Under a group of truncated hollow trees were gathered a brood of imps as they surrounded a tiny new life in a circle giving off an immense aura of intimidation.

The tiny life struggled to get out of the encirclement but to no avail and could only slither uneasily and curse his unreliable beast master a hundred thousand times in his heart.

Is this what a human being does?

Enticed with the sweet smell of a comfortable home, he was made to come out of the egg house when he was sleeping and then thrown into a den of thieves!

The twilight serpent said he had finally experienced the treachery of human society. His inherited memories in the bloodline warned him of this treachery. He should have believed those.

Alas, now he could only wait.

“Zi Ming, Come back to the hall right now.”

As soon the voice sounded, Zi Ming’s heart jumped. His brother always spoiled him – nothing a few tears couldn’t fix so the responsibility of being strict naturally fell on Mama Mei.

Who’s else but Mama Mei’s voice could possibly cause him to jump like this?

“Coming Mama Mei.”

Then the twilight serpent saw an amazing scene. The aura of intimidation changed suddenly as if the stormy winds turned into spring breeze, dark clouds change their color to celebratory red and hundreds of lilies bloomed as if competing for glory. Even the sun that shone brightly above the sky seemed to restrain its edge and send warmth to the soul.

Even though the twilight serpent could not speak yet, he knew in this moment that Mama Mei was the top of the ranking this snobbish imp named Zi Ming explained to him.

So, this creature called Mama Mei could help him restrain this small creature. Well, his own beast master seemed useless so let’s try this creature ranked number one.

With that thought, the twilight slithered with the maximum speed he could fathom and went straight to the source of the sound.

After a while, he lay on Mama Mei’s shoulder and his cunning eyes kept scanning the imps who were being straightened out by her.

Zi Yang had been adjusting to his promotion ever since this farce started. He had already been promoted to Mortal Rank 9 after the beast master space and was already on the edge of being promoted to Elite rank.

With the feedback energy after making a contract, he hoped to get promoted to the Elite rank. Only something weird happened again.

Adjusting his state, he first went to the living room to sort out the ruckus Zi Ming created again.

But when he went, the scene has calmed down already. Mama Mei was setting breakfast and Zi Ming and the young panda cubs were sitting on the carpet playing with the twilight serpent.

Sensing the arrival of his beast master, the serpent once again put up his hope and try to rely on this seemingly unreliable human.

He could not do anything about it. The smell of the comfortable home was enticing and he wanted to go there.

Zi Yang picked up the snake, looked at it and asked, “So you got to know everyone in the house?”

The snake rolled his eyes very humanely and chided him for being irresponsible. He was abducted by the devil right after he was born and his beast master did not do anything – if anything, he doubts his qualifications now!

Zi Yang was dumbstruck.

Are newborn snakes so intelligent now? They even check beast master qualifications?

“Haha, the abductor is my brother. I know nothing will happen to you. But you’re pretty cowardly huh?”

The whole body of snake shrieked instantly as if being insulted and he bared his nonexistent teeth.

* Cowardly, who said? Send me to the abductor again and see how I spank his butt.

“How do you know to spank his butt?”

Isn’t this snake growing way too fast in human society?

* The creature named Mama Mei spanked his butt and the creature called Zi Ming was helpless.

Ah. This silly snake. Does he think he can spank Zi Ming as Mama Mei does? I guess sometimes establishing ranking does help – who knows if this courage gets him into trouble one day at home?

Throwing away the distracting thoughts, Zi Yang focused on the snake again.

“Alright. Alright, you’re very brave. Let me check your attributes first and then how about I give you a brave name as an apology for leaving you earlier?”

“Zi Yang, why do you apologize to this tiny snake? Shouldn’t he listen to you?”, Zi Ming was confused.

Every beast listens to his beast master so why should Zi Yang listen to his beast instead?

Thinking that his elder brother understood wrong, Zi Ming took it upon himself to explain. He stood up seriously and said, “Zi Yang, let me tell you. A good beast should listen to his beast master. So why should you apologize?”

In the room right now, except the panda cubs acting cute were Mama Mei and Baize.

When Zi Ming said this, both slowed down their work slightly.

On the door of the closed hall was Dark Void accompanying Void Empress who came by early morning to check on Zi Yang and discuss something with him.

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Dark Void had lost count of how many things the Void empress had changed after coming in contact with Zi Yang. She could even visit her disciple’s home instead of calling him straight over.

Void Empress also signaled Dark Void to stop at the door when this question sounded.

The twilight serpent was uneasy. No matter how smart or observant, he was a baby.

So, when he heard that he was not being a good beast, he wondered if he was wrong. Before his thoughts diverged, a warm finger tip scratched his head and seemed to soothe him.

“Zi Ming, why do you think so?”, Zi Yang asked gently.

Zi Ming was emboldened and thought he taught his brother well so he was confident and said, “Because you are stronger than the beast and strength reigns supreme.”

Setting aside his amazement at having heard such a phrase from Zi Ming, he understood the crux of the rank setting and the problem behind the farce.

So, he guided accordingly, “So if the beast becomes stronger than me someday, should I listen to him?”

Zi Ming said naturally, “Yes. Mama Mei is a panda mama and I listen to her. So do you. She is stronger that you.”

“So why does Uncle Baize listen to me and Mama Mei? He is stronger than everyone of us? But you ranked him fourth in the house.”, Zi Yang asked puzzled.

“That’s because you bound him by contract so you are stronger and he listens to you. You listen to Mama Mei so he has to listen to Mama Mei and I am your brother – so he listens to me too.”

Everyone was amazed. This kid – peculiar logic and solid thinking. No one knew what to say now.

But Zi Yang does.

“His contract ended yesterday. But he still listens to me and everyone though.”

“Ah, really?”, Zi Ming was struck for the first time.

Zi Ming looked at Baize for confirmation and Baize signaled in affirmative. Now, he was confused.

In the kid’s small life, Zi Yang had placed a lot of emphasis on recovering his body and strength. So Zi Ming placed strength as extremely important besides Zi Yang himself.

Before Zi Ming could think further, Zi Yang quipped, “Doesn’t Yi Hai listen to you as well when he is stronger than you?”

“That’s because we’re friends”, Zi Ming retorted.

As if a certain switch was pressed in Zi Ming’s intelligence, he shouted loudly, “And godfather listens to you because he is family.”

“So, I can make the beast listen to me even if he is strong if I make him my friend or family? Wow, Zi Ming – you are so intelligent. Even if I am not stronger, I can make someone stronger listen to me ah!”

With that, Zi Yang clapped loudly and kept praising Zi Ming.

The kid’s tail reached nine heavens in the sky.

“Yes, yes. Now you understand.”

With that heard, Zi Yang kept the snake on the center table and whispered to Zi Ming.

“So, should I not apologize if he seemed hurt by me? Otherwise, how do I make friends with him? It seems he’s angry with you and you asked me not to apologize.”

Ah this.

With all the appreciation poured onto him, Zi Ming felt he needed to solve this case.

He thought for a long time in silence, braced himself and finally went to the center table.

“Listen up slippery, I am Zi Ming – my brother’s greatest treasure so I you should be grateful that I am becoming your friend…”

Ohhh.

The young master syndrome.

The tsundere syndrome.

The immersion syndrome.

What else has this kid gotten into. Zi Yang wanted to cry rivers of tears into how his little brother had so many character syndromes at such a young age.

Somehow, everyone in and out of the room seemed to feel his cry – but they did not feel much. Kids at this age are supposed to be eccentric and troublemaking.

That is what makes one’s childhood complete. If anything, they interpreted this cry as a cry of relief for having given Zi Ming a complete childhood unlike his own.

“I am also sorry for troubling you. And since you don’t have a name – as your first friend, let me give you a name on behalf on my brother.”

The twilight snake has challenged limits of his intelligence and cognition in the past few minutes to understand what happened.

He only knew that the annoying kid said he was not a good beast, then said sorry, then became something he called “friend” and finally, he was going to give him a name.

But he did not want that.

His beast master was supposed to give him a name so why is this “first friend” giving one. The twilight snake protested again with a crisp hissing sound.

Zi Yang understood his protest.

He also walked next to Zi Ming and squatted next to his brother.

“What name do you think would suit him, Zi Ming? He grey sheen looks like a night shade so how about calling him that?”

“Hmm, let me think brother – don’t disturb me.”

By this time, Dark Void and the Void Empress had already entered the room and sat on the breakfast table.

Zi Yang greeted everyone and started having breakfast.

Zi Ming? The kid ate something while Mama Mei was preparing the breakfast.

While eating breakfast, he looked at the attributes of his first beast:

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[Name]: Twilight Serpent

[Attribute]: Time

[Race Level]: High level Elite

[Cultivation Level]: Mortal Level 1

[Skills]: Time Sense, Night Shadow Concealment

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“Hmm. I’ve decided I’ll call you Zi Wan after my name and Wan for night”

Zi Ming had just finished speaking and everyone was about to nod when, Zi Yang suddenly said, “Good job Zi Ming. That name sounds even better than your name.”

Zi Ming immediately made a 180 upon hearing that, “Scratch that. This name is not good. Let’s call you Chen Wan – meaning day and night.”

“Hmm, sounds okay but Yi Hai might make fun that you just added two words of day and night and added them together.”

Zi Ming brows wrinkled. Zi Ming worked on many names but Zi Yang always had them scrapped by either praising him as better than their own or pointing to someone else or guiding Zi Ming into thinking they were bad.

The circus at a house raising children never stops.

Today was a show on how to manipulate children to do things you want and have them think they did it on their own volition.

Finally, Zi Ming was exhausted and said tiredly, “Let’s call it Nox. Nox for night and a little fancy but not too much.”

This time, Zi Yang waited for a while and Zi Ming did not realize that he waited with bated breath.

“Ah, good. Nice play on the word from God of time Chronos and naming it Chronox. Zi Ming’s smart.”

“Of course, I am. Hey, listen up slippery – your name is Chronox.”