The moment it thought about dying such a miserable death, it immediately chickened out, feeling that a wretched life was better than a good death, and struggled, chirping incessantly.

It expressed its willingness to surrender, to surrender!

“Sigh, I actually preferred your unruly attitude just now.” Emily Martin said regretfully, tossing it to Jason Brooks’s feet.

Jason Brooks, on the other hand, didn’t mind it at all. With a gentle demeanor, he picked up the leader locust sparrow. “Since that’s the case, from now on, you’ll be the spirit beast of our Chen clan.”

“Chirp chirp.”

The locust sparrow leader called out weakly, and with its signature tuft of red feathers burned off, the whole bird looked utterly dispirited.

“Don’t be so downcast.” Jason Brooks comforted it, “Following our Chen clan, at least you’ll have a steady meal to eat. You won’t have to live by plundering anymore.”

As he spoke, Jason Brooks took out a bowl of spirit rice he had prepared earlier and brought it to its beak.

Chirp chirp chirp!

Smelling the fragrant and tempting aroma, the locust sparrow leader immediately perked up a bit. But once bitten, twice shy—it wanted to eat but didn’t dare, timidly testing the waters.

“Stupid bird, your wings are already tied up now. Killing you would only take a single stroke—why waste knockout drugs?” Emily Martin said irritably, giving it a kick. “If you don’t eat, I’ll eat it for you.”

This was precious spirit rice, after all.

As a penniless rogue cultivator, being able to eat spirit rice even once in a while was already a happy occasion. How could she be like Jason Brooks, who had a steady supply of spirit rice and food every year?

For a moment, she actually felt a strange sense of envy toward that dumb bird.

The locust sparrow leader staggered, unable to suppress its craving for food any longer, and pecked a mouthful of cooked spirit rice.

Tsk tsk, this taste—fragrant, soft, and delicious—was so much better than those hard, raw grains.

It ate faster and faster, burying its whole head in the bowl. In no time, it finished the entire bowl of spirit rice, smacking its beak, looking like it still wanted more.

Watching from the side, Emily Martin couldn’t help but swallow secretly.

“All right, as long as you behave from now on, you’ll never lack for food.” Jason Brooks took the opportunity to draw a big pie in front of it.

“Chirp chirp.” The locust sparrow leader was delighted with the promise, rubbing its head against Jason Brooks, and their relationship instantly became much closer.

Fourth Uncle Henry Brooks had been watching with a smile the whole time, not joining in the young people’s interaction with the locust sparrow. Only now did he chime in, saying, “This locust sparrow is indeed quite clever, and is worth taming. However, Jason, you’d better not untie it just yet. Once we reach the market, I’ll help you find a beast-taming ring.” “Thank you, Fourth Uncle.” Jason Brooks bowed gratefully.

Over the years, the Chen clan hadn’t lacked opportunities to raise spirit beasts.

But there were many factors to consider in raising spirit beasts—it wasn’t that simple.

First, spirit beasts usually had large appetites, and the higher their rank, the more demanding they were about food. This expense was unavoidable.

A not-so-wealthy cultivation family could barely feed its people, let alone spirit beasts.

Second, most spirit beasts weren’t actually that useful.

Most things spirit beasts could do, cultivators could do as well. If you had extra resources, it was better to support more people—even hiring retainers or outside help was far more cost-effective than raising spirit beasts.

Moreover, most spirit beasts didn’t have much growth potential, and their strength improved slowly. The training period was too long, unlike human cultivators who could grow quickly thanks to “technique, wealth, companions, and land.”

Of course, spirit beasts had their own advantages.

For example, this locust sparrow leader was not only smart and clever, but could also be used to drive away other locust sparrows, or even fight off pests like “insects” and “rats.” In this way, it would indirectly increase the yield of the spirit fields, so you wouldn’t be wasting food raising a useless spirit beast.

That was exactly why Jason Brooks was tempted to take in this locust sparrow leader.

“Congratulations, Young Master Jason, on acquiring a spirit beast.” Emily Martin sidled up, putting on a fawning expression, her eyes sparkling like spirit stones.

Jason Brooks understood her intent and bowed. “Thank you, Miss Emily, for helping my Chen clan solve the locust sparrow problem in the spirit fields, and for helping me tame the spirit beast. Please accept this small token and don’t refuse.”

He counted out three spirit stones and handed them over.

That’s it?

Emily Martin’s starry eyes widened in disappointment.

Oh, Jason Brooks, you look every bit the pampered young master, so why don’t you have the style of those rich heirs who’d spend a fortune for a beauty?

“Miss Emily truly has a noble character…” Jason Brooks pretended to take back the small gift.

“No, no, I was just distracted for a moment.” Emily Martin hurriedly snatched the three spirit stones, and in the next instant, skillfully transferred them into her storage pouch. Then she beamed at Jason Brooks, “Thank you for your generosity, Young Master Jason.”

Three spirit stones were no small sum.

Especially for low-level rogue cultivators, working hard for a whole year might not earn them that many spirit stones or their equivalent.

She had only worked for half a day, spent some cheap knockout drugs, and ended up with three spirit stones—a huge gain indeed.