The Magical Beast Mountain Range

"Ah!" With a soft sigh, Gu Ni finally accepted reality. He did not even live as comfortably as someone else's pet!

"Young master, may I examine these pills?" Gu Ni asked respectfully.

He now believed the middle-aged man's words. At first, he had harbored doubts—or rather, he had thought it impossible for fourth- or fifth-grade pills to appear in Wutan City. Even third-grade pills were practically unheard of!

But now he had no choice but to believe it. If medicinal liquid comparable to a fourth-grade pill was merely "pet food," then surely producing a few fourth- or fifth-grade pills on a whim was perfectly normal?

“Mm.” Naturally, Liu Yu noticed the change in Gu Ni's expression, as well as Ya Fei staring at him in a daze.

Liu Yu found it amusing, and he could not help marveling at his own irrepressible charm. Your Majesty, you had better hold on tight! Otherwise... (Queen Medusa: ???)

The middle-aged man carefully picked up a jade bottle from the table and handed it to Gu Ni.

Taking the jade bottle cautiously, Gu Ni gently removed its stopper. Instantly, a rich pill fragrance wafted out. A mere sniff left him feeling refreshed and clearheaded, while Ya Fei beside him was utterly stunned.

And so, the middle-aged man passed the bottles over, and Gu Ni appraised them...

Time slipped quietly by, and the entire Appraisal Room became enveloped in waves of rich, exotic medicinal fragrance.

By now, Gu Ni's hands were trembling—not from exhaustion, but excitement! There were simply too many third-, fourth-, and fifth-grade pills. They had truly opened his eyes.

Although he did not recognize some of the pills, he could still roughly judge their grades from the intensity of their fragrance.

Moreover, the Mittel Auction House in Wutan City could not possibly handle these pills. They had to be transferred to the Mittel Family in the Imperial Capital!

Ya Fei had already recovered from her numb shock. More importantly, she understood that this enormous transaction was enough to change her fate!

Seeing this, Ya Fei approached with graceful steps, closing the distance between herself and Liu Yu. She no longer flaunted her charms, knowing that what worked on ordinary men would amount to nothing but playing to the gallery before this noble young master!

"Young master, I am truly sorry. The pills you have provided are far too valuable. We need to send them to the Mittel Family in the Imperial Capital for a valuation, so..."

Ya Fei's voice was naturally alluring, but her beautiful eyes were filled with apprehension.

Liu Yu did not answer immediately. Light flashed from the Storage Ring on his hand, and a list appeared in his grasp. "I need you to collect the medicinal ingredients on this list for me. These pills will serve as a deposit. Of course, if you come across any other wonders of nature or treasures, keep an eye out for those as well. I will go to the Mittel Family in the Imperial Capital to collect my ingredients myself."

Ya Fei solemnly accepted the list. Seeing the densely packed names of medicinal ingredients, she felt a jolt of shock. She recognized almost none of them! Still, she betrayed nothing and carefully put it away in her Storage Ring.

Liu Yu did not expect them to collect everything on his list. He would be satisfied if they managed thirty or forty percent. After all, even the lowest-level ingredients listed were used to refine fifth-grade pills, and some were even meant for seventh-grade pills!

"I'll leave these pills with you for now." Liu Yu chuckled.

Ya Fei breathed an inward sigh of relief. She had thought Liu Yu might take the pills back, given how precious they were.

With these pills as a deposit, she would undoubtedly be able to mobilize far greater resources upon returning to the Mittel Family. She might even attract the attention of the family's higher-ups!

The thought of returning to the Imperial Capital stirred a wave of emotion within Ya Fei. She hurriedly took a purple-gold card from her Storage Ring, its surface shimmering with five rippling bands of different colors.

A five-pattern Purple Gold Card required at least Dou Ling strength to qualify for one. It was also the best card Ya Fei could currently offer.

Ya Fei knew that a five-pattern Purple Gold Card did not befit the young man's status, so she explained, "Young master, here in Wutan City, our Mittel Auction House can only provide a five-pattern Purple Gold Card. When you next visit the Imperial Capital, we will provide you with a Purple Gold Card befitting your status!"

Liu Yu did not particularly care. He casually accepted the five-pattern Purple Gold Card, then stood and left the Appraisal Room.

Ya Fei and the others watched as Liu Yu disappeared from the room. The middle-aged man could not help asking quietly, "Master Gu Ni, is that young master an alchemist?"

"I'm not sure. I couldn't sense either his soul power or his Dou Qi..." Gu Ni left one thing unsaid: under his soul perception, the young master had actually seemed not to exist at all!

Had his own eyes not seen the young master sitting in that chair, he would have thought he had encountered some unclean spirit!

The Misty Cloud Sect? The Imperial Family? The Imperial Capital's three great families? Surely not... Beside him, Ya Fei wore an inscrutable expression, her thoughts unknown...

Deep in the eastern reaches of the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

An elusive figure wove through the dense forest. The many magical beasts seemed not to see Liu Yu at all, continuing about their business.

Liu Yu even reached out and gave a second-rank mating ape a knock, frightening it so badly that it fell straight out of the ancient tree where it had been hiding.

With Ethereal Step paired with Thousand Illusion Body, launching a sneak attack would be downright...

Great Flying Lion, here I come! A strange smile appeared on Liu Yu's handsome face. Heh heh heh... (Amethyst Winged Lion King: ...)

Liu Yu quickened his pace. As for where the Amethyst Winged Lion King was, he could hardly go wrong by heading deeper into the Magical Beast Mountain Range!

As Liu Yu continued inward, he sensed four extremely powerful magical beast auras. The one in the center was the strongest. Barring any surprises, that should be the Amethyst Winged Lion King.

Soon, Liu Yu silently arrived before an enormous mountain. At its summit, a massive cave entrance could be glimpsed through the concealing branches.

Without hesitation, Liu Yu headed straight for the entrance. The numerous magical beast guards patrolling nearby continued diligently carrying out their duties, utterly unaware that their home was about to be raided.

The cave's interior was not as dim as he had imagined. Purple crystals were embedded in portions of the surrounding rock walls.

These crystals had formed naturally within the cave. Not only were they exceptionally beautiful, they were also quite valuable. Liu Yu decided to take a few on his way out later—he had an important use for them.

After passing through the long cave passage, Liu Yu reached a fork. With a shift of his body, he headed down the passage on the left.

Moments later, Liu Yu arrived in a cavern. At its center stood a platform built from amethyst stone, over a meter tall. Resting atop it was a purple sphere as large as a human head. This was the companion amethyst source!

A mass of azure flame appeared in Liu Yu's hand. Under his control, it expanded, then transformed into a two-meter-long azure cleaver.

Gripping the cleaver as Dou Qi surged through his body, Liu Yu slashed fiercely across the amethyst stone platform. As expected, a cut appeared all around its lower section.

With a thought, Liu Yu stored the companion amethyst source, along with part of the amethyst stone platform, in his System Space.

Just one purple spirit crystal left, Liu Yu thought. His figure shifted, and he vanished from the cavern.

Liu Yu had already reached the opening of the right-hand passage, where he spotted two Amethyst Winged Lion Kings, one large and one small.

Speaking of which, the Amethyst Winged Lion King was quite an impressive sight. A layer of purple crystalline scales covered his entire body. A fiery-red spiral horn protruded from his ferocious lion head, and enormous purple wings lay folded along his back.

Liu Yu felt that riding the Amethyst Winged Lion King would give him quite the imposing presence!

Both magical beasts were currently asleep, which made things easier for Liu Yu.

The only thing that left Liu Yu speechless was, Why are you sleeping on that pile of amethyst stone, little flying lion? Can't you sleep beside your father?

Then pardon the offense! A tremendous mass of fire-attribute energy instantly gathered in Liu Yu's hand and slammed into the little Amethyst Winged Lion King.

"Awooo!" With a miserable howl, the little Amethyst Winged Lion King was blasted away and smashed into the rock wall. In that same instant, Liu Yu swept the pile of amethyst stone into his system space, then... fled!

"Roar!"

The commotion naturally woke the sleeping Amethyst Winged Lion King. His deafening roar reverberated through the cave and carried far beyond its entrance, instantly stirring the magical beasts outside into unrest.

At that moment, the Amethyst Winged Lion King's blood-red eyes, gleaming with a strange purple light, were filled with fury. His child had been struck right beside him, and even his purple spirit crystal had been stolen! This was simply bullying a beast beyond all endurance!

Purple light flashed in the sky outside the cave, and a purple figure appeared overhead like lightning. His bloodthirsty eyes swept coldly over his surroundings, as though searching for something.

"Roar!"

The furious roar sent the magical beasts around the cave trembling. Purple radiance blazed around the Amethyst Winged Lion King, though it soon subsided. He truly wanted to burn all these useless fools to death! Guards! Guards! Yet his home had practically been stripped bare!

"Search! Find the little thief who broke into my cave!" Having calmed down slightly, the Amethyst Winged Lion King roared at the magical beasts.

For a time, the magical beasts throughout the mountains began racing about madly, though they did not actually know whom they were looking for...

Meanwhile, Liu Yu strolled leisurely through the Magical Beast Mountain Range. Naturally, he had heard the Amethyst Winged Lion King's roars. This time, he had "fled with his tail between his legs," but next time might be a different story.

Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west—fortunes change. When I return as a king, I'll make that Amethyst Winged Lion King the beast beneath my saddle!

Imagining the Amethyst Winged Lion King prostrating himself at his feet someday, Liu Yu could not help flashing an "arrogant" grin. He then prepared to search the Magical Beast Mountain Range for rare medicinal ingredients he could use.

Suddenly, a mechanical voice he had not heard in a long time sounded in Liu Yu's mind.

"Congratulations, host, on unlocking the achievement 'Light-Fingered.' Your reward has been delivered to the system space. Please check it yourself."

Light-Fingered? Damn it, what kind of system takes veiled shots at its own host like this! Isn't that just calling me a thief?

Even so, as a system and host sharing honor and disgrace, couldn't we unlock some more positive achievements? (Achievement System: ?)

Without dwelling on it further, Liu Yu hurriedly checked his System Space. This reward seemed to be a cultivation method? The Achievement System might be a little unreliable, but its rewards were beyond reproach.

Liu Yu silently willed it to be extracted, and lines of profound text instantly appeared in his mind.

Only after a long while did Liu Yu come back to his senses. This Origin-Nurturing Art could truly be said to seize the creative power of heaven and earth, turning the impossible into the possible!

It targeted the very essence, repairing it, strengthening it... It absorbed the energy between heaven and earth and transformed it into a peculiar power that nourished the essence!

This cultivation method was exceptionally well suited to his Queen. Not only would it help repair her soul, sparing him the need to find ingredients to refine a Spirit Fusion Pill, it could also continuously purify the Seven-Colored Heaven Swallowing Python's bloodline—eight colors, or even nine!

But what troubled Liu Yu was how he should give this cultivation method to his queen. Claim he had stumbled upon it? Yet practically everything he did was under her supervision, whether back in the Snake-People Tribe or now.

Although Queen Medusa's Soul Power had been damaged and half of her body's control had passed to the newborn soul, she could still sense everything happening outside. She could even forcibly manifest herself.

Forget it. If she asks, it's a secret! Liu Yu could not think of a better solution. As for waiting until some future opportunity to give Queen Medusa the Origin-Nurturing Art, he dismissed that outright.

The sooner his Queen recovered her strength, the more she could help him. If she even advanced another step, he could happily live as a "kept man" from then on!

Brothers, please show your support!