31: The fox is starving.

Fallen Dragon Grotto, Burning Wood Forest.

Two figures concealed their presence and hid in the shadows.

You Ruoli was puzzled and finally couldn't help but ask, "What are we doing hiding here?"

After the two reached the meeting point, Qin Tian dragged her here, and they had stayed motionless for several hours... "Catching a fox."

You Ruoli: "..."

"As a Disciple of the Dao Seeking Immortal Sect, are you still lacking a Spirit Beast?"

Qin Tian smiled and shook his head. "This fox is very special."

"What's so special about it?"

"We'll only know once we catch it."

"So that means even you don't know?" You Ruoli said irritably.

"According to reliable sources, this is a Flame Devouring Fire Fox, and it's very important to Xiao Chen."

!!!

"A Mutant Spirit Beast?" You Ruoli's eyes lit up.

Mutant Spirit Beasts might only appear once in tens or even hundreds of thousands of others of the same species.

Most of them possess unique traits; the blood of a Mutant Spirit Beast is even a core material for the advancement of certain dao seeds!

This was an immense Opportunity!

"Will you sell it?"

"I can give you whatever you want!"

You Ruoli had a look of longing.

Qin Tian shook his head. "I plan to slaughter it! That's why I asked for your help..."

"Slaughter it?" You Ruoli suspected she was hallucinating.

The Flame Devouring Fire Fox was a top-tier fire-attribute Mutant Spirit Beast, a rarity in the world that even she would be tempted by.

But Qin Tian wanted to slaughter it?

"Wouldn't that be... too wasteful?"

Qin Tian nodded. "I also think it's a bit wasteful, but a Spirit Beast's recognition of a master is entirely voluntary."

"If it really can't be tamed, we'll act together to skin it, pull out its tendons, drain its blood, and chop its bones. You can pick a few parts then as your reward..."

You Ruoli: "..."

"Achoo!"

"Why did this King suddenly sneeze?"

In the Burning Wood Forest, a thin fire fox, crimson all over with a flame rune imprinted on its forehead, was staggering along with unsteady steps beneath the dead trees.

It scratched its snout suspiciously. "Could it be that eating withered wood berries every day has given me indigestion?"

"Sigh, Father, oh Father, you said before you died that you glimpsed the mandate of heaven and told me to wait here for my destined person. But it's been many years, and I haven't seen a single soul."

"Look at you, passing away without teaching me any skills, leaving me all alone and helpless..."

"And now, your child can't win any fights, my territory has been snatched away, and I've been driven to this remote corner just to bully little ants."

"How pitiful!"

"How hateful!"

"Great Fox Immortal, please take pity on me and grant me some meat..."

"Ah! This King really wants to eat meat..."

The fire fox spoke in human tongue, lamenting incessantly.

Just then, a fragrance wafted over.

Sniff, sniff!

"Hmm?"

"The Fox Immortal has answered my prayers?!"

The little fire fox's eyes widened, and it shook its head in disbelief.

"Meat, it really is the smell of meat!"

"And why does it smell so good?"

In its entire life as a fox, even when its father was alive, it had never smelled meat this fragrant.

"Could it be a trap?"

The little fire fox thought to itself, but drool was already streaming from its mouth, and its four paws moved toward the source of the scent of their own accord.

"Hmph! I'll go take a look first. If something's wrong, I'll just snatch the meat and run!"

..."It's here!"

Qin Tian and You Ruoli's spirits were jolted at the same time!

Not far away, a red figure was approaching them sneakily.

You Ruoli swept her Divine Thought over it and gaped. "Is this guy really a Mutant Spirit Beast?"

"It's so thin it's just skin and bones. It wouldn't be surprising if it starved to death in the next second..."

Qin Tian was also extremely surprised. "System, is this the Flame Devouring Fire Fox?"

["Yes, Host. This is an extremely rare Mutant Spirit Beast—the Flame Devouring Fire Fox. Its growth potential is incredibly high; once matured, it can swat away a group of Reflection Realm Cultivators with a single paw."]

"Then why is it starving like this?"

["The Flame Devouring Fire Fox needs to devour various exotic flames to gradually awaken its Bloodline, thereby gaining Divine Abilities sufficient to sustain its survival. It is too young and cannot do so yet."]

"So, this fox is currently a useless piece of trash?"

["Replying to Host: it is a temporarily useless but highly promising top-tier Spirit Beast."]

Qin Tian: "..."

He had thought this Flame Devouring Fire Fox would be cunning and good at escaping, but seeing it now, those worries were completely unnecessary... Whoosh!

Qin Tian appeared directly and reached out to grab the little fox cub.

"Hiss—!"

The little fox cub was startled. Its fur bristled as it turned to flee, its sudden burst of speed leaving an afterimage behind.

However.

A Dragon's roar rang out, and a streak of Dragon Qi descended from the sky, sealing off the surroundings in an instant.

Bang!

The little fox cub crashed directly into the barrier constructed by You Ruoli, its face bruised and swollen, looking absolutely miserable.

"Don't, don't kill me!"

"I'm just a little fox who doesn't know anything!"

"It can talk?" Qin Tian and You Ruoli glanced at each other.

"Little fox, what are you doing here so sneakily?!" Qin Tian spoke coldly. "Do you know that you've ruined our grand plan!"

"Ah—! I... I just smelled something delicious and wanted to take a look... I definitely didn't mean to disturb you..."

The little fox trembled.

"Oh? You mean this?" Qin Tian raised his hand and tossed around some heaven grade Three-Flower Spirit Rabbit jerky.

"It smells... so good..." The little fox cub's eyes were glued to the jerky, unable to look away. "Can... can you give me a piece? Just one... I haven't tasted meat in years..."

"This meat is very expensive. Do you have money to buy it?"

"No... I don't..."

"Then why should I give it to you?"

As he spoke, Qin Tian began to put away the rabbit jerky, though his movements were somewhat slow.

A look of anxiety flashed in the little fox cub's eyes. "I can tell you where the treasures here are!"

"You're just a little fox; you don't even have money, so how could you have treasures? Who would believe that!"

"This spirit food was specifically bought to feed my own Spirit Beast. It's very expensive, so go away!"

The little fox cub grew even more anxious.

"I... I..."

"You what?" Qin Tian looked at the little fox cub with a half-smile.

"As long as you give me meat every day, I can reluctantly become your Spirit Beast!"

The little fox cub convinced itself, "He has such fragrant jerky on him; the destined person Father mentioned must be him!"

"Is that so?" Qin Tian frowned. "You're just skin and bones; having you as my Spirit Beast would be beneath my status. I'll have to think about it."

"Don't think, don't think! I know there's a sea of fire not far ahead. If you help me devour some of it, I can definitely surpass any other Spirit Beast!"

"Really?"

The little fox cub ran straight to Qin Tian's feet and rubbed against them. "Master, of course it's true."

You Ruoli: "..."

Soon, the flame rune on the little fox cub's forehead glowed, and a crimson drop of blood slowly rose and merged into Qin Tian's brow.

The contract was formed, and the little fox cub completely recognized Qin Tian as its master.

"From now on, your name will be Xiao Yan."

"Okay, Master. Xiao Yan is hungry, Master. I want to eat meat, Master." Xiao Yan looked at Qin Tian expectantly.

Qin Tian smiled slightly.

heaven grade Fox Food, heaven grade Spirit Fruits, and heaven grade jerky were all placed before Xiao Yan.

"Wooo wooo wooo!"

"Master, Xiao Yan has never seen so much delicious food in my life, wooo!"

"Once you're full, take us to the place you mentioned."

You Ruoli stepped forward to stroke Xiao Yan's fur and asked softly, "What do we do next?"

Qin Tian smiled slightly.

"Set a trap for Xiao Chen!"

...