"Making mud balls?"

Chen Yu imagined himself concentrating his energy, then squatting on the ground rolling mud balls...

Well, that really didn't seem very elegant.

Seeing his expression, Shao Qingsong immediately understood.

"No wonder, junior brother. When I first saw this technique, I had the same doubts."

"Although this technique may seem crude, it was specifically recommended for you by Senior Sister Gong."

"Senior Sister Gong?"

Chen Yu remembered that skilled medical cultivator with a cool temperament - the Guiyuan Needles technique for treating Petrification Disease had also come from her.

"Exactly. She knows you've mastered Object Manipulation and have established a foundation."

"This Mud Pellet Sword Crafting technique is originally mediocre. Before combat, one needs to gather soil, especially clay being best, to knead into pellets."

"Then apply secret methods and Spiritual Energy to refine them, creating mud sword pellets that can be used anytime. With sufficient preparation, one can launch multiple swords simultaneously, though their power is average - against thick-skinned magical creatures, it's like scratching an itch."

"But when combined with your exquisite Object Manipulation technique, the number of sword pellets can double, control becomes more effortless, and the power can reach another level."

Huh?

Wasn't this the ultimate upgraded version of the Poison Stinger Sword?

And this technique truly met his requirements.

Using mud meant materials were readily available, requiring no rare treasures - plus, Zeyarila didn't have those conditions anyway.

Controlling over a dozen sword pellets at once, tsk tsk tsk... that scene would definitely be more spectacular than Object Manipulation, sufficient for dealing with some group-dwelling magical creatures.

"Senior brother, no need to say more. I'm quite satisfied."

After taking the sword pellet manual, Chen Yu brought up the matter of beast taming.

"Ahem... junior brother, you're really diligent."

"I remember the sect rules state that taming spiritual beasts requires first obtaining a 'Beast Taming License', registering them, putting the spiritual beasts into the 'Beast Registry'... the procedures here are quite cumbersome..."

His tone suddenly shifted, voice dropping very low as he leaned closer: "However, rules are rigid but paths are flexible. Outer sect Enforcement Hall's Elder Wang recently seems to be repairing the formations at his 'Wave-listening Cottage'..."

Alright.

Chen Yu understood now.

Shao Qingsong had only one meaning.

Pay up!

The "Beast Taming License" was essentially a driver's license.

In the Three Origins Sect, even if a Druid came, they'd have to get the license before they could legally operate.

Without the Beast Taming License, one couldn't even learn beast taming techniques - probably just riding a flying spiritual beast out would get them pulled down by Enforcement Hall senior brothers.

Fine then, troubles that can be solved with spirit stones aren't really troubles.

Chen Yu readily took out four spirit stones, bid farewell to Shao Qingsong, returned to the thatched cottage, and fed some meat to the two little slimes still laboring away at their "black market work".

He then eagerly sat at the desk and unfolded that "Mud Pellet Sword Crafting" manual.

The more he read, the more fascinated he became.

This thing was less a technique and more specifically a refining method for crafting sword pellets.

Soil gathering, kneading, and shaping were just basics - the core lay in using unique secret methods combined with Spiritual Energy for repeated tempering, transforming ordinary mud into "sword seeds" containing earth element's substantial power.

Even better, successfully refined sword pellets, when nourished with one's own essence blood over time, could be controlled as easily as one's own arm, recalled with just a thought.

Like they'd been enchanted with loyalty.

The attack range received an epic-level enhancement - just Lv.1 could reach two meters, plus the initial speed from Object Manipulation could boost it to about four meters.

With Object Manipulation above Lv.3 providing precise control, the number of mud sword pellets controllable with "Mud Pellet Sword Crafting Lv.1" could double from two to four.

"Now this is more like it... a sword immortal who makes mud balls is still a sword immortal."

When his consciousness returned to the slime body, he slowly opened his eyes in the creaking treehouse, feeling the treehouse trembling slightly, the sound of rain hitting becoming more distinct.

It seemed the storm had arrived.

He carefully pushed open a crack in the door with his body - with a splash, rain poured in with the wind, coolly seeping into his gel.

The outside world was pitch black, completely submerged by the noisy rain curtain.

Worried Little Ka might be blown away by the wind, he temporarily created a sliding channel, smoothly slipping all the way down into the slime nest.

Peeking inside, he found it amusing.

The little guy was pitifully curled up in the warm corner of the nest, while those playful little slimes were using its body as a trampoline, happily bouncing "squish, squish" on it.

Little Ka lay prone, not daring to move around, and when it saw him approach, could only emit a pitiful whimper.

Chen Yu estimated this torrential rain feast would probably last several days - its identity as a "temporary trampoline" was unavoidable.

Poor thing, still reduced to being the slimes' plaything.

Chen Yu checked around the castle some more.

The reinforced Poison-stinger Wasp nest stood like a solid fortress, with the Poison-stinger Wasps resting with folded wings in their warm nest chambers.

The Moss Monsters had also been driven into the damp underground shelter, curled into green fuzzy balls, sleeping peacefully.

Everything in the castle was safe and sound.

He finally felt relieved.

So he returned to the slime nest, hopping to the cave entrance.

At this moment, Slime Mother was squatting at the cave entrance quietly guarding the nest, with several smaller slime babies snuggled closely beside her, curiously blinking their eyes, peering through gaps in the rain curtain at the unfamiliar outside world.

He stood guard on the other side, carefully grabbed some mud, and began rolling balls, practicing sword pellet refinement.

"Rumble..."

The heavy rain continued relentlessly, swallowing the entire world.

While peaceful days continued here in Oak Territory, deep within the forest...

Arthur silently cleaved through the final banyan tree curtain, the scene before him suddenly opening up.

A vast lake with turbid waves surged into view, he saw cold lake water beating against muddy shores, distant forests swaying like dark shadows.

The skeletal warhorse stopped, Arthur silently gazing at this unfamiliar lake.

The good news was, he was out.

The bad news was, he hadn't intended to come out.

"Splash!"

Count Bran popped out like a soaked black furball, first guiltily glancing at the knight, then clearing his throat lightly and proudly raising his head.

"Ahem, what did this count say? Passing through that annoying banyan tree maze would inevitably... uh... get us out of the swamp, yes, exactly!"

"Thanks to this count's heroic wisdom, we've temporarily escaped that Swamp Lord's malicious magical influence."

His little chest puffed out straight, tone filled with commanding confidence:

"Retainer, don't be fooled by this temporary safety."

"Now, right now, taking advantage of this heavy rain disrupting magic perfect opportunity, we immediately turn back."

"This count's intuition tells me that magic definitely hasn't recovered yet!"

"Good."

Arthur nodded, slowly pulling the reins to turn the skeletal warhorse around, heading back the way they came.

He felt Count Bran, as usual, remained full of wisdom.

Always able to see the most essential truth through chaotic phenomena.

And his own intuition was indeed telling him he wasn't far from that Nature's Blessed.

Truly worthy of Count Bran...