Upon returning to the Bai family, Li Xue immediately retreated into a guest cave-dwelling and did not emerge until the Spirit Beast Competition began two days later.
Spirit beast duels were among the most popular events of the Assembly of Ten Thousand Spirits. To ensure fairness, the competition was categorized by rank, allowing only beasts of the same level to face one another. The arena was divided into five sectors, ranging from the first to the fifth rank. Winners were not only awarded spirit pills, magical treasures, and cultivation techniques but also high-grade spirit beasts.
Li Xue and her companions arrived at the first sector, the arena for first-rank spirit beasts. Here, owners registered their beasts, and matchups were assigned randomly.
Li Xue happened to witness a duel between a first-rank Miyuan Monkey and a first-rank Windfire Beast. The Windfire Beast launched a sphere of wind and flame directly at the Miyuan Monkey, but the monkey dodged with great agility. It then lunged forward, closing the distance to strike. Clearly, the Miyuan Monkey was known for its speed and specialized in close-quarters combat. The Windfire Beast, unwilling to let the monkey near, scrambled away and spat out another fireball, which the monkey dodged once more.
After several such exchanges, the Miyuan Monkey grew impatient. It leaped seven or eight meters into the air and came crashing down toward the Windfire Beast. With her cultivator’s sight, Li Xue could clearly see that the monkey’s claws had grown significantly longer. The Windfire Beast rolled across the ground, attempting to jump clear, but the Miyuan Monkey twisted in mid-air and pressed its claws down, catching the beast squarely on its back.
"Awoo!" The Windfire Beast let out a pained howl. Ignoring the agony in its back, it spat a burst of flame from its mouth. Caught off guard, the Miyuan Monkey was unable to dodge, and half its body was engulfed in fire. "Screee!" The monkey shrieked in pain, rolling frantically on the ground until it finally managed to extinguish the flames. Seizing the opportunity, the Windfire Beast lunged forward and bit into the monkey’s chest. At this point, the Miyuan Monkey was left with no strength to resist.
The adjudicator at the edge of the arena, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, performed several hand seals to seal the two spirit beasts' movements. Two Qi Condensation cultivators stepped forward, each picking up a beast to carry them off the field. The adjudicator then announced the Windfire Beast as the winner, stating that its owner could claim a high-grade Green Pill as a match reward.
As it turned out, for every match fought, the winning side received a high-grade Green Pill, while the losing side received medical treatment for their beast. These high-grade Green Pills were provided by the great sect, Spirit Beast Mountain; the Bai family did not have the resources to refine such a vast quantity of high-grade pills on their own.
Watching this first-rank duel, Li Xue’s brow furrowed. Did these cultivators subject their spirit beasts to such combat merely for a high-grade Green Pill and some rewards? If a beast died in battle, would they feel any regret? To her, spirit beasts were partners—comrades who fought side-by-side. How could anyone gamble their partner's life for such material gains? She truly wondered what the purpose of their cultivation was.
Dongfang Jing, being exceptionally perceptive, noticed Li Xue’s confusion and disdain. He explained, "These cultivators specifically breed and train these spirit beasts for competition. They aren't their contracted life-partners."
Hearing this made Li Xue feel even more restless. It seemed that the further these humans went in their cultivation, the more they regressed in spirit, constantly exploiting other forms of life for profit. If they were demonic beasts, it might be different; once demonic cultivators ascended, they went to the Demon Realm and were natural enemies of immortal cultivators.
But spirit beasts followed the path of immortality; they would eventually ascend to the Immortal Realm. How could people treat their lives as mere commodities? Furthermore, it was hundreds of times more difficult for a spirit beast to cultivate than a human; they should be cherished all the more.
Yu Ming’s cultivation realm was similar to Li Xue’s, and he tended to view all living beings between heaven and earth with equal respect. However, having more experience than her, he understood the situation better. He said:
"Actually, duels between spirit beasts of the middle ranks and above are much like magical duels between cultivators—it is a way to temper and improve their cultivation. It’s just that some cultivators, seeking to earn spirit stones and pills, specifically breed low-rank beasts for this purpose. But those are only low-rank beasts; they don't have the ability to breed and control high-rank ones like that."
Li Xue felt somewhat relieved after considering his words. If acts of murder and treasure-stealing happened frequently among humans, why would spirit beasts be treated any differently? Regardless of the species, if one wished to survive in the cultivation world and ensure their safety, the only way was to constantly improve one's own strength.
Indeed, the duels between middle-rank spirit beasts were far more spectacular. The endless variety of spells they cast were no weaker than those of Foundation Establishment cultivators. One could learn much from their combat—for instance, the instinctive spells of spirit beasts were precise, fast, and perfectly timed. These were all techniques worth emulating.
It seemed the Spirit Beast Competition was not solely for the pursuit of profit.
During the final ten days of the Assembly of Ten Thousand Spirits, the most exciting moment finally arrived. At the auction, a single high-grade Purple Warbler egg sold for an astronomical price: fifty-eight million high-grade spirit stones. It was purchased by a Grand Elder of the Tianqing Sect. The Grand Elders of the great sects were truly wealthy; that many high-grade spirit stones were enough to sustain a mid-sized sect for over five hundred years.
Because of this, Li Xue became even more determined to treat her Purple Warbler well. The fact that a high-grade Purple Warbler commanded such a price spoke volumes about its rarity and value. She still vividly remembered the look of ecstatic shock on Daoist Yuhong’s face when he first learned that Daoist Ruihua had given her and her son two Purple Warbler eggs.
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
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斗灵大会 | Spirit Beast Competition | A specific event within the larger assembly focused on beast dueling.
万灵大会 | Assembly of Ten Thousand Spirits | The name of the large-scale event/festival hosted by the Bai family.
弥远猴 | Miyuan Monkey | A type of agile spirit beast.
风火兽 | Windfire Beast | A spirit beast capable of using wind and fire magic.
绿丹 | Green Pill | A type of medicinal pill used for spirit beasts.
兽灵山 | Spirit Beast Mountain | A prominent sect (Shangmen) specializing in spirit beasts.
天清门 | Tianqing Sect | A major, high-ranking sect (Shangmen).
太上长老 | Grand Elder | A high-ranking, often retired or semi-retired elder of a sect with great power.
