Chapter Thirty-One: The Jinx

Su Li had no idea that the Tiger Soul held such high hopes for her. She thought she would only release the creature within her body if she was left with no other choice. The worst outcome would be her consciousness swallowed, never to awaken again. The thought brought a few strands of sorrow and reluctance to her heart.

She forced her emotions down and spoke solemnly, “The drop of divine beast White Tiger essence is hidden in the sixth trial, called the Realm of Ice and Snow, guarded by an eighth-tier Ice Jiao of the Soul Condensation Realm. The Ice Jiao has already taken human form and delights in toying with passersby, luring them into the ice cave to become food for the ice toads. It loves all sorts of treasures—perhaps that’s the angle we can use to subdue it.”

The Tiger Soul’s eyes brightened, its chin tilted arrogantly. “I can’t vouch for anything else, but when it comes to treasures, I have a couple that are quite impressive.”

The torrential rain lasted a day and a night, but when morning came, the sky cleared and the vast pools of water vanished without a trace—a rare phenomenon indeed.

Shen Fengling explained, “This is the Realm of Thunder and Rain, famous for its unpredictable weather.”

At his words, the white beast nestled in the boy’s arms suddenly straightened. Su Li recalled the comic’s description of the Thunder-patterned Red Pine that bore fruit once every ten thousand years, and her fingers twitched with eagerness. She said to the Demon Flower King, “Ah Hua, there’s a Thunder-patterned Red Pine in this space. Ask the nearby spirit plants where it is.”

Without hesitation, the Demon Flower King shot from Shen Luo’s wrist, bounding joyfully into the thicket.

Its enthusiasm pleased Su Li greatly, and its fluffy tail swayed back and forth.

Sensing her excitement, Shen Luo smiled with his eyes and lifted her to perch on his shoulder.

The Demon Flower King had left just now, likely because she had discovered something new. In any case, whatever she did—so long as she didn’t bring back a wild man—he wouldn’t stop her.

The view from his shoulder was even wider.

Su Li’s eyes brightened, her smile growing more joyful, and the tail swept again and again across his nape.

It tickled, as though something was scratching at his heart.

Shen Luo’s lips curved further.

The journey was so smooth that even Shen Fengling and his companions, who had spent countless days scraping by on the edge of a knife, felt oddly unreal, as if they were dreaming.

They watched the boy dig spirit herbs and pick spirit fruits, thinking life had become too pleasant.

Not a single demon cultivator appeared, nor even a single hair from a high-tier beast.

It felt like a dream.

Shen Fengling couldn’t help but glance up at the white beast on the boy’s shoulder, squinting as the clan leader’s words echoed in his mind: “When misfortune comes and power wanes, such beings are never meant for small ponds.”

He wondered what trials she had endured to end up on this continent, picked up by Ah Luo. Perhaps Ah Luo’s ability to form a contract with the twelfth-tier Vermilion Bird was thanks to her.

His speculation wasn’t baseless. Since the rise of this continent, no one had ever contracted a beast above the tenth tier.

Suddenly, the beast turned its head.

As their gazes met, Shen Fengling was startled, his scalp tingling under the beast’s scrutiny.

If it wasn’t his imagination, then the beast had truly gained sentience!

Su Li was indeed sizing him up, thinking with a sigh: Could this old man be eyeing her as a beast to claim? After all, elders snatching beasts within the clan was hardly uncommon.

The relationship between beast tamers and their beasts was never equal. Aside from soul contracts, the master could forcibly break the bond and even transfer all the backlash upon the beast. Thus, beasts were always subordinate, without any rights.

Feeling annoyed, Su Li’s tail wrapped around Shen Luo’s neck, nearly choking him.

Shen Luo had no choice but to pull her back into his arms, soothing the agitated beast before turning to ask, “Elder Nineteen, what just happened?” He nearly said outright, “What did you do to the furball?”

Shen Fengling’s expression was… difficult to describe. He’d seen disdain and wariness in the beast’s eyes—how could he admit it? His old face would have nowhere to go. So he made up an excuse, “Maybe she sensed something.”

No sooner had he spoken than cries for help rang out.

“Help!”

“Someone come, quick!”

…

These pleas, mixed with beastly roars, weren’t clear as to which unlucky cultivators were involved.

Shen Fengling’s face turned stiff.

Damn it!

He’d just been making things up, but now it was coming true?

After a brief discussion, they decided to investigate.

Deep in the woods, a terrifying beastly aura loomed. From afar, it was a sixth-tier Silver-scaled Azure Scorpion—its navy body slim, its back covered in silver scales, red eyes bulging outward. It ignored cultivator skills, charging wildly, as if it had lost all reason.

Su Li patted Shen Luo’s arm with a paw.

He lowered his head.

Su Li pointed her paw at the Silver-scaled Azure Scorpion, the other pressed to his chest.

“You want to go see? And leave me here to wait.”

Their tacit understanding surprised her, and she happily flicked her tail.

“Go ahead, but be careful,” Shen Luo instructed.

Su Li leaped from his arms, moving so fast she was atop a birch tree in the blink of an eye, crouched on the trunk to watch the distant battle.

All those watching their interaction were somewhat bewildered—the beast just raised its paw, yet the boy understood her? Wasn’t this too fantastical?

“Shows what little you know,” the Tiger Soul in the Divine Tiger Stone sneered. “It’s a kind of intimacy. You single beasts could never understand.”

Right—single beast was a term it had recently learned from novels, describing those without a mate.

The Tiger Soul felt a little stung by the thought and fetched the unfinished novel from last night.

Meanwhile, the battle in the thicket was nearing its end, with the cultivators clearly being crushed. The frenzied Silver-scaled Azure Scorpion roared skyward, then curled into a ball, its silver scales shooting out like blades.

Su Li dodged away.

Thud, thud, thud.

Three scales embedded themselves in the tree where she had just crouched.

Su Li was surprised—the sixth-tier Silver-scaled Azure Scorpion’s explosive power was truly astonishing.

Something was off. There was a big problem here, perhaps tied to the beast rampages in the secret realm.

Just then, Su Li sensed the Demon Flower King’s presence. She glanced around, spotting a bright splash of red in the nearby bushes—a little red flower swaying shamelessly in the breeze.

It was almost unbearable to watch.

Su Li decided to move closer to observe.

Thus, everyone saw the white beast moving lightly through the woods, soon arriving beside the Silver-scaled Azure Scorpion. Her stealth was so formidable she went unnoticed for quite a while.

Even so, Shen Luo’s palms were slick with sweat.

The enraged Silver-scaled Azure Scorpion attacked blindly, the cultivators retreating in defeat and suffering heavy casualties.

The more closely Su Li watched, the more solemn her expression became.

Something was very wrong.

The Silver-scaled Azure Scorpion was covered in wounds, seemingly numb to pain, taking every hit without reacting. Her gaze fell to its mouth, where yellowish brown foam clung.

It was sinister indeed.