Bai Shi carefully studied the Divine Beast Dancing Lion before him. As the Divine Beast Dancing Lion rose to its feet, the body previously hidden beneath the massive robe was revealed to all. Beneath the enormous red garment, there was no actual beastly torso, but rather four thick, sturdy human legs, as solid as rock. On the creature's back, the telltale indentations where human bodies joined were clearly visible. Bai Shi could now be certain of the enemy's true nature. Without a doubt, this was a true Dancing Lion, animated by two tall and powerful Horned Men underneath. These two Horned Men controlling the lion were immense, far larger than any he had encountered before, rivaling the size of the corpses of the Horned ancestors. Moreover, the two Horned Men performing the dance were formidable, each exuding a terrifying aura. Perhaps they were the ones Ansbach had spoken of—the strongest class among the Horned warriors: the champions. After further observation, Bai Shi understood. These two were indeed corpses. They were the bodies of Horned Men that, having undergone the Descending God ritual once more, had risen again to dance with the lion and begin their battle. As for why this had happened, it was surely connected to the ancient voice that had echoed out moments before. The Divine Beast Dancing Lion was now fully awake, its eye sockets glowing with a hungry, eerie green light. The two champions beneath the lion's hide began to walk forward, their pace quickening into a full-blown charge as they rushed the three of them. Under the champions' control, the Divine Beast Dancing Lion's movements were indistinguishable from those of a real beast. The charging Divine Beast suddenly leaped, pouncing from above and slamming its head down with immense force. They retreated, causing the lion's attack to miss. The heavy lion head smashed into the ground, shattering the flagstones and carving out a deep crater. The champions lifted the lion's head, snapping its great maw from side to side as they swept forward. Under the champions' control, the Divine Beast was even more agile than a natural creature. It locked its sights on Bai Shi, lunging and snapping at him relentlessly. Bai Shi continuously dodged backward, each time letting the lion's lunge miss him by a hair's breadth. Freyja, positioned at the lion's flank, saw that it was ignoring her and knew she couldn't miss this opportunity. She raised her greatsword high, leaped into the air, and swung down at the lion's midsection—the point where the two champions were joined. Since it was Horned Men performing the dance, the strength of their linked arms could never compare to the torso of a real creature. If possible, she might be able to smash their arms apart and separate the front from the back. But the Divine Beast Dancing Lion easily perceived Freyja's intent and countered. The moment its head missed again, the champion in front violently whipped its body around. The champion behind him was sent flying, swinging around like a tail to strike. The heavily armored tail of the lion crashed squarely into the airborne Freyja. Latest content publıshed on 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵~𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖~𝙣𝙚𝙩 In an instant, Freyja was sent flying backward, tumbling several times across the ground until she slammed into the wall at the edge of the stage. Blood poured from Freyja's mouth. Her armor had cracked under the force of the blow, and her internal organs were severely damaged. Her consciousness began to fade. Freyja clenched her fist and slammed it into the ground. Gasping for breath, she finally managed to clear her head from the dizzying, world-spinning impact. Freyja glared resentfully at the Divine Beast, thinking to herself: 'Damn it! This suppression in the Land of Shadow...' 'If it weren't for this absurd debuff, I could have taken a hit like that three, even five times without issue!' 'But now... to be in such a state, on the brink of death...' Freyja set aside her frustration over the failed attack and quickly downed the phial of Haligtree Elixir that Leda had given her earlier. Feeling her injuries rapidly mending, Freyja rose to her feet once more and charged back toward the Divine Beast Dancing Lion. Bai Shi was currently observing the Divine Beast’s movements from up close. It was strange. Its attack patterns completely disguised the fact that two champions were controlling it. The way it moved, the way it periodically opened and closed its great maw or shook its head—it all seemed as if it were a truly living being. At other times, however, its bizarre maneuvers, achievable only through the coordination of two people, were utterly unnatural for any living creature. In this final stage of the Descending God ritual, it was impossible to tell whether the champions were controlling the lion or if the lion was puppeteering the champions' corpses. Furthermore, the Divine Beast Dancing Lion was incredibly powerful. Each of the two champions was on the level of a top-tier hero, and by uniting as the Dancing Lion, their strength became far greater than the sum of their parts. And now, a shimmer of the Land of Shadow's light enveloped the Divine Beast's body. The blessing of the Land of Shadow had elevated its power to a level that would be considered respectable even among the demigods. The Divine Beast Dancing Lion now possessed a truly terrifying level of strength. As the lion's head lunged at him once more, Bai Shi finally drew his blade and thrust it toward the creature's great maw. But the Divine Beast reacted with extreme speed. After twisting its head to dodge, it immediately whipped its tail around to strike at Bai Shi again. Bai Shi stood his ground, legs slightly staggered, and met the oncoming, heavily armored tail with the point of his elbow. On impact, the lion's armor splintered, and its entire body was knocked back. Feeling the force that had numbed his arm, Bai Shi couldn't help but marvel at the creature's incredible strength. Although still considerably weaker than him, it was now an opponent in his league, one worthy of a serious fight. Bai Shi grinned, finding himself warming up to the Divine Beast Dancing Lion. He had been steamrolling fodder for the entire journey; it was a rare treat to finally meet a worthy opponent. In the Land of Shadow, after the Scadutree went awry, all creatures had been blessed, their strength massively increased. It seemed he would have more opportunities to fight in earnest here. At that moment, Leda seized the opening created by Bai Shi's counterattack. She brandished her knight's sword, instantly conjuring several piercing needles of unalloyed gold and sending them hurtling toward the beast. Having rejoined the fray, Freyja also raised her greatsword, planting it in the ground to launch herself forward in a series of valiant Lion's Claw attacks aimed at the Divine Beast's head. However, the two champions controlling the lion moved in perfect unison, leaping nimbly to the side and effortlessly dodging the assault. Then, the champion in front jumped up, while the one in the back immediately straightened to a stand. The former planted his feet on the latter's shoulders, and the Divine Beast Dancing Lion reared up on its hind legs. The Divine Beast swayed its head in the air, its great maw snapping shut with a series of chilling clacks. Then, the Divine Beast crashed down again, forcing both Leda and Freyja to retreat. Seeing Leda and Freyja still circling the beast, looking for an opening, Bai Shi spoke. "Fall back. This is not an enemy you can handle right now." "If you stay, you'll only get caught in the crossfire. Watch from the sidelines." "Once we've gathered the Scadutree fragments and offset the suppression, you can fight alongside me again." Though reluctant, Leda and Freyja had already recognized the Divine Beast's extraordinary power. They had no choice but to obey Bai Shi's command and dutifully retreat to the side. With Bai Shi holding his ground, the Divine Beast dared not pursue the two women as they withdrew to the edge of the battlefield. Instead, the Divine Beast charged straight for Bai Shi once more. Bai Shi didn't dodge or evade, preparing to meet the creature's charge head-on with his Starscourge Greatsword. But to his surprise, just as it reached him, the beast reared up and backflipped into the air. The champion at the rear was flung forward, launching a flying kick at Bai Shi's chest. Bai Shi had never seen a creature attack . Caught off guard, his own attack was interrupted by the swift kick. Forced onto the defensive, he could only raise the Starscourge Greatsword to block. However, the Divine Beast Dancing Lion did not land on the ground as it expected. Bai Shi had already caught the ankle of the rear champion, clamping down with an iron grip. The front half of the Divine Beast fell back to the ground, while its back half remained folded over, held fast by Bai Shi. With a surge of strength, Bai Shi’s hand crushed the champion's ankle to dust. At the same time, he yanked backward, attempting to rip the two connected champions apart. Yet, while the Divine Beast's body appeared to be joined only by the champions' arms, it was surprisingly resilient. Even Bai Shi's pull was not enough to separate them. It seemed the highest form of the Descending God ritual was more than simply puppeteering two corpses; there was surely a special power reinforcing them. At that moment, the front half of the lion lunged forward again, finally clamping its jaws around Bai Shi's arm. An immense force assaulted him, and Bai Shi was forced to release his grip to break free. The Divine Beast's head bucked upward, flinging its rear half back onto the ground behind it. But with its legs destroyed, the lion's back half could only drag limply on the ground as the front half pulled it along. Yet, after a brief moment, the twisted, broken legs twitched and then were forcibly restored to their original form. Bai Shi released a burst of sunlight. Under its healing rays, the bite wound on his arm recovered in an instant, leaving no trace. Bai Shi flexed his hand and drew the Sword of Night and Flame, leveling it at the Divine Beast. As the old saying goes: large frames are weak to piercing, and furry things are weak to fire. Since this Divine Beast had the form of a lion and was covered in fur and cloth, it was time to put that theory to the test. An intense flame erupted from Bai Shi's Sword of Night and Flame. Under his control, the temperature of the flames on the blade climbed relentlessly, finally transforming into the searing fire of the sun. At this point, the inferno had grown so hot that the sword itself was beginning to struggle, unable to withstand any more power. If he increased the temperature any further, he risked damaging the weapon's very essence. Bai Shi swung the Sword of Night and Flame forward in a great arc, instantly sweeping a sea of fire that surged toward the Divine Beast Dancing Lion. But the Divine Beast, realizing how troublesome Bai Shi was, knew it had to unleash even greater power. It leaped into the air, stepping on nothing as it seemingly danced into flight, avoiding the roaring flames. The Divine Beast moved gracefully through the air, letting out a ferocious roar. The eerie green light in its eyes grew brighter, seeming to pierce through the firelight. With that heaven-shaking roar, a fierce storm gathered around the Divine Beast, allowing it to soar through the air. The Divine Beast Dancing Lion fixed its gaze on Bai Shi below, waiting for the perfect moment to strike him down. As the Divine Beast soared through the sky, the winds began to rage, and the entire stage was soon enveloped in a tempest. The storm howled, sweeping over the tower settlement and casting a heavy gloom over everyone's heart. —Everyone except Bai Shi. Bai Shi's eyes widened as he watched the Divine Beast unleash the power of the storm. It dared to use a storm in front of him? Now he had to play along. A brilliant smile spread across Bai Shi's face. "You dare use my own arts?" Bai Shi raised his arm to the sky and slowly clenched his fist. The storm summoned by the Divine Beast came to an abrupt halt. The sky fell completely still, becalmed and silent. "You are not worthy of the sky." In the next instant, Bai Shi reawakened the dormant tempest, and a gale far more violent than before howled to life. Bai Shi took to the air, flying up to meet the Divine Beast face-to-face. With a wave of his hand, the full force of the storm slammed into the Divine Beast, tossing it about violently and making it impossible to maintain its posture in the air. The power it had summoned was now completely beyond its control, turned into a barrage of spears assailing it. The immense wind pressure locked it in place. The sky, which had once been its playground, now felt like a mire, impeding its every move, as if the entire world had turned against it. As a favored child of nature, the Divine Beast Dancing Lion had never experienced anything and was powerless to resist. It stared at Bai Shi, who looked down upon it from above, able only to let the storm tear at its body. Soon, the storm ripped the Divine Beast from the sky and sent it crashing back to the ground. Once the Divine Beast had fallen, Bai Shi no longer used the storm to press his attack, merely maintaining control to prevent it from taking to the sky again. Bai Shi floated before the Divine Beast and beckoned with his hand. "What other moves do you have? Show me everything." "How long you live depends on your next performance." As if it understood Bai Shi's words, the Divine Beast roared in fury. It spun around, hovering just above the ground as yellow lightning erupted from its body. Rain suddenly began to pour from the sky, and terrifying flashes of lightning arced through the dark clouds. Seeing the Divine Beast’s ability to change the weather on a massive scale, Bai Shi laughed with delight. "Hahahaha! You, this Dancing Lion, you truly bring me joy." "So far, in all the Land of Shadow, you're the only one who's given me a satisfying fight." "In that case, let me see what you're really made of!" "Don't fall too quickly, or this will be no fun at all!" The Ancient Dragon Seal on the back of Bai Shi's hand flared with a dazzling red light. In the next moment, another kind of lightning appeared within the storm clouds overhead. Surging crimson lightning boiled and churned among the dark clouds.