Roast Three-Eyed Golden Lion? Qin Yu: No Free Meals

Qin Yu had only meant to scare the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.

But then he noticed her eyes growing brighter. She kept swallowing, looking positively eager.

"???"

Qin Yu stared at her, baffled. For a moment, he wondered if he was seeing things.

"Does it really taste that good?" the Three-Eyed Golden Lion asked curiously.

Qin Yu nodded, still stunned.

"Then... go ahead." The Three-Eyed Golden Lion gritted her teeth and held out a foreleg. "Be gentle. I'm afraid it'll hurt."

"You..." Qin Yu didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

He had only tried to scare her, but not only had she failed to take the threat seriously, she had taken the food seriously instead.

What a greedy girl. No, she was gluttony incarnate. She would even sacrifice her own flesh for a bite of roast meat.

"Young Master, the Auspicious Beast is rather innocent," Bi Ji couldn't help reminding him.

"So innocent she's left me speechless."

Qin Yu smiled helplessly and stroked the Three-Eyed Golden Lion's fur again. "I'm done teasing you. It's not as if meat is scarce in Star Dou Forest."

"Oh, right!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's eyes lit up. Then she caught on and fixed him with a stare. "So why did you want to cut meat off me just now?"

"To scare you. It didn't work. You scared me instead."

"Hmph. Serves you right!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion snorted.

"Bi Ji, sorry for the trouble." Qin Yu turned to her. "Could you catch a few common cattle- or sheep-type Soul Beasts? Hundred-year ones will do."

"No trouble at all, Young Master. I'll be right back."

Bi Ji smiled gently and vanished in a flash.

She was fast. Before half an incense stick had burned, she returned with five hundred-year Soul Beasts: a Black Jade Sheep, an Earth-Horned Bull, a Golden Wild Boar...

These Soul Beasts were common in Star Dou Forest. They bred quickly, rarely lived beyond a thousand years, and mostly served as food for other Soul Beasts.

Qin Yu wasted no time. He drew the Heaven Dragon Halberd and dispatched all five in swift, clean strikes.

Then he began preparing the meat.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion knew nothing about cooking, so she stayed at Qin Yu's side and did whatever he told her, all for a taste of that "heavenly delicacy."

Half an hour later, everything was ready.

A campfire burned beneath a great tree near the Lake of Life.

Ling Yuan Douluo, still unconscious, leaned against the trunk. The fire's warmth eased the tension from her brow, and her body instinctively relaxed.

Qin Yu and the Three-Eyed Golden Lion sat on the other side.

Sizzle, sizzle...

Several skewers of meat rested over the fire, dripping fat and sending out waves of fragrance.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion was practically drooling.

"That should do it." Qin Yu handed her a skewer with a knowing smile. "Go on."

She took a bite without hesitation.

The moment she tasted that "heavenly delicacy," her eyes went wide. Each bite made her want more. Even as she chewed, she watched the meat over the fire.

Qin Yu kept feeding her, his smile growing ever more suggestive.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion noticed nothing. She ate to her heart's content, her fondness for Qin Yu soaring with every bite.

But trouble was about to find her.

"You can't eat the Young Master's roast meat for free," Qin Yu said suddenly.

"Huh?"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion froze, then quickly covered her meat with a big paw, guarding it jealously. "You already gave it to me. That makes it mine."

"The meat doesn't matter. What about my cooking?" Qin Yu smiled, a hint of mischief in his eyes. "If you want more, you'll have to do me a favor."

"What favor?"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion eyed him warily. "You can't cut meat off me. I don't taste good."

"Uh..." Qin Yu's mouth twitched. He didn't know whether to laugh or sigh.

"I won't cut meat off you, and I won't eat you."

"Starting tomorrow, you'll be my punching bag—no, my sparring partner. I need to test my strength."

Qin Yu finally revealed what he was after.

Rather than seek out another ten-thousand-year Soul Beast, he could spar with the Three-Eyed Golden Lion.

She might have only five thousand years of cultivation, but her true combat strength was no joke. She was stronger than an ordinary fifty-thousand-year Soul Beast.

If he could beat her, it would mean he already had the combat strength of a Soul Sage.

"A fight!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's eyes lit up, and she agreed at once. "Sure! You said it yourself. Don't cry when you lose."

Apart from eating, fighting was the only thing that interested her.

She refused to believe absorbing one Soul Ring had made Qin Yu strong enough to beat her.

"You're the one who shouldn't cry," Qin Yu said with a grin.

"I would never cry!"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion's fur bristled. She was about to say more when an idea struck her. "Qin... Young Master, dare to make a bet?"

"Let's hear it." Qin Yu looked at her with interest.

"If you lose, I won't call you Young Master anymore. You'll call me Big Sister."

"And if you lose?"

"Then I'll keep calling you Young Master."

"..." Qin Yu gave her a strange look, then laughed. "Bi Ji called you innocent, but I'm starting to think you're not quite so innocent after all."

"Hmph. I'm smart!" the Three-Eyed Golden Lion declared.

"Heh."

Qin Yu chuckled and took a bite of his skewer. "If you lose, you won't have to call me Young Master either. You'll call me Big Brother."

"Fine! I won't lose anyway," the Three-Eyed Golden Lion agreed at once.

Qin Yu only smiled. He was looking forward to testing his strength tomorrow.

Once he knew roughly where he stood, he could leave this place, return to the Heaven Dou Empire, and stir things up there.

The thought filled Qin Yu with energy.

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion kept eating roast meat until late into the night. Finally full and content, she lay down and fell fast asleep.

Qin Yu was growing sleepy too. Just as he was about to rest, he glanced at Ling Yuan.

He paused for a moment.

Then he stood, walked over, took out a blanket, and draped it over her.

After that, he returned to the Three-Eyed Golden Lion and leaned against the "Big Golden Retriever." Gazing up at the stars, he gradually fell asleep.

The next morning.

On a broad patch of grass beside the Lake of Life.

Boom!

Purple and golden energy collided with a roar. The shockwave rolled outward, whipping up fierce winds.

At the heart of the collision, a man and an unusual Soul Beast clashed.

Much of the man's body had transformed into that of a dragon. His purple-gold scales seethed with destructive power, and several tiny black holes seemed to flicker across the dragon wings spread behind him.

The golden-furred Soul Beast was several times his size. Though she had only a thousand-year cultivation level, her strength was astonishing, surpassing that of ordinary ten-thousand-year Soul Beasts.

Yet even this fearsome Soul Beast seemed to be falling slightly behind the dragon-transformed man.

"How is this possible?"

The Three-Eyed Golden Lion could no longer stay calm. Qin Yu had not only withstood her strength; he even seemed close to surpassing her.

She had the Golden Dragon Bloodline. Strength was supposed to be her specialty.

And yet she was losing to Qin Yu, who was only a Soul Ancestor.