Chapter 513 — The Mother-Hunter Combo
The Beast-Taming Craftsman Page 2 of 3
"A spirit body—you have even become an undead. All these years, what have you endured..."
"It is my fault..."
The Sun Divine Phoenix acknowledged the kinship with great excitement—yet all at once, something felt off.
From the moment it met Shi Jin until now, every word Shi Jin had spoken flashed swiftly through its mind.
Daughter, mother...
Shi Jin, the Mother-Hunting Squad...
Hmm?
The Divine Phoenix demigod's words cut off abruptly. It looked at Cen Yu and the others, blinked, and said, "What did you say you were, just now—what squad?"
Shi Qi said nothing.
Then came the words that nearly burst the Sun Divine Phoenix's heart.
Shi Jin grinned and said, "So you really are her mother. When I contracted her, I noticed something fishy in her bloodline power—it is a kind of 'nutrient bloodline' that can be suppressed and absorbed by a superior bloodline. So even then, I figured her parents were surely no good."
"That is precisely why I founded the Mother-Hunting Squad—so that one day we could help her resolve this hidden danger."
"It seems that 'Jiaqi' is you."
As Shi Jin's words fell, Crimson Pupil drew a deep breath, red strands of hair fluttering, and a red sword spirit coalesced in her hand.
Little Crimson Pupil was filled with emotion now.
Shi Jin was finally no longer that Jiaqi who went around claiming mothers everywhere...
From claiming mothers to hunting them—this transformation bespoke the growth of their strength!
"BZZZT!" Crimson Pupil summoned the Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation and locked onto the Phoenix Demigod!
The sword-song of the Laws vibrated through the air.
In that instant, the Solar Divine Phoenix was utterly dumbstruck, as though plunged whole into an ice pit.
A qua—quasi-divine art?
Another one?
And what stunned it even more was that Shi Jin suddenly shouted at the top of his voice, "Princess Huang Xi, we sealed an alliance just now—you're a member of the Matricide Squad too! If we don't wipe out this hidden threat together right now, then when?"
In the distance, Princess Huang Xi was also rather shocked that this elder sister of hers had likewise mastered a quasi-divine art.
Was she a demigod too, then?
Her expression turned stern, and she gritted her teeth. That damned Jia Qi.
She had told him—told him not to go charging off on his own.
He was supposed to act only as she directed.
And yet, just look at this mess.
How could an alliance sealed one moment turn into action the very next? Who moved that fast?
At this moment, she was completely and utterly unprepared—not a shred of preparation at all.
Of course, the one with not the slightest shred of guard up, the most stunned, the most thunderstruck beyond all measure, was still the Divine Phoenix Demigod.
For a moment, its brain simply failed to catch up.
Its heart gave a lurch.
The Matricide Squad... and the mother they hunted was not only itself, but the squad's members included its own daughter?
Blankly, aghast, it stared at Shi Jin and the others, and at its daughter Huang Xi in the distance, whose face had changed abruptly—and for a moment, Shi You's words replayed in its heart in an endless loop.
It had never imagined its plan would be exposed, or that its two daughters had already met ahead of time.
"What nonsense are you spouting!!! Xi'er, you can't possibly believe his devil's drivel!!!"
The Solar Divine Phoenix panicked at once—but what panicked it more was that all around, summoning arrays were abruptly springing up in every direction.
"ROAR!!!" Out of the arrays flew the gigantic Azure Dragon Bug Bug, coiling across the sky, its dragon eyes bearing supreme majesty.
A super-battleship like a fortress in the sky likewise slowly revealed its form.
The Water Slime congealed in midair, swelling to infinite size, becoming a devouring archdemon with its maw flung wide.
And Ginseng Baby stepped out from a summoning array to stand upon the earth, gradually becoming a World Tree.
BZZZT!!!
Rin's Wind of Blessing, Susu's Pact of the Pure Sea, Ginseng Baby's Grace of the World, Crimson Pupil's Immortal-Slaying Sword Formation—plus Eleven's Yin-Yang Millstone and the Azure Dragon Bug Bug's Domain of the Four Saints. Four quasi-divine arts and two faith arts—the oppressive weight of them rose in an instant.
It left the Solar Divine Phoenix dumbstruck once more, feeling as though it were dreaming.
What in the world was all this?
What had this Jia Qi summoned?
"Impossible, impossible, impossible!!!" As the layered voices of the Laws rang out and the power of faith spread abroad, the Solar Divine Phoenix did not even have time to judge that Ginseng Baby, Crimson Pupil, Rin and the rest were not demigods at all—before it was shaken rigid by that cascade of Law-voices.
By rigid stereotype, one who masters a quasi-divine art is a demigod.
Shi Jin had summoned four demigods in one breath—who on earth could withstand that?
"What kind of monster is this Jia Qi!"
The future Empress was likewise stunned by this awe-inspiring array—seeing that Ginseng Baby, which had defeated the Ice Phoenix, take the form of another World Tree and bloom with the voice of the Laws, and seeing beside it one dread companion after another, she nearly stopped thinking altogether.
"Xi'er!!! Help me!!!" At this moment, the Solar Divine Phoenix had thoroughly lost its nerve.
It rather regretted not having helped the Golden Roc Demigod against Shi Jin earlier—back then, at least, it might have gained a demigod ally. Now all it had left was one daughter.
And even that daughter might not necessarily stand on its side.
Still, it had no choice now but to try.
"Xi'er!!! Do you believe me, or do you believe an outsider!!"
At this, Princess Huang Xi's expression shifted again and again—until at last, her aura began climbing, notch by notch.
BOOM!!!
Eight massive golden summoning arrays, the emblem of the Legendary tier, appeared around her.
Just as Huang Xi had said, she could break through at any time—she had merely never brought herself to tear off the mask with the Solar Divine Phoenix.
By now, seeing the formidable lineup Shi Jin had assembled, she knew she had to make some gesture of her own.
"Squawk!!!!!" Apart from the future Empress, its several overlord-tier phoenixes also broke through to totem-tier the instant they descended, achieving a full roster of totems.
The Divine Phoenix demigod was startled. Legendary-tier?
"What kind of joke is this? Who are you?" Yet in the face of the Solar Divine Phoenix's plea for aid, the Empress who had broken through spoke thus.
It nearly made the Divine Phoenix demigod's vision go black on the spot, nearly killing it with a heart attack.
"From the day I learned of your ambitions, you ceased to be my mother. And besides, when I was weak, you never once fulfilled a mother's duty. At bottom, we mixed-blood beast tamers were nothing but human experiments into which you injected phoenix blood."
The Divine Phoenix demigod: ?
"AHHHHH, unfilial daughter!!!!" In that instant, the Divine Phoenix demigod's composure shattered completely. Its eyes went wide, and its entire aura erupted.
It understood now just what the so-called Mother-Hunting Squad was made of...
On the other side, it had just meant to summon the totems of its realm to its aid when it suddenly discovered it was already trapped inside a completely sealed barrier.
The entire Duling Mountains were shrouded by a colossal barrier, with the phantom images of the Four Sacred Beasts—Azure Dragon, Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise, White Tiger—guarding the four quarters, a sight of awe-inspiring majesty.
"A pleasure working with you." Shi Jin retreated to the Empress's side, stood shoulder to shoulder with her, and gave a faint smile.
"I..." At this moment the Empress had bitterness she could not voice, feeling utterly pushed along by this Jiaqi.
She could only hope this Jiaqi really was a good man.
………………