Yang Qingqing: "What do you think?"

Du Yu took Xiaoyan down from his shoulder, held her in his arms, and gently rubbed her big furry ears. "I guess it's a victory, right?"

Yang Qingqing pondered for a moment, then said, "As the Divine Tree gradually withered and the Spiritual Qi in the world thinned out, the profession of Demon Tamer finally took center stage."

Du Yu's eyes lit up. "So it was right there that the conflict started to resolve."

Yang Qingqing looked at him with approval. "Yes. The Demon Taming path has a unique cultivation method that objectively requires the Human Race and the Beast Race to be closely bonded, to share a spiritual connection.

A spiritual bond is a scary thing—like a filter. If either side harbors bad intentions, the other will immediately sense it. That's why the really powerful Demon Tamer–Demon Pet duos are mostly genuinely sincere with each other.

As Demon Tamers became the main force of the Human Race Corps and gained greater say, the conflicts between humans and beasts gradually began to ease.

Demon Tamers and their Demon Pets are like a third faction, yet they're also part of their own races. They started persuading both sides, negotiating, compromising, and in the end, created the world we have now."

Du Yu thought for a bit and said, "So the Twin Trees didn't abandon humanity. It's just that, from a higher perspective, it gave both Humans and Beasts a path to harmonious coexistence."

Humans, if they wanted to survive, had to walk the Demon Taming path. Taking that road required a close connection with the Demon Beasts.

Understanding, communication, and genuine sincerity—all of these are keys to resolving conflict.

Twin Trees, you really were thinking ahead…

Yang Qingqing neither agreed nor disagreed, but changed the topic: "Strictly speaking, the Divine Tree within the Twin Trees isn't actually dead."

Du Yu: "Hm?"

Yang Qingqing: "It's called the Twin Trees—so long as one of them still lives, the other won't die.

The Divine Tree only withered and shriveled up as much as possible to reduce the amount of Divine Spiritual Qi it released, erasing the profession of Spirit Masters among humans."

Du Yu piped up, "So what you're saying is that if I'm next to the Twin Trees, I can still absorb Divine Spiritual Qi?"

Yang Qingqing nodded. "In the world today, the Divine Tree releases so little Spiritual Qi that it's not enough for anyone to become a Spirit Master. But you, you're different. You have a wisp of Spiritual Qi, gifted by a Magical Treasure from ancient times, from the ancient Shadow Gu Tower."

Du Yu: "Magical Treasure?"

Yang Qingqing smiled. "You once asked me what the Shadow Gu Tower was. To make it easier, I told you it was a Demon Soldier.

But actually, it's not a Demon Soldier—it's a Spirit Master's Magical Treasure. This kind of magical treasure is called a Spiritual Artifact. Artifact as in 'tool.'"

Du Yu nodded vigorously!

I knew it, how would you even use a tower to smack someone?

Use the tower tip to stab someone's kidneys? That's just a joke…

But if you tell me it's a Magical Treasure, then I've got no complaints. Towers, bells, zithers, tripods, stamps—anything can go out and wreck the enemy!

Yang Qingqing: "That black mist woman in your story was absolutely a Spirit Master. She had the Shadow Gu Tower, a Spiritual Artifact, but still, her Spiritual Po was sucked out and she died a miserable death on the spot.

For Spirit Masters, the Spiritual Po is probably equivalent to the Demon Soul of a Demon Tamer. When you get strong enough one day and condense your own Demon Soul, you'll understand what it means."

Du Yu's heart skipped and he quickly said, "Master Qing, you haven't answered yet—why did the dead tree in the Twin Trees come back to life after absorbing the black mist woman's blood?"

"Hmm…" Now that they'd gotten to the key point, Yang Qingqing took care with her words, "The Divine Tree can nourish Spirit Masters, and conversely, powerful Spirit Masters can also nurture a Divine Tree sapling."

Du Yu couldn't help feeling a bit heavy-hearted.

"Don't worry, you're weak as heck. Even with the sliver of Spiritual Qi from the Shadow Gu Tower, it's just enough to get you started."

Yang Qingqing looked at the expression on Du Yu's face and couldn't help but smile a little at the corners of her mouth. She continued, "You barely have any Spiritual Power in your body. No one's going to nab you to feed to a tree, and you certainly can't bring a shriveled Divine Tree back to life."

Du Yu: "..."

Yang Qingqing: "The Shadow Gu Tower, to help you understand the story, not only sets its world background in the modern day, but also portrays the epic battles among powerful Spirit Masters as someone simply falling off a building.

In reality, that black mist woman was seriously strong—at least Fifth Level or above—to be able to nourish a Divine Tree like that."

Du Yu agreed, muttering under his breath, "Spirit Master, Spirit Master..."

Yang Qingqing suddenly spoke: "Don't get your hopes up. You can use a bit of Spiritual Qi to nourish your body, but if you want to really make a name for yourself as a Spirit Master, it's basically impossible.

Even standing under the Twin Trees, the Spiritual Qi you could absorb is way too little. With that same time and energy, cultivating Demon Breath is the way to go for you."

Du Yu: "If there's so little Spiritual Qi, how did the Shadow Gu Tower manage to rise up out of the ground?"

Yang Qingqing: "It changed a lot, and paid a big price. It absorbed Demon Breath from all over, and after who knows how many years, finally managed to see the light again so it could tell its story to us.

Everyone who reaches the top of the Tower is given a wisp of Spiritual Qi by it. That might be the last of its life force.

When the story is done, it might just end up as a Mortal Grade item."

Listening to Master Qing's analysis, Du Yu felt all kinds of emotions: "Master Qing, didn't you say it changed itself so much, fused with Demon Breath to return to the world? Maybe it won't end up as Mortal Grade after all, maybe it'll walk its own new path."

Yang Qingqing glanced sidelong at Du Yu, meeting his clear gaze, and nodded gently. "Let's hope so."

Being stared at by his Immortal Master made Du Yu a little uncomfortable, so he looked away and changed the subject: "Master Qing, can you tell me about some of the other people who made it to the top?"

Yang Qingqing was silent for a while, then said, "The reason I told you so much today is to keep you from poking around or leaking information. Remember, everything we talked about today, you lock it in your stomach. Not a single word to anyone else."

"Mm-hmm." Du Yu nodded like a chicken pecking rice, watching Yang Qingqing hopefully.

Yang Qingqing was a little helpless and shot Du Yu a playful glare. "The stories that come after are mostly from when the Tower was captured by evildoers, who used it to do all sorts of terrible things, slaughter the innocent and all.

The most powerful Demon Taming Saints see a story of the Tower being destroyed in battle, smashed into pieces, ground into the dirt, and abandoned by a new owner."

Du Yu: "Ah..."

The more he listened, the worse Du Yu felt inside.

Yang Qingqing: "So now you can see—with it shattered into a million pieces, just to see the light of day again, just imagine how much it paid."

Du Yu blurted out, "If this Tower really does become Mortal Grade and loses its worth, what are we going to do with it?"

"Don't worry." Yang Qingqing finally picked up her chopsticks, speaking softly. "The Great Xia Demon Spirit Department is much better at maintaining, repairing, and protecting Demon Spirit artifacts than you can imagine."

Du Yu grabbed his chopsticks too, first picking up a spring roll and passing it to Xiaoyan's mouth.

"Oh right, Master Qing, we've been talking about Spirit Masters a lot. What can a Spirit Master actually do?"

Yang Qingqing picked up a piece of bamboo shoot. "We always say—Demon Tamers themselves can't use wind, fire, or thunder. They can only rely on Demon Soldiers or Demon Pets."

Du Yu: "So?"

Yang Qingqing chewed her bamboo shoot, patiently leading him on: "So?"

Du Yu: "So Spirit Masters can control wind, fire, thunder, and lightning with their own power! No need to rely on anything else!"

Yang Qingqing nodded. "You're Fire Attribute, pure fire. Once your body has accepted the Spiritual Qi in your acupoints, most likely you'll be a Fire Spirit Master. Using it at a basic level shouldn't be a problem."

Du Yu perked up immediately, "Like what?"

Yang Qingqing looked at him funny. "Snap your fingers to make sparks? Ignite a little flame at your fingertip? Maybe. Not that it'll do you any good, though."

Du Yu felt a bit crestfallen. "So it's useless, huh?"

Doesn't sound bad though... At the very least, I could use it to light a cigarette for my future father-in-law, suck up a little…

Yang Qingqing: "Just treat that little bit of Spiritual Qi as a Medal of Merit. Also, Divine Spiritual Qi and Demon Beast Breath complement each other. As long as you guard this Spiritual Qi, it might help you a lot in your future cultivation."

"Mm-hmm, sure!" Du Yu nodded over and over.

Yang Qingqing: "Eat up. In a bit, I'll teach you the Demon Tamer Journeyman contract, and open up another acupoint for you. At the Journeyman stage, you can contract with another Demon Pet."

Du Yu felt a surge of joy—he could get a new teammate! And after opening another Acupoint Home, Little Fen Yang wouldn't have to squeeze into Xiaoyan's bed every day!

Yang Qingqing: "For now, train Little Fire Fox at home. I'll set up your next task."

"Yes." Du Yu put his head down and started shoveling rice, but then remembered something and called out in his mind, "Little Fen Yang, before, you didn't let the Ghost Firefly Fire Types advance. What do we need to prepare for that?"

Little Fen Yang: "Wait for the right timing—when the Nether Leaf Bead flowers and bears fruit."

Du Yu was startled inwardly, and thought to himself, "Midnight? Or at dawn?"

Little Fen Yang: "Mm-hmm. It's better for us to go to the Demon Spirit Realm, to the place where the Nether Leaf Beads grow. Follow their flowering and fruiting times so Little You Ying can advance."

This…

Du Yu was stumped for a moment.

He had no excuse to leave here—Master Qing had just arranged the next few days of lessons for him.

Du Yu suggested, "What if we buy a potted Nether Leaf Bead and raise it at home?"

Little Fen Yang: "Du Yu, Du Yu~"

"Hm?"

"Do we got money for that?"

Du Yu: "..."

"You planning to ask Teacher Qingqing for some?"

"Uh." Du Yu slowly lowered his head—the rice in his mouth suddenly felt so soft, so soft.

"Why aren't you talking? Hmph, Du Yu, you don't like me anymore?"

"Like, like!" Du Yu hurried to answer. "Of course I like you!"

In a panic, he blurted it out without thinking.

Yang Qingqing's hand paused as she picked up vegetables, her brows knitting slightly as she glanced at Du Yu sitting off to the side.

Du Yu froze, quickly explaining, "I was talking to my Demon Pet, talking to Xiaoyan!"

Xiaoyan tilted her little head curiously and glanced at Du Yu, gave a disgruntled "Ying", then bowed her head to chomp into a spring roll.

Liar!

Yang Qingqing didn't pursue it, only said, "No need to rush into contracting a new companion. Your tower-climbing this time was a great success, and the clues and story you left behind are really valuable. The school will reward you."

On hearing this, Du Yu was overjoyed!

He quickly said, "Thank you, Master Qing! Then let's study and apply to the school for a suitable Demon Pet?"

"No need."

"Hm?"

Yang Qingqing picked up another piece of bamboo shoot. "Exploring the Shadow Gu Tower was a joint mission between the school and the military. I'm actually the school's project manager for the Tower.

You don't need to apply to the school. I'll just give it to you directly."

Du Yu stared dumbly at his Immortal Master for a long while before finally whispering, "Master Qing, what kind of new companion do you think my team needs?"

Yang Qingqing just said casually, "Eat first—I'll think about it."

"Mm-hmm." Du Yu nodded like crazy, wolfing down his food, almost moved to tears. If you don't hook me up with a baby Divine Pet, what are you even doing?

Oh, Master Qing, my dear Master Qing… what a massive thigh to cling to!

Hold on tight~ really tight!

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