Beast Taming: I Have an Immortal Mansion

Fang Qingyuan set aside his investigation into the changes within the Immortal Mansion for the moment. His soul returned to his physical body, and he slowly opened his eyes.

Fang Qingyuan had intended to wait quietly for Bear Wind’s arrival, but a gentle breeze made him realize he was still stark naked. His previous top-grade magic robe had been obliterated into dust by the tribulation lightning.

Fang Qingyuan had no interest in airing everything out, so he quickly retrieved a spare magic robe from his Immortal Mansion and put it on. He had just slipped it on when, a few breaths later, Bear Wind’s massive form arrived. In his hand, he held the troublesome bear cub, Jinbao.

"You must be pleased with yourself. But look what a mess you’ve made of my cultivation grounds!"

Bear Wind had barely reached Fang Qingyuan’s side before he adopted an accusatory stance. Fang Qingyuan glanced around, a look of embarrassment on his face.

That one bolt of Innate Primordial Thunder had severely damaged the surrounding hundred-li area. The Innate Primordial Thunder was indeed exceptionally powerful, but it never would have wreaked such widespread havoc on its own. The devastation was a result of Fang Qingyuan using the Black Tortoise Star Aspect to deflect its might.

The hundred-li area was one thing, but most importantly, Bear Wind’s personal lair, where he usually rested, had been reduced to ruins by the tribulation lightning.

This was no simple change in topography. A lingering aura of Thunder Fire had thrown the local Spiritual Qi into disarray and disrupted the ambient energy. Without a long and patient effort to restore balance, the Spiritual Power here would not return to its former state of tranquility.

But what was done was done; Fang Qingyuan was helpless to change it. ’While single-mindedly resisting the tribulation lightning, how could I have possibly thought about the aftermath?’

Still, he truly had wronged Bear Wind. Fang Qingyuan himself hadn’t anticipated the tribulation lightning would be quite this powerful.

"Don’t worry, Uncle Xiong. I’ll fix this land."

Fang Qingyuan immediately promised to properly repair the area for Bear Wind. Hearing this commitment, Bear Wind’s expression softened considerably.

Although Fang Qingyuan had advanced from Foundation Establishment to Golden Core, to a Mid-stage Nascent Soul beast like him, he was still just someone who could be swatted to death with a single paw. However, after witnessing the might of Fang Qingyuan’s Thunder Tribulation, Bear Wind began to wonder. ’Are all human Cultivators’ tribulations this difficult?’

’If it were me, could I have gotten through that final bolt of tribulation lightning completely unscathed?’

’I’d probably be injured, too,’ he concluded. At this thought, Bear Wind’s temper improved a great deal. If not for this realization, he might very well have given Fang Qingyuan a few smacks to vent his anger.

Now that Fang Qingyuan had made his promise, Bear Wind tossed Jinbao over to him. With tears welling in his eyes, Jinbao lunged forward to seek a hug from Fang Qingyuan.

The earlier Thunder Fire had terrified Jinbao. Spirit Beasts are naturally afraid of thunder and fire, let alone Celestial Tribulation Thunder Fire. Added to that was Jinbao’s worry for Fang Qingyuan’s safety. Now, seeing that he was unharmed, all the cub’s pent-up distress came pouring out.

Fang Qingyuan hugged Jinbao, who was now much taller than him, and smilingly comforted the big cub. After a long while, Jinbao finally returned to his usual cheerful self.

Witnessing this scene from the side, a soft glint appeared in Bear Wind’s eyes, and some of the anger in his gaze toward Fang Qingyuan dissipated.

In truth, the Beast Taming Sect had Secret Techniques that used Spirit Beasts to help weather tribulations. However, most of these techniques required one’s own Spirit Beast to act as the main line of defense, taking the full force of the Thunder Fire.

Whether using elixirs, arts, or arrays, the core of the technique always fell upon the Companion Beast. With these methods, the cultivation of a Foundation Establishment Spirit Beast could be temporarily boosted to the Golden Core Stage, which added a significant margin of success to overcoming the Thunder Tribulation.

But what was the cost?

To burn through a Spirit Beast’s potential and overdraft its very life force just to increase the chances of success—that was something Fang Qingyuan was unwilling to do.

Fang Qingyuan knew full well the power of his own tribulation, which was why from the very beginning, he never even considered letting Jinbao help shoulder the burden.

Thus, the many tribulation-crossing methods Fang Qingyuan had chosen were primarily from the Daoist Family. Both the Seven-Star Altar and the Heaven Opening Array were Daoist Tribulation Crossing Techniques. The Beast Taming Sect was a major power on par with the Qi Yun Daoist School, yet Fang Qingyuan had deliberately not sought a method from his own sect. This was the primary reason.

A more ruthless person, by contrast, would willingly sacrifice their own Spirit Beast for even a sliver of a higher success rate. Fang Qingyuan simply couldn’t bring himself to do such a thing.

That was why, from the very beginning, Fang Qingyuan had entrusted Jinbao to Bear Wind’s care, not even keeping him inside the Immortal Mansion. This was partly to put Bear Wind’s mind at ease, but also because he feared that, in a moment of crisis, he might be tempted to resort to using Jinbao.

’Looking back, that was a wise decision,’ Fang Qingyuan thought. Under the threat of the Innate Primordial Thunder, with the specter of death looming over him, he had been like a drowning man clutching at straws. If Jinbao had been by his side then, he couldn’t guarantee he would have had the restraint not to use him.

Now that the Thunder Tribulation was past, the future was wide open. Barring any accidents, a thousand-year lifespan was guaranteed. Fang Qingyuan was currently a mere 130 years old, which meant he had over eight hundred years left to do as he pleased.

As for what might happen eight hundred years from now, that was far too distant a concern for him to consider at the moment.

"Uncle Xiong, I have successfully passed my tribulation and become a Golden Core Cultivator. It is not wise for me to linger here. I shall return to the sect to inform Master Lechuan and discuss our next steps."

Fang Qingyuan bid farewell to Bear Wind. The beast’s expression soured, but he had no good reason to keep Fang Qingyuan there, so he said:

"You remember your promise. Fix my home, and do it quickly. The ten-year mark is almost here. How are things progressing with your master?"

Fang Qingyuan felt another pang of embarrassment. He had been so focused on his cultivation these past few years that he had rarely inquired about Lechuan’s affairs. ’Logically, Master Lechuan should have launched his attack on the Cloud-Clawed Lizards’ lair years ago, but it seems he still hasn’t made a move. He must have run into some difficulty.’

"Also, the commotion from your tribulation was huge. It attracted a lot of Cultivators. I intercepted some of them for you, but I can’t be everywhere at once. Besides, some of them were Golden Core Cultivators, and my subordinates are powerless against them. The fact that you reached the Golden Core here won’t stay secret for long. If you don’t want to be slapped with the crime of consorting with Ancient Beasts of the Wilderness, you’d best have a plan regarding your master’s affair."

After Bear Wind’s reminder, Fang Qingyuan understood the implications. Just as Bear Wind said, he had to urge Lechuan to act on this matter quickly, before the news of his breakthrough here was exposed.

"You are absolutely right, Uncle. I will hurry back and see to it immediately. Thank you for your care. I will take my leave now."

Fang Qingyuan bowed to Bear Wind, then flew off into the distance with Jinbao.

Only when Fang Qingyuan was a speck in the distance did Bear Wind withdraw his gaze. A sharp light gleamed in his eyes, a stark contrast to the lazy demeanor he had displayed moments before.

However, when he looked back at the pitiful state of his lair, he couldn’t help but wail in anguish again, "My poor den!"

...

The journey was unimpeded, and Fang Qingyuan felt utterly content. He had already placed Jinbao inside the Immortal Mansion. After leaving the Barbaric Wilderness, he soared freely, reaching a height of tens of thousands of feet in the blink of an eye.

Fang Qingyuan had never flown this high before. Such altitudes were typically a domain where only Spiritual Boats and flying shuttles could travel with ease.

An ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivator would find it extremely difficult to fly this high relying solely on a Magical Artifact. Here, the frigid winds howled and the air was thin. To move about relying only on one’s own Magical Power was a truly arduous task.

For a Golden Core Cultivator, however, none of these things posed a problem.

Gazing out, he saw a world teeming with life beneath the sea of clouds. Farmers toiled between their fields, Marketplaces thronged with people and traffic, and in the wilds, birds took flight and beasts roamed, each a picture of freedom.

Perched high atop the clouds, Fang Qingyuan looked down upon the mortal world. Suddenly, an idea struck him. He activated his All Things Heart Sound Divine Techniques. An invisible tide of consciousness descended from the heavens. It stirred not a single ripple, simply spreading outward in all directions. In the blink of an eye, it covered a hundred li, silently continuing to expand.

In that instant, innumerable points of light appeared within Fang Qingyuan’s consciousness. Each point of light represented a single sentient being.

Every point of light radiated a different color, an external manifestation of emotion. When these points of light linked together, they formed a radiant aurora. When thousands of these colorful lights surged skyward, they spanned the heavens, converging to form a layer of a Celestial Domain, endlessly shifting through countless variations.

And this was the mortal realm as Fang Qingyuan now saw it. As the saying goes, every person is a world unto themselves. How could their splendors possibly be the same?