#### **Scene 1: Farewell to Innocence**
"Xiaoyue, I need to cultivate. Go play by yourself!"
After their playful banter, Su Yun felt restless. The prolonged use of his **Universal Comprehension** skill left him dizzy, as if seasick.
"Why cultivate?" Bai Xiaoyue tilted her head, ears flopping. "Isn't this nice?"
"To grow stronger."
"Why stronger?"
"You'll understand when you're older," Su Yun replied gently, unwilling to shatter her innocence.
"Ugh! You're boring!" Xiaoyue puffed her cheeks and bounded into the forest.
Watching her disappear, Su Yun sighed. "May you never witness this world's darkness."
---
#### **Scene 2: The Human Intruder**
Su Yun hadn't wandered far when a metallic scent hit his nostrils—**blood**.
*Crash!*
A teenager in tattered robes stumbled into view, his face streaked with grime. Behind him, a **Second-stage Shadowstripe Panther** snarled, claws glinting.
"Panther Lord! I'm all bones and bad karma!" The boy dodged a swipe with acrobatic flair. Despite his **First-stage Ninth Tier** cultivation (equivalent to Beast Ninth Tier), his footwork kept him barely ahead.
Both froze upon spotting Su Yun.
Li Bufan's face paled. "Godsdamned fate! Must heaven punish Li Bufan for being *too handsome*? *Too talented*?"
---
#### **Scene 3: Pride Before the Fall**
Su Yun's muzzle twitched. *Did this fool just imply I'm ugly?* Deliberately, he raised his head, four razor-sharp tusks glinting in the sunlight.
"Mother of—!" Li Bufan recoiled. "What kind of abomination *are* you?"
"ABOMINATION?!" Su Yun's horns flared crimson.
"Wait! I meant—"
"TOO LATE!"
Li Bufan backflipped, channeling qi into his leg. "**Phantom Kick**—Taste My—"
*CRACK!*
His kick connected with Su Yun's snout. Li Bufan's ankle snapped.
"MY LEG! MY JADE-LIKE PERFECTION!"
Seizing the distraction, the panther lunged—only to meet Su Yun's horns mid-leap.
**SPLAT!**
The beast's skull shattered like glass. Momentum carried Su Yun crashing into an ancient oak, toppling it with a ground-shaking *BOOM*.
**[Ding: Devoured Second-stage Shadowstripe Panther. Evolution Points +10]**
**[Achievement: "Bullheaded Fury". Reward: **Primitive Horns**. Achievement +1]**
Li Bufan gaped at the carnage. "You… you're not a bull. You're a catastrophe with horns!"
---
#### **Scene 4: The Chase**
Su Yun turned slowly, his obsidian horns now crackling. "Still think I'm unsightly?"
"Noble Lord Bull!" Li Bufan crab-walked backward. "This humble one spoke rashly! Your majesty outshines the moon!"
"Run," Su Yun rumbled. "Let's see how far *flattery* gets you."
---
#### **Scene 5: Truth and Consequences**
Twenty minutes later, Li Bufan collapsed against a tree, wheezing. "Mercy… eighty-year-old mother… eight children…"
"Eight children? At sixteen?" Su Yun snorted. **"Pathetic lie."**
"Fine! Truth!" Li Bufan raised trembling hands. "I'm Li Bufan of the Beast Taming Sect! Came to… *borrow* a companion beast!"
*Beast Taming.* Memories of plow yokes and whips flashed through Su Yun's mind. His horns glowed crimson.
"'Borrow'?"
"**Binding Rings** for temporary control! **Blood Contracts** for mutual gain!" Li Bufan babbled. "But if the beast dies—"
"*You* die." Su Yun finished coldly.
"Exactly! So… partnership?"
**THUNK!** A horn pinned Li Bufan to the tree.
"Ten seconds," Su Yun growled. "Justify your existence."
---
#### **Scene 6: A New Threat**
"The sect hunts a **Spirit Beast White Tiger Cub** nearby!" Li Bufan blurted. "Its lair—"
*Crack.*
A crimson-robed man emerged from shadows, his aura oppressive. **Late-stage Warbeast.**
"Well, well." The man smirked at Su Yun's horns. "A mutated bull? Perfect for my menagerie."
Li Bufan paled. "Senior Brother Wang?!"