Chapter 15: Happily Acquired a Mount... 1 Cub

In all the time he had possessed the system, it had only spoken on its own twice. This third occurrence caught Su Tan off guard. Because the first two instances had been related to equipment, he assumed the system only provided guidance for items. Apparently, that wasn't entirely true.

"DING! Matching complete. Would you like to view?"

"View!" Su Tan didn't hesitate.

"DING! The reason for the inability to treat the little wolfdog has been analyzed. Because the little wolfdog's Physique and other attributes differ significantly from the host's, there is severe depletion when infusing lifeforce. Reducing this depletion will allow the young beast to be saved. The methods are as follows:

"First, extract a drop of blood from the center of the young beast's brow and equip it to an Equipment Slot. This will align the little wolfdog's attributes with the host's. The primary purpose is to reduce depletion during the lifeforce transfer, and the secondary purpose is to force the little wolfdog to acknowledge you as its master.

"Second, considering the little wolfdog's core origin is damaged, it cannot heal in the short term. Rushing the transfer will only be a wasted effort. It is recommended to transfer lifeforce once a day. Over time, it will naturally recover!

"Third, an extraordinary bloodline has been detected in the little wolfdog. It is recommended that the host heal and nurture it, as it can serve as a great aid in the future!"

The system's messages popped up in his mind one after another. Upon seeing the first point, Su Tan had already lost the desire to follow the suggestion.

He had to waste an Equipment Slot just to save this thing? It had to be a joke. Equipment Slots were incredibly precious! He only had one left, and he still had no idea how to expand the Inventory in his mind. Although he felt a twinge of pity, his rationality told him that he couldn't waste a slot on the little guy, especially when he considered his current situation and everything he would have to face in the future.

By the time he read the second point, Su Tan had completely tossed the idea out the window. Not only would it waste a slot, but he would also have to transfer lifeforce to the beast every single day, and it would take countless days before it might even heal. He didn't have that kind of time. It was a completely thankless task!

But when he saw the third point...

Su Tan had to admit, he was tempted. With the system's guidance and its extraordinary bloodline, he might just be able to raise this little guy into a peerless Fierce Beast.

According to the village chief, high-tier Demon Beasts were incredibly rare to encounter. Many adult Demon Beasts would rather die than submit to humans, making them harder to tame than scaling the heavens. Young beasts were relatively easier to tame, but they were still exceedingly rare. Every young beast was guarded by an incredibly foul-tempered mother who would fight to the bitter end against anyone who dared to target her child. Even if a young beast was accidentally captured, the mother would do everything in her power to rescue it so it wouldn't become a human's slave. If rescue was impossible, they would choose mutual destruction and kill the cub themselves!

All these difficulties made Demon Beast mounts exceptionally rare. Even for the Celestial Fragrance royal family, obtaining one was no easy feat. One could only imagine what this cub truly represented.

"Once it acknowledges me as its master, I can control it. If I set a life-binding pact, it will die if I die!" These were all fascinating anecdotes Su Tan had learned from the village chief.

Su Tan felt that he could actually save this little beast. But a moment later, his expression drastically changed as he thought of a serious problem!

"This little guy has an extraordinary bloodline, but why is it in my garden? It's so small, it must have been born recently. Does that mean there's a terrifying mother Demon Beast right behind it?" Su Tan thought in a panic. "Given how Demon Beasts operate, its mother will definitely track it down. When that happens, will she just instantly kill me?"

It didn't take a genius to figure it out. How could the parents of a Demon Beast with an "extraordinary bloodline" be ordinary? That terrifying beast might even be closing in on this location right now.

Su Tan's face paled. He couldn't keep this little guy. As he was now, what right did he have to challenge a powerful Demon Beast?

"I don't even know if it's too late to run!" he muttered.

He wanted to flee, but how could a blind man escape? Where would he even go?

"I need to get the village chief and the others to lead the way. Chen Family Village... is about to face a massive catastrophe!"

As for nurturing the young beast, Su Tan wasn't even considering it anymore. Just surviving was a problem right now. At first, he thought it was just a neighbor's puppy that had wandered into his garden by mistake. Now, it was clear—this was a ticking time bomb, a walking disaster!

"DING! Based on the host's concerns, the system has automatically analyzed the following data on the little wolfdog in hopes of assisting the host!

"The little wolfdog's protective aura of blood and bone has dissipated. This is a halo bestowed by the mother beast. Its disappearance indicates that the young beast no longer has living parents. This is an orphaned cub, so please use it with peace of mind!"

An orphan?

"A protective aura? Young beasts have something like that? Why hasn't the village chief ever mentioned it?" Su Tan asked aloud.

However, after a moment's thought, he realized this was the system. Its knowledge base far exceeded human imagination. Perhaps the village chief didn't know about the protective aura either. Regardless, this was good news. Su Tan, who had been ready to run for his life, finally calmed down.

No parents?

Su Tan weighed his options over and over again before falling into a brief silence. What else was there to say? He was definitely going to force it into a master-servant pact immediately! A young beast with a boundless future was well worth wasting an Equipment Slot.

Exerting a Herculean effort, Su Tan extracted a drop of lifeblood from the center of the little wolfdog's brow and equipped it into the Equipment Slot. During the process, the young beast seemed to realize what was happening. It continually bared its fangs and struggled in resistance, but it was useless. Its strength was far too weak to contend with him.

"Stop struggling, little guy. I'm saving you," Su Tan said. "If I don't do this, you'll die!"

"DING! Equipment successful! DING! Master acknowledgment successful...

"Congratulations to the host for acquiring a mount: One Holy White Wolf bloodline!"

With the pact complete, Su Tan felt a mysterious connection form between himself and the young beast. Even in his dark, sightless world, he could acutely sense its presence and exact location. It was just like being able to feel his own arm with his eyes closed. The little guy's existence now felt like a part of his own body.

An image of the young beast appeared in his mind. It was a cute little thing, though the visual was slightly blurred. Su Tan felt that he could control this image with his mind, or even... destroy it. He knew that if he crushed that mental image, the little wolfdog would instantly die.

That was what acknowledging a master meant!

"AWOO... AWOO..." The young cub howled in dissatisfaction, well aware of what had just happened to it, and let out tiny roars at Su Tan.

"Stop yelling, little guy. You might just thank me in the future." Su Tan shrugged. "Alright, I can treat you now!"

Ignoring its displeasure, Su Tan figured that since the beast had acknowledged him as its master, he should give it some benefits. Why would he bother coddling the emotions of a tiny creature whose intellect probably hadn't even fully developed yet? He placed his palm back over the young beast's body.

The young beast felt as though the crushing weight of a mountain had slammed down on it. It continued to squirm, but as the lifeforce poured in, its struggles gradually subsided. Eventually, it stopped moving altogether. As time passed, a shameless look of enjoyment unwittingly crept onto its little face.

"It really worked," Su Tan noted. "Before, if the energy I infused was a 1, the lifeforce the young beast lost was probably a 2 or a bit more. Now, the amount of lifeforce I'm pouring in is almost ten times what it's losing!"

The young beast was recovering at a visible rate. Its wounds healed, its fur regained a healthy sheen, and its vitality surged.

"Congratulations, you get to live!" After a long while, Su Tan withdrew his hand and chuckled softly.