21: The Phantom Cat Clan of Xuxia Forest

The commercial vehicle drove along the winding mountain road for nearly three hours.

It stopped in front of an area enclosed by a tall wire fence.

Heavily armed soldiers and beast pets guarded the entrance, and the atmosphere was solemn.

Only after Li Wei presented his credentials was the vehicle allowed to pass, slowly driving inside.

After passing through a buffer zone, a massive silver-white archway appeared before everyone.

In the center of the archway, the space showed a ripple-like distortion, emitting a gentle glow.

Bai Ye stared at the archway, observing it carefully.

Was that the entrance to the Secret Realm?

The last Secret Realm appeared directly on the highway, and he was sucked in before he could even look, so this was his first time seeing a true Secret Realm Gate.

"We're here. Everyone, get out."

Li Wei parked the car and led the six people out.

"Is this the entrance to Xuxia Forest? It's much bigger than the Secret Realm Gates at the university."

Chen Yang looked at the Secret Realm Gate in front of him and said with great emotion.

The Secret Realms in universities are actually Artificial Secret Realms; they simply cannot compare to naturally occurring ones.

The faces of the other university students also showed expressions of anticipation.

Only Bai Ye remained very calm.

He had just survived in the Secret Realm wilderness for many days, so naturally, he wouldn't only see its mysterious and beautiful side.

Hopefully, there is enough food inside.

He really didn't want to root himself underground again and become a vegetable.

"Before we go in, I must emphasize the discipline rules again."

Li Wei led the six people to the entrance of the Secret Realm Gate, his gentle expression gone as he looked at everyone very seriously.

"Although Xuxia Forest is stable, it is still a Secret Realm, and there are unknowns that humanity has yet to explore. All actions must follow commands; solo actions are strictly forbidden, and you must absolutely not provoke the Demonic Beasts inside, understood?"

"Understood!"

The five university students replied in unison.

"Bai Ye, what about you?"

Li Wei's gaze turned toward Bai Ye.

"Understood."

Bai Ye nodded.

The premise was that the Demonic Beasts inside didn't provoke him first.

However, a Secret Realm that has been completely conquered by humans shouldn't have any Special incidents... right?

"Very good."

Li Wei nodded satisfactorily, then summoned two Yao Beasts from his beast taming space.

One was a cat whose entire body was engulfed in crimson flames, with a red jewel on its forehead.

The other was covered in water wave patterns, emitting bursts of moisture, and had a blue jewel on its head.

[Name]: Blazing Meow

[Attribute]: Fire/Normal

[Aptitude]: Outstanding High-rank

[Rank]: Transcendent Limit

[Name]: Wave Shadow Meow

[Attribute]: Water/Normal

[Aptitude]: Outstanding High-rank

[Rank]: Transcendent Limit

As soon as the two cats appeared, they affectionately rubbed against Li Wei's pant legs, then looked at Bai Ye and the others with curious eyes.

The biggest characteristic of the Phantom Cat and its evolved forms is the jewel on their heads.

"They're actually evolved forms of the Phantom Cat—Blazing Meow and Wave Shadow Meow! Brother Li, are both of these your beast pets?"

A girl wearing glasses had sparkling eyes.

Being able to name both beast pets immediately, she had clearly researched them thoroughly before coming.

"That's right, they are both my partners." Li Wei showed a proud smile.

"When I was young, I accidentally stumbled into Xuxia Forest and managed to obtain them from the Phantom Cat Clan."

The Phantom Cat Clan currently has three known evolved forms: Grass, Water, and Fire types.

The Phantom Cat itself is a Normal System type.

Li Wei's words undoubtedly injected another dose of excitement into the university students.

"Alright, everyone prepare yourselves. We are going in."

Li Wei waved his hand and took the lead, walking toward the Secret Realm Gate.

Bai Ye followed at the back of the group, passing through the ripple-like Spatial Membrane, and the scene before his eyes suddenly opened up.

Fresh air rushed toward him, carrying the fragrance of earth and green grass.

The entire world was filled with a rich Aura of Life.

It was the complete opposite of the gloomy and oppressive Undead Secret Realm from before.

"Is this Xuxia Forest? Xuxia Forest is so beautiful."

"Letting a Grass Attribute beast pet Cultivate here for one day is equivalent to two days outside."

The university students exclaimed once more.

"Quiet!"

Li Wei shouted in a low voice: "This is the territory of the Phantom Cat Clan. Maintain silence; don't scare them."

Everyone immediately shut their mouths and carefully followed behind Li Wei.

They followed a small path paved with cobblestones, passing through a dense forest.

Along the way, they saw many docile Demonic Beasts outside.

There were deer with flowers growing on their heads, butterflies whose wings were leaves, and Grass Fish blowing bubbles in the water.

Upon seeing humans, they merely looked with curiosity and did not show any hostility.

The Phantom Cat Clan had already driven the Demonic Beasts hostile to humans into other areas of the forest.

After walking for more than ten minutes, the forest ahead became sparse.

A village constructed from massive ancient trees appeared before everyone's eyes.

Hundreds of adorable Phantom Cats were playing with each other.

A few bold Phantom Cats saw Li Wei and jumped directly onto his shoulder.

"Li Wei, you've arrived."

An old cat, noticeably larger than the others, with silver-white fur and white eyes, walked down from the largest ancient tree with elegant steps.

The voice actually sounded inside everyone's minds.

[Name]: Spirit Eye Cat

[Attribute]: Psychic System/Normal System

[Gender]: Male

[Aptitude]: Commander Low-rank

[Rank]: Elite Intermediate

[Skill]: Phantom Psionic Wave (mid-rank), Magic Barrel (Advanced)... [Talent]: Telepathy (Green)

It was actually a Special Evolution Individual!

Bai Ye checked the Evolution Illustrated Compendium and found that the prerequisite for a Phantom Cat to evolve into a Spirit Eye Cat was possessing the Talent of Telepathy.

Regardless of the quality of the Telepathy, as long as it was present, the beast could choose whether to evolve after reaching Transcendence High-rank.

The higher the quality of the Talent, the higher the Spirit Eye Cat's Aptitude would be.

"Elder."

Li Wei respectfully bowed to the old cat.

"Are these the interns for this year?"

The silver old cat's gaze swept over Bai Ye and the six others.

"Yes, Elder. They are all Elites from various universities and hope to receive the recognition of the Phantom Cat Clan," Li Wei said.

"Hmm..."

The silver old cat pondered for a moment, its gaze lingering on each person for a few seconds.

When it saw Bai Ye, its eyes clearly paused, and it gently sniffed its nose.

It licked the fur on its front paws and then lay down directly beside Bai Ye's feet.

"This child has a very pure Aura of Life on him. I like him very much."

Its words caused the expressions of the other five university students to change slightly.

They hadn't expected this seemingly most inconspicuous high school student to be the first to gain the Elder's favor.

Li Wei was also surprised and looked deeply at Bai Ye.

He didn't know that Bai Ye had cleared a Secret Realm, but since the Association had given him the opportunity for a formal internship, he must have outstanding qualities.

Bai Ye subconsciously stroked the Elder, causing the silver-white cat to emit a comfortable purr.

It was probably the Grass Attribute energy within him that made it feel a natural sense of closeness.

Seeing Bai Ye's action, Li Wei didn't even have time to stop him and broke out in a cold sweat.

That was the noble Elder of the Phantom Cat Clan! How dare he?

If some diplomatic incident occurred, Li Wei didn't know what would happen to Bai Ye.

But he probably wouldn't be able to come to Xuxia Forest again.

The Spirit Eye Cat didn't think as much as the humans did; it patted Bai Ye's hand lightly with its paw pad before getting up.

"Alright, follow me."

The Elder turned around and walked toward the depths of the village.

"Your test is very simple. Here are six newly born cubs. Your task is to teach them their first Offensive Skill within one week."

"Whoever does the best will be considered to have passed the test."

"Of course, if you can establish a true bond with them during this time, our Meow Phantom Clan will certainly not be stingy with rewards."

Soon, they arrived at the center of the village. Inside a giant cradle woven from vines and flowers, six palm-sized, fluffy kittens were huddled together, fast asleep.

Seeing these six little darlings, the two girls who rode in the car were instantly melted, their eyes sparkling.

Even the boys' gazes softened considerably.

"Alright, go and choose your partner."

After the silver Elder finished speaking, he jumped onto a nearby branch and closed his eyes to rest.

The five university students immediately stepped forward and began choosing carefully.

Chen Yang chose the most energetic kitten.

The short-haired girl chose a snow-white kitten that looked very quiet... Soon, five kittens had been chosen.

Only one kitten remained in the corner of the cradle: a tiny, skinny, pitch-black kitten that was clearly malnourished and still sound asleep.

Seemingly sensing that its companions had left, it stirred restlessly and let out a faint "meow."

The other university students subconsciously avoided this kitten, which appeared to be the weakest.

Bai Ye smiled and walked over proactively.

He gently cradled the little black cat in his palm.

The little fellow seemed to feel the warmth, instinctively rubbed against his palm, found a comfortable position, and continued sleeping.

"You're the one."

Bai Ye looked at the defenseless little thing in his hand and shook his head slightly.

Why did he always seem to choose little fellows who looked weak but were actually gifted within their species?

[Name]: Phantom Cat

[Attribute]: Normal System/Dreamlike System (Unawakened)

[Gender]: Female

[Aptitude]: Outstanding Low-rank

[Rank]: None

[Skill]: Cry (No-rank)

[Talent]: Metamorphosis (Special), Frail (Gray)

[Metamorphosis: After absorbing a certain amount of attribute energy, it can temporarily change its own attributes.]

[Frail: Congenital malnutrition, extremely slow growth rate, with a certain probability of premature death.]

Perhaps, this is fate.