Chapter Twenty-One: Merely a Ninth-Rank Demonic Beast-Um sopro vital por segundo, evoluindo para a Ancestral Fênix, reinando soberano por toda a eternidade.(Fortuna do barco)

As the young eagles flew back to the cave one after another, a vast amount of spirit herbs was soon scattered across the floor.

What left Jiang Xuan both amused and exasperated was that they hadn't brought back a single twig or blade of grass to build their nest; their entire focus had been on the spirit herbs. They truly went to great lengths for the sake of resources!

Each herb brought back by the young eagles was essentially a first-tier specimen, such as grass-seedlings or spirit-gathering flowers, and most had already had their quality and appearance compromised by their body heat. Amidst a cacophony of chirping, Jiang Xuan began to sort through the haul.

There were over two hundred grass-seedlings and more than two hundred spirit-gathering flowers. As for the second-tier herbs, there were eighty stalks of dragon-breath grass, fifty green-spirit fruits, seventy beast-long flowers, and only thirty stalks of bone-burning grass. As for third-tier spirit herbs, he didn't see a single one.

"Hmm, well done. You may consume all the low-grade and lowest-grade first-tier herbs. As for anything above mid-grade, and all second-tier herbs, you are not to touch a single one."

"Understood! Big Brother! In that case, we won't stand on ceremony!"

"Even a mosquito's leg has meat; thank you, Big Brother!"

"That was mine! Don't you dare eat it!"

"Who would want to eat what you brought? It reeks; it's disgusting!"

Listening to this spirited bickering, Jiang Xuan pursed his lips, speechless. He walked to the cave entrance and spread his wings, realizing that his own size had increased again. By way of comparison, he was now about the size of a large water buffalo. Among all the eagle demons Jiang Xuan had seen, he knew he was undoubtedly the largest.

"Hey, where are my younger brother and sister? Weren't they leading the groups? Why are you all flying back one by one?"

After stretching and sensing his current cultivation level for a moment, Jiang Xuan realized something was amiss.

"How would we know, Big Brother? Once we were outside, we all went our separate ways. We couldn't possibly stay bunched together; that would just lead to fighting!" said the young female eagle he had saved earlier, a half-eaten grass-seedling still dangling from her beak.

"We haven't seen them since we left the nest. Who knows where they flew off to?"

"Exactly, Big Brother! We can't keep up with their speed!"

"We're all eagle demons, but how is it that Big Brother's family has such superior bloodlines compared to ours?"

The young eagles' replies were chaotic, but in summary, none of them knew where the Demon Lord and the Empress had gone. Jiang Xuan looked up at the sun; it was well past noon. If those two hadn't returned by now, could they have been eaten by some powerful beast? Remembering how the Demon Lord had nearly lost his life in the jaws of a golden-scaled snake demon, Jiang Xuan couldn't help but feel concerned. Although the war between the snake and eagle clans had certainly reduced the number of snakes in the western outer territories, that didn't mean other dangerous beasts were absent.

"Stupid fat bird! I've returned!"

Suddenly, a familiar voice drifted from the distance. The sight of the little black bird caught Jiang Xuan's eyes, and he finally felt a sense of relief.

"Taking so long? Did you bring back anything good?" Jiang Xuan asked with a beaming smile as the Demon Lord landed before the nest.

"Who do you think I am? Do you really think I would return with trash?" As he spoke, the Demon Lord spread his wings, and spirit herbs fell from his body in a steady stream.

Good heavens! At a glance, they were all second-tier spirit herbs! This guy had potential! What pleased Jiang Xuan even more was that the fellow had actually brought back a blood-miasma fruit! That was a genuine third-tier spirit herb.

"How about that? I don't even look at first-tier herbs. Among these, there are thirty second-tier herbs and one third-tier blood-miasma fruit. I suppose what I've brought back, if not the most, is certainly the best, right?"

"Hmph! That stupid black bird is actually quite capable! He brought back only second-tier herbs, and there's even a third-tier fruit!"

"Ugh, I'm so annoyed, but there's nothing I can do. That guy is already at the sixth tier, six... wait, what?!"

"This, this, this! How did this guy reach sixth-tier demon cultivation already?!"

Following the exclamation of one young eagle, the others gathered around the Demon Lord in shock, sensing his unusual aura. It was undoubtedly the aura of a sixth-tier demon; they weren't mistaken. The little black bird clearly relished the attention, puffing out his chest and spreading his wings slightly as if standing with hands on his hips. Suddenly, however, he stared hard at Jiang Xuan.

"You, you, you! You're at the ninth-tier demon cultivation! What is going on?!"

"I was gone for half a day, and you've already broken through to the ninth tier! How is the gap in our cultivation growing even wider?!"

Looking at Jiang Xuan in disbelief, the Demon Lord was absolutely stunned. Was this even possible in half a day? Even if he had only been a fraction of spiritual energy away from the ninth tier, the time and difficulty required to break through increased exponentially at higher levels! Even if Jiang Xuan had spent the entire half-day just breaking through, it shouldn't have been enough! Could this fat bird have intentionally sent them away just to focus on his seclusion? But this was far too fast!

"It's just the ninth-tier demon cultivation, is it really that difficult?" Jiang Xuan said calmly. To him, it truly hadn't been hard. As he spoke, he made no effort to hide the smug, punchable expression on his face. However, noticing the wounds on the Demon Lord's chest, Jiang Xuan roughly understood how he had managed to reach the sixth tier so quickly.

"Fine, fine, it's truly infuriating to be a bird compared to another bird! You just wait!"

"Maybe you won't even break through to a Great Demon faster than I do!"

"You're just lying to yourself now," Jiang Xuan mocked before looking back toward the high sky. But the figure he imagined did not appear.

"Demon Lord, do you know where the Empress went?"

They had agreed to be back by noon; even if they were late, it shouldn't have been by this much. The Empress and the Demon Lord had similar temperaments, and in Jiang Xuan's view, she was a troublemaker. If she had truly encountered a powerful beast, she likely wouldn't have known how to run away.

"How would I know where that stupid bird is? Besides, what does that have to do with me?"

"Hmph, if she died out there, all the better. I'll have one less competitor fighting me for resources!"

Damn... Jiang Xuan rolled his eyes, cursing internally. It wasn't that he cared deeply about the Empress's safety, but the more subordinates he had, the better, as it would make it easier to get things done. Furthermore, when they eventually headed to the Eternal Realm, there would be strength in numbers to deal with the Great Demons there! Perhaps there were even Spirit Demons!

"Enough, enough. All of you, go into the cave and cultivate. I'm going to look for the Empress."

"But let me state this clearly: if any of you start causing trouble while I'm gone, I will punish you severely when I return!"

"In the worst-case scenario, I'll just tear the troublemaker apart and let everyone have a feast!"

At Jiang Xuan's words, the birds in the cave immediately pledged their obedience with great solemnity. Seeing this, Jiang Xuan finally felt at ease as he flew out of their home.