Section 16: This Doesn't Make Sense!

Shu Da and Shu Er were also somewhat stunned, their gazes fixed straight upon the Heavenly Fox.

"Two quarters of an hour!" It was only when the Spirit Beast Master of the Earth Altar announced the time that the two of them finally snapped back to reality.

"Impossible!" Shu Da widened his eyes, stretched his neck, and shouted.

"The Spirit Pressure Tunnel must be broken!" Shu Er voiced his incredulous skepticism.

How could an ordinary Fire Fox achieve such a result?

Better than the results of his own Sea Burst Crocodile and Green Fang Snake?!

Impossible!

Shu Da and Shu Er did not believe it for a single second.

"The Spirit Pressure Tunnel is not broken, and the Timing Hourglass has no issues. This is the true result." The Earth Altar Spirit Beast Master shook his head, announcing this with a tone of astonishment.

He had guarded the Earth Altar for several decades. He knew every blade of grass and every tree here like the back of his hand. If there had been a problem, how could he have failed to notice it?

But when he reported the Heavenly Fox's result, even he himself found it hard to believe.

This outcome was far beyond his expectations.

A common, middle-grade Fire Fox beast had actually managed to outperform two high-grade beasts with eight years of cultivation.

This clearly defied common sense!

He stared at the Heavenly Fox, then shifted his gaze to Chu Yun. Chu Yun's faint smile had not changed from beginning to end. Seeing such a smile, he suddenly felt that he could no longer see through the youth before him.

"Cheating, this is blatant cheating!" Shu Da roared, venting the unwillingness and anger in his heart.

If Shu Er had beaten him, so be it. After all, the Green Fang Snake was on the same level as the Sea Burst Crocodile, and he understood that he had made mistakes during the incubation process.

But!

He, Chu Yun, an orphan living under someone else's roof, adopted by his own father—a lowly wretch like him had raised a Fire Fox that could actually surpass him.

This was something he could not believe, nor could he accept!

He must be cheating! To seek psychological balance, he came up with such a lame excuse.

"I actually lost to Chu Yun, a bastard who owns a Fire Fox?" Shu Er could not accept such a blow either. He regained his senses, his eyes flashing with a sinister light, and he said coldly, "Speak, what means did you use to cheat? Confess and you will be treated leniently; you will still have the qualifications to continue to the next round of the assessment. If you remain stubborn and are found out, the crime will be doubled, and you will be thrown into death row!"

"Well done." Chu Yun squatted down and sincerely praised the Heavenly Fox. The Heavenly Fox's spiritual intelligence was so high that it could coordinate with him to such a degree. In his past life, this would have been unimaginable.

The spiritual intelligence of a perfectly hatched Heavenly Fox was beyond his expectations. Originally, he had only held a "try it and see" attitude. Even if the result was poor due to moving slowly, it wouldn't have mattered. After all, there were three rounds in the assessment.

Hiding the true identity of the Heavenly Fox was the top priority.

But he hadn't expected the Heavenly Fox to succeed and grasp his intentions. It was easy to win and take first place. What was difficult was winning at just the right moment.

Now that it was just right, Chu Yun felt emboldened. He glanced sideways at Shu Da and Shu Er, snorted, and said calmly, "You two are truly ignorant. Don't you know that my Fire Fox is extraordinary and is a mutated beast? What is so strange about achieving this?"

"Bull, bullshit!" Shu Da was furious, his speech becoming somewhat incoherent. He pointed at Chu Yun and shouted, "Don't try to fool me, you must have cheated!"

He was indeed ignorant and did not know what a mutated beast was. However, he did not want to admit the cruel fact that he had ended up in last place. He insisted that Chu Yun was cheating.

"Heh." Shu Er sneered a few times. "Don't think you can fool us. My Green Fang Snake has eight years of cultivation. So what if it's a mutated beast? No matter how it mutates, can it be stronger than my Green Fang Snake? A middle-grade Fire Fox beating a high-grade Green Fang Snake? Is that possible? Everyone knows the common sense! This is clearly you playing tricks."

The Earth Altar Spirit Beast Master remained silent, staring fixedly at Chu Yun, waiting for his explanation.

Chu Yun rubbed his nose; strictly speaking, he was indeed playing tricks.

If he announced that the Fire Fox was actually a Heavenly Fox, he believed it would leave everyone speechless. But the key lay right there: the identity of the Heavenly Fox must never be leaked until it became powerful.

For now, he put on a look of disdain and looked at Shu Er with contempt: "That is why I say you two are ignorant. When it comes to beast mutations, where is there any 'common sense' to speak of? My Fire Fox mutated fiercely; I don't mind telling you, it reached eight years of cultivation in one go when it broke its shell and established its foundation. Your Green Fang Snake and Sea Burst Crocodile are just normal goods; how can they compete with my mutated Fire Fox? The tutor taught us this point as well. No wonder he is proud of me and ashamed of you."

"You!" Shu Da was burning with rage; Chu Yun's words had struck a sore spot.

During their childhood, Shu Tianhao had hired a tutor to enlighten his three sons. Chu Yun was intelligent and often received the tutor's praise. Shu Da and Shu Er, however, were unruly, and even the tutor could do nothing about them.

"Could it be that a mutated beast is truly stronger than a normal beast?" Shu Er stopped talking, but his heart was filled with suspicion. The things the tutor taught covered everything under the sun, and he had let it go in one ear and out the other; at this moment, he lacked confidence. Trying to recall the tutor's words, he couldn't think of anything.

The Earth Altar Spirit Beast Master stared at Chu Yun, unable to see any flaws. Hearing this explanation, he nodded and said in a deep voice, "Mutated beasts indeed cannot be judged by common sense."

"However," he changed the subject and advised, "mutated beasts also have defects. The internal structure of such beasts is unstable. Once they reach a certain stage of cultivation, they stop progressing. The stronger the mutation, the greater the defect. Chu Yun, you should switch to raising another beast as soon as possible."

Chu Yun's eyes "dimmed," and he sighed deeply at the right moment, saying faintly, "I know this, but I cannot bear to let go. After all, this Fire Fox is the first beast of my life."

The Earth Altar Spirit Beast Master did not want Chu Yun to go astray and advised him again: "I can understand your feelings. However, raising a beast is extremely costly. This Fire Fox has mutated too violently; who knows when it might suddenly die. All the effort and investment you have made will go down the drain. It is better to give up early and switch to another one."

"Yes. I will take your words to heart, Elder." Chu Yun had no intention of switching to any other beast or abandoning the Heavenly Fox. However, it was hard to refuse, so he could only answer vaguely.

The Earth Altar Spirit Beast Master sighed; he could naturally hear the perfunctory tone in Chu Yun's voice. But he had walked this path step by step himself, so he felt empathy. He understood Chu Yun even more and felt sorry for him.

"A mutated beast, consider yourself lucky! Hmph!" Shu Er's eyes flickered for a moment before he finally calmed down. Although he was extremely unwilling, since the Earth Altar Spirit Beast Master had said it was a mutation, and he himself lacked confidence, he had no choice but to believe it.

"I hope your Fire Fox can live a little longer." Shu Da returned to his mocking tone. After hearing the news that the Fire Fox's body structure was unstable and had major defects, his mood finally felt a bit more balanced.

People are just like this. After extreme imbalance, once they find a balance, they are willing to believe in things that provide them with psychological equilibrium.

It is human nature.

Chu Yun wanted to laugh. If they knew that the "middle-grade Fire Fox" was actually a "peerless Heavenly Fox," he wondered what their mood would be?

However, on the surface, he revealed a look of sorrow and regret. He snorted through his nose, as if unwilling to hear such words from Shu Da.

Shu Da felt even more balanced and laughed out loud again: "Not only did you choose the only middle-grade egg out of three, but it also turned out to be a mutated beast egg. Chu Yun, oh Chu Yun, what am I supposed to say about you?"

"This is what we call character. Some people, even if adopted as foster sons, are destined for baseness; they cannot grasp such life-changing opportunities. It is all fate. In my opinion, you had better change your spirit beast as soon as possible," Shu Er sneered with biting sarcasm.

Chu Yun let out a cold snort and merely replied indifferently, "Two defeated losers."

"You!" Shu Da and Shu Er were instantly choked into silence. Their smiles vanished, and their faces turned as wretched as if they had swallowed dog excrement.

Regardless of how Chu Yun's mutated spirit beast might fare in the future, the fact that they had failed and been bested by Chu Yun was an ironclad truth.

"Enough. In the first assessment, the Spirit Pressure Tunnel, Chu Yun is the victor and takes first place. Shu Er is second, and Shu Da is third. Three days from now is the second assessment—spirit beast combat. Examine the jade slips you have obtained and use the techniques recorded upon them for the duel. Should anyone be found using other techniques, they will be disqualified from the assessment immediately. Return." The Spirit Beast Master of the Earth Altar announced in a deep voice.

So, the jade slips they had obtained were the key to the second assessment.

Shu Da immediately took out the blue jade slip in his hand to examine it. Shu Er's expression, however, turned rather unsightly; he had no choice but to make his Green Fang Snake spit out the jade slip it had swallowed. The sticky liquid on the jade slip made his heart churn with disgust, and goosebumps broke out all over his body.

Chu Yun, however, was in no rush to examine his. He calmly tucked the fiery-red jade slip into his robes, bowed to the Spirit Beast Master of the Earth Altar, and then departed.

Inside the carriage.

The curling fragrance of tea was refreshing to the heart and spleen. This cup of premium Sea Jade Tea had a rich aroma that nonetheless imparted a sense of coolness. It was worth a small fortune; a single cup like this cost at least a hundred Earth-Fiend Stone Coins on the market.

The vessel holding the Sea Jade Tea was an exquisite Enamel Carved Gold Cup. The craftsmanship was sophisticated, opulent, and luxurious.

Beneath the cup sat a small white jade saucer, which served to insulate the heat and prevent the palm from being scalded.

Lady Shu sat within the carriage, the curtain drawn aside, allowing the sea breeze to rush against her face. Outside the window lay a beautiful scene of azure sky, white waves surging, and billows rolling.

Yet, Lady Shu's gaze was fixed upon the hand holding the cup. Her hand was well-maintained, slightly slender, with crystalline nails like white scallions or tender jade. It was just as it had been in her youth.

However, Lady Shu knew that while her hand remained as such, the corners of her eyes were already crisscrossed with crow's feet like a web, her eye bags sagged, and her skin had lost its firmness. The beauty of her youth was drifting further and further away, eventually to become forever out of reach.

This was the sorrow of every proud woman who cherished beauty.

Lady Shu could not help but sigh: Time is the most terrifying thing; no beautiful thing can withstand its ravages. Yet time is also the most wonderful thing; through its accumulation, it can nurture hope.

Shu Da and Shu Er were her hope.