LAVW – Chapter 37 Settling It in One Move

Perhaps due to the abundance of spirit beasts in Ten Thousand Beasts City, and since many of them were large in size, the city’s overall architectural style was bold and grand. The residential buildings were particularly tall, resembling fortresses, while the courtyards felt more like “farms.” There was none of the usual overcrowding found in cities.

Shi Qian squatted atop Long Ye’s head, tilting his head up to observe the many towering spirit horses, spirit deer, and other creatures. He even spotted several of the giant rabbits he had seen outside the city.

A particularly chubby, fat cat was sitting with its back turned, lazily flicking its tail. The sight made Shi Qian itch with excitement.

Pretending to be a fellow feline, he tried to lure the big cat in. “Meow—”

Upon hearing the sound, the large cat turned its head, eyes lighting up. It immediately stood up and dashed toward Shi Qian.

Xu Miao, who had been standing in front of Shi Qian, panicked and shouted, “Uncle Qi! Your Big Huang is bullying someone else’s spirit beast again! Come out quickly!”

A loud voice boomed from inside the house. The big cat halted its swift movements and licked the corner of its mouth as it stared at Shi Qian.

Judging by its expression, it was absolutely drooling.

Shi Qian: …This is too much.

I just wanted to pet you, and you want to eat me?

With a swipe of his tiny claws, Shi Qian sent a wind blade rolling toward the fat cat. Startled, the notorious street bully yowled and bolted back into the house.

Just as a tall man stepped outside, the fat cat pounced on him, knocking him over with a heavy thud.

The fat cat got scolded, while Shi Qian happily flicked his fluffy tail and patted Long Ye. “Squeak Squeak.”

Hurry, let’s go!

Before the fat cat could tattle, he needed to get out of there.

Xu Miao had the same idea, picking up his pace even more.

Once they were far enough away, Xu Miao explained, “Uncle Qi is a good person, but his Big Huang is too greedy. It used to eat other people’s fish and birds, and it loves bullying others.”

Summary: Not a good cat.

Having gotten his revenge, Shi Qian didn’t mind. When it came to petting fluffy creatures, he was a true playboy—he loved them all, just like he adored pretty sisters.

As he peeked into the courtyards along the way, his eyes sparkled at the sight of all kinds of strange and adorable spirit beasts. His heart gained a few more favorites.

Long Ye remarked, “Every household here seems to have a lot of spirit beasts. That’s quite rare elsewhere.”

“This is Ten Thousand Beasts City, after all,” Xu Miao said with pride. “I have a Milk Sheep Beast, and my sister has a really smart Red Spirit Sparrow. When we get home, I’ll get you some fresh milk to drink!”

Shi Qian was envious—these were all rich families.

As they walked further, they neared Xu Miao’s home. A neighbor who was about to head out greeted Xu Miao and inquired about the unfamiliar Long Ye.

Xu Miao answered honestly, earning the neighbor’s enthusiastic hospitality and gifts.

After entering the house, Xu Miao calmed his bleating Milk Sheep Beast with a touch of spirit energy and explained to Long Ye, “A lot of my neighbors are my father’s old comrades from the beast soldier corps. They just worry about me getting tricked.”

“They seem like good people,” Long Ye commented, thinking that this kind of close-knit community felt normal.

He glanced at the basket in his hand, which was filled with milk fruits—something spirit beast cubs could eat.

At the moment, Shi Qian was lying inside the basket, clutching a fruit and munching away at its soft, white flesh.

After a while, Shi Qian’s entire head was buried inside the fruit, only his ears twitching every so often as he ate happily.

Not just Shi Qian—Long Ye found himself liking Ten Thousand Beasts City, too. There was a unique vibrancy and sense of ease here that made people relax.

Xu Miao set his things down and ran to the basket. “Brother Qian, don’t fill up on fruit! The Milk Sheep Beast’s milk is even better!”

Shi Qian pulled his head out of the fruit, his cheeks dotted with tiny bits of fruit flesh. “Squeak Squeak.”

Don’t worry—I can still eat a lot more.

Long Ye relayed the information, earning an envious look from Xu Miao.

“Brother Ye, you’re amazing! You can completely understand what Brother Qian is saying! Brother Qian is so smart—he seems even more impressive than my sister’s Spirit Sparrow.”

In Ten Thousand Beasts City, people had their own unique methods of raising spirit beasts.

The various beast-taming sects here each had their own techniques for forming contracts with spirit beasts. However, the commonly used contracts were developed through research by powerful cultivators. They were different from the inheritance memory of royal beasts that Shi Qian possessed, lacking the natural Dao resonance.

Moreover, with Shi Qian’s strong royal bloodline and a soul that had experienced life as a human, his ability to express himself was naturally exceptional.

It wasn’t that spirit beasts as intelligent as him didn’t exist—royal demonic beasts were rare, but they certainly existed. However, to someone like Xu Miao, who hadn’t seen much of the world, the idea that a spirit beast could be smarter than his sister’s Spirit Sparrow was already shocking.

Long Ye, completely shameless in deceiving a child, said, “We’ve been together for a long time, so we have good chemistry.”

Xu Miao nodded and lifted his small wooden bucket.

“Brother Ye, sit down and have something to eat first. I’ll go milk the sheep for you.”

Long Ye didn’t feel right about just sitting and watching. He set down the basket of milk fruits and followed along to see if Xu Miao needed any help.

Seeing both of them walk away, Shi Qian abandoned the milk fruit he had nearly chewed through and ran over to watch the excitement.

The Milk Sheep Beasts weren’t very large. They had fluffy white fur and a gentle appearance, with a pair of curled horns on their heads. To Shi Qian, they looked like a mix of several different modern sheep breeds, which felt quite strange.

Long Ye observed for a moment. It seemed like every sheep could be milked. He asked, “Are all of these female?”

Xu Miao simply smiled. “No, there are males too. Both male and female Milk Sheep Beasts can be milked. In fact, male milk is even richer. This one here is a male.”

As he spoke, his small hands skillfully squeezed fresh white milk from the male sheep.

Long Ye and Shi Qian: …Stunned.

Shi Qian deliberately walked around to the back and, unable to hold back his curiosity, took a look beneath the sheep.

Long Ye watched as Brother Qian circled around.

Shi Qian turned his head, his eyes slightly widened in shock as he informed Long Ye, “Squeak—!”

This sheep is really male—it has balls!

Long Ye couldn’t help but laugh.

Xu Miao had already said it was a male, but Shi Qian just had to check for himself.

Long Ye decided to educate him. “No need to be so surprised. There’s a type of flower-eating spirit rat where the females are responsible for giving birth, while the males produce milk to raise the young.”

Shi Qian was once again amazed—but as a proud, single king rat, he had no need to worry about raising any young himself.

Shi Qian looked at Long Ye and Squeaked, “Squeak Squeak.”

You human cultivators need to work hard too.

Long Ye: ?

Work hard—so that male cultivators can also produce milk to feed their children.

Long Ye seriously thought about it for a moment. “There might be a pill for that. But the book that mentioned it was just a collection of strange records, so it’s not necessarily true.”

Xu Miao worked quickly. While Shi Qian was busy curiously observing the sheep, Xu Miao had already filled a small bucket with milk.

As he tried to lift it, Long Ye reached out his large hand. “I’ll carry it.”

Xu Miao nodded. “Brother Ye, just put it in the middle of the courtyard. I’ll go get the stove and milk pot.”

Given Xu Miao’s age, the stove at his home was quite small—light enough for a child to carry by himself.

He poured the milk into the pot and placed it on the stove.

Then, Xu Miao took out two red stones, knocked them together, and tossed them under the stove, instantly igniting a steady flame.

Shi Qian glanced at Long Ye, who still relied on burning wood for fire, and Squeaked curiously, “Squeak Squeak?”

What are those stones?

Long Ye explained, “They’re called Fire Stones. They can be used repeatedly until the spiritual energy inside them is exhausted.”

Xu Miao, overhearing their conversation, asked, “Brother Qian, are you really young? You don’t even know this?”

Shi Qian Squeaked indignantly, “Squeak Squeak!”

I’m from out of town—an out-of-town spirit beast, got it?

Not wanting to seem ignorant, Shi Qian stretched out a paw and raised a finger.

Unfortunately, his paw only had four fingers, so he had to borrow one from the other paw to make five.

“Squeak—!”

I’m over five years old—not young!

Long Ye backed him up. “Brother Qian is over five. In our region, not everyone uses Fire Stones, so he wouldn’t know about them.”

“But Brother Qian looks really small, like a little cub—all fluffy and cute.” Xu Miao glanced between Shi Qian and the milk pot. “Kind of like the milk, actually.”

Most baby animals were naturally adorable.

Hearing Xu Miao call him good-looking, Shi Qian didn’t mind being called small anymore.

But Long Ye, recalling what Shi Qian had said earlier, asked, “Do you have anything here that can make spirit beasts grow bigger?”

“There are spirit beast doctors in the city. They can prescribe a type of medicine that helps spirit beasts grow,” Xu Miao, who had taken many medicines himself, spoke from experience. “But you can’t just take any medicine—you have to get it from a doctor.”

As they chatted, the milk soon heated up.

Xu Miao ladled it into bowls, giving the first to Long Ye, the second to Shi Qian, and taking the last for himself.

“Whoo—”

He blew on it a few times to cool it down before sipping the warm, pure milk.

Shi Qian, on the other hand, leaned in first to sniff the aroma—a rich, creamy scent.

Then, he blew on it twice and buried his face in the bowl to drink.

It was thick and fragrant, with a hint of natural sweetness. Much better than the first meal he had in this life—the milk that Mouse Mom had somehow stolen. That one had been a bit gamey.

But as his memories of that faded, and with Mouse Mom’s care in his heart, Shi Qian sentimentally decided that both were equally good.

Shi Qian gave his review: “Squeak Squeak.”

Tastes just as good as the best milk I’ve ever had.

Long Ye held the bowl of milk but hadn’t taken a sip yet.

In his mind, besides himself, the other two were still kids—young cubs. It was normal for them to drink milk. But him? He was already grown, yet here he was drinking milk?

After translating Shi Qian’s compliment, Long Ye glanced at him with a pleading look.

Shi Qian: “Squeak Squeak.”

Brother Ye, why are you looking at me?

Long Ye stared at the bowl in his hands. Seeing that he hadn’t taken a sip, Shi Qian realized just how thin-skinned Long Ye was about this.

Xu Miao also looked up, noticing that Long Ye hadn’t touched his milk.

Shi Qian, being considerate, pulled out some sunflower seeds. “Squeak Squeak.”

These are salty. Eat some while you drink.

After handing some to Long Ye, Shi Qian scurried over to Xu Miao and grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds, peanuts, and pine nuts for him.

Xu Miao was momentarily distracted from Long Ye and spoke to Shi Qian instead, “Thank you, Brother Qian! This is enough, you should eat some too.”

“If you eat more, you’ll grow taller.”

Long Ye cracked open two sunflower seeds, watching the two kids whispering to each other. He had no idea what they were chatting about.

He finally picked up the bowl again and hesitantly took a sip.

It was delicious.

By the time Shi Qian and Xu Miao had milk mustaches, a commotion sounded from near the entrance.

Pa!

A sharp crack split the air, followed by the apparition of a wolf clashing with a fiery red sparrow. The sounds of a wolf’s howl and the piercing cry of a bird rang out, sharp and intense.

Long Ye set down his bowl and instantly moved toward the entrance, shrinking the ground beneath his feet with a movement technique.

Shi Qian was slightly slower, but his escape techniques were refined. In the blink of an eye, he was at the Xu family’s gate, perching on Long Ye’s shoulder.

A little extra height gave him a better view.

At the entrance, a male cultivator was pestering a stunning young woman.

As he attacked, the man grinned and taunted, “Ruirui, slap my face!”

The beautiful woman’s face darkened. She coldly glared at the irritating man who seemed completely oblivious to reality. She channeled her spiritual power into her whip and lashed out viciously.

A direct strike aimed at his face.

The man, assuming it was the same technique as before, carelessly attempted to block it. “Fiery Pepper isn’t that spicy—”

But he hadn’t expected this strike to be much stronger. The whip instantly snapped his spiritual longsword in half and continued its unrelenting path toward his face.

Scarlet blood splattered as the force of the attack sent a burning pain radiating from the wound. The male cultivator’s expression changed. Holding only half a broken sword in his hand, he realized he wasn’t her match. His face flushed red with anger, but he dared not speak further.

The woman, holding her crimson whip, with a small red bird perched on her shoulder, uttered a single word: “Scram.”

Shi Qian, watching the scene unfold: This sister is so cool—I approve!

Though she wasn’t the gentle type he had imagined, Xu Rui was undeniably a beauty.

She was still wearing her auction house uniform, her outfit highlighting her elegant figure. Her brown hair and light-colored eyes gave her a striking and distinct appearance. Combined with her fair skin, she was like an exquisite amber gemstone—radiant and refined.

The male cultivator’s breath was unstable. He suddenly looked up and froze, staring at the man who had appeared behind Xu Rui. Then, he gritted his teeth in frustration.

Xu Rui immediately turned around as well, her expression darkening as she glared at the unfamiliar man who had appeared behind her.

But when she realized he was standing at her own doorstep, she thought of her sickly younger brother at home. Her expression changed, and she lashed out with her whip again, her tone urgent as she demanded, “You better not have touched a single hair on my brother’s head!”

Long Ye raised his hand and easily slapped away the whip that nearly struck his chest.

Shi Qian, startled, leaped back several meters.

He instinctively let out a “Squeak!”

Damn, watching a fight is dangerous—I almost got hit myself!

Long Ye furrowed his brows, displeased by the frightened cry of the little spirit beast. Do I really look like I’m with that sleazy guy?

Thinking of Xu Miao inside, Long Ye held back his temper and was about to explain, but Xu Rui’s whip came flying at him again. This time, she used a hooking technique while charging straight toward the house.

Long Ye’s expression changed, and his spiritual power surged. He clenched his palm into a fist and struck at Xu Rui.

She was indeed strong, at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage.

But that was all.

Long Ye had already torn apart late-stage Foundation Establishment demon beasts with his bare hands. He knew his strength well—his combat power far exceeded his cultivation level.

He only used fifty percent of his strength.

A powerful burst of energy instantly knocked her whip off course, disrupting even its fierce momentum. His sharp fist wind swept toward Xu Rui.

She quickly formed a hand seal, and the red sparrow beside her let out a sharp cry. A faint red phantom appeared in front of her.

But the domineering fist wind pressed forward, shattering the newly formed phantom and sending Xu Rui flying.

In short, Long Ye settled the fight in a single move, without saying a word.

Shi Qian: …Brother Ye, you’re amazing.

He had only wanted Brother Ye to avoid entanglement with this woman, but instead, Brother Ye went ahead and uprooted the whole tree.

Shi Qian quickly conjured a few gusts of wind to cushion Xu Rui’s fall, awkwardly reminding Brother Ye, “Squeak.”

That’s Xu Miao’s sister.

Xu Miao rushed out, shouting, “Sister!”

He ran to Xu Rui’s side and quickly explained, “Sister, are you okay? Brother Ye is someone I invited! I got injured, and he kindly helped me.”

Seeing that her brother’s injury wasn’t too serious, Xu Rui finally let out a breath of relief.

Then she glanced around and noticed that the annoying man who had been pestering her and insisting on introducing her to his “friends” had already taken the opportunity to flee.

At this point, it was clear—she had mistaken a good person for being in cahoots with that guy.

Avoiding his wound, she gently patted her brother’s head and then turned to Long Ye, apologizing, “Thank you for helping my brother. I ran into that man earlier and heard some nonsense, so I mistakenly thought you were with him. I’m really sorry.”

“And… thank you for holding back just now.”

Long Ye shook his head indifferently. “It’s nothing.”

Xu Miao, however, wasn’t so cooperative. “Sister, didn’t you say you were the strongest below the Golden Core stage? How come you lost to Brother Ye so easily?”

Xu Rui: … “I meant on this street.”

Xu Miao thought for a moment and then said seriously, “That’s not true, though.”

Shi Qian hopped onto Xu Miao’s small shoulder and patted his cheek with his paw. “Squeak Squeak.”

Long Ye translated, “Brother Qian says your milk pot is still boiling.”

“Oh no, I forgot!” Xu Miao bolted back inside to save his goat’s milk.

Shi Qian was forced to cling tightly to the boy’s clothes as he sprinted away.

Xu Rui let out a sigh of relief.

Why is this troublesome kid my little brother…

Falling in step beside her, Long Ye casually remarked, “We’re lucky Xu Miao was kind today. Otherwise, who knows when I would’ve found a place to stay?”

Still recovering from nearly losing face because of her brother, Xu Rui had nothing to say to that.

She discreetly pressed her hand to her aching chest, then put on the radiant smile she had perfected at the auction house while earning spirit stones. “And we’re lucky you helped Xu Miao. You’re both good-hearted. No need to be polite—treat this place like your own home.”