The ancient return was exposed by his sister's live stream.

It lay on the ground, its head resting on its forelegs, its black eyes staring at Chen Siyao for a moment before closing again.

Not aggressive. Not even particularly energetic.

"A mount," Chen Siyao said.

Yang Wanqing squeezed next to her to watch. "So cute. Why isn't it moving?"

"Insufficient spiritual energy." Chen Siyao observed the flow of the vortex on its body... very slow.

It was much slower than the crane on the road. "With the spiritual energy supply from the Thirty-Three Heavens cut off for so long, it's probably in a semi-dormant state. It's barely managing to maintain its form."

In the other two compartments, there was a similar mythical beast lying in each.

They were slightly different in appearance; one looked like a crane but was three times larger than the one I saw on the road, and the other looked like a tiger but its fur was flowing silvery air.

All three spirit beasts were in the same listless state.

"Poor thing," Yang Wanqing said, leaning against the fence. "Looks like she's been starving for ages."

"Their 'food' is spiritual energy. Now that the supply of spiritual energy has been cut off, it's already a great achievement that they can survive."

Yang Wanqing suddenly turned to look at her. "Yaoyao...can I feed them? Will Flame Spirit Stones work?"

Chen Siyao thought for a moment. "Theoretically, Flame Spirit Stones and spiritual energy are two different things. It's uncertain whether they can absorb the energy of external Flame Spirit Stones."

Yang Wanqing had already taken out a Flame Spirit Stone from her Qiankun bag. It was a low-grade one. She pushed the spirit stone through the gap in the fence and placed it in front of the "deer's" nose.

The moment the spirit beast's breath touched the Flame Spirit Stone...

The cyclone accelerated.

The luster on the surface of the Flame Spirit Stone faded rapidly as the energy was absorbed into the spirit beast's body.

In less than ten seconds, a low-grade Flame Spirit Stone turned into a grayish-white waste stone.

The spirit beast raised its head. The rotation speed of the cyclone visibly increased, and the grayish-white color of its body brightened slightly. It flicked its three-pronged tail and changed from a lying position to a sitting position.

Yang Wanqing clapped her hands excitedly. "She's alive! She's full!"

"One Flame Spirit Stone isn't enough," Chen Siyao said. "It only slightly restored my energy."

Yang Wanqing then took out three more spirit stones and stuffed them in.

The spirit beast absorbed everything. Its spirit was much stronger. It stood up, limbs outstretched, its posture much more upright than before. Its black eyes stared at Yang Wanqing for several seconds.

"It's looking at me!"

"You fed it, so of course it's under your watch."

Comments: "Is Yang Wanqing about to tame a spirit beast?"

"It recognized you as its master after being fed a few spirit stones?"

"This spirit beast hasn't eaten for ten thousand years, has it? Give it a bite and it'll follow you."

"I feel sorry for the spirit beast; it's been starving for ten thousand years."

Chen Siyao did not linger in the Beast Garden. She glanced at the time on her phone; they had already spent most of the day in the Jade Void Palace.

"Qingqing, come out first. There's another place we need to see."

"where?"

"When I passed by the backyard just now, I saw a hall gate with the words 'Martial Arts Hall' written on it."

Yang Wanqing's attention shifted from the spirit beast. "The Martial Arts Pavilion? A place for training?"

"Let's go and see."

The Martial Arts Pavilion is located at the very back of the Jade Void Hall complex, separate from the main buildings.

The hall was square and not very large, but the walls were exceptionally thick. From the side, Chen Siyao could tell that the walls were at least a meter thick.

"Soundproofing and reinforced with solid materials," she deduced. "There might be a large-scale release of spiritual energy inside, so the walls have been specially treated."

Push the door open and go inside.

It's empty inside.

Completely empty.

The square space is about 100 square meters, and the floor, walls and ceiling are all made of the same material... dark gray metal panels.

It's made of a material very similar to the teleportation array at the South Heavenly Gate. The surface is covered with extremely fine textures.

There was no furniture. There were no utensils. There was nothing superfluous.

It was just an empty room.

"There's nothing in here..." Yang Wanqing didn't finish her sentence.

The moment she stepped into the room, the floor beneath her feet lit up.

A circular halo, about two meters in diameter, spread out from beneath her feet. The halo was a soft, pale blue.

Yang Wanqing was startled and took half a step back. The halo followed her half a step.

"...Yaoyao?"

Chen Siyao stood at the door without going in. She was observing.

The aperture stabilized beneath Yang Wanqing's feet, making no further movement. The patterns on the wall began to slowly flow... converging from all directions towards the center of the room.

Then, words appeared in the air in the center of the room.

Ancient script. Floating in mid-air. Three lines.

Chen Siyao read it aloud.

"Martial Arts Hall activated. Please select mode..."

"Part One: Solo Drill."

"Second, paired practice (requires two or more people)."

"'Three, Illusionary Trials...A/B/C/Extreme.'"

Yang Wanqing turned to look at Chen Siyao.

Chen Siyao stared at the three lines of text and remained silent for two seconds.

"Practice room," she said. "This is a practice room."

Some viewers in the live chat have already realized what's going on: "Illusionary Trial? Isn't this just holographic virtual battles??"

"A VR training system from an ancient cultivation civilization?"

"Choosing a mode, setting the difficulty... it's just like playing a video game."

"The training room in the game has become a reality."

"Wait... this thing still works? The light wasn't responding just now, was it?"

Chen Siyao also noticed this contradiction.

There was no response when I tried to switch it on before... the spiritual energy source was cut off. But the Martial Arts Pavilion recognized Yang Wanqing's entry and launched the selection interface.

She glanced at the bottom of the wall. In the corner was a small cube, its surface shimmering with a faint light.

"Independent power supply," Chen Siyao said. "The Martial Arts Pavilion has its own spiritual energy reserves and does not rely on external supply. Therefore, it can still operate after ten thousand years."

"Yao Yao!" Yang Wanqing was no longer afraid; excitement replaced her nervousness. "How do I choose? Which one should I pick?"

Chen Siyao entered the room. A halo of light appeared beneath her feet.

The text in the air changed... "Two people detected. Activate practice mode?"

"Don't rush," Chen Siyao said. "Choose the third one: the Illusion Trial."

"How to choose?"

"Energy touches the corresponding text."

Yang Wanqing raised his hand, his fingertips reaching towards the words "Trial of Illusion" floating in the air.

The moment the spiritual energy touched it... the words "Insufficient spiritual energy, please replenish spirit stones immediately" appeared.

Chen Siyao and Yang Wanqing were stunned for a moment, then Yang Wanqing's expression immediately fell. "Okay, Yaoyao, I thought it could still be used."

Chen Siyao was also a little disappointed. If the Martial Arts Pavilion could be used, it would greatly help their cultivation.

"Yaoyao, do you think using the Flame Spirit Stone will work?" Yang Wanqing was unwilling to give up so easily.

"Can you turn your Flame Spirit Stone into a Spirit Stone?" Chen Siyao rolled her eyes at her best friend, clearly annoyed.

Yang Wanqing's eyes lit up. "That's right! If I can't do it, then Master will definitely have a solution. Let's go find Master!" Then she pulled Chen Siyao outside.

Yang Wanqing pulled Chen Hao, who was drinking tea outside, into the Martial Arts Pavilion. "Master, Master, look at this! It needs spirit stones to activate. Did you turn the Flame Spirit Stone into a spirit stone?"

Before Chen Hao could speak, she continued, "Master, you see, I've been stuck at the peak of the Meridian Opening Realm for a long time. With this, you won't have to worry about my advancement anymore."