The Master of Beasts

With Da Shan's awakening, Eden Garden became increasingly lively.

Luckily, even though Da Shan's appearance was a bit off, War Song, who considered himself the big brother of the monkeys, didn't mind. Instead, he took Da Shan to Gravel Forest to meet a large group of monkey brothers.

For this little monkey who had been "tired" bald since childhood, the Golden Iron Back Apes showed great affection. As Feeders, they always managed to sneak some tasty treats for him. Under this kind of feeding, Da Shan once again felt the love of his clan and turned back into a cheerful little monkey.

Meanwhile, Chen Jiuge learned that the prize for the Beast Breeding Competition was an offspring of a Golden Immortal Ba Snake. He knew the competition would be extremely fierce. To ensure he ranked well, he dedicated the majority of his time outside of Body Refinement Cultivation to accelerating the development of his Silver Iron Chickens. During this period, he injected the Ming Snake Bloodline obtained from the Myriad Fish Cage into a compatible host, creating the Disaster Beast—the Ming Snake.

He had thought about trying to crossbreed the Disaster Beast, but the results were fatal for the partners. The Ming Snake was born at the Nascent Soul stage, and there truly was no snake in Eden Garden that could reliably defeat it, unless Bali was sent over.

Shaking his head, Chen Jiuge could only form a Contract with it first. After all, as a Disaster Beast, its fighting power was top-notch among its peers.

...

Forget it, there are still nearly a hundred years to go. For now, I'll just try raising Silver Iron Chickens. Those free-range Spiritual Chickens can become Second Rank Spiritual Beasts; I refuse to believe I can't cultivate Fifth Rank Silver Iron Chickens, Chen Jiuge silently encouraged himself.

To achieve a good result in the Beast Breeding Competition, one must cultivate Spiritual Beasts of at least Fourth Rank or higher, as Third Rank Spiritual Beasts were a bit lacking. Even the Outer Disciples recruited by the Myriad Beasts Sect were considered geniuses in the outside world, and almost all of them could reach the Golden Core stage.

To enhance the bloodline strength of the next generation of Silver Iron Chickens, Chen Jiuge spent a large number of Spirit Stones to purchase a batch of Sixth Rank Star Secret Silver, casting Bloodline Transformation on every Silver Iron Chicken.

Looking at each Silver Iron Chicken that had formed a cocoon, Chen Jiuge let out a breath; Nearly a hundred Silver Iron Chickens, this is truly exhausting.

While waiting for the Silver Iron Chickens to emerge, another incident, neither too big nor too small, occurred in Eden Garden.

Yue Meng successfully refined a Fourth Rank Elixir. Her boisterous voice spread throughout Eden Garden early in the morning, earning praise from all the creatures, which pleased Yue Meng greatly.

This continued until a dissenting voice emerged—Da Shan. The little monkey, still holding a grudge against Yue Meng for mocking him, immediately asked, "Is this Elixir useful? Don't let it poison any beasts to death."

Yue Meng looked at the Fourth Rank Positive Yang Pill in her hand and blinked, feeling that Da Shan had a point.

Then, after Yue Meng applied some forceful measures, Da Shan, his face a mask of misery, swallowed the Elixir, becoming the first test subject.

The Elixir had excellent healing effects, but there were slight side effects.

Yue Meng looked at Da Shan, who was squatting in the bushes and continuously releasing toxic gas. Feeling somewhat guilty, she asked, "How is it?"

"I feel like I'm about to collapse," Da Shan said weakly.

"I mean, are those bumps on your head better?" Yue Meng asked, pinching her nose and taking a few steps back.

"Let me feel," Da Shan replied, sensing the smooth surface of his head. "It's fine now."

"Good that it's fine," Yue Meng left with a hint of confusion, leaving only Da Shan behind, sighing and releasing toxic fumes, on the verge of tears but unable to cry.

...

On her way, Yue Meng took out the remaining Positive Yang Pills, somewhat puzzled. Although I tweaked the process a little, why is diarrhea a side effect? Could it be that bald monkey already had an upset stomach?

Intent on testing it on a few more beasts, Yue Meng immediately summoned her helpers, Qi Daoyuan and Da Bai.

Immediately after taking the Positive Yang Pill, the two Fire Qilins went off to relieve themselves together.

Refusing to believe it, Yue Meng added the Positive Yang Pill to the Golden Dogs' dinner that same night. She then watched in shock as their encampment began to reek to high heaven. After being chased and bitten by Black Eye all night long, Yue Meng swore she wouldn't emerge from seclusion until she had improved the Positive Yang Pills.

Chen Jiuge knew nothing of these events in Eden Garden. All the Spiritual Beasts were well-mannered; even if they fell victim to Yue Meng's "poisonous hand," they would recover by the next day.

After an anxious three-day wait, Chen Jiuge finally saw the Silver Iron Chickens, transformed and renewed after the Bloodline Transformation—no, they should be called Silver Iron Eagles now.

They really turned from chickens to eagles, how absurd, Chen Jiuge complained to himself.

The evolution of Spiritual Beasts seemed so arbitrary; transforming from chicken to eagle took only a few generations. But this was actually good news. The Silver Iron Eagle's appearance and marketability were much better than the Silver Iron Chicken's. Among the three types of Spiritual Beasts—sea, land, and air—Flying Spiritual Beasts were indeed more popular. This gave him an added edge.

After various tests, Chen Jiuge found that the Silver Iron Eagle's strength, speed, defense, Cultivation speed, and intelligence had all greatly improved compared to before. Its bloodline was already advancing towards the Fourth Rank—a tremendous change. The only downside was its longer breeding time. However, this was unavoidable, as higher-Grade Spiritual Beasts were inherently like that. If not for the Myriad Beasts Sect's special Growth Spirit Arrays, Chen Jiuge doubted he could have even bred the second generation within three years, let alone the third generation of Silver Iron Chickens.

After recording the Silver Iron Eagle's data, Chen Jiuge planned to go back and rest.

As he passed by the Golden Dogs' dwelling, he suddenly caught a pungent odor. On closer inspection, there doesn't seem to be anything dirty. My Spiritual Beasts usually cover their excrement well and wouldn't defecate near their home. So why is this smell so overpowering?

Hastening past this place and returning to his cave mansion, Chen Jiuge found Black Eye squatting in the courtyard with a look of silent grievance.

"What happened?" Chen Jiuge was puzzled. Isn't Black Eye usually herding at this time?

"Master, Yue Meng went too far," Black Eye related what she had done, and finally described the disgusting scene it had witnessed after finishing work that night.

Chen Jiuge couldn't help but smile wryly, petting the dog's head. "I'll have a serious talk with Yue Meng. How could she use an employee for drug testing? There are so many ordinary Spiritual Beasts in the garden. Black Eye, don't be angry. Tell your kin that their Spirit Stones will be doubled this year as compensation."

"Really?" Black Eye's small eyes lit up as it spoke. Spirit Stones doubled! Now I don't have to worry about my authority as Clan Leader being undermined; it might even get a boost. Sister Yue Meng, thank you!

Although Black Eye was honest, it had its own clever thoughts—it just wouldn't hide them from Chen Jiuge.

Watching Black Eye run off with a smile on its face, Chen Jiuge roughly understood its thoughts. After all, it was a Clan Leader. Even though Black Eye was no longer a Golden Dog, it had started in that clan, and its kinsfolk genuinely viewed it as their leader.

After contemplating in the courtyard for a while, Chen Jiuge decided to inform his senior sister about successfully breeding the Silver Iron Eagle. He wanted to ask for her opinion on its chances in the competition, or whether it had any selling points. After all, winning the competition was very challenging. However, even contributing to Eden Garden's business would be an excellent outcome.

Having received his senior sister's reply, Chen Jiuge intended to document the Silver Iron Eagle's breeding process. After all, his Golden Finger had significantly sped things up. Without it, while he might still have developed the eagle, it certainly wouldn't have progressed so swiftly.