This newborn beast of unknown species found everything novel.

Although it couldn't speak human language, this didn't hinder it from expressing its emotions.

It seemed extremely attached to Zhou Yin, the first thing it saw after breaking out of its shell. It would chirp around him all day long, and even had to sleep next to him, unwilling to leave his side for a moment during the day.

So everyone in the Ji Residence often saw an expressionless Zhou Yin with a gray furball perched on his shoulder. The scene was quite comical, but intimidated by Zhou Yin's aura, no one dared to laugh out loud in front of him.

The furball originally felt it would be more comfortable to perch on top of Zhou Yin's head, but given the difficulty, it had to settle for second best.

In fact, Zhou Yin was also quite helpless.

It brought a whole host of troubles.

First was the name.

The furball had hatched, so naturally it couldn't be called a demon beast egg anymore. Facing the furball gazing at him with pure, innocent and expectant eyes, he said expressionlessly: "Mao Yuan, surnamed Mao, named Yuan, the name says it all."

Furry and round.

The young demon beast: "......"

Moist liquid rolled around in its eye sockets, expressing dissatisfaction with resentment.

Zhou Yin: "Gray Fur."

Beast: "......"

Zhou Yin: "Fur chirp."

Beast: "Chirp chirp chirp!"

This was a strong protest of dissatisfaction.

Zhou Yin: "Little Grey, Little Ball, Grey Tuft."

It burrowed under the covers to hide itself, refusing to listen, the blanket bulging into a round lump.

Faced with this cute behavior, Zhou Yin was unmoved and pulled it out.

It chirped a few times, rubbing its head against Zhou Yin's fingers, trying to act cute to win a smile from him. This trick worked every time on others in the Ji Residence, but unfortunately Zhou Yin was completely immune.

"If you don't like it, think of one yourself. If you can't, then use Mao Yuan, it's decided."

The furball had no choice. It could only wriggle off the bed, painstakingly run to the edge of the door, pecking at the peeling threshold while flapping its wings and chirping.

Watching its performance, Zhou Yin speculated expressionlessly: "Pecking Paint? Gnawing Door? Red Chirp?"

The furball was completely deflated, sprawled on the threshold motionless, its head drooping, indicating it was throwing in the towel.

A hint of a smile flashed in Zhou Yin's eyes as he said mildly: "Let's call you Zhou Chen then. Chen, southeast leaning east, is where I found you. Among the earthly branches it belongs to the dragon, and also implies the myriad stars. No matter what you grow into in the future, it won't disgrace your status."

The furball's eyes lit up and it fluttered over wanting to pounce into Zhou Yin's arms, but was caught by two fingers and tossed aside.

"Filthy, don't come near me again until you're washed clean."

Having just tasted a bit of sweetness only to be spurned, the furball's eyes brimmed with tears, its glass heart shattered all over the ground.

Next was the issue of eating.

Zhou Yin was now at the initial foundation establishment stage. In principle, he could also sustain himself with abstention pills, no longer needing to partake in mortal food and drink.

But although he meditated even in his sleep, he was not harsh on himself when it came to food. When at the Ji Residence, the servants prepared three meals a day for him, which he never refused.

As for Zhou Chen, when it was still in the eggshell, it could grow by absorbing spiritual energy, but after hatching, it needed to start eating. Zhou Yin hadn't figured out its origins, so naturally he also didn't know what it should eat. He simply took it with him at mealtimes, letting it see for itself and eat whatever it liked, adopting a free-range approach.

Zhou Chen was particularly interested in all human foods, or rather in what Zhou Yin ate. Every time Zhou Yin reached for a dish with his chopsticks, it would also stare at it eagerly, and then had to taste it for itself.

Over time, the furball learned to run to the kitchen by itself to find food.

It was spiritually intelligent and knew how to act cute. The entire Ji Residence was already familiar with it. Every time it ran to the kitchen, they would purposely set aside a portion of dishes not yet served.

As the days passed, its fur became more and more glossy and sleek. Originally small enough to fit in the palm, it had now fattened up by a whole size.

Then there was the issue of growth and learning.

From birth, the path of high-level demon beasts was destined to be different. Not only did they possess the ability to transform into human form, they also had the talent and spiritual roots for cultivation. After demon beasts transformed, if they continued cultivating, they could become demon beast cultivators.

Inheriting the bloodlines of ancient deities, demon beast cultivators had unparalleled advantages that allowed them to go further on the path of immortal cultivation and achieve greater accomplishments. However, there was a give and take. Their reproduction was also exceptionally difficult. The rarer the species among high-level demon beasts, the thinner their bloodlines.

Now on the Taichu Continent, high-level demon beasts and even demon beast cultivators were nearly extinct. Besides their former glory no longer existing, with some sealed and some deliberately concealing their whereabouts, there was another very important reason - the reproduction of later generations was becoming increasingly difficult.

This also meant that demon beast cultivators who occasionally appeared on the continent basically all had cultivation at the Nascent Soul stage or above, making others not dare to provoke them, let alone harbor ideas of subduing them as pets.

There was no doubt that Zhou Chen was a high-level demon beast. Whether judging from the heavenly anomalies when it was discovered, or from its spiritual nature after birth, low-level demon beasts could not possibly possess such abilities.

But problems followed as a result: Zhou Yin couldn't discern its origins, and hadn't seen any elder relatives coming to find it, so naturally he had even less idea how to educate this furball.

So, he could only refer to the learning model of ordinary people.

To be able to read cultivation texts, learning language and writing was a must. Might as well start with the "Thousand Character Classic".

"Heaven and earth dark yellow, universe vast and primordial, recite it with me once."

"Chirp chirp chirp chirp, chirp chirp chirp chirp!"

"Sun and moon wax and wane, stars arrayed in constellations. It contains your name, Chen, as in stars."

"Chirp chirp!"

"......" Zhou Yin was not a patient person, so back then even with his high cultivation, he had never taken in disciples. At this moment, he felt his patience had reached its limit.

He couldn't help pinching the bridge of his nose, smoothing the bulging veins, and continued in the most even tone he could muster: "Zhou Yin, my name. Yin means seal, the character for printing. Like a promise made, worth a thousand in gold."

He grasped the brush and wrote the two characters for seal on the paper. The brushstrokes were unrestrained yet as if cast in metal, the ink permeating the paper with intoxicating abandon. "I also have an elder brother, who took the Zhang character from it, named Zhou Zhang."

His gaze shifted from the paper to the furball beside him.

"......"

The furry head rested on its wings, its body rising and falling with its breathing. Its closed eyes were hidden in the fur, almost invisible without close inspection. Drool dripped from the corner of its mouth onto the book.

Outside the window, the begonia flowers were in full bloom, each cluster as dazzling as rosy clouds, swaying gently in the breeze, their pink and white hues enchanting to the heart.

What a beautiful scene of a furball enjoying a spring slumber.

Zhou Yin heard the string of reason in his mind snap.

"Reflect on your inability to speak properly, or you won't get any meals from tonight until tomorrow!"

The servants passing by the chamber only heard a thud, and a furball appeared on the begonia tree.

Zhou Chen was hanging there, his round body perfectly wedged between the branches, looking at the servants below with a pitiful expression, engaging in a staring contest.

With a chuckle, the servants hurriedly covered their mouths and walked away, their backs revealing how hard they were trying to hold back laughter.

In just a few days, Zhou Yin had established an undisputed authority in the Ji Residence. His identity, aura, and the importance placed on him by Madam Cao and her son, who hoped he could rescue Lord Ji Rong, meant that no one dared to go against him and plead for the furball.

Although the furball... Zhou Chen, did indeed look a bit pitiful.

After more than ten days, someone from outside sent an invitation, with Yu Nuo's name on it, inviting him to the Pingnan Army camp for a meeting.

Zhou Yin accepted the invitation, exchanged a few words with Madam Cao and the others, then took the furball and left with the person who delivered the invitation.

The man was called Lu Da, originally a lieutenant under the command of General Hui, the main general of the Pingnan Army. He was highly trusted and held a high position in the army.

Being sent by General Hui to invite Zhou Yin, although he knew that there were too few cultivators by his commander's side to prevent assassinations day and night, and they needed to win over Zhou Yin, he still felt somewhat unhappy. Along the way, he intentionally or unintentionally asked many questions about cultivation.

Seeing Zhou Yin riding a horse behind him, not flying by wind like other cultivators, he looked down on him even more.

Zhou Yin naturally saw through this, but how could he take it to heart?

He still had a cold expression. If the other party asked ten questions, he would answer one or two sentences if he was in a good mood, and if he didn't want to talk, he wouldn't bother to open his mouth, which made the lieutenant so angry that his teeth itched, but he was helpless.

"Sir Yu has repeatedly recommended and praised Brother Zhou in front of General Hui. I am untalented and, although not a cultivator, I know a thing or two about the current cultivation sects. I wonder which sect Brother Zhou is from, is it Shangxuan Sect or Tianyan Sect?"

Zhou Yin said, "It's just a small sect, not worth mentioning."

His tone was casual, without embarrassment or shame.

Lu Da refused to give up and provoked, "Then with Brother Zhou's talent, you must be highly valued in your esteemed sect, but it seems that you don't even have a handy weapon or magic treasure... ah!"

Before he could finish speaking, he retreated several steps, unable to help but cry out in surprise.

It turned out that the furball Zhou Chen had leaped out from somewhere, flapping its wings and pecking at Lu Da's eyes.

The angle was so precise and the speed so swift that it was comparable to when it ate vegetables. Even though Lu Da had superb martial arts skills, he had no choice but to avoid its sharp beak. With no time to draw his sword, he could only raise his hand to block.

As a result, the furball's round body turned in midair, changing direction and scratching his face instead.

Five claws were raised, leaving five bloody marks on his forehead, which, coupled with his fierce-looking face, appeared quite comical.

Lu Da was furious with shame and drew his sword, ready to slash at the furball.

However, he saw Zhou Yin extend a finger towards the blade, unhurriedly, and lightly tap on it.

Lu Da immediately felt a violent shock in his tiger's mouth acupoint, involuntarily retreating several steps, his hand loosening, unable to hold the sword.

The blade split in two, half falling to the ground and half flying up, barely grazing his cheek.

Zhou Yin casually scooped up the furball and tucked it into his sleeve, glancing at him, "How far is it from here to the military camp?"

Lu Da felt that the wound on his cheek that was grazed just now was even more painful than the one scratched by the unknown young beast. Looking at the half of the sword on the ground, it was already covered in a thick layer of frost, with a red mark on it, which was his own blood.

His heart trembled, and he finally understood that no matter what level of cultivation the other party had, as long as they were a cultivator, they were destined to be as different as clouds and mud from mortals like them, and he was not someone he could provoke.

No wonder General Hui had the intention to recruit him and sent him personally to receive him. It was ridiculous that he himself was short-sighted and almost ruined the commander's important matter.

Thinking like this, he hurriedly put away his contemptuous attitude and spoke to Zhou Yin in a respectful tone, "This lowly one failed to recognize Mount Tai and offended you in many ways. I hope you can forgive me. The military camp is just ahead, and we can reach it in a moment."

As he spoke, they could already see the Pingnan Army camp in the distance.

Backed by Yunzhou, surrounded by majestic mountains and a vast blue sky. At a glance, tents were lined up next to each other, extending out from the main camp in the center. There were heavy guards patrolling back and forth, occasionally hearing the sounds of drills and orders, but without any noise or disorder. The military discipline was solemn and well-organized. This was the invincible and world-renowned Pingnan Army.