A Treasure Vault That Needed No Key

The first day after the torrential rain.

Dawn swallowed the stars as pale light broke over the horizon. It was barely light when Spark was rudely awakened early that morning.

"Chirp?"

Opening its eyes, it saw a familiar face. It froze for a moment, instinctively about to breathe fire to protect itself.

But when it realized that the face so close to it belonged to its own Beast Tamer, Spark hurriedly swallowed the sparks about to burst forth. Scalding flames churned in its belly, turning its little face bright red.

Phew~

After much effort, Spark finally soothed the restless sparks in its stomach. It quietly studied the human before it, fluttering its wings as thoughts swirled through its mind.

Oh my gosh!

It had actually been fooled so easily!

Did that mean it really had to live here from now on???

Spark sighed repeatedly, but it had no choice but to accept the fact.

Still, after spending a day together, Spark had discovered that this human had no intention of harming it. On the contrary, he treated it rather well and was gentle when feeding it.

At that thought, Spark hastily shook its head like a rattle drum.

No, no, no!

That wasn't it at all!

Yet images of training with Chen Yuan, pulling weeds with him, and improving together kept spinning through its mind until they filled its entire head.

Spark quietly gazed at the sleeping Chen Yuan. Its eyes were deep, but it no longer let its imagination run wild.

Forget it, forget it.

There was food and drink here, and it even had a Beast Tamer it could order around freely. That didn't seem so bad.

With that thought, its dark blue eyes looked around. Then it gently flapped its wings, stirring the air as it slowly rose to inspect the bedroom.

Everything in the bedroom was unfamiliar. Spark poked the tablet on the desk, and its screen lit up. Startled, it hurried behind the curtains, cautiously poking out its head to watch what the tablet would do next.

After waiting a long time and confirming that the tablet would not hurt it, Spark breathed a sigh of relief. It flapped its wings again and resumed inspecting the bedroom.

Only this time, it instinctively avoided the desk.

"Chirp?"

Spark suddenly spotted that hateful figure sprawled in the corner, fast asleep. A crafty gleam flashed through its eyes as it flew toward it.

But as it drew close to Cola, it seemed to sense a howling gale circling around Cola's body, stopping it from getting any closer.

"Chirp?"

Spark's eyes widened, its face full of confusion.

"Chirp chirp chirp!"

Next, Spark beat its wings furiously and flew forward with all its strength, only to be blocked by a fierce wind that seemed to come from nowhere. It could not advance.

"Chirp."

After several fruitless attempts, Spark landed on the floor. Panting, it stared at the sleeping Cola, growing ever more bewildered.

Why?

Why was this happening?

"Huh, you're awake so early?"

A familiar voice suddenly sounded beside it. Spark hurriedly looked up and saw that its Beast Tamer had already gotten dressed and risen.

"Chirp chirp chirp!"

Spark immediately flapped its wings, flew up, and landed on Chen Yuan's shoulder. Then it pointed at Cola in the corner.

There was something seriously wrong with it!

"Hm?" Chen Yuan gave a soft sound of surprise and turned to look at the sleeping Cola, confusion flashing through his eyes.

Normally, Cola would have been waiting for him with its tail wagging by the time he got up. Why was it still asleep today?

He quickly walked over, crouched down, and reached out to touch Cola. Spark on his shoulder shook its head repeatedly. "Chirp chirp chirp!"

That wouldn't work!

Yet Chen Yuan's hand met no resistance. His palm gently stroked Cola's fur as he softly called, "Cola?"

Cola did not respond, but a pale blue screen appeared before his eyes—

Condensing Wind Hound (Evolving)

Chen Yuan's eyes immediately lit up, and he said excitedly, "Cola is evolving too?!!"

"Right, Cola has grown quickly ever since it was born. Evolution makes perfect sense."

Recalling the information Jiang Wenning had given him last night, Chen Yuan murmured, "It seems Cola is undergoing a natural evolution without relying on a Spiritual Plant."

Then Chen Yuan turned to the bewildered Spark and asked, "Do you remember what happened before you evolved?"

"Chirp!"

"Chirp chirp chirp!"

Spark spread its wings and conveyed what had happened before its evolution to Chen Yuan through their mental connection.

After a long while,

Chen Yuan nodded in realization. "So that's what happened."

According to Spark, it had accidentally eaten a red fruit the day before yesterday and fallen unconscious shortly afterward.

When it awoke, Spark found that it could breathe fire as soon as it opened its mouth, and its appearance had changed drastically. Panicked, it had unconsciously flown to Xuanhe Village and accidentally crashed headfirst into a large tree at the village entrance.

Then came the torrential rain. Soaked from head to toe, its body had grown even weaker.

"It looks like that red fruit was also a type of Spiritual Plant," Chen Yuan secretly guessed.

At that thought, Chen Yuan's eyes brightened. "Xuanhe Village sits against the Southern foothills of the Qinling Mountains. Deep in those mountains are countless rare plants."

"When the Spiritual Tide arrives, how many Spiritual Plants will be born?"

"This isn't a mountain range at all. It's clearly a treasure vault that needs no key!"

Chen Yuan's tone grew increasingly excited. "And the system requires contact with Extraordinary Creatures to obtain Origin Points. How many Extraordinary Creatures will the Qinling Mountains produce?"

"Thousands upon thousands would be a conservative estimate!"

"Whew, calm down, calm down."

Chen Yuan let out a long breath and forced himself to calm down. "I had originally planned to find a way into the Beast Taming Academy and study this knowledge in depth, but now it seems unnecessary."

Chen Yuan guessed that his younger brother, Chen Wenhao, might have entered the Beast Taming Academy as well. Together with Jiang Wenning, the other owner of a Jade Pendant, he could learn the relevant knowledge from the two of them.

And with the system, staying in Xuanhe Village was undoubtedly the best choice for him!

The Qinling Mountains had abundant animal and plant resources. Now that the Spiritual Tide had begun, countless Extraordinary Creatures were bound to emerge here.

And those Extraordinary Creatures could help him improve continuously.

Besides, Grandpa was already in his seventies, and his health was far worse than before. He needed a descendant to remain by his side and care for him.

His younger brother Chen Wenhao was striding at the forefront of this era's tide. As the elder brother, Chen Yuan ought to share the burdens at home.

Having figured this out, Chen Yuan left the bedroom with Spark and said to Chen Weiyi, who was busy in the kitchen, "Grandpa, when Cola wakes up, have it come find me."

Chen Weiyi was slightly stunned. Though he did not understand why, he still nodded.

Today was a workday, so Chen Yuan could not remain at home to observe Cola's evolution.

After casually grabbing two eggs, Chen Yuan hurried toward the wildlife rescue station.

Gentle sunlight spilled everywhere. The weeds by the roadside had disappeared, leaving only the ivy on the houses continuing to spread outward.

Along the way, Chen Yuan looked around, searching for traces of Extraordinary Creatures.

But even when he reached the entrance of the rescue station, he still did not see a single Extraordinary Creature.

"Of course. The Spiritual Tide has only just begun, and only a few animals have successfully evolved," Chen Yuan thought to himself.

He pushed open the door and entered the office. After making himself a packet of soy milk powder, Chen Yuan leaned comfortably back in his chair, squinting at the sunlight outside the window. "First, I'll work honestly."

"After work, I'll take a look around the village and see whether I can find any other Extraordinary Creatures."