Now that he knew how to awaken the little guy's racial skill, Xu Bai felt full of confidence.
I choose you. Come on out, little guy.
Xu Bai focused his mind, and the space before him rippled. Then the little guy walked out, looking bewildered, as if it had just woken up.
But when it saw Xu Bai, the whole tiger perked up at once.
Are you getting ready to help me become stronger?
The little guy was raring to go. Its eyes were filled with a longing to grow stronger as it gazed at Xu Bai.
"The materials needed to help you get stronger have to be prepared. It's too late today, so let's do it tomorrow." Xu Bai rubbed the little guy's head and smiled.
"Roar?" The little guy tilted its head in confusion. Then why did you call me out?
"Of course, to give you a name." Xu Bai was in high spirits. "You're my Beast Tamer now. I can't leave you nameless and keep calling you 'little guy' forever, can I?"
A name...
The little guy understood, then looked at Xu Bai curiously, wondering what its Beast Tamer would name it.
Xu Bai thought for a moment, then said, "Since you're my first Beast Taming Beast, why not just call you First?"
That's a terrible name.
The little guy let out a roar, hoping Xu Bai would choose another one.
But Xu Bai smiled and said, "You think it suits you, too? Then it's settled. From now on, your name is First."
The little guy froze. Once it was sure it hadn't misheard, it stared at Xu Bai in confusion.
Can't you understand what I'm saying?
"Do you want to go back and rest? Sure, I'll send you back now." Xu Bai nodded, then focused his mind and returned First to the Beast Taming Space.
First: ?????
Watching First disappear, Xu Bai curled his lip. "I didn't get to pick my own name when my parents named me. You're my Beast Taming Beast, and now you think you get to be picky?"
The night passed without incident, and before long, it was noon the next day.
A steady "thump, thump" rang out from Xu Bai's courtyard.
The view drew closer, revealing a huge stone mortar Xu Bai had somehow found. He was laboring over it, pounding away.
Nearby, First crouched on the ground and watched curiously, unable to figure out what its Beast Tamer was doing.
As for the name, First had already forgotten about it. Soul Beasts didn't care about things like that anyway.
After a long while, Xu Bai finally stopped. He picked up a wooden ladle, scooped out the contents of the stone mortar, and poured them into a wooden basin beside him.
They were black and powdery.
He felt some between his fingers. It was very fine, with no noticeable grit.
"Perfect." Xu Bai nodded with satisfaction, then looked at First. "First, I promised I'd help you get stronger today. The materials are ready. I just don't know if you'll be able to handle them."
"Roar!"
As long as I can get stronger, I'll do anything!
First was thrilled. It hadn't expected that its Beast Tamer had been working on this stuff all morning to help it grow stronger. It was so touched—so incredibly touched.
"This is just the first stage. You don't have to do anything. You only need to rub this powder all over yourself."
Xu Bai held the wooden basin and smiled.
The black powder inside was, naturally, Magnet ground into powder.
He'd bought the Magnet early that morning. It wasn't too expensive: one Gold Soul Coin bought forty pounds, so he'd boldly purchased four hundred pounds.
He'd ground only a small portion into powder and stored the rest in the Beast Taming Space.
Whether it was because he'd crossed over into this world or because the Beast Taming Space had always been like this, he wasn't sure.
In any case, although Xu Bai's Beast Taming Space was called a "space," it could be seen as a small world that could be fully developed.
As its Beast Tamer, he was like the master of that world.
At first, the Beast Taming Space had contained nothing. Apart from slightly accelerating a Soul Beast's cultivation, it was no different from an empty, clean space.
But the feedback he'd received when he awakened the Beast Taming Space told Xu Bai that he could put materials from the outside world into it and use his thoughts to influence it, gradually shaping the space into whatever he wanted.
Xu Bai had considered experimenting, but he'd been held back by various factors, including his strength, age, and finances. For a while, the Beast Taming Space could only serve as a portable storage space.
Even now, that was more or less still the case.
After all, his Beast Taming Space was enormous. To begin shaping its terrain, he would need enough soil, rocks, and other materials to build a small mountain nearly fifty meters high.
Whether he bought the materials or gathered them himself, it would draw too much attention. The only option was to go to an uninhabited area to collect them.
But on the Douluo Continent, an uninhabited area was just another name for a Soul Beast gathering ground.
Digging for soil in such a dangerous place would be a real hassle.
At his current level of strength, he definitely couldn't do it.
Maybe when I reach level thirty or forty, I can get my Beast Taming Beast to help...
Xu Bai let his thoughts wander as he used a brush to spread the Magnet powder evenly over First's body.
At first, First was puzzled by Xu Bai's actions. But once the black powder touched its body, its confusion vanished.
The places covered with the powder felt distinctly warm.
It was as if its body were absorbing energy from the black powder.
And the energy in the powder seemed to be drawing out something inside its body.
It could vaguely sense that something within it was about to emerge. It was incredible.
The only thing First couldn't understand was this: its whole body was covered in black powder, and it was warm all over. So why had a chill suddenly crept up the back of its head, as if something bad were about to happen?
But the chill came and went quickly, like an illusion. Immersed in the pleasant warmth, First soon forgot all about it.
According to the Manual, applying Magnet powder twice a day, morning and evening, worked best. But First's first application had been at noon.
That was a minor issue. They could adjust the schedule tomorrow.
After the powder had been applied, First lay down comfortably where it was and fell fast asleep. It would stay like that for about an hour.
Xu Bai raised a hand and immediately returned First to the Beast Taming Space.
First's treatment was done. Now it was time to take care of his own business.
There was no doubt about it: he was going to register as a Soul Master at Spirit Hall and claim some free money.
The city where he'd originally lived was in the Balak Kingdom. He would have to travel a long way west to reach Fasinuo Province, then go on for several dozen more miles before he could find the city where he was now: Huangshan City.
He'd crossed provincial borders for this trip, so he didn't have to worry about his good Second Uncle noticing.
That meant registering as a Soul Master at Spirit Hall carried practically no risk. He'd get one Gold Soul Coin a month, and there was no reason to pass up free money.
He was a Beast Tamer, after all—the famous money pit of every novel. Right now, he wished he could split each Gold Soul Coin in half just to make it go further. There was no way he'd miss an opportunity to get Gold Soul Coins for free.
Awakening First's racial talent hadn't cost much, but that was just good luck. The materials he'd happened to need were cheap.
But the materials needed to increase cultivation speed or evolve a race might not be so conveniently affordable.
After a quick wash, Xu Bai left the courtyard and headed toward the Spirit Hall Branch in Huangshan City.
The Spirit Hall Branch stood in the center of Huangshan City, with the City Lord's Mansion directly across from it.
It didn't take Xu Bai long to get there from home.
He entered the branch and explained what he wanted.
A steward tested his Soul Power and registered him as a Soul Master.
The whole process was quick and smooth, without a single hitch.
But when he thought about it, that made sense. His First Soul Ring was a ten-year Soul Ring. Countless Soul Masters like him appeared every year. He was so ordinary that no one would pay him any attention.
What Xu Bai hadn't expected was that his Soul Power was already at level twelve.
Could a ten-year Soul Ring really raise Soul Power by two levels?
If he remembered correctly, Tang San, the chosen child of fortune in this world, had gained two levels after absorbing his first Soul Ring because its age was right at the limit for a first ring. On top of that, the Soul Ring had come from a top predator, the Datura Snake.
But in his case...
Could it be because the Beast Taming Space Martial Soul was special?
Xu Bai wondered to himself as he collected his first month's allowance and walked straight out of the Spirit Hall Branch.