A Ferocious Spiritual Beast

Mei Chao Bing tried to wake up Yun Bei Fen only to get a few unintelligible grumbles in return. He looked at him and could hardly hold back a grin. It seemed that his little bunny had been too embarrassed yesterday to actually sleep.

It felt a bit strange when thinking about how they had been so close ever since they traveled to the border region. Shouldn't he already be past this point? After all, they had always slept next to each other and Yun Bei Fen hadn't been shy about kissing him or snuggling up to him either.

Mei Chao Bing finally sighed and only pulled Yun Bei Fen's arms off his body, getting up himself. He went to look for Da Hei who hadn't come back last night at all, sending him to watch over Yun Bei Fen, and then went to the square where the other disciples had already gathered. He would first see if the Elders had anything to say. After that, he could still go and drag Yun Bei Fen out of bed. Until then, he might as well let him sleep a little bit.

As soon as he arrived, Mei Chao Bing felt that something was off. There were a few gazes following him, some of which were wary. He almost furrowed his brows, wondering if this was once again because of the situation with his Master or rather the things that happened in the border region recently. Well, most likely, it was a bit of both.

He looked around and finally spotted Yuan Lei who was standing at the side together with Yi Ju. He went over, nodding at the two of them. "Did something happen?"

Yuan Lei sighed. "I guess it's nothing major. Just that there are some rumors spreading right now."

Yi Ju nodded but she looked more indignant than Yuan Lei. Most likely, it was just because she was more emotional though and not just not because she had a stronger opinion on this than Yuan Lei.

"What kind of rumor?" He was pretty sure that it was about himself but there was a variety of things people liked to say about him. He'd really like to know which kind it was this time.

Yuan Lei smiled wryly. "Somebody was saying you had some ferocious spiritual animal over in your courtyard."

Mei Chao Bing raised his brows. That was a little different from the usual. Especially since this wasn't just a rumor but actually a fact. A midnight wolf certainly wasn't a lap dog. It wasn't wrong to call it ferocious.

Yi Ju puffed up her cheeks and harrumphed. "They really make up whatever."

Mei Chao Bing gave her a look and then smiled wryly. "Actually, it's not wrong." If it had been in the past, he might have just kept quiet or even denied it. But considering what Gongsun Chen had said the other time, he didn't feel that this was a good thing.

Both Yuan Lei and Yi Ju were in his group. And now, he wasn't just a member of this group but actually their leader. Hiding his strength was something he should do in front of an enemy but not in front of his own allies. If he did that, then they weren't allies at all. He needed to give them the trust he expected in return. That point had been driven home after the matter with the array. So even if having a midnight wolf didn't look too favorable for him, he still admitted it.

Yi Ju's eyes went wide and she stared at him in a daze. "Ah? But why?"

Mei Chao Bing sighed. "Actually, it's nothing much. When I was out with Yun Bei Fen traveling to the border region, I promised to pick up a spiritual beast for him. I thought it would be good if he had one to could protect him."

Yi Ju's eyebrows rose, as did Yuan Lei's.

"Protect him? Doesn't he have a … rabbit?"

Mei Chao Bing's smile turned wry. "He does. That was what he finally decided on. I also would have preferred if he picked something a little … bigger but since he was happy with it, I couldn't bring myself to say no." He looked a little embarrassed, making Yi Ju's expression turn better. Regardless of whether or not he had a ferocious spiritual beast himself, he was obviously a good person if he cared about his fiance so much.

While Yi Ju had already forgotten about the actual question at hand, Yuan Lei couldn't help but probe further. "So that was how he got his spiritual animal. But what about yours?"

"Well, the day he picked up Xiao Hui, I left the two of them at our camp for a while to hunt for something to eat. At that time, they were suddenly attacked by that midnight wolf. I barely made it back in time to save him." Mei Chao Bing's expression turned pained. "Just thinking about it now …" He shook his head. "Well, it's in a midnight wolf's nature to do something like this when they live in the wilderness. So I guess this was to be expected.

"Anyway, Yun Bei Fen wasn't hurt and I couldn't help but take a closer look at the spiritual beast. It was of a rather high level so I couldn't help but feel that this was an opportunity. While spiritual beasts are normally used to help their own Masters, there is nothing speaking against having them protect somebody else either. The command can be given and after forming the contract, the spiritual beast wouldn't defy it.

"So I felt that it would be best to keep it. Not only could it be helpful in the fights against the demonic practitioners in the border region, but it can also keep an eye on Yun Bei Fen and protect him in case I can't be with him."

Mei Chao Bing hadn't held anything back but in this case, that only made people stare more. One of the disciples couldn't help but whisper but on this square that had suddenly fallen silent, this whisper sounded loud enough that he might as well have yelled. "Did you just say that the ferocious animal that was mentioned was a midnight wolf?"

Mei Chao Bing tensed slightly. A midnight wolf did indeed not have a very good reputation. Considering it like that, they actually fit each other very well. There was nothing he could do about that right now though.

And anyway, he was pretty satisfied with Da Hei. Even though it had a bit of an attitude, that was also normal for a beast of that stage. After all, just one stage more and it might even be able to change its form. Naturally, it was very proud. And anyway, it would be a big help in keeping Yun Bei Fen safe.

Whatever else Da Hei did, that was the most important to him. Thus, he just stayed quiet and continued to smile brightly. Since he had already said it, he might as well stand by his original decision.