The newly born cubs were incredibly frail; despite the Dragon Family Plains being lush and vibrant with the scents of spring and summer, they shivered, needing to huddle close beneath the Golden Three-Eyed Beast for warmth.

Three distinct breaths of life.

This news implied not only that mother and offspring were safe, but that the Golden Three-Eyed Beast had somehow delivered two cubs—a litter of twins. For the Three-Eyed Beasts, creatures known for immense power but extremely low fertility, this was an unimaginable miracle.

For an ordinary Three-Eyed Beast, simply bringing forth a single cub in a lifetime was a rare feat; even Zhang Yang himself could not have conceived of the Golden Three-Eyed Beast producing twins.

Zhang Yang looked at the slightly exhausted Golden Three-Eyed Beast, his expression complicated. It had just broken through to the Great Perfection realm and should have been brimming with surging spiritual energy, yet it had poured the majority of its own power into the two newborn cubs. Even sustaining one cub required a vast amount of energy, let alone two. Nevertheless, thanks to the medicinal effects of the Immortal Peach Pill and the infusion of nearly all the energy from the Great Perfection Golden Beast, the two small cubs remained insatiable, like monstrous gluttons, wriggling and crying within their mother, clearly hungry.

After a long cry, a flash of reluctance crossed the eyes of the Golden Three-Eyed Beast that had just reached Great Perfection. This was instantly replaced by a sharp gaze. It staggered to its feet and took a deliberate step away from the two young ones.

"This?"

Zhang Yang froze, unable to comprehend why the Golden Three-Eyed Beast was treating its own offspring in such a manner.

"Chirp chirp!"

"Squeak squeak!"

It turned out that Zhuifeng and Wuying better understood the instincts of spirit beasts. They cried out, informing Zhang Yang that the Great Perfection Golden Three-Eyed Beast was forcing the cubs toward independent growth.

Spirit beasts differed from humans; every one of them had to endure countless hardships during their infancy. Lingering in the warmth of the mother beast would jeopardize their chances of survival later on. Aside from the hurdle of birth itself, the next great challenge upon entering the world was survival.

Once separated from the nurturing warmth of the mother, the two cubs immediately began to tremble, crying out desperately. Yet, the Golden Three-Eyed Beast, though its eyes were filled with lingering affection, did not move a single step backward. It stood next to Zhang Yang, alongside the Three Great Spirit Beasts, silently watching the two cubs huddled together.

If these two cubs refused to separate and strive to stand on their own, it would prove they were inherently weak offspring who should never have been born, only brought into the world unharmed due to the aid of the Immortal Peach Pill and Zhang Yang’s intervention. Regardless of her reluctance, the Golden Three-Eyed Beast could not indulge them further.

Cubs that were not strong enough would inevitably become prey for others sooner or later. It was better for them to perish early than to later be hunted, skinned, have their eyes gouged out for alchemy ingredients. Seeing this, Zhang Yang understood the Golden Three-Eyed Beast's thoughts. Though he longed to help the mother and children, he ultimately chose to respect their customs and allowed the cubs to face growth independently.

Without the mother’s warmth, the meager heat generated by two shivering cubs huddled together proved insufficient. The pair seemed unable to bear it any longer, and one, forced by necessity, slowly opened its eyes.

The two cubs, tightly pressed, resembled a golden, fluffy sphere. Their entire coats were the same brilliant gold as their mother’s, but one of them possessed three distinct gray-white stripes encircling its back, identical to its gray-white Three-Eyed Beast father. The one forced to open its eyes was precisely this cub with the gray-white stripes.

Including the third eye on its forehead, the surrounding environment came into sharp focus once this cub opened its eyes. Everything around seemed colossal; even the grasses beneath them appeared terrifying.

Uttering a whimpering sob, this cub found a hidden reserve of strength, ceasing its huddling with the other and choosing instead to stretch out its four limbs, struggling to stand upright.

Though it managed to stand, its posture was unsteady. After taking a hesitant step, a trace of composure momentarily replaced its nervousness, quickly followed by another step. At this moment, the inherent strength of the Three-Eyed Beast began to manifest. Having passed the first two tests of birth, this cub rapidly adapted to its surroundings; its whines were no longer so weak and feeble.

It then spotted Zhang Yang and the others, and beside Zhang Yang, the Golden Three-Eyed Beast, which seemed immensely huge by comparison.

"Roar!!"

It opened its mouth and let out a shout. Still unable to fully master its strength, a surge of heaven-and-earth energy was involuntarily drawn out, rushing toward Zhang Yang and the group.

Swish...

The force of the energy surge initiated by the cub was equivalent only to a brisk gust of wind; it weakened to a mere breeze long before reaching Zhang Yang, creating a sensation that was inexplicably comfortable.

The Golden Three-Eyed Beast's eyes appeared moist. It turned its head, along with Zhang Yang, to gaze upon the other cub, which was still struggling on the ground, refusing to open its eyes to face this alien world.

Its sudden standing caused the other cub to lose the last vestige of warmth. This pure golden cub, like its mother, could now only curl up alone. Zhang Yang and the Three Great Spirit Beasts held their breath for it, feeling anxious.

If it persisted in refusing to open its eyes and stand bravely to confront the strange world, it was destined to be culled by the laws of nature and unable to survive; even its successful birth would only lead to an early demise.

Twins were already a miracle; if both cubs could survive, it would be the most perfect miracle in their lives.

"Chirp chirp!"

"Squeak squeak!"

Wuying and Shandian watched, growing anxious, seemingly unable to restrain themselves from rushing over to assist the Golden cub.

Zhang Yang shook his head, halting the movements of Wuying and Shandian. At this moment, they could not intervene; only the cub itself could help it. Even if they ensured its survival now, in the future, it would only become a pet reliant on them.

To become a human's pet, versus choosing and accepting humans as partners, were vastly different concepts for spirit beasts. Becoming a human's pet was tantamount to becoming a slave—a humiliation any spirit beast could never tolerate. Thus, even though this cub was its own flesh and blood, the Golden Three-Eyed Beast could only watch impassively, waiting for it to overcome all difficulties and open its eyes to stand up.

"Mew..."

The first cub to stand had painfully maneuvered itself beside the Golden Three-Eyed Beast, rubbing against its mother while whimpering softly. However, the other cub still refused to open its eyes. At this point, its vital signs were beginning to fade, suggesting congenital termination might be its only outcome.

Everyone, including the Three Great Spirit Beasts, held their breath for the cub, wishing they could help but unable to intervene, forced only to watch.

Zhang Yang frowned and sighed softly.

"Mew!"

Suddenly, the first cub—the one that opened its eyes and stood beside the Golden Beast—let out a sharp cry. Its three eyes widened, reflecting the curled-up, fading life force of the other cub in its white sclera and black pupils.

It shifted its stance and, under everyone's gaze, walked back, step by step, toward its twin.

When it reached the other, it gently licked the shivering cub on the ground and murmured softly, though no one knew what it was saying.

"It's encouraging it!"

Zhang Yang was again stunned. This cub’s actions were undoubtedly a gesture of encouragement toward the one so fearful of the world that it preferred death over facing it with open eyes.

Two newborn cubs, understanding how to comfort each other?

The birth of the two cubs was a miracle, and now this miracle continued to unfold, evolving into a miracle of life itself.

The cub that had refused to open its eyes, whose life signs were nearly undetectable, slowly opened its eyes under the encouragement of its sibling and struggled to stretch its body, attempting to rise on its own.

Its prior weakness meant it couldn't stand immediately like the first cub. It managed to rise only to immediately collapse, its legs buckling.

Zhang Yang, the Golden Three-Eyed Beast, and the Three Great Spirit Beasts all started in alarm, holding their breath and sending looks of encouragement. The other cub also appeared immensely anxious, its soft murmuring growing more urgent.

Perhaps sensing its sibling's worry and encouragement, the fallen cub found a vast reservoir of courage from somewhere. It struggled, supporting itself first on its two forelimbs, and then raising its hind limbs once more.

Finally, although still trembling, this Golden cub managed to stand firmly on the ground, joining the first cub.

With both cubs having opened their eyes and stood up to bravely face this strange and terrifying world, it was clear they had completely passed the two trials of birth and survived successfully.

Zhang Yang watched the two mutually supportive cubs, his eyes welling up, deeply moved by the affection between them.

Clap, clap, clap...

At some unknown point, the gray-robed elder reappeared behind Zhang Yang and the others, looking at the two cubs with a complex expression, and began to applaud.

The Golden Three-Eyed Beast slowly walked over and stood beside the two cubs, meticulously licking their bodies. This time, the attention she paid was countless times more detailed and lasted much longer than before.

The elder watched this scene, momentarily stunned. Although he too was a fifth-layer powerhouse, he could not help but be awed by the miracle Zhang Yang had orchestrated.