Chapter 73

"Senior Sister Chen Wan, is there any problem with this Yuan Ming?" The beautiful young woman, noticing the change in Chen Wan's expression, asked softly.

"There's no problem. I was just marveling at how quickly Junior Brother Yuan Ming has progressed. He must be very diligent in his cultivation," Chen Wan smiled.

"Do you know Yuan Ming well, Senior Sister Chen Wan?" The beautiful young woman looked surprised.

"Not really, Junior Brother Yuan is from the Fur Beast Slave background," Chen Wan replied, a bit taken aback.

The beautiful young woman was even more surprised. The Bi Luo Cave had many Fur Beast Slaves, but very few managed to rise above their status and become registered disciples.

However, those who did manage to rise from the ranks of Fur Beast Slaves were no ordinary individuals. The Beast Taming Hall's disciples felt this most deeply. The one who now tops the bounty list, 'Ma Xingkong,' was a Fur Beast Slave who rose to become a disciple of the Beast Taming Hall. His cultivation advanced rapidly, and he quickly mastered the Beast Taming Technique, taming several powerful spirit beasts.

If he hadn't later defected, it was very possible that the Bi Luo Cave would have gained another Foundation Establishment Elder.

"Senior Sister Lan Ke, could you take care of Yuan Ming during this mission? He was personally brought back to the sect by our master and instructed me to look after him, to ensure he doesn't lose his life on this mission," Chen Wan said after some thought.

The beautiful young woman was taken aback, her opinion of Yuan Ming rising even higher. She nodded and said, "Alright, I will take good care of him."

The two women chatted for a bit more before parting ways.

...

Yuan Ming soon arrived at the mountain gate. The others hadn't arrived yet, so he found a spot nearby to sit cross-legged and wait.

The beautiful young woman and the others didn't keep him waiting long and soon arrived one after another.

Yuan Ming noticed that the black-skinned man, the triangular-eyed youth, and A'gula all had a white spirit beast pouch tied to their waists, embroidered with the mark of the Beast Taming Hall.

"Everyone is here, let's get ready to go!" The beautiful young woman nodded at Yuan Ming and said.

The Bi Luo Cave had strict control over its disciples. Anyone who wanted to leave had to register at the mountain gate entrance and provide a reasonable reason.

Yuan Ming and the others were going out on a mission, which was a reasonable reason. After registering their names, they quickly left the sect.

The beautiful young woman patted her spirit beast pouch, and a gray shadow flew out, circling in the air before landing. It was an unusually large gray bird.

The bird had a wingspan of about two zhang, a stout body, and a small head with an unusually flat face, resembling an owl. It looked somewhat ugly, but its two golden eyes were strikingly bright, like two bright lamps.

"This is a Golden-eyed Hawk!" The black-skinned man exclaimed in surprise.

Yuan Ming looked at the man. When registering their names, he had already learned the names and identities of the others.

The black-skinned man was named Mu Li, a disciple of the Furnace Hall. The triangular-eyed youth was named Chi Shu, a disciple of the Law Hall. The beautiful young woman was named Lan Ke, a disciple of the Beast Taming Hall.

"I heard that Senior Sister Lan Ke had tamed a spirit beast recently. I didn't expect it to be a Golden-eyed Hawk. Congratulations!" Chi Shu, who had been silent, also spoke, his tone filled with obvious envy.

The Golden-eyed Hawk was a unique flying beast from the Ten Thousand Mountains. Although not very powerful in combat, it had an incredibly fast flying speed and excellent endurance. More importantly, it had exceptional vision, able to see several miles away, making it an excellent choice for travel and reconnaissance.

Unfortunately, the Golden-eyed Hawk was fiercely temperamental and would rather die than submit, making it extremely difficult to tame. There were very few Golden-eyed Hawks in the Bi Luo Cave, which was why Chi Shu was so envious.

"Thank you, Junior Brother Chi Shu. I was just lucky to succeed," Lan Ke said modestly, but her smile betrayed a sense of pride.

Yuan Ming, who was interested in taming beasts, curiously observed the Golden-eyed Hawk.

The Golden-eyed Hawk seemed to sense Yuan Ming's gaze and looked over.

"Grr..." The hawk let out a low cry.

Yuan Ming was taken aback. For some reason, he felt a sense of familiarity from the hawk's cry.

"The Three Hall Master's Fire Weasel is quite fond of me, and this Golden-eyed Hawk doesn't seem to dislike me either. Could it be that I have a special affinity for animals? But why didn't I feel this way with the fierce beasts in the Ten Thousand Mountains?" He was puzzled.

"It's getting late. If we keep chatting, we might delay the mission. Let's set off now." Lan Ke jumped onto the back of the Golden-eyed Hawk.

Yuan Ming followed suit and jumped on as well.

The Golden-eyed Hawk's back was wide, and even with two people standing on it, there was still plenty of space.

The hawk let out a sharp cry, flapped its wings, and easily carried the two of them into the sky.

Mu Li and the others summoned their rented spirit beasts, three white cranes, which were smaller than the Golden-eyed Hawk but still large enough to carry them. They followed closely behind.

The Golden-eyed Hawk was very fast, and the surroundings quickly receded. The Bi Luo Cave's mountain gate was soon far behind, reduced to a small black dot.

Seeing this, Yuan Ming felt a twinge of envy.

If he had such a spirit beast, it would make his future missions and other tasks much easier.

Unfortunately, he had only been in the Bi Luo Cave for half a month and hadn't even managed to exchange for the Beast Taming Technique, let alone the more advanced techniques.

"Junior Brother Yuan, it's best to crouch down. The Golden-eyed Hawk flies very fast, and you might be blown off by the strong wind," Lan Ke reminded him when she saw him lost in thought.

"Understood." Yuan Ming sat down.

The Golden-eyed Hawk let out a low cry, and the feathers around Yuan Ming suddenly stood up, forming a barrier in front of him, blocking most of the oncoming wind.

"Interesting. This Golden-eyed Hawk, although tamed by me, is usually very aloof and rarely gets close to others. It seems to like you, Junior Brother Yuan, which is quite rare," Lan Ke said, surprised.

"Since I was young, I've always been liked by animals. It might be because of that," Yuan Ming said, not knowing why and giving a vague answer.

"Is there such a unique ability in the world? If so, Junior Brother Yuan, you have a talent for the Beast Taming Technique," Lan Ke said, still somewhat skeptical.

"Can other disciples outside the Beast Taming Hall also learn the Beast Taming Technique?" Yuan Ming asked.

"Of course. Our sect has many Beast Taming Techniques, and any Bi Luo Cave disciple can learn them. You can borrow them from the Gui Cang Pavilion. However, the books in the Gui Cang Pavilion are diverse and not systematically organized, and some may contain errors, so you need to discern them yourself. The orthodox Beast Taming Secrets, however, can only be learned at the Beast Taming Hall, but non-Beast Taming Hall disciples can attend classes if they have a valid reason," Lan Ke said with a smile.

"What kind of reasons are usually accepted?" Yuan Ming asked, his heart racing.

"The most common reason is if a non-Beast Taming Hall disciple takes a Beast Taming-related mission from the Law Hall. They can naturally learn the techniques. Additionally, if instructed by an elder or a hall master, they can also attend," Lan Ke answered, seemingly having a good impression of Yuan Ming.

Yuan Ming nodded thoughtfully.

...

An hour later, the group had flown over a hundred miles and arrived at a grayish-white mountain range.

The area was filled with sharp rocks, jutting out of the ground like wolf teeth. The sky was dark and overcast, but there was no sign of rain. The air was hot and filled with a pungent smell of sulfur.

The source of all these smells was a massive volcano at the center of the mountain range. It was incredibly tall, almost reaching the clouds, casting a large shadow that inspired awe.

The volcano was still rumbling, spewing out thick smoke.

"This must be the Tali Volcano," Yuan Ming thought, scanning the surroundings.

According to the mission description, Fire Jade was produced from underground lava and would be brought to the surface during a volcanic eruption. Their task was to find it in the cooled lava.

Of course, it would be easier to find Fire Jade in the molten lava, but that required withstanding the extreme heat.

"It's the season when Fire Rock Snakes are active. We need to be careful. To improve efficiency, let's split into two teams as we discussed. I'll be with A'gula and Yuan Ming, and Junior Brothers Chi Shu and Mu Li will be the other team. Any objections?" Lan Ke said.

The others shook their heads, indicating no objections.

At that moment, a thunderous roar came from the volcano, causing the ground to shake violently. A column of red lava erupted from the crater and flowed down the mountain.

Yuan Ming and the others were still far from the crater, but the ground beneath them still trembled like an earthquake.

"Volcanic eruption! Great, there must be new Fire Jade. This time, we might have a bountiful harvest!" Mu Li said excitedly, rushing toward the lava.

Chi Shu followed closely, scanning the surroundings warily.

"Let's go. Junior Brothers, you two will be on the lookout for Fire Rock Snakes. I'll use the Golden-eyed Hawk to search for Fire Jade. The harvest will be divided 40%, 30%, 30%. Agreed?" Lan Ke said.

"Agreed." Yuan Ming nodded.

He was satisfied with a 30% share.

A'gula frowned, seemingly displeased, but said nothing.

The three of them also moved toward the volcano, in a slightly different direction from Chi Shu and Mu Li, and soon reached the vicinity of the crater.

They stopped about a hundred zhang away from the lava zone, where the temperature was already extremely high. The air they breathed was scorching, causing a burning sensation in their internal organs.

A'gula took out a blue talisman and placed it on his chest. A flowing blue light appeared on his body, and his red face quickly returned to normal.

Lan Ke also took out a blue jade pendant and hung it on her waist. A blue light shone from the pendant, protecting her body.

Yuan Ming, lacking the treasures and methods of the others, could only silently activate the Nine Yuan Technique to resist the intense heat.

As a cool sensation rose from his dantian and spread throughout his body, the burning feeling was somewhat alleviated.

"Junior Brother Yuan, you don't have any means to resist the high temperature? Finding Fire Jade won't be a quick task. Relying solely on your cultivation to protect yourself won't last long," Lan Ke said, frowning slightly.

"I'll manage. I can endure it," Yuan Ming shook his head.

"Junior Brother Yuan, please act within your limits. If you can't hold on, let us know. Don't push yourself," Lan Ke reminded him and stepped forward.