I Think You Have Bad Intentions!

Leaving the winding, rugged mountain path behind, the man and his two pets gradually entered the dense forest.

Looking up ahead, layers upon layers of dense branches crisscrossed overhead. The blazing sunlight was shut out, with only a few stray rays filtering through the gaps and falling onto the ground.

Farther away, trees stood in clusters, like a silent green ocean.

Xuanhe Village lay deep within the Qinling Mountains, beside Mount Taibai, the Qinling range's main peak. It was part of the core region, with few tourists.

When Chen Yuan was young, he often came to this forest with his younger brother to explore. After he began working, he had also followed Forest Rangers here several times to patrol the woods and treat wild animals.

He was no stranger to this forest, though he had never ventured any deeper.

But after the Spiritual Tide's revival, this place had been transformed beyond recognition.

Towering trees dozens, even hundreds, of meters tall were everywhere. Their dense leaves spread like canopies, while thick vines intertwined with one another, making the place resemble a primordial jungle.

Chen Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly and swept his gaze around, paying attention to every corner. The slightest rustle of wind or grass made him more vigilant.

Traveling through a forest was no child's play. Nature would make every ignorant person bow their head in awe.

Cola, however, had no such reservations.

"Awwooo~"

Cola's steps were cheerful and cocky. His azure eyes looked left and right, seemingly curious about everything around him.

Whenever he spotted a small animal darting past, Cola would immediately take off after it without hesitation, vanishing from sight in the blink of an eye.

Only when Chen Yuan called him would he return.

"You seem really eager to fight?" Chen Yuan looked down at Cola and smiled faintly.

"Aw!"

Having his thoughts exposed by his master, Cola bared his big teeth and gave a foolish grin.

After seeing Spark effortlessly defeat the Steel-headed Earth Rat, Cola's desire for battle had surged wildly.

He wanted to fight, fight!

He wanted to earn his master's approval!

At the thought of easily defeating an opponent, being watched by his master's admiring gaze, and having that gentle big hand rub his doggy head, Cola could not help letting out a pleased little hum.

Spark cast a sidelong glance at the idiotically grinning Cola, then lifted his head high.

He increasingly felt that this four-legged beast posed no threat to him.

Chen Yuan reached out and stroked Cola's soft fur as he said slowly, "They haven't provoked you. Why fight them?"

After a pause, he continued, "Only make a move when you encounter someone with bad intentions."

Upon hearing the first sentence, Cola immediately wilted, his gaze dimming. Yet after hearing the next one, he abruptly raised his head to stare at Chen Yuan, excitement written all over his face. "Aw aw aw!"

Got it!

As long as I think the other side has bad intentions, I can beat them up good!

Along the way, Chen Yuan encountered more than one Extraordinary Creature he had never seen before, but unfortunately, most were merely fleeting glimpses.

Though these Extraordinary Creatures showed no hostility, they retained the basic wariness of their days as wild animals. The moment they saw Chen Yuan, they turned and fled.

This ruined Chen Yuan's plan to touch them up close and gain Origin Points.

The sun gradually shifted westward. It was already afternoon.

After walking for several hours straight, Chen Yuan called for the two little ones to stop and rest, replenishing their food and recovering their strength.

"I never had this kind of stamina before."

Moving through the forest was especially exhausting, and he had to swing his sickle from time to time to clear obstacles from the path. An ordinary person would have long since been utterly exhausted.

Yet Chen Yuan felt only a trace of fatigue.

"This is the benefit of becoming a Beast Tamer."

As his contracted pets grew stronger and more numerous, his own mental strength and physical fitness would continue to improve.

Perhaps one day, he would be able to go head-to-head with Extraordinary Creatures by himself.

"Spark, how much farther is it?" Chen Yuan looked up at Spark in midair and asked.

"Chirp chirp chirp."

Spark stared ahead for a while. Then, as if he had suddenly spotted something, he let out a series of chirps.

We're almost there!

Chen Yuan's eyes lit up. He hurriedly pulled up Cola, who was lying on the ground resting. "Get up, we're almost there."

An hour later.

"This is what you meant by almost there?" Chen Yuan stared at the deep, shadowy forest ahead, his tone unreadable.

"Chirp."

Spark's eyes shifted, and he instinctively avoided Chen Yuan's gaze.

"It's fine. Let's keep going. We'll get there eventually." Chen Yuan did not mind Spark's mistaken judgment.

He was already used to the "we're almost there" while hiking and the "your food will be right up" when urging a waiter. Both were famous lies.

Yet after they walked forward for another ten-odd minutes, an enormous tree entered their view.

The instant he saw the tree, Spark became excited and rapidly beat his wings toward it.

When he saw the fiery red fruits hanging from the tree, his expression brightened. At the same time, he secretly heaved a sigh of relief, then flew back to Chen Yuan's side at top speed. "Chirp chirp chirp!"

This is the place!

Afterward, Spark carefully raised his head and looked at his Beast Tamer with eyes full of expectation, his heart uneasy and tense.

"Not bad. You successfully led us here." Chen Yuan tapped Spark's little head with a finger, his gaze brimming with praise.

Spark narrowed his eyes slightly, his wings trembling faintly as though beating out a joyful rhythm.

"Aw..."

From the corner, Cola cast over an envious look, but he was no longer as dejected and jealous as before.

He was no longer his old self.

If Spark could do it, so could he!

For a moment, Cola's eyes blazed like fire, as though filled with beautiful expectations for the future.

But when he caught sight of his master walking toward the tree from the corner of his eye, he shook his head, tossed aside his wild thoughts, and eagerly trotted after him.

This tree was only around twenty meters tall. It was inconspicuous among the many towering giants, but its leaves gave off a faint red glow, making it especially peculiar.

Chen Yuan's gaze was fixed entirely on the four fiery red fruits.

These fiery red fruits looked exactly like the Flame Flame Fruit displayed by the system. They resembled apples, wreathed in a thin layer of flame.

"Truly amazing."

Looking at that layer of fire, Chen Yuan could not help sighing from the bottom of his heart. Then he took out his phone and opened the camera.

First, he recorded the tree's surroundings and general appearance. Then he zoomed in and captured several close-up shots.

Only after finishing all that did Chen Yuan put down his phone and say to Cola, "Cola, use Wind Blade to knock down the Flame Flame Fruit."

"Aw!"

Cola nodded in response and prepared to fly forward.

But just then, Cola's dog nose twitched. It seemed he had caught some strange scent. His ears shot upright as his wary gaze turned toward the back of the tree, and he gave a warning bark. "Aw aw aw!"

"Chirp~"

Spark looked down from above, his deep blue eyes fixed behind the tree as fire-element energy stirred restlessly within him.

Under the silent stares of the man and his two pets, a fiery red figure slowly emerged from behind the tree. Its posture was elegant and light, like a proud dancer stepping onto the stage.

It was a fox covered from head to toe in fiery red fur. At the tip of its broad, fluffy tail burned a cluster of flames.

Looking closely, its tail was actually longer than its body.

Above its dark green eyes was a long scar, adding a hint of cold severity to its appearance.

"Aw aw aw!"

The moment the fox appeared, Cola immediately perked up. He bared his teeth fiercely and strode forward without hesitation.

He could feel it. This fox had bad intentions!

Whether it truly had bad intentions or not, as long as he thought it had bad intentions, then it had bad intentions!