Chapter 16 : Iron Egg's Talent

Chapter 16: Iron Egg's Talent

Inside the transparent glass jar, an earthworm burrowed in a bid for survival, a green mantis flaunted its strength, and a squirrel lay motionless on the ground, its belly slightly rising and falling—clearly having fainted from extreme fright.

‘Good, even living creatures can be carried over.’ Chen Beiwu’s spirits lifted.

This meant he could bring along his Companion Beast, and even an army of cultivators to the other world to seize resources.

The former was still manageable—he could use a gu-rearing method to accelerate the Companion Beast’s cultivation at the fastest speed.

The latter would require finding the right opportunity, such as when he reached the peak of power in the Immortal Alliance or took control of one of its three major institutions.

As he was now, he was too weak—like a child carrying gold through a bustling market. If exposed, he would never be able to protect the Nine-Breath Chaos.

He pushed open the door of the cultivation room, and Iron Egg, with a cup balanced on his head, rushed over immediately.

“Woof woof woof!”

“Stupid dog, stop barking! You don’t even recognize me anymore?” Chen Beiwu took the water cup and gave the dog’s head a light smack.

Upon hearing the familiar voice, Iron Egg blinked his confused dog eyes, his nose twitching slightly.

This time, he finally caught Chen Beiwu’s scent, and the demonic power brewing in his throat instantly dissipated as he obediently lay on the floor.

“Not bad, I’ve got something good for you.”

Chen Beiwu nodded with satisfaction and placed a piece of Phantom Rat Wolf meat in front of Iron Egg.

Iron Egg looked at him but didn’t move, though the drool spreading uncontrollably at the corners of his mouth betrayed his inner desire.

“Eat.”

As soon as Chen Beiwu finished speaking, Iron Egg pounced like a mad dog, opening his mouth wide and tearing at the Phantom Rat Wolf meat.

The meat contained a mild toxin. To be safe, Chen Beiwu didn’t leave, choosing to stand by and watch Iron Egg eat.

Five minutes later, Iron Egg licked the corners of his mouth in satisfaction.

‘Looks like there’s no problem,’ Chen Beiwu thought to himself.

However, in the next second, Iron Egg suddenly began coughing violently, as if his throat were itching.

At first, only saliva came out of his mouth, but as time passed, the saliva gradually turned into tiny sparks that floated in the air, eventually surrounding him in a fiery halo.

‘Meat from a high-level spirit is really something!’ Chen Beiwu’s eyes flickered.

With his experience, he could tell Iron Egg wasn’t poisoned—instead, the accumulated cultivation in his body had reached a breakthrough.

Understandable—after eating the family’s long-cherished Spirit Deer Meat and now a large piece of a high-level spirit beast’s flesh, even a pig would awaken intelligence and gain cultivation, let alone Iron Egg, who was already quite gifted.

“Breakthrough or not, don’t burn the house down!”

Sensing the rising temperature in the room, Chen Beiwu activated his mana and quickly performed hand seals, drawing moisture from the air to cast the First-Tier Exotic Spell “Water Prison.”

In an instant, twenty-four ice-blue chains surrounded Iron Egg within a one-zhang radius, forming layered water curtains that confined the surging fire-element demonic power and dispersed its violent energy.

After a full minute, the raging demonic power around Iron Egg gradually calmed, and the white markings on his four paws became even more flawless.

“How do you feel?”

Chen Beiwu crouched down and tentatively extended his right hand.

Iron Egg took the initiative to nuzzle his palm, letting out a bark full of anticipation.

“Woof.”

To Chen Beiwu’s surprise, Iron Egg let out a low growl and spat out a pale golden flame.

The flame slowly rose, floating above his head and spreading out to form a crude star map made of fire, with colored light spots scattered throughout.

Looking closely, Chen Beiwu noticed two faint green light spots moving steadily toward the center of the star map.

“Crack.”

Just then, the sound of a door opening and his parents’ voices came from downstairs, causing the star map above Iron Egg’s head to dissipate.

Chen Beiwu’s eyes lit up as realization struck.

“Stupid dog, did you just awaken a Detection-Type Technique Talent?”

“Woof?”

Iron Egg blinked in confusion.

What was a Detection-Type Technique Talent? He didn’t know!

He was just a dog—he didn’t understand these weird human terms.

Chen Beiwu took a deep breath and calmly asked, “Can you do that thing again?”

“Woof.” Iron Egg shook his head.

“Not now? Then how many times can you do it in a day?”

Iron Egg tilted his head, then barked four times with uncertainty.

‘Four times a day is good. That can come in handy at critical moments,’ Chen Beiwu thought.

Iron Egg probably hadn’t considered methods like spirit stone replenishment or pill support—otherwise, the number could likely increase.

“Excellent. From now on, you’re my number one search dog. In the future, you might even become a Canine General.” Chen Beiwu patted his head.

Among beast creatures, only those with over five hundred years of cultivation could be called Beast Generals.

Such beings could condense demon cores and assume half-human, half-beast forms—their power comparable to a Golden Core cultivator.

“Woof.” Iron Egg barked excitedly.

He didn’t know what a search dog or Canine General was. He just knew that Chen Beiwu was happy right now—and that was enough.

After removing his gear and freshening up, Chen Beiwu came downstairs and caught a whiff of delicious food.

Turning his head, he saw his father, Chen Dong, sitting in the living room smoking.

It had only been a day, yet his father seemed to have aged a few years, his face lined with exhaustion.

“Come eat, you can train later,” Chen Dong stubbed his cigarette out in the ashtray.

Chen Dong was a Sixth Level Qi Refining body cultivator who worked at the Green‑Glint Tile Factory. Because of his high realm, he worked as an inspector, which was relatively easy.

Some cultivators with weaker realms had to work as brick burners in the factory.

Burning bricks was extremely exhausting—cultivators had to frequently expend their mana to resist the corrosive fire toxins from the earth flames.

If they worked too long, the fire toxins would harm their bodies. Some unfortunate ones ended up with meridian decay and regression in cultivation.

But the more dangerous the job, the higher the pay.

As an inspector at the tile factory, Chen Dong earned a fixed salary of six lower-grade spirit stones per month. If he did extra labor like hauling bricks, he could barely make twelve stones a month.

In contrast, a new brick-burning apprentice could earn twenty spirit stones monthly, and a seasoned brick burner could earn up to fifty.

However, it was a youth-draining job—exchanging one’s body for spirit stones.

Every seasoned brick burner in Yuan‑Kong County with over five years of experience ended up suffering from fire toxin disease. Most of the spirit stones they earned went into medical bills.

Yet some brick burners hoping to secure a better future for their descendants chose not to treat their illnesses, pouring all their spirit stones into nurturing the next generation—hoping to produce a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

This way, their children wouldn't need to suffer the same fate.

If fortune smiled upon them and another Foundation Establishment cultivator emerged in four or five generations, the family might even earn glory and establish a Foundation Establishment clan.

“Dad must’ve gone brick-burning!” Sensing something amiss, Chen Beiwu’s heart sank.

Although his father masked the lingering fire toxin with cigarette smoke, Chen Beiwu still noticed a faint trace of it.

That shouldn’t be! Unlike Immortal Loans, Spirit Beast Loans could be repaid slowly.

Could something have gone wrong at home?