Princess Anle

Among the three eagle eggs, the two on the right remained intact.

The one on the far left had been grazed by an arrow shot by Yang An, leaving a thumb-sized crack near its midsection.

Egg liquid seeped out through the opening.

It was as translucent as honey and carried a faint, sweet fragrance.

"The books say that fierce beasts are usually ordinary animals that have evolved over years of absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, or by chance consuming rare treasures of nature," Yang An mused.

"Thus, their flesh and blood are highly nourishing."

"Even the lowest-grade ones can invigorate one's vitality and enhance strength. The value of these three giant eagle eggs might not be any less than the Black Jade Lotus I carry!"

Yang An's stomach growled with hunger.

He swallowed hard as he stared at the three eggs.

"If only I had a pot…"

Having awakened memories of his past life as a civilized man, the thought of eating raw eggs still unsettled him slightly.

"I wonder how long it’ll take to regain my strength."

"This is no time to be picky."

Picking up the cracked egg, Yang An took a small sip and immediately widened his eyes. The giant eagle egg had not even a trace of the usual eggy smell!

Instead, it was incredibly delicious!

From that moment, Yang An cast aside all hesitation.

He lifted the egg above his head and tilted it into his mouth like drinking from a coconut. The crystalline egg white and golden yolk poured into his stomach in large gulps.

An egg several times larger than an ostrich’s was drained in the blink of an eye!

Even after the last drop slid down his throat, Yang An still craved more. He tossed the empty shell aside—it was so hard that it didn’t shatter even when it hit the rocks.

Next, he picked up the second egg.

After hacking at it twice with his dagger, he finally made an opening and began guzzling it down. Just as he suspected, these three eggs were indeed treasures of nature, brimming with spiritual energy.

Yang An’s exhausted body began to react.

The egg liquid seemed to transform into a warm current, churning in his stomach before rapidly spreading through his limbs. His hands and feet, previously stiff from the cold, soon regained warmth.

Not only that.

After finishing the second egg, Yang An’s pores gradually opened, and sweat began pouring out—along with some translucent impurities.

The smell wasn’t pleasant.

Yang An guessed these were toxins expelled from his body.

This process lasted for nearly half the time it takes an incense stick to burn. When it ended, Yang An felt an indescribable sense of refreshment!

All the exhaustion from climbing the icy cliff earlier had vanished without a trace.

Even his strength seemed to have increased. With a light squeeze, he crushed the second eggshell effortlessly.

Yang An thought to himself,

"This must be the effect of the [Heaven-Sent Demon Lord] ability—my body is like a furnace, capable of digesting natural treasures and converting them into my own power."

"Indeed, the most terrifying aspect of the [Demon Lord’s Reckoning] talent isn’t the tenfold combat boost, but the absence of cultivation bottlenecks and comprehension barriers."

With this in mind,

Yang An prepared to crack open and consume the third egg.

But then he reconsidered.

"Such a rare delicacy shouldn’t be enjoyed alone."

"My sister and brother-in-law back home have never tasted anything like this. I should save one for them."

So he cut off a section of the rope at his waist, wove it into a makeshift net, and securely fastened the last egg.

After shaking it a few times to ensure it wouldn’t fall, he hung it at his side.

Now well-fed and reinvigorated,

Yang An decided not to linger in the eagle’s nest. Before the sun set, he planned to make his way home before nightfall. He stuffed handfuls of feathers into his fur coat for extra warmth.

Climbing onto the branches piled around the nest,

he braced against the wind and snow and leaped upward, gripping the severed rope he had left earlier. Using it, he hauled himself back onto the iron arrow embedded in the cliff face.

Glancing down at the bottomless abyss below,

he quickly averted his gaze, retied the broken rope around his waist, and began ascending the cliff via the iron arrows he had planted earlier.

The blizzard in Yunling Mountain remained fierce.

But after consuming two giant eagle eggs, Yang An’s vitality had multiplied, and his strength had surged. Combined with the insulating eagle feathers stuffed into his coat, he no longer found the biting wind unbearable!

"The allure of natural treasures,"

Yang An chuckled as he pulled himself up the cliff.

Just as everything seemed to be improving,

after climbing only a few dozen meters,

a piercing screech suddenly echoed from the distance!

"SCREEE—!!"

The sound approached rapidly!

Accompanying it was a gust of wind sharp as blades. Yang An shuddered—without time to turn around, he grabbed the rope at his waist and swung sideways with all his might!

But he was still a fraction too slow.

With a tearing sound, something grazed his left shoulder, shredding multiple layers of his fur coat and leaving three bloody gashes. The feathers stuffed inside scattered into the wind!

Gritting his teeth against the searing pain,

Yang An finally managed to look back.

What he saw was a black eagle, even larger than the one he had slain earlier, soaring high before tucking its wings and diving straight at him!!

Remembering the eggs in the nest,

"Could this nest belong to a pair?! Did I kill the female, and now the male seeks vengeance?!"

Before he could dwell on it,

the black eagle was already upon him. Yang An reached for his bow, only to recall his quiver was empty—and dangling from a cliff with no footing, he couldn’t even draw his bow!

He was a sitting duck.

Utterly defenseless!

"I have to reach the cliff top now!" Abandoning any thought of fighting, Yang An scrambled up the iron arrows with desperate speed.

But no matter how fast he climbed,

he couldn’t outpace the black eagle’s flight. With a single flap of its wings, it closed the gap by dozens of meters!

As it swooped down, icy claws gleaming,

Yang An felt the lethal sharpness radiating from its talons.

Seeing them aimed straight for his skull,

"If those hit, I’m dead for sure!"

In a moment of desperation,

Yang An’s quick thinking kicked in. He yanked the remaining eagle egg from his waist and hurled it with all his strength in the opposite direction!

The black eagle, mid-strike,

suddenly saw the egg flying away, plummeting toward the abyss!

With an enraged shriek,

it abandoned its attack on Yang An, folded its wings, and spiraled downward in pursuit of the falling egg.

"The eagle took the bait!"

"Or perhaps, to it, the egg is worth far more than my life!"

"Whatever the reason,"

"this is my only chance to survive."

Seizing the opportunity, Yang An activated his [Demon Lord’s Reckoning] talent without hesitation—unleashing tenfold combat power. His blood surged as he gripped the iron arrow, using it as leverage to propel himself upward like an agile cat.

Once his feet landed firmly on the arrow,

he bent his legs like compressed springs, muscles swelling with power—

so much that they threatened to burst through his pants!

With a dull "thud!" Ten times the power suddenly erupted in his legs. Against the howling wind, Yang An leaped upwards like an arrow shot from a bow, soaring more than ten meters high!

He landed steadily on a fixed iron arrow above.

The iron arrows he had inserted earlier proved useful.

Using these iron arrows as footholds, Yang An was able to cover a distance of more than ten meters with each powerful leap, just like climbing stairs!

After eating two eagle eggs,

his strength increased, and the duration of his ten - fold combat power mode also extended significantly compared to before.

One arrow, two arrows!

After repeating this cycle more than ten times!

There was less than a hundred meters left on the two - hundred - meter cliff. With just five or six more leaps, he could reach the ground and escape into the forest.

He could survive from the clutches of the black hawk!

Yang An held his breath and gathered his strength for another leap. However, the fierce screech of the hawk came after him again!

The black hawk tore through the wind and snow as it soared upwards,

making a rattling sound!

The black hawk was extremely fast, much faster than Yang An. Seeing the hawk clutching an eagle egg in its claws and its fierce eyes fixed firmly on him, Yang An's heart sank. He knew he couldn't escape.

"Continuing to run is just a death sentence."

"Then I won't run anymore!"

"Damn feathered brute! You want my life? Well, I'll take yours first!"

With no way out, a fierce light flashed in Yang An's eyes!

With the ten - fold combat power boost,

a faint stream of dark red hostility flashed like a shooting star at the corners of his eyes. He suddenly drew the short knife from his waist and jumped off the cliff towards the black hawk flying straight up from below. He leaped down without hesitation!

It seemed that the man and the hawk were about to collide.

In the midst of their headlong rush,

the black hawk couldn't change its direction in a short time, but there was no need to.

It flapped its wings vigorously and accelerated upwards!

It intended to pierce Yang An's body with its sharp beak and tear him to pieces!

Coincidentally, Yang An had the same thought!

He held the short knife tightly with both hands, his body stretched like a fully drawn longbow, and stabbed fiercely at the hawk's head!

With the "Fate Against the Zodiac" mode fully activated,

the flow of time around Yang An seemed to slow down! Everything around him became a slow - motion scene in his eyes. Just as the hawk's beak, like a long spear, was about to pierce his body!

"Die for me!!!"

Yang An raised the short knife he had been charging with power. A split - second before the hawk, like a thunderbolt, the snow - white and glinting blade stabbed deeply into the hawk's skull!

Splat!

The short knife sank into the hawk's head up to the hilt!

Warm blood splashed on Yang An's face!

The black hawk let out a shrill scream. Due to the pain, its beak, which was supposed to pierce Yang An's abdomen, grazed his shoulder, leaving a bloodstain!

Yang An had dodged the fatal blow!

However, the impact force of the hawk's rapid flight still hadn't dissipated.

The hawk's steel - like wings, like a sweeping iron rod, hit Yang An hard in the stomach and carried him up another ten meters!

Bang!

Yang An's back slammed into the cliff wall.

The rugged and protruding rocks shredded his jacket, and several of his bones were broken. Yang An spat out a mouthful of blood from his mouth and nose. He felt as if his body was about to be crushed!

He roared in pain.

The black hawk also flapped its wings and screeched!

Both the man and the hawk had reached their limits. At this moment, it was a test of who was more ruthless!

The more ruthless one would survive!

Yang An grabbed the hawk's feathers tightly.

With the ten - fold combat power boost, his fierce eyes were blood - red and seemed to be on fire. Enduring the excruciating pain, he roared and twisted the handle of the knife inserted into the hawk's head!

"Die!!!"

The rotating blade churned the hawk's brains!

Blood flowed from the hawk's mouth and eyes. After suffering damage to its brain, it let out a mournful cry and began to fall powerlessly!

Yang An had won.

He was more ruthless than this black hawk!

His sister and brother - in - law were waiting for him to go home. Yang An didn't want to die with this feathered brute.

He let go of his hands.

Leaving the short knife in the hawk's head, Yang An grabbed the safety rope tied around his waist and jumped off the hawk before it fell.

He thought the black hawk would die like this.

However, the black hawk, with its eyes overflowing with blood, hated this human who had killed its entire family!

It hated Yang An to the core!

At the last moment of its life,

it flapped its wings twice with all its might, flew up, and bit off the safety rope on Yang An's body!

It took him with it and fell off the cliff!

...

Below the cliff.

In a pine forest not far away.

The white, soft snow on the pine branches melted into water under the impact of a heat wave.

Lin Hao, riding a flaming lion, was extremely annoyed at this moment.

He impatiently said to his adjutant Han Dang beside him: "Is your information accurate? Did Princess Anle really enter the mountain with a few female officials just to find a snow - raccoon to keep as a pet?"

"Don't worry, young master. The information was brought out by someone from the princess's mansion. It must be true. It's just..." Han Dang hesitated.

"Just what?"

"Are we really going to kidnap the princess? Won't there be any problems?"

Several years ago,

Lin Hao had accompanied Lin Yeping to the capital. He had caught a glimpse of Princess Anle from afar and was immediately smitten. Since then, he had been haunted by her image and even lost his appetite.

Princess Anle was the most beloved princess of the divine emperor.

Even if she got married in the future,

it was highly likely that she would marry a relative of the divine emperor.

Lin Hao thought he would never have the chance to get close to her.

Unexpectedly, the princess had come to Yunzhou to enjoy the snow.

Moreover, she had only brought a few accompanying female officials and no guards!

It was a god - sent opportunity!

A fiery look flashed in Lin Hao's eyes. He said excitedly: "Prince Jing needs my father's support. Once we've done the deed, this marriage will be a done deal. Even the divine emperor will have to accept it. Who would dare to object?"

"Really?"

A charming female voice suddenly came from above.

Lin Hao looked up abruptly. Above, there were only tree branches and falling snow!

"Could I have misheard?"

Lin Hao was suspicious and was about to ask his adjutant when...

Whoosh!

A vague figure flitted past his eyes!

It was as ghostly as a specter!

Lin Hao was greatly shocked and immediately lashed out his whip in the direction of the figure. However, the force of the whip only scattered the snow on the ground. He shouted to the surroundings: "Who! Who's playing tricks? Come out quickly and I'll spare your life!"

It seemed that only Lin Hao could detect the voice and the figure.

His adjutant Han Dang, who was following beside him.

Thought Lin Hao was having a hallucination and quickly asked with concern: "What happened, young master?"

Before Lin Hao could speak,

Han Dang, who had been fine just a second ago, had a red bloodline appear on his neck. Right in front of Lin Hao, his round head quietly fell off his neck and onto the ground!

The spurting blood splashed Lin Hao's face red!

Lin Hao was extremely shocked and shouted: "Enemy attack! Form a formation quickly!"

He quickly commanded the accompanying soldiers to defend. However, at the same time that Han Dang's head fell off, the other followers couldn't hear his words anymore.

Seeing that there was no response,

Lin Hao looked to the side and saw that the more than a dozen followers behind him, just like Han Dang, had their heads fall off silently. Their headless bodies spurted blood and fell off their mounts!

Their heads and headless bodies lay on the snow like disassembled toys, scattered everywhere.

Except for Lin Hao,

everyone else had died suddenly in this pine forest.

Corpses lay strewn about, and the still-warm blood dyed the snow in patches of red.

It was like blooming flowers in the winter.

Lin Hao had never encountered such a terrifying and eerie scene! His face ashen, he urged his lion to flee. But before he could run a few steps, even the flaming lion he was riding suddenly dropped its head to the ground.

The lion died suddenly and collapsed.

Lin Hao, who was on the lion, also fell into the snow.

In a state of near madness, Lin Hao kicked the lion off his leg and scrambled away, screaming, "Ghost! There are ghosts!"

At this moment.

Eight young women in cyan robes wearing faceless masks emerged slowly from the pine forest, holding blood - stained swords in their hands. Apparently, they were responsible for the deaths of the more than a dozen people before.

They formed pairs.

Blocking all of Lin Hao's escape routes.

Silently, they advanced towards him. Lin Hao was already terrified. Cornered and with nowhere to run, he broke down and wailed, drawing his sword and waving it wildly in front of him.

"Are you human or ghosts?"

"My father is Lin Yeping, the military governor of Yunzhou! If you touch me, my father won't let you off!!"

"Don't come closer!!"

Clang!

After knocking the sword out of Lin Hao's hand.

The eight young women in cyan robes sheathed their swords at the same time. Then they stood in two rows and neatly separated to the left and right, revealing a magnificent painted umbrella behind them, woven with golden silk and red thread. There were purple gold bells tied at the eight corners of the umbrella.

When the wind blew.

It made a clear and pleasant tinkling sound~

Under the painted umbrella was a phoenix - shaped carriage cast in gold, with two green phoenixes with soft - glowing wings lying in front.

Qin Guo'er, Princess Anle of the Great Xia Dynasty.

With a red veil covering her face and a lazy look in her eyebrows.

Leaning on the phoenix - shaped carriage, she played with her freshly painted fingernails and said indifferently, "Filthy worm, say it again.

Who are you going to kidnap?"