Celestial Beast Taming

Chapter 287: Chapter 176: Is This Fate!?

Starting the year before last, this seed would suddenly act up, rapidly siphoning the Life from her body.

Flower Venerable could easily replenish the Life absorbed by the seed.

However, every time the seed siphoned her Life, the intense pain would leave her numb and weak, causing her to lose control of her body.

Flower Venerable knew with absolute certainty that if the seed were to drain her Life in the middle of a battle, her opponent would kill her instantly.

Ever since the first time the parasitic seed in her body had drained her Life, Flower Venerable had stopped exploring Secret Realms.

She was trapped by a seed, and her sister was trapped by a seed as well.

’Is this fate!?’

Flower Venerable couldn’t bring herself to tell anyone about her predicament.

Not even Star Night, with whom she was on good terms!

The moment the seed took root inside her, its tendrils had already reached deep into her organs; its slender roots had even coiled around her spine.

The seed was clearly sentient. Whenever Flower Venerable even considered expelling it, the seed seemed to sense her thoughts.

It would begin to resist before she could even take action.

The seed was like a time bomb planted inside her. If she tried to remove it by force, she would be the one destroyed first.

After struggling with this seed for so many years, Flower Venerable had begun to feel resigned to her fate.

Everyone said she was the fourth-ranked expert in the Xin Xia Federation, the one most likely to step onto the Peak of Ten Thousand Nations.

But Flower Venerable knew that as long as this seed remained in her body, her Rule Purity Body could never be truly complete.

And she would never be able to cross the threshold to the Peak of Ten Thousand Nations!

Besides, even if she did manage to cross it, an expert at the Peak of Ten Thousand Nations who could suddenly lose all combat capability at any moment would be nothing but a joke.

Not wanting to expose her vulnerability and secret to others, Flower Venerable abruptly changed the subject.

”Xiaoyi, Star Night mentioned you just returned from Longya City. Did you manage to find a Dragon Species Guardian Beast to your liking there?”

”In a moment, you’ll be treating Suxin. Regardless of the outcome, I will give you these ten Main Dragon Crystals.”

With that, Flower Venerable handed a Storage Pouch to Zhong Yi. She had prepared it in advance.

Even if Star Night hadn’t just said that Zhong Yi could treat her sister’s damaged Heart Vein, Flower Venerable had already wanted to form a good relationship with him.

Flower Venerable had already heard about Zhong Yi being able to treat a Mythical Tier Order Beast while only at the Mortal Beast Tier, and she had even gone out of her way to verify this with the headquarters of the Celestial Destiny Society.

Even before reaching his full potential, Zhong Yi had already surpassed Guardian Beast Masters who possessed Mythical Tier Healing-type Guardian Beasts.

Part of Flower Venerable’s reason for befriending Zhong Yi was the hope that once he grew stronger, he might be able to help her as well.

She had no idea that at this very moment, Zhong Yi was coveting the parasitic entity inside her body.

He was trying to figure out how to find an opportunity to extract it from her.

Zhong Yi had wanted to ask Flower Venerable about it; the thing parasitizing her body clearly had a huge impact on her.

’If I can extract this thing,’ he thought, ’I’ll ask her for it.’

’Surely Flower Venerable wouldn’t refuse!’

But before Zhong Yi could say a word, Flower Venerable changed the subject.

Flower Venerable’s sister’s Heart Vein was severely damaged, and to make matters worse, the Nirvana Phoenix Peony would continuously damage Ren Suxin’s Heart Vein during its Fifth Nirvana.

Zhong Yi’s treatment of Ren Suxin would take a considerable amount of time.

During that time, Zhong Yi could look for an opportunity to bring the matter up with Flower Venerable.

Zhong Yi did not hesitate to accept the ten Main Dragon Crystals that Flower Venerable offered him.

Flower Venerable had already expended vast resources hiring other Healers to treat her sister’s injuries.

There was no reason for him to refuse the payment Flower Venerable was offering.

If he wanted to build a strong relationship with a powerful expert like Flower Venerable, Zhong Yi knew it wasn’t about fawning over her.

Instead, he needed to prove his own value and ensure that value could genuinely help her.

And that was something Zhong Yi could now achieve!

Mutual benefit was the fundamental condition for strengthening a good relationship.

”Aunt Ying, thank you for your generosity.”

”I’ll graciously accept these ten Dragon Crystals. I was wondering, may I begin the examination as soon as possible?”

”A damaged Heart Vein causes immense pain. The sooner we start treatment, the sooner she can find relief from her suffering.”

Zhong Yi’s words brought an immediate smile to Flower Venerable’s tense face.

When she had previously hired other Healers or Creators to treat her sister, they had only ever considered how to fix the injury.

They had ignored the pain her sister endured while cooperating with the treatment.

And yet, for all that, none of them had possessed the skill to actually cure her sister!

But here was Zhong Yi, already considering things from her sister’s perspective before the treatment had even begun.

It was hard not to feel a sense of warmth toward such a kind-hearted young man.

”Xiaoyi, Suxin is resting. I’ll go bring her over right now.”

As Zhong Yi and Flower Venerable conversed, Star Night watched from the side with a gentle smile, not saying a word.

Star Night’s role was to protect Zhong Yi as he grew, ensuring no harm came to him on his path.

With that as the main priority, Star Night would support anything Zhong Yi chose to do.

In doing so, Star Night certainly had the intention of cultivating talent for Starlight City and the Xin Xia Federation.

But that was not her only motive.

Having reached the Peak of Ten Thousand Nations and learned of the world’s vastness through the Virtual Source Network,

Star Night understood more clearly than ever that one needed allies to continuously carve a path forward in this boundless world.

When one’s power rose to the realm of the Peak of Ten Thousand Nations, their lifespan increased dramatically.

Star Night had all the time in the world to wait for Zhong Yi to mature.

Once he reached his full potential, he would be more than capable of helping her.

Judging by his current abilities, she feared that once Zhong Yi reached the Mythical Tier, he would be capable of healing the Guardian Beasts of those Above Eternity.

With Zhong Yi around, powerful experts like Star Night, Dragon Emperor, Sleep Emperor, and Flower Venerable would no longer have to fear injury, whether they were exploring Secret Realms or participating in the Sacred War for the Source.

For instance, Dragon Emperor had a Guardian Beast whose Origin had been so severely damaged.

Under the Dragon Emperor’s care, the Guardian Beast was in no danger of dying, but it could no longer participate in battle.

With an outstanding support like Zhong Yi as a safety net, everyone could go all out to improve themselves without reservation.

Even at the level of the Peak of Ten Thousand Nations, where one’s lifespan became extremely long, it was not endless.

Who wouldn’t want to advance their strength further within their limited lifespan? Star Night had always harbored such an ambition.

For example, the Crying Moon Goddess of the Purifying Moon Sect, a true expert at the Peak of Ten Thousand Nations, was already nearing the end of her lifespan.

Star Night had interacted with the Crying Moon Goddess before. If the goddess could be given just a few more decades,

it was not impossible that this veteran expert, who had reached the Peak of Ten Thousand Nations long ago, might have a chance to advance even further.

While Flower Venerable went to the Celestial Destiny Society to fetch her sister, Star Night picked a vibrant red fruit from the fruit bowl and offered it to Zhong Yi.

”Xiaoyi,” she said in a gentle, seemingly casual tone, ”just now, you were staring at Flower Venerable’s hand clutching her left side. Did you notice something?”

When the seed in her body had acted up, Flower Venerable had been too preoccupied to pay any mind to Zhong Yi.

But Star Night had clearly caught the change in Zhong Yi’s expression, which was why she ventured to ask.

Hearing Star Night’s question, Zhong Yi’s heart skipped a beat.

’Right now, in terms of both strength and status, I’m not on equal footing with Flower Venerable.’

’Since she’s deliberately avoiding the subject, it wouldn’t be appropriate for me to bring it up with her directly.’

’She has only just met me and doesn’t know me well, so there’s certainly no trust between us yet.’

’Even if I manage to heal her sister’s Heart Vein, if she considers the entity parasitizing her body a secret, she will definitely reject my proposal.’