Chapter 2693 - 2694: Strange Tales

The total number of artifacts collected by Li Mountain Village exceeded Feng Yuan’s expectations. Initially, Feng Yuan thought he could quickly sweep through them, but due to the need to carefully appreciate them, he had only managed to view the artifacts from the first few decades by bedtime.

"Indeed, the reference materials here are exceptionally rich, though somewhat overwhelmingly so."

With a helpless smile, Feng Yuan shifted his gaze from the artifacts in front of him, rubbed his eyes, and glanced at the yawning Xiao Ji and the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound sleeping nearby and said,

"Let’s call it a day. Tomorrow... Fluffy Fire Wolfhound, how about you roam around nearby by yourself? They probably won’t trouble you."

Unlike Bian Shui Fort and Chishan Village, Li Mountain Village is quite a unique place. Feng Yuan wasn’t certain if they’d allow Spirit Beasts to roam freely. He imagined they wouldn’t prevent it unless they were worried about someone being unruly and causing trouble, which would be another matter altogether.

The Fluffy Fire Wolfhound doesn’t have any ill intentions, and at least this one isn’t mischievous or destructive, so Feng Yuan felt assured letting it roam freely here.

As for why not let it follow me? You can tell by its current state that such archival research is extremely dull for the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound.

Xiao Ji, of course, didn’t like it either, but Feng Yuan was doing this research entirely to help it create a special Spirit Beast Decoration, so Xiao Ji couldn’t just abandon Feng Yuan to train on its own.

Thus, Feng Yuan didn’t arrange for Xiao Ji to roam freely, as it would definitely follow him anyway. He didn’t bother to say much more.

Suddenly awakened by Feng Yuan, the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound groggily almost tripped itself, taking quite a while before regaining its energy. It wagged its tail at Feng Yuan as if asking what he had called it for.

Veronia glanced at Feng Yuan and chuckled,

"It seems like it didn’t quite catch what you were saying."

Feng Yuan had to repeat his earlier words, and seeing the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound didn’t object, he said,

"Then it’s decided. Tomorrow after breakfast, roam around nearby by yourself. By the way, don’t use any ultimate moves on buildings or things that might be buildings."

To avoid misunderstandings, Feng Yuan had to caution the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound, otherwise, it might accidentally cause some trouble, and Li Mountain Village is quite important to Cha Mu Town.

The Fluffy Fire Wolfhound wagged its tail and barked in agreement. Feng Yuan watched it for a while without further instruction, as he didn’t expect it to deceive him.

As long as it doesn’t set fire to Li Mountain Village, Feng Yuan believed that even if it caused some minor trouble, it could be managed, and besides, the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound wouldn’t just recklessly cause havoc, right?

Unlike Chishan Village and Bian Shui Fort, Li Mountain Village hasn’t been renovated for tourism. Feng Yuan stayed in the guest building located at the front of Li Mountain Village. Among the four directions of the village, the north housed the former weapon storage and the entrance to Li Mountain, where one would enter to offer tributes to the ancestral mausoleum.

In the west were the archives and a row of village buildings outside them where Beastmasters on patrol and night watch could rest.

In the east were the exhibition rooms and outside, village buildings for guards to stay, with aerial corridors connecting these areas.

However, the southern entrance was flanked by two somewhat isolated guest buildings. The guest buildings themselves were not crude and were quite well-decorated, but they weren’t connected to any of Li Mountain Village’s buildings and were even situated outside the circle of village buildings.

Feng Yuan could understand why it was designed this way, as people coming to review the materials might not be trustworthy. Arranging them outside the village’s defense circle made sense to prevent internal collusion.

Though they were called guest buildings, in reality, they were just accommodations for those coming to review materials, like the high-level figures from Cha Mu Town such as He Nanqing, who wouldn’t stay here but would rest in the previously used weapon storage in the north.

Though the modern era no longer necessitates a weapon storage, Li Mountain Village hasn’t completely abandoned it, rather it was preserved and renovated to provide lodging for trusted Beastmasters.

Compared to the inside of Li Mountain Village, the guest buildings had a more formal decor, or rather, lacked the domestic feel. However, Feng Yuan didn’t have much to fuss over since the decor wasn’t much different from regular hotels, and he didn’t have high requirements for living environments.

Early the next morning, having dealt with breakfast, Feng Yuan continued his research while the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound roamed around Li Mountain Village.

Perhaps due to Feng Yuan not being by its side, the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound strutted arrogantly through Li Mountain Village. The soldiers who had once stationed at Bian Shui Fort were well acquainted with this Beast Tamer accompanying Feng Yuan, so no one paid it any attention.

The Beastmasters at Li Mountain Village weren’t aware that the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound was Feng Yuan’s Beast Tamer, but seeing the soldiers ignore it, they naturally let it be.

They wouldn’t presume to be more vigilant than those soldiers, knowing that the soldiers were more professional in this regard.

Certainly, some pondered whether it might be Feng Yuan’s Beast Tamer, as it wasn’t unheard of for researchers to let their Spirit Beasts roam freely in the village, but their beasts were usually not so bold.

Unfortunately, the cocky Fluffy Fire Wolfhound hadn’t walked far before being thrashed by a Spirit Beast disapproving of its swaggering gait. With precision typical of a Combat Series Spirit Beast, it struck hard enough to hurt but left no mark.

The crying Fluffy Fire Wolfhound dashed out of Li Mountain Village, not intending to seek Feng Yuan’s help in regaining its dignity, as the attacker wasn’t particularly harsh, and there was no evidence for claims.

Feng Yuan was oblivious to the Fluffy Fire Wolfhound’s beating due to its arrogance. The archives gave Feng Yuan a headache, but he had to glance through them patiently to create a special Spirit Beast Decoration.

Veronia didn’t find it so difficult, skimming over the parts she wasn’t interested in. When noon arrived, she checked her phone for the time and said to Feng Yuan who was still flipping through the books,

"It’s lunchtime, are you not planning to take a break?"

"Well, just a bit more, this part will be done soon. Tch, there’s actually such a change, the longer the time, the more odd things you’ll encounter."

"Hmm?"

Upon hearing Feng Yuan’s words, Veronia leaned in curiously, intrigued by those peculiar things, as such strange tales were generally quite fascinating.

"Ancestor Spirit? This thing shouldn’t exist."

After reviewing the records, Veronia exclaimed in astonishment. It was an eyewitness account of an Ancestor Spirit, described as a Spiritual Body with a wide coverage of Finishing Move Attributes, somewhat akin to Divine Beasts.

The situation wasn’t complex; someone encountered an assassin lying in ambush behind Li Mountain Village, and when they were on the verge of success, the Ancestor Spirit appeared and saved the person.

"Surely there’s no such thing, but an unusual Spiritual Body? Never heard of it. I wonder if Long Boduo has heard of it."

Scratching his head, Feng Yuan muttered. Such a thing as Ancestor Spirit shouldn’t exist due to the Netherworld’s existence, confirming the presence of Wandering Ghosts in the world.

But those Wandering Ghosts are merely Spiritual Bodies, to say they could intervene in reality or even unleash Finishing Moves seemed far-fetched.

If it were a Spirit Beast, Feng Yuan indeed hadn’t heard of any that resembled Ancestor Spirits, as they are named such likely because they resemble humans.

Spirit Beasts haven’t just manifested overnight; humans have some understanding of them from all eras. It’s not possible to confuse Spirit Beasts with strange things.

Thus, Feng Yuan didn’t suspect they confused an unknown Spirit Beast with an Ancestor Spirit, particularly since the accounts described them as wearing human clothing and having a human-like appearance, albeit as a Spiritual Body, which certainly couldn’t be a Spirit Beast.

In this world, Spirit Beasts may possess humanoid forms, but they would never look exactly or even exceptionally similar to humans — it’s a universal rule.

Even Divine Beasts merely have the ability to switch to human form, but fundamentally aren’t in human likeness.

"Long Boduo? Perhaps, I’ll ask him to see what this Ancestor Spirit is all about."

Veronia said curiously beside him, eager to understand what exactly the so-called Ancestor Spirit was. Certainly, it couldn’t be a Phantom of a Ghost Series Spirit Beast, could it?