Celestial Beast Taming

Zhong Yi had great expectations for the Sunlight Thorn!

The Sunlight Thorn was a Secret Realm Creature that Zhong Yi had obtained during his first exploration of the Horned Demon Secret Realm.

Secret Realm Creatures could only be acquired once a Secret Realm’s Exploration Level reached ninety-five percent. As such, there were virtually no weak ones.

After forming a Contract with the Sunlight Thorn via a Soul Taming Seed, its Bloodline would not only transform, but its Quality would also jump directly from Unranked to Silver Quality.

Gaining two additional Exclusive Traits would directly clarify the Sunlight Thorn’s future role.

The summer night breeze gently brushed against Zhong Yi, rustling the hair on his forehead.

Even though he had just emerged from the Ice Cave Secret Realm, his body exhausted from two or three days of grueling battle, Zhong Yi still felt completely at ease.

Ahead, the Star-pointing Plum Garden emanated a shimmering starlight, as if tens of thousands of stars had fallen to the ground.

The flowers of the Star-pointing Plum were a very high-end spice and medicinal ingredient, carrying a fresh, sweet fragrance.

This scent, carried by the summer wind, permeated every corner of Zhongyi Mansion.

The medicinal properties in the fragrance were enough to repel insects that weren’t even considered Guardian Beasts.

Before entering the Ice Cave Secret Realm, Zhong Yi had specifically told Zhong Chenghuai to build a wooden wall next to the Star-pointing Plum Garden using Ironthorn Wood.

Ironthorn Wood was as hard as steel and covered in long, sharp thorns, making it perfect for climbing vines.

Zhong Yi walked over to where the Iron Thorn Wood Frame had been erected. A dozen or so Cleaning Mice were currently tidying up the area.

Zhong Yi recalled Zhong Chenghuai mentioning that they had purchased five thousand Cleaning Mice to maintain the grounds of the mansion.

The ability of a Household Beast like the Cleaning Mouse to clean up dust and dirt was basically equivalent to a nanny on call 24/7.

Simply feeding the Cleaning Mice a few Hazelnuts each day was enough to make them work with frenzied energy.

Cleaning Mice were arguably the best Household Beasts for the price!

Seeing Zhong Yi approach, these Cleaning Mice responsible for maintaining the environment immediately surrounded him.

They weren’t the least bit afraid of people, and in a friendly display, they wagged their tails at Zhong Yi—tails that seemed much too large for their bodies.

Then, the well-trained Cleaning Mice scurried off to the side to continue their cleaning, making sure not to disturb Zhong Yi.

Cleaning Mice are generally grayish-brown or khaki.

Cleaning Mice that are entirely khaki in color are more expensive than the grayish-brown ones.

A few Cleaning Mice have pure white fur, and they cost more than ten times the price of a normal one.

Zhong Yi recalled that feeding the juice from the flowers of an Extraordinary Tier plant—the Green Glowing Gardenia—to a grayish-brown Cleaning Mouse would turn its fur dark green.

A khaki Cleaning Mouse’s fur would turn emerald green.

Furthermore, the Cleaning Mice would also take on the floral scent of the Green Glowing Gardenia.

Zhong Yi planned to give this recipe to Zhao Kai and have him assign two Craftsman Apprentices to feed the mansion’s Cleaning Mice with the juice from the Green Glowing Gardenia flowers.

’I won’t deliberately cultivate a Mythical Tier Gem Golden Turtle with four iridescent colors. That kind of Guardian Beast has little practical value.’

’But I still need to maintain the mansion’s prestige.’

’And these color-changed, fragrant Cleaning Mice will do just the trick.’

’Those Craftsman Apprentices are all controlled by Zhao Kai through his Soul Seal, so this recipe probably won’t get out.’

’In a day or two, that Four-finger Creator Zhao Kai mentioned—the one being suppressed by an old-guard faction in Zhuxue City—should be arriving in Starlight City.’

’I’m a little curious what kind of Third Level Potion this new Four-finger Creator managed to concoct to be so coveted by an established power.’

Reaching out to touch the hard Iron Thorn Wood Frame, Zhong Yi took the Sunlight Thorn out of his Storage Pouch.

Under the moonlight, the Sunlight Thorn, with its orange-red flame patterns, was inconspicuous—just a small clump.

If all of its thorny stems were balled up, they would only be about the size of a soccer ball.

After being taken out of the Storage Pouch by Zhong Yi, the Sunlight Thorn’s strong, woody roots immediately began to wriggle nonstop.

It was extremely eager to find a piece of soil to take root in.

Zhong Yi planted this small clump of Sunlight Thorn at a corner of the Iron Thorn Wood Frame.

As soon as the Sunlight Thorn touched the ground, its woody roots extended downwards and immediately took firm root in the soil.

Since it was night and there was no sun, the Sunlight Thorn couldn’t feel any sunlight no matter how it stretched its thorny stems after taking root.

Acting on instinct, the Sunlight Thorn draped its thorny stems onto the Iron Thorn Wood Frame and began to climb upward with great effort.

For thorny plants growing in the wild, the only way is to constantly climb upward.

They have to climb to the very top, breaking through anything that blocks their way, just to see the sun.

Watching the Sunlight Thorn’s determined efforts, Zhong Yi smiled to himself and took out a Soul Taming Seed.

He placed this Soul Taming Seed on one of the Sunlight Thorn’s stems that was striving to extend upward.

As if it had discovered a treasure, the thorny stem tightly wrapped around the Soul Taming Seed and then delivered it down to the root system.

Soon, seven or eight of the Sunlight Thorn’s stems began to thrash wildly, striking the Iron Thorn Wood Frame and producing a series of metallic CLANGS.

Immediately after, intense Flame Energy materialized on the surface of the Sunlight Thorn.

The orange patterns on its body lit up, and a thin layer of fire unexpectedly surged forth from the Sunlight Thorn’s stems.

Zhong Yi watched as the irregular orange patterns constantly shifted and changed within the flames wreathing the thorny stems.

Finally, they transformed into one golden ring after another, coiling around the thorny stems.