Chapter 77: Never Ridden a Mount, Never Known Its Worth

Chapter 77: Chapter 77: Never Ridden a Mount, Never Known Its Worth

A smile appeared on Li Changsheng’s face. He walked to the third pen and stared inside.

[Target: Little Xiaohua]

[Race: Tusked Pig (Male)]

[Tier: First-Order, Mid-Grade: 2%]

[Innate Magic: Hardened Hide.]

[Status: Healthy.]

Because of a lack of spirit ore, Little Xiaohua’s innate Magic had only progressed to the Hardened Hide stage.

It was now nearly five meters long. Its short, dark brown bristles stood on end like reversed barbs, giving it a menacing appearance.

’What a pity the Blood Bamboo Vine is all used up,’ Li Changsheng thought. ’Otherwise, Little Xiaohua’s cultivation progress wouldn’t be so slow!’

Li Changsheng shook his head and reached out to open the pen.

OINK OINK...

Seeing the open wooden gate, Little Xiaohua oinked but didn’t dare to step forward.

"C’mon... out you go."

Li Changsheng strode inside, patted Little Xiaohua’s body, and herded it out of the pen.

On his way out, Li Changsheng peeked into the first pen.

In a corner of the pen, two Red Foxes were curled up and sound asleep in a nest made from a few old robes.

Snuggled up beside them were several palm-sized cubs, while a few others were playing and tumbling about.

’Not bad... They’re pulling their weight.’

After a few glances, Li Changsheng chuckled and walked out of the pen.

Back in the courtyard, he saw Little Xiaohua circling Big Flower and Xiaohua. It would occasionally break into a short run, oinking nonstop in excitement.

’You’ll have plenty of reasons to be tired soon enough...’

Li Changsheng chuckled. He picked up two woven bamboo frames connected by tough vines and placed two sacks of Spirit Rice, weighing over fifteen hundred jin in total, into them.

He then beckoned Xiaohua over. After it crouched down, he placed the two frames onto its back.

OINK OINK...

Xiaohua oinked a couple of times and stood up nimbly. It seemed to have no trouble at all carrying the two sacks of Spirit Rice.

Next, Li Changsheng tied another two sacks of Spirit Rice together with a vine and gestured to Little Xiaohua.

"Come here, Little Xiaohua."

OINK OINK...

Little Xiaohua looked at him with its small eyes, pawed the ground with its hoof, and trotted over.

"Whoa!"

Just as it was about to crash into the sacks of rice, Li Changsheng quickly stopped it and maneuvered the two sacks, weighing about a thousand jin, onto its back.

OINK OINK...

Little Xiaohua stood up and swayed its body, a bit unaccustomed to the thousand-jin weight of the rice sacks.

Li Changsheng had to soothe it with kind words for a while to keep it from shaking the sacks off.

Then, he herded Big Flower back into its pen.

Li Changsheng swung himself onto Xiaohua’s back and called out, "Let’s go, Xiaohua, Little Xiaohua."

OINK OINK...

Xiaohua oinked and strode out of the small courtyard, heading down the path.

Little Xiaohua followed behind, but it was far from obedient. It kept stopping to look left and right, nibbling on some grass or chewing on a flower.

Whenever it fell too far behind Xiaohua, it would kick up its hooves and trot to catch up.

Li Changsheng was a bit worried at first, but then he simply detached part of his insect swarm to follow it and stopped bothering to manage it himself.

’A target this big would be pretty hard to lose, anyway.’

As they passed Dong Xing’s home, they happened to run into him just as he was about to leave.

Dong Xing turned his head, saw the procession, and asked in confusion, "Junior Brother Li, what’s all this?"

Li Changsheng hopped off his mount and landed on the ground. He smiled, "I’m going to the Spirit Field Hall to sell some Spirit Rice. Where are you headed, Senior Brother?"

"Selling Spirit Rice..."

Hearing this, Dong Xing’s eyes lit up. "I know a shop in the Marketplace that buys Spirit Rice," he said. "The price is much higher than what the Spirit Field Hall offers. Why don’t you come with me, Junior Brother?"

"You’re going to the Marketplace, Senior Brother?"

Li Changsheng was taken aback for a moment, then nodded. "Sure. I was planning on making a trip to the Marketplace anyway."

The smile on Dong Xing’s face grew wider. Just as he was about to speak, he heard the heavy sound of hooves from behind him.

Chewing on a mouthful of grass, Little Xiaohua trotted past them. It didn’t get more than a few meters before it lowered its head and started rooting for something on the side of the road.

"Whoa! Is that Little Xiaohua? How long has it been? It’s gotten so huge!"

Dong Xing said in amazement, staring at its sturdy frame.

Back at the courtyard, he had only caught glimpses of it through the cracks in the pen. Now, seeing Little Xiaohua in its entirety, he couldn’t help but be shocked.

Li Changsheng chuckled and explained, "I feed it Spirit Rice every day, plus my own custom feed mix. It just grows a little faster than other Spirit Beasts."

It had been over half a year since Little Xiaohua left its birthing pen. Although it had grown quickly, it wasn’t an absurd rate.

Dong Xing was just shocked because this was the first time he’d seen the fully-grown Little Xiaohua up close.

Dong Xing looked at Little Xiaohua, nodded, and said nothing.

The two of them chatted idly as they walked.

When they reached an intersection, Dong Xing suddenly turned his head and said, "Junior Brother, name your price!"

Li Changsheng was utterly confused. "...?"

Dong Xing pointed at Little Xiaohua and said seriously, "Junior Brother, name a price. I’ll see if I have enough Spirit Stones in my pocket."

’He wants to buy it?’

’Too late!!’

Without a moment’s hesitation, Li Changsheng shook his head and refused. "Senior Brother, you’d better wait for Big Flower and Xiaohua to have another litter." He paused, then added, "Little Xiaohua is too big now..."

Disappointment filled Dong Xing’s eyes. He sighed. "Ah, I knew it..."

"Junior Brother, be straight with me. Have Xiaohua and Little Xiaohua both awakened their innate Magic?"

Li Changsheng hesitated for a moment, then gave a slight nod and smiled. "They’re descendants of the Exotic Beast Zhi, after all. It’s to be expected..."

"To be expected... Right, far too expected."

Dong Xing’s gaze shifted back and forth between the two beasts. "I’m kicking myself now..." he said sourly.

"When they have another litter, you have to save one for me."

"Also, Junior Brother Li, when you have time, could you bring your spirit insects to my Spirit Field and get rid of some pests..."

Li Changsheng agreed to each request. After walking along the main road for another two hours, he was starting to get tired of it.

He hesitated for a moment before saying to Dong Xing, "Senior Brother, would you like to ride Xiaohua to the Marketplace?"

Dong Xing froze, then asked in pleasant surprise, "I can?"

Li Changsheng nodded and smiled. "Don’t worry, Xiaohua has a very gentle temperament."

With that, he helped the eager-looking Dong Xing climb onto Xiaohua’s back, while he himself mounted Little Xiaohua.

Li Changsheng called out, "Let’s go, Xiaohua, Little Xiaohua."

OINK OINK...

The two beasts oinked, gradually picking up speed until they were moving at a human’s jogging pace.

Dong Xing gripped the vine tightly, his face flushed red with excitement as he looked down at the surroundings, shouting in approval!

At that moment, his desire to purchase a mount was stronger than ever.

’My grandson doesn’t like them?’

’Doesn’t matter, his grandpa does!’

’You truly don’t know how great a mount is until you’ve ridden one.’

Dong Xing looked left and right, his eyes filled with delight.

When he saw a Cultivator walking up the mountain not far ahead, his eyes lit up and he shouted, "Junior Brother Huang, Junior Brother Huang!"

Huang Ping paused, looking behind him with some confusion.

When he saw Xiaohua and Little Xiaohua, his gaze sharpened, and he subtly shifted to the side of the road.

"Junior Brother Huang..."

Huang Ping looked up slightly and saw Dong Xing looking at him with a wide grin.

Just as he was about to reply, Dong Xing chuckled and said, "Junior Brother Huang, still using your feet, I see..."

Huang Ping: "......."