When Bai Qi, how both her sister and the rest of the camp called him by now, decided to seclude himself to make an advancement, Bai Rui was slightly surprised. She was aware that cultivators, and sometimes even beasts, required a lonely meditation once in a while. Still, Bai Qi had advanced five times since they met, and not a single time he needed such.

But if he needed something, they should do everything to help. With such a thought, Bai Rui and her sister had scoured the lands along with the others in search of ingredients, and when everything was ready, accompanied Bai Qi to guard him.

She was again surprised by Heise Zhao and Zhua joining as well. After all, while the former one had explained that he swore to protect what she still considered their man, the latter's presence was unexpected indeed. But again, guarding Bai Qi's location would require whatever hands they could get, and so she did not even ask. She did not like it, but it was practical indeed.

Bai Ze's reaction to Zhua's addition had first been similarly surprised, only to later change to irritation. Neither Bai Qi nor Zhua had given any reason to back such an emotion, first sparring partners and then friends, but Bai Ze indeed felt slightly jealous and even left outside what she considered her man's world.

Truthfully, even Zhua would be hard-pressed to answer why she suddenly had decided to go with Bai Qi and spend over two weeks, by now, guarding him. She wasn't oblivious to the Bai sisters' feelings either, although she did not understand why they looked at her like that. Zhua was definitively anything but a rival for them, simply considering Bai Qi someone fun to be and one of the rare beings, be it human or beast, who understood her manner of thinking.

As the oldest member of the group guarding the [Seven Colored Grassland] inside which the human he had sworn to protect secluded, Heise Zhao met with what he considered the most unconventional challenge of his life. To manage the relationship between three young girls that constantly glared at each other at the mention of the human's name. Worse, one of the girls was his relative, Zhua, and he always had considered her to be even-minded.

But in any case, as days went by, everyone began to get along, as spending so much time together in the wilds would either make them do so or directly make them fight.

While Bai Ze and Bai Rui had not even once left the only entrance to the meadow, Heise Zhao and Zhua had left a few times to hunt. And a shared meal was something that always brought people together, as Heise Zhao had always thought.

Now on their 15th day since Bai Qi's seclusion, with the four of their auras covering all and any approach, they managed to at last have a peaceful conversation.

***

"Do you think it will take long for him to finish?" Bai Ze asked while looking at the curtain formed by their combined auras.

"Before entering, Bai Qi said that it will take between two and three weeks, so it's hard to say when exactly he will exit." Zhua shrugged.

"I wonder what exactly he's doing. I have been sensing the strangest changes in the flow and even atmosphere." Heise Zhao's eyes followed Bai Ze's as he half-questioned the same thing that each of them had asked themselves for the last few days.

"He said that it was something he must do to prepare before entering the so-called Earth Realm, so maybe such strange process is something common for cultivators?" Bai Rui was anything but sure about her comments, and it showed in both her tone and slowly oscillating tail movements.

"Maybe he will tell more after he finishes? It is not strange to hide what one is about to attempt, but after success, why not tell?" Zhua offered her point of view, and the other three nodded one after another, agreeing with it.

"In any case, we will only find out something if he wants us to do so." Bai Rui concluded as her eyes darted from the meat in front towards the meadow's entrance. Feeling that probably their conversation was going nowhere, she chose to change topics and asked, "During yesterday's hunt, did you meet anyone from the camp? Has anything occurred?"

"I do not know about Zhua, but I did." Heise Zhao stopped to look at his relative, but after she shook her head, he continued, "I met one of the hunting parties, and they told me that..."

His words trailed off as his ears suddenly straightened. Bai Rui's and Bai Ze's reaction was more substantial, both jumping on their feet. Zhua followed suit a moment later while stating what every one of them felt, "Someone is approaching!"

***

The [Seven Colored Grassland] was located just a few hundreds of miles from his camp, but somehow, Huo Laohu felt the journey to be longer than it was in reality. It wasn't that he was slow, just that he thought his actions would be somehow inadequate. Had he not promised the three Bai, both beast and human, he would not interfere with their plans to leave just 15 days ago? He had indeed.

Huo Laohu forcefully dispelled the thoughts that plagued him with one about how Bai Qi's talents would help his people, and as he did, his pace increased.

Two miles from his destination, he felt how four separate pairs of senses and auras latched on him, and he could only remark that whatever else, Bai Qi was very well protected.

***

"I need to speak with him, now!" Huo Laohu half-growled, showing his irritation.

"He is in seclusion, and the process is meaningful for cultivators. We are aware that you, pack leader, would not come here without reason, but we will not allow you to disturb him!" Bai Rui growled in response.

Such a standoff has started as soon as Huo Laohu announced he was here to speak with Bai Qi immediately and had already continued for several minutes. Something anyone would find surprising was that not only the Bai sisters blocked the path of the one called the strongest Beastman below the man-beasts kings, but even Heise Zhao and Zhua, both of which remained under him.

"I know more than you about humans, and their seclusion can be broken without much harm after a week has passed. Let me in!" the man-tiger roared as his aura slowly emerged, pushing back the four latched on him.

"No, until he comes out by himself, I will not allow anyone near!" Bai Rui roared back, and two roars of affirmation emerged from both Bai Ze and Zhua.

As for Heise Zhao, he attempted to dissuade Huo Laohu, although he did not move from the latter's way either, "Bai Qi will exit any of these days, so could you please refrain from trying to barge in? Sense the qi flow! It shows he is doing something! What if he is currently assimilating or achieving something?!"

"I can not wait this time. There are only a few days left before it is official, and I need Bai Qi's skills now. I will take responsibility for anything that happens, so clear the way!" Huo Laohu roared again as his aura stopped pushing and directly clashed against the combined four.

"No!" A combined growl from the three female and one male Beastmen followed. Having spent two weeks continuously mixing their aura to shield the location, they had reached a very high degree of cooperation. And as the four intermixed, they even pushed Huo Laohu's 8th level Saint Beast one back.

"Forgive me then!" Huo Laohu snapped, and his aura began turning to fire.

He had no intention to hurt either of his opponents, so he did control the intensity of the flames to an extent in which, if they retreated, they would be safe.

Heise Zhao and Zhua did retreat right away, aware that they could not stop an attack from Huo Laohu. But the Bai sisters remained rooted on the spot, and what's more, it was as if they were... welcoming the attack?

The white fur of both sisters stood up as their aura flared, and suddenly, they roared in unison, "Hǒu!!"

"The roar of the [White Tiger]. The roar of a Monarch!" Heise Zhao and Zhua could only exclaim as they felt pressure from the roar, though it wasn't aimed at them at all.

Even Heise Zhao, who was four Saint Beast levels, an entire realm and half in cultivation terms, over the sisters winced. His aura fire was blocked, and he had to recall it as otherwise it was very probable for the roar to extinguish the flames!

"Damn girls, I am not here to fight you, or even Bai Qi! I am here to talk to him!" Huo Laohu grew furious. His innate savageness was agitated by the fact that someone dared to stand against him, and without being entirely aware, he roared "LAND!"

A [Fire Tiger] usually only had one innate ability, the [Breath of Inner Fire], but it wasn't the same for a pure-blooded one. Like Huo Laohu, who probably had the purest possibly bloodline of the race. His decisive ability was not the inner fire but the [Land of the Fire Tiger] that affected the surroundings.

At first small fires that quickly connected to become a true land of fire expanded from below his feet.

Burning everything on their path, they began moving akin to a wave towards Bai Ze and Bai Rui.

And while it could not compare to the [White Tiger's Monarch Roar], his higher level and power easily compensated for the difference between the abilities themselves.

A thought crossed both Bai sisters' minds, but it was immediately followed by another one,

Any true Saint Beast, especially the ones that had sacred beast ancestry, were capable of increasing their power for a brief time. The so-called [Blood Burning]. And although it wasn't an ability to be used freely, affecting one's spirit core to the point of shattering it if it was overused, it was indeed the only way for a lower-level Beast to fight a stronger opponent.

Neither sister thought much before commanding for their bloodline to stir, and they would probably have fought until either falling, their Spirit Core shattering, or in winning. Although the latter seemed almost impossible, as whatever their bloodline advantage was, simply skipping over what were twelve cultivation levels was unimaginable. But they did not.

Something occurred, something that made even Huo Laohu regain his usual calm self and command the flames to stop.

And that something wasn't anything else than the sudden wave of killing intent, coupled with a strong demonic presence, coming from behind the Beast girls, one that came from the [Seven Colored Grassland].

___________________________________________________________________

When Bai Qi finished his preparations, he had immediately entered the [Seven Colored Grassland] and secluded himself. Thanks to the Bai sisters, his, at least by their promise, eternal companions, and the unexpected assistance of Heise Zhao and Zhua, he did not need to worry about his safety. Thus, he had disconnected from everything and started the process that would hopefully allow him to enter the Heavens' Secret Level of the Sage realm.

It took him two days to prepare his body. And as an additional effect, which he did not care about but still welcomed, all the scars and burns over it disappeared. And how would they not after he used a [Rebirth of the Saint] pill concocted from his last remaining drop of wooden essence and thirty-three Earth and Spirit herbs?

Following it with a system of cleansing and calming pills, Bai Qi prepared his circulation, soul, and even mind.

And then, on the fifth day of his seclusion, he took the first of the prepared 5th level [Saint Mind] pills.

It took him a whole day to digest it, but as any cultivator would have pointed out, the effect was just barely enough. Still, the single incense stick of time he obtained from it allowed him to see every Dao law around him. Such laws would be present always, from the lowest of forms as a simple blade of grass and up to the highest form of life of a cultivator, as they basically formed up what was a plane.

Laws from the Dao of life, death, rebirth, the elements, qi, and myriads of other, both paths and Dao, opened to him. And while Bai Qi was unable to even sense them correctly, he had proved that he was able to 'see' them thanks to the pill.

Acting on this confirmation, Bai Qi prepared what he had decided to use as a method - the destruction of four of the main elements. Such a method would allow him to leave only one, in his case the Fire element, and from there, using the spiritual flame he owned, connect to at least the lowest law of its Dao.

And it indeed worked out, although it did take Bai Qi several failed attempts to manage the correct disbalance.

He had thought after at last managing the 'Ghostflame' to destroy anything but one element of the five main ones that always existed in qi. Cutting out the Yin and Yang would have increased his chances as well, but regretfully, he had no way to do so with the flames he counted with. After all, the 'Ghostflame' was nothing more than a Yin Spiritual Flame, something that broke almost all the laws of a flame being not only a Fire Element one but also a Yin one in place of the, correlated with the Fire element, Yang.

Sensing and connecting to a Dao law while being a Sage was not only something crazy but also something that went against the heavens themselves. And so, it wasn't strange that his first attempts were met with not only failure but actual backslash. Thankfully the backslash was one meant of a Sage, and his body was not only stronger physically, but also reinforced thanks to the pills he used. Thus, although Bai Qi did suffer a small degree of inner wounds and consciousness cracks, none of them carried any real danger for either his cultivation or the current deed.

***

Still, by the moment when Bai Qi actually managed to both sense and connect to a single Dao law of Fire, the law of ambivalence, both his mind and body had reached their limit.

Aware of the pain-dulling and different calming, effects from the pills he had been taking coming to an end in mere hours, Bai Qi could not help but smile.

And while some could consider that he went insane, it wasn't so. He was joyful indeed, but not because of the pain to follow or something strange like that. Bai Qi inwardly exclaimed, and probably would have done so aloud as well, if not for the fact that he found that his body was numb.

***

It was the start of the 15th day of his seclusion when Bai Qi started feeling the approach of what would be the awaited pain.

*Gulp* *Gulp*

Quickly swallowing a couple of pills, which would scare any cultivator as they were nothing else than poison, Bai Qi slowly began absorbing them.

While such a method was probably even crazier, as he would have to accept the entire accumulated pain in just a few breaths after he woke up, it did guarantee that the backlash would not damage anything except his soul. But for the latter, he also had prepared something.

{Kui Mulang!} Obtaining no answer, Bai Qi insisted again, {Kui Mulang, you damned demon, either bind yourself to my conditions of not doing anything while I am off, or I swear to the Heavens that I will choose to suffer the backslash with my soul.}

{Haa, boring! Why would I want to accept your soul power and assume control over your body without being able to do anything?!}

{So you will choose to brave the backslash?}

{Huh?}

{Well, you are part of my soul, so the damage would also be shared with you. You know, the Dao of equivalence and everything?}

{Wait! I will, I will! Not doing anything sounds just great!}

Bai Qi could only chuckle at the demon's quick acceptance.

***

Still, before going absolutely blank, Bai Qi reconnected to his senses, to confirm that the four Beastmen, who he could never be thankful enough, were fine.

"WHO DARES?!" And he immediately roared, sensing as the four of them were surrounded by an aura with hostile intentions.

Bai Qi wasn't aware at that moment, but because of his open connection with Kui Mulang, when his fury was released, his body had assumed the image of the demon residing in his soul as well.

___________________________________________________________________

Huo Laohu knew that he could feel fear, and it wasn't something he considered bad either. Fear allowed one to gauge the danger, and by controlling it, one would be able to find a way to surpass both.

But... How could he be scared of a presence and killing intent that came from a place where nothing but a Sage realm cultivator was?!