Chapter 387: Chapter 372: Lu Clan Sells Daughter [2 More for Subscription]
Creating a magical artifact is not something that can be completed in a short time, and Zhouyang did not plan to devote himself wholeheartedly to just one thing.
He had just returned to the clan, and many things had yet to be done. Besides, he had promised to accompany his father Xuan Hao through the last years of his life, and he could not go back on his word.
As for finding his foster mother Xuan Yu and foster sister Yuan Yao, that could be postponed until after his father Xuan Hao passed away. After all, he was unsure how much time it would take to find this mother and daughter.
On this day, after instructing people to help him purchase a large amount of low-tier materials needed for crafting his own magical artifacts, Zhouyang brought his first spirit pet, the Eagle Lion Beast, to the top of Red Tiger Mountain.
This Eagle Lion Beast was something he had tamed decades ago during his first trip to the Liuyun Continent Cultivation Realm. Over the years, it had contributed greatly to the southward and northward expeditions for him and the Zhou Family.
Unfortunately, the demon beast was limited by its bloodline shackles. Breaking through the great realm was extremely difficult and could not be achieved without great fortune and destiny.
The Eagle Lion Beast was already a Tier Three Top Grade demon beast when it followed Zhouyang, and after all these years, its strength had not progressed at all.
The only change, perhaps, was its intelligence.
After all these years of living with humans and frequently communicating with the Zhou Family’s beast tamers through a special beast language, its spiritual wisdom had grown stronger.
In terms of spiritual intelligence, this Eagle Lion Beast now was not much inferior to an ordinary Tier Four demon beast.
At this moment, suddenly being brought to the top of Red Tiger Mountain by its long unseen master, the Eagle Lion Beast seemed to sense something. It looked at Zhouyang with fawning eyes, continuously rubbing its head against Zhouyang’s legs, letting out soft "cooing" sounds of compliance.
Ever since Zhouyang brought back the Tier Three Top Grade Golden-winged Thunder Eagle, the Eagle Lion Beast had been intimidated by the noble bloodline pressure of the Golden-winged Thunder Eagle and dared not approach Zhouyang much.
Today Zhouyang had brought it out, specifically putting the Golden-winged Thunder Eagle into the Spirit Beast Bag first; otherwise, it really would not dare to compete for favor with the Golden-winged Thunder Eagle.
Due to the "Demonic Soul Contract," Zhouyang could begrudgingly understand the Eagle Lion Beast’s intentions, knowing that this creature was inviting reward on its own behalf. He couldn’t help but crouch down and pat the creature’s head while jokingly scolding: "Alright, alright, I know you’re loyal and have done much for my Zhou Family. Since I’ve returned this time, benefits will surely be plentiful for you."
With that, he waved his hand, taking out the treasure he had long prepared for the Eagle Lion Beast to consume — the heart of a Tier Three Top Grade Barbaric Beast, and the demon pill taken from Zhong Chuming’s Tier Four Middle Grade avian mount, the Divine Wind Eagle.
The Eagle Lion Beast was itself an exotic beast and likely also possessed Barbaric Beast blood. The Barbaric Beast Heart could help it awaken its Barbaric Beast blood, or at the very least, enhance its physical strength.
As for the "Divine Wind Eagle" demon pill, which also belonged to the wind element and an avian demon beast, it was a crucial treasure for whether the Eagle Lion Beast could advance to Tier Four.
For a demon beast like the Eagle Lion Beast, shackled by its bloodline limitations, the most effective way to break these shackles and ascend to a higher-tier demon beast was to consume a higher-tier demon pill with properties similar to its own.
However, using a higher-tier demon pill to progress was perilous. If the power within the demon pill could not be controlled, or if the pill’s power conflicted with the beast’s own strength, it could easily lead to bloodline backlash, or even cause a violent death from bursting.
Zhouyang chose to give the Divine Wind Eagle’s demon pill to the Eagle Lion Beast because both the Eagle Lion Beast and the Divine Wind Eagle shared wind attribute magical power and eagle bloodline, thereby greatly reducing the chances of power conflict and bloodline backlash.
Even so, whether the Eagle Lion Beast could ultimately succeed in advancing was still just a fifty-fifty chance.
"I’ve done everything I could, the rest is up to your own fortune!"
On the mountaintop, Zhouyang looked at the Eagle Lion Beast lying on the ground in sleep after consuming the Barbaric Beast Heart and demon pill, then turned and walked down the mountain.
The advancement from Tier Three demon beast to Tier Four was a major barrier. Even if the Eagle Lion Beast eventually crossed it, it would still take at least several years. Naturally, Zhouyang saw no need to stay here any longer.
Moreover, he had already used the power of the Mountain Protection Array to set up a protective barrier around the sleeping Eagle Lion Beast, ensuring no one could disturb it.
After descending the mountain, Zhouyang handed another Tier Three Top Grade Barbaric Beast Heart to his niece Zhou Guangxiang, instructing her to feed it to the Zhou Family’s other Tier Three Lower Grade demon beast, the Flying Divine Leopard.
The Flying Divine Leopard was originally highly regarded by Zhouyang, long considered to be cultivated as the Zhou Family’s Clan Guardian Spirit Beast.
But now, with the presence of the Golden-winged Thunder Eagle and considering his own potential to achieve a Golden Core, Zhouyang did not care much for this spirit beast anymore.
The care for this spirit beast had long been entrusted to Zhou Guangxiang.
At this moment, handing the Barbaric Beast Heart to Zhou Guangxiang for her to feed it to the Flying Divine Leopard, was also intended to use this opportunity to deepen her relationship with the Flying Divine Leopard.
Zhou Guangxiang was well aware of these matters, and she was immensely grateful for Zhouyang’s actions.
She only had a Middle-grade Spirit Root Talent, making the possibility of opening the Purple Mansion extremely slim in the future. With the current Grand Elder of the Zhou Family, Xuan Hao, aging, she was sure to take on this position.
By then, the Flying Divine Leopard, under her command as a Tier Three spirit beast, would be a strong support for securing her position as the Grand Elder.
Zhouyang indeed had nothing lacking for this brother and sister pair.
"Ninth Uncle, there’s one more matter to report to you. Among the offspring of the Flying Fire Bats bred by the clan, a Fire and Dark Dual-Attribute mutant has appeared. Several beast tamers in the clan want to take this potentially Tier Three mutant bat as a spirit pet. How should this be handled?"
Zhou Guangxiang silently put away the Barbaric Beast Heart given by Zhouyang, his expression changing slightly, yet he suddenly mentioned another matter, asking Zhouyang for help in handling it.
She was not only an elder of the Zhou Family but also the highest administrator of the Zhou Family’s Beast Garden. In name, all spirit beasts raised by the Zhou Family were under her jurisdiction.
The mature Flying Fire Bat is a Tier Two Top Grade Demon Beast. When the Zhou Family captured this spirit beast back then, they even killed a Tier Three Flying Fire Bat King.
Now hearing Zhou Guangxiang say that among the descendants of the Flying Fire Bats raised by the Zhou Family, there was a mutant with the potential to advance to Bat King, Zhouyang wasn’t surprised, especially given his current strength, Tier Three Demon Beasts hardly caught his eye anymore.
After pondering for a moment, he decisively stated, "Tier Three Demon Beast cubs are indeed a rare resource. Those beast tamers’ schemes, you understand well; tell them unless someone has reached Foundation Establishment, if they want to acquire the mutant Fire Bat as a spirit pet, they should spend ten thousand clan contribution points to redeem one from the clan!"
Beast tamers are also a rather special profession; if a beast tamer can tame a demon beast that is a whole great realm stronger than themselves as a spirit pet, their status in the Cultivation Realm will far exceed those of the same tier.
This is merely a gain in reputation.
Actually, if a Qi Cultivation Stage cultivator could have a Tier Three Demon Beast as a spirit pet, the gains they achieve going out on adventures would surely be many times greater than those of the same tier.
For the Zhou Family Qi Cultivation Stage cultivators, if they have a Tier Three Demon Beast as a spirit pet to command, with luck, they could earn enough contribution points to redeem a Foundation Establishment Pill in thirty to fifty years.
Therefore, to maintain balance and prevent other clan members from feeling biased, Zhouyang must require these beast tamers to spend clan contribution points to obtain the ownership of Tier Three Demon Beast spirit pets.
"Niece understands, I will immediately pass your decision on to all the beast tamers in the clan!"
Zhou Guangxiang solemnly nodded and immediately bid farewell to Zhouyang to carry out this task.
Not long after she bid farewell to Zhouyang, her brother Zhou Guangxiang came to Zhouyang’s place again.
"Supreme Elder, that boy from the Lu Family brought his daughter with a Top-grade Spiritual Root to visit you; they insisted on seeing you."
As soon as Zhou Guangxiang found Zhouyang, he explained the purpose of their visit.
"Boy from the Lu Family? An old acquaintance indeed!"
Zhouyang murmured to himself, somewhat nostalgically waving his hand, "Alright, bring him to my cave dwelling, I will see him there!"
After a while, Zhouyang received the visiting Lu father and daughter in the Qianyang Cave.
The Lu family father and son who discovered the Red Fox Ridge Oasis long ago, the father had passed away many years ago, and the son is now a white-haired old man over a hundred years old.
The Lu Family they established over the years, thanks to the unique geographical advantage of the Red Fox Ridge Oasis and the care of the Zhou Family, has developed quite decently. Reportedly, they now have more than a dozen cultivators with Spiritual Root, and the ordinary clan members have proliferated into three or four generations with nearly ten thousand people.
For a small clan that hasn’t even had a Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator appear, this scale is already quite impressive.
"Lu Family boy, why don’t you spend your years in the clan’s Spirit Mountain, running here, what’s the matter? Did your Lu Family encounter any trouble?"
In the guest hall of the cave, Zhouyang sat loftily at the head. After the entering Lu father and daughter paid their respects, he cut straight to the point and asked about their purpose.
As a youth appearing to be in his thirties, he straightforwardly called a white-haired elderly man "boy."
This scene seen through the eyes of the seven or eight-year-old little girl beside the old man instantly made her pout her pink little lips, her face full of displeasure.
But recalling the stern look her father had urged caution numerous times during their visit, the little girl bit her lip, stifling her discontent, not daring to speak out of turn.
Zhouyang naturally noticed the little girl’s reaction; while amused inwardly, his eyes flashed golden as he used the "Separation Fire Golden Eye" divine technique to carefully observe the little girl.
"Separation Fire Golden Eye" not only has the ability to see through illusions and identify weaknesses but can also perceive the spiritual root of low-tier cultivators and observe their cultivation realm.
The little girl’s cultivation was only at the Second-Layer Qi Cultivation, certainly unable to resist Zhouyang’s divine technique gaze.
Under the "Separation Fire Golden Eye" state, Zhouyang saw on the little girl a concentrated band of blue-white ice light, pure and refined; it was undoubtedly Top-grade Spiritual Root talent.
"Ah!"
Seeing Zhouyang’s eyes suddenly transform into golden-red looking towards her, the little girl was startled, quickly jumping to her father’s side, hugging her father’s leg, sneakily peeking at Zhouyang, her eyes full of surprise and curiosity.
"Not daring to deceive the senior, junior came this time hoping to seek a future for my daughter Xue Wei, wishing to ask the elder to take in Xue Wei and join the Zhou Family!"
The Patriarch of the Lu Clan, unlike his daughter, dared not be reckless. His eyes brushed Zhouyang’s golden-red pupils and instantly lowered his head, full of fear, directly pulling his daughter down to kneel, respectfully stating his intention.