The little Clouddream Immortal Tiger cub had taken the initiative to show goodwill toward Qi Ping, which made everything that followed much simpler.
After confirming that the other second-tier spirit herb seeds he had purchased were safe, Qi Ping immediately summoned his bees to bring back the spirit stones he had hidden.
This included all the spirit stones he had obtained from the three late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Once the transaction was complete, Qi Ping took the Clouddream Immortal Tiger and swiftly left the area.
He’d initially thought about selling off the other belongings of those three late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators, but with something as important as the Clouddream Immortal Tiger still in his possession, he decided to put that off for another time. If he lost over three hundred thousand spirit stones plus more than thirty thousand black market points because of some unnecessary risk, he’d cry himself to death.
So rather than adding unnecessary danger, it was better to have his Treant Clone handle it later. After all, he wasn’t in a hurry for spirit stones right now.
Afterward, the Treant Clone took the Clouddream Immortal Tiger away and later handed it over to his main body, who then brought it back to the territory.
This time, besides bringing back the Clouddream Immortal Tiger and the second-grade spiritual medicine seeds he’d bought at the mysterious black market, Qi Ping’s main body didn’t bring anything else back to the territory—not the ores, not the cultivation techniques and spell tomes, not the other spiritual medicines… none of it.
For now, the ores could be eaten by Little Stone Spirit outside the territory, and the techniques, spells, and other knowledge-based books could be read by the Treant Clone out there as well. That way, he could minimize risks to the greatest extent possible. Qi Ping had truly grown wary of all the unpredictable and unfathomable methods that existed in the cultivation world.
Beyond that, Qi Ping had also come up with a new idea: once the Clouddream Immortal Tiger had grown enough to protect the territory, and with his own [Heaven’s Favor] and [Curse Immunity] capable of shielding him from heavenly divination, he could consider sending the Treant Clone to the Qingyuan Sect to learn spells and knowledge that would be hard to find elsewhere.
That way, he could also escape some of the predicaments that plagued rogue cultivators.
After all, it was just a Treant Clone. As long as the location of his territory and main body remained hidden, there’d be basically no danger at all.
After this spending spree, Qi Ping’s spirit stones had dropped directly from five hundred forty thousand to a mere one hundred fifty thousand!
His black market points had also plummeted to 6,510!
[Black Market Spirit Stones: 10,800]
[Black Market Points: 6,510]
[Remaining Spirit Stones: 150,000]
The Clouddream Immortal Tiger alone had cost him three hundred seventy-six thousand spirit stones plus thirty-seven thousand six hundred black market points, while the other four types of spiritual medicine seeds had only set him back a little over ten thousand spirit stones and a bit over a thousand black market points.
One single Clouddream Immortal Tiger had slashed Qi Ping’s entire net worth by more than half!
“Spending money like water” didn’t even begin to describe it.
But right now, having brought the Clouddream Immortal Tiger back to his territory, Qi Ping felt no heartache at all—on the contrary, his heart was overflowing with joy.
Because it was absolutely worth it!
As long as he could successfully form the contract, even double the price would still be a bargain!
Back in the territory, the little Clouddream Immortal Tiger let out a series of “rawr rawr” cries in front of Qi Ping. Though still a cub, its voice already carried an undeniable majesty and dominance—even if, in truth, it still sounded more adorably babyish than anything else.
The Clouddream Immortal Tiger’s basic appearance wasn’t all that different from that of other white tigers, but it had a pair of horns on its head similar to those of a dragon, and both its body and its fur radiated an extraordinarily unique charm.
What really set it apart, though, was the auspicious energy it carried—something no other tiger possessed.
This was an incredibly special kind of power. Just by standing next to it, Qi Ping felt an indescribable sense of comfort wash over him.
This was one of the benefits of having a Clouddream Immortal Tiger—a beast of fortune and blessings.
With it around, the entire territory—including Qi Ping himself and all his animal companions—would be influenced by its blessing. Cultivation and breakthroughs would all develop in a more favorable direction.
And unlike the ferocity of other tiger-type spirit beasts, the Clouddream Immortal Tiger, despite possessing a majesty and pressure that rivaled any of them, was an exceptionally gentle and intelligent creature.
So, with the Clouddream Immortal Tiger already having acknowledged Qi Ping, what came next was very straightforward.
At this moment, Qi Ping initiated the contract ritual for his animal companion!
But this time, unlike before, Qi Ping’s consciousness was utterly focused and concentrated—no longer calmly waiting as he used to.
This time, he wanted to try actively choosing the talent skill from the contract!
Because as his soul grew stronger, he’d noticed that at the very instant the contract was successfully formed, his consciousness would enter a special domain belonging to the animal companion.
Inside that special domain, there were three incredibly dazzling, mysterious sources of light, along with a number of smaller, weaker ones.
If he wasn’t mistaken, those were the animal companion’s three main talents and other traits.
In that fleeting instant, perhaps whichever light cluster he merged into first would determine which talent he acquired and comprehended!
Qi Ping wasn’t entirely sure, though—but no matter what, he had to give it a try!
As the contract ritual began, Qi Ping’s heart grew increasingly tense!
“Here it comes!”
The moment the contract was successfully formed, Qi Ping’s concentration hit its absolute peak!
And at that very instant, his consciousness indeed entered that special space he’d sensed before, with three large light clusters and a series of smaller ones laid out before him.
Among the three major light clusters, each radiated a different aura.
One emanated a dense force of luck and fortune; another pulsed with rich water-attribute spiritual energy and the laws of water; and the last one exuded a penetrating clarity that seemed to perceive all things!
Without a doubt, these were the Clouddream Immortal Tiger’s three talents: [Profound Fortune], [Water Marsh True Lord], and [Perception of All Things]!
In that critical, split-second moment of recognizing the three talents, Qi Ping exerted all his will to steer his consciousness away from the [Perception of All Things] cluster—the one radiating that clarity—that was shooting toward him, and instead threw himself headlong into the cluster pulsing with the aura of water laws—[Water Marsh True Lord]!
The moment he plunged into that light cluster brimming with the essence of water laws, wave after wave of water-attribute insights began flooding into his mind, and he fell into a state of deep comprehension.
At the same time, dense water-attribute energy started transforming his body.
Several days passed like this before Qi Ping slowly stirred awake from his enlightenment.
As he came to, an overwhelming surge of joy filled his eyes.
“I did it!”
“I actually did it!”
The excitement coursing through him in that moment was beyond words!
What thrilled Qi Ping wasn’t just that he’d successfully obtained the talent he wanted most among the three—[Water Marsh True Lord]—but more than that, this meant that from now on, he could actively choose which talent to share!
Though it might not work with absolute certainty every time, and there was always the risk of being accidentally struck by another talent—like this time, when he’d nearly ended up with [Perception of All Things], and only narrowly brushed past it at the last moment before diving into the [Water Marsh True Lord] cluster!
