Chapter 442: I’ll Do It

At this moment, the Azure Nightmare Beast was sprawled lazily on the ground, showing no inclination even to get angry. It couldn't even be bothered to lift its head, seemingly recovering from its injuries using some special method.

“Hall Master, I’d like to try!”

Approaching, Wei Youdao clasped his fist.

“Go ahead!” Xie Jiuchen glanced at Elder Wei Yuqing, who was not far away, then nodded in agreement.

His old friend's grandson possessed extraordinary beast-taming talent from birth and was renowned among the younger generation, appearing to be the top talent. If Zhang Xuan hadn't suddenly appeared, he would undoubtedly have been the most acclaimed young beast tamer in the Xuanyuan Kingdom's Beast Hall. In any case, they were now resorting to desperate measures; once the Azure Nightmare Beast recovered, they wouldn't be able to contain it, so it was better to let everyone try—perhaps someone's method would work.

“Thank you, Hall Master!”

Taking a deep breath, Wei Youdao approached the Azure Nightmare Beast. With a flick of his wrist, a jade bottle appeared in his palm. As he uncorked the bottle, a rich aroma immediately wafted out, invigorating everyone present.

“It's the Seven-Colored Honey from Cloud Mist Mountain!”

“Legend has it that this honey is brewed by the Grandmaster-level spirit beast, the Sky Snow Bee, collected from seven different colored flowers. It's incredibly sweet and fragrant, so captivating that even spirit beasts find it hard to resist!”

“This item is exceptionally precious. Its quantity is scarce, and it cannot be bought even with spirit stones. I can't believe he has a bottle of it!”

“Incredible! To be able to produce something like this, the Azure Nightmare Beast will probably find it hard to resist!”

Catching the scent from the jade bottle, the surroundings immediately erupted in an uproar. Seven-Colored Honey, formed from a mixture of seven colors, boasts a captivating aroma, and just one whiff makes all the pores on your body open up. Savage beasts are always gluttonous and indeed find it hard to resist something like this.

“Seven-Colored Honey ranks fifth among the ten most favored items for savage beasts. Wei Youdao did well to find such a valuable item!” Hall Master Feng's eyes also lit up.

“Most favored items for savage beasts? There’s a ranking for that?” Zhang Xuan was momentarily stunned. He had read almost all the books in the Beast Hall but had never heard of such a ranking.

“Yes!” Hall Master Feng chuckled. “These rankings were compiled by some of our beast tamers when they were bored; they haven't been officially recognized by the Beast Hall, so they're not recorded in any books. Seven-Colored Honey isn't just fragrant; more importantly, it has a significant nourishing effect on a savage beast's meridians, allowing them greater expansion! A typical beast tamer can completely subdue a Grandmaster-level savage beast with just one drop. The jade bottle in Wei Youdao's hand, though it doesn't look large, probably contains dozens of drops. To bring out so much at once, that's quite a grand gesture!”

“Nourishes meridians, increases expansion?” Hearing that the Seven-Colored Honey had such an effect, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but marvel.

The meridians of both savage beasts and humans are like canals, with a certain width. If vital energy flows too quickly through them, it can cause the ‘canal’ to collapse, leaking vital energy outside and leading to severe injury. Increasing the expansion is equivalent to widening the ‘canal,’ which has an immense effect on cultivators. Not to mention savage beasts, even many cultivators nearby, upon learning of its effects, had their eyes turn crimson with desire.

“This ranking you mentioned, what other items are on it?” With a sigh of admiration, Zhang Xuan couldn't help but feel curious. Knowing the ranking of items savage beasts like best would allow for better preparation when taming higher-level savage beasts in the future.

“Since there's no official confirmation, everyone just chats about it casually, but it's generally agreed that Dragon Blood ranks first, Spirit Beast Inner Core is second, Ancient Meridian Essence Blood is third, Yan Shen Flower is fourth, and fifth is this Seven-Colored Honey!”

“So that's how it is!” Zhang Xuan mused. He had heard of the first four.

Dragons are unparalleled in power; even with just a trace, a tiny bit of their bloodline, a beast would be far stronger than other savage beasts. Just like the Azure Nightmare Beast before them, it contained only an insignificant, trace amount of dragon blood, yet it possessed strength comparable to a Half-Transcendent realm expert, and no one could tame it. Dragon bloodline alone could drive countless savage beasts and spirit beasts into a frenzy, so its top ranking was understandable.

As for the third item, Ancient Meridian Essence Blood, it was already known in the Xuanluo Mountain Range to have similar effects. If used properly, it could completely advance a savage beast's bloodline. Spirit Beast Inner Cores are condensed from spirit beasts absorbing the essence of the sun and moon, containing their lifelong cultivation and power. Obtaining one, even if it doesn't directly lead to a breakthrough to a spirit beast, would certainly greatly increase strength. The Yan Shen Flower, it is said, can enhance a savage beast's soul and spirit; its effects are also immense. For these four items to be so heaven-defying, and Seven-Colored Honey to rank fifth, on par with them, truly shows how formidable it is.

He couldn't help but look up. Indeed, the Azure Nightmare Beast in the cage, smelling the aroma, stirred its lazy body, suddenly lifting its massive head, and its eyes gleamed. Clearly, this item had piqued its interest.

“I know you understand human language, and you know our purpose,” Wei Youdao said, holding the Seven-Colored Honey in his palm and gazing intently at the beast. “As long as you swear loyalty to the Beast Hall by the dragon blood within you from now on, this bottle of Seven-Colored Honey will be yours!”

With this item as leverage, any beast-taming techniques could be disregarded; they could directly negotiate terms.

Roar! It had originally shown interest, but upon hearing these words, the Azure Nightmare Beast lazily lay down again, motionless.

“I know you attempted to break through to a spirit beast, and failed,” Wei Youdao continued. “Seven-Colored Honey can expand your meridians and help heal your injuries. Once consumed, you might just break through your shackles. Why wouldn't you want that? Furthermore, pledging allegiance to the Beast Hall isn't about pledging allegiance to an individual. With the Hall as your backing, your cultivation and growth will undoubtedly receive immense support in the future... I hope you'll consider my words carefully!”

However, although his words were very tempting, the Azure Nightmare Beast opposite him remained indifferent. Regardless of whom it pledged allegiance to, in the eyes of a savage beast, it would merely become a human's puppet, bound and restricted. Where was the joy in that compared to unrestrained roaming?

“It seems it won't work!” Witnessing this scene, those who had just rekindled their hopes felt their spirits dampen once more. They had thought that bringing out the Seven-Colored Honey, ranked fifth, would sway the Azure Nightmare Beast, but it seemed they had underestimated the creature.

“Although Seven-Colored Honey ranks fifth and holds an irresistible allure for common savage beasts,” a two-star peak beast tamer remarked from the crowd, “this Azure Nightmare Beast is clearly on the verge of transcending its savage beast status. Even if it has an effect, it won't be significant! Furthermore, it possesses dragon bloodline, making it incredibly proud. How could it possibly pledge allegiance to humans just for a bit of Seven-Colored Honey?”

“Indeed,” another added, “the Dragon race is one of the most powerful and proudest races on the continent. Even if this fellow's bloodline content is sparse, it's impossible for it to bow to humans for mere items unless we can find the top-ranked Dragon Blood!”

“Dragon Blood? Are you kidding? How could something like that be easily found? Putting aside the rarity of dragons, even if you could find them, each one is incomparably powerful. The weakest of them are like this one, reaching the Half-Transcendent level. How could ordinary beast tamers like us just hunt them at will?”

Discussions broke out. The Beast Taming Grand Competition had gathered Hall Masters and beast tamers from dozens of surrounding branches, and as leaders of their respective factions, their insights and knowledge were by no means ordinary. Even if Seven-Colored Honey was very precious, making a savage beast with dragon blood yield was clearly beyond its capability.

“My apologies!” After trying for a long time and finding the Azure Nightmare Beast completely unmoved, Wei Youdao withdrew, full of disappointment.

“Is there anyone else who wants to try?” As if he had already known the outcome, Hall Master Xie Jiuchen looked around again. Silence fell. When they first heard the news, many had been eager to try, but after seeing several two-star peak and even three-star initial-level beast tamers fail one after another, they lost the courage to continue trying.

“I'll try!” Just as everyone was feeling dispirited, a faint voice rang out.

“It's Beast Tamer Zhang Xuan!”

“To challenge the Ten Beast Cage with such ease, he must have a profound understanding of beast taming. Perhaps he really can succeed!”

“I don't deny his beast-taming skills are excellent, but his personal strength is too low!”

“That's true. A normal beast tamer is considered strong if they can tame a beast one minor cultivation level higher than themselves; two levels higher is already outstanding... He's only at Grandmaster peak, while this savage beast is Half-Transcendent. That's a difference of six minor levels (Half-Supreme, Supreme initial, middle, late, peak, Half-Transcendent). Taming it is almost impossible!”

“Indeed, if he had reached Supreme peak, there might be some hope. But now... I'm not optimistic!”

Recognizing who had spoken, the crowd erupted in a clamor. Zhang Xuan had bravely entered the Ten Beast Cage yesterday, shaking the Beast Hall, and almost everyone recognized him. Seeing him appear, some held onto hope, while others couldn't help but shake their heads. Beast taming requires not only skill but, more importantly, talent. If the beast's cultivation level is too far above yours, and it looks down on you from its heart, how could it possibly obey you docilely and become your tamed companion?

“I heard he tried it yesterday right after challenging the Ten Beast Cage, but unfortunately, he failed!”

“Then why is he coming out again? Could it be he has a new method?”

“I don't know about that, let's see...” Some insiders knew that Zhang Xuan had previously attempted to tame it, and although they didn't know what exactly happened, seeing that the Azure Nightmare Beast remained untamed, they knew it must have been a failure.

“You... succeeded in learning?” Seeing him appear, Hall Master Xie Jiuchen's eyes lit up. This fellow ran to the library to learn ancient beast language, but now he's here. Did he perhaps learn something?

“Succeeded? Far from it...” Zhang Xuan shook his head. It wasn't that the ancient beast language was difficult to learn, but that this Beast Hall was clearly too low-ranked to have enough books.

“Then...” Hearing him admit he was far from success, Xie Jiuchen was filled with doubt.

“I only learned a few characters,” Zhang Xuan said, “and I want to try to see if it works. If it doesn't work, I might have to use the method I mentioned before!”

“The method from before?” Hearing this, Xie Jiuchen was speechless.