Chapter Three: Survival of the Fittest

Jiang Xuan had no idea that his younger siblings had already reached some kind of unspoken agreement behind his back.

He had just enjoyed a comfortable nap, and upon waking, he felt an emptiness gnawing at his belly.

He must be hungry!

Just as he was pondering what he could find to eat, a sharp eagle’s cry echoed from the distant sky.

Suddenly, something fell from above.

With flawless precision, it landed directly in their nest!

When Jiang Xuan saw what it was, he was so startled that he shuddered from head to toe and hurriedly hopped backward a few steps.

Good heavens—it was a shimmering, golden “giant spicy stick”!

The snake wasn’t particularly large, about half a meter long and as thick as a thumb.

Its head had already been bitten off—undeniably, it was dead.

If Jiang Xuan guessed correctly, the figure circling in the sky earlier must have been their mother or father.

And this little snake was the meal they’d brought for him.

“Haha, a meal ready the moment I wake up!”

“This is almost too good to be true.”

Jiang Xuan beamed with delight, opened his beak wide, and began pecking at the small snake.

But as soon as his beak struck the snake’s scales, sparks flew, and the scales remained almost untouched, bearing only the faintest mark.

“Ouch, ouch, ouch!”

Jiang Xuan cried out in pain, clutching his beak and grimacing.

Seeing him so defeated, the Empress finally let out a triumphant laugh.

“Hahaha, what a foolish bird!”

“Can he not tell that this is the corpse of a second-tier Gold-Armored Snake?”

“Though only second tier, its scales are as tough as metal!”

“If I’m not mistaken, the mother bird brought this Gold-Armored Snake demon to temper our beaks. In a world of demon beasts, only the strong survive. If we can’t even crack the scales of a dead snake demon, then we deserve to starve!”

“From this, it seems our true forms must be raptors—eagles or hawks—predators by nature!”

“This fat bird knows nothing at all; he must either be a powerful soul reincarnated, a natural mutation, or a throwback to an ancient bloodline.”

On the other side, the Demon Lord’s thoughts were much the same.

“The fat bird is inconsequential, clearly lacking in intelligence—most likely a simpleton with an atavistic bloodline.”

“Once I grow strong, I’ll make him my pet and mount, and drive him every day to avenge today’s humiliation!”

“But that little white bird—I’ll have to keep an eye on her. There’s something uncanny about her; could she, like me, be the reincarnation of some mighty being?”

Listening to these two powerhouses’ inner thoughts, Jiang Xuan chuckled to himself. Let them keep their guard up against each other.

All he had to do was quietly grow stronger and amaze them all in due time!

Now that the Empress had revealed that the little golden snake’s corpse was meant as a means of tempering, Jiang Xuan stopped worrying and picked a spot to peck at with all his strength.

As long as he could pierce the outer scales, he would be able to reach the flesh inside.

Though his beak sparked painfully with every strike, he paid no mind.

In a world where only the strong survive, what did this bit of pain matter?

Seeing the fat bird so determined to eat, the little black and little white birds were unwilling to fall behind. Each found a spot and began pecking furiously.

The sound of beak against metal rang out without pause.

In the end, Jiang Xuan prevailed. He was already the largest and best developed, and his beak was naturally harder than the others’.

With one final, powerful strike, he managed to pry off a scale, revealing the tender flesh beneath.

He tore off a generous mouthful and swallowed it whole, his mouth watering at the taste.

Though raw, there was no fishiness at all; instead, the meat was fresh, tender, and silky-sweet!

“This is even better than salmon!”

“If only I had some wasabi, it would be perfect!”

“No wonder the flesh of demon beasts is so delicious!”

Jiang Xuan sighed in satisfaction, for he soon realized that the meat was more than just tasty.

Once swallowed, it quickly transformed into surging spiritual energy, filling his whole body.

If it were measured numerically, a single mouthful of snake meat was worth about thirty points of spiritual energy.

At this rate, he would soon break through to the third tier of demon beasts!

The second to break through the scales was the Empress incarnate as the little white bird.

Unlike Jiang Xuan’s brute force, she carefully explored the snake’s body and found a weak spot—its reverse scale.

Among snakes, jiaos, and dragons, most have a reverse scale—their weakest point and easiest to pierce.

In her past life, the Empress had tamed nine dragon-serpents to pull her chariot, so she was well acquainted with such secrets.

She soon broke through the reverse scale and swallowed a large mouthful of snake meat, her eyes narrowing with joy.

Now, only the Demon Lord’s incarnation, the little black bird, was left. He lacked a hard beak like Jiang Xuan and wasn’t as clever as the Empress to find a weak spot.

After a round of frantic pecking, his beak was bent out of shape, yet he still hadn’t pried off a single scale.

Frustrated, he stomped his feet, watching as half the snake meat disappeared without him getting a taste.

Driven by desperation, he flapped his wings wildly and, to everyone’s surprise, was the first to master flight!

“Hahaha!”

“I am truly a once-in-a-lifetime genius! Even as a bird, I am unique and unrivaled—the most handsome bird in all the realms!”

“Who else could fly from birth? Bet you two fools didn’t see that coming!”

With that, he soared into the air and, before Jiang Xuan’s astonished eyes, swooped down to snatch a mouthful of snake meat, then flew up and gulped it down, even burping contentedly afterward.

Seeing Jiang Xuan stunned on the ground, he couldn’t help but make faces and taunt him, his antics as shameless as could be!

The Empress, not to be outdone, also flapped her wings and took flight.

The little black and little white birds, clutching the snake’s head and tail, carried the remaining meat into the sky.

Clearly, they meant to keep it all for themselves, not leaving Jiang Xuan a single bite!

“You two… this is too much!”

Jiang Xuan was truly furious at the sight.

Just then, the system chimed in at the perfect moment.

“Ding!”

“The host must teach his greedy siblings a lesson and redistribute the food!”

“Mission reward: one drop of Golden Eagle essence blood, plus one Evolution Point.”