Beast Tamer Ascension

Chapter 22: The Reward

In the Outer Sect’s Mechanized Workshop.

Inside the workshop, Elder Yu looked at the pile of Spirit Bamboo that was still mostly unused and sighed.

“Elder Yu, something urgent!” A celestial crane swooped down in a flurry.@@novelbin@@

“What’s going on? Why all the fuss?” Elder Yu looked up with a frown at the approaching Tianyu Crane.

“Your Mechanized Bamboo Dragon… someone destroyed it!” the crane reported.

“It was an Outer Sect disciple named Lín Jìng and his Pine Leaf Mouse.”

Hearing this, Elder Yu simply let out a dismissive hum. “Is that something to panic over?”

“It shows that, under my guidance, our Outer Sect disciples are getting stronger by the day!”

The crane blinked, momentarily bewildered. Elder Yu was famously protective of the mechanized beasts he crafted. Now that one had been smashed by an Outer Sect disciple, he was remaining… calm?

Something strange was definitely going on. The Tianyu Crane left with a skeptical look, carrying away the new Bamboo Dragon.

Meanwhile, Elder Yu inwardly let out a sigh of relief. Fortunately, Elder Mo had given him a heads-up about this Longevity Body's unusual talents. Otherwise, knowing his creation had been demolished would’ve been anything but calming.

Though one Bamboo Dragon had been lost, Elder Yu was grateful for the forewarning and had even come up with a plan!

Now aware that the Longevity Body and the mutated Pine Leaf Mouse might be able to destroy a Bamboo Dragon, he could use this knowledge to encourage Lín Jìng to learn the art of mechanized beasts.

Apart from someone with an abundance of time—like one with a Longevity Body—no one else would be willing to study the craft he had honed!

Now that he had a promising student in front of him, Elder Yu decided to test Lín Jìng’s attitude toward mechanized arts.

…

Back in the Central Plaza, the disciples were still in shock after Lín Jìng’s successful challenge, especially given that he had broken the Mechanized Bamboo Dragon.

“No wonder Elder Yu is willing to teach him personally. This guy… definitely wasn’t recruited through normal channels. He must be a prodigy found by some elder, likely with a unique cultivation body!” Senior Brother Ziran from the Mission Hall clenched his novel tightly, finally understanding what was going on.

“I remember now. When I was guarding the Harvest Pavilion, they seemed to have bought some spirit plant seeds,” Senior Sister Caixin, ranked among the top three in the Outer Sect, also recognized Lín Jìng. She could hardly reconcile the image of the penniless junior who couldn’t even afford a Foundation Establishment spirit beast’s droppings with the skilled fighter in front of her.

The one most affected, however, was the current number one in the Outer Sect. Thinking back on all the praise he had received, he felt a slight flush of embarrassment, reflecting on how the Beast Taming Sect truly deserved its top status within the Wild Domain. Even the Outer Sect was filled with hidden talents, and the Beast Fighting Arena… apparently wasn’t even on Lín Jìng’s radar.

Having firmly entered the minds of all Outer Sect disciples, Lín Jìng was now regarded as the new powerhouse among them. Not only was his Pine Leaf Mouse’s Flying Leaf technique remarkably advanced, but he himself, despite being only at the second level, was also proficient in Object Manipulation—a remarkable feat.

“That kind of speed and power… To manipulate the trajectory so smoothly at the second level while using Object Manipulation? My Phoenix-Tailed Hen laying eggs isn’t that smooth!”

“Is this considered a ‘combined technique’?”

The Pine Leaf Mouse, who had returned after gathering its red leaves, wanted to correct the crowd—it had been controlling the red leaves on its own the entire time!

Lín Jìng’s actions were just for show, mimicking the gestures of Object Manipulation purely to add some theatrics, as his role was mostly limited to helping the mouse carry its cumbersome red leaves and Spiritual Bean bombs.

“Congratulations, Junior Brother…” Senior Brother Fang Yonghao was still in awe, though now more at a loss about how to explain this to Elder Yu. As an Inner Sect disciple, this was the first time he had encountered such an unusual Outer Sect disciple… He suspected that even those with rare constitutions, now true disciples, hadn’t shown such prowess at the second level as Lín Jìng had.

“Senior Brother Fang, does this mean we can proceed directly to the reward?” Ultimately, Lín Jìng chose the highest-grade mechanized reward and gave up any thought of holding back. There was no harm in learning more skills; after all, he had already memorized the Compendium of Flora and Fauna stored in the Outer Sect’s Scripture Pavilion over the past few days.

As far as true alchemy or the opportunity to practice it went, he knew he would have to wait until he joined the Inner Sect. For now, he and the Pine Leaf Mouse would have to endure this waiting period, as there was little else to do.

“Probably…” Senior Brother Fang had barely finished speaking when a shadow appeared in the sky. A celestial crane circled above, clutching the massive Mechanized Bamboo Dragon, and called out:

“The Beast Fighting Competition continues. Outer Sect disciple Lín Jìng, proceed to the Mechanized Workshop to claim your event reward.”

After a nod of acknowledgment, Lín Jìng set off with his Pine Leaf Mouse, leaving the crowd staring at his retreating figure, aware that he was destined for great things. Elder Yu’s mechanized arts, though not on par with the sect’s full Beast Taming techniques, were still far superior to the standard beast taming methods taught to Inner and Outer Sect disciples alike. Without access to a higher-level cultivation manual, these basics would be hard to surpass.

After all, it was a skill capable of creating Foundation Establishment-level mechanized beasts!

“A new contender for the true disciple spot is on the rise, and soon the Inner Sect will have another powerhouse. I wonder how the Inner Sect disciples will react when they find out,” Senior Brother Fang muttered, shaking his head as he continued to oversee the event.

Summoned by the Tianyu Crane, Lín Jìng quickly arrived at the Mechanized Workshop.

Inside, Elder Yu spotted Lín Jìng and his Pine Leaf Mouse and exclaimed, his eyebrows dancing with amusement, “You rascal, have you become addicted to tearing apart bamboo? First you ravage the bamboo grove, now you demolish the Bamboo Dragon!”

He glanced at the remaining Spirit Bamboo piled up in the back, drawing Lín Jìng and the Pine Leaf Mouse’s gaze. They both turned a bit red, feeling slightly embarrassed.

“Outer Sect disciple Lín Jìng greets Elder Yu.”

“Squeak!”

“Elder, the Mechanized Bamboo Dragon you crafted had a protective spirit flame, so the Pine Leaf Mouse’s external attacks were hopeless. We could only go for the mouth… who knew…”

“Enough, enough. The fact that you managed to destroy the internal mechanism using only your abilities at this stage speaks to your skills.”

“This Soul Core and my mechanized beast crafting manual are my reward to you,” Elder Yu said, pulling out the pre-prepared prizes and handing them over with an air of generosity.

The Soul Core was white, resembling an intricate puzzle lock, while the manual on mechanized arts was a hefty tome.

“Thank you, Elder Yu,” Lín Jìng said gratefully. But then, Elder Yu added:

“Oh, right. The extra bamboo you harvested isn’t particularly useful to me. Spirit Bamboo is a basic material for mechanized constructs. Take it back with you, and when you’ve grasped the basics of mechanized arts, you can use the Spirit Bamboo to experiment.”

“Of course, mechanized arts are quite difficult. I doubt you’ll master it quickly. Let’s say if you manage to create a functioning mechanized beast, even if it’s not particularly useful, I’ll grant you one wish—within reason!”