NOVEL NEXT 9. Little Sugar Pill
Jiang Mo never expected Yun Qingyu to return so quickly. Her joy was beyond measure. It felt as if the door to an easy victory had just closed before her eyes, and before she could even feel dejected, it had opened again of its own accord.
Sure enough, Yun Qingyu had come back for her, intending to take her away.
The cool beauty caught the little white tiger as it ran towards her, lifting it to eye level. Her glass-like eyes met the tiger’s golden ones as she asked with a touch of solemnity, “Do you want to come with me?”
Yun Qingyu knew that although this “little spirit cat” was weak, it had developed spiritual awareness and could understand her words.
Jiang Mo, of course, understood and was overjoyed. She nodded vigorously—naturally, she wanted to go. The caretaker she had chosen earlier, now returning, seemed even more precious. Moreover, this caretaker appeared wealthy and generous; the pill she had casually fed to a roadside spirit beast had given her 5 experience points. With such support in the future, would leveling up even be a problem?
The useless little tiger felt increasingly elated as she thought about it, more determined than ever to cling to this powerful backer. In her eagerness to please, she even instinctively learned to use her tail, though it could only wrap halfway around Yun Qingyu’s wrist before running out of length.
Yun Qingyu glanced at the half-circle of tail tip on her wrist, realizing just how much this “little spirit cat” liked her. The usually animal-averse senior sister couldn’t help but feel a bit of joy. Her heart, which had initially returned due to a sense of destiny, now softened, genuinely growing fond of the little creature before her.
She only hoped her earlier premonition wasn’t wrong, or she would be harming this “little spirit cat.”
“If that’s the case, you’ll follow me from now on.” Yun Qingyu’s tone remained calm as she spoke, then cradled the “little spirit cat” in her arms, showing no sign of her inner concerns.
The little white tiger was ecstatic, her mind filled with visions of a bright future of effortless leveling up. She was so preoccupied that she momentarily forgot she was being held by a beauty. Her emotions were so transparent and intense that the system immediately noticed—unbeknownst to Jiang Mo, it looked at her pityingly, not revealing the secret about divine beast levels.
Meanwhile, Yun Qingyu, holding the little white tiger, naturally sensed the small creature’s joy. Her cool features softened almost imperceptibly. Noticing the tiger’s dirty fur, she cast a cleaning spell without a second thought.
In an instant, all the dirt and mud on Jiang Mo’s fur vanished, returning her to a pristine little white tiger.
Jiang Mo, naturally fond of cleanliness, was experiencing such mystical arts for the first time. Delighted, she nuzzled Yun Qingyu’s hand—finally achieving her goal of cuddling her caretaker, albeit after being adopted. Yun Qingyu, however, paid little attention to this affection. Looking at the now-clean “little spirit cat” in her arms, her fine brows furrowed slightly.
Yun Qingyu was neither foolish nor blind. She knew what cats and tigers looked like, possessing both common sense and knowledge. When Jiang Mo was covered in dirt, she had mistaken her for a small spirit cat, but now that she was clean, she naturally recognized this was no cat.
This was a little tiger, with the character for “king” clearly visible on its forehead, declaring its identity. Yet this little tiger’s fur was white.
In the cultivation world, everyone knew what a white tiger signified. It was a divine beast, born with the cultivation of a Nascent Soul realm cultivator, capable of protecting a sect for tens of thousands of years, a divine beast whose every hair was considered a treasure… Yet the one before her seemed too weak, appearing too ordinary, so ordinary that one could hardly associate it with the divine white tiger.
Yun Qingyu’s lips pressed into a thin line as her glass-like eyes fixed on the little white tiger cuddling up to her. The latter’s fluffy head nuzzled her hand, blinking its eyes innocently.
After a moment, Yun Qingyu softly called out, “Little white tiger?”
Jiang Mo, oblivious to any oddity and having forgotten her earlier fright that caused her to meow, happily responded with an “aow,” her tail tip finally successfully encircling Yun Qingyu’s wrist.
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If it’s a divine beast, perhaps it won’t be so easy to accidentally kill, Yun Qingyu thought.
Holding the greatest opportunity of her journey, she returned to the spirit boat. Her first concern was whether she could keep it alive—legendary divine beasts were certainly formidable, but this one seemed to be an exception. Upon careful examination, its constitution was barely stronger than a weak mortal’s. Forget about cultivation, it wasn’t even robust!
Yun Qingyu couldn’t imagine how a mighty white tiger had fallen to such a state. She only worried if this little white tiger could withstand her special constitution. As for the opportunity, a divine beast was certainly desirable and a great fortune, but this fortune wasn’t meant for her. For ordinary cultivators, raising a divine beast was beyond their means. One only heard of sects nurturing divine beasts, never individual cultivators.
The inability to afford it was the main reason, along with the inability to wait.
Although divine beasts were born with Nascent Soul realm cultivation, they only truly manifested their power after reaching adulthood at three thousand years old. Cultivators at Foundation Establishment had a lifespan of 200 years, Golden Core 500 years, Nascent Soul 1000 years, Soul Formation 2000 years, and Divided Soul 5000 years… This meant they would need at least Divided Soul realm cultivation to see a newborn divine beast reach adulthood.
But cultivators who could reach the Divided Soul realm were all exceptional talents. Why would they focus solely on a divine beast? Moreover, the path of cultivation was fraught with peril, with few succeeding and many falling midway. Who could guarantee they would live for three thousand years?
Of course, divine beasts didn’t necessarily need to wait until adulthood to exert their power; successful cultivation was also possible. But this required vast resources. Unlike humans, they had no threshold for cultivation. They could directly consume precious materials, digest them, and increase their cultivation. With enough rare treasures, one could certainly raise a divine beast.
However, with so many precious materials, wouldn’t it be better to use them on oneself? Why give them to a divine beast? Divine beasts were inherently proud and would rather die than sign a master-servant contract. They would never become one’s possession.
In conclusion, personally raising a divine beast was generally a losing proposition, so even if someone obtained such an opportunity, they would likely send it back to their sect.
Sects were different from individuals. Three thousand years for a sect’s legacy was merely the span of one or two generations; they could afford to wait. Moreover, the resources a sect could obtain far surpassed what an individual cultivator could match. While it might not be effortless, spending some time and resources to nurture a divine beast in exchange for protection was generally not a problem for sects.
These were common understandings in the cultivation world, and Yun Qingyu was well aware of the pros and cons. Thus, the moment she discovered she had picked up a little white tiger, she resolved to hand the divine beast over to her sect.
But this divine beast was different; it was too weak. Would the sect really be willing to nurture it?
Yun Qingyu felt worried as she returned to the spirit boat with the little white tiger, her mind filled with concerns. In contrast, Jiang Mo, seeing a flying ship for the first time, was filled with wonder.
The little white tiger leaped from Yun Qingyu’s arms, strutting about as if inspecting its territory. After touring the entire spirit boat, it curiously settled at the railing—they were high in the sky, but the wind was gentle, undoubtedly due to a protective barrier around the spirit boat. Having never seen such a legendary thing, she eagerly reached out a paw to touch it.
At this moment, Jiang Mo had set aside her worries, her curious and investigative demeanor truly resembling that of a cub. However, the useless little tiger was indeed too small, her paws not long enough, making her attempt to touch the barrier look quite dangerous.
Yun Qingyu, momentarily distracted, saw this scene and was startled. She hurried over to pick her up.
Once again, the useless little tiger found herself held by the scruff of her neck, facing Yun Qingyu’s slightly furrowed brows. She felt a bit guilty. Her round tiger eyes blinked innocently, her tail tip swaying, trying to curl around Yun Qingyu’s wrist.
Faced with the cub’s cautious attempt to please, Yun Qingyu couldn’t bring herself to scold it. She rummaged through her storage ring, initially intending to find something edible to feed the little white tiger and keep it settled. However, the aloof senior sister, having abstained from food for years, had nothing in her storage ring that could be called food.
Apart from some rare herbs and materials, the only ingestible items seemed to be medicinal pills.
Yun Qingyu hesitated for a moment before placing a Spirit Cleansing Grass and a Nurturing Essence Pill in front of the little white tiger. The former was a third-grade spirit herb, highly useful for those at the Foundation Establishment stage, while the latter was known as the “little sugar pill,” often consumed as a snack by Qi Condensation stage disciples.
Jiang Mo glanced at the unremarkable Spirit Cleansing Grass, then sniffed the Nurturing Essence Pill, quickly recognizing its scent as the experience-boosting pill she had taken earlier. Without hesitation, she happily extended her little tongue, lapping up the Nurturing Essence Pill. She then delightedly heard the system’s notification of +5 experience points, feeling utterly content.
Yun Qingyu watched the blissful little white tiger, her cool glass-like eyes filled with a complex, indescribable emotion.