Troublemaker’s Guide to Immortality

The next morning.

Gu Jinghong arrived early, bringing Gun Gun with him.

"Gu boy, my friend doesn't like meeting strangers. You should leave. At most, it'll be a few hours, and I'll bring Gun Gun back myself," Ling Fei said.

Gu Jinghong bowed respectfully in reply. His feelings toward Ling Fei were complicated. Before the spirit beast powder incident, their relationship had been good. He was one of the few disciples allowed to freely come and go from the Spirit Beast Pavilion.

But that one moment of weakness had ruined everything.

Now, for Ling Fei to still call him "Gu boy"... that alone was enough.

Ling Fei's devotion to spirit beasts was clear to all. Gu Jinghong had no doubts that Gun Gun would be well looked after.

Once Gu Jinghong left, Gun Gun beat its chest proudly. "Senior Ling, where's your friend? Let me, Lord Gun Gun, teach him a lesson."

Seeing how eager the iron-eating beast was to fight, Ling Fei chuckled. "Come, we'll go welcome him at the mountain gate."

Gun Gun's eyes lit up. "Ah, so we're giving him a show of force right at the start. Understood, completely understood."

Ling Fei gave a small smile. "When I tell you to fight, give it your all."

He didn't expect Gun Gun to win. He just wanted it to display its strength and give Yun Jin a sliver of hope.

But Gun Gun didn't think so. It nodded with full confidence. "Don't worry, I, Lord Gun Gun, never lose."

Ling Fei thought the beast understood and gave an approving nod.

At the foot of the mountain, Ling Fei and Gun Gun waited.

Not long after, his message talisman lit up. Ling Fei's eyes brightened. A man in black robes quietly descended in front of him.

The man lifted his hood, smiling calmly. "Ling Fei, it's been a while."

Ling Fei looked at the still-youthful face and sighed. "We once walked the path of cultivation side by side. Now, I'm stuck at the Divine Transformation stage while you've entered the Beastmaster Sect and become someone I can only look up to."

"Our friendship remains the same," Shen Yanye said gently.

But Ling Fei could sense the distance. The smile was kind, yet not the same as before. Such was the cultivation world. Even sworn friends, once their paths and strength diverged, would slowly drift apart. Still, Ling Fei was grateful that Shen Yanye remembered their past and was willing to come.

"Brother Shen, care to join me for tea?"

Shen Yanye nodded indifferently.

He looked young, but had cultivated for nearly a thousand years. He was now a powerhouse at the Tribulation stage, while Ling Fei remained stuck.

They came from the same village and had pursued the Dao together. Their bond was unique. Years ago, when Shen Yanye passed the Beastmaster Sect's trials and prepared to enter the Holy Land, he entrusted his mortal parents to Ling Fei.

Ling Fei had looked after them well, and Shen Yanye remembered that favor. He had once said that he owed Ling Fei a debt, and if Ling Fei ever needed anything, he would answer.

Back then, Ling Fei refused. He said he needed nothing.

But this time, he reached out. He even invoked that old debt.

Ever since stepping into the Tribulation stage, Shen Yanye had felt his progress slow.

His master had told him it was likely due to unfinished karmic ties.

One such tie, he believed, was this favor.

Karma unresolved, ascension delayed.

So he came—for Ling Fei, and for himself.

Ling Fei led Shen Yanye to the peak behind the Spirit Beast Pavilion.

In a small pavilion, tea and refreshments were already set.

"Brother Shen, I shouldn't be calling on old favors like this, but..."

Shen Yanye smiled. "No need to explain. You looked after my parents for a hundred years. I will always owe you. If you need something, speak."

He had brought many things—treasures, talismans, pills, artifacts. Everything he might need to settle this debt.

But Ling Fei shook his head. "I don't want anything material. I only ask you to save someone."

Shen Yanye raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Someone even you can't help?"

Ling Fei's strength was average, but his close friend Bai Yulong was someone not to be underestimated. Normally, there would be no situation he couldn't resolve.

Ling Fei gave a wry smile and explained Yun Jin's predicament.

"In a month, because of a contract, Yun Jin will be forced into a duel. But the other party is already at the Nascent Soul stage. Her cultivation is far too low in comparison. Brother Shen, your power reaches the heavens. Would you be willing to intervene and save her?"

Shen Yanye asked, "What color is the contract paper?"

"Gold," Ling Fei replied with a sigh.

Shen Yanye's expression shifted.

A golden contract meant a vow sworn under Heaven.

No wonder Ling Fei had turned to him.

Only cultivators at the Tribulation stage or above could even hope to resist such contracts.

But the higher one climbed in cultivation, the more weight karma carried.

Heavenly contracts were bound to karma.

If he took on Yun Jin's contract, the karmic burden would fall on him instead. That would surely complicate his path to ascension.

Shen Yanye hesitated.

Ling Fei noticed. A trace of disappointment passed through his eyes.

He didn't blame Shen Yanye. He was simply disheartened. Was there truly no way to break this contract?

That Yun girl, how could she be so reckless, agreeing to something like that?

"When do we fight?" Gun Gun couldn't hold back anymore. It waved its limbs around, shouting in beast language. The quiet tea gathering was boring it to death.

Shen Yanye finally noticed the overexcited iron-eating beast. He raised a brow. "Your beast taming skills must have improved. This one looks well-trained."

Ling Fei quickly said, "This beast belongs to Yun Jin, the one I mentioned. She only contracted it two months ago, and it's already undergone a transformation. I believe she might truly have the potential to become a real Beastmaster."

Ling Fei's gaze held a flicker of hope.

Shen Yanye sighed.

A true Beastmaster? That was no simple thing.

To become one, one had to awaken at least one Beastmaster Talent. The stronger the talent, the more support it could provide to spirit beasts.

Like him.

He had three talents: Courage Boost, Iron Will, and Rebirth in Desperation.

Courage Boost made beasts braver in combat.

Iron Will helped them stay calm in adversity.

Rebirth in Desperation gave a near-death beast one chance at revival.

Of the three, only Rebirth in Desperation was a high-grade talent. The others were mid-grade.

These talents could not be seen or measured directly.

Only through a special spiritual resonance test could one determine if a person had Beastmaster potential.

He and Ling Fei had once undergone that test.

He awakened. Ling Fei did not.

From that moment, their paths diverged.