Evan Yang, Richard, Lora Luo, and Bianca Snow followed the Snowbun clan chief into the mountain cave. There was some kind of barrier at the entrance, which only the chief could open.
Once inside, they saw gems embedded in the walls, softly glowing and filling the cave with light.
It looked incredibly beautiful, and Bianca Snow and Lora Luo were instantly captivated.
As they walked deeper inside, Bianca and Lora kept praising the scenery, while Evan and Richard, with steadier hearts, were less impressed.
Soon, they reached the inner chamber. After passing through a wall, they saw countless magic treasures and even some rare materials displayed before their eyes.
"These are the treasures our clan has collected over many years. They may not be the best, but they're not bad either. Each of you pick one—it's our way of thanking you." said the chief.
"Chief, that's too generous. I think we'd better not," Evan said, feeling a bit awkward—it almost seemed like they had saved the tribe just for these rewards.
Richard and the others felt the same, so they all politely refused. But the chief shook his head and smiled, "Don't misunderstand. Our clan always repays kindness. We don't want to owe anyone. Only if you accept these will we feel at ease."
After the chief's repeated urging, Evan, Richard, and the others had no choice but to prepare to each pick one item.
So they split up, each searching for something they liked. Evan did the same.
"What should I pick?" Evan thought as he looked around. To him, none of these items seemed particularly special—he already had much rarer and better things. But not choosing anything would be disrespectful, so he kept searching.
Then he noticed a flashing stone off to the side. Curious, Evan walked over and, after a closer look, realized it contained a dense amount of light energy.
"Light? That means I can absorb it," Evan muttered to himself, and picked up the stone.
He walked over to the clan chief. By now, everyone had made their choices, and the chief noticed Evan's selection, puzzled why he picked such a plain stone.
"This stone may look nice, but it doesn't really have any use," the chief reminded Evan. But Evan just smiled, "Don't worry, I like it."
Seeing Evan insist, the chief said nothing more. The others had also finished choosing, and after reviewing each selection, the chief led Evan and the group out of the cave.
Outside, the Snowbun clan was already lined up, and the chief addressed Evan and his companions, "Once again, thank you all."
"No need. Until we meet again," Evan replied.
The Snowbuns watched these unusual guests leave. Evan and his companions headed off, while the Snowbuns escorted them for quite a distance before turning back.
Not long after they left, the young Snowbun Evan had once rescued hurried over, came up to him, and said, "Thank you."
"Your clan has already thanked us so many times, and you’ve said it yourself more than once. That’s enough—don’t be so polite," Evan said with a smile.
The Snowbun asked, "Will you come back?"
"That's hard to say," Evan replied after hesitating.
The Snowbun looked a bit sad. Seeing this, Evan smiled and said, "All right, head back now. Watch out for those snow-eagles—they might come again."
The Snowbun reluctantly said goodbye to Evan and finally left.
Watching the Snowbun go, Bianca Snow asked curiously, "How can you understand what it's saying?"
"That's because, long ago, I had a spirit beast. It gave me this ability," Evan said, thinking of his Jade Rabbit.
Richard and the others finally understood why Evan could speak the beast language. Bianca was also curious. "A spirit beast with that kind of power would be considered an ancient divine beast," she said.
"Ancient divine beast? What's that?" Evan asked, puzzled.
Richard and Lora had their own views, but the Snowbun—being from the spirit beast clan—explained, "Ancient divine beasts are powerful spirit beasts from ages past. Each strong spirit beast passes its memories down to the next generation, so over time, these accumulated memories create what we call ancient divine beasts. They're different from ordinary spirit beasts, like being able to help their masters accomplish things humans could never do."