Celestial Beast Taming

The eerie figures on the Moon Eyes weren’t distinct. It was like how people from Zhong Yi’s past life thought they could see the silhouette of a rabbit when gazing at the moon during the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Seeing Zhong Yi’s gaze fall upon her contracted Moon Eyes Bellflower, Chen Yin spoke, her tone tinged with lament.

"I don’t know if, in this lifetime, I’ll ever get this Moon Eyes Bellflower to grow a seventeenth stalk and bloom another Moon Eyes Flower. But I can feel it... this plant is weeping."

"She doesn’t want to be stuck at the Mortal Beast Level, but I’m powerless to help."

At this, Chen Yin bowed again, her voice solemn and pleading as she spoke to Zhong Yi.

"Lord Su Sheng, I asked to see you because there is a favor I must ask of you."

As a Contractor, a Guardian Beast Master could feel the emotions of their Guardian Beast.

This was true even if the Guardian Beast was a plant-type with little to no intelligence.

As Chen Yin began to ask Zhong Yi for help, Lin Zhuo said nothing, simply standing quietly at his side.

Lin Zhuo and Chen Yin were very close friends, and bringing Zhong Yi here was, in itself, a great help to Chen Yin.

Whether Zhong Yi was actually willing to help Chen Yin was his own decision; Lin Zhuo would not use their friendship to pressure him into it.

In truth, bringing Zhong Yi here was less about helping Chen Yin and more about expanding his network of contacts.

As a Deceit Holder with a Deceitful Moon Badge, Chen Yin wasn’t particularly powerful herself.

However, as a veteran among Deceit Holders, every Bizarre entity she controlled had reached the Mythical Tier.

She ranked among the top five of the twelve Deceit Holders with Deceitful Moon Badges in Starlight City, and she also had the best relationship with the Bizarre entities under her command.

’Having someone like that owe you a favor is never a bad thing!’

After she spoke, Chen Yin looked at Zhong Yi, her eyes filled with pleading and hope.

Knowing Lin Zhuo, Zhong Yi figured that her bringing him here meant he was almost certainly capable of helping Chen Yin.

"Elder Chen, I’m your junior. If there’s anything I can do to help, please don’t hesitate to ask."

Upon hearing this, Chen Yin hurriedly replied.

"I heard from Lord Wei Re that a Healing-type Celestial Destiny Seeker has appeared in our Starlight City. I’m at my wits’ end and clutching at straws, so whether you can help me or not, I will owe you a great debt."

"In the future, if there’s anything you need from me, you have only to ask."

With that said, Chen Yin raised her hand and tapped a silver bell tied to the gauze curtain. Two figures instantly and silently appeared at her side.

"Please, bring Ah Yu’s Ice Coffin over."

The two figures first bowed respectfully to both Lin Zhuo and Zhong Yi. Then, one of them couldn’t help but speak up.

"Sister Yin, no matter what, Brother-in-law Yin is still alive. All these years, you’ve worried yourself sick over him."

"Don’t forget, if your health fails, he’ll be completely lost."

The man was about to say more, but the other man beside him cut him off with a sharp word.

Hearing this, Chen Yin let out a soft sigh.

"I’m well aware of my own condition. Living another twenty or thirty years won’t be a problem."

"Besides, Starlight City has life-extending Secret Treasures. With my seniority and my contributions to the city, I’m guaranteed a share before my time is up."

"I desperately want Ah Yu to get well, but I haven’t forgotten that I have you all, too."

"If Lord Su Sheng is unable to cure Ah Yu this time, then... I’ll stop trying after this."

As she spoke, a single tear escaped from her clear eyes, falling onto the plush carpet below.

Zhong Yi suddenly recalled that when he had looked at Chen Yin’s contracted Moon Eyes Bellflower, one of the Moon Eyes had been dim.

The Bizarre figure within that Moon Eye was far blurrier than the figures in the others.

After a Moon Eyes Bellflower used its skill, Eyes Reflecting the Waning Moon, to control a Bizarre entity, if that entity died, the corresponding Moon Eyes Flower wouldn’t take control of a new entity. It would simply wither away.

The condition of the Moon Eyes Flower, therefore, was a perfect reflection of the Bizarre entity’s condition.

The "Ah Yu" Chen Yin spoke of was most likely the Bizarre entity connected to that dimming Moon Eyes Flower.

A Deceit Holder in love with a Bizarre entity—it sounded rather unconventional.

But Zhong Yi didn’t find it strange at all. In fact, he respected the bond between Chen Yin and the Bizarre entity.

Soon, an ice coffin, roughly three meters long, was carried over and set down about five meters from Zhong Yi.

Even at that distance, Zhong Yi felt a bone-chilling cold.

The chill was so intense it made him shiver involuntarily.

Zhong Yi recalled a discovery he’d made back in the Horned Demon Secret Realm. As the Soul-Controlling Flower absorbed Life and Soul Energy, it would feed some of that power back to him, subtly enhancing his Soul Strength and physical fitness. Although he had no formal Contract with the Soul-Controlling Flower, the two shared a strange symbiotic relationship. If the flower hadn’t absorbed the Life and Soul Energy from Horned Demons on such a massive scale back then, Zhong Yi might never have even noticed it strengthening him in return.

By now, his physical condition, while not on par with an Extraordinary Tier Guardian Beast Master, was far superior to that of an ordinary Mortal Beast Tier Guardian Beast Master.

For him to feel this cold from five meters away, the Ice Attribute Material used to craft the coffin had to be incredibly rare.

The moment she saw the Ice Coffin, Chen Yin instinctively moved to step forward, but the man who had spoken earlier blocked her path.

"Sister Yin, you can’t get too close to this Ice Coffin! It’s made of Sealed Glacial Ice. If its cold aura and unique Ice Elemental Traits enter your body, you’ll become seriously ill."

With a slight raise of her hand, a brilliant crimson flame danced on Lin Zhuo’s fingertip. The cold aura emanating from the Ice Coffin was instantly suppressed.

"It’s safe now, Elder Chen. Go take a look if you wish."

"Just don’t let your body touch the Ice Coffin directly."

"Xiaoyi, if you’re willing to help Elder Chen, you should go take a look as well."

Lin Zhuo had been standing behind Zhong Yi the whole time. As the crimson flame flared to life on one hand, Zhong Yi felt the fingers of her other hand tracing something on his back.

With his soul strengthened, his body’s perceptive abilities had also grown sharper.

Zhong Yi clearly felt Lin Zhuo trace three words on his back with her finger: "Don’t be polite."

Zhong Yi glanced back at Lin Zhuo, a hint of exasperation on his face.

’She’s telling me that if I can help, I shouldn’t hesitate to ask for a reward afterward,’ he realized. ’She’s worried I’ll be too modest and get the short end of the stick.’

This wasn’t the first time he had been on the receiving end of Lin Zhuo’s particular kindness and care.

Zhong Yi gave Lin Zhuo a small smile, then walked up to the Ice Coffin.

A gray-black, decaying mist swirled within the translucent blue Ice Coffin. Lying inside was a handsome, middle-aged man, easily as good-looking as Zhao Kai, the man Zhong Yi had recently healed.