“Princess?”
Seeing the hall master’s face twisting in frustration, Elder Qian couldn’t help but assess the young lady before him.
Ye Wentian did have a few daughters, but none of their appearances or ages seemed to coincide with this young lady here.
Besides, so what if the other party was a princess? As the esteemed hall master of the Beast Hall, a Transcendent Mortal 8-dan pinnacle expert, not even Ye Wentian would dare to do anything to him. Was there really a need for him to be so fearful of a mere princess?
“She’s not Ye Wentian’s daughter; she’s the Sixth Princess of Hongyuan Empire, Princess Yu Fei-er!”
Noticing Elder Qian’s confusion, Hall Master Qin immediately sent a telepathic message over for fear that he might say something rude.
“Hongyuan Empire?” Hearing those words, Elder Qian’s body suddenly trembled intensely, and he nearly fainted on the spot.
The reticent lady who followed behind Zhang shi like a maid was actually the princess of Hongyuan Empire?
Hongyuan Empire was a Tier-1 Empire, and it had many experts in its ranks. Furthermore, the great Master Teacher Academy was located there as well. As a result, the royal family which ruled over the region wielded great prestige and authority.
Not even Ye Wentian would dare to utter a word of complaint when berated by a princess from such an empire…
‘Are you sure you are not mistaken?
‘If this young lady over here is really a princess, then considering how she was following behind Zhang shi subserviently, what in the world is Zhang shi’s background?’
Seeing Yu Fei-er bringing out her identity as a princess, Luo Qiqi stepped forward and asked, “Fei-er, you know him?”
“On my birthday a few years ago, Elder Bai from the Beast School gave me a White-tailed Green Wolf, and this Hall Master Qin happened to be behind him then,” Yu Fei-er replied nonchalantly.
“Oh.” Luo Qiqi nodded. “Now that you mention it, I seem to recall it as well… I thought that the person then was just an ordinary disciple under Elder Bai. To think that he would be the hall master of the Huanyu Empire Beast Hall!”
As a close friend of Yu Fei-er, there was no way Luo Qiqi would miss Yu Fei-er’s birthday. She could still remember how envious she was when she saw Elder Bai gifting Yu Fei-er a White-tailed Green Wolf as a present back then. Taking a closer look now, she also realized that Hall Master Qin looked extremely familiar.
“You are… Luo shi?”
Recognizing the close friend of Yu Fei-er, Hall Master Qin’s lips twitched.
“Yes, you are indeed sharp. I am 5-star Master Teacher Luo Qiqi!” Luo Qiqi nodded.
“5-star master teacher?” Elder Qian’s body shook.
‘If you are a 5-star master teacher, you should have said so earlier! If I knew earlier, I wouldn’t have put on such airs and immediately rushed off to find the best spirit beast in the Beast Hall for you…’
Thus, Elder Qian turned to stare at Han Chong in anger… ‘Didn’t you say that Zhang shi is a 4-star master teacher from the Myriad Kingdom Alliance? If that is really true, how can a 5-star master teacher possibly be his student…’
Han Chong also stared at Zhang Xuan indignantly.
‘Didn’t you just pass your 4-star master teacher examination a few months ago?
‘When in the world did you turn the princess of the Hongyuan Empire royal family and a 5-star master teacher into your follower and your student?’
They weren’t the only ones who were feeling frenzied by the turn of events. At this moment, Qin Zhong also realized what was wrong, and he nearly burst into tears.
He actually… teased the princess from Hongyuan Empire and a 5-star master teacher… In fact, he even tried to get his father to teach the other party a lesson!
It was fortunate that the other party didn’t follow up on the matter. Otherwise, not even his father would be able to save him if the other party were to behead him on the spot out of anger…
Seeing how they were getting sidetracked, Zhang Xuan shook his head and said, “Alright, now is not the time to be talking about such unimportant matters. We should deal with the Great Violetwing Beast first.”
The Transcendent Mortal 3-dan spirit beast was already on the verge of being crushed to death, and yet they were still chatting at this moment.
“Deal? How do we deal with it? Does Zhang shi have any idea in mind?” Judging by how Princess Yu Fei-er and Luo Qiqi seemed to hold the young man as the de facto leader of their group, Hall Master Qin could tell that the young man was not as simple as he seemed.
After a moment of contemplation, Zhang Xuan replied with a frown, “I’ll negotiate with it to see what it wants!”
If the other party possessed the Dragon Bloodline, he could easily stop it with a ‘Moo’ or the newly-learned ‘Mou’. However, that didn’t seem to be the case, and it was likely that he was just going to waste his efforts. Since that was the case, he might as well ask the other party what its goal was.
“Negotiate?”
Hall Master Qin and Elder Qian frowned.
It was precisely due to the communication barrier before them that made it difficult to negotiate with the vengeful Great Violetwing Beast. Otherwise, they wouldn’t be so helpless before it either.
Just as they were wondering what the young man was up to, the young man stepped forward and spoke.
“$*%@￥#3…”
The Great Violetwing Beast in the sky was visibly stunned for a moment, but a moment later, it began roaring.
“Roaroaroaroar!”
The young man, “#￥%￥…%”
The Great Violetwing Beast, “Roaroaroaroar!”
…
“This is… the Ancient Beast Language?”
Seeing the man and the beast conversing with one another, Hall Master Qin’s eyes nearly popped out from their sockets.
Any beast tamer, regardless of their capability, would be able to qualify as a 6-star beast tamer at the very least just by knowing how to speak the Ancient Beast Language once their cultivation reached the required level… Thus, it was unimaginable for him that this young man was actually able to speak the Ancient Beast Language.
“Elder Qian, aren’t you trying to learn the Ancient Beast Language? You can study under Zhang shi…”
The excited Hall Master Qin turned to look at Elder Qian, only to freeze in astonishment at the very next moment.
The composed Elder Qian was currently clawing at his hair frenziedly, as though he was going insane.
But it was no wonder he was reacting like that! It was just a moment ago that the young man was completely ignorant of the Ancient Beast Language. Yet, ten minutes after entering his log house to browse through his collection of records, Zhang shi returned and claimed that he had learned the basics of the language… All this while, Elder Qian thought that the latter was just boasting, but to think that it was actually true!
When did the Ancient Beast Language… become so easy to learn?
Could he have really wasted the last fifty years of his life for nothing?
Otherwise, how could the results from his fifty years be unable to match up to ten minutes of the other party’s efforts?
Just as he was on the verge of a breakdown, he saw the young man and the Great Violetwing Beast in the sky wrapping up their negotiation. Following which, the young man returned with a peculiar expression on his face.
“How did it go?”
Putting everything aside, Elder Qian quickly turned to look at Zhang Xuan and asked anxiously, “What did it say to you?”
Throughout these years, he had been dying to know what the Draconic Granite Beast had said before his death, as well as to understand why the Great Violetwing Beast had kept pestering the Beast Hall over the years.
This was the reason why he was able to persevere in his study of the Ancient Beast Language for fifty years.
“The Great Violetwing Beast says that…”
At which, Zhang Xuan scratched his head. “… it wants you to die!”
“I knew it. After all, I was the one who caused the death of our Draconic Granite Beast. As the culprit who resulted in the death of its lover, it is natural that it would harbor such deep hatred for me…”
Elder Qian suddenly looked as though he had aged ten years.
If not for his obstinacy and complacency back then, he wouldn’t have been severely injured, and the Draconic Granite Beast wouldn’t have sacrificed itself for him either. As the Draconic Granite Beast’s companion, it was no wonder the Great Violetwing Beast wanted him dead!
“Cough cough! That’s not it…”
Seeing Elder Qian falling into an endless spiral of self-reproach, Zhang Xuan hurriedly pulled him back.
“That’s not it? Then what is the reason?” Elder Qian was taken aback.
“It’s because of what the Draconic Granite Beast said before his death!” Zhang Xuan replied.
“What the Draconic Granite Beast said before his death? The Great Violetwing Beast… told you his dying message?”
Elder Qian was so agitated that his entire body began trembling.
Over the past few decades, he had been dying to know the dying will of the Draconic Granite Beast, but it was a pity that the Great Violetwing Beast refused to say anything at all. Or perhaps, he was simply unable to comprehend the latter’s words, and that only amplified his guilt.
Seeing how Zhang shi uttered these words after conversing with the Great Violetwing Beast… could it be that the Great Violetwing Beast had revealed the Draconic Granite Beast’s dying message?
“That’s right…”
The peculiar expression on Zhang Xuan’s face intensified.
“What did he say? Did he tell me to live well in his stead?”
Recalling the bits and pieces that he and his loyal tamed beast had gone through together, Elder Qian’s eyes turned red. Tears began flowing uncontrollably from his eyes.
“The Draconic Granite Beast said…” Conflicted, Zhang Xuan hesitated for a long moment before finally spitting it out. “He said that… ‘I am not dead!'”
“Not dead?”
Elder Qian’s body swayed weakly, and he spurted a mouthful of fresh blood. “B-b-but I buried him!”
Elder Qian had always thought the last words of the Draconic Granite Beast were entrusting its hopes and wishes to him. Who would have thought that its words would be… ‘I am not dead’?
‘The heck!
‘I have even felt his body! Stiff and frigid, how could he possibly still be alive?’
Furthermore, even if he wasn’t dead then, having been buried underground for fifty years, he couldn’t still be alive now!
Not only was Elder Qian frenzied, even Luo Qiqi and Yu Fei-er also widened their eyes, and they nearly fainted from shock.
They had shed a tear earlier on after hearing the touching story of how the loyal Draconic Granite Beast died for its master. Who could have known that… it would actually be a horror story instead!
To be buried alive…
After fifty years, it should have long suffocated to death!
Hall Master Qin and the elders also found their bodies trembling in shock at the revelation.
‘For you, your tamed beast went to the extent of even offering its own blood essence, and yet you buried it alive… Given your doings, it would be a wonder if its companion was willing to let you off!’
Honestly speaking, it was already being very magnanimous by only wreaking havoc in the Beast Hall all these years!
Zhang Xuan and the others also shared the same thoughts as well.
But in the end, Elder Qian was also an innocent party too. How could he have known that the Draconic Granite Beast was still alive then? Furthermore, he had also been tortured with guilt throughout these years as well.
Thus, Zhang Xuan turned to him and asked, “Did you… cremate the Draconic Granite Beast?”
“That… I didn’t!” Elder Qian shook his head.
In truth, he did intend to cremate it back then, but the Great Violetwing Beast came to wreak havoc. Thinking that the Great Violetwing Beast was unwilling to see its companion being reduced to ash, he decided to simply bury it in the mountain forest and accompany it for life.
“It’s good that you didn’t. Based on what the Great Violetwing Beast said, the Draconic Granite Beast is just in a state of pseudo-death. After a period of rest and nourishment, he should be able to be revived. Even though you’ve buried him, it’s fortunate that you didn’t cremate him… There might still be a chance!” Zhang Xuan said.
The Great Violetwing Beast had explained the matter thoroughly to him just now. The Draconic Granite Beast possessed the Dragon Bloodline and a tough exterior reminiscent of granite, thus the origin of the name.
After losing its blood essence, its body would become cold and rigid like a rock, similar to a corpse. Its breathing and heartbeat would also come to a temporary halt. However, this wasn’t death in the truest sense. As long as it was well-nourished in the time to come, it should be possible to awaken it very quickly.
As the Draconic Granite Beasts had always been a rare species, and there had never been a case where one voluntarily gave away a huge amount of its blood essence, such a phenomenon wasn’t recorded in the books. As such, not even a 5-star beast tamer like Elder Qian was aware of this ability of the Draconic Granite Beast.
Considering how the Draconic Granite Beast had stopped its breathing and heartbeat, even if it was buried… as long as it wasn’t cremated and hadn’t decomposed yet, there should still be a chance of survival.
No matter what, that was a powerful Transcendent Mortal 8-dan spirit beast harnessing the Dragon Bloodline within it! There was no way it could die that easily.
“There is still a chance?”
Elder Qian’s eyes lit up for a moment before dimming again in sorrow. “But… he has been buried for fifty years already…”
If it had just been a few months or even a year, there might still be a chance. But fifty years had passed, and there wasn’t the slightest sign of recovery for the Draconic Granite Beast. This period of time was more than sufficient for a pseudo-death to become real!
“Calm down, let’s go over and take a look first. It’ll be best if we can save him, but otherwise… it is still worth a shot.”
Zhang Xuan sighed deeply.
‘Who asked you to bury your tamed beast alive? The only thing we can do now is to quickly bring him out and diagnose his condition. Even if it were to end up futile in the end, at least this matter can be put to an end.’
“Un!” Elder Qian quickly nodded and led the group to the backyard of the log house. At that moment, Zhang Xuan suddenly recalled something and turned to the Great Violetwing Beast with a frown on his face. “What are you waiting for? Put that spirit beast down!”
Roar!
The Great Violetwing Beast released its claws indignantly.
Boom!
Falling onto the ground, the spirit beast fainted.
