Raising Beast Cubs to Find a Husband-Chapter 173: The Sandbox of Gods

The Neutral Zone was not a place people went on holiday.

It was a vast, endless ocean of white sand, sandwiched between the lush jungles of the Tiger Sector and the frozen peaks of the Wolf North. There were no trees. No water. No cover. Just wind, silence, and the bones of ancient beasts.

THUD.

The Abyssal Hunter touched down on a massive dune, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Rurik stepped out first. He sneezed immediately.

"I hate sand," Rurik grumbled, shaking his fur. "It gets in the ears. It gets in the boots. It takes weeks to get it out."

"Focus, fuzzball," Rajah said, jumping down beside him. He planted his greatsword in the sand. "This is the kill box. No civilians to save. No buildings to break. Just us and them."

Caspian stepped out, shielding his eyes from the purple glare of the sky. "It is dry," he noted unhappily. "My scales are already itching."

Cassian, the Serpent Warlord, descended the ramp. He adjusted his spectacles, his robes fluttering in the desert wind. Unlike the others who carried swords or axes, Cassian carried a staff made of twisted green wood and emeralds. He was a Mage of the highest order.

"Mana density is optimal," Cassian stated, tapping his staff. "The Leylines here are exposed. I can draw directly from the earth."

Primrose walked down the ramp. Her Nine Silver Tails were deactivated, looking like ordinary white fur to save energy, but the air around her shimmered with latent power.

"Set up the perimeter," Primrose ordered. "Kids, stay by the ship. Jax, keep the runes warm. If we signal, you take the kids and fly."

"You don’t have to tell me twice," Jax muttered, checking his crossbow. "I’m keeping the transport ready to launch."

Jasper sat cross-legged on the sand, placing Pickles (the Baby Imugi) in front of him. The little green snake was happily burrowing into the warm sand.

"Atmospheric conditions are stable," Jasper reported. "Pickles is charged. We wait for the target."

They didn’t have to wait long.

The wind stopped.

The sand stopped shifting.

Above them, the purple clouds swirled into a massive spiral.

CRACK.

The sky split open.

The Void Core didn’t descend. It simply deleted the sky. A massive, black sphere—the size of a small moon—pushed its way into the atmosphere. It was so heavy that the sand dunes beneath it began to flatten from the sheer gravitational pressure.

"It’s big," Vali whispered, clutching Clover’s hand.

From the bottom of the black sphere, a beam of solid darkness struck the desert floor, a mile away from them.

Figures began to emerge from the darkness.

First, the Void Sovereign. He walked calmly, his cane tapping on the compressed sand.

Then, his army.

Thousands of Void-Beasts scuttled out like ants. But they were just the fodder.

Behind the Sovereign, four massive shadows rose up. They were towering monstrosities made of black starlight and bone.

The Four Calamities.

A Void-Tiger, burning with black fire.

A Void-Wolf, dripping with liquid lightning.

A Void-Serpent, coiled and venomous.

A Void-Leviathan, floating in the air like a ghost ship.

The Sovereign stopped. He stood a hundred yards away. His single white eye focused on Primrose.

"You chose a scenic grave," the Sovereign’s voice boomed across the dunes. "Open space. Nowhere to hide. I appreciate the efficiency."

Primrose stepped forward. She stood alone in the middle of the dunes, looking small against the army of monsters.

"We didn’t come to hide," Primrose shouted back.

She raised her hand. The Silver Crest on her knuckles glowed.

"Jasper! Now!"

Behind her, Jasper touched the gem on Pickles’ forehead.

"Go, Pickles!" Jasper commanded. "Sanitize!"

The baby dragon shot into the air. He opened his three galaxy-eyes and let out a piercing, chiming cry.

Primrose flared her Nine Silver Tails. A beam of pure silver mana shot from her tails, hitting Pickles in the air.

PING.

The connection was made. Unity.

Pickles acted as the amplifier. The silver light exploded outward, forming a massive, translucent dome over the entire battlefield.

Green wind mixed with Silver light swept across the sand.

The Void-Beasts screamed. The black smoke leaking from their bodies vanished. The purple sky inside the dome turned a clear, bright blue.

"What is this?" the Sovereign hissed. He looked at his hand. The bubbling Void energy usually shielding him was gone. His skin looked solid. Vulnerable.

"It’s a Purification Field," Primrose explained, grinning wolfishly. "Inside this dome, the Void cannot regenerate. No healing. No respawning. If we cut you... you bleed."

She drew a sword she had borrowed from the armory—a sleek, silver rapier.

"And we plan to cut you a lot."

The Sovereign’s eye narrowed. "Kill them."

The Four Calamities roared and charged.

The Warlords didn’t wait. They launched themselves to meet the threat.

Rajah laughed, his blue flames igniting. He sprinted toward the burning black tiger.

"A copycat?" Rajah taunted. "Let me show you why the original is always better!"

CLASH. Sword met claw in an explosion of blue and black fire.

Rurik shifted into his Beast Form—a massive Werewolf with lightning crackling in his fur. He tackled the Void-Wolf mid-air.

"There’s only room for one Alpha in this desert!" Rurik howled, biting into the monster’s neck.

The giant snake lunged, dripping venom that melted the sand.

Lucien vanished into the shadows (which were now stable thanks to the dome) and appeared on its back, stabbing deep with twin daggers.

Cassian stood his ground, his eyes glowing neon green. He slammed his staff into the sand.

"Serpent Art: Venomous Chains!"

Green mana chains erupted from the ground, binding the giant snake. Cassian chanted a spell, his hands weaving complex runes.

"Alchemical Decay!"

A green cloud enveloped the beast, dissolving its Void-armor instantly.

"Finish it, Lucien!" Cassian commanded.

Lucien drove his blade into the exposed weak point.

The ghost-whale floated toward the ship.

Caspian stood on a dune. He didn’t have water. So he made some.

He slammed his trident into the sand. He pulled the groundwater from deep beneath the desert, geysers erupting to form water whips.

"You are a mockery of the sea," Caspian said coldly. "Drown."

The two Lion brothers stood back-to-back, facing the swarm of smaller Void-Beasts.

"Just like the old days, brother?" Leonis asked, his golden sword shining.

"Better," Bastion grinned, swinging his claymore. "We have an audience."

He pointed to Ellia and Arjun watching from the ship.

That left two.

Primrose floated in the air, her Silver Tails swirling around her.

The Sovereign floated opposite her, gripping his cane.

"You took away my regeneration," the Sovereign noted calmly. "Clever. But I am still an Elder God. And you are just a Nanny."

"I’m a Silver Sovereign," Primrose corrected.

She didn’t wait. She attacked.

She flicked her tails.

A lance of silver fire shot out.

A bolt of silver thunder struck from above.

A blade of pressurized silver water sliced horizontally.

The Sovereign blocked with his cane, but the force pushed him back. He grunted.

He felt that.

"Enough games!" the Sovereign roared.

He pointed his cane at the ground.

"Gravity Crush!"

The sand beneath Primrose exploded downward. Gravity increased tenfold.

Primrose fell, hitting the sand hard. She struggled to stand, her bones creaking.

"Heavy..." she gasped.

The Sovereign teleported above her. He raised his cane like a spear, aiming for her heart.

"Die, Fox."

THWACK.

An arrow hit the Sovereign in the shoulder.

It didn’t hurt him much, but it annoyed him. He looked up.

Jax was standing on the ramp of the ship, holding his crossbow. His hands were shaking, but he was reloading.

"Get away from her!" Jax screamed.

"Insignificant insect," the Sovereign snarled. He raised a hand to delete Jax.

But that distraction was all Primrose needed.

She forced herself up against the crushing gravity. She channeled the Green Tail.

"Roots!" she screamed.

Massive roots made of silver light burst from the sand. They wrapped around the Sovereign’s legs, holding him in place.

Primrose broke the gravity hold. She flew forward, channeling the Silver Tail into her fist.

She punched him.

Right in the face (or where his face would be).

CRACK.

The black sphere of his head cracked.

The Sovereign stumbled back, clutching his face.

"You... punched me?"

"I learned from Rurik," Primrose panted, shaking her hand. "It’s very therapeutic."

The Sovereign looked around.

His Calamities were losing.

Rajah had just suplexed the Void-Tiger.

Caspian had trapped the Leviathan in a water-sphere.

Cassian had dissolved the Serpent’s armor with High Magic.

Rurik was using the Void-Wolf as a chew toy.

And he was bleeding.

"No," the Sovereign whispered. "I will not lose to this... biological filth."

He looked at the Void Core hovering above them.

"If I cannot harvest you," the Sovereign shrieked, losing his composure completely. "I WILL ERASE YOU!"

He raised both hands.

The huge black moon in the sky began to descend rapidly.

He was dropping the moon on them.

"He’s crashing the Core!" Cassian yelled, his staff glowing red with warning. "Impact in two minutes! The mana density is enough to wipe out the continent!"

"We can’t stop a moon!" Jax panicked.

Primrose looked at the falling black sphere. It blocked out the entire sky.

She looked at her tails. She looked at Pickles, who was struggling to keep the dome up under the pressure.

She needed more power.

She needed to break the limit.

She looked at the Warlords.

"Dads!" Primrose shouted, her voice amplified by mana. "We need to combine!"

"Combine?" Rajah yelled, chopping a beast in half. "Like a War Golem?"

"Like a family!" Primrose screamed. "Channel everything you have into me! I’ll act as the focus!"

"The Nine-Tailed Cannon?" Leonis asked. "Is that a thing?"

"It is now!"

The Warlords disengaged. They rushed to Primrose’s side.

They all placed their hands on her back.

"Take it, Prim!" Rajah roared.

"Channeling Maximum Mana!" Cassian shouted, his staff touching her shoulder.

They poured their souls into her.

Primrose screamed. Her Nine Silver Tails fused together. They grew huge, forming a massive beam of pure, blinding white light.

She aimed at the falling moon.

"BEAST EMPIRE..." Primrose gritted her teeth. "SOVEREIGN BLAST!"

She fired.

A beam of energy, wider than the city of Solaris, shot upward.

It hit the Void Core.

SCREEEEEEECH.

The sound of reality tearing was deafening.

The beam pushed against the falling moon. For a second, it was a stalemate.

"PUSH!" Vali screamed from the ship. "PUSH AUNTIE PRIM!"

Primrose poured every ounce of love, rage, and nanny-energy she had into the blast.

CRACK. 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

The Void Core cracked down the middle.

The beam punched through it.

The massive black moon shattered into a billion pieces of harmless obsidian rain.

The Sovereign, standing in the shadow of his destroyed weapon, looked up.

"Impossible," he whispered.

The backlash of the explosion hit him.

He dissolved.

Not into smoke. Into nothing.

The Void Sovereign was deleted.

The sand settled.

The sky cleared. The purple was gone, replaced by a beautiful, normal sunset.

Primrose stood in the desert. Her tails flickered and vanished. She collapsed.

Caspian caught her before she hit the sand.

"Prim?" he asked frantically.

Primrose opened one eye.

"Did we get him?" she whispered.

"We got him," Caspian smiled, tears in his teal eyes. "We got him."

"Good," Primrose murmured. "I’m taking a nap. Wake me up when the cake is ready."

She passed out, snoring softly.