Beast Taming: I Have an Immortal Mansion-Chapter 74: Ancient Beasts of the Wilderness

What’s it like to be stared down by a Nascent Soul Stage Spirit Beast?

Fang Qingyuan could tell you exactly what it was like: he felt his life about to flash before his eyes.

Yet, the giant beast before him only stared, making no other move. A moment later, Fang Qingyuan finally heard a familiar sound—his own heartbeat.

THUMP!

The single, resounding beat helped steady his nerves.

’Since it didn’t kill me on the spot, I’m safe for now. The next time some "great opportunity" comes along, I’m not coming, no matter what. I should just stick to being a safe, traveling merchant and run a small shop.’

’Live my own simple life, cultivate in peace. Breaking through to Foundation Establishment would be great, but if I get stuck and can’t, I could just marry seven or eight concubines and start a huge family. I’d be surrounded by children and grandchildren, enjoying a life of simple family joys...’

Just as Fang Qingyuan was regretting his recklessness and daydreaming about his future plans, a gentle female voice suddenly echoed in his mind:

"Human, I’d like to ask you for a favor."

The sudden voice in his mind made Fang Qingyuan’s heart skip a beat. He instantly realized it was coming from the giant beast before him.

But as he looked at the beast’s pale, vacant eyes, he found it hard to reconcile them with the gentle voice in his mind.

But there was no other creature here. So, after composing himself, Fang Qingyuan spoke calmly to the giant beast before him:

"Senior, I’m not sure what you need my help with, but if it’s within my power, I will certainly not refuse."

The same gentle voice echoed in Fang Qingyuan’s mind:

"Get my child out of this place and care for it until it reaches adulthood. In return, you may have my physical body to do with as you please."

Hearing this, a thousand thoughts raced through Fang Qingyuan’s mind. He first glanced at the great beast’s abdomen and, sure enough, saw a slight bulge.

He had been so focused on carving off a piece of its body to take back that he hadn’t even noticed it was pregnant. ’But with all this deathly energy radiating from its body,’ he thought, ’can the child in its womb still be alive?’

Mustering his courage, Fang Qingyuan then asked:

"I will naturally heed your request, Senior. But I must ask, what is the current condition of the child you spoke of?"

The giant beast’s body remained motionless, but Fang Qingyuan could clearly detect a hesitation in the gentle voice in his mind:

"For over two hundred years, I have been nurturing it with my Origin Power. Coupled with the Path of Origin my husband infused it with long ago, I believe the child should be fine."

"And even if it isn’t, I no longer care. As long as this poor child can go out to see the blue sky and breathe fresh air, then I, its mother, will have my wish fulfilled."

"I don’t want this child to turn to dust with me, unknown and unremembered. That would be unfair to it."

After hearing this, Fang Qingyuan was struck by the selfless love of a mother for her child. Species may differ, but a mother’s love is universal.

But upon hearing this, Fang Qingyuan grew bolder. If this giant beast needed something from him, it meant his life was well and truly safe.

Before agreeing to help, however, Fang Qingyuan had a few things he needed to clarify:

"If you entrust the child to me, Senior, what should I tell it about its birth parents when it grows up?"

A moment of silence followed his words. Fang Qingyuan waited patiently. He knew he was exploiting the beast’s maternal love to extract more information—a despicable tactic, perhaps, but one that would give him the upper hand.

After a long while, the gentle voice slowly spoke again:

"Do not tell it about us. I don’t want it to live in hatred. Besides, this world belongs to humans now. We Ancient Beasts of the Wilderness are nothing but dust from the past."

Hearing this, Fang Qingyuan immediately latched onto a few keywords: over two hundred years ago, and Ancient Beasts of the Wilderness.

This instantly brought to Fang Qingyuan’s mind the Reclamation War of 270 years ago. Back then, Qingfeng Mountain and the lands around Celestial Gate Mountain were all part of the Barbaric Wilderness. It was only after the Great Zhou Academy launched the war and decisively defeated the Ancient Beasts of the Wilderness in this region that the Southern Border was established.

This giant beast must have been on the side of the Barbaric Wilderness forces during that war. It likely hid here after the defeat, but for some reason, it had ended up in this miserable state.

And her wish to keep the truth from her child was born from the fear that it would live a life of hatred, foolishly seeking revenge against humanity without understanding its own limitations.

Understanding the beast’s concerns, Fang Qingyuan thought for a moment before asking another question:

"In the future, will I be able to bring your child to visit you? And... is its father still alive?"

Another familiar silence followed, but this time, the answer came much more quickly to Fang Qingyuan’s mind:

"Don’t let it see me like this. I am already dead. What’s speaking to you now is merely a lingering wisp of my consciousness. Years ago, I was struck by a treacherous attack from a Divinity Transformation Cultivator, which turned all my life force into ghostly energy. My husband exhausted his Path of Origin to save me, which is the only reason I didn’t perish on the spot."

"It was my husband who placed me here, promising he would return to rescue our child and me. But more than two hundred years have passed. He never returned. I suppose he must be well and truly dead by now."

Fang Qingyuan couldn’t help but sigh. In his past life, this would have been a heart-wrenching drama. But here and now, besides him, no one knew of this tragedy, and no one cared.

Fang Qingyuan wanted to ask more, but the gentle voice in his mind gradually turned bone-chillingly cold:

"Human, I have told you more than enough. All you need to do is take my child away, and you will receive the corpse of a Nascent Soul Stage beast. That should be more than enough to satisfy your greed."

Sensing the impatience in the voice, Fang Qingyuan was instantly reminded that his life hung by a thread, dependent on her whims. He immediately shut his mouth.

However, the giant beast spoke again:

"No. Humans are greedy and untrustworthy. Even when they gain much, they always want more. I cannot simply entrust my child to you like this."

Fang Qingyuan’s expression changed drastically. ’How can this beast’s personality shift so fast?’ he thought. ’One moment she’s a benevolent mother, and the next she’s like a paranoid, resentful shrew.’

Before Fang Qingyuan could react, a scorching and tyrannical wave of Gold Spirit Power surged into his body, finally coiling itself inside his lungs.

The immense, sharp Gold Spirit Power flooded his system. Intense pain instantly beaded his forehead with cold sweat. He let out a muffled grunt, gritted his teeth, and bore the agony.

Then, the bone-chilling female voice sounded once more:

"This Gold Spirit Power is one of my Original Divine Techniques. Only my child can soothe and regulate it. This is to prevent you from double-crossing me and murdering my child. But rest assured, if my child grows up safely, this Gold Spirit Power will become a great boon for you. If, however, my child meets an untimely demise, then you shall be buried with it."

Hearing this, Fang Qingyuan noticed that the once-dense Gold Spirit Power in the area had thinned considerably. ’It seems the missing portion,’ he realized, ’is now sealed inside my body.’

This was a "boon" Fang Qingyuan definitely did not want. But at this point, he was in no position to refuse. Enduring the intense pain, he managed to speak:

"Since you have already put your measures in place, Senior... when will your child be entrusted to me?"