Mortal: My name is Ma Liang, and I also possess a magic brush.

Ma Liang stroked the scale. "I remember silver-armored horned pythons all have two horns. Why is your horn growing in the middle of your head?"

He stared at the protrusion for a long time, but still couldn't figure it out.

"Never mind, there must be some reason."

As he spoke, he took out some magical beast materials from his storage bag and floated them in the void.

"Take these and eat them first, see if they help. I'll go outside and look for any books about spirit beasts like you."

Jingzhe nuzzled him with its head, then nudged Ma Liang with the single horn on its forehead. It then opened its mouth and inhaled, sucking all the demonic beast materials in the void into its belly.

It spun around and flew back to the corner where it had been lurking. Its silver armor glowed with a faint blue light as it began to fully absorb the spiritual energy from the spiritual materials.

Without further ado, Ma Liang turned around and left the cave, completely activating the cave's protective barriers.

He transformed into a streak of light and flew swiftly towards the Tianxing City market.

He flew through the air, his divine sense like an invisible net, rapidly sweeping across the market below.

Suddenly, his divine sense detected the target he was looking for, and he immediately sped up and rushed in that direction.

Before long, a magnificent pavilion came into view, with the three large characters "Wanling Pavilion" on the plaque shining brightly in the sunlight.

This Wanling Pavilion is the largest and most comprehensive spirit beast trading company in Tianxing City.

The sharp-eyed waiter at the entrance spotted a streak of light hurtling across the sky; that aerial maneuver was the unique light-transmitting technique of a Core Formation cultivator.

He hurriedly went to greet her, "Greetings, senior!"

"We were unaware of your arrival, senior. How may we be of service to you?"

Ma Liang walked straight into the pavilion, asking as he went, "Do you have any books or records about spirit beasts here?"

"Senior, you've come to the right place!"

"In this chaotic star sea, every demonic beast that cultivators have ever discovered is recorded in detail in the records of this pavilion!"

Ma Liang did not stop walking. "In that case, bring me the relevant books to take a look."

"Please forgive me, senior, but there are too many spirit beast scriptures to read in the outer hall."

As he spoke, he called out loudly towards the inner room, "Little Blue! Come here quickly!"

A maid dressed in a light blue short shirt quickly came forward in response, first bowing respectfully to Ma Liang, "Senior, please follow me."

Ma Liang remained noncommittal and followed her to the carved staircase to the side, climbing the steps to the private room on the second floor.

As soon as Ma Liang sat down in the rather elegant private room, a dazzling array of spiritual fruits, fragrant teas, and exquisite snacks were served.

He had just picked up his teacup and taken a sip when the door to the private room was pushed open, and a slightly plump middle-aged cultivator walked in. He was wearing a brocade robe embroidered with silver cloud patterns, and his face was covered with a friendly smile. He was clearly a seasoned businessman.

As soon as he entered the door, he bowed to Ma Liang.

"Fellow Daoist, it is an honor to have you here. I am Zhou Tong, the manager of Wanling Pavilion. Please forgive me for not welcoming you properly!"

"I just heard from the waiter that you came here specifically to find books related to spirit beasts? To be honest, my Wanling Pavilion has been operating in the Chaotic Star Sea for hundreds of years. I dare not boast about anything else, but in the entire Tianxing City, you won't find another place with a more complete collection of monster illustrations and spirit beast advancement methods than us."

"I wonder if you are looking for records of a certain type of spirit beast, or if you have any special needs? Please feel free to speak up, and I will do my best to serve you."

Ma Liang scanned the newcomer with his divine sense and immediately realized that the newcomer had already reached the Core Formation stage. He then cupped his hands in return and said, "Fellow Daoist."

He got straight to the point, "I've come here to obtain the complete monster encyclopedia."

Zhou Tong's smile froze.

He put down his teacup. "Fellow Daoist, you may not know this, but the monster encyclopedia in my pavilion is vast and numerous, numbering in the tens of thousands. Let alone a short time, even an ordinary cultivator might not be able to peruse it all even after two or three days of reading."

"Fellow Daoist, are you sure you want to read through all these illustrations?"

Ma Liang never expected that the monster encyclopedia of the Wanling Pavilion would be so extensive.

We will definitely encounter more monsters in the future. It would be a pity if we didn't know and missed out on some rare and exotic species.

"In that case, do you perhaps have a backup of the encyclopedia entry that you could sell me?"

"Of course, of course!" Zhou Tong's smile widened immediately, and he called out to the door, "Xiao Lan! Quickly go and fetch a complete set of monster illustrations!"

"Yes." The maid bowed and quietly left the room, closing the door behind her.

"I wonder if you have any other needs besides the encyclopedia? I dare not say about other things, but as long as it involves spirit beasts, there is nothing we cannot do in Tianxing City."

Ma Liang finally asked, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, have you ever heard of a demonic beast like the Silver-Armored Horned Python?"

This is, after all, the Chaotic Star Sea, and there may not even be any records of such monsters here.

Zhou Tong tapped his fingers on the table, as if he was thinking carefully.

After a moment, he nodded and said, "Yes! It definitely exists!"

Seeing the expectant look on Ma Liang's face, he added, "However, this record is only mentioned briefly in some ancient books and fragments. No one in the Chaotic Star Sea has ever seen any trace of this kind of monster."

"Then, friend, could you please share with me what you know about the Silver-Armored Horned Python?"

"It's not exactly a secret," Zhou Tong waved his hand. "It's just that the relevant records in this pavilion are incomplete. Fellow Daoist, please just listen to the general outline."

He then recounted to Ma Liang the scattered information about the silver-armored horned python with its two horns on its forehead, which he found in ancient book fragments.

Ma Liang listened intently, but even after Zhou Tong finished speaking, he didn't hear a single word about the unicorn, and his disappointment deepened.

"Fellow Daoist Zhou, I have another question. If a certain type of demonic beast is completely different in appearance and characteristics from those described in the ancient texts, what could be the reason for that?"

As Zhou Tong listened to Ma Liang's repeated questions, he already knew what was going on; the spirit beast he had raised must have undergone a strange change.

"Then congratulations, fellow Daoist!"

Ma Liang looked puzzled, but Zhou Tong didn't keep him in suspense and directly stated: "Since you asked about the difference between the demon beast and the records, it's highly likely that the spirit beast you've been raising has undergone a mutation."

"Such an opportunity is rare and hard to come by! If we can guide it with perfectly matched spiritual materials during this mutation process, not only will the mutation not get out of control, but it will also allow it to evolve special abilities far surpassing those of its kind!"

Ma Liang immediately perked up, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, is what you say true? Then I won't hide it from you, when it comes to spirit beasts, I'm at most a novice."

"My spirit beast is originally a metal-type python, and it is currently undergoing a mutation. I wonder if you could offer some guidance on which spiritual materials are most suitable to supplement this type of beast during its mutation?"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Tong raised an eyebrow and pressed on, "Fellow Daoist, is the metal-attribute python-type demonic beast you mentioned the silver-armored horned python I asked about earlier?"

Ma Liang first shook his head uncertainly, then nodded.

"Indeed, I have also consulted some ancient texts, and the contents are almost identical to what you have said, fellow Daoist."

Zhou Tong's smile faded slightly. "It's not that I'm trying to discourage you, fellow Daoist, but the Silver Armored Horned Python is clearly recorded in the ancient texts. Its strength limit is ultimately no more than level four."

"Fellow Daoist is now a Core Formation stage cultivator. If you were to spend a great deal of money to cultivate it, it would probably be a losing proposition for you."