The Strongest Beast-Tamer (Transmigration)(GL) - Chapter 61

Since she had already been discovered, Yi Xian had no choice but to stand up openly. She lightly patted the little cub curled up in her arms. The tiny creature was always on her beastwoman mother’s side, either tattling or exposing her secrets. A little traitor through and through.

Yi Xian forced herself to endure the curious and wary stares of dozens of beastmen. Feeling somewhat uneasy, she cleared her throat, ready to find an excuse to cover her intrusion.

“You may continue.”

Lan Tong dismissed the surrounding beastmen and walked straight toward her. The fitted leather outfit she wore made her look sharp and spirited. Her messy hair had been tied back neatly with a strip of cloth, and aside from her tall and strong physique, she almost resembled a human. She looked valiant and commanding. “Out of food again?”

The way she said it made it sound as if Yi Xian depended on her for meals. However, most of the meat used to treat Senior Sister Zi Han had indeed come from Lan Tong’s hunts. At first, Yi Xian had accepted the food casually, but she later realized that good prey required both luck and skill to capture. Every time she went hunting, she only encountered small species with cub-sized bodies like Xiao Nan. Whenever they gave her those pitiful looks or pleaded with their eyes, she always let them go. “Do you train here every day?”

Lan Tong nodded. She glanced at the cub still pretending to act cute in Yi Xian’s arms, grabbed her by the scruff, and dropped her casually to the ground. “Don’t spoil her too much. I’ll be taking her hunting soon.”

In the past, Yi Xian would have thought the beastwoman was insane. Yet after her encounter with the disciples from Mingwang Peak, she found herself agreeing. “You’ll have to wait until she can run properly first.”

Lan Tong’s eyes gleamed with meaning. “She’ll be running just fine by then.”

Yi Xian had mainly come to see what Lan Tong was busy with and finally realized it was for the upcoming grand finals. Beastmen excelled in close combat, while most Beast Tamers favored long-range attacks, occasionally mixing both. She wondered how these beastmen would face such opponents. Yi Xian wanted to give advice but quickly dismissed the idea. She was human, a disciple of Qingshan Sect, and it was not her place. “Then I’ll get going.”

Lan Tong quickly caught her by the arm. Yi Xian looked at her in confusion. “Is there something else?”

After a moment’s hesitation, Lan Tong finally spoke. “Why don’t you challenge me? No, Yi Xian, I challenge you.”

Yi Xian, “…”

They moved to an open area nearby. The cub cheered excitedly, while the rest of the beastmen, upon hearing that Yi Xian and Lan Tong were going to duel, gathered around to watch, squatting near the little one like curious spectators.

Yi Xian had wanted to hit Lan Tong for a long time. Back in the Beast Tribe Territory, she had been completely suppressed with no chance to fight back. Now that she had the opportunity, she would not hold back. Without hesitation, she summoned Little Pony and launched a Light Baptism directly at Lan Tong.

This time, however, Lan Tong seemed to have grown smarter. Having suffered defeat once before, she charged at Yi Xian with her eyes closed. When it came to speed, Lord Yin Bao could barely keep up with her movements.

“Hmm.”

Lan Tong stared curiously at the spider silk wrapped tightly around her wrist. The other end was held by Lord Yin Bao, who darted swiftly from side to side, trying to bind her arms completely.

Yi Xian seized the moment of distraction and threw out a bolt of Lightning Marrow that surged forward like a golden dragon. It struck heavily against Lan Tong’s arms. She reacted quickly, crossing her wrists to block, but the impact shattered the webbing completely. Lord Yin Bao was yanked hard, spinning wildly in midair until it almost crashed into a tree. The Lightning Marrow hit Lan Tong squarely in the chest, sending her flying several meters backward.

Lan Tong lay motionless on the ground. When she didn’t move for a long while, Yi Xian rushed to check on her. The beastwoman’s eyes were closed, and the front of her clothes was scorched black. Suspicion flickered in Yi Xian’s mind. Did I hit her too hard? Then again, beastmen were thick-skinned, but they were still made of flesh and bl00d like humans.

She tried to heal her with Light Spirit, but the moment she reached out, her wrist was grabbed and her world spun. Suddenly, she was pinned to the ground beneath Lan Tong. Seeing that smug look on the woman’s face, Yi Xian’s irritation flared.

Her knee drove sharply into Lan Tong’s abdomen, but it was like striking a stone wall. The impact hurt Yi Xian more than it hurt the beastwoman. Lan Tong pinned her wrists firmly and smirked. “What was that technique just now? It didn’t look like your Light Spirit. It felt like Lightning Spirit.”

After being struck by lightning several times, she could even distinguish it. So this beastwoman isn’t as stupid as she looks.

Moments ago, she had been half-dead, yet now she was full of energy. Yi Xian was furious with herself for falling for such an obvious trick. She glared and pushed back hard. “If you want a duel, fight fair. Don’t act like some street rogue.”

Lan Tong winced dramatically, pretending to be in pain as she collapsed on top of Yi Xian. “Either way, you lost.”

Yi Xian nearly choked on her anger. She raised both hands, summoning Light and Lightning Spirit. Lan Tong still refused to get off, sprawled across her chest shamelessly. Yi Xian fixed her eyes on the sky as the two essences merged above her hands, forming glowing flakes that drifted down like snow. “If you still won’t get up, don’t blame me for what happens next.”

The cub, seeing the floating lights, let out excited howls and tried to rush over, only to be stopped by another beastman.

The moment the lights touched Lan Tong, her whole body shuddered. She quickly transformed into her beast form, shielding Yi Xian beneath her. The pain made her claws dig deep into the earth, leaving several pits behind.

Yi Xian watched as Lan Tong’s fur stood on end, her breath steaming in the cold air. The glossy gold fur had turned blackened and spiky like that of a singed hedgehog.

Yi Xian scowled. “Why aren’t you moving? Are you stupid—”

Lan Tong’s large tongue swept over her face in a slobbery lick. Yi Xian could feel the heat and the beastwoman’s careless drool. If I could, I’d strike her again just so she’d know how lightning really feels.

After what felt like ages, Lan Tong finally stumbled aside in her beast form and collapsed heavily to the ground. The sound made dust fly everywhere, covering Yi Xian in dirt. Combined with the beastwoman’s drool still on her face, she looked thoroughly miserable.

“Awuu.”

“Awuu.”

Hearing the cub’s cries, Yi Xian jumped up. The little one had run over and collapsed beside Lan Tong, curling her front paws and looking up pitifully at her while whining softly.

“Who told you to touch it? Now you’re numb, aren’t you?”

“Awuu.”

Yi Xian glanced at Lan Tong, who was exhaling steam through her nose and occasionally giving her a cool glance. “Do you think I’m still the same person you could toy with before? Take this as your lesson. Try being shameless again, and I’ll make sure you find out why the flower is so red.”

Lan Tong transformed back into her human form, managing to roll over and grin curiously. “Why is the flower red?”

Yi Xian had only meant it as a warning, but seeing her covered in soot, her once-smooth golden hair curled into a scorched mess, she couldn’t help but laugh. When she noticed the faint amusement in Lan Tong’s eyes, she quickly straightened her expression. “Try it and you’ll see.”

The cub was still limp from the shock, so Yi Xian used Light Spirit to heal her and gently rubbed her small head. “Next time, stay away from Lightning Spirit or any kind of energy. Don’t run toward it again, understand?”

The cub whined softly, chewing on her paw.

A hand reached out beside her. “Me too.”

Yi Xian looked up at the darkened face before her, both amused and annoyed. “What do you want?”

Lan Tong shot a glance at the cub, then shifted back into her beast form, wagging her tail and looking at Yi Xian with the same pitiful eyes as her daughter. Yi Xian thought she had really learned all the wrong things, using her weakness as a weapon. Unbelievable.

The cub immediately ran over, burying herself under Lan Tong’s belly. Yi Xian sighed but checked the beastwoman’s injuries anyway. Beneath the burn marks were numerous other cuts and bruises, likely from her daily training or hunts.

It was exactly as Yi Xian had imagined.

She patiently used her Light Spirit to heal her wounds, but as soon as she began, Lan Tong let out a loud roar. Yi Xian turned to see that the other beastmen had all shifted into their beast forms and were wagging their tails at her playfully.

Yi Xian was speechless.

Lan Tong roared again, furious this time. The beastmen panicked and scattered, running in all directions as if chased by their natural predator.

Yi Xian watched the supposedly injured beastwoman sprint off with incredible speed, resembling a wolf loosed among sheep. There was no sign left of the weakness she had shown earlier.

Yi Xian stood up abruptly, scooping up the rolling cub. “We’re leaving.”

That day, heavy rain poured without pause. Light and Lightningning flashed across the sky as rainwater continuously washed over the sheet of ice before her. Yi Xian observed it for a long time and realized it remained unchanged.

“Why is that?”

As long as Senior Sister Zi Han refused to lift her Ice Domain, Yi Xian could not approach her. No matter how many techniques or how much spiritual power she used, in Zi Han’s eyes it was all embroidery work, a waste of effort.

Yi Xian laughed at herself and looked up at the flashes of lightning in the distance. Raindrops, large and small, rolled down endlessly. She stared blankly at the rain until her eyes stung, and an audacious thought suddenly arose in her mind.

She summoned Little Pony. The creature flapped its wings and cast one Light Baptism after another through the curtain of rain. Yi Xian tried several times before finally merging her Lightning Spirit with Little Pony’s Light Spirit to form an enormous sphere of lightning energy. Within the white light, a restless golden dragon seemed to swim and coil.

Yi Xian pierced it open. Countless light particles rippled in the air and slowly sank into the layer of ice before her until they vanished. She wiped the rain from her face, her gaze fixed stubbornly on the ice. About the time it took to burn one stick of incense later, the frozen spikes beneath the surface suddenly halted as if someone had pressed a pause button. Then, they all shattered with a sharp crack.

Yi Xian saw it clearly. Just before they disappeared, a faint golden glow flickered within the ice, so weak it almost did not exist. Excitement stirred in her chest. Though crude, this method seemed more effective than those she had tried in the past few days.

She took Lord Yin Bao from her pocket and gave a few instructions. “The safest place should be by Senior Sister Zi Han’s tree. If I get struck by lightning, do not touch me.”

Lord Yin Bao burrowed near Zi Han’s tree and surprisingly dug out a small tunnel that served as a safe passage. Of course, it was a space only it could fit through.

Yi Xian raised her left hand, releasing Lightning Spirit to attract the lightning dancing in the sky. “When the lightning falls, do your best to project your Light Spirit. Little Pony, I’m counting on you.”

Little Pony’s clear eyes watched the flashes of lightning. Each time a bolt streaked through the sky, it flapped its wings in response.

Yi Xian steadied her mind. She felt the exact moment the lightning struck, her awakened lightning spiritual root allowing her to sense its power. As she focused, the first bolt fell suddenly from the sky without warning.

Her eyes opened sharply. The Light Spirit projected by Little Pony collided with the descending lightning as Yi Xian reached out, grasping both Light and Lightning. She risked tearing herself apart to force the two energies together, creating a rain of lightning and light that floated between them like a luminous storm. When the glowing droplets fell onto the ice, they blasted a hole straight through it. The icy spikes below did not even have time to react before being obliterated by the Lightning Marrow.

Yi Xian’s reckless plan had succeeded beyond expectation. Encouraged, she drew several more bolts of Heavenly Lightning, blasting apart nearly all the surrounding ice within several dozen meters.

Just as excitement filled her, unbearable pain tore through her body. Her dantian glowed faintly, where four small orbs of light and a sphere of Lightning Spirit began to riot. The Lightning Energy drawn from the heavens surged through her body and into her core, rousing the rebellious Lightning Sphere within. It was as if an ignored child had suddenly been granted divine favor and was now running wild.

Yi Xian endured as the two spiritual forces wrenched at her body. She could not help but laugh bitterly. If cultivating Lightning Spirit always meant this level of agony, then it was truly worse than death. The pain of her bones and tendons being broken and mended again and again was unbearable. Would she ever get used to this kind of suffering?

When Yi Xian was drenched in bl00d and on the verge of collapse, Zi Han suddenly opened her eyes from where she lay in the hammock. Her clear gaze flickered with a complex emotion when she saw Yi Xian and the ruined Ice Domain around her. She leapt down gracefully and, in a few steps, stood before Yi Xian, looking down at her coldly. The woman before her was enduring inhuman pain without uttering a single cry.

Lord Yin Bao peeked out from the tree hole and saw only Zi Han’s back. It scratched its head and took a cautious step forward, but Zi Han turned sharply, half-narrowing her eyes with a dangerous glare.

Terrified, Lord Yin Bao darted back into the hole. When it finally dared to look out again, Zi Han was gone, leaving only Yi Xian suffering alone under the rain.

When the skies cleared the next day, Yi Xian had once again escaped death. Though her body still ached as if torn apart, her mind felt different from before.

“Where’s Senior Sister Zi Han?”

“I don’t know.”

Lord Yin Bao scratched its head and told her everything that had happened last night. Zi Han was gone, and the entire peak had returned to normal. The ice had vanished at some unknown moment, perhaps the instant Zi Han left.

Yi Xian was a little disappointed. Just when she had found a way to break the Ice Domain, her unruly Lightning Core had acted up again. If not for that, she might have succeeded.

“Forget it. Fate has its own plans.”

She packed up Zi Han’s hammock, which she had forgotten to collect, and placed it into her storage pouch. As she descended the mountain, she saw two men dressed in Yunmiao Peak robes waiting for her.

“Are you Junior Sister Yi Xian from Yundan Peak?”

“Yes, and you are…?”

It was no surprise. Ever since joining the Qingshan Sect, she had met few people aside from those during competitions. If not for Duanmu Ya’s gossiping habits, Yi Xian would still be completely clueless about most of the sect.

The two men exchanged glances. “Senior Sister ordered us to wait for you here. She instructed that once you descended, we were to bring you to her.”

Yi Xian frowned. After her experiences with people like Wen Xun, she had learned to be cautious. “You mean Senior Sister Zi Han?”

They nodded together. “Yes.”

It seemed real enough. If it’s true, missing this chance would be a loss. If it’s false, I can always retreat. “Alright, I’ll go with you.”

The path they took was proper and open, with no traps or probing questions. The journey was calm, and Yi Xian’s wariness gradually eased. When they finally reached Yunmiao Peak, she was led to a quiet courtyard.

“Senior Sister, we’ve brought her.”

“Good. Let her in. You may leave.”

“Yes.”

Yi Xian pushed the gate open. The courtyard was even simpler than the small home she shared with Duanmu Ya. There was nothing inside except for the hammock strung between two trees. Zi Han lay there sleeping, her head resting on one trunk and her legs draped over the other.

Yi Xian had never seen anyone sleep like that. Wouldn’t her back ache? She wondered if such a strange posture might cause muscle strain.

“Senior Sister.”

Zi Han’s voice came lazily. “You said you’d give me the hammock, but then you took it back. That kind of behavior is unacceptable.”

Yi Xian blinked, at a loss for words. She knew reasoning with someone like Zi Han was pointless and obediently took the hammock from her pouch to offer it again.

As long as she slept comfortably, Zi Han was far easier to talk to. “You didn’t manage to hit me, but you did manage to break my Ice Domain. That little trick of yours, using one force against another, was quite clever.”

Yi Xian froze. She had thought Zi Han had left for good, yet here she was, aware of everything that had happened. “So, you knew everything I did within your domain.”

Zi Han’s lips curved faintly. “I have no great techniques to offer, but I can give you a cultivation method. Choose one yourself.”

She waved her hand, and countless scrolls and manuals poured out from her storage pouch, nearly burying Yi Xian beneath them. Yi Xian barely dodged in time.

After a moment’s hesitation, Yi Xian stood still. “Senior Sister, I don’t need any special techniques or secret arts. I only want to understand how to break your Ice Domain and create one of my own.”

Zi Han sighed impatiently. “Choose.”

Startled by her commanding tone, Yi Xian hastily picked one at random. “Then I thank Senior Sister.” She turned to leave.

Zi Han half-opened one eye and looked at her calmly. “I just praised your cleverness, and now you act like a fool. Using one force to counter another is not true mastery. You lack more than just powerful techniques. Don’t think that accidentally qualifying for the grand finals makes you exceptional. Wit alone will not carry you far in Qingshan Sect.”

Her words struck Yi Xian like a heavy blow. The elimination rounds had indeed been both grueling and lucky for her. She, a mere fourth-stage Human-level light-element Beast Tamer, not even an official disciple, had managed to defeat many stronger opponents. Perhaps, beneath that relief, there had been a trace of pride.

Had life in Qingshan Sect made me too comfortable? The harsh struggles of the Beast Tribe had sharpened her once, yet she had grown soft here. “You’re right, Senior Sister. I was foolish. Please, guide me.”

Zi Han snorted. “Your ability may be small, but your temper exceeds mine. You have a second spiritual root but no life-bonded beast for it. There’s still time before the finals. Go on a training journey. You’ll gain more than you think.”

Yi Xian’s first reaction was dismay. There was only a month and a half left before the finals. “If I leave now, I might not make it back in time.”

Zi Han gave her a knowing look. “Most wouldn’t make it. But your speed is unlike anyone else’s.”

Yi Xian stiffened. When did she ever see me use teleportation? Since the incident at Mingwang Peak, she had avoided using that skill to prevent revealing herself unconsciously during battles.

“Where should I go?”

“The Phantom Beast Valley is where the creatures gather. Whether you go or not depends on you.”

With that, Zi Han dismissed her.

Yi Xian left holding the scroll, her mind full of Zi Han’s words. As she thought more about them, a chill crept up her spine. If she continued walking this same path, she might one day fall into a pit too deep to escape.

She looked up, determination flickering in her eyes.

I must go to the Phantom Beast Valley.