Slaughter It

"Elder, are there any fourth-order magical beast skeletons in the vault? Find me three and put them on my resource withdrawal record."

Nalan Yanran brought Xiao Qian to the Nalan Family's storage vault.

The vault was well hidden behind a cluster of artificial hills. On the way there, they had to pass through questioning by several patrols of guards.

An elder of the Nalan Family also stood watch at the vault's entrance, responsible for keeping records.

The elder looked rather sour, the wrinkles on his face like deep gullies, as though the years had carved all his stinginess into his features. One glance was enough to mark him as a miser. Perhaps that was precisely why he had been assigned to guard this repository of the family's precious resources.

"Oh, it's the young miss."

Upon seeing Nalan Yanran, the elder's rigid expression changed at once. The deep furrows on his wrinkled face seemed to melt as he struggled to squeeze out a smile.

But the smile, so rarely used, looked stiff and even a little frightening.

"Fourth-order magical beasts are quite precious. There are only two skeletons in the Family Storage Vault at present," the elder said slowly, his voice rasping like an old pair of bellows.

As he spoke, he gave Xiao Qian an appraising look, a hint of curiosity in his eyes, as though trying to see through the identity of this young man the young miss had brought home.

Xiao Qian's expression remained calm and composed. The presence of a Dou Ling elder did not faze him in the slightest.

What fine bearing! Just what one would expect of someone the young miss brought home!

The elder silently admired him, then turned to open the heavily locked storeroom.

Amid a clatter of locks, the heavy door slowly swung open, and an ancient, mysterious air washed over them.

Before long, two heavy thuds rang out as the elder carried out two magical beast skeletons, each a full ten feet long.

The enormous skeletons radiated a formidable aura, as though some of the beasts' strength in life still lingered within them.

"One is a fourth-order magical beast, a Gluttonous Ape. The other is a fourth-order Fiercewind Eagle." The elder dusted off his hands, then carefully recorded the withdrawal in his ledger.

He wrote every stroke with painstaking care, afraid of making even the slightest mistake.

But to his surprise, Nalan Yanran simply waved a hand and gestured to Xiao Qian. "Put them away. We can check the Mittel Auction House tomorrow for the last one. I'm a little tired today, so I'm spending the night at home."

Her tone was casual and relaxed, without the slightest hesitation.

As though he had not noticed the elder's twitching eyes, Xiao Qian casually put both magical beast skeletons into his Storage Ring.

Then he gave a slight nod. "All right. I'll stay at an inn. Come find me tomorrow morning."

With that, he made to turn and leave.

But the elder gave him a searching look, a thoughtful gleam flashing through his eyes as he considered Xiao Qian's relationship with Nalan Yanran and weighed the pros and cons.

Suddenly, he spoke. "Although the family doesn't have a third fourth-order magical beast skeleton, we did recently purchase a fourth-order Mighty Demon Bull..."

"Where is it? Bring it over." Nalan Yanran's eyes lit up.

The elder hesitated. "The family head originally intended to train this Mighty Demon Bull into the family's guardian beast..."

"It's fine. It's not a particularly good breed anyway. Father can find another one next time," Nalan Yanran said indifferently.

"All right. It's not as though the family head can do anything about you anyway..." the elder muttered, shaking his head helplessly before turning toward the Beast-Taming Arena.

"Let's go too." A smile curved Nalan Yanran's lips.

She was delighted to have obtained what Xiao Qian wanted so smoothly. She walked toward the Beast-Taming Arena with light steps, her long ponytail bouncing behind her, her retreating figure brimming with vitality.

Clearly, her temperament was entirely different from Xiao Xun'er's.

Xiao Xun'er was like a pool of clear spring water, tranquil and profound, with a reassuring stillness about her; Nalan Yanran, by contrast, was like a dancing flame, full of life.

Had she never met Xiao Qian, perhaps the passing years, her increasingly secure position in the Misty Cloud Sect, and growing maturity would gradually have worn away her sharp edges and made her more steady.

Tempered by the Sect's responsibilities and duties, she might have become a poised and dignified young sect master who remained unruffled in any situation.

Yet Xiao Qian's appearance had altered the course of her fate.

Now, this young man was like a stone cast into a placid lake, easily shattering the peace within her.

His every movement, every word and deed, could stir ripples across the lake of Nalan Yanran's heart, turning its former calm into restless agitation and putting her emotions beyond her own control.

"It's been so long since I've seen the young miss this lively."

As the elder walked, he kept glancing at the pair beside him out of the corner of his eye, deeply curious about their strange and subtle relationship.

He had spent many years with the Nalan Family and watched Nalan Yanran grow up, so he knew her former temperament well. The change in her now made him unable to resist wondering what lay behind it.

"This is our family's Beast-Taming Arena."

Nalan Yanran extended a finger as fair as white jade and pointed toward the open ground ahead, showing it to Xiao Qian.

Her fingers were slender and long, gleaming softly in the sunlight.

Then she turned to ask the elder, "That Demon Bull in the middle of the arena must be the fourth-order magical beast?"

Before them lay a vast enclosure nearly a thousand feet across, surrounded by tall, sturdy iron fencing.

The iron fence looked exceptionally heavy, each bar gleaming with a cold metallic sheen.

Inside the enclosure, apart from the enormous, pitch-black Demon Bull, there was only one person who also appeared to be an elder.

That elder wore a focused expression and occasionally unleashed Dou Qi to suppress the Demon Bull, apparently following a particular method to tame this powerful magical beast.

The Demon Bull was massive, and every shift of his body made the ground tremble slightly.

A wild gleam shone in his huge, bell-like eyes, and he let out low, furious bellows from time to time, looking extremely agitated.

"Elder Nan!"

Nalan Yanran's clear voice rang out over the Beast-Taming Arena. She brought Xiao Qian briskly to the fence and called out to Elder Nan inside.

"Oh? Yanran, you're back?" Hearing her voice, Elder Nan turned toward the fence. A gentle smile immediately appeared on his weathered face, his eyes full of affection.

He had watched her grow up and treated her like a junior member of his own family.

Yet that moment of distraction nearly led to disaster.

The already restless Demon Bull seized the opening and charged at Elder Nan, his sharp horns bearing down on him with fierce momentum.

"Vile beast! You still dare act up!" Nalan Nan was both startled and furious, a flicker of embarrassment crossing his face.

As an experienced elder, however, he instantly steadied himself.

Dou Qi surged around his body like a raging tide, gathering in his palm in an instant.

He swung his palm sharply, and with a boom, that powerful force slammed toward the Demon Bull.

The palm strike contained tremendous energy. It struck the Demon Bull hard, knocking his enormous body straight to the ground.

"Mooo-"

The Demon Bull let out a piercing cry that echoed through the Beast-Taming Arena, filled with pain and fury.

His huge body struggled a few times on the ground, kicking up clouds of dust.

"You think I'm just playing with you because I haven't shown my strength? Hmph!"

After steadying himself, Elder Nan chuckled. The embarrassment faded from his face, and his imposing air returned.

Then he turned back toward Nalan Yanran with a questioning look. "Yanran, did you come to the Beast-Taming Arena for something today?"

Nalan Yanran was clearly on good terms with him. With an affectionate smile, she said, "Elder Nan, sorry for the trouble, but please slaughter him. I need his skeleton."

Upon hearing this, Elder Nan stumbled and nearly fell.

He had never imagined Nalan Yanran would make such a request. The family had spent a fortune to purchase this Demon Bull and intended to train him into a guardian beast, yet now she wanted him slaughtered for his skeleton?