crowd control and a critical hit right off the bat—she had no chance to prepare.
And if that wasn't enough, he even brought out the golden dragon spear.
How was she supposed to fight against that?
If anyone else wanted to fight him, they could go ahead. She was done.
Sure, she hadn't used her full strength, but she figured it wouldn't matter—she probably wouldn't win against Su Yu anyway.
She had no intention of continuing to take a beating.
"Sister Zi Ji, are you admitting defeat already?"
Su Yu asked.
Zi Ji pursed her red lips, her eyes full of resentment, and looked aggrieved. "What else can I do besides admit defeat? Do you want me to let you beat me to death, Young Master?"
"Young Master, you're so ruthless. I've been so good to you," Zi Ji complained bitterly, taking the opportunity to vent her frustrations.
Su Yu smiled faintly, seemingly indifferent to Zi Ji's grievances.
"Well then, since Sister Zi Ji has admitted defeat, let's move on to the next one. Scarlet King, it's your turn," Su Yu said with a smile.
Zi Ji walked away with small, graceful steps, her expression pitiful, as if she had suffered a great injustice.
Scarlet King froze on the spot. Was it his turn already?
"Scarlet King, Young Master is calling you. What are you standing there for? Hurry up and get in there!" said Bear Lord, folding his arms and urging him on.
"Hmph, I heard him," Scarlet King retorted, glaring at Bear Lord before transforming into his true form and stepping into the arena.
Scarlet King's true form was a three-headed Scarlet Demon Mastiff, a fearsome beast of considerable strength.
All three heads were exposed, exuding a savage and intimidating aura.
"That stupid dog dares to glare at me?" Bear Lord grumbled angrily. "This Scarlet King is getting pretty bold lately. Looks like someone needs to put him in his place."
The battle was about to begin.
Scarlet King's combat power was slightly stronger than Zi Ji's, but not by much. Compared to Su Yu, who was fighting at full strength, he was still no match.
Moments later, Su Yu swept his golden spear in a wide arc, knocking Scarlet King.
"That's it? That's all he's got?"
"This Scarlet King is just trash," Bear Lord mocked loudly, his big mouth spewing taunts that made Scarlet King's three heads fume with rage.
Scarlet King glared at Bear Lord and said angrily, "If you think you're so great, why don't you step in? Stop running your mouth."
"Fine, I'll go in. Unlike you, I know how to fight," Bear Lord said casually, waving his hand dismissively.
"You were beaten to a pulp by the Young Master the whole time. You've gotten weaker."
Scarlet King snorted coldly. "I'll be watching to see how you perform then, hmph."
He cast a glance at Su Yu.
Only those who had fought Su Yu could understand how terrifyingly strong he was.
Even though Su Yu was only a Soul Sage, his overall prowess was formidable and put immense pressure on his opponents.
Scarlet King estimated that Su Yu's strength was probably not far off from Bear Lord's.
What a remarkable Young Master—his combat power had already grown to such frightening levels.
What's more, the Scarlet King had not forgotten that Su Yu had yet to unleash the power of the Dragon God.
If Su Yu were to use that power, Scarlet King suspected that he would stand no chance at all.
Unknowingly, the Young Master had grown to such a fearsome degree.
The only question now was whether the Young Master could defeat Bear Lord. If Su Yu managed to overcome Bear Lord, it would truly be an extraordinary feat.
Although Bear Lord was annoying, there was no denying that he had the second-strongest combat power in the Star Dou Forest, second only to Di Tian.
When Bear Lord fought at full strength, his attacks were second only to Di Tian's Dragon God Claw.
Even if Shui Lingguang were called in, she might not necessarily win against Bear Lord.
People like Xuan Zi, Yan Shaozhe, and the others were nowhere near Bear Lord's level.
Lest anyone forget, it was Bear Lord who tore off Xuan Zi's arm in their previous encounter.
Su Yu himself wasn't entirely confident about defeating Bear Lord. Although his strength had improved, he wasn't sure he could go toe-to-toe with Bear Lord in a direct clash.
Fortunately, with the Divine Realm currently sealed, Su Yu had other trump cards he could now use.
This gave him a significant boost in confidence for his upcoming fight against Bear Lord.
"Here I come!"
Called upon by Su Yu, Bear Lord strode onto the field with large, confident steps.
Initially, Bear Lord wasn't all that interested in fighting Su Yu. After all, he had always considered Su Yu to be a weakling.
But after Su Yu's consecutive victories over Zi Ji and Scarlet King, Bear Lord's fighting spirit had been stirred.
As a Dark Gold Terrorclaw Bear, Bear Lord loved a good fight.
Now, he saw Su Yu as a worthy opponent.
"Young Master, here I am. Go ahead and come at me. I can take it," Bear Lord said with a grin, slapping his chest boldly.