25: Bai Ze

The morning flew by as Lister arranged the development of his territory.

After lunch, he brought the two cute little spirits to the training ground.

Although they had seen them several times, the knights couldn't help but marvel at the wonder of the little spirits.

However, after a brief glance, their gazes all focused on Lister, their eyes filled with reverence.

They were already aware of Lister bestowing the dragon blood fruit upon Red; they felt envy, excitement, and disbelief, but not a hint of jealousy.

Not to mention Red's prestige among them, no one would question his strength; now they only wanted to work hard in their cultivation and strive to earn Lister's rewards as well.

Amidst the heartfelt greetings of the knights, Lister arrived at the clearing where Red was training and saw that he was still in the process of breaking through to the next rank.

Without disturbing him, Lister let Lianna and the others go play on their own and began his afternoon cultivation.

Since he had reached the entry level of the swordsmanship skill 'Flame Cross Slash' yesterday, he first consolidated his swordsmanship and skills.

After more than two hours of continuous cultivation, Lister finally stopped; his swordsmanship technique hadn't progressed much, but the Flame Cross Slash had improved significantly, nearing the level of proficiency.

This speed surprised him immensely, as he had only learned it yesterday.

"Am I really a genius at cultivating skills?" Lister murmured softly.

Livia, who was playing nearby, heard him and began to chirp "yiya yiya" while patting her chest.

Hearing this, Lister asked in surprise, "Are you saying I could progress so quickly because of that purple energy you gave me before?"

He didn't doubt her; he believed it because it was indeed with the help of that purple energy that he had been able to successfully condense his Dou Qi seed so quickly.

"Livia, does your purple energy have any other abilities?" Lister asked curiously.

Livia tilted her head, thought for a moment, and then shook it.

This didn't mean no; rather, she herself wasn't clear on what other abilities she might have.

Or more accurately, she didn't know what effect her abilities would have when applied to Lister.

Only when Lister needed help would she instinctively release energy to assist him through their contract bond.

Lister didn't feel disappointed; instead, he grew even more curious about Livia's mysterious nature.

Without overthinking, he continued his spear technique training. Compared to the sword, he still preferred the spear, but unfortunately, his talent for spear techniques seemed truly lacking.

After more than three hours of training, he still hadn't made much of a breakthrough.

"Damn it, I really want to kidnap that 'spear of the north' and have him give me some proper guidance."

After a bit of unrealistic daydreaming, Lister ended his afternoon cultivation and took Lianna and the others back... to the third floor of the castle.

Just as Lister returned to his room, he was drawn by a heavy sound of breathing.

Looking toward the sound, he saw the Purple-Eyed Magic Lion Egg, wrapped in bedding by the fireplace, shaking slightly.

His eyes lit up. "Is it about to hatch?"

As he spoke, he hurried over and quickly unwrapped the bedding.

Without the restraint of the bedding, the Purple-Eyed Magic Lion Egg shook even more violently, and a faint purple light radiated from the shell.

But after waiting expectantly for a while, Lister found that the shaking gradually subsided, and the already faint purple light was about to dissipate.

After thinking quickly, he figured it must be due to a lack of energy. He turned to Livia, who was waiting nearby, and said, "Livia, sorry to trouble you, but please give the Purple-Eyed Magic Lion Egg some more purple energy. That should help it hatch."

"Yiya yiya!" Livia didn't hesitate. A bolt of purple energy instantly condensed between her brows and shot out, merging into the Purple-Eyed Magic Lion Egg.

They were also looking forward to the hatching of this companion, who was significantly larger than them, so they weren't stingy.

The next moment, the Purple-Eyed Magic Lion Egg, which was about to settle down, began shaking again, much more violently than before, and the purple light became dazzlingly bright.

As the minutes passed, Lister and the others weren't in a hurry and waited quietly.

*Crack!*

Along with the sound of the eggshell cracking, a sharp, smooth black claw poked out first, followed by a furry forelimb paw, until the entire body was fully revealed.

Seeing Lister as the first person it laid eyes on after birth, the little Purple-Eyed Magic Lion let out an affectionate cry.

"Awoo~!"

That single sound instantly melted the heart of a 24k pure gold man like Lister, because its voice was just too milky.

Seeing this, Lianna and the others also chirped "yiya yiya" happily; they really liked this handsome companion.

Then, under Lister's watchful gaze, the little Purple-Eyed Magic Lion turned and began eating its own eggshell.

The little Purple-Eyed Magic Lion was covered in snow-white smooth fur, with a thick mane around its neck. A pair of domineering black horns grew outward from its head, and mysterious purple patterns spread from its head across its body.

Its sturdy limbs and sharp black claws looked full of offensive power, but the most striking feature was its purple pupils that radiated an enchanting flow of light—mysterious, majestic, and soul-stirring, making one feel it was a born king.

However, what shocked Lister was that the aura emanating from its body was actually on par with his own as a Bronze Rank 1 knight.

"As expected of a magic beast that can potentially reach the strength of a Golden Knight in adulthood!" Lister sighed softly.

By now, the little Purple-Eyed Magic Lion had finished eating all the eggshells, and its aura became even more solid. It looked like it was only one step away from breaking through to Bronze Rank 2.

Lister didn't know what to say to this. You had to know that he had worked hard every day to cultivate just to break through to Bronze Rank 1 not long ago... and he was still quite a distance from Bronze Rank 2. Yet this little guy, who had just been born, had already surpassed him. It made him feel like his own cultivation had gone to the dogs.

"Awoo!"

With another milky cry, the little Purple-Eyed Magic Lion took small steps toward Lister and affectionately rubbed its little head against his calf.

Feeling the slight itch on his leg, Lister couldn't help but pick it up. He had to admit, it was quite heavy.

"Let's give you a name." Lister thought for a moment and said, "Your appearance looks very similar to a divine beast from my previous life. How about calling you Bai Ze?"

"Awoo!" The little Purple-Eyed Magic Lion let out a joyful cry, clearly liking the name.

After playing with Bai Ze for a while, Lister put it down and let it play with the two little spirits, Livia and Lianna.

Perhaps because Livia had released purple energy to help it hatch, Bai Ze initially seemed closer to her. But after playing for a while, it became equally close to Lianna.

It seemed that the little spirits, known as 'God's Gift', were indeed loved by all creatures.

Withdrawing his gaze, just as Lister was about to start today's divination, a loud noise came from outside the castle...