Chapter 093 – King of Canines - Part 1

A new entry for eighth rank Basic Wilderness Demon Taming appeared in Li Yuan's skill list, and hovering over it was a line of red subtext.

「

Requirements: Any ninth rank taming skill at Master level.

」

This note once again confirmed Li Yuan’s earlier suspicions and also taught him something new. Skills that came from a complete legacy, one aligned with an overarching cultivation method, were far easier to train.

Take Spring-Autumn Blade, for example. All he needed to learn Spring Awakening was to raise Spring Thunder to the Advanced level. That was relatively straightforward.

In this world, fully developed sects held a clear advantage. Those who learned in a piecemeal,

pick-up-as-you-go

fashion either stalled at a low rank or met a dead end entirely.

After all, Li Yuan understood how hard it was to reach the Master level. Beyond constant training and real combat, one needed moments of true insight or guidance from someone already at that pinnacle.

For most people, insight might still be reachable, but guidance from an expert was completely reliant on luck. And time itself was an enemy. Human lifespans were limited. A cultivator had to break into the sixth rank while their body was still strong; once they grew old, any hope of advancing would slip away.

Yet none of these concerns applied to Li Yuan.

He glanced at the information on his status window and focused on Wilderness Demon Taming. He tapped the

+

symbol, instantly allocating 150 stat points to it, leaving him at 339 available stat points.

Basic Wilderness Demon Taming - Rank 8 (1/10) ➔ NEW! Master Wilderness Demon Taming - Rank 8 (1/160)

A surge of new memories washed over him, mirroring the experience he’d had when perfecting Beast Taming before. He felt his innate

affinity

with demonic beasts strengthen dramatically. According to the knowledge now imprinted in his mind, he could officially tame eighth rank demonic beasts.

Reaching the Master level opened the door to him learning

Wilderness Demon Taming - Rank 7.

But then Li Yuan remembered what had happened when he maxed out Beast Taming. He’d experienced a certain mutation that hadn’t occurred with his other skills, such as Tracking, Scent Seeking, Spring Thunder, or Leaping Abyss.

Those skills, once fully mastered, had merely refined what they already did. Beast Taming, on the other hand, had jumped from a strong rapport with beasts to a certain chance of understanding insects.

“It’s a big leap...from beasts to bugs,” Li Yuan thought.

With that in mind, he tapped the

+

symbol again, allocating 159 stat points and leaving him at 180 available stat points.

Master Wilderness Demon Taming - Rank 8 (1/160) ➔ Master Wilderness Demon Taming - Rank 8 (160/160)

Immediately, a fresh flood of memories surged through his consciousness, transporting him into a vivid experience.

He saw himself honing his skill over many years, gradually raising his bestial retinue from ordinary creatures to bloodthirsty demonic beasts. Dark, dangerous silhouettes circled around him—menacing eyes gleaming with ravenous hunger, saliva dripping from snarling jaws. Yet not one dared harm him; they had all been subdued by his will. A single glance from him, a tiny gesture of his hand, could send them tearing an enemy to pieces.

Still, in this memory, he felt unfulfilled. No matter how impressive this dominion over demonic beasts was, it didn’t stir him on a deeper level.

One day, under the bright sun, he stepped away from his demonic beasts and entered a war-torn village. Taking a seat on a chunk of broken stone, he quietly reflected on whatever he still sought. Then he noticed an army of ants carrying off a dead mantis. He could sense their single-minded excitement.

He tried to communicate with them, over and over, repeatedly imitating an ant queen’s vibrational signals, never giving up. Eventually, one attempt succeeded. By producing a strange sound that matched the queen’s frequency, he could sometimes issue a simple command to a single ant.

[1]

Li Yuan opened his eyes, letting these new sensations and memories sink in.

“I knew it. Once again it deviated from the skill’s original path. Instead of merely granting me greater affinity with eighth rank demonic beasts and below, it’s expanded my ability to understand ants, and there’s even a small chance I can control one.”

He let out a short laugh. “Then again, so what if I can command a few ants? It’s hardly practical, just a small party trick.”

Setting aside Wilderness Demon Taming for the moment, Li Yuan pulled out the Spirit-Release Technique manual his master had given him. He pored over the life chronicle illustration until his eyes drooped with fatigue.

When his mind began to wander, he closed the manual and spent some time practicing his blade, hoping to merge Spring Thunder, Spring Awakening, and Leaping Abyss into a single cohesive move. But that clearly required a flash of inspiration that didn’t come.

˙·٠✧🐗➶➴🏹✧٠·˙

Before long, dusk settled in. Yan Yu and Xue Ning returned, and Li Yuan climbed into their carriage. On the bumpy ride back to the inner district, the little maid Xiao Zhu hurried out to greet him as soon as they arrived.

“Master, Master! A higher-up from the Blood Blade Sect came by earlier today. He left a chest of gifts for you!”

“What kind of gift did they bring?”

“It looked like meat.”

“Got it.”

When Li Yuan opened the chest, he found exactly that—lumps of eighth rank demonic beast meat, packed in crushed ice. The flesh was dark red, exuding a strange freshness despite having been butchered who knew how long ago. There was 60 kg of it.

“Xiao Zhu!” Li Yuan called for the maid, who immediately rushed over.

“Yes, Master?”

“Which higher-up delivered this? Did he say why?”

“I’m not sure of his name, sir. He was short, shorter than me. He said the Sect Master ordered him to bring it.”

That was all Li Yuan needed to hear. Clearly, this was Tie Sha’s way of compensating him for

sacrificing

his own cultivation time in service to the Blood Blade Sect.

In the sect master’s eyes, Li Yuan was devoting himself to perfecting the Wilderness Demon Taming skill for the sect’s benefit.

So I get to reap the rewards, huh? If I’d had this sooner, I wouldn’t have had to disguise myself and scramble for meat on the black market.

From the looks of it, this amount was precisely the kind of supply an eighth rank cultivator would need to reach seventh rank. It was something only the sect master, deputy sect master, or high-ranking superiors would normally get.

Tie Sha truly values me

, Li Yuan thought with some regret.

Shame I don’t need it anymore.

He turned to Xiao Zhu. “Tomorrow, have this meat salted and preserved.”

“Yes, Master.” Xiao Zhu nodded and darted off to find Auntie Wang. Salting such a huge quantity of high-rank demonic beast meat would be no simple matter. As she ran off, she couldn’t help but think to herself,

The sect master must think highly of Young Master Li... Xue Ning really found herself a good husband!

˙·٠✧🐗➶➴🏹✧٠·˙

A few days later.

A massive ox drawn cart rolled through the gate of the inner district, driven by two muscular women. They stopped in front of a residence with the number 22, and the carriage door banged open.

A brawny woman with a fierce, scarred face jumped out, carrying a large executioner's blade. It was Zhao Chunxin.

Hearing sounds from inside the house, she curled her lip, pulling the scar tighter and looking especially intimidating. “Heh, seems I’ve got company.” She bellowed, “Huang Gang, who’s here?”

Before long, a smaller but also brawny maid appeared. “Madam Zhao, it’s Young Master Li.”

Zhao Chunxin was stunned for a moment, then strode quickly into the reception hall, where she found Li Yuan sitting quietly, holding a large sack.

“Junior Brother!” Zhao Chunxin called out with a hearty laugh. Though both were in Silver Creek, they rarely saw each other because the two were always busy.

Li Yuan rose and sized her up. He noticed she had improved slightly from her old combat power of 72~80 to 74~82. Bowing politely, he said, “Senior Sister.”

She let out a robust laugh. “My, my, the Blood Blade Sect’s shining star! What wind blew you here today?” Leaning in, she added in a low voice, “Word has it you killed two of the recently hired enforcers. Folks in the sect are

thrilled

about that.”

Li Yuan grinned and lifted the hefty burlap sack. “I came to bring you something.”

Zhao Chunxin’s eyes widened. “Bring me something? I’ve got everything I need. Junior Brother—”

“Take a look,” he murmured, voice hushed.

She stepped closer and peered inside. It was packed to the brim with salted meat, stacked high. At a sniff, she recognized the iron-rich scent of eighth rank demonic beast flesh. It radiated a potent life force.

Zhao Chunxin’s jaw dropped. “Junior Brother, this...”

“It’s for you,” Li Yuan said, pressing a finger to his lips. “But don’t tell anyone, alright?”

“Where’d you get it?” she asked.

“Through legitimate channels, but you know how scarce this stuff is. We’d best keep it hidden.” He shoved the entire sack over, then waved her off. “I’ve got things to do at home, so I’ll be going.”

She followed him to the door, hefting the sack and blurting out, “Holy crap, that’s gotta be at least 60 kg! My junior brother just got up and gave me 60 kg of eighth rank demonic beast meat!”

She broke into a string of curses, whether out of disbelief or excitement. “He’s crazy... No, scratch that! I’m the crazy one. My junior brother’s plenty sane. He’s just generous! If I can get my hands on a bit more, I’ll have enough for two months.”

Zhao Chunxin had been stuck at eighth rank for quite some time, mostly due to a shortage of meat. From eighth rank onward, to push toward the peak stage and then break through, one needed to consume more than 60 kg of eighth rank demonic meat every month. In Gemhill County, even eighth rank martial artists struggled with supply, let alone seventh rank, where it was even more vital.

So a gift of 60 kg of high-grade meat was an unbelievable windfall.

As for Li Yuan, neither Senior Li, Zhou Jia, or Tang Qiu could benefit from the meat right now, since they first had to heal fully before using it to cultivate. So, rather than let it go to waste, he gave it all to Zhao Chunxin. Like this, he was still making good use of Tie Sha’s generous compensation.

Zhao Chunxin had helped Li Yuan a great deal in the past. If she could reach seventh rank, much of the trouble that arose in Silver Creek could be handled by her, saving Li Yuan a lot of effort. And if she didn’t manage to break through—well, at least he’d have repaid her kindness.

Sometimes Li Yuan could be stingy, but when it came time to be generous, he spared no expense. Since Tie Sha had given him this eighth rank demonic beast meat as compensation, Li Yuan had the maids salt and preserve it before handing every bit over to Zhao Chunxin.

Naturally, Zhao Chunxin had her own channels of information. After making some discrete inquiries into Li Yuan’s recent activities, she soon learned a not-so-secret piece of news within the Blood Blade Sect’s upper ranks.

A position, vacant for ages and never successfully filled, had finally found someone.

That position was officially called Beastmaster of the Sect. And Li Yuan had been chosen for the role.

In an instant, everything made sense to Zhao Chunxin. The meat was clearly part of the sect’s compensation to Li Yuan, along with their high expectations. After all, the time required to master demonic beast taming skills would inevitably delay his cultivation progress.

A total of 60 kg of demonic beast meat was likely the maximum the sect was willing to allocate for an eighth rank disciple, enough for one’s monthly training needs. Realizing all this, Zhao Chunxin was grateful beyond measure but felt she couldn’t accept the gift.

1. Before you start in the comments, I’m well aware that ants mainly use pheromones to communicate. I had to double check, but apparently some species of ants use sound too.

I know it’s a fictional story, but think about it from the author’s perspective. Do you expect Li Yuan to magically produce pheromones through the power of BO? ☜