“Someone who saved you shares the same name as Li Tan from the Lin family, and happens to have a connection with them?”
Ming Yulong frowned.
Ming De bowed slightly and replied, “That’s what he told me. I suppose they might be distant relatives or something similar.”
“Impossible!”
Ming Yulong firmly rejected the idea. “You’ve always kept your distance from cultivation matters and don’t know many things. Thirty years ago, the Lin family was merely an obscure small family. It was only after Lin Long’s father suddenly rose to prominence that they became one of the three major families. They couldn’t possibly have such an impressive relative.”
Ming De furrowed his brows, puzzled, and said, “But Brother Li did admit to having a connection with the Lin family. There should be no need for him to lie to me, especially in such a desperate situation.” Ming De didn’t finish his sentence completely—the full meaning was that there was no need to lie in such a desperate situation.
Ming Yulong, who was lying down, didn’t notice this point and after a moment’s thought, said, “What you say makes sense too, but ultimately, the truth can’t be determined just by talking about it theoretically. De’er, tomorrow, please go to the Lin family again and meet this Li Tan.”
“That’s exactly what I was thinking.”
Ming De replied.
The night was bright with moonlight illuminating the bluish bricks and weeping willows.
Inside the luxurious Lin residence, Li Tan had already returned to the desolate courtyard where he temporarily resided. After carefully reviewing the records of beast habits, he finally found the relevant information on the Xuan Shuang Ying (Black Frost Eagle), and finally understood why the young eagle refused to eat.
Li Tan’s expression was somewhat strange. His lips twitched slightly, and his right palm slapped his forehead as he muttered in frustration, “It’s a mutant, huh? What a spendthrift, using spirit stones as food!”
Mutants are extremely rare variations among beasts. This young eagle is one such case, although its specific abilities are not recorded.
Spirit stones are treasures that condense spiritual energy and are more valuable than currency. They can be used to assist cultivation or for trading—in short, they are highly valuable.
However, such valuable items naturally come at an extraordinary price—each spirit stone the size of a thumb would cost about five purple gold coins.
Li Tan placed the young eagle on the table and began to think seriously. At that time, out of compassion, he had decided to temporarily take it in. However, he wasn’t someone who held the spirit of a contract sacred. Considering the situation, feeding this little creature might cost hundreds or even thousands of purple gold coins. Perhaps he could support it through alchemy, but the cost would hardly be worth the return.
He really should just give up and hand it over to the auction house, letting it fend for itself.
As Li Tan was weighing the pros and cons, the young eagle chirped twice, its black gem-like eyes gazing at him pitifully.
Moments later, Li Tan sighed and half-jokingly said, “It’s not that I don’t want to help you, it’s just that I really don’t have the time. I have too much to do.”
Gu Gu, seemingly sensing something, chirped more timidly.
Just then, a warm sensation suddenly emanated from Li Tan’s abdomen. Looking inwardly, he saw that the desolate pagoda, which resembled his Second Elder, had actually started spinning. Then, a mechanical, hoarse, and emotionless voice echoed in his mind.
“Xuan Shuang Ying mutant, innate Earth Rank talent. When fully grown, it will have extremely fast flight speed and can use special ice-based abilities.”
Li Tan was stunned, his face blank with disbelief.
“The Desolate Pagoda can talk? How is this possible?”
He didn’t have time to fully comprehend the meaning of these words before he focused on the Desolate Pagoda’s sudden change, shocked beyond measure. Immediately, he cautiously tried to envelop it with his spiritual sense. This time, unlike before, there was no terrifying suction force. As his consciousness approached, it felt as if it had encountered rubber—it couldn’t penetrate, but there was no harm either.
The mechanical voice did not respond to Li Tan’s question. No matter how he tried, the voice did not appear again. However, inexplicably, a segment of memory had appeared in Li Tan’s mind.
To summarize briefly, the Desolate Pagoda contained its own small world, filled with countless scrolls and records, capable of analyzing any question for which an answer could be found. Additionally, it seemed that objects could be stored inside the Desolate Pagoda.
Li Tan quickly adapted to the situation, figuring out what had happened. Immediately, he couldn’t help but start testing things, attempting to mentally move various random objects into the Desolate Pagoda. However, all attempts failed, except for the Hunyu (Soul Jade).
From this, Li Tan deduced a fact: only valuable items could be placed inside the Desolate Pagoda, much like a child who is picky about food.
Having partially uncovered the secret of the Desolate Pagoda, Li Tan calmed down and refocused his attention on the young eagle that had triggered the change in the pagoda, feeling a surge of curiosity.
Why had the Desolate Pagoda awakened because of a young eagle, and why specifically inform him of its mutant abilities?
Based on the two points of extremely fast flight and special ice-based abilities, Li Tan was already somewhat reluctant to abandon the young eagle.
“Let me first see exactly what’s going on. This summary is too vague.”
As he spoke, his mind started thinking, and without knowing the principle behind it, his consciousness found itself in a strange space while still clearly seeing the real world. This space had no sky or ground, and it emitted an orange-yellow glow. Various books slowly flew around in the air.
A book happened to fly right in front of him. Li Tan instinctively reached out and grabbed it, and his spiritual consciousness left that space. In the real world, he now held a book in his hand.
Looking at the ancient-looking book in his hand, “Anecdotes and Oddities,” Li Tan’s eyes widened like two eggs.
“My heavens! It’s actually this book!”
“Anecdotes and Oddities” was no ordinary book. Its author was an extremely accomplished alchemist who recorded almost all the information on beasts and fierce creatures, as well as some strange stories. It had been missing for a thousand years and was once considered a major loss in human history. Who would have thought it would be inside the Desolate Pagoda?
Li Tan flipped through the book, found the section on Xuan Shuang Ying, and found the records to be simple but all crucial. After reading just one page, he completely abandoned the idea of giving up the young eagle.
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