In the face of the Eagle King's ferocious assault, Jarius ordered the Winged Man to steer clear of this airspace, focusing instead on decimating the Eagle King's Court army.
He, however, stood his ground, ready to confront this aged legend!
In the Felander Continent, a legendary figure represented the pinnacle of a tribe's strength.
For an ordinary tribe, it might take dozens of generations to cultivate the conditions necessary for a legend to emerge.
From an extraordinary individual to a professional, from the formal tier to the heroic tier, a tribe would often expend vast time and resources, tempered through blood and fire.
The birth of a legend marked the true rise of a race.
A legendary powerhouse, with a lifespan of at least a thousand years, could safeguard their race for a millennium—a fortune beyond measure.
As the sole legend of the Eaglefolk, the Eagle King was ancient.
Unlike long-lived species, the average lifespan of an ordinary Eaglefolk in this era was merely around fifty years.
Though he appeared as a middle-aged Eaglefolk, the Eagle King had lived for nine hundred years, with only a few years left.
His physical vitality had waned, his strength a shadow of its former glory.
Thus, he acted with caution. During the war between the Titans and the Goblins, the Eaglefolk, loyal to the Thunder Titans for generations, refrained from full commitment to preserve the future of the Eagle King's Court.
The Eagle King's greatest regret was the absence of a new legend among his descendants.
Among his princes and grandchildren, none possessed exceptional talent.
Though the tribe boasted many gifted young Eaglefolk, the Eagle King refused to pass the royal family's legendary advancement profession to them.
The throne of the Eagle King could only belong to his bloodline.
In truth, he sometimes harbored regrets.
In his prime, there was a prodigious prince who reached the heroic tier in mere decades. Yet, to secure his rule, the Eagle King orchestrated a conspiracy that destroyed his son's path to transcendence, driving him to suicide and banishing his descendants from the court.
It was said that this small tribe settled in a modest mountain in the East, where they flourished.
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Above the Sky Mountain.
Enveloped in the power of the storm, the Eagle King soared, wielding a bone spear, his killing intent surging as he charged toward Jarius, fury blazing in his heart!
His original plan had been to surrender to the Goblin King, ensuring the survival of the Eagle King's Court.
He had chosen his strongest heir to succeed him, confident that no one within the tribe would oppose him.
After all, the most talented tribesmen had been sent to the battlefields of the Titans and Goblins.
In time, when his descendants produced a legend, the Eaglefolk would rise again.
But now, Jarius's Winged Man legion threatened to erase his court entirely!
And from Jarius's words, it seemed the Eaglefolk had lost their chance to surrender—the court was truly doomed!
This filled him with a desire to tear Jarius to pieces!
How despicable!
As he soared into the sky, charging at the Winged Man's leader, he saw that Jarius showed no fear. Instead, the leader drew a long sword, calm and composed, ready to face him in battle. This sparked a mocking laugh in the Eagle King's heart.
"Ignorant Winged One, do you think a mere heroic tier can challenge the might of a legend?"
Within fifty meters of Jarius, the Eagle King raised his bone spear, wild storm energy swirling around him. The rhythm of a legend radiated outward, and a storm-forged legendary domain enveloped Jarius!
"Storm Domain!"
Instantly, within the domain, dozens of wind spears formed from the storm hurtled toward Jarius, while the legendary aura pressed heavily against his body.
At the same time, the Eagle King accelerated, thrusting his spear forward!
Faced with the Eagle King's tempestuous onslaught, Jarius's violet eyes gleamed with radiant light.
Behind him, his pure white wings glowed brightly, and soon, two additional wings of light materialized.
His speed surged dramatically!
Like a dancer on a knife's edge, he deftly evaded every attack from the Eagle King.
Then, Jarius brandished his bronze sword, violet lightning crackling along its blade. As the Eagle King's spear missed its mark, Jarius struck, slashing at the Eagle King's black wings.
"Argh!"
Blood sprayed, fueling the Eagle King's rage.
In an instant, Jarius was like a lone boat adrift in a stormy sea.
Yet, the indomitable combat awareness granted by his Champion's Will ensured that, despite the Eagle King's advantage of terrain and timing, he couldn't land a single blow. Instead, Jarius relentlessly wore him down.
Finally, amid gasps of shock, the Eagle King's hands were severed, his wings broken, and he plummeted to the ground!
He was too old, unable to sustain prolonged combat. In his youth, Jarius might not have stood a chance!
As Jarius pursued, the fallen Eagle King gave a bitter smile.
"I am willing to surrender and pledge allegiance to your Winged Man!"
"No need. The Eagle King's Court will fall today!"
Jarius coldly refused, folding his wings as he descended to the ground, step by step, toward the fallen Eagle King.
Despair gripped the Eagle King, and he couldn't help but cry out.
"Why must you drive my people to extinction?"
"Eagle King, do you remember the Gaoman Mountain Eagle Tribe?"
"The Gaoman Mountain Eagle Tribe?"
The Eagle King racked his mind.
"You don't recall, do you? But we do. The ancestors of our Winged Man hail from the Gaoman Mountain Eagle Tribe. When we were weak, it was your Eagle King's Court that bled the Gaoman Mountain Tribe dry, time and again. My forebears, my ancestors, were all used as cannon fodder in the wars between Titans and Dragons!"
"Today, we've come for vengeance! Who would've thought? The lofty Eagle King's Court, destroyed by the small tribe it once despised!"
Jarius let out a hearty laugh, unwilling to let the Eagle King speak further. With a single stroke, he beheaded him.
As the Eagle King's head soared into the sky, a sudden realization struck.
"Back then, didn't the descendants of my most exceptional son settle in Gaoman Mountain?"
If I hadn't acted as I did, would the outcome have been different?
With endless regret, the Eagle King's consciousness faded into darkness!