Beast Tide Gathers

Perhaps the fledgling eagle heard the sounds outside the cave and thought its mother had returned. Its chirping, tender cries never stopped, compelling Ye Yun to fly towards the mountain cave.

The cave wasn't deep, only five to six meters, and nearly six meters wide, so the light inside was decent. Ye Yun immediately spotted a huge nest made of branches inside the cave. On the other side of the nest lay a pile of snow-white bones.

The snow-white bones were piled up very haphazardly, and Ye Yun couldn't identify what species they belonged to. However, with his sharp eyes, he noticed two yellowish skulls among the pile of bones. They didn't look like they were from recent times. He wondered which unlucky soul happened to pass by and was killed by the giant eagle.

After carefully observing and confirming there was no danger in the cave, Ye Yun rode his sword into it. As soon as Ye Yun dismounted from his flying sword, the chirping in the eagle's nest became more urgent. It must have mistaken Ye Yun for its parents returning from foraging.

Filled with curiosity, Ye Yun approached the eagle's nest and finally saw the continuously chirping fledgling eagle. It was a reddish fledgling eagle, about the size of a hen. Just as Ye Yun had predicted, the fledgling's eyes were not yet open, and it only had a few scattered feathers. It must have hatched not long ago, otherwise, it wouldn't have mistaken Ye Yun for its parents.

The moment Ye Yun saw the fledgling eagle, he instantly grew fond of it. Although it looked ugly now, once it grew its feathers, he figured it wouldn't be inferior to its parents. When Ye Yun was young and watched "The Return of the Condor Heroes," he had fantasized about raising a divine condor himself and soaring through the sky on its back. Now, a little fledgling eagle was right in front of him. How could he miss such an opportunity? Besides, it had been so long since he had killed the giant eagle, and considering there was no shortage of food below the cliff, this nest likely only had one adult eagle. This meant if he didn't adopt this fledgling, it would starve to death.

There was no need to hesitate. Judging by the male eagle he had seen earlier, this little fledgling would undoubtedly be extraordinary in the future. Whether as a helper or a mount, it would be excellent once grown. Thus, Ye Yun pulled out several thick branches from the nest, shaved them down, and used the tough, dry grass inside the nest to simply fashion a cage. He then made a simple bird's nest with twigs and dry grass, lifted the fledgling with his magic power, placed it in the cage, secured it, and carried the birdcage outside.

Ye Yun walked to the cave entrance, surveyed the surroundings, and then formed a sword art to ride his sword back to the border town. He had found his Vermillion Fruit and unexpectedly picked up a fledgling eagle. It could already be considered a good haul. For the upcoming period, he planned to cultivate using the Vermillion Fruit while feeding the little fledgling eagle and awaiting the beast tide. Since he was already here, why would he miss out on such an interesting event?

Eagles are carnivorous. So, on his way back, Ye Yun casually caught a wild rabbit. After skinning it, he used his small knife to shave off all the meat and fed it to the little fledgling eagle. As he entered the city gates, a cultivator who seemed to be an adult and frequented the border town recognized the fledgling eagle's extraordinary nature and offered to buy it at a high price, but Ye Yun refused.

Ye Yun had raided many bird nests and raised many small birds when he was young, so he knew the basic common sense. Upon returning to the inn, he carefully inscribed a simple warming magic array onto the makeshift birdcage, giving the fledgling eagle a comfortable environment.

To Ye Yun's relief, the fledgling eagle was much like ordinary small birds; it slept after eating, which saved him a lot of trouble.

After settling the fledgling eagle, Ye Yun lay on the inn bed, lost in thought. He had picked a total of six Vermillion Fruits, and each could increase his magic power by sixty years. Each person could only consume three; eating more would have no effect and would cause the body to develop resistance. The energy contained in elixirs or Vermillion Fruits could only replenish consumed magic power; any excess would dissipate. If refined into elixirs, one Vermillion Fruit could create two elixirs, each increasing a person's cultivation by fifty years, and again, only three could be consumed. This left Ye Yun hesitating whether to eat them directly or refine them.

"System, will consuming Vermillion Fruits or elixirs to increase magic power have any side effects?" After thinking for a long time, Ye Yun decided to ask the System. Although the System couldn't directly help, it would answer some questions.

"If others directly consume heavenly treasures or elixirs to increase magic power, it will indeed have an impact. However, as long as it's not abused and one diligently refines their magic power afterward, there will be no problem. As for the host, you don't need to worry about this issue at all. The host can let the System refine and purify these energies before they enter your body. As long as you don't increase your magic power to an uncontrollable level all at once, there will be no problem."

"Is that so! Doesn't that mean I can level up by taking medicine without limits?" Ye Yun shot up from the bed.

"Theoretically, yes. However, host, you can't get fat with one bite. Even if you give a child a submachine gun, he might not be able to control it. Instead, he might break his bones or even shoot himself due to accidental discharge."

"Don't worry, System, I won't blow myself up. I understand the principle of acting within my capabilities."

"Since the System can help me purify my magic power, why hesitate? Of course, I should refine them into elixirs." After receiving a clear answer from the System, Ye Yun couldn't wait to start alchemy. Unfortunately, he lacked the necessary materials and an alchemy furnace, forcing him to give up for now.

In the following days, Ye Yun lived a very leisurely life. He spent most of his time cultivating. Only during meal times would he take the fledgling eagle out of the city to hunt animals and feed it. The materials obtained from hunting were sold to the merchant guilds in the border town. Besides daily expenses, there was a small surplus. Occasionally, he would hunt a demonic beast and make a small profit.

Time flew by. In the blink of an eye, more than half a month had passed. During this period, Little Gold (the name Ye Yun gave the eagle) not only opened its eyes but also grew many golden feathers, already resembling a young eagle. Its appetite also increased dramatically; it could easily eat a whole sheep in one meal. Ye Yun also harvested a lot of materials, even exchanging the claws of a demonic beast for a pound of iron essence, which was very suitable for refining magic treasures.

One morning, after waking up, Ye Yun checked on Little Gold in its cage and fed it some warmed beef that had been stored in the ice magic array the previous night. Then, he went downstairs. To Ye Yun's surprise, the usually packed dining area downstairs had only a few scattered people eating breakfast. These few people were eating in a hurry, looking like they were rushing. This made Ye Yun very puzzled, so he turned to ask the innkeeper what was going on.

"Esteemed Immortal Elder, you don't know? The wild beasts outside the city have begun to gather in large numbers. Everyone else is taking advantage of the fact that the beast army hasn't formed a significant scale yet to go out and hunt the demonic beasts within the herds. Esteemed Immortal Elder, you should hurry too! If you're late, you'll miss the opportunity. When the beast tide attacks the city, those demonic beasts won't act alone. Now is the best chance to hunt them.

ps: Piaoxue would like to say here that this book is first published on Chuanshi. Although it can be viewed on other websites, I cannot see the comments. On Qidian, I can see the comments, but it's rather awkward that my points are insufficient to reply, so I kindly ask fellow book friends for your understanding."