Although the roar sounded as if the fight was close to them, they flew for close to a minute before they finally saw it. Unfortunately, it seemed like it already ended as Lisa and Yiren only saw the last glimpse when some unknown four-legged Beast fell to the ground, mortally wounded.
Yiren's heart hurt just from seeing it suffer, but she couldn't stop it anymore.
"Shh…" Yiren shushed Lisa's complaints as they landed some far away, hiding behind a boulder.
The ground around them was more red as if burned by the sun, filled with many blood-colored boulders. The open scenery turned into a valley, with high mountains on both sides and a blood river in the middle.
When Lisa saw the river from the sky, she instantly knew she wouldn't jump to swim.
"It seems they are hunters…" Yiren pointed out in a whisper as she sneakily peeked from the boulder, checking the situation. "There are five of them…"
They were at the foot of the mountain, watching from a few hundred meters away. If they approached any closer, the hunters would most likely discover them.
"How did you guess it? Is it because they are wearing leather gear, and they are in the middle of hunting?" Lisa pointed out playfully, but Yiren only nodded thoughtfully, making her speechless.
"Whoa… So many new friends…" Yiren muttered in amazement as her gaze spotted five Beasts gathered around their fallen brother. Their teeth were soaked in blood, showing they were the ones who defeated the Beast.
They were not attacking the Cultivators but instead fought for them as if being Hunter's companion Beasts. How amazing was it?
"Did they tame them?" Lisa questioned in wonder as she laid next to Yiren, peeking together with her. "Seems like they are Beast Tamers."
"Huh? Beast Tamers?" Yiren asked, passionate about anything with beasts.
"Mhmm, my Spirit just told me. They use various methods to befriend a wild Beasts before using them to battle," Lisa explained. "They connect their souls with them, creating a link that allows them to communicate. Unfortunately, there is a limit to how many Beasts they can tame, which makes their strength limited. Once their Beast is defeated, they are usually useless. That's why Beast Taming is considered only a side profession."
"How lucky… The Hunters can play and meet new friends every day…" Yiren whispered in wonder. "I wish I could become a Beast Tamer…"
Yiren asked her own Spirit if she knew all of this, but unfortunately, she never had contact with Beast Tamers. If that was the case, she would become one long time ago.
"But aren't you one already? You can tame Beast as easy as snapping your fingers. Isn't that exactly what Beast Taming is?" Lisa pointed out.
"Oh! I guess I am!" Yiren exclaimed only to shut her mouth with her hand, forgetting they had to be silent.
They looked at the five hunters in the distance, but it seemed like they didn't hear her, still busy with their prey.
"Look, Spirit Artefact is forming…" Yiren nudged Lisa with a shoulder, pointing at the fallen Beast.
The soul of all Spirit Beasts was unique and had a small chance of turning into a Spirit Artefact instead of dying. Cultivators could then use those Artefacts, unleashing its power in battle. Usually, it was a weapon with special ability passed on from the Spirit Beast, but most of the time, the soul turned into a simple Beast Stone. Crafting Masters would later turn them into man-made Spirit Artefacts, but obviously, they were much weaker than natural Spirit Artefacts.
"Oh… It's an ax. Good for them," Yiren nodded in approval. "At least the Spirit Beast's Soul can live forever in the hands of that man. Better than nothing."
"Sigh, I wish some Spirit Beasts dropped a cauldron for me so I can make better pills. Being an alchemist is hard," Lisa shed light on the clear discrimination.
Seeing the hunters began cutting the Beast for its meat, Yiren suggested, "How about we approach them and ask to take us to the closest city? It would be much easier finding Xuefeng if we have a map or something."
They didn't know much about Heaven's Realm, and their Spirit's knowledge was limited as well. Aside from the Cultivation tips and general knowledge, they still needed to explore for more information.
"Do you think we can trust them? What if they decide to attack, rob, or even worse, assault us?" Lisa questioned suspiciously. "We don't know them. We shouldn't trust anyone easily, especially when big sister is such a beauty. They might want to kidnap us and sell to a brothel."
Lisa shivered at her own words.
"We won't know until we check. I don't think everyone is evil," Yiren said innocently, peeking over the boulder to get another look at the hunters on to freeze, realizing they were gone. "Huh? Where—"
"What do you think you are doing?!"
A shout from behind cut off her words. The girls turned around swiftly and saw five hunters hovering in the sky behind their Beast Companions.
Grrrr…
The five Beasts growled at them while displaying its sharp row of teeth.
"Are you spying on us to steal our prey?! Did you think we wouldn't notice you? My Brutus noticed you five minutes ago!" One of the men in red skull masks shouted.
The Brutus he mentioned was a massive wolf, almost five meters long with shiny red and black fur. It howled at the mention of his name, glaring at them as if ready to pounce.
"No! We were just watching curiously! I—" Yiren tried to explain as they hopped down from the boulder, but the man cut her off, "That's what all thieves say! Where is your group hiding?! Were you meant to act as a diversion? This trick is too old! No one will fall for it anymore!"
He didn't give them any more chances to prove themselves and quickly ordered.
"Brutus, take care of them."
