"You have no idea who you're messing with!" The Behemoth roared as he grew another head, struggling to throw Katherine off his back.
"Oh, I know exactly who I'm dealing with," Katherine replied with a chuckle as she shot a ball of lightning into his mouth, ripping it to shreds. "You're just a giant turtle without a shell who can't even move."
The Behemoth couldn't even respond, but his anger could be felt by the sudden awakening of the forest. The aura of his domain almost doubled in power as the greenery around them came to life, and all kinds of vines burst out from the ground.
The vines twisted and snaked through the air, lunging towards Katherine with deadly accuracy. She abandoned relying solely on her trusty lightning, her body covering itself with Golden Earth Flame, burning any vines that got too close. They didn't seem to care, though, as they kept reappearing one after another to distract her from snapping the Behemoth's head.
"Annoying flies! You have no idea what kind of powers I hold. I have the Gate of Life, and I'm truly immortal!" the Behemoth bragged, his body rapidly regenerating as he finally got back on his feet. The vines swiftly wrapped around his burning body, creating tight armor to protect him from the flames.
It was clear that simply cutting him into pieces and burning his corpse wouldn't work; any physical wound healed rapidly, while his level of Qi didn't even drop. The only way to defeat him was by damaging his soul, which seemed unscathed from their attacks.
'Mona, are you okay?' Katherine questioned as they spotted the flaming fox dodging the vines in the distance. 'Can you kill it in one go, or should we just burn it until it runs out of Qi?'
'I can give it a try. Just keep him locked in one position, and I'll take care of it,' Mona replied as she rushed toward the Behemoth, her tails burning with Golden Earth Flame.
Bella didn't need to be told twice. She dove momentarily from the sky, her wings cutting any vine in her path. She cut the Behemoth's legs to keep him grounded, while Katherine burned the vines from his back to prepare for a clean shot.
None of them saw the full scope of Mona's abilities, but they had full trust in her. They watched her jump from vine to vine as she closed in on the Behemoth. She finally leapt, launching herself above his body. All her nine tails connected in one spot before a beam of golden fire shot out like a laser, piercing straight through the Behemoth's back.
Everyone held their breath as the Behemoth suddenly stopped moving, but the celebration had to be withheld as the ten-meter hole in his body began to heal.
'My Spirit Beam damages both the soul and body, but this Gate of Life he has seems to be healing both. Unless I destroy his whole body at the same time, he will just regenerate endlessly,' Mona commented with a sigh.
'Should I use my Heavenly Chains to restrict his usage of Qi?' Xuefeng wondered as they were running out of options, but Tianshi stopped him from intervening.
'It's okay, Mona seems to have made up her mind,' she said softly. 'We will all miss you.'
'What do you mean?' Xuefeng questioned with a frown, only to see Mona change the trajectory of her fall. She was heading straight towards the hole in the Behemoth's back.
'Don't worry, I will be fine,' Mona assured playfully as her body disappeared inside the wound. 'I really enjoyed my time with you. Hopefully, it won't be long before we can see each other again.'
Bella and Katherine seemed to realize what was going on, so they quickly evacuated, leaving the rest in Mona's hands.
'Tell my sister that I love her,' Mona said happily before their connection was cut, the hole in the Behemoth's back closing.
"Haha! Giving up already? Cowards! You didn't even wait for me to unleash my most powerful ability! Come back and taste my power!" The Behemoth taunted the escaping pair, but he suddenly paused, his neck extending toward his back. "You—"
He wasn't able to finish as his insides exploded; a massive ball of flames completely swallowed anything within a mile radius. The Behemoth couldn't even scream as his whole body was covered by golden light, and his earth domain collapsed along with his existence.
"Mona!" Xuefeng cried out as the flames vanished and didn't hesitate to cancel his domain to rescue her. He appeared on the site, and his heart sank when he spotted a naked body lying in the middle of the charred ground.
He rushed to her side, placing his hand on her chest to sense her heartbeat, and sighed in relief when he found she was alive. He covered her body with a set of clothes just before she began her transformation.
Her rosy skin turned pale, while her crimson hair lost its color, becoming dark and ashy. Her nine tails became white with red tips as if covered in blood, and her nails turned into long claws, as sharp as knives. Xuefeng couldn't help but caress her cheek to ease her transition when he noticed her fangs poking against her lower lip.
"Mona, are you alright?" Xuefeng asked, his voice laced with worry.
Instead of a reply, her eyelids suddenly snapped open, gazing at him with pitch-black eyes. She didn't ask questions; instead, she grabbed onto his wrist to stop his caress. He smiled at her gently as he attempted to explain himself when she slammed him against the ground with excessive force and jumped on top of him with a hungry look.
"This must be your Blood Element Form," Xuefeng guessed, not resisting her cravings. "You must be starving after being locked away for a long time. Feel free to drink as much as you want."
He pulled down his collar to expose his neck, and Mona accepted the invitation, her fangs digging into his skin. He was already used to having his blood sucked after Wuying's episodes and simply hugged her close while holding her hair to avoid staining them.
"Don't worry, take all the time you need," Xuefeng reassured her again, forming a Spirit Barrier around them to protect Mona's body from being seen. "I will protect you from any danger. Do what you need to recover your strength."
It seemed like Mona didn't listen, but she relaxed at his words. She stopped restricting his arm and instead brushed it into his hair to hold his head in the position she liked. Her body shivered as his hand trailed along her smooth back, but she didn't push it away, already accepting that he wouldn't harm her.
"I don't expect you to believe it right away, but I am your husband. At least, I was with two of your sisters, the ones who control water and fire," Xuefeng informed her. "I will continue to love and protect you with similar affection no matter which form you take. I hope you can give me the chance to prove my love once again."
His words seemed to have a positive effect, as her sucking became more gentle, her tongue licking the blood that spilled on his neck. He only smiled and continued to explain what had happened in her life to give her a better understanding.
Meanwhile, her tails continued to transform; the more blood she sucked, the crimson fur invaded deeper parts of her tails. Her hair also grew whiter until it shone with a silver hue, and her eyes turned red, a sign that she was satisfied with his blood.
Xuefeng reached the moment where he described how she had sacrificed herself to defeat the Behemoth just before her tails turned fully crimson, and she pulled away. Blood dripped from her fangs into his clothes, but he didn't care at all, even lending her his sleeve to wipe her mouth.
"Did you enjoy your meal?" Xuefeng asked with a smile, sitting up and gently placing her on his lap.
"It was delicious," Mona spoke for the first time, her voice sounding like a melody. She observed him closely with a bit of caution, and then looked down at her body as if to recall how she looked.
"Do you want me to let you go and turn around, so you can get dressed?" Xuefeng asked politely, motioning at her hand. "You should have a couple of dresses inside your Storage Ring. If none of them suit your liking, I can ask others to lend you something else to wear."
"It's okay, you can stay," Mona replied calmly. "You have already seen me naked, so there is no point in hiding anymore."
"If you say so," Xuefeng said, his thumb rubbing her thigh affectionately. "If you ever feel uncomfortable with anything I do, just let me know. Your comfort is the most important to me."
"Why are you so nice to me?" Mona asked curiously, her fingers playing with his collar. "I'm not the same person as the one you married. I'm a completely different person."
"You might have a different personality and memories, but you are still the same person," Xuefeng explained. "You are my Mona, and your condition doesn't change that. I will love each and every one of you, no matter what happens."
"Are you fine with being a stranger to us every time we swap?" Mona questioned as she pulled closer, looking into his eyes to see his true colors. "If you are fine with just any personality, does it mean you just love our body, not the inside?"
"Of course not; I love you for who you are, not just your body," Xuefeng countered. "I would, of course, prefer to spend my life with one version of you, but if it's not possible, I will accept all nine of you. Love is about understanding, and each time you change, I learn to love you just the same."
Xuefeng reached for her love handles and pulled her waist even closer, their chests pressing together. He embraced her naked back and said, with their lips almost touching, "So far, two of your sisters have accepted me with all their hearts. I hope by the time you complete a full rotation, I will be in love with all of you. Are you going to make it hard to love you?"