"Huff... huff... huff..."
Only when the Settlement Panel appeared did Zhao Er finally relax completely. He dropped onto the ground and, still panting, began prying at the various parts of the Golden-Backed Heavenly Dragon with his hands.
"Chrr, chrr, chrr..."
Just then, however, a familiar sound came from a tree ahead.
Hearing it, Zhao Er immediately rose to his feet, on guard.
Only after confirming that the creature perched in the tree was the familiar White Marten did Zhao Er relax again.
"You little rascal. Nowhere to be seen while I was fighting, but the moment I finish it off, out you come."
Zhao Er sat back down. Though his words were reproachful, his face was full of smiles.
"!!"
Barely had Zhao Er finished speaking and sat down when, without making a sound, White Marten was already standing on the Golden-Backed Heavenly Dragon beside him.
"Huh? Your speed's improved that much? Was it the Blackwater Fruit from last time?"
Back when Zhao Er was in the blood condensation realm, he could at least catch sight of White Marten moving. Now that he had reached the bone tempering realm and grown considerably stronger, he could no longer even detect White Marten's path.
"And now you've even got silver markings on your forehead. Can a variant beast like the Venom-Eating Marten evolve again?"
Looking at White Marten nearby, Zhao Er noticed an extra tuft of white fur on White Marten's forehead and could not help muttering.
After his sister-in-law Ning Mu had given him the book containing information on various variant beasts, Zhao Er had immediately looked up White Marten.
A fondness for eating snakes, extreme speed, and a highly venomous mouth were the distinguishing traits of a Venom-Eating Marten, all of which matched White Marten.
Yet now, looking again, he