“Clang!” Sparks flew as Little Rascal clashed with the creature’s black claws, the impact resonating like thunder, cracking the earth beneath their feet. The confrontation was ferocious, akin to two volcanoes colliding. The creature’s eyes were icy, devoid of emotion, locking onto Little Rascal with a murderous intent. It moved with lightning speed, its strength terrifying beyond measure.
“Boom!” A deafening explosion echoed through the air as the creature swung its tail—a black, scaled appendage glistening like molten iron, cold and metallic, sweeping toward Shi Hao’s head. The sheer force and speed of the strike could have shattered a mountain.
Little Rascal arched backward, nearly lying flat on the ground as the tail grazed his forehead, severing a lock of hair that instantly turned to dust. He sprang up, lunging at the creature’s back, his palms glowing as he slashed toward its spine with a sharp, whistling sound, as if wielding a divine weapon.
The creature remained eerily calm, twisting its head to glare at him with its single vertical eye. Though it couldn’t unleash its Treasure Spell, the gaze alone was enough to destabilize the mind, threatening to rend the soul. Simultaneously, its black claws lashed out again, dark energy swirling as it clashed with Little Rascal.
The sound of metal clashing filled the air as their glowing hands and claws collided, a testament to their supreme physical prowess—capable of tearing apart divine artifacts with bare hands. The battle was brutal and relentless.
At close quarters, despite being bathed in golden radiance, Little Rascal could finally make out the creature’s true form—a bizarre being with a human face but no ordinary eyes, only a single vertical eye on its forehead. Its body resembled a sleek, powerful leopard, covered in black scales, with a mighty draconic tail capable of leveling mountains.
“Zhu Jian!” Little Rascal finally recognized it—a juvenile of a legendary primordial beast, one of the most fearsome kinds.
Zhu Jian, with its human face, leopard body, ox ears, single eye, and a tail of immense strength, was renowned for its earth-shattering power. This was a pure-blooded Zhu Jian, capable of matching Shi Hao blow for blow, cracking the earth beneath them.
The battle intensified. Zhu Jian, prideful as a descendant of the mighty, was shocked it couldn’t instantly crush this human boy. Meanwhile, Little Rascal, puffing his cheeks in frustration, found the creature frustratingly tough.
“Why won’t you just fall already?!” he grumbled.
Enraged, Zhu Jian roared, its voice like a divine bell, shaking the battlefield. Little Rascal coughed up blood, his body trembling violently.
“You made me mad!” the boy bellowed, retaliating with a flurry of strikes, slamming his palms into Zhu Jian’s body. The two grappled, exchanging blows that sounded like mountains colliding.
“Boom!” Little Rascal’s strike sent Zhu Jian reeling, its arm spasming as blood spurted from its mouth. Seizing the moment, the boy tore off a chunk of flesh from its arm.
“I’m gonna eat you!” Little Rascal declared, stuffing the bloody prize into his pouch before launching another assault, fiercer than ever.
The onlookers were stunned. Was this even human? He fought more savagely than a primordial beast!
Just then, a slender figure appeared—the purple-haired girl. With a single strike, her jade-like palm distorted space itself as she aimed for Little Rascal’s back.
“Boom!” He spun and met her attack head-on, the collision unleashing a storm of energy.
“It’s you! You and Zhu Jian are coming back to guard my village!” Little Rascal grinned, eyes wide.
The girl, radiant with divine light, attacked with the grace of a phoenix, her movements deadly despite their beauty.
Suddenly, another figure joined the fray—a divine bird, the Azure-Scaled Eagle, swooping in. But to Little Rascal’s relief, it targeted Zhu Jian instead.
“Thanks, birdie!” he cheered.
“We’re not friends!” the eagle retorted.
“Then I’ll just have to drag you back to Stone Village later!” Little Rascal muttered under his breath.
The battle raged on, but then—
“Boom!” Golden ripples erupted from the sacred spring, drawing everyone’s attention.
“Don’t steal it!” Little Rascal yelled, sprinting toward the pool.
Yet the purple-haired girl blocked him, her attacks relentless.
Annoyed, Little Rascal hurled the stubborn stone at her forehead—again.
“Ow!” she shrieked, now sporting two symmetrical lumps.
“I’ll knock your teeth out next time!” he threatened. “Then make you stand guard at the village entrance!”
Furious, the girl redoubled her efforts, but the boy was already dashing toward the spring.
Inside the pool, the creatures groaned in pain and delight as the golden waves nourished them.
“Where’s the divine spring? Only mud?!” Little Rascal grumbled, scooping handfuls of glittering, wet sand.
“These are treasures too!” the stone exclaimed, gulping down mouthfuls.
Not to be outdone, Little Rascal shoved the sand into his mouth, chewing furiously.
The other creatures gaped. Even the purple-haired girl froze.
“Did he just… eat dirt?!”
Digging deeper, Little Rascal suddenly spat out sand—and gasped. A golden dragon, barely a foot long, lay beneath.
“The Spring of Youth! It’s transforming!”
The dragon awoke, snarling—only for Little Rascal to chomp down on its tail first.
“ROAR!” The dragon shrieked, breaking free and fleeing, its severed tail wriggling in the boy’s mouth.
“Mine!” Little Rascal yelled, spitting out the tail and scrambling after it. “All mine!”
The chase was on.
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