"Chirp chirp... (I can be your animal companion now!)"
Upon hearing the little fox's tender voice, Qi Ping withdrew from his state of cultivation.
As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw the little fox rubbing its head against him, its eyes—which radiated a mysterious power—blinking in anticipation.
The eyes of the Fairy-Trance Spirit Fox were the primary organs for its illusions and contained a very unique power.
Even though this little fox was still a cub, the brilliance in its eyes was the most fantastical and magnificent Qi Ping had ever seen. It was entirely different from Ya Ya's eyes, which were steady and flickered with the intent of flames.
"Good! Then let's sign the animal companion contract!"
"Chirp chirp... (Okay!)"
The little fox did not hesitate and happily agreed.
It was already eager to become Qi Ping's animal companion!
Under the little fox's astonished gaze, a deep green array brimming with mysterious colors slowly rose.
This array emitted an aura that made the fox feel extremely joyful and comfortable—just like the aura radiating from Qi Ping.
Thus, when the unique array slowly merged into its body, it didn't feel the slightest discomfort; on the contrary, it felt wonderful.
Immediately following that, a surge of miraculous power emerged, beginning to slowly transform both Qi Ping and the little fox.
A unique connection gradually rose between the man and the beast.
The duration of this contract was not short. Perhaps because the bloodline rank was getting higher, it took more time than it did with Ya Ya when she was still a Li-Fire Crow.
It was nearly four hours later when the ritual was finally complete.
Perhaps because the transformation of a spirit-soul talent required more time, when Qi Ping woke from his trance-like state, the little fox had already been awake for a while.
It was currently lying lazily across Qi Ping's thighs.
Seeing him wake up, it jumped up in an instant.
It felt incredibly miraculous. After the contract, its body seemed to have been washed by a divine power, making its form feel lighter.
Most importantly, it felt a very tight connection with Qi Ping.
It had just tried walking a long distance, and even when it hid behind a large tree and closed its eyes, it could still feel Qi Ping's presence.
This was simply too amazing to it.
Furthermore, it seemed it could do more than just feel him; it could even talk to him from a distance without opening its mouth...
But since Qi Ping hadn't woken up yet, it hadn't dared to disturb him. It had played until it was tired before crawling back into his arms.
So now that Qi Ping was awake, it couldn't wait to start asking questions.
Qi Ping answered each of the little fox's queries one by one.
After patiently resolving its doubts, he let it go off to play on the mountain peak, though he cautioned it not to leave the peak.
It wasn't allowed to fight with the other little animals on the different peaks.
The bees and the sunbathing Ya Ya were also his companions, and it could seek them out if it needed help...
"Chirp chirp... (Okay, boss! I've remembered it all. I'm going to play now!)"
The little fox scampered off as soon as it finished speaking.
Qi Ping could understand this. A cub of this age was different from the bees and Ya Ya; it was at an age where it loved to play.
With the bees watching over it, Qi Ping wasn't worried about its safety or it getting lost.
After watching the little fox run off, Qi Ping turned his focus entirely toward the spirit-soul that had just transformed and the understanding he had gained.
Feeling a completely different spirit-soul and the formidable power of his divine sense, a smile he couldn't hide spread across his face.
"Fairy-Trance Divine Seal!"
His luck had truly exploded!
Qi Ping had directly shared his most anticipated talent: [Fairy-Trance Divine Seal]!
[Shared Talent: Fairy-Trance Divine Seal]
[Fairy-Trance Divine Seal: Within your body exists a unique rule-seal that strengthens your spirit-soul and divine sense. The power of this seal originates from the Fairy-Trance bloodline. Those who possess this seal have a solid spirit-soul and powerful divine sense, along with extremely high resistance to illusions.]
Looking at the additional talent on his attribute panel, the joy in Qi Ping's heart was indescribable.
The soul was one of the most important foundations on the path of cultivation. Its importance required no further explanation.
Furthermore, increasing soul strength was much harder than accumulating spiritual energy. This could be seen from the fact that the price of soul-attribute pills far exceeded those of spiritual energy pills of the same rank.
Starting from the late stages of Qi Refinement, and especially after breaking through to Foundation Establishment, soul strength became one of the primary factors restricting breakthroughs.
When soul strength was insufficient, it led to a lack of control over the physical body and spiritual power, as well as a lack of comprehension.
These issues weren't obvious during normal cultivation, but their impact was immense during breakthroughs or high-intensity combat.
One or two forced breakthroughs might not carry much risk, but if one attempted it multiple times, the probability of failure—and the subsequent death and erasure from existence—became very high...
'Now, the weakness of my insufficient soul and comprehension can finally be somewhat remedied!'
With this problem solved, Qi Ping's future cultivation path would be much smoother. In the short term, soul strength would not be a bottleneck for his breakthroughs.
The most direct result was that he estimated he wouldn't need to worry about soul strength until he reached the Golden Core stage. In the future, grasping Flame Intent would also become much easier.
Qi Ping's natural soul and comprehension were average. Even though his soul was tempered by the constant consumption and recovery while using Plant Growth, it was like a Low-Grade spirit root—if the innate quality was poor, no amount of training would yield extraordinary results.
But now that his soul talent was supplemented, the speed of his soul's growth would continue to increase, creating a virtuous cycle.
Even the efficiency of using Plant Growth would significantly improve.
'Let's see what changes there are in cultivating techniques and sensing Flame Intent after gaining the [Fairy-Trance Divine Seal] talent...'
After adjusting his state, Qi Ping began cultivating with eager anticipation.
Over the next several hours, he tested the differences in practicing the Wood-Flame Manual, the Explosive Flame spell, and sensing Flame Intent compared to before.
In the end, Qi Ping had only one word:
"Fantastic!"
Although the boost to comprehension wasn't particularly glaring, his sensory acuity—for instance, his perception of spiritual energy and the intent of arrays—was no longer on the same level as before.
The difference could be directly compared to how he felt before and after obtaining the [Sun-Fire Physique].
The difference was like heaven and earth!
By this point, the shortfalls in Qi Ping's soul were essentially resolved. His goal of finding a soul-attribute pet was perfectly fulfilled.
'But the harvest isn't over yet!'
After testing the effects of the [Fairy-Trance Divine Seal], Qi Ping turned his gaze toward the other spirit beast:
The Hundred-Eyed Flower Demon!
The rarity of this spirit beast was arguably even higher than that of the Fairy-Trance Spirit Fox!