The Strongest Beast-Tamer (Transmigration)(GL) - Chapter 43

When they were ten meters away from the treasure’s hiding spot, Nian Yunyin suddenly stopped.

“The scenery here is lovely, and the sunlight is just right. You cultivate while I work on a simple formation. Let’s stay here for a couple of days.”

Lord Yin Bao stood on Yi Xian’s shoulder and squeaked in protest.

Yi Xian figured this was Nian Yunyin’s way of misleading others. After offering a bit of comfort to Lord Yin Bao, she truly settled in to cultivate beneath the gentle sunlight, accompanied by her little pony. Lord Yin Bao curled up in her pocket to sleep during the day and only stirred at night.

On the fourth evening, Nian Yunyin yanked the soundly sleeping Lord Yin Bao out of Yi Xian’s pocket.

“I heard you not only find treasure but also enter dreams?”

Yi Xian replied, “You want Lord Yin Bao to guide us through a dream?”

Nian Yunyin poked Lord Yin Bao’s belly. The little creature leapt in shock and darted back onto Yi Xian’s shoulder, chattering wildly.

“Of course. Know your enemy and yourself, and you’ll succeed. Did you think we could just walk in and leave with the treasure on the final day?”

Yi Xian had actually planned to scout the place early to avoid any confusion. Once again, they found their thoughts aligned.

“But I can’t tell whether Lord Yin Bao has pulled us into a dream or not.”

“So?”

Their gazes shifted simultaneously to Lord Yin Bao. The little creature scratched its ears in confusion.

That night, Yi Xian attempted to summon her little pony. When it didn’t appear, she nudged Nian Yunyin awake.

“We’re probably in a dream. Should we follow Lord Yin Bao now?”

This approach had been Nian Yunyin’s idea. Dreams reflected a person’s subconscious. For beast tamers, most contracted phantom beasts existed within their sea of consciousness. That was the simplest way to confirm if they were dreaming.

Following Lord Yin Bao, they swiftly reached their destination. The treasure was hidden in a shallow depression. Lord Yin Bao stood at the entrance, squeaking and gesturing hurriedly.

Yi Xian stepped back. Nian Yunyin circled the depression and said, “Does this remind you of—”

“A massive spider model,” Yi Xian finished.

Nian Yunyin raised an eyebrow. “What’s a model?”

Yi Xian gestured to the thin trenches spreading out from the depression and recalled the long scars she had seen on Lord Yin Bao. In her mind’s eye, an octopus and a giant crawling spider overlapped. Given that the secret realm was mostly forested and aquatic creatures were rare, she leaned toward the spider.

“From above, doesn’t this look like the imprint of a giant spider pressing down into the ground?”

“It does.”

They exchanged looks, and Yi Xian grabbed Lord Yin Bao to demand clarity. The answer they received made their hearts sink.

“An earth-element twin-headed spider?”

Nian Yunyin eyed the dazed little mouse on Yi Xian’s shoulder.

“Lucky it didn’t get eaten.”

Yi Xian shared the sentiment. “Could there be another large earth-element spider nearby?”

“Have your little pet lure it out for us. The question is, can it fight in a dream?”

Yi Xian recalled the first time she encountered Lord Yin Bao. She had hit it with a stone, so fighting in dreams probably still worked. What remained uncertain was what would happen if they lost.

Lord Yin Bao darted into a tunnel. The entrance swiftly sealed itself, leaving no trace behind.

They assumed they would be waiting a while. To their surprise, before they could finish a sentence, a silver arc flashed before them. Lord Yin Bao was flung into the air like a cannonball, followed by a razor-sharp claw.

More claws emerged in quick succession, clicking and clattering like bamboo shoots after rain.

Yi Xian grabbed Nian Yunyin and pulled back. A twin-headed spider the size of her little pony burst from the earth. One head turned to glance at them with little interest before it chased after Lord Yin Bao.

“Lord Yin Bao!”

“Squeak!”

Yi Xian had never seen Lord Yin Bao flee so swiftly, streaking across the air like lightning. Yet the spider had many legs and used its speed to trap Lord Yin Bao in seconds.

Despite its tiny size, Lord Yin Bao narrowly dodged each of the spider’s sharp limbs again and again. Yi Xian finally understood the source of all those scars on its body.

A mud shield slowly rose in the distance. Lord Yin Bao, too busy dodging to notice, slammed into it with a loud thud.

“Dodge!”

“Squeak.”

Lord Yin Bao reeled, dizzy and disoriented, unable to tell north from south. It instinctively burrowed underground and vanished.

Yi Xian’s heart clenched. The spider followed suit and disappeared underground.

“Oh no. It went underground, too?”

Nian Yunyin crouched by the pit and tugged at Yi Xian.

“Try your light spirit.”

Yi Xian remembered the spider that had created the mud shield. She summoned a glowing orb that illuminated the area. In the light, she saw intricate strands crisscrossing the battlefield. It was a net, laid long before.

“Looks like we weren’t luring the snake from its hole. We were the ones walking into the trap.”

“Is this really the time for jokes?”

Yi Xian pressed her ear to the ground. No sound came. Once underground, the earth-element spider vanished without a trace.

“We shouldn’t have let it dive down there.”

Nian Yunyin nodded, solemn.

“I’m not joking. All this means it’s a—”

Before she could finish, both women jolted awake from their dream.

Yi Xian’s face changed.

“Lord Yin Bao!”

Nian Yunyin rubbed her temples and glanced at the still-dark sky.

“The dream ended early. It must be connected to the one who made it. Come on. Before it snacks on your little pet, let’s meet it properly.”

On their way, they reviewed the spider’s combat behavior and planned their countermeasures. Of course, all of this relied on Nian Yunyin’s theories.

Yi Xian fastened her dagger at her waist.

“Nian Yunyin, you’ll have to stop it from burrowing.”

She nodded.

They arrived as the sun rose. The forest stirred with new life, bathed in golden light. Nian Yunyin scanned the terrain out of habit. Yi Xian returned to her spot from last night and shone her orb. No threads were visible.

“Without Lord Yin Bao, how do we lure it out now?”

Nian Yunyin took out a fat, earth-colored insect. It lay lazily in her palm, unaware that it was about to serve as bait.

Yi Xian gasped.

“You want to use that thing? What if it gets eaten?”

“Do you have a better plan?”

Yi Xian did not. She was nearly ready to dig a human-sized hole herself. By the time she finished, Lord Yin Bao’s grave grass might already be three meters tall.

“I owe you a favor.”

“Remember, this is a growing earth-element spider. Don’t underestimate it.”

Nian Yunyin tied a string to the insect, with knots spaced along it. It was nearly identical to the one Duanmu Ya used to bind spirits.

Once she had hidden a few pieces of orange jade nearby, she placed the sluggish insect at the center.

“Get ready. It should show up soon.”

“Okay.”

Nian Yunyin perched in a tree. Yi Xian gripped her dagger and lay low. The little pony floated above, stepping through the air like clouds, on high alert.

Time passed with the rising sun. Yi Xian’s heart gradually sank. Perhaps the spider preferred Lord Yin Bao’s flavor and decided to eat it first before turning to the insect.

Just as her mind drifted, the earth burst open. Nian Yunyin yanked the string, swinging the insect in an arc. The little pony’s light orb struck the spider’s head mid-leap, slamming it down.

Yi Xian lunged forward. She drove her dagger deep into the spider’s abdomen and tore it open. As she landed, the spider’s claws and threads lashed toward her.

“Don’t let the threads catch you!”

“What’s happening?”

Yi Xian dodged messily. The nearly invisible threads pierced trees like iron spikes. After a few rounds, they formed a web that blocked her escape.

The same tactic was used to trap Lord Yin Bao.

If this went on, she would become the spider’s next victim. Not only would she fail to save Lord Yin Bao, but she might die herself.

Lord Yin Bao could at least burrow. What about her?

Yi Xian reversed her grip and slashed at the threads. She had expected the dagger to break, but instead it sliced cleanly through the web.

Not bad. That brute Lan Tong wasn’t entirely useless.

While the little pony caused trouble above, Yi Xian rolled into a blind spot. Spiders had poor vision, so even if blinded, it would make little difference.

“Nian Yunyin, give me some vibration.”

“What?”

If only Lord Yin Bao’s mouse brothers were here. Noise was their specialty.

Yi Xian gripped her dagger and slashed at a raised claw.

“Spiders sense through their legs. Shake things up to throw it off. Quickly.”

Nian Yunyin returned the insect to safety and considered briefly. She retrieved two glowing spheres from her storage pouch.

“I meant to use these in the Watermark Secret Realm. Fine. Here’s your vibration.”

“Move aside!”

“What?”

Yi Xian watched as two orbs were hurled from Nian Yunyin’s direction. Meanwhile, her little pony kept sending waves of radiant light at the two-headed spider without rest. Later, whenever Yi Xian recalled this moment, it always felt utterly absurd.

The glowing orb collided midair with the one Nian Yunyin had thrown. A powerful surge burst forth, as if Mars had crashed into Earth in her past life’s terms. The impact unleashed an explosion that tore through the air.

Yi Xian had once imagined what a shockwave might feel like, perhaps something akin to the pulse of bass-heavy dance music. Instead, Nian Yunyin gave her a full-on detonation.

A blast of heat hurled Yi Xian off her feet. Her ears buzzed incessantly, and golden stars danced in her vision. It took a long while before she even realized she was still alive, not transported to some other place as when she had been blown up before.

“I… I never had that happen during my trials. Yi Xian, are you alright?”

Someone helped Yi Xian up. All around her, the terrain was scarred and sunken. The two-headed spider had been blown clean in half. She saw Nian Yunyin’s mouth moving, but the words didn’t register. Yi Xian pressed both ears and muttered, “I think I’m deaf.”

Nian Yunyin stood there dumbfounded, so shocked she couldn’t speak. Then she pulled a porcelain bottle from her storage pouch and gestured between her mouth and ears.

Yi Xian guessed she was telling her to take it, so she nodded and casually tossed the bottle into her own pouch. “That thing’s dead. Where is Lord Yin Bao?”

Nian Yunyin patted Yi Xian’s shoulder, took the dagger from her hand, and went straight for the spider’s heads. She extracted a beast core and handed it to Yi Xian.

Right after, Nian Yunyin pulled her into the forest to hide.

Moments later, a group wearing golden sun-embroidered robes from Qingshan Sect arrived where the explosion had occurred. They turned over the creature’s remains.

“This was a rare dual-spirit beast. The cores were just removed. They can’t be far. Senior sister, shall we pursue?”

Yi Xian could not hear a single word. All she could make out were the golden uniforms of Mingwang Peak’s disciples. The explosion must have drawn them to the spot.

Nian Yunyin frowned and pressed Yi Xian’s head down. They remained in that position for a long time. Yi Xian grew cramped and uneasy, and only when the silence stretched thin did Nian Yunyin finally release her.”Yi Xian, can you hear me now?”

“You’re speaking too softly. I still can’t make it out.”

Nian Yunyin quickly covered her mouth. “Forget it. I’ll find your little pet first. Otherwise, we’re getting eliminated in this preliminary round.”

Yi Xian watched her release that sluggish, color-changing worm again. The creature inched along slower than a snail. Yi Xian saw the sun dipping westward and raised her voice, “We need to finish this before nightfall—”

Nian Yunyin muffled her again.

Yi Xian finally realized how frustrating deafness could be. Worse yet, Nian Yunyin wouldn’t even let her speak. She could only resort to other ways of communicating the urgency of their situation. Luckily, Nian Yunyin never failed her.

The string tied to Nian Yunyin’s ring finger twitched. She pulled hard, as if yanking carrots from the soil, and unearthed the slow worm along with a cocooned Lord Yin Bao, bundled like a silkworm baby.

Yi Xian used her dagger to gently cut through the silk threads. Lord Yin Bao’s miserable little body was finally exposed. Thankfully, its faint chest movement showed it was still alive.

“That’s a relief.”

She promptly used light healing to treat it. As soon as it woke, Lord Yin Bao began squeaking nonstop, gesturing frantically to reenact the terrifying events of the previous night. Yi Xian managed to reach its thoughts and communicate with it.

Nian Yunyin cupped Lord Yin Bao in both hands. “I’ll talk to you. You pass it to her. That way, the message gets across. Deal?”

With Lord Yin Bao acting as their bridge, Yi Xian finally understood what had made Nian Yunyin so anxious. They rushed toward the exit of the secret realm, the setting sun chasing at their heels.

Suddenly, Nian Yunyin stopped. “What is it?”

“You can run out. I can’t,” she replied, clearly exhausted.

Yi Xian suddenly remembered. Without her formation skills, Nian Yunyin was just an ordinary girl. Her stamina couldn’t possibly match someone like Yi Xian, who could run for two days and nights.

“I’ll carry you. We’ve made it this far. We’re not giving up now.”

“Who said anything about giving up?”

Yi Xian watched her whistle toward the sky. A massive gray falcon swooped down, circled overhead twice, then landed and crouched, waiting for its rider.

Nian Yunyin stroked its head and called to Yi Xian. “Hurry.”

They made it out of the secret realm just in time, hauling a large stash of items found with Lord Yin Bao. The official, who was waiting for them, looked ready to scold, but after seeing their haul, he simply guided them toward the points exchange area.

Naturally, both Yi Xian and Nian Yunyin passed the preliminary round.

After the round, there was a week of rest.

Yi Xian gave Lord Yin Bao the two beast cores it wanted. She hadn’t expected it to swallow them whole, and now it remained in deep sleep on its little bed.

She even visited Tianji Peak to ask Nian Yunyin about it.

“It’s digesting. What goes down must be processed slowly. Don’t worry. Once it’s absorbed the two beast cores, it’ll wake up on its own.”

Yi Xian nodded and prepared to leave and resume her training, only to be stopped.

Nian Yunyin raised a finger. “You said you owed me a favor. Can I claim it now?”

Yi Xian had indeed promised that. “Say it. As long as it doesn’t cross my moral boundaries, I’ll consider it.”

Nian Yunyin pulled out two small spheres from her pouch. She casually tossed one to the ground. It crackled with a sharp bang, even shaking the ground a little.

“See that?”

Yi Xian nodded. “What is it?”

Nian Yunyin pressed one into her hand. “It’s a thunder spirit I condensed using a miniature formation. You can use it in critical moments to block attacks. I thought we’d grabbed the wrong item in the secret realm, and that caused your temporary hearing loss. But afterward, I realized that wasn’t it. Yi Xian, you must know why.”

Yi Xian stared at the little orb in shock. This thing deserved a new name. Landmine. “You’re saying the one you threw that day in the secret realm had the same power as this one?”

That did not add up. This one only caused a tremor, just enough to disrupt the earth-elemental spider’s heightened senses.

When Nian Yunyin noticed the slight change in her expression, she decided to test her. “Yi Xian, if you know something, you have to tell me.”

It was rare to see Nian Yunyin so cautious, and it was clear the matter meant a great deal to her. “Alright. If I figure anything out, I’ll let you know.”

As Yi Xian walked home, her mind replayed the explosion from the day she first met Nian Yunyin. Then came the memory of all their later encounters, the binding rope like Duanmu Ya’s, and the ability to summon a falcon.

A formation master with so many hidden techniques was anything but ordinary.

“Yi Xian, Yi Xian, are your ears better now?”

“Much better.”

Yi Xian turned, only to notice a glimpse of Duanmu Ya’s wrist. A red cord was tied around it. She abruptly stopped.

“Xiao Ya, that spirit-binding rope of yours seems useful. If I wanted one, where could I get it?”

Duanmu Ya looked flustered. “Yi Xian, it’s not that I don’t want to give you one, but I really don’t think you need it. I use it to catch spirit herbs. I don’t have as many helpers as you do. Look, Lord Yin Bao and the little pony can both fetch herbs for you—”

Yi Xian sighed and interrupted. “Aside from you, would anyone else have one?”

Duanmu Ya thought for a moment. “Probably not. My mother had the Qi family specially make it for me, just for dealing with spiritual plants. Normal people wouldn’t need one.”

“Qi family? Is that the caravan group we met before?”

Duanmu Ya nodded. “Yes. Why do you ask? I can ask them to look for another one next time, if you want.”

The mention of the Qi family brought one face to mind. Qi Yun clearly disliked her.

Yi Xian went ahead and asked, “When I was in the secret realm, I saw Nian Yunyin summon a bird mount. If not for it, we’d have been eliminated.”

“Impossible. She’s a formation master, not a beast tamer. There’s no way she could summon a mount. You must be mistaken.”

Yi Xian tried a different angle. “What if it’s a mount she raised since childhood? Would it obey her regardless of her profession?”

Duanmu Ya scratched her head. “That… might be possible.”

There was another possibility. Nian Yunyin might be a hidden beast tamer. Yet Yi Xian had seen no summoning gestures, and the girl had no spiritual power.

Yi Xian walked back to her room, no longer hearing Duanmu Ya calling after her. Could Nian Yunyin’s binding rope have come from the Qi family as well? If so, what was her connection to them? Could she be the Qi family’s third young miss?

No. If she were, Xiao Ya would have recognized her.

Yi Xian carefully compared Nian Yunyin to the three known members of the Qi family. “Nian Yunyin… Yunyin… that’s practically ‘Yun.'”

Neither of them had spiritual roots. One had hers crippled, and the other was a formation master. There was no contradiction.

Yi Xian slapped her forehead as she recalled how Nian Yunyin always treated Duanmu Ya with special care and constant teasing. All those strange details finally made sense.

She knocked her head again. Idiot.