After finishing the roast rabbit, the exhausted trio of Eric Carter leaned against a large tree and fell asleep. Grace Bennett sat in the middle, with Eric Carter and Emily Cooper resting on either side of her, which made David Cooper gnash his teeth in frustration.

The night passed uneventfully. Although the howls of wild beasts occasionally echoed through the wilderness, Eric Carter slept soundly due to sheer exhaustion.

……

The next morning, just as dawn broke, Eric Carter felt an itch on his nose. He slowly opened his eyes, only to be greeted by Emily Cooper's pretty face. Because they were so close, he was startled and jumped up, causing Emily Cooper to land on the ground with a thud.

“What the hell! Why are you trying to scare me so early in the morning?”

Eric Carter cursed, while his right hand kept patting his chest—his heart was pounding too fast.

“How dare you insult my junior sister!”

Not far away, David Cooper immediately became upset. With a few strides, he came up to Eric Carter, looking as if he was about to start a fight.

Now that Eric Carter had already broken through to the fourth level of the Foundation Establishment stage, he wasn’t afraid of him at all. He glared and retorted, “Not happy about it? Come on, then!”

Damn you! David Cooper was trembling with rage. He just wanted to show off a bit, but didn’t expect Eric Carter to be so tough.

Although the Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining stages are adjacent, the difference is like night and day. Not to mention his current state—even at his peak, he wasn’t absolutely confident he could beat Eric Carter.

“Alright, I apologize. But you were sleeping so soundly!”

Emily Cooper patted the dust off and stood up, her little face full of displeasure. She just wanted to tease Eric Carter; who knew he’d react so strongly?

Eric Carter glanced around and saw Grace Bennett by the riverbank, watching him with a half-smile. He immediately realized he was the last one to wake up. Looking up at the blazing sun, he guessed it was almost nine o’clock.

His face flushed slightly, and he coughed awkwardly, “Let’s get going!”

“So you do get embarrassed!” Emily Cooper said with a hand over her mouth, laughing.

Life is hard enough—don’t make it worse!

Eric Carter thought gloomily. Seeing the two of them chatting and laughing, David Cooper grew even more annoyed.

“Junior sister! I’m trying to stand up for you—why won’t you talk to me?”

David Cooper thought bitterly, but he didn’t dare show it. He could only stand behind Emily Cooper with a sullen face.

After Eric Carter washed his face by the lake, he led the group away.

The location of the Xuanling Sect was conveniently on the way to the capital.

The four of them disappeared into the forest. Along the way, Eric Carter kept wondering when the Howling Celestial Dog would appear.

That’s a powerhouse at the Earth Immortal level!

With the Howling Celestial Dog around, his bodyguard force would be even stronger—he could even crush the entire Qianyue Kingdom!

“By the way, where are Henry Clark’s other subordinates?”

As they walked, Eric Carter asked Emily Cooper. Henry Clark’s head was still in his storage ring. If they ran into other rogue generals, he could take out Henry Clark’s head to draw their hatred and rack up experience points.

A perfect battle plan—Eric Carter was almost moved by his own cleverness.

“No idea. Henry Clark was constantly hunted by General Nan Meng, so his soldiers kept dwindling. No one knows where his main base is, and he only ever traveled with a few dozen men at a time.” Emily Cooper shook her head.

Eric Carter nodded. If Henry Clark really had a large army, he would have rebelled long ago—instead of being hunted by the kingdom’s troops year after year.

Besides, Henry Clark’s cruel deeds probably attracted people to join his ranks as well.

“Sigh!” Eric Carter sighed in disappointment.

At the back of the group, David Cooper twitched his lips. In his eyes, Eric Carter was just showing off.

Does he think killing Henry Clark is such a big deal?

If it weren’t for Grace Bennett’s intervention, Eric Carter wouldn’t have stood a chance against Henry Clark.

Even so, no matter how much he disliked Eric Carter, he didn’t dare make a move.

The journey continued in silence.

By noon, the four of them had crossed a small hill and arrived at a vast wasteland. Looking out, the barren land stretched endlessly, as if there was no end in sight, filling them with despair. In the blue sky above, many avian demon beasts were flying, their size and appearance enough to send chills down one’s spine.

“Demon beasts are divided into ten ranks, each with nine levels. First rank is equivalent to the Qi Refining stage, second rank to Foundation Establishment, third rank to the Golden Core stage, fourth rank to the Mortal Shedding stage, and fifth rank to the Void Transformation stage. Once a demon beast reaches the fifth rank, it can take on human form.”

Grace Bennett explained to Eric Carter, who couldn’t help but marvel in amazement.

Emily Cooper asked curiously, “Above the Mortal Shedding stage is the Void Transformation stage? Our Xuanling Sect doesn’t have any information about the Void Transformation stage.”

Eric Carter curled his lip. Your Xuanling Sect is just trash.

“Actually, there is information, but it’s classified. Ordinary disciples aren’t qualified to know about it.” David Cooper said calmly. He wanted to show off, but to Emily Cooper, his words meant something else entirely.

I’m the sect leader’s daughter and I’m not qualified to know?

Emily Cooper pouted, growing even more annoyed with her senior brother.

Just then, the ground suddenly trembled. The four of them quickly turned to look and saw a black line appear at the horizon in the east. Eric Carter immediately frowned. Looking closer, he was nearly scared out of his wits.

Damn!

Countless demon beasts were charging toward them—dragons, snakes, tigers, leopards, bears, and more. All of them were several times larger than animals on Earth. There were even dozens of demon beasts as big as small mountains. The scene was absolutely spectacular.

“Run!”

Grace Bennett shouted, instantly snapping Eric Carter and the others out of their shock.

The four of them immediately started running forward at a brisk pace, heading in a direction perpendicular to the beast tide.