"Oh! Xiao! It's all your fault! You're so careless! Look, someone else has beaten us to the Black Gold Horned Bull Beast!"
A crisp female voice, tinged with a hint of reproach, broke the silence of the area.
Liu Yuan looked toward the sound and saw a pair of siblings with extraordinary temperaments walking toward him. The young girl was pouting, her almond-shaped eyes full of annoyance as she repeatedly poked the boy beside her with her elbow.
The boy called 'Xiao,' who was indeed Xiao Hongchen, had a look of embarrassment and helplessness on his face.
While soothing his sister, he sized up the peer standing alone by the corpse of the ten-thousand-year Spirit Beast with a searching gaze.
He could feel that this person was not simple.
"Don't worry, don't worry," Xiao Hongchen whispered to his sister. "Maybe they didn't come for the Black Gold Horned Bull. There might still be a chance for a turn of events."
"It better be!" Meng Hongchen snorted, but like her brother, her eyes involuntarily filled with curiosity and scrutiny toward Liu Yuan.
Under Liu Yuan's gaze, the siblings approached him.
Xiao Hongchen composed himself, a very approachable smile appearing on his face. He took the initiative to cup his hands toward Liu Yuan and said:
"Greetings, friend. I am Xiao Hongchen, and this is my sister, Meng Hongchen. We are both from the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineer Academy. May I ask Your Excellency's name?"
He kept his posture humble, showing proper politeness while also stating his origin—an expression of confidence.
Liu Yuan thought to himself, 'It really is them.' The future favored children of the Sun Moon Empire, the grandson and granddaughter of Jing Hongchen.
A warm smile appeared on his face as he returned the gesture. "Hello, my name is Liu Yuan."
"Brother Liu Yuan," Xiao Hongchen greeted him first.
He glanced again at the corpse of the Black Gold Horned Bull Beast that had been killed in a single blow. Aside from an almost invisible bloodline on its neck, there were no other wounds on the body.
"Only one new wound... a one-hit kill?" His internal astonishment grew even more. He asked somewhat incredulously, "This Black Gold Horned Bull Beast... was it killed by you alone, Brother Liu Yuan?"
Liu Yuan smiled calmly and nodded gently. His nonchalant manner made it seem as if he had only performed a trivial task.
This action caused an irrepressible look of surprise to instantly surface on the faces of Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen.
Meng Hongchen's minor complaints had long been thrown to the back of her mind, replaced by large eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"Impressive!" Xiao Hongchen gave Liu Yuan a sincere thumbs-up, his face filled with genuine admiration and respect.
He knew very well how difficult this Spirit Beast was to deal with; its defense and impact force were terrifying, and its speed was not slow either.
A few days ago, he and his sister had teamed up and used several sophisticated spirit tools, yet they couldn't take it down. It had managed to escape by relying on its thick hide.
Yet this youth named Liu Yuan could actually kill it alone. This level of strength far exceeded their understanding of their peers.
After a brief moment of wonder, Xiao Hongchen explained their purpose with a hint of embarrassment. "Brother Liu Yuan, to be honest, our reason for coming to the Sunset Forest this time was precisely for this Black Gold Horned Bull."
"A while ago, my sister needed this pair of horns as core Materials to craft a core soul tool. But this item is very rare and simply cannot be bought on the market, so we had to come and hunt it ourselves."
"We've been searching this forest for many days. We finally encountered it last time, but due to a moment of carelessness, it escaped. I didn't expect... that it would ultimately be slain by you, Brother Liu Yuan."
Liu Yuan's brow twitched imperceptibly as he asked in a calm tone, "So, does Brother Xiao mean to say that I stole your Spirit Beast?"
"No, no, no! Brother Liu Yuan, please don't misunderstand!" Xiao Hongchen waved his hands hurriedly.
Fearing he might offend Liu Yuan, he quickly explained, "Spirit Beasts are ownerless things; they belong to the capable. We failed to catch it last time because our own skills were lacking. Since you had the ability to slay it, Brother Liu Yuan, it is rightfully your trophy."
"I just wanted to discuss something with you. We really need this pair of Black Gold Horns, so we intend to purchase them from you. I wonder if Brother Liu Yuan would be willing to part with them? We are willing to pay... two hundred gold coins!"
Two hundred gold coins for a pair of Black Gold Horns was already a very fair, even slightly high, price.
However, upon hearing this, the expression on Liu Yuan's face shifted from calm to a bright smile.
He waved his hand and said, "So that's how it is. However, there's no need for the two hundred gold coins."
Hearing this, Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen's hearts tightened, thinking Liu Yuan was unwilling to sell.
But then they heard Liu Yuan continue, "Meeting the two of you here is a form of fate."
"It's just a pair of Black Gold Horns; they aren't of much use to me. Since you two are in urgent need, I will give them to you. Let's consider this gift a way to make friends, how about it?"