Four Spirits of Beasts

Lu Feng spoke calmly, but to Tang Yuan, his words were like a thunderbolt exploding overhead.

Ever since his right arm had become beastified, Tang Yuan had spent the past half year searching for a cure, yet he had found nothing.

Lu Feng's offhand words gave Tang Yuan enormous hope. He immediately asked anxiously, "What method is there?"

"There are two methods. The first is to abolish the Beast Power within your body. Then your beastified arm will naturally recover," Lu Feng said. But Tang Yuan hesitated and shook his head. That method was no different from reducing everything he had cultivated over the years to ashes.

"And the second method?" Tang Yuan asked, clinging to a sliver of hope.

"A Transformation Pill. Even spirit beasts can take human form with one," Lu Feng said evenly.

Tang Yuan's face filled with disappointment. Transformation Pills were priceless and unavailable on the market; even if he knew where one was, it was not something he could obtain.

"I advise you to consider the first method instead. Your strength is still shallow, yet you already possess at least five or six kinds of Beast Power. If this continues, the Beast Powers you will need to control will become terrifyingly numerous. And the further you go, the stronger those beast cores will become. They will not be easy to control, much less several dozen kinds of Beast Power at once."

Lu Feng tried earnestly to persuade him. He could sense Tang Yuan's desire to grow stronger, and he could not bear to see him stray onto the wrong path because of an improper cultivation method.

Seeing the hesitant, conflicted expression on Tang Yuan's face, Lu Feng continued, "Removing the Beast Power from your body does not mean your cultivation will be ruined. You only need to find a powerful beast core and use it to replace all the chaotic Beast Power within you in one stroke."

"How could someone with my strength possibly obtain a powerful beast core?" Tang Yuan smiled helplessly. If not for that, he would not have chosen only low-grade beast cores. He had heard of the method Lu Feng mentioned before, but it was simply unworkable.

Lu Feng asked, "Do you know how beasts are classified?"

"I've heard a little." Tang Yuan glanced at Lu Feng, then continued, "Leaving aside the most ordinary beasts, starting with spirit beasts: above spirit beasts are soul beasts, Five Elements Beasts, Earth Soul Beasts, and Heaven Soul Beasts."

Lu Feng interrupted, "Beast cores above the soul beast level contain energy that has an enormous effect on the soul. Even if you obtain one, with your current strength, you cannot absorb and refine it."

Tang Yuan did not argue. Forcefully absorbing a soul beast core would inflict an immense shock upon one's soul. In severe cases, one could even lose one's soul and perish.

Unless one's foundation was exceptionally sound and steady, there might be a sliver of a chance to refine a soul core across realms.

But clearly, Tang Yuan's current chaotic powers could not accomplish that.

Lu Feng continued, "Therefore, spirit beast cores are the best choice for you."

Tang Yuan listened intently and named the strongest spirit beast he knew of. "A ninth-tier spirit beast core?"

Spirit beasts were divided into tiers one through nine, which were further divided into three grades. Tiers one through three were low-grade spirit beasts, tiers four through six were middle-grade spirit beasts, and tiers seven through nine were high-grade spirit beasts. They respectively corresponded to the strength of the human Seven Souls Realm, Spirit Gathering Realm, and Chakra Realm.

Lu Feng corrected him, "An ordinary ninth-tier spirit beast is, at most, comparable to a human at the peak of the Chakra Realm. It is still not enough to replace those Beast Powers of yours. I am speaking of several special kinds of spirit beasts. Have you ever heard of the Four Spirits of Beasts?"

"The Four Spirits of Beasts?"

Tang Yuan looked utterly lost, but a trace of hope appeared in his eyes as he watched Lu Feng expectantly.

"There are four special types of spirit beasts. Their strength is comparable to that of humans in the Heaven Soul Realm. Though they are classified as spirit beasts, they possess strength rivaling Heaven Soul Beasts."

Tang Yuan said excitedly, "Which four types? If such beings truly exist, wouldn't I be able to absorb their cores?"

Lu Feng nodded. "Comparatively speaking, the soul shock from refining the beast cores of the Four Spirits is lighter than that of ordinary soul cores. There is a high chance of success."

"One of the Four Spirits is the true dragon. A true dragon seems to have appeared in Azure Dragon Town. If you can obtain a dragon core, your strength will surely undergo an earth-shaking transformation."

Lu Feng hoped to use this opportunity to inquire about the whereabouts of Dragon Saliva Water. After all, one of the two before him was the young lady of Jiang Manor, while the other was the young master of Tang Manor. Perhaps they knew some hidden secrets of Azure Dragon Town.

"That is only a legend," Jiang Ruoyun said teasingly. Stories of true dragons were tales the adults of the town told children.

"Not necessarily." A trace of hope flashed across Tang Yuan's face.

If he could truly obtain a dragon core, everything could change.

"I once heard my father mention that there really seems to be a Dragon Tomb in Azure Dragon Town, though no one knows exactly where it is."

Tang Yuan seemed somewhat different now. With hope and something to look forward to, he appeared more carefree, as though the sunlight had returned to him.

Tang Yuan raised his head and looked at the sky, saying impatiently, "It is only noon. There is still a long time until the plan you mentioned. I really want to rush into Yan Manor right now and snatch Yan He's corpse back."

Lu Feng had already told Tang Yuan their next plan while explaining the entire sequence of events. Otherwise, with Tang Yuan's temperament, how could he have calmed down? Their plan was to enter Yan Manor and steal the corpse.

"If you can defeat Old Master Yan, then go ahead." Jiang Ruoyun giggled. Tang Yuan's anxious helplessness looked rather foolishly honest.

"It is precisely because I cannot defeat him. If I could, would I need to wait until nightfall and sneak in?" Tang Yuan complained. Then, as if he had thought of something, he discussed it with Lu Feng. "With Old Master Yan's experience, you visited and disturbed him today. He will probably be on guard. Going straight for the corpse will likely not work."

Lu Feng considered this upon hearing it, then nodded. Indeed, given Old Master Yan's experience, he would likely take precautions.

Lu Feng looked at Tang Yuan in a new light. He had not expected that beneath Tang Yuan's rough and sturdy exterior lay such a cautious, clever heart.

"What about a feint attack?" Lu Feng pondered.

Tang Yuan nodded thoughtfully. "That should work. But how would we make the feint?"

Lu Feng replied, "Does Old Master Yan have anything precious that he cares about?"

Jiang Ruoyun had been quietly listening to their discussion. Matters such as planning strategies always gave her a headache, but when she heard Lu Feng's question, she could not help interjecting, "Old Master Yan's favorite treasure is naturally his precious granddaughter, Yan Jingjing. If we can kidnap her, that old man will definitely leap up in a panic..."

Tang Yuan interrupted, "We might not even be able to steal away a dead person, much less a living one."

"What is Yan Jingjing's strength?" Lu Feng considered. If her cultivation was low, it was not as though there were no way to do it.

Jiang Ruoyun recalled, "Yan Jingjing seems never to have cultivated."

Tang Yuan added, "That is true. She does not seem to know how to cultivate."

Lu Feng pondered for a while. The plan in his mind became much fuller. Though it could not be called foolproof, their chances had increased by at least thirty percent.

"Tonight, we will split into three groups and act separately. Everything will proceed according to the plan. Brother Tang, your task is the most dangerous, so you must be careful..." Lu Feng looked at Tang Yuan and cautioned, "Do not be hasty. You must keep calm and wait for our signal."

Tang Yuan listened gravely to Lu Feng's words. Whenever it concerned Qiao Xue'er, he could not afford the slightest carelessness.

The three of them went over and refined the plan several more times, ensuring that nothing could go wrong.

"What do we do next?" Jiang Ruoyun asked. There was still some time before nightfall.

"Brother Tang's appearance is far too eye-catching. We will go look for several beast cores shortly. After today's matter is settled, I will try to help him temporarily return to normal."

Lu Feng said this because Tang Yuan had hidden himself away precisely due to this flaw. Now that they were acquainted, Lu Feng could not bear to see him in such difficulty.

"What? You can help me recover?" Tang Yuan asked in surprise.

"I can only help you suppress it temporarily. Once you use spiritual energy, you will become beastified again," Lu Feng explained. Tang Yuan's beastification was caused by the Beast Power within his body running out of control. In other words, as long as a formation was used to seal Tang Yuan's spiritual energy, he could return to normal.

"What do you need me to do?" Tang Yuan asked enthusiastically. If he could recover his original appearance, the last trace of concern in his heart would vanish as well.

"I need three beast cores from at least third-tier spirit beasts. The higher their grade, the stronger the Spirit Suppression Array I set up will be," Lu Feng explained. This Spirit Suppression Array was one of the highest-grade formations he could currently deploy.

The Spirit Suppression Array was a third-grade formation with the effect of suppressing spiritual energy.

That was the effect of an ordinary Spirit Suppression Array, but Lu Feng's array was far more than that. It could be said that every formation of Exquisite Valley was deeper and more mysterious than the ordinary formations circulating in the outside world.

The Spirit Suppression Array Lu Feng deployed could not only isolate spiritual energy, making one seem as though they stood in a desolate wasteland, but could also isolate the spiritual energy contained within the human body, like a seal.

Its limitation, however, was that it could only control people of relatively low cultivation. If Tang Yuan did not cooperate and Lu Feng forcibly used this formation to "deal with" him, Lu Feng would inevitably suffer backlash.

"I have plenty of third-tier spirit beast cores. You can have as many as you want." Tang Yuan smiled and took out dozens of beast cores of various kinds. These were all obtained from the spirit beasts he had hunted over the past half year.

After sweeping his gaze over the beast cores before Tang Yuan, Lu Feng shook his head. Although there were quite a few beast cores from fourth- and fifth-tier spirit beasts among them, they were not the types Lu Feng wanted. These beast cores were valuable, but they were not ideal materials for setting up the Spirit Suppression Array.

"A Fire Fox core, a Thorn Howl Pig core, a Spirit Rhino Snake core, and the blood of a Swallowtail Glaze... These are what I need," Lu Feng said slowly.

Tang Yuan clicked his tongue in amazement. Compared to what Lu Feng had named, the beast cores before him were not worth mentioning at all. Though they were likewise derived from third-tier spirit beasts, their value was worlds apart.

Every kind of beast core Lu Feng mentioned was something one might seek but never find. Those spirit beasts were not especially powerful, but each possessed its own special strengths. They were extremely rare, and hunting them was as difficult as hunting fourth- or fifth-tier spirit beasts.

Most importantly, the several kinds of spirit beasts he mentioned all leaned toward the category of ferocious beasts. They liked attacking humans; killing a few might mean a few fewer people would die.

"I have a way to find their traces. When the time comes, you only need to hunt them," Lu Feng said calmly, easing some of Tang Yuan's worries.

After their conversation, Lu Feng had gained a new understanding of Tang Yuan's strength. It was even higher than the Spirit Gathering Two Soul Realm he had expected, having quietly reached the Spirit Gathering Three Soul Realm.