3 Growth
Whooooooshhhh
Strong winds awakened the beast kings of Tai Forest. Hulking beasts gathered as bolts of lightning flashed and the accompanying thunder roared. A storm had formed in the forest. What's odd about this storm was that although it was destructive, it seemed to only affect a small part of the forest. And at the heart of the disturbance was a mild yellow chrysanthemum.
Hissing, growling, and roaring could be heard as the monarchs of the beast kingdoms discussed the matter.
"This is... If I'm not mistaken, this type of lightning tribulation only happens during the birth of a heaven-defying beast!" hissed the Queen of Serpentine Beasts, Medusa. Her scales glittered with the colors of the rainbow as her long tongue whipped the air.
"But this isn't the aura of our beast kin! Whatever's in there smells more like a human, but with a faint trace of a plant..." discerned the Monarch of the Bears, Urseus. Their kin have one of the best olfactory senses in the Beast Empire.
As the other Beast Kings pondered meticulously over the situation, Satyrus's eyes, however, shone with a clever light. 'A human baby! This is the chance I've been waiting for!' the Beast King thought secretly.
"I propose that we let my Kingdom-" but before he could pitch in his proposal, all the other beast kings interrupted him, shouting in unison.
"No way in hell!"
"We won't let your eloquence sway us again sly monkey!" the nine-tailed Fox King rebutted, albeit a little hypocritically.
"What about the revival of my-" Satyrus pleaded with desperation in his eyes, only to be cut off once again.
"We don't give a damn about your dead son's hairy a*s! He should just stay dead!" shouted the Bull King.
Gasp!
Hearing these vulgar words, a fox maiden almost fainted. Though she did manage to stay conscious, a gasp escaped her trembling lips.
The story of the Monkey King and his son was a tale renowned all throughout the forest. Many beasts admired the love the father-and-son pair shared. It was a famous bedtime story many Beast parents would impart to their children to teach them of love and sacrifice.
The bovine could only sweat buckets as he earned sharp gazes from the Beasts around him. The Fox King's gaze was especially domineering, even carrying a slightly murderous intent. He felt a cold chill run down his spine.
'Oh sh*t'
"I-I, uh, take all of that back. Hehe, I'm so sorry, Satyrus."
"Satyrus will not keep the baby!" an overbearing tiger's roar resounded in all of the Beast Kings' ears.
"Bu-But"
"Enough! We shall not jeopardize the welfare of our kith and kin just for your selfish experiments, Satyrus! We won't make the same mistake again!"
A beautiful white tiger emerged from the depths of the forests. Its steps made no sound yet the Beast Kings could feel their very soul quake whenever earth and snow-white fur made contact.
He gazed at Satyrus deeply before making his decree, " The child, whatever form it takes, will be cast out onto the human village over the river. Its survival and welfare is out of our concerns. I want it out of my forest the moment the lightning clouds disperse."
"Yes, my lord"
"Y-Yes, my lord" Satyrus uttered with grit teeth. He wouldn't dare disobey the Beast Emperor, unless...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Under the storm's turbulent veil, a baby, in its early fetal form, shone with a yellow brilliance. This formed a stark contrast with the dark storm clouds that loomed over it.
The baby continued to change, undergoing rapid growth stimulated by the dense vitality of the Immortal Chrysanthemum and the powerful growth factor of the Sun's Radiance.
In merely a blink of an eye, the baby had grown even further; completing the development that took 9 months for a normal baby in a few seconds!
This speed was phenomenal!
