The moment the beast-controlling talisman array was complete, the attitude of that silver-white viscous beast underwent a complete transformation toward him.
It coiled and sprang, landing directly in Zong Shou’s palm. All its tendrils had retracted. Its entire body had taken on the shape of a perfect droplet. It was smooth on the exterior, lacking the repulsive slime typical of common viscous beasts. It rubbed against Zong Shou’s palm, appearing utterly adorable.
“The name ‘Silver-White Beast King’ is truly terrible. Hmm, it looks a bit like jelly. From now on, I’ll call you Jelly—”
Looking at it again, this little thing in his hand did bear a striking resemblance to actual jelly.
Zong Shou swallowed hard, then immediately felt something was amiss.
“Right! At this era, jelly probably doesn't even exist yet. And the name is too weak for battle. It won't do as a true spirit beast name later on. You are descended from a Divine Beast after all; your ancestor was famous. The name needs to be more magnificent to have presence. Yes, I'll rethink this! I recall that when you evolve to your absolute peak, your body turns a purplish-gold. How about ‘Little Gold’ then? Speaking of which, you feast on all things under heaven—this innate divine ability of yours is somewhat similar to my Heaven-Swallowing Primal Transformation Grand Art—”
The silver-white viscous beast understood none of it, merely rubbing itself against him further.
Zong Shou chuckled, taking the little creature’s actions as agreement. Just then, a graceful silhouette cut through the dense raindrops from afar, hurrying toward them.
As the figure drew closer, it was revealed to be Chu Xue. She was splattered with blood, and her clothes were significantly tattered, though she herself seemed unmarked by any injury.
Zong Shou was not at all surprised. If two martial cultivators working together amounted to one plus one equaling two, then a martial cultivator combined with a Spirit Master resulted in one plus one equaling three, perhaps even four or five.
The attacking force this time was not numerous: three Seventh-Meridian Secret Martial Masters, accompanied by about ten Martial Masters. Overall, their strength was marginally weaker than the force led by Zong Yu and Wu Wei that other time.
However, adding the Soul Observation Realm Spirit Master stationed here increased their combat power by a massive fifty percent!
But once this Qi Xiao was dead, the vastly empowered Yin Yang and Chu Xue would find dispatching the remaining opponents an exceedingly easy task.
Su Chu Xue, however, could not remain composed. Seeing Zong Shou’s frail appearance, she started in alarm. Only when she realized her Young Master carried not a single scratch did her tension ease.
The next moment, her gaze was fixed on the object in Zong Shou’s hand, her eyes clouded with confusion.
“Young Master? What is this—”
“My personal guard!” Zong Shou smiled proudly. “Its name is Little Gold. Doesn't it sound imposing?”
Chu Xue stared blankly, unable to see the connection between the name ‘Little Gold’ and the concept of ‘imposing presence.’
Yet, this did not halt her thoughts. Her eyes darted, and she roughly guessed the creature’s origin: “Is this the mutated viscous beast of that so-called ‘Silver-White Beast King’? Young Master, are you truly planning to keep it as a guard? I heard a Spirit Master can only ever subdue between five and twenty personal guards in a lifetime; even a Divine Master beyond the True Form Realm cannot alter that number. It seems those of us who cultivate both spirit and martial arts have even fewer slots—”
Zong Shou shook his head gravely. “Do you think this little fellow is utterly useless and won’t be able to help me later?”
Although ‘Little Gold’ was only at the Second Order, it possessed a degree of sentience. When Zong Shou uttered the word ‘useless,’ it immediately hopped in Zong Shou’s palm to protest.
Su Chu Xue pursed her lips. Viscous beasts were universally recognized as the weakest and least intelligent kind of spirit beast. Even a mutated guard of this type, she suspected, had little future potential.
The next instant, however, Zong Shou’s lips curled slightly. “Xue’er, do you know what the earliest ancestor of the Viscous Beasts was? And what bloodline it inherited?”
“The earliest ancestor of the Viscous Beasts? I recall it was the Divine Beast Myriad Manifestations? It could change into myriad things, capable of transforming into anything. Legend says when Myriad Manifestations changed into a Black Dragon, it could fight the Black Dragon in water; when it changed into a Fire Phoenix, it could contend with the Fire Phoenix in flames. Among the ancient Divine Beasts, it was the most bizarre and unpredictable, regarded as a top-tier Divine Beast, tragically it perished during the Desolate Antiquity era—”
As Chu Xue spoke, she suddenly started, scrutinizing the silver, gelatinous mass in Zong Shou’s hand, wondering if this creature could truly evolve into that ‘Myriad Manifestations.’
A moment later, she let out a disdainful snort.
“Young Master, it's not that Xue’er doesn’t believe you, but for this viscous beast to evolve into Myriad Manifestations—that’s just too absurd!”
“It’s fine! Spirit Masters can have many guards, but they can only utilize one or two at a time, depending on the strength of their soul power. Wasting one or two slots is inconsequential!”
Zong Shou shook his head, not bothering to elaborate further. This little creature in his hand would indeed ascend to the Divine Beast rank later on. It would narrowly miss possessing the true Myriad Manifestations bloodline, but its final foundation proved unstable, leading to failure at the last hurdle.
However, even if he explained these things, Chu Xue would not believe him.
He formed another hand seal, and Little Gold’s body automatically dissolved, spreading like a membrane to envelop Zong Shou’s hand. It then wriggled upward and vanished into his sleeve.
“Oh, right. I remember you don't have a suitable guard beside you yet?”
“I do not! My Tiger-Cat Clan cultivates only martial arts; there were no Spirit Masters among us before. The Lord once said he would find me a top-tier spirit beast as a guard. But shortly thereafter, the Lord met with misfortune.”
Speaking of this, a shadow crossed Chu Xue’s face. “It’s nothing, really. I’m sure I’ll find a suitable spirit beast eventually—”
Before her words finished, Chu Xue saw a silver wooden jar tossed toward her. Catching it and examining it, a look of genuine delight instantly bloomed on her face.
“This is a Third Order Cold Nether Tiger, and it’s a Soul Beast?”
The Cold Nether Tiger grows in the Northlands; it is naturally a king among beasts and favors extreme cold. Its fur, claws, and teeth are honed razor-sharp by the harsh environment.
A Cold Nether Tiger beyond the Fifth Order cannot be hunted by a martial artist short of the Black Tortoise Sect Realm, even in the severest ice and snow.
Even the spirit soul of a Cold Nether Tiger reduced by two ranks still possessed considerable strength.
In truth, it wasn't the strongest among spirit beasts. But being a type of tiger, its essence aligned perfectly with Chu Xue’s Tiger-Cat bloodline. For Chu Xue, it was the most suitable companion possible.
Seeing Xue’er happy, Zong Shou was pleased as well. He had originally intended to give her the Harrier Eagle too, but upon remembering that Xue’er was a spirit-martial dual cultivator, he abandoned the idea.
Though the Harrier Eagle was good—it could fly high for reconnaissance and deter prying eyes, and when its body grew to forty feet later, it could be ridden—its combat effectiveness as a guard spirit beast was somewhat lacking.
Moreover, the Harrier Eagle was currently severely injured.
As the two spoke, another silhouette drifted from beyond the dense woods to hover near the altar.
After carefully examining the corpses on the ground, Yin Yang’s thick brows immediately furrowed. “Is the Young Lord injured? And who is this person? That attire looks somewhat familiar—”
Chu Xue’s face instantly flushed crimson. She had rushed here precisely to check on Zong Shou’s situation, but because of the Cold Nether Tiger in her hands, she had almost entirely forgotten about the ongoing matters.
Zong Shou’s expression stiffened. He took out the Peach Wood Sword in his hand, observing a distinct dove imprint etched clearly upon the blade.
“This person just now said his name was Qi Xiao!”
“Qi Xiao? So it was him!”
Yin Yang’s expression flickered, revealing a look of sudden realization, mixed with what seemed like both relief and extreme headache, his eyes showing bafflement. “This man’s master is a figure from the Central Cloud Continent, reportedly a Spirit Master of the Reversion Realm who came to our Eastern Lin Cloud Realm to escape calamity. While this is somewhat troublesome, Qi Xiao’s teacher is unlikely to arrive on the doorstep immediately. But who exactly was it that invited this person here?”
PS: Third update for the third day, but the recommendations and clicks are truly disheartening.