31: Chapter 31 Li Yu Takes the Blame

In the cultivation room.

Zhou Ya was cultivating a Tamed Beast of Excellent quality, but it wasn't an evolution; it was treatment.

As her assistant, Li Yu provided support by handling materials, passing tools, and such. He was also observing Zhou Ya's cultivation process.

Her face was relatively small, making the mask she wore appear somewhat oversized. It covered most of her face, revealing only a pair of serious, focused eyes.

During the cultivation process, her eyes remained firmly locked on the Tamed Beast. Even when Li Yu assisted and spoke to her, she didn't spare him a glance. This level of concentration earned Li Yu's admiration.

Truly a professional Breeder.

Just more professional than I am.

Li Yu's gaze grew a bit more serious.

He didn't look down on anyone because of a few S-grade cultivations, nor did he think too highly of himself.

He was well aware that the original owner had left him with only limited cultivation knowledge from technical school, insufficient to compare with any Breeder in the company.

Even though he had grasped some advanced knowledge through evolution cards, it only applied to specific Tamed Beasts. He was unfamiliar with most others.

Furthermore, his experience with orthodox, formal cultivation was even scarcer. Zhou Ya's presence provided an Excellent opportunity to fill in those gaps.

"Forceps."

"Here."

"Refined iron-lime."

"Here."

"Check for residual toxins."

"Here... Ah, no. Okay, just a moment."

Time passed minute by minute in their not-so-smooth cooperation.

Few words were spoken, but they got the job done.

Suddenly.

The door emitted a 'beep' and slowly began to open, only to be forcefully pulled open from the outside halfway.

Supervisor Song strode in with heavy steps, his expression grave, a phone clutched in his hand.

"Zhou Ya," he called out.

"What is it?"

Zhou Ya didn't even look up, continuing her work.

"I need to borrow Li Yu. Not sure when he'll be back."

"Okay."

Zhou Ya nodded.

Only then did Supervisor Song turn to Li Yu, a hint of urgency in his eyes. "Li Yu, come with me. It's urgent. I'll explain in the car."

Li Yu looked at Supervisor Song in surprise, knowing something major must have happened. He didn't rush to ask questions, simply nodding.

"Okay."

Immediately, the two turned and left the cultivation room. Only after they had exited did Zhou Ya's tense body suddenly relax. She wiped her sweat, the coldness in her eyes dissipating, replaced by a look of having 'narrowly escaped disaster.'

Patting her chest, she muttered in a Sichuan-accented dialect, "Scared me to death. Why did they have me train a newbie? My heart was pounding like crazy."

...

Supervisor Song drove, speeding down the road with Li Yu.

His face was dark, eyes icy yet burning with anger, like a frozen volcanic vent. His hands gripped the steering wheel a little too tightly.

"What happened?" Li Yu asked.

"That bastard surnamed Chen from the Eighth Floor gave you a high-value order slot, remember?"

"I remember," Li Yu said. "I chose a cultivation order for a Golden Horned Small Dragon."

"It was originally a special order from the 8th floor, taken over by an Intermediate Cultivator named Xiao Tianci. At the time, the Golden Horned Small Dragon's condition was severe: continuous bleeding, lethargy, unstable excitement, and unstable mental confusion."

"After Xiao Tianci's treatment, the Golden Horned Small Dragon's condition improved significantly. Later, he converted the order into a high-value one and posted it on the internal order system. I saw its high value and accepted it."

Perhaps due to the mental nourishment from the Silver Scale Bubble Fish, Li Yu's memory had improved greatly, allowing him to recall the order details clearly.

He then frowned and said, "Later, the order poster didn't reply. I was thinking of choosing another one in a couple of days."

As he spoke, he noticed Supervisor Song's expression darken further, and the car accelerated slightly. Li Yu understood something must have gone wrong with that order.

Watching the scenery fly by faster and faster outside the window, he couldn't help but feel uneasy and reminded, "Um... stay calm. If we die in a car crash, some people would wake up laughing."

Hearing this, Supervisor Song realized his loss of control. He eased off the accelerator, though the anger on his face only intensified.

"You remember correctly. But those bastards on the Eighth Floor hid some facts. Damn it! Those assholes have screwed us over."

A slow-moving car blocked the way ahead. Supervisor Song honked the horn frantically, exhibiting full-blown road rage.

Honk! Honk! Honk!!!

"Damn it! What's wrong with you! Speed limit's 80, you're doing 40! Are you an old lady crossing the street?!" Supervisor Song cursed angrily, then returned to the topic, fuming. "The issuer of that order is Director Wang, who oversees the Cultivation Department. The Golden Horned Small Dragon belongs to Director Wang's daughter."

Li Yu was slightly taken aback.

Wow, a big shot got dragged into this!

What does the Cultivation Department do?

It handles cultivation grading exams, Breeder management and development, and similar affairs. Simply put, it manages everything related to the word 'cultivation.'

Supervisor Song continued, "I just got a call from the Vice President. He said the Golden Horned Small Dragon at the Director's house suddenly took a turn for the worse. The previous symptoms reappeared and are even more severe. It's now in a critical, near-death state. He told me to bring you over to handle it."

"I said the order was originally the Eighth Floor's responsibility, so they should go. Instead, I got chewed out. They said since the order is now in your hands, you're responsible."

"Son of a bitch, this is clearly bullying. Coincidentally, Special Assistant Yang hasn't been around these past few days and is unreachable. I have no choice but to take you over to see if we can do anything."

Hearing this, Li Yu nodded and said, "So, I've become the fall guy?"

"Yes," Supervisor Song said, his tone low. "I'd heard before that for some cultivation cases the Eighth Floor can't handle, they use extreme methods to stimulate the Tamed Beast's potential, creating an illusion of improvement. It often backfires later, leading to death. It seems the Golden Horned Small Dragon is a victim of the same tactic."

"This kind of extreme backlash is almost always incurable. The only option is euthanasia to spare the Tamed Beast further suffering."

Supervisor Song paused, his tone softening. "Later, no matter what others say or how they scold you, don't pay any attention. I'll handle it. You just go through the motions and then perform euthanasia on the Tamed Beast."

"Fortunately, the law clearly states that cultivation risks for Tamed Beasts don't fall on the Breeder. The impact on you should be... minimal."

Li Yu didn't respond. Compared to Supervisor Song's agitation, he appeared much calmer.

Near-death. Euthanasia.

Judging from the keywords Supervisor Song mentioned, the Tamed Beast wasn't going to die immediately. At least by the time they arrived, there would still be a chance.

The Vice President of Ming Yue was likely aligned with Supervisor Chen's group on the Eighth Floor, shifting the blame onto him to bear the wrath of the Cultivation Department's Director.

But the good thing was...

It wasn't hopeless.

Li Yu slipped his hand into his pocket, grasping the few evolution cards still warm from his body heat. His heart settled slightly.