The little bear, however, was quite amusing. Simplehearted and adorable, it often came running over to Jiang Chan’s place. The higher a spirit beast’s level, the harder it became to have offspring. Of course, if they did have offspring, the young would inevitably possess quite outstanding aptitude.
Both large bears had reached the Golden Core stage. Even at birth, the cub’s fighting ability had been considerable, and it spent its days racing around the territory. Knowing Jiang Chan had honey, the cub often asked her for some.
Jiang Chan was very fond of cute creatures, and this little bear appealed perfectly to that fondness. Glittering gold, with round eyes, it looked simplehearted and adorable. Of course, that was only on the surface. In reality, the little fellow was very mischievous.
As it approached Jiang Chan, the cub suddenly sniffed. The next moment, its two little paws wrapped around her calf. Clearly, it too had recognized that she was the Treasure-Hunting Mouse.
Jiang Chan bent down and picked up the cub, which promptly wrapped its paws around her neck. She nodded to the two large bears and handed the remaining honey to the cub.
The little bear licked Jiang Chan’s face, then clutched the honey and ate with great relish. The slightly larger of the two adult bears swallowed. It wanted some too!
Jiang Chan sat on the ground, and the two large bears sat opposite her. She was not stingy. If there was no honey, they could have some spirit fruit. She pushed a few bright red fruits toward them, delighting the two large bears.
Jiang Chan’s internal space was truly unusual. Things remained exactly as they had been when placed inside. She had collected these spirit fruits during her usual outings and ate them when she had time to satisfy her cravings.
It could be said that Jiang Chan’s little life in the forest of magical beasts was quite comfortable, apart from being unable to eat cooked food. Now that she had taken human form and was finally about to enjoy a special meal, the bear family of three had come calling.
How much meat could one horned sheep provide? Everyone present had an enormous appetite, and even the bear cub could eat as much as anyone. After finishing a leg of lamb, it still clung to Jiang Chan, crying for more.
Holding a strip of tenderloin, Jiang Chan casually fed the cub while conversing with the large bears.
“Congratulations on advancing to the Nascent Soul stage. You even got there before us.” The large bear still remembered that when Jiang Chan first arrived, she had not been as strong as they were. Now, she had already surpassed them.
Jiang Chan raised her eyebrows. “If you slept a little less, you’d get there quickly too.”
Earth Rock Bears were extremely powerful spirit beasts, but these fellows were terribly lazy. All day long, they ate their fill and slept, then woke up and ate again. Yet their cultivation still rose rapidly, making Jiang Chan terribly envious.
The large bear smacked its lips. “Roar, roar.”
Let’s not talk about that. We’ve eaten enough. It’s time to go back to sleep. I have to say, your lightning tribulation caused quite a commotion. It woke us right up. If we hadn’t been so far away, we’d definitely have been caught up in it.
The large bear rolled its eyes and turned the blame back on her. Jiang Chan waved helplessly. “Go on, go on, you lazy bear!”
Watching the bear family disappear, Jiang Chan lay back against Mo Yu’s soft body. “Mo Yu, why don’t you find some time to undergo your lightning tribulation? Then we can go out and have some fun together. There are plenty of interesting things in human society.”
Jiang Chan coaxed Mo Yu. Mo Yu was a ready source of fighting muscle, and she was determined to lure her away with her. Mo Yu rolled her large eyes. “I’m not confident I can survive the lightning tribulation. I don’t have those defensive formations like you do.”
Jiang Chan understood at once. She stroked Mo Yu’s head. “Alright, I know what you mean. I’ll prepare formations for you later. What else do you need? I still have a drop of Diliujiang. Why don’t I give you that too? It could at least raise your cultivation a little more.”
“Diliujiang? You still have some?” Mo Yu roared, then shook her head. “Better not. If I use it, I’ll have to undergo my lightning tribulation immediately. I’d rather wait until afterward and use it to consolidate my cultivation.”
Jiang Chan clapped her hands. “Fine. I’ll save it for you and prepare the formations too. Once you can take human form, we’ll go out and broaden our horizons!”
Two months later, two girls appeared outside the forest of magical beasts. One had black hair and black eyes, with golden light flashing through her eyes from time to time. She wore pale gold clothing. Naturally, this was Jiang Chan in human form.
The other was a tall girl in black who looked cold and aloof. This was Mo Yu, who had safely survived her lightning tribulation. Jiang Chan’s drop of Diliujiang had also helped consolidate her cultivation. Mo Yu was now a Nascent Soul spirit beast as well.
Before leaving the forest of magical beasts, the two Nascent Soul spirit beasts had scoured it thoroughly. The forest’s powerful beasts got headaches at the sight of Jiang Chan. She was the sort who would pluck feathers from a passing goose, wanting everything she saw.
Fortunately, she was not that unscrupulous and traded with everyone. Even so, the forest’s spirit beasts were overjoyed to see her leave.
These days, there was simply no hiding anything valuable. All Jiang Chan had to do was sniff and look around, and the things they had gone to great lengths to conceal lay completely exposed before her, as though transparent.
They could hardly refuse to trade either. Everything Jiang Chan brought out was something they needed. Things that increased cultivation, such as Jingming Spring Water and Life-Withering Grass, were things every spirit beast needed, were they not?
The spirit beasts suffered and enjoyed themselves at the same time. When Jiang Chan left the forest of magical beasts, they practically wanted to celebrate with gongs and drums. They could finally rest easy. In front of her, they all felt as though they had no secrets.
“I bet those spirit beasts are absolutely delighted right now.” Mo Yu curled her lips. Because she was Jiang Chan’s companion, she had become one of those unwelcome among the spirit beasts too.
Jiang Chan shook her head. “I didn’t take their things for nothing. Didn’t I trade for everything?”
Mo Yu glared at her. “Are you sure it was trading rather than temptation?”
“Alright, there was a little inducement involved. But if they didn’t need those things, they wouldn’t have traded with me, would they?”
“You always have an answer.” Bickering as they went, the two headed toward the marketplace outside the forest.
Ten days later, they stood at the entrance to the Sword Sect’s marketplace. The corner of Mo Yu’s mouth twitched. “What are we doing here? Didn’t you say we were coming out to have fun? How did we end up at the Sword Sect?”
Although she had never left the forest of magical beasts, she had heard of the Sword Sect’s reputation. They were said to be extremely ferocious! If she came up against someone from the Sword Sect, Mo Yu was not sure she could escape unscathed.
Jiang Chan tugged at her. “Calm down! If neither of us says anything, who can tell what our true forms are? Since we’re here, let’s broaden our horizons. I want to see what the Sword Sect’s lunatics look like too.”
Mo Yu grumbled, “Probably much like you. All you do every day is cultivate and cultivate. Tell me, how old are you? How can you bear sitting still like that?”
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