Bai Fa’s words revealed that he wasn’t as cold as he appeared on the surface, nor was he indifferent to the fates of Niu Tou, Da Peng, and Profound Turtle.

He still greatly valued the brotherly bond between the five of them.

It was just that he was poor at expressing himself, or perhaps for some reason, he had always kept these feelings suppressed deep inside.

Now that three of the five brothers were dead, he really couldn’t bear to see anything happen to the Three-headed Thunder Lion.

But the Wolf Demon had already spoken, and the matter was set in stone.

The Thunder Lion would still be the one to fight in the upcoming duel.

"Uncle, I’m worried that the Five-Finger Cage Heaven-locking Array is too powerful. The Thunder Lion might not be able to escape and will end up perishing along with that human."

Although the decision couldn’t be changed, Bai Fa still sent a voice transmission to the Wolf Demon, his tone filled with worry.

He and the Wolf Demon were of the same clan—both were Silver Moon Wolves. Moreover, this particular Wolf Demon, who had achieved the Venerable Position, was his uncle!

"Mutual destruction is exactly what I want," the Wolf Demon said, his tone chilling.

The Five-Finger Cage Heaven-locking Array was a very special kind of Trapping Array.

Once activated, it would channel the Power of Heaven and Earth to form a cage, sealing the target inside.

As time passed, the cage would contract inward like a five-fingered hand closing into a fist, crushing whoever was trapped inside to death.

If the trapped individual could unleash powerful techniques and continuously attack the Array, the speed of its contraction would slow.

The stronger the attacks, the slower the Array would contract.

The Three-headed Thunder Lion’s goal was to use this Array to have a contest of Attack Power with Mo Qi.

If Mo Qi’s Attack Power was no match for his, then inside the Five-Finger Cage Heaven-locking Array, Mo Qi would die first.

Of course, this was an enormous risk.

If Mo Qi’s Attack Power was only slightly weaker than his, then even if Mo Qi died first, the Thunder Lion wouldn’t be left with much room to survive.

He would very likely be crushed to death right after Mo Qi.

In other words, the Three-headed Thunder Lion would only have a chance of survival if he could completely overpower Mo Qi in terms of Attack Power.

"I’ve already tampered with the Five-Finger Cage Heaven-locking Array on the Thunder Lion. Unless someone can shatter the Array outright, it will not stop. Both of them are going to die!" the Wolf Demon said.

"Why would you do that?" Bai Fa was shocked, finding it difficult to accept.

In his eyes, trading the Three-headed Thunder Lion’s life for Mo Qi’s was not a worthy exchange.

The Wolf Demon glanced at his nephew. "Can’t you see it yet? That human brat, Mo Qi, is definitely hiding a great secret. His future accomplishments will be no less than that girl’s!"

"Besides, you’ve seen his temperament and his methods. If we allow him to develop, he will undoubtedly become a great calamity for our Demon Race. Therefore, he must die today!"

Bai Fa fell silent for a moment before saying, "But if I fight, I can kill him just the same. Why make the Thunder Lion throw his life away?"

The Wolf Demon sneered. "Are you so sure you can kill him?"

"I am!" Bai Fa’s voice was firm and filled with confidence.

"Well, I’m not!" the Wolf Demon retorted. "I can’t let you take that risk, nor can I let the entire Demon Race take it. The Thunder Lion’s Five-Finger Cage Heaven-locking Array is a safe bet. I have confidence in it."

Bai Fa’s expression stiffened. ’My uncle... he actually doesn’t trust me!’

He wanted to argue, but he didn’t know what to say.

"Enough. My mind is made up, so say no more. Just save your strength to deal with that girl," the Wolf Demon transmitted, his eyes flicking nonchalantly toward Liu Ruyan.

Bai Fa sighed, stepped forward, and clapped the Three-headed Thunder Lion on the shoulder. "Be careful."

"I will. Trust me. I’ll be back victorious!"

With that, the Three-headed Thunder Lion leaped into the clearing, landing before Mo Qi.

Watching the Thunder Lion’s retreating figure, Bai Fa closed his eyes as tears dampened his lashes.

He knew that after this, the Thunder Lion would be no more.

Of the five brothers, he would be the only one left.

A long moment passed, and the tears dried.

When Bai Fa opened his eyes again, his gaze was colder than ever.

He scanned his surroundings, committing the face and aura of every Immortal present to memory.

’Niu Tou, Da Peng, Profound Turtle, Thunder Lion... rest easy. Your blood was not shed in vain. None of these people will leave here alive. In the future, I will take their heads one by one, shatter their Sub-Palaces, and offer them all to your departed spirits!’

In the clearing, Mo Qi carefully sized up the burly, blue-haired young man before him.

’A Three-headed Thunder Lion?’

’Does that mean his true form is a lion with three heads?’

’Lion head is a real delicacy. Especially when red-braised in a clay pot... that soft, fragrant, glutinous texture, that rich but not greasy flavor... it’s a taste even a Divine Being would have trouble resisting.’

’Let alone one made from a premium ingredient like a Three-headed Thunder Lion.’

’Paired with a pot of aged wine, the taste... Mmm...’

’The mere thought made his mouth water, and he could hardly contain himself.’

"A Three-headed Thunder Lion is quite a prize; one serving of its Medicinal Cuisine is worth three!" the Pig Emperor, who knew Mo Qi’s habits all too well, chimed in with a little rhyme. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Fortunately, he didn’t activate his special ability, or Mo Qi, being the closest, would have been the first to go mad.

The Three-headed Thunder Lion heard the Pig Emperor’s voice, but not understanding what it meant, he paid it no mind.

"Human. Just like with the Profound Turtle, let’s combine our two duels. I will set the terms and rules of the contest. What do you say?" the Three-headed Thunder Lion asked in a low voice.

Mo Qi licked his lips, used his thumb to wipe away a trickle of drool from the corner of his mouth, and grinned. "I’m listening."

"I will challenge you to a contest of Attack Power!"

As he spoke, the Three-headed Thunder Lion took out an Array Plate—the very one for the Five-Finger Cage Heaven-locking Array—and proceeded to explain the rules in detail.

Mo Qi was stunned for a second, after which his expression became a sight to behold.

’Using an Array to measure Attack Power? In front of *me*?’

’Talk about delivering a win on a silver platter!’

’How considerate!’

"Human, do you dare accept?" the Three-headed Thunder Lion asked.

’Dare? Of course, I dare!’

’If I turned down an offer like this, would I even be human?’

"Alright, I accept."

Hearing Mo Qi’s answer, the Three-headed Thunder Lion was ecstatic.

He immediately crushed the Array Plate, fearing Mo Qi would go back on his word.

"We will form a contract. The Array will not stop until one of us is dead!" The Thunder Lion then tossed out a pre-written contract scroll.

After confirming the contract’s authenticity, Mo Qi unhesitatingly dripped a drop of his blood onto it.

The contract was sealed!

BOOM! CRACK!

With a tremendous bang, an immense surge of Energy erupted from where the Array Plate had shattered. It pulled a vast amount of the Power of Heaven and Earth from the void, forming two palms as large as mountains.

The left palm seized Mo Qi, and the right seized the Three-headed Thunder Lion, enclosing them and the ten-zhang radius of space around them within their grasp.

The five fingers, formed from the Power of Heaven and Earth, began to slowly curl inward, forming fists.

"RAAAH!"

The Three-headed Thunder Lion bellowed and instantly revealed his true form.

It was a lion over five zhang long and nearly three zhang tall. It had three heads, and its entire body was wreathed in blue lightning.

It lunged at the closing palm. A flash of blue light followed, as countless arcs of lightning shot out from its body, lashing in all directions and unleashing a deafening roar.

The palm’s contraction slowed significantly.