A disciple led Yun Jin deeper inside.
As she walked, Yun Jin's thoughts wandered back to what she remembered of Ling Fei from her previous life.
This senior had been born with the innate ability to communicate with beasts. Once he started cultivating, he gradually learned how to connect with spiritual beasts as well. Though his aptitude for cultivation was only average, this unique talent allowed him to gain the trust of many spirit beasts. With their help, his early cultivation path had been smooth and promising.
But eventually, his limited aptitude caught up with him.
His cultivation stagnated at the peak of the Divine Transformation stage. Breaking through any further was nearly impossible.
In her previous life, Yun Jin had barely interacted with Ling Fei. She had only heard faint rumors—on the night the demon race invaded, he had died protecting the spirit beasts of the Spirit Beast Pavilion. Even the guardian beast of the Tianxing Sect had been gravely wounded that night, left barely clinging to life. As for the rest of the beasts, Yun Jin vaguely remembered that they were taken over by Zhao Wuji. What became of them afterward... she dared not imagine.
Ling Fei had truly loved these spirit beasts. While he was alive, they were free to live as they pleased. If they wished to choose a human companion, he would carefully match them with someone of good character.
Without Ling Fei, these beasts likely lost the freedom and kindness they once knew.
These thoughts passed quickly through her mind. Before long, Yun Jin arrived at the first enclosure for spirit beasts at the Qi Condensation stage.
Inside, Ling Fei was already hard at work.
Most of the beasts here had been affected by the maddening powder. After their rampage, they were now lethargic and dazed. Ling Fei was personally checking each one, tailoring their treatments based on their conditions.
"This Water-Spirit Rabbit is naturally timid. After such a scare, mix some Soul-Calming Grass into its meals for the next few days. Take note of the proportions…" he instructed, while a disciple beside him scribbled down notes with a serious expression.
Then he moved to the next.
"These Flameburst Mice were already aggressive by nature. Now that their instincts have been stirred up, they'll likely become even more volatile. Keep them isolated and adjust their diets accordingly. I'll explain—make sure you record it."
Ling Fei offered careful guidance for each beast he passed.
"Senior Ling tends to get fully absorbed when caring for spirit beasts," the disciple beside Yun Jin explained. "If you'd like, I can call him over—"
Yun Jin shook her head. "No need. Let him finish. I'm not in a rush. I can wait here."
Since she insisted, the disciple said no more and stayed beside her quietly.
This enclosure housed only Qi Condensation stage beasts, and thanks to what had happened earlier, nearly all of them looked drained and despondent.
All Yun Jin could hear were their weak cries of pain and discomfort.
The sight of their suffering reignited her anger toward Gu Jinghong.
Just wait. For their sake alone, she'd make sure his next three months were hell.
[Ding.]
A system alert chimed.
[New languages detected. Simplify?]
Languages?
Yun Jin blinked, then quickly opened her system interface.
Sure enough, her detection panel was now filled with various spirit beast languages.
[Water-Spirit Rabbit Language (Basic. Requires 5 Simplification Points.)][Flameburst Mouse Language (Bbasic. Requires 5 Simplification Points.)][Brighthorn Beast Language (Basic. Requires 5 Simplification Points.)]
And many more. Yun Jin counted them—thirty-five in total.
"Senior Brother, how many Qi Refining beasts are here?" she asked.
"Thirty-five species," the disciple answered promptly.
So she could learn them all?
But with each language costing five chances just for basics, wouldn't that be impractical?
Scrolling further, she found a solution:
[Master 10 Qi Refining beast languages to unlock Primary Beast Tongue.
(Primary Beast Tongue: 100% communication with Qi Refining beasts. Basic comprehension of Foundation Establishment beasts. Higher tiers require advanced proficiency.)]
That settled it. Yun Jin let out a breath of relief.
In this world, spirit beasts were incredibly powerful. Having one or more as companions would significantly boost her strength.
So forming partnerships with spirit beasts was absolutely necessary.
Which made this Beginner Beast Speech all the more important.
Yun Jin glanced at her remaining simplification points.
Before, she had nearly run out.
But after the many twists and turns of the Sect Entry Ceremony, with all its intense emotional scenes, she had raked in a good amount of Emotional Value.
Then came her trip to the Scripture Pavilion, which earned her even more.
And she especially had one person to thank: Ye Danxia.
That female lead alone had contributed nearly 2,000 points of Emotional Value.
A true Emotional Value tycoon.
Hmm. How should she treat her top supporter?
She'd treat Ye Danxia to a meal later.
Not to mention, since the entire sect's disciples had gathered, the average cultivation here was much higher than that of ordinary cultivators in the marketplace. That also meant more Emotional Value could be harvested.
With Ye Danxia, Zhao Wuji, and a few other top contributors...
The Emotional Value she gained this time had actually surpassed even her last dramatic showing in the marketplace.
By the end of the day, she had earned over 20,000 Emotional Value and gained 200 simplification points.
Learning ten beast languages would only cost fifty points. Without hesitation, Yun Jin spent them.
After randomly selecting ten beasts and mastering their languages—
Boom.
The world sounded different.
Where once she'd heard only pained cries, now she understood:
"Wuwuwu, my head hurts so much. Did someone hit me? Was it that awful Iron-Eating Beast? It must have been!"
"Why does my back ache too? Did the Iron-Eating Beast step on me when I wasn't looking?"
"Why is the Iron-Eating Beast so quiet today? Is it pretending to be innocent?"
Yun Jin: "…"
Now she was curious.
Who exactly was this Iron-Eating Beast?
Why did nine out of ten complaints seem to be about it?
Her gaze soon found the culprit—a lone Iron-Eater curled in a corner, looking equally miserable.
It smacked its paws indignantly.
Hey!
It was suffering too!
Why accuse it?!
Yun Jin almost laughed at its aggrieved expression.
Despite its fierce name, the Iron-Eater was anything but intimidating—round, fluffy, and oddly…
Familiar.
It looked identical to a creature called a "panda" from one of her past lives—a national treasure adored by millions.
Here?
It seemed no more special than any other beast.
Noticing Yun Jin's gaze, the disciple beside her whispered, "Iron-Eating Beasts are rare, sure, but their combat and defense abilities are both fairly average. Most people prioritize strength when picking a spirit beast, so this one keeps getting left behind. There was even one time when a disciple chose it, only to return it ten days later. Senior Ling was so furious he banned that disciple from ever coming near the Spirit Beast Pavilion again. But since then, this Iron-Eating Beast's temperament has changed. It became mischievous and a bit of a troublemaker."
Chosen, then abandoned?
Yun Jin's brow furrowed.
Forming a bond with a spirit beast was a lifelong commitment.
Partners should never be discarded.