"Haven’t you already named them?"
Hua Yiyou looked at Feng Yuan with confusion and scratched his head as Feng Yuan brightly said,
"I haven’t named them..."
Glancing at Feng Yuan, Mo Li calmly said,
"Be it Pinecone Ball or Pineball Fairy, both are fine, but as he mentioned, the origins of those names are somewhat..."
After these past few days of understanding, Mo Li and Hua Yiyou had realized that almost all Spirit Beasts wouldn’t actually want to actively harm humans; those so-called divisions of good and evil Spirit Beasts were just arbitrarily made by humans based on their own likes and dislikes.
When they set out to compile the compendium, they naturally didn’t want such misunderstandings to continue being propagated. Therefore, they planned to rename those Spirit Beasts that had been simply named based on humans’ preferences.
As for whether it would be successful, they were unclear, but they were ultimately the first ones to attempt compiling such a guide. As long as the compendium they compiled became widely spread, the names they settled on would certainly become the standard.
As for why they would make the compendium public? Even if they kept it to themselves, it wouldn’t be very meaningful. There were so many Spirit Beasts in the world; what they released were only rankings of strength, naming, and simple introductions. Other factions would find it pointless to use such a thing for their purposes.
After all, those Protogenos Spirit Beasts had been around for a very long time, and everyone had a rough idea of their strengths. Conversely, wanderers and other humans who frequently ventured into the wild would hold them in high regard. At least they could understand that Spirit Beasts generally wouldn’t harm humans under normal circumstances. Especially since they planned to compile the things that Spirit Beasts particularly detested, just by consulting the guide, one could avoid inadvertently angering them. This was especially important for those venturing into the wilderness.
"In any case, handle that matter yourselves. I’ve left the seeds here. If you want to take care of those little messenger birds, you can take over now. But if you don’t give them Red Feather Fruit, I’m afraid they might leave."
"I promised them that they could eat Red Feather Fruit often."
"Does Red Feather Fruit have a special use for the little messenger birds?"
Hua Yiyou asked Feng Yuan, having deliberately started collecting information related to Spirit Beasts since they decided to compile the compendium.
"No, it’s just that Red Feather Fruit is quite popular among most avian Spirit Beasts."
Seeing Hua Yiyou’s gaze turn toward Xiao Ji, Feng Yuan smiled and said,
"As for it... although it’s also an avian Spirit Beast, its taste is a bit different from the rest."
Xiao Ji puffed out its little belly, seemingly proud that Feng Yuan said it was different from other avian Spirit Beasts. Hua Yiyou glanced at Xiao Ji and said,
"That doesn’t seem... like a compliment."
With an indifferent attitude, Xiao Ji swayed its body while Feng Yuan squatted down and patted Xiao Ji’s head, saying,
"Not at all. The perspectives of Spirit Beasts themselves aren’t fully the same as humans’. If we try to impose our human concepts of good and evil onto them, that would actually be a mistake and might even cause their animosity."
Hua Yiyou curiously inquired about Spirit Beast information from Feng Yuan. Although Feng Yuan wouldn’t reveal too many specific details, he still shared some general information. As such, Feng Yuan talked with them about Spirit Beasts in Mo Li’s room for a long time until Mo Ling came in with a dark expression to chase everyone back to sleep.
"So that is a Pinecone Ball. Even though it looks a bit like a pinecone, it doesn’t need to rely on pine forest environments to survive."
Feng Yuan pointed at the Pinecone Ball on the tree branch, curiously scrutinizing the passersby, and said. Seeing Mo Li and the others look dubious, Feng Yuan glanced at Guo Huai and asked,
"Although that’s what the information I have here says too, it’s just..."
Looking at the Pinecone Ball information on the data panel, Guo Huai was somewhat puzzled; after all, the appearance of a Pinecone Ball was indeed misleading. Feng Yuan pointed at the large orange-yellow fruit under the tree next to them. The fruit looked a bit like an oversized orange, but its skin was more like that of a peach, and a pair of oval brown little feet hidden in the underbrush were almost imperceptible.
Seeming to notice someone pointing at it, the fruit suddenly sprouted a pair of watery, big eyes and curiously scrutinized the people. Guo Huai eyed the information that popped up with a strange expression.
"Giant Wood Spirit Fruit? Why would a Pinecone Ball evolve into this?"
"You ask me, but who should I ask? How would I know such a thing? Why don’t you just marvel at the wondrous workings of nature and be done with it?"
"Is this the evolved form of a Pinecone Ball?"
Mo Li looked curiously at the large fruit, and the Giant Wood Spirit Fruit curiously met Mo Li’s gaze. Hua Yiyou cautiously approached the Giant Wood Spirit Fruit to observe it and realized that it just stared at him without any particular reaction, which gradually made Hua Yiyou bolder.
Approaching the Giant Wood Spirit Fruit, he gently touched it and said in surprise,
"The tactile sensation is quite special!"
"It’s very elastic, right?"
Feng Yuan glanced at the giant spirit fruit, which rippled slightly after Hua Yiyou touched it, and said, while picking up Xiao Ji at his feet and giving it a firm hug,
"Actually, Xiao Ji’s tactile sensation isn’t bad either~"
Guo Huai glanced at Feng Yuan speechlessly. He felt that among their group, only Feng Yuan would have such odd focuses of attention. Yao Yin glanced at the fluffy thing sleeping on her shoulder and disdainfully disregarded arguing with Feng Yuan.
Curious, Mo Ling cautiously approached the giant spirit fruit to experience it for herself, and after realizing that the fruit didn’t react in any particular way, her playful side emerged. It wasn’t until she saw Mo Ling attempting to lift the giant spirit fruit that Mo Li said somewhat helplessly,
"I think you won’t be able to lift it."
"Says who! ...Ugh, so heavy..."
After trying for a while and realizing she really couldn’t lift it, Mo Ling looked puzzledly at the giant spirit fruit staring back at her,
"Why is it so heavy?"
"Isn’t that quite normal?"
Feng Yuan glanced at Mo Ling and spoke, with Mo Ling somewhat dissatisfied,
"I can lift a piece of wood of the same volume!"
"It’s denser, a simple fact."
Mo Li and the others looked puzzledly at Feng Yuan, only Guo Huai and Yao Yin understood what Feng Yuan meant. Guo Huai explained a bit about the concept of density, with Mo Ling still confused,
"But I can easily lift a piece of wood of the same volume. Why is it that this one is..."
"Doesn’t that make it suffer?"
Mo Li looked at the giant spirit fruit with sympathy. Its pair of small, oval feet seemed too small in comparison to its colossal body. Mo Li even doubted whether it could move around.
Just then, the giant spirit fruit stood up as if remembering something and called out, causing the Pinecone Ball to immediately jump down from a branch, landing precisely on top of the giant spirit fruit. Seeing the spirit fruit deform slightly then bounce back, tossing the Pinecone Ball into the air, Feng Yuan poked Xiao Ji enviously,
"Look, it seems so bouncy~"
Xiao Ji glanced at Feng Yuan, appearing somewhat disgruntled. After a while, the Pinecone Ball settled curiously on the giant spirit fruit’s head, peering around. The giant spirit fruit shook its body and started to move toward the interior of the forest. Watching it leave, Mo Ling asked with some confusion,
"What are they off to do?"
"Probably foraging," said Hua Yiyou as she stroked her chin thoughtfully. "After all, spirit beasts that are fruit types don’t usually possess the root-planting ability of plant spirit beasts. Even though they’re herbivores, they still need to eat."
At that moment, Feng Yuan nodded and added,
"That’s right, the giant spirit fruit can lighten its weight by circulating energy through its body, and if I remember correctly, the maximum is..."
"Ninety-three percent of its weight, that’s the greatest reduction in weight the giant spirit fruit can achieve with its lightening characteristic."
"What’s ninety-three percent?"
Hua Yiyou looked puzzlingly at Guo Huai, not quite understanding what the ninety-three percent meant. Feng Yuan glanced at Guo Huai and corrected,
"Lightness isn’t a trait; it’s just a special ability, don’t get it confused. Most heavy spirit beasts have this lightening ability; after all, their weight is too much. Without it, they would damage the environment wherever they go."