Brother, how come you're a witch?

Su, Su Yan?

Liu Baishuang rubbed her eyes, suspecting that she was hallucinating due to excessive mental stress.

How did he end up here?

Does he perhaps have a hobby of fighting beasts? No, that shouldn't be the case...

Liu Baishuang swallowed hard. Su Yan's appearance at Spirit Beast Peak at this time was definitely not a good omen.

Last night, she was seen getting close to a demon by someone who might be a disciple of the Spirit Beast Peak, and tonight Su Yan appeared at the Spirit Beast Peak. It's very suspicious no matter how you look at it.

Has Su Yan already discovered something?

That shouldn't be the case!

Liu Baishuang recalled the only message she had sent, which only said, "The Heavenly Demon spy has excellent escape skills and possesses a warm fragrance," and had nothing to do with the Spirit Beast Peak.

Even if Su Yan was investigating a spy from the Heavenly Demons, he shouldn't have come here—unless... what was that word he used before? Hmm.....

Yes, there's a cheat code!

Just as Liu Baishuang was in a state of confusion and nervousness, the two elders started chatting curiously.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, is that fat cat also considered a spirit beast?"

"Hehe, it's normal that Fellow Daoist Xu doesn't recognize this 'ball cat.' This kind of spirit beast is only for viewing and has no practical value. It's also not widely bred, so it naturally wouldn't catch the eye of a cultivation fanatic like you."

Chen Yixing stroked his beard and laughed:

"However, this 'ball cat' has undergone a slight mutation and has successfully established its foundation, which is why it was sent to the arena."

"Is the mutated dumpling cat very strong?"

"No, it's still very weak. It hasn't won a single match in a year at the arena, and it's lost over a hundred matches."

Chen Yixing shook his head:

"But it's cute, and many female disciples who come to experience beast fighting like to choose it. It can't last long before it's knocked off the stage, so the peak master keeps it in the arena."

"What a mercenary reason."

Xu Qinglan raised an eyebrow:

"So, does that mean it's definitely going to lose this time too?"

"Haha, not necessarily. Its opponent, Moama, is not a powerful spirit beast. With proper handling, it can be defeated. However, unless a newcomer has extremely high talent in beast taming, it is definitely impossible."

Chen Yixing smiled and picked up his teacup:

"If you truly possess such talent, you are more than qualified to be my personal disciple."

"I see, that match is going to be very boring."

Disappointed, Xu Qinglan picked up a pastry from the table and turned to hand it to Liu Baishuang, who was sitting behind her. However, she saw that her precious disciple was focused and staring intently at the competition field.

"Shuang'er?"

"...Huh? Master, Master?" Liu Baishuang suddenly came to her senses.

"What's wrong with you? What's so special about this beast fight that's making you so focused? Have you taken a fancy to the 'Tuanzi Cat'?"

No, it's not.

Liu Baishuang's eyes flickered:

"Master, the person holding the dumpling cat is the guy who follows Ye Jingqiu around every day."

"Oh?"

Xu Qinglan narrowed her eyes. She harbored deep resentment towards Jianxu, having suffered three injuries at his hands.

First, her fiancé was stolen by the blind female sword servant of Sword Ruins. Second, after she and the swordsman of Sword Ruins made a private vow in the secret realm, she discovered that he was already married. Third, she chatted with a warm-hearted guy from Sword Ruins on Feixin, but when they met in real life, the other party was actually a lesbian.

From then on, Xu Qinglan was very unhappy with everything about Sword Ruins, including Ye Jingqiu and the people around her.

Her beautiful eyes coldly swept across the arena, eager to witness just how utterly defeated this sect traitor, who was close to the people of Sword Ruins.

In the field.

Su Yan felt a chill run down his spine, as if a resentful gaze was staring at him—no, he vaguely felt it was two gazes.

What happened?

Could it be that there are indeed spies from the Heavenly Demon on Spirit Beast Peak, and more than one? Now the spies have come forward on their own?

But when Su Yan tried to sense them more closely, the two gazes vanished as if they were illusions.

"Hey, are you going to fight or not?"

The bug-catching boy on the other side was getting impatient.

"If you're not going to play, just surrender already. A grown man choosing a sissy little cat, are you here to embarrass yourself?"

Upon hearing this, the tuanzi cat in Su Yan's arms lowered its head sullenly. It was not the first or second time that it had been disliked by its opponents, and even by its temporary tamer, but it was still very sad whenever it heard such words.

"What determines the strength of a spirit beast is not its appearance."

Su Yan's strong hand stroked the top of the cat's head, the warmth of his palm and his words conveying a powerful affirmation:

"What determines the outcome of a beast fight is not only strength or weakness, but also something more precious."

"ha?"

The insect-catching boy looked at Su Yan as if he were an idiot.

For the first time, Tuanzi Cat felt such sincere encouragement, and her heart was filled with courage she had never felt before.

"Go, Tuanzi Cat."

Su Yan gently put it down, and as it looked back with deep longing, he pushed it onto the arena, then began to circulate his spiritual energy within his body.

These two awkward slogans were not shouted for nothing, but were a necessary prerequisite for performing a beast-taming spell.

A thousand years in the future, the Heavenly Demons invade, forcing the human and demon races to unite against them. The demon beasts that have branched out from the demons naturally become closer to humans and often fight together.

During that period, new beast-taming spells emerged one after another, and cultivators devised various methods to enhance the combat power of their demonic beasts, such as maximizing their size and crystallizing them.

However, using such a spell would be too conspicuous, so Su Yan decided to use a beast-taming technique that ordinary people could perform using true qi instead of hand seals. This technique's primary energy source wasn't spiritual power, but rather—

"Shine, Bonds! Roar, Dumpling Cat! Mega Evolution!"

Su Yan activated the Beast Taming Technique. Although he didn't have much of a bond with the Tuanzi Cat, the little bit he had just used was enough. With the system's full proficiency, the problem would be solved!

Non-existent bonds have been added!

The glutinous cat felt a powerful fighting spirit surge into its body, causing it to involuntarily arch its back, with the fur on its back standing on end, resembling a bulging spine.

It let out a joyful sound:

"ha!"

The entire Colosseum fell silent at that sound.

"What?!"

Chen Yixing almost dropped the teacup he was holding.

"The shape of the dumpling cat has changed? Although it's subtle, what force is supporting this change? Could it be...? No, there can't be any mistake, this is the direction of my research!"

He immediately stood up and waved to Xu Qinglan and Liu Baishuang:

"Please make yourselves at home. That child has a talent for beast taming; perhaps he could become my personal disciple."

After saying that, he immediately walked out without waiting for Xu Qinglan's response.

Liu Baishuang blinked, looking somewhat confused.

Huh? Become Elder Chen's personal disciple? What am I supposed to do then? Is Su Yan not coming to Shuiyue Peak?

Although she was ready to run away at any time, she still hoped to resolve the issue of being seen smoothly, and then recruit Su Yan into Shuiyue Peak as planned, so that they could become closer.

Isn't that what Su Yan was thinking? If he also wanted to enter Shuiyue Peak, why would he come to Ling Shou Peak and draw attention to himself?

Liu Baishuang's mind was still in a mess, but that didn't stop her from gritting her teeth in annoyance and clenching her fingers on her knees.

"To make that old fellow Chen Yixing so excited...that's interesting."

Xu Qinglan narrowed her eyes and stood up coldly:

"Come on, Shuang'er, let's go take a look."

"yes!"

Liu Baishuang was extremely proactive.

......

The battle in the arena was full of twists and turns. Even after its transformation, the takoyaki almost fell under the iron hooves of the demon, but in the end, it was the charioteer's call that kept it from falling and allowed it to stand until the very last moment.

Of course, this was actually the result of Su Yan deliberately holding back. He didn't throw out many beast-taming spells, acting like a novice, shouting "Get out of the way!" the whole time.

At this moment, he was being interviewed after the match as the dark horse who led Tuanzi Cat to their first victory.

"Sir, if you happen to be passing by, how would you rate our opponent this time?" a disciple from the Spirit Beast Peak asked, holding a pen and paper.

"His strength is undeniable, but he failed because he only treated the spirit beasts as tools for victory, not as partners."

Su Yan looked serious and earnest.

"Only when spirit beasts and their riders understand each other can they become stronger."

"That's quite a profound insight, and it seems to be somewhat similar to Elder Chen's."

The disciple took notes and continued to ask:

"Your performance this time was so outstanding that you might be specially recruited by the main peak. What are your thoughts on this?"

"Ahem, becoming a spirit beast master has been my childhood dream. If I really have this opportunity, I would be very honored."

Su Yan was talking nonsense with a straight face.

"Even if you are actually a sword cultivator now?"

"Yes, even though I am a sword cultivator."

Su Yan gave an affirmative answer, then paused in surprise.

He suddenly realized that the question didn't seem to come from the Spirit Beast Peak disciple in front of him; the voice clearly came from behind him.

That cold voice sounded very familiar.