Clan Cultivation: Starting from Beast Taming

In the sub-temple here, the Great Protector Guan Cheng was already waiting with increasing impatience. He had specifically instructed the cultivators guarding the gate to let him know immediately when the pair returned and to send them to see him at once.

When Zhou Chun returned to the sub-temple and learned of this, he hurried to the cave dwelling of Guan Cheng to pay his respects.

"Why have you come back alone? Where is Qian Wenlong? And what is that on your back?" Stay updated through empire

Inside Guan Cheng’s cave dwelling, before Zhou Chun even had a chance to perform a bow, he was already bombarded with a rapid succession of questions.

Seeing this, Zhou Chun hurriedly bowed and responded, "Protector Lord, please see clearly. There was a major oversight with the information on this mission, resulting in us not only failing to complete the task but Envoy Qian perishing due to underestimating the enemy and acting rashly, thus losing his life in vain!"

"Qian Wenlong is dead?"

Guan Cheng’s already grim expression turned even more unsightly upon hearing this news.

The Golden Dragon Hall was already short on manpower, and Qian Wenlong was a rather capable Envoy. His death was no doubt a great loss to the sub-temple.

Yet, that was not the key issue. The key was that Qian Wenlong had died, while Zhou Chun, who was suspected to be an undercover agent, had returned alive.

This situation unavoidably led to certain speculations in Guan Cheng’s mind. n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

His gaze suddenly turned icy as he looked at Zhou Chun and said, "Tell me, what exactly did you experience? How did Qian Wenlong die?"

Zhou Chun certainly sensed the chill in his gaze, but fortunately, the situation did not require much concealment this time.

Thus, he quickly recounted the experience and his own conjectures about the whereabouts of the Blood Spirit Grass.

However, he portrayed the Ancestral Resurrection secret technique as a Beast Taming Secret Technique called "Beast Blood Fury Technique," which greatly consumed the life and Essence Energy of a Spirit Pet. The letting go of two Demon Beasts was altered to forcibly seizing a tiger cub and making an escape.

This "Beast Blood Fury Technique" was indeed a widely known Beast Taming Secret Technique, capable of stimulating the life potential of Spirit Pets and unleashing greater strength, which afterward would significantly weaken the Spirit Pet.

If this technique were used frequently, it would not only shorten the lifespan of a Spirit Pet but would also completely eliminate the chance for it to evolve into a higher-level Demon Beast.

In contrast, the Ancestral Resurrection secret technique was far more sophisticated. Aside from unavoidable side effects, it had a very minimal impact on the lifespan of a Spirit Pet and could essentially be disregarded.

Having finished recounting the events of the mission, Zhou Chun slapped his Storage Pouch at his waist and took out the belongings of Qian Wenlong that he had collected.

"Protector Lord, please look. These are the remains of Envoy Qian that I have found!"

The gold Battle Axe marked with bite marks, along with shredded flesh and bones, were the last few things Qian Wenlong left in the world.

Guan Cheng looked at these items, then at the sleeping Winged Tiger cub on Zhou Chun’s back, and fell silent for a moment.

With his preconceived notions, he did not fully believe Zhou Chun’s story.

Yet he knew that he would not be able to discern the truth from falsehood in Zhou Chun’s words.

To send someone to investigate the scene now would likely turn up nothing of value.

What a clever ploy indeed!

Guan Cheng, with a profound look in his eyes, spoke in a low voice to Zhou Chun, "So for this mission, Envoy Qian was sacrificed, the Blood Spirit Grass was not brought back, and the only gain, the Winged Tiger cub, has become your contracted Spirit Pet. How would you say this matter should be settled?"

Upon hearing his words, Zhou Chun immediately knelt on one knee and pleaded guilty, "I have failed in my duties, I ask for the Great Protector to punish me!"

"Seeing as the failure was due to incorrect information, leading to the sacrifice of Envoy Qian, this protector cannot find fault with you for this matter."

"However, even though you failed to complete the task and did not secure the Blood Spirit Grass, you should have brought back this Winged Tiger cub as a substitute offering to this protector. With that, not only would you be without fault, you would even have merit!"

"But now, you have selfishly contracted the Winged Tiger cub, effectively embezzling from the sect’s common property. According to the sect rules, how should this crime be dealt with?"

As Guan Cheng spoke, there was a trace of murderous intent in his voice.

Zhou Chun, hearing these words, also felt his heart sink and could only brace himself to reply, "Reporting to Protector Lord, in accordance with the sect rules, if an Envoy is found embezzling the sect’s common property, they face a penalty of double the cost of the embezzled item and are to endure one hundred lashes with the Poison Whip, plus ten years of hard labor."

"The Blood Spirit Grass is not a thousand years old, so let’s value it at five thousand Spirit Coins for the sake of argument. The penalty of double the value would then be ten thousand Spirit Coins!"

"Although we are short on manpower, for an Envoy of your capabilities like Envoy Zhou, ten years of hard labor would indeed be a waste of talent. How about I convert it to one hundred lashes with the Poison Whip?"

After speaking, Guan Cheng looked at Zhou Chun with a smile that was not quite a smile.