The Enigmatic Ao Tian

This horse is the one that Ao Tian used to travel from Spirit City to Nuoding City a year ago.

It was completely white, with a tall and sturdy body, and it was a Thousand-Mile horse specifically chosen by Ao Tian in the Spirit City.

After Ao Tian infused a trace of dragon qi into its body, its body underwent a rapid transformation.

Xiao Wu exclaimed, "Ao Tian, look quickly, it seems like there's something on the horse's back trying to emerge."

Ao Tian waved his hand lightly, creating an invisible barrier around them, hiding this place.

Not only did the horse's back undergo a sudden change, but its snow-white fur started to fall off, rapidly replaced by a dense layer of scales.

With a popping sound, the flesh on the horse's back ruptured, and two snow-white wings burst forth, stretching to a length of about two meters each.

Ao Tian released the reins attached to the horse, and the excited horse let out a long neigh. Its voice changed slightly, sounding somewhat like a dragon's roar.

Under Xiao Wu's bewildered gaze, the horse began to flap its wings and soared into the sky. It wobbled a bit at first, but soon gained balance, hovering in mid-air above them.

"Ao Tian, pinch me." Xiao Wu muttered.

"Why should I pinch you?"

"To see if I'm dreaming."

Ao Tian reached out and pinched Xiao Wu's cheek lightly.

"Ouch, why did you pinch me so hard?" Xiao Wu winced in pain, and her cheeks turned red where Ao Tian had pinched her.

She came to her senses, her voice trembling with amazement, "How did the horse suddenly change like this?"

She was absolutely certain that the horse was just an ordinary horse before, at most slightly stronger than usual. But now, it exuded the aura of a spirit beast.

She had witnessed an ordinary horse evolving into a spirit beast with her own eyes, a situation she had never encountered before.

Usually, spirit beasts were born as such, and it was extremely rare for ordinary animals to evolve into spirit beasts.

Ao Tian didn't immediately answer Xiao Wu's question. Instead, he looked up at the horse as if admiring a piece of art he had created, nodding in satisfaction.

The horse landed gracefully, shrinking its large body a bit, and its scales disappeared. Its wings retracted, leaving no trace.

"Very good." Ao Tian nodded in satisfaction, then pointed his finger several times, causing golden characters to fly out from his fingertip and merge into the horse. They sealed the aura of the spirit beast within it.

Even if a Titled Douluo were to use their spiritual power to probe, they would not be able to detect the presence of a spirit beast within this horse.

Xiao Wu stared at Ao Tian, still dazed. If Ao Tian hadn't pinched her just now, and her face wasn't still stinging, she would have thought this was an illusion.

Moreover, what were those golden characters that flew out of Ao Tian's fingertip just now? Why did the spirit beast's aura suddenly disappear from the horse?

Xiao Wu was extremely sensitive to spirit beast auras, but now, no matter how she sensed it, she couldn't detect any spirit beast aura from the horse.

She looked at Ao Tian with a bewildered expression, waiting for his explanation.

Ao Tian smiled at her and said, "I made it evolve into a spirit beast, and I also concealed its spirit beast aura."

"How is that possible?" Xiao Wu widened her eyes, looking adorable.

A seven-year-old child with only a Spirit Master's cultivation base could actually make an ordinary animal evolve into a spirit beast and hide the spirit beast's aura. It sounded like a fairy tale, something nobody would believe.

"I won't tell you," Ao Tian said.

Pouting, Xiao Wu replied, "You're not treating me like a friend."

"When the time is right for you to know, you will know. When it's not, you never will," Ao Tian replied. With a thought, he stored the Dragon Horse and the carriage into his own space.

"Where's the Dragon Horse?" Xiao Wu exclaimed.

"I've put it into my space," Ao Tian said with a faint smile, then removed the barrier and continued walking toward the nearby town.

"How is that possible? Isn't a storage-type soul tool only capable of storing inanimate objects?" Xiao Wu caught up with him.

"Who told you that storage-type soul tools can only store inanimate objects?" Ao Tian glanced at Xiao Wu.

He remembered Dugu Bo's Wishful Hundred Treasure's Purse, which could store living creatures. If humans could create such soul tools, it was even easier for him. His space was almost like another world, albeit without any living beings. Ao Tian was confident that when his cultivation reached a higher realm, his space might evolve into a real world.

Xiao Wu pouted, following behind Ao Tian without speaking, looking unhappy.

By now, she had realized that Ao Tian was quite mysterious, and her understanding of him was only the tip of the iceberg.

As they approached the city gate, Xiao Wu grabbed Ao Tian and whispered, "Can you help me conceal my spirit beast aura?"

She looked at Ao Tian with anticipation. If she could hide her spirit beast aura, she wouldn't have to worry about being discovered by powerful humans in the future.

"Sure," Ao Tian stopped and sealed Xiao Wu's spirit beast aura.

Entering the Star Dou Forest this time, they might encounter strong humans. If they recognized Xiao Wu's identity, it would inevitably lead to bloodshed. Although Ao Tian wasn't afraid of trouble, he didn't like it.

"Is this enough?" Xiao Wu asked in amazement.

As the golden characters entered her body, it felt like a warm stream flowing inside her, gathering in her mind and disappearing.

Ao Tian nodded and smiled, "From now on, even a Titled Douluo won't be able to discern your identity, but the effect will only last for a little over a month."

"That's fantastic!" Xiao Wu cheered excitedly, suddenly moving in for a kiss to express her gratitude. However, Ao Tian dodged it.

"What's gotten into you?"

"I just wanted to show my gratitude."

"..."

As they entered the small town, it was already nighttime, but the streets were bustling with activity.

All the people coming and going were spirit masters, and Ao Tian noticed that there were many Spirit Saints and Spirit Douluos here.

He had been here before, but the last time he came, there weren't as many powerful individuals here.

Having her spirit beast aura sealed, Xiao Wu felt like she had unloaded a heavy burden, and she became cheerful and carefree.

"Ao Tian, there's a soul tool shop over there!" Xiao Wu exclaimed excitedly, rushing in.

She had long wanted to have her own soul tools, but Nuoding City, being a small place, didn't have such stores. Even though this was just a small town, it was a hub for many spirit masters, so having a soul tool shop wasn't surprising.

Ao Tian shook his head, smiling, and followed her inside.

Inside, a sweet-looking girl in her twenties was enthusiastically introducing the shop's merchandise to Xiao Wu.

Xiao Wu leaned on the glass display case, looking up at the exquisitely crafted female soul tools with shining eyes.

Rings, necklaces, bracelets, belts...