Chapter 91: The Beast-shaped Magic Conduit

After dinner, Ye Tian went back to sleep, while Layton resumed his horse stance atop the cliff. Everything returned to calm, save for the occasional episode of Layton tumbling down. The routine was unchanged.

“How should I get it out?” Ye Tian closed his eyes in feigned sleep, pondering the problem. He’d swum around the lake but failed to find the green-furred turtle. It probably hadn’t left the lake—just that the place was vast, and Ye Tian couldn’t go too deep. Aquatic creatures were always trickier than those on land.

“What should I do? Maybe lure it out with food?” The idea was sound, but Ye Tian didn’t dare risk it. If the turtle didn’t show but something more dangerous did, he’d be in real trouble. “What now?” He was thoroughly vexed—if only he hadn’t thrown it in there in the first place.

A night passed. The turtle never surfaced to attack, which left Ye Tian even more frustrated. He’d waited, but it never came! The next day, Ye Tian made up his mind—he would use food as bait.

He roasted a chicken with great care, stuffing it with sleeping powder, then placed it by the lakeshore and waited patiently for the green-furred turtle to appear. A whole morning passed with no sign of any turtle. “Maybe it’s not here anymore?” Ye Tian mused. Just then, a shadow leapt from the water and snapped up the roast chicken in one bite.

“Yes! Finally!” Ye Tian exclaimed in delight. “Layton, get over here and help!” No sooner had he spoken than Layton tumbled down head over heels again, but he was delighted not to have to keep up that blasted horse stance and hurried over.

“Wait over here. It’ll be done soon!” Ye Tian calculated the time. The turtle swallowed the chicken in one gulp, looked at Ye Tian with eyes like mung beans, and turned to flee. “Hold it!” Ye Tian grew anxious. The drug needed a bit longer to work—if the turtle got away, where would he find it again?

“Hey, don’t go!” Ye Tian rushed forward to give chase, but his sudden movement only made the turtle scramble faster. “Damn!” He leapt and landed squarely on the turtle’s back, but the turtle had already reached the water’s edge, and both of them slid into the lake.

“Gray! Gray!” Layton, terrified, jumped into the lake as well. He couldn’t swim, so he choked and flailed his way back to shore. “Gray! Gray!”

Layton grew more anxious by the second. There could be magical beasts in the lake—what if Ye Tian encountered something he couldn’t handle? Gritting his teeth, Layton invoked, “Soaring Wind Barrier!” A translucent magical sphere enveloped him.

This was a universal magical shield, capable of low-altitude flight and resistant to wind and water, but it lacked durability and was quickly broken by attacks. It also consumed vast amounts of mana, so most magicians knew it but rarely used it.

But it was the only all-encompassing protection spell Layton knew and his only option at the moment. He couldn’t wait any longer—if Ye Tian was truly in danger, what then? Still, what good could he do if he went in himself? Layton stopped thinking and plunged ahead—he’d deal with it as it came!

Just as he was about to enter the water, a massive figure burst from the lake and landed on the shore. “Gray!” Layton shouted with joy, canceling the shield and hurrying over.

“Look!” Ye Tian called, sprawled atop a huge body. Layton saw it was the very green-furred turtle that had come for the chicken. “Gray, how did you manage to get it out?” Layton was incredulous.

“Heh, that’s a secret!” Ye Tian replied mysteriously. “Hey, come on out!” He released his grip on the turtle’s shell and knocked on it. There was no movement for a long while. Ye Tian frowned. “Is it dead?” He knocked harder, and pain shot through his hand.

“So you think I can’t do anything to you if you hide in there?” Ye Tian’s patience wore thin. He’d planned to lure it with food, but since that didn’t work, harsher methods were needed. “Layton, go gather some branches—the more the better!” Ye Tian ordered.

“Oh! Right!” Layton snapped out of it and dashed into the woods. “You think you’re safe inside there, huh? Watch how I deal with you!” Ye Tian leapt up and landed heavily on the turtle’s back. “A thousand-pound press!”

Bang! The turtle was driven half a foot into the ground, but it remained unmoved, as if the blow hadn’t affected it at all. “Heh!” Ye Tian continued to use the thousand-pound press, eventually burying the turtle three feet deep in the earth.

Satisfied, Ye Tian hopped away with a grin. “You stay right there!” he called, then set off to tend to other matters. As for the green-furred turtle, it was utterly dejected. Life had been peaceful until its companion was cooked and eaten, and now it itself was powerless against this foe.

With a heavy heart, the turtle had returned to its lair, resolved to live out its remaining days in solitude. Who could have known that, instead of leaving it be, the troublesome human would come after it?

It had known when Ye Tian entered the water, but out of fear, it hadn’t shown itself. Then, unable to resist the bait, it appeared and snatched the food, only for Ye Tian to pounce, ride its shell, and drag both of them into the water.

As the turtle feared, even in its own element, it was no match for Ye Tian—who not only dodged its attacks but even managed to kick it in its tender spot, leaving it in agony! The turtle tried to escape, but Ye Tian clung to its shell no matter where it went.

Finally, the turtle thought, If I retreat into my shell, you can’t possibly stay here forever. Once you leave, I’ll escape. But as soon as it withdrew, an immense force carried it along. Suddenly, it felt itself soaring through the air, out of the water, and then crashing to the ground!

That alone was nothing to the turtle—it could handle such abuse—but then it heard someone knocking on its shell. “Doesn’t matter—you can’t break my shell,” the turtle thought, shrinking further inside.

Then another heavy force struck, then another, and the turtle felt itself sinking. It sensed trouble, for it was being buried deeper and deeper. Still, it thought, This isn’t too deep. Once he leaves, I can dig myself out. But then another blow landed—he hadn’t left yet? The turtle dared not move and waited in silence.

Time passed, and as it waited, the turtle gradually dozed off. Suddenly, it woke with a start to find itself suspended in midair. “What is he up to?” it wondered, when a warmth began to spread across its shell.

What was happening? The turtle cautiously poked out its head and was stunned to see itself strung up over a bonfire, with the sinister human grinning nearby. The turtle immediately began to struggle.

“Gray, you’re not planning to eat it, are you?” Layton couldn’t help but laugh when, after gathering the firewood, he saw Ye Tian tying the turtle between two stakes. “What are you doing?”

“Barbecue,” Ye Tian replied without looking up. Layton was speechless. Barbecue—a turtle this big? How long would that take? And how much firewood would it need?

“By the way, how come it’s not struggling?” Layton asked, noticing how docilely the turtle let itself be bound to the stakes. “I knocked it out,” Ye Tian replied, tying the final knot. “All done.”

“You’re really going to roast it?” Layton asked.

“What do you think?” Ye Tian said, striking a flame with a curious tool.

“Gray, what is that? It’s amazing!” Layton exclaimed as Ye Tian produced a strange device and, with a scrape, set the firewood alight.

“A fire striker. You don’t use these here.” Ye Tian pocketed it, then carefully fed the fire. The flames grew, rousing the turtle from its stupor—whereupon it began to struggle furiously.

“Weren’t you playing dead? Keep it up!” Ye Tian said languidly, tossing in more firewood as the turtle strained and shrieked, but the ropes held it fast, no matter how it thrashed.

The turtle couldn’t believe what was happening. Its thick shell had always been its greatest defense—few could threaten it, and it could always retreat inside, safe. Yet today, a mere human had subdued it—and in such a humiliating fashion.

“I don’t want to die!” the turtle thought, redoubling its efforts, but its body was still weak from the drug, and the hateful human had bound it so tightly that, try as it might, it couldn’t break free.

Then, to its horror, the man began producing an array of bottles, jars, and—knives and forks! The turtle was in despair. It seemed its end was near.

Ye Tian tapped the cutlery together and said to Layton with a wicked grin, “Which part do you think would taste best?”

Layton considered seriously and shook his head. “None of it would taste good, I think.”

“Heh, you never know!” Ye Tian put the cutlery away, then scattered the fire beneath the turtle. Any longer and the ropes would have burned through; he needed to hurry and negotiate with this big fellow.

“Hey, can you understand me?” Ye Tian rapped on the turtle’s exposed head. After being roasted for so long, even the thickest shell would be hot. The turtle dared not withdraw, instead sprawling out its limbs to dissipate the heat.

Seeing Ye Tian put out the fire, the turtle had no idea what this human was planning, but anything was better than being cooked alive. It nodded quickly. I can understand some human speech, after all.

“How about this: help me out for a month and I’ll feed you. Deal?” Ye Tian said. The turtle was dumbfounded. What kind of proposal was this? “Not willing?” Ye Tian tapped the cutlery menacingly. The turtle nodded hastily. “Agreed?” It nodded again.

“Good. Let’s eat first, and start work tomorrow. I won’t restrict your freedom, but you must come whenever I call. Understood?” Ye Tian said. The turtle nodded at once. “Good, it’s settled.” With a single slash, Ye Tian cut the ropes binding the turtle.

Thud! The turtle fell to the ground, too scared to move. Ye Tian kicked aside the charcoal, revealing several clay balls from beneath the ashes. “Come, let’s eat!” He cracked open the clay, releasing a mouthwatering aroma. The turtle stretched out its neck eagerly.

“Come here!” Ye Tian waved a roast chicken, and the turtle waddled over, gobbling it up and eating with relish. “Come eat!” Ye Tian called to the dumbstruck Layton.

“Is this really happening?” Layton felt that this day had been more extraordinary than all his years before. With Ye Tian, there was nothing impossible! It was truly eye-opening. “What did you expect?” Ye Tian grumbled, cracking open another clay ball to reveal another steaming roast chicken. “Eat. It’s just right.”