When Qi Ping returned to the mountain peak with the Hundred-Eyed Flower Demon and the Mí Xiān Spirit Fox, he could no longer suppress the excitement in his heart.
"New Animal Companions are finally here!"
"And there are two of them!"
Having both Spirit Beasts in hand was truly an unexpected surprise for Qi Ping!
It was worth his trouble of searching for more powerful Spirit Beast companions.
"This time, with two Divine Soul-type pets together, I should at least be able to share a decent Talent!"
If he could share two powerful Divine Soul Talents at the same time, that would truly be a surprise among surprises.
"This time, I really owe Brother Meng for his help!"
Meng Yan's actions were beyond Qi Ping's expectations.
He had also considered asking Meng Yan for help, but that thought was extinguished as soon as it arose.
After all, Meng Yan had already helped him enough, and asking him to spend so many Spirit Stones to help again—even if he had them, which was uncertain—Qi Ping would feel too guilty.
Yet, without him even opening his mouth, Meng Yan had gone ahead and done it for him.
While this surprised Qi Ping, he was also filled with gratitude.
So, no matter what, he had to repay him an additional two thousand Spirit Stones!
It would also be a partial repayment for Meng Yan's help during this period.
"In half a year, with normal Plant Growth of hundred spirit grass, the essence nurturing honey should earn around eight to nine thousand Spirit Stones, not far from ten thousand Spirit Stones. I only need to cultivate a portion of hundred spirit grass using Plant Growth."
When time was not so urgent, Qi Ping still decided not to massively cultivate and produce essence nurturing honey in the short term.
Although Qi Ping was confident in handling the risks, it was still better to avoid unnecessary trouble.
After all, the forces and relationships within Green Stone were intricate and intertwined; the greatest fear was attracting bigger fish after dealing with smaller ones. If he ended up provoking a Golden Core Stage Cultivator, Qi Ping would only be able to flee for his life to an unfamiliar place.
"Brother Meng is a friend worth having, so if Brother Meng encounters danger, I should try my best to help him!"
Qi Ping could also tell that Meng Yan was a truly pure Cultivator of the Dao.
He felt that if someone like Meng Yan did not fall, he would surely become a towering expert in the future.
Old Zhou had also told him that no matter how strong one's cultivation, it was better to make fewer enemies and more trustworthy friends when there were no conflicts of interest, as this would allow one to survive better.
When Old Zhou was young, he knew many Cultivators with more Talent than him, but most of them died, perishing due to their recklessness and widespread enmity.
Because no matter how good one's Talent, in the Cultivation World, it is likely to be an unremarkable existence; hiding oneself allows for better survival. Similar to Qingyuan Sect and Heavenly Fire Pavilion, each generation of Disciples initially saw a surge of Geniuses, but too few truly managed to grow.
Without a background or super Talent, to live well, one either needs extraordinary Luck or understands the Dao of survival. Yet, for some reason, so many people believe they are the former.
On the mountain peak, Qi Ping released Crow and the Bee Swarm from his Storage Pouch, letting them take up guard and defensive positions before he calmly prepared for the contract ritual.
The first Spirit Beast Qi Ping took out from his Storage Pouch was the Mí Xiān Spirit Fox.
This was a small, fluffy creature, entirely white.
In appearance, it was quite similar to the Illusory Moon White Fox that Qi Ping had once seen.
However, the Mí Xiān Spirit Fox's body was rounder, making it look particularly adorable.
The most obvious difference was the special Mí Xiān mark on the Mí Xiān Spirit Fox's head, which was its distinguishing feature. Starting from one mark, the more Mí Xiān marks, the stronger its Bloodline.
The Little Mí Xiān Spirit Fox in Qi Ping's hand only had one Mí Xiān mark, but its Bloodline had already reached Advanced Tier 2, which in some respects was no worse than Crow.
However, the Mí Xiān Spirit Fox's cultivation difficulty and Bloodline advancement difficulty were even higher than Crow's, which was probably why Meng Yan's Senior Sister chose to sell it—it was too difficult to form combat power in a short period.
Even Qi Ping currently lacked the resources to cultivate this Little Spirit Fox; what he needed more right now was to share this Little Spirit Fox's Talent.
"It's still not waking up?"
Qi Ping looked at the small creature still asleep and gently rubbed its body a few times.
Feeling the touch, the Little Spirit Fox slowly woke up, mumbling and blinking its eyes at Qi Ping.
Upon seeing Qi Ping's unfamiliar face, the Little Spirit Fox's first reaction was a bit of fear.
However, after sensing Qi Ping's aura, it relaxed. Qi Ping's aura made it feel very comfortable and safe.
Just then, the Little Spirit Fox's stomach suddenly rumbled, indicating it was hungry.
Feeling the hunger in its belly, the Little Spirit Fox looked at Qi Ping with a helpless and timid gaze.
It was hungry and wanted to eat, but it was also a bit afraid to.
Qi Ping looked at the still timid Little Spirit Fox and took out a few Yun Ling Fruits and a piece of blood ginseng from his Storage Pouch, placing them in front of it.
The Little Spirit Fox saw the Spiritual Plants Qi Ping offered and couldn't help but swallow, but it didn't eat. Instead, it looked at Qi Ping with an inquiring gaze.
Qi Ping smiled and said:
"Eat, little one!"
"Chirp, chirp... (Okay! Then I'll eat!)"
"Chirp, chirp... (Huh, wait, Fox Fox, how can I understand what you're saying?)"
The Little Spirit Fox instinctively responded, then put its mouth next to the Yun Ling Fruit before realizing what had happened.
It suddenly widened its eyes and looked at Qi Ping; this was too incredible.
This was the first time the Little Spirit Fox had encountered a two-legged creature whose words it could fully understand, among all the two-legged creatures it had met!
Its intelligence was not low, so it naturally noticed the difference.
Its intuition told it that this two-legged creature seemed completely different from the others!
"Eat something to fill your stomach first. I'll tell you after you're full!" Qi Ping suggested.
"Chirp, chirp... (Okay! That works! Remember to tell Fox Fox later!)"
The simple-minded Little Spirit Fox, after confirming that Qi Ping had no ill intentions, decided to fill its tummy first!
For a Little Spirit Fox of its age, the world was vast, but eating was the most important thing!
But it was also very curious why it could understand Qi Ping's words.
Before eating, it sniffed the Yun Ling Fruit and blood ginseng, finding nothing unusual, but rather a pleasant aroma.
So, it began to eat bite by bite.
It ate very quickly, clearly very hungry.
However, being able to sleep so soundly when so hungry was quite rare.
After a while, the blood ginseng and Yun Ling Fruit that Qi Ping had taken out were all eaten by the Little Spirit Fox.
The Little Spirit Fox, lying on the grass, rubbed its round belly with its front paws, showing a comfortable expression.
After lying for a while, it looked at Qi Ping again and said:
"Chirp, chirp... (I'm full! Can you tell Fox Fox now? Why can Fox Fox understand what you're saying?)"
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