Copper Bell Elite Soldiers, Demon Crystal

Chu Yun immediately explained the detailed preparation method for the formula to Old Red Spear, sternly instructing him to keep it strictly confidential.

Old Red Spear patted his chest in assurance. He felt a flicker of anticipation in his heart, though it was faint.

He had long since affirmed Chu Yun's potential in his own mind, but after all, Chu Yun was still only a thirteen-year-old boy. He had already tried countless methods regarding the Jade Sea Kelp. The salt field owners of Shu Family Island had all been driven to their wits' end by this strange blight. Could a formula Chu Yun mentioned so casually really be the cure?

It seemed unrealistic.

Nevertheless, Old Red Spear decided to give it a try. Chu Yun's solemn expression made him feel that perhaps there was a glimmer of hope.

After settling this matter, Chu Yun turned to Old Monkey Qiao.

"Grandpa Qiao, from now on, please collect the copper bells from your coconut trees. I will have great use for them in the future."

"Copper bells?" Old Monkey Qiao couldn't help but be stunned.

Every harvest season, each Copper Bell Coconut Tree produced three Milk Coconut Fruits and fifteen Copper Bell Fruits. Only the Milk Coconut Fruits held commercial value; even if one gave the Copper Bell Fruits to children as toys, they might not even want them.

They were things everyone had grown tired of playing with.

Old Monkey Qiao often fantasized about how wonderful it would be if the Copper Bell Fruits were replaced by Milk Coconut Fruits instead!

Yet now, Chu Yun was asking to collect these useless Copper Bell Fruits. What could he possibly want with them?

"As for the specifics, Grandpa Qiao, please don't ask. The time is not yet ripe, so forgive me for keeping it a secret." Chu Yun promptly blocked Old Monkey Qiao's inquiries.

"Fine, collecting copper bells is no great task. This old man agrees." Old Monkey Qiao smiled; among the three elders, he was the one who doted on Chu Yun the most.

In their eyes, Chu Yun's behavior amounted to nothing more than childish antics. Yet, Old Monkey Qiao was willing to indulge him.

Chu Yun smiled and said nothing more.

The Copper Bell Fruit had a sturdy exterior and was as large as a baby's head. When shaken, one could hear a sound like a copper bell. Most uniquely, these fruits could resonate with one another.

If one fruit was shaken and the bell rang, nearby Copper Bell Fruits would chime as well, even if they were sitting perfectly still. It was indeed a rather amusing toy.

Such toys circulated among the children of the All-Star Archipelago. Walking near the coconut groves, one could see them everywhere, free for the taking.

However, in Chu Yun's memories, in less than three years, these toys would become strictly controlled military items, forbidden from being taken off-island.

This was all because a brilliant mind would eventually conceive the idea of using these Copper Bell Fruits to forge a powerful type of unit—the Copper Bell Elite Soldiers!

Chu Yun also possessed the specific methods for creating such elite soldiers in his mind. However, it involved many critical factors, and now was not the time. Telling Old Monkey Qiao was simply to prepare in advance, making things more convenient when the time came to put them to use.

The scorching sun hung high in the sky, the blue of the heavens dazzling to the eye. Blazing arrows of light pierced through the forest; the plants curled their leaves, and even the sand and stones seemed to be gasping for air.

The afternoon sun was unbearably hot. It felt as if one had been stuffed into a furnace to bake, and few people on Shu Family Island ventured out to move about.

In such weather, Chu Yun still gritted his teeth, bringing the Heavenly Fox with him to persist in his bitter training within the island's forest.

Enrollment in Heavenly Song Academy has become a certainty. But I must not slack off. Shu Da and Shu Er are merely small-time characters; there are countless true geniuses and heroes in this world. Compared to them, my foundation is still very shallow. I must take advantage of my foresight to expand my lead.

Chu Yun felt the weight of the road ahead. Possessing memories of his past life after his rebirth was a tremendous advantage. However, this advantage was latent. If he did not use those memories to expand into hard strength, no matter how many years of memories he held, they would ultimately be nothing but fleeting clouds.

Shu Family Island was just a starting point, while Heavenly Song Academy was where he would truly lay his foundation. As for the future, a vast world, geniuses and heroes shining like the stars, and one powerful rival after another were all waiting for him.

The cultivation of a Spirit Beast Master was like rowing a boat against the current; if one did not advance, one would inevitably fall back.

If one did not vie for supremacy, how could one ever reach the pinnacle of the Great Dao?

Though Chu Yun was only thirteen and situated in a corner of Shu Family Island, his heart embraced the world, and his ambition grew ever greater.

This was good.

There was no man without ambition.

A man was born to contend for dominance, to trample the world underfoot, to raise his fists and survey the four directions, seeing who dared to challenge him!

For a man, the pursuit of hegemony held absolute allure. Perhaps women would never understand that the yearning for fame and achievement was a passion etched into the very bones of a man.

Compared to the grand passion surging in Chu Yun's heart, what did a mere scorching sun matter?

The Heavenly Fox sensed its master's fighting spirit and felt its own morale soar, its will to battle ignited.

Man and fox entered the forest and began their bitter training.

"Squeak—!" A sharp, piercing cry suddenly erupted, nearly shattering their eardrums.

Chu Yun stepped back, looking up with focused eyes. On a high, dense branch, a gray Claw Monkey was baring its fangs and brandishing its claws at him, letting out a threatening roar.

Chu Yun and the Heavenly Fox were encroaching upon its territory, and the roar was laden with a heavy warning.

Chu Yun smiled; he could tell at a glance that this was a Claw Monkey with thirteen years of cultivation, perfectly suited as an opponent.

Wild spirit beasts had their own set of survival rules.

Generally speaking, unless they were pack-type spirit beasts, every individual would occupy a certain range to form a territory.

If a weak enemy encroached upon their territory, they would attack immediately without a second thought.

If an enemy of comparable strength encroached, they would perform threatening gestures to warn them, trying their best to avoid a fight.

If a powerful enemy—one that exerted rank suppression—encroached upon their territory, they would know they were outmatched and flee for their lives.

Spirit beasts were not stupid; they knew how to retreat, how to intimidate, and how to ambush. Therefore, hunting wild spirit beasts in the wilderness carried great risks and contained a wealth of knowledge.

For an ordinary novice Spirit Beast Master, this would be a baptism filled with difficulties. But for Chu Yun, the memories of his past life allowed him to skip the rookie phase and become a seasoned, experienced Spirit Beast Master. He could judge the species and even the cultivation level of the spirit beast in a territory based on the slightest traces.

This allowed him to avoid the strong and strike the weak, finding the targets best suited for his own bitter training.

The Claw Monkey before him was one of the results of his meticulous planning.

"Minor Pill Fire, fire!" He spat out the command the moment he opened his mouth.

The Heavenly Fox had long been poised and ready; hearing the order, it immediately opened its mouth and spat out an orange fireball.

The Claw Monkey dodged, and the fireball struck the tree behind it, triggering a miniature explosion as flames began to consume the trunk.

"Chain Pill Fire, fire again." Chu Yun remained expressionless, his composure absolute.

Swish, swish, swish!

Three Minor Pill Fires tore through the air in succession, forming a triangular formation as they enveloped the Claw Monkey.

The Claw Monkey's expression turned frantic. It struggled in mid-air, narrowly avoiding two of the Minor Pill Fires, but was struck by the third.

"Now, use Great Pill Fire!" Chu Yun's eyes lit up; his wealth of combat experience allowed him to issue the most accurate and wise command at the perfect moment.

The Heavenly Fox gathered its energy for half a breath before spitting out a pill fire. While the Minor Pill Fire was only the size of a fist, this one was as large as an infant's head.

This was the Great Pill Fire, with five times the power of the Minor Pill Fire!

Boom.

With a soft roar, the Great Pill Fire struck the Claw Monkey squarely. The creature let out a mournful cry and was blasted to death on the spot. The intense flames burned fiercely, gradually incinerating it until nothing remained.

Five breaths later, only a single Demon Crystal remained on the ground.

The Demon Crystal, which appeared to be a slightly translucent crystal, was the essence left behind after a demon beast died. It was formed from the condensation of its body, soul, and spiritual light.

Every demon beast would condense into a Demon Crystal upon death. The more essence a beast retained before dying, the larger the crystal would be.

In his past life at the Star Sea Dragon Palace, the Demon Crystal formed after the death of an Azure Sea Dragon had been the size of a millstone—so heavy that Chu Yun could barely lift it.

But now, after eliminating the Claw Monkey, the Demon Crystal Chu Yun obtained was only the size of a soybean.

Though the crystal was small, it was within Chu Yun's expectations. How large could a crystal be from a demon beast with only 13 years of cultivation? Yet, for a Heavenly Fox with 10 years of cultivation, it was precious indeed.

He tossed the Demon Crystal to the Heavenly Fox, which chirped happily, wrinkled its cute little nose, and leaned in to inhale deeply from the crystal.

A visible stream of vital essence and spiritual energy was drawn into the Heavenly Fox's body. The Demon Crystal grew paler and paler until, in the blink of an eye, it vanished into thin air.

In return, having benefited from the Demon Crystal, the Heavenly Fox's own cultivation immediately jumped from 10 years to 12 years. It even luckily acquired a Dao technique that the Claw Monkey had comprehended during its lifetime.

Bloodlust Art.

The Bloodlust Dao Technique was one that demon beasts like the Claw Monkey typically comprehended. Chu Yun was not surprised; he nodded, yet ordered the Heavenly Fox to discard this technique.

Even humans, known as the spirits of all things, could rarely master everything at once. Energy was limited; if one spread themselves too thin and bit off more than they could chew, they would often achieve nothing.

It was the classic case of "greed leads to indigestion." Moreover, a demon beast's spiritual light was extremely limited, far inferior to that of a human. The number of Dao techniques they could learn was also restricted.

Even if the Heavenly Fox possessed abundant spiritual light and high comprehension, it was still, at the end of the day, a demon beast. Chu Yun estimated that a Lesser Demon-level Heavenly Fox could practice at most nine types of Dao techniques.

That was already a great many.

Ordinary demon beasts at the Lesser Demon level reached their limit after practicing four or five types of Dao techniques.

The Heavenly Fox was already twice that; this was the aptitude of a top-tier specimen!

Therefore, how to choose Dao techniques became one of the most important aspects of raising a demon beast. The combination of techniques would also determine the path the demon beast took.

Those with many offensive techniques tended toward being offensive-type demon beasts. Those with many defensive techniques were defensive-type, and those with many support techniques were support-type.

Choosing which techniques to use and how to pair them tested not only the Spirit Beast Master's deep understanding of their beast but also their ability to adapt to specific situations.

As for what type of demon beast he would cultivate the Heavenly Fox into, Chu Yun had already made his decision.