Chapter 23: Fairy Fuxue |
He paused, then under everyone’s puzzled gazes, slowly spoke the latter half of the sentence: “This person is Lu Fengmian, the first direct disciple under Venerable Lingxuan, Sect Master of our Lingyun Sect.”
“What? Venerable Lingxuan’s disciple?!”
“Venerable Lingxuan took on a disciple? Since when did that happen?”
“He’s actually the first disciple of Lingyun Sect’s Sect Master?!”
The moment those words fell, a wave of low exclamations and sharp intakes of breath immediately rose all around them.
Venerable Lingxuan, Lingyun Sect’s Sect Master, was one of the top experts in the cultivation world. Everyone present knew his name.
Even more striking was that, according to rumor, this Venerable’s temperament was somewhat... unique, and for several hundred years he had never formally accepted a disciple. Rumors had even circulated from time to time that the Lingyun Sect Master’s lineage was on the verge of dying out.
And now, he had actually taken in a direct disciple without a sound?
Moreover, looking at this Lu Fengmian, he was young, yet his cultivation had already reached the Golden Core stage, and his bearing was extraordinary; he was definitely no ordinary person.
Anyone who could enter Venerable Lingxuan’s discerning eye had to be anything but ordinary! Elder Sun’s bringing him here was likely not merely for him to gain experience.
Just then, a middle-aged man walked onto the high platform. He wore a long robe embroidered with a scene of myriad beasts galloping, and his aura was deep and steady, like an abyss.
The moment he appeared, the noise across the entire plaza came to an abrupt halt.
He was the master of this place, the Sect Master of the Beast Taming Sect— Jun Wanshou.
Lord Wanshou first cupped his hands toward all directions, politely thanking all the fellow Daoists for coming, and stated that the first half of the assembly had gone very smoothly, with satisfying results.
His gaze swept across the crowd and naturally landed on Elder Sun’s group, who had left and then returned.
A smile of surprise appeared on his face as he said, “Oh? Elder Sun? I had just heard that there was an urgent matter on your sect’s side that needed handling, and I was regretting that you would miss the exciting segments to come. I didn’t expect you to return so quickly, and even bring a new face with you. That is truly worth celebrating!”
Below the stage, Elder Sun smiled and cupped his hands. “Sect Master Wanshou must be joking. How could I possibly miss such a grand occasion? I merely went back to fetch this martial nephew of mine, who is exceptionally gifted in this field, and brought him here to broaden his horizons.”
Lord Wanshou smiled and nodded, his eyes lingering on Lu Fengmian for another moment. Clearly, he had also heard their earlier conversation and had already formed an impression of this first disciple of Lingyun Sect’s Sect Master.
“Since Elder Sun has returned and everyone is here, then next comes the segment the younger disciples have been most eagerly awaiting in this ‘Myriad Beasts Worship Assembly,’ and also the segment that best reflects the essence of each sect’s beast-taming legacy—the Trial of the Beast-Taming Heart!”
His voice was loud and clear, echoing throughout the entire plaza. “In this segment, our Beast Taming Sect, together with the fellow Daoists present, has provided a batch of spirit beasts with different temperaments and varying levels of communication difficulty. Among them are those that are gentle and friendly, and those that are proud, unruly, and difficult to tame.”
“All disciples under a hundred years of age from every sect and faction may go onto the stage and try to communicate with any spirit beast! Winning the spirit beast’s acknowledgment and affection, and establishing a preliminary relationship of trust with it, will be considered a success!”
“For those who succeed, if both sides are willing, contract matters can be discussed after the conference ends! Of course, unsuccessful communication is very common; no one must force it, lest the opposite effect be produced or the spirit beast be provoked.”
After Lord Wanshou finished speaking, he gave a great wave of his hand!
On one side of the plaza, dozens of special stone platforms of varying sizes slowly rose up, shielded by transparent barriers.
On each stone platform was one or several spirit beasts. Some were curled up asleep, some were vigilantly looking around, some were pacing restlessly, while others were curiously observing the outside world.
There were all kinds of them, from common spirit foxes, rock wolves, and black tortoises, to rare Thundercry Birds and Golden-Armored Leopards. There were even some with distinctly extraordinary auras and strange appearances, drawing low exclamations of amazement from the crowd from time to time.
Lord Wanshou announced in a ringing voice, “This time, our Beast Taming Sect has even provided a special spirit beast from a secret realm as the ultimate challenge—a young ‘Ink Jade Swallowtail Dragon’ with an ancient Azure Dragon bloodline!”
He pointed toward the stone platform at the very center, where the barrier’s glow was the brightest.
On that platform, there was no giant beast as people had imagined, but only a tiny snake less than a foot long, its body seeming as though carved from the finest black jade, coiled within a pool of spiritual spring water.
Its body was slender, its scales dense and gleaming with a deep luster. Most striking of all were the two tiny yet clearly contoured jade-like protrusions on its head—that was the horn shape of a juvenile dragon!
Although it had not yet fully taken shape, it was already faintly emanating an ancient and majestic bloodline aura.
It lay there quietly coiled, its silver-gray vertical pupils half-open and half-closed. It seemed utterly indifferent to the surrounding clamor and the countless desirous gazes cast toward it, its eyes revealing the pride born from its bloodline.
Ancient Azure Dragon bloodline? A young Ink Jade Swallowtail Dragon?!
“The Beast Taming Sect is truly generous! They’re actually willing to bring out a spirit beast cub with such potential for the heart trial?”
A heated discussion immediately erupted below the stage, with waves of astonished voices rising one after another without end.
The Azure Dragon was one of the Four Sacred Beasts. Even if only a trace of that bloodline remained in this Ink Jade Swallowtail Dragon, its potential still far surpassed that of ordinary spirit beasts. In the future, once it matured, it would certainly become a powerful existence comparable to the Soul Transformation stage, perhaps even the Great Ascension stage!
But by the same token, the higher the bloodline, the prouder the spirit beast often was, and the harder it was for it to acknowledge humans.
Just as the crowd was marveling at the Beast Taming Sect’s generosity, a crisp peal of bells came from the distance.
A young girl rode slowly out from behind the high platform on an incomparably majestic snow-white tiger.
The white tiger was robust and powerfully built, its fur white as snow without the slightest mixed color. The natural markings on its forehead closely resembled the character “king.” Its steps were vigorous and forceful, and its entire body radiated the majesty of the king of beasts. Its golden eyes swept across the surroundings, carrying a terrifying authority that made people not dare meet its gaze directly.
The girl looked to be about sixteen or seventeen years old. She wore a layered gauze dress in wisteria purple, with the hem embroidered with exquisite motifs of a hundred birds.
Her long hair was casually gathered into a cloud-shaped chignon, loosely fixed with a jade hairpin shaped like an azure phoenix holding a pearl in its beak. The rest of her black hair poured down like a waterfall to her waist, adorned with silver leaves and feather-shaped ornaments that swayed gently with her movements.
She was beautiful, and her eyes were bright and spirited with the confidence of someone who had been pampered since childhood, yet she did not appear arrogant.
On her wrists and neck she wore delicate ornaments shaped like spirit beasts. Most special of all was the string of little silver bells tied around her slender ankle, giving off crisp and pleasant chimes as she moved, intertwining with the steady steps of the white tiger beneath her into a unique rhythm.
The moment she appeared, she drew the attention of the entire audience.
“It’s Fairy Fuxue!”
“That’s the treasured pearl in the Beast Taming Sect Sect Master’s palm, and also the saintess of their generation!”
“That white tiger she’s riding is no ordinary beast; they say it has a mutated bloodline and is extremely intelligent!”
The crowd murmured in low voices, their tones full of envy and admiration.
To possess such a powerful contracted spirit beast at her age was itself proof of her talent and status within the Beast Taming Sect.
When Lord Wanshou saw his beloved daughter, his stern expression softened somewhat. As he introduced her to everyone, he said:
“This is my daughter, Fuxue. She is quite mischievous, so please forgive her if she makes a fool of herself. The white tiger beneath her is called ‘Baihu’ and has been her playmate since childhood.”
An elder skilled in social etiquette immediately smiled and praised her: “Sect Master Wanshou is too modest! Your daughter’s spiritual power is abundant, and she is so close to this white tiger. To possess such a spirit beast at such a young age, her future is immeasurable!”
Another person also chimed in: “Indeed, just looking at this ‘Baihu,’ it is majestic beyond compare and radiates inner spiritual brilliance. It certainly isn’t an ordinary breed, is it?”
At that point, a family elder with close ties to the Beast Taming Sect, apparently aware of the inside story, stroked his beard and smiled.
“You may not know this, but this ‘Baihu’ is not an ordinary white tiger variant. It is said that the blood of an ancient divine beast flows in its ancestors’ veins. Combined with Fairy Fuxue’s careful nurturing, this ‘Baihu’ has shown signs of atavism in recent years, and its potential has far surpassed that of ordinary spirit beasts.”
“Ancient White Tiger bloodline? And signs of atavism too?!”
“Amazing! Amazing! The Beast Taming Sect truly has an abundance of talent, and their spirit beasts are all extraordinary!”
An ancient Four Symbols bloodline—even the slightest trace of it represented limitless possibilities.
That Jiang Fuxue possessed such a contracted spirit beast showed just how exceptional her talent was and how much importance was placed on her.