Merulla Region

After a week of travel, Shui crossed the border into the Merulla region. There were no obvious landmarks nearby, but his mental map gave Shui confidence that he was correct. He could have reached this point sooner, but in addition to taking his time learning about the Merulla region, Shui also wanted to give his enemies time to prepare for him. Since he was going out of his way to walk into their trap, it would be too disappointing if they couldn't surprise him.

As he dug into the history of the Merulla region, Shui became more and more interested. The information he received from the Artisan Palace branch was enough for him to grasp the state of affairs inside the region, but he hadn't asked for more, so there was only a general summary of the region's history. However, though it wasn't able to provide him with recent details, the Primordial Library included written records that date back to the formation of the continent. Shui had originally thought that the Merulla region was just a place with a high concentration of evolved beasts, but the Library revealed to him the reason behind this high concentration.

Long ago, predating the birth of the Alios Empire, which was the predecessor of the Alterna Kingdom, there was a war between vampires and all other races. After a series of defeats, the vampires unleashed their trump card and summoned a demonic creature of lightning from the void. However, the creature was uncontrollable and first slaughtered the vampires that had summoned it before attacking the rest of the continent. The experts left on the continent tried to defeat it, but their combined might barely made a scratch. Fortunately, the patron goddess of the Alios Empire used up her power to slay the creature, and the land where it was slain matched the location of the Merulla region.

It was a background similar to Stonefield, but the patron goddess had been thorough when slaying the creature, so only its aura remained. Still, this aura was enough to attract evolved beasts and cause various bloodline mutations, leading to the large variety that is present in the region at current time. If the demonic creature's aura was enough to cause bloodline mutations, then its presence alone would likely kill all mortals and low-level cultivators in its vicinity. As he was destined to participate in divine battles, Shui thought he had some idea of how world-shattering the power of gods was, but this historical tale did well in reminding him of his ignorance.

A couple of days after entering the region, Shui still hadn't encountered any ambushes, but he didn't think this would hold true for his entire journey. He hadn't discovered anyone spying on him, so he predicted that the enemy was lurking around Garakil, the only city near the canyon where the dragon subspecies of the Merulla region resided. Due to how dangerous this canyon was, all entrances, except the one controlled by Garakil, were closed and strictly monitored. Even if Shui knew that an ambush awaited him, it would be more troublesome to attempt to sneak inside the canyon. With this in mind, Shui continued his journey at a casual pace.

Elsewhere, a group of young men and a woman in tribal wear were walking through a jungle with their beast companions nearby. Beast companions was the polite term used to refer to tamed beasts. Many, even among beast tamers, scorned it as an attempt to treat the tamed like friends, but some beast tamers would truly view the beast as a partner and treat it with respect. These youths came from the same village and had grown up with their partners, establishing a bond not unlike family. However, despite acknowledging that evolved beasts could be befriended, they didn't put them above all transgressions.

The five youths were on a mission to capture a wild beast that had attacked their livestock, dead or alive. The wild beast was judged to have recently become a beast spirit, but since its area of activity didn't overlap with any other dangerous beasts, this task was given to the youngsters as a trial for them to overcome. Of the five beast companions, three were leopards, one red, one blue, and one green, all with strong offensive capabilities. One was a short monkey that had exceptional detection abilities and served as their scout, while the last one was a large snake fast enough to escape from a high beast with its partner in case of emergency to bring back information. Even though the youths didn't believe there would be any need for such an escape, they were always taught not to underestimate the jungle.

"Ei. Ei."

"Kiki says it's resting up ahead."

The four-eared macaque resting on the head of one of the young men alerted its partner to the wild beast's location. Although the young man couldn't actually understand the sounds the monkey made, beast tamers established a connection similar to telepathy with their tamed beasts so that meanings could be conveyed correctly. The many-eared macaque bloodline was well-known for its sensitive hearing and exceptional smell, and although this one was only a beast spirit, it could track any creature within three hundred cales. With the monkey's guidance, the team crept closer to the target. Upon catching sight of the target, a black panther with two red stripes, lying before a cave, the three leopards were sent to surround it. As they had been told to capture it if possible, once the three beasts suppressed the target, their partners would approach with a drug to weaken it and seal its consciousness. 

Soon after the beast companions stepped within two cales of the target, the panther opened its eyes and growled at them while getting up. Noticing the odd plumpness of the panther, one of the young men was about to say something when the panther made a loud roar. The roar stunned the humans, but the approaching leopards pounced at the panther in a frenzy.

"No! It might be pregnant!"

As the team panicked and rushed towards the battle to settle the excited beasts, the four-eared macaque picked up on a threat and hastily alerted its partner.

"Ei! Ei!" 

"What?! Everyone! There's a high beast coming this way!"

As soon as they heard this information, the partners of the three leopards used a whistle to command them. The beasts were more sensitive to the whistle than words, so they reluctantly pulled away from the panther, but before the group could leave, a spell in the shape of a black pike came flying from the direction of the high beast. The youths quickly used the barrier spell while the beasts braced for impact. The youths had hope since they were able to respond in time, but as this was their first time facing a high beast in combat, they didn't know how large the gap between them was.

The spell instantly shattered their barriers and knocked them into the air. A bad fall killed one of them, while another lost feeling in a leg. The red leopard, whose partner was dead, whimpered miserably while the rest checked the injuries they had suffered. The three leopards had bleeding wounds of various sizes after taking most of the damage, while the other two evolved beasts only had a few bruises and internal injuries. The youths that could still stand on both legs had also escaped life-threatening wounds, but upon another warning from the four-eared macaque, their expressions turned a shade darker.

"Ei! Ei!"

"It's, still coming after us!"