The Twilight Stable had undergone a transformation, subtle but profound. It was still dilapidated, still remote, and still stank slightly of spirit ammonia, but it was no longer a place of despair. It now hummed with a quiet, bizarre industry.
Princess Luo Bing, having fully embraced the "naturalistic approach," was no longer in silk robes. She wore thick, durable hemp, her hands were calloused from scrubbing the chili bath, and she spent her mornings leading the now-content Ice Phoenix (which had sprouted several magnificent blue pin feathers) on intense, cross-country fetch runs.
Lin Fan, the former crippled genius, was perpetually hunched over a workbench, meticulously polishing his bronze wire gauntlets and experimenting with new metallic alloys for his Shadow Bat. The bat, no longer skittish, clung to his shoulder like a furry, nocturnal scarf.
Su Ye watched his two disciples with satisfaction. They had shed their arrogance and embraced humility. Now, he needed his final recruit.
"Uncle Chen," Su Ye said, handing the old man a small sack of Spirit Stones (profits from selling a few of Zhu Zhu's extremely dense droppings, which were surprisingly effective as low-grade fire starters). "I need you to scout the Academy. I need a dramatic failure."
"Dramatic?" Chen muttered, counting the stones greedily. "We already have the Ice Princess cleaning rust and the Metal Genius obsessing over wire. How much more dramatic can we get?"
"I need someone whose flaws are entirely based on performance," Su Ye mused, leaning back against the still-warm shell of the Obsidian Tortoise. "Someone who thinks they are destined for glory, but collapses the moment they step into the spotlight."
"Ah," Uncle Chen nodded sagely. "You mean a peacock. I know just the place. The Recruitment Hall of Failed Prospects. They are holding a special session today."
Su Ye arrived back at the main Academy just as the latest wave of frustrated Tamer hopefuls were exiting the testing chambers. The air was thick with disappointment. Students who had high hopes were being told their beasts were "low-tier," "untrainable," or "destined for the butcher."
And then, Su Ye saw him.
A young man, perhaps nineteen, lay sprawled dramatically across the cold marble floor of the foyer. He wasn't crying; he was wailing. His distress was an act of pure, theatrical agony.
This was Gao Ming.
He was dressed impeccably in bright green robes, his hair was perfectly styled, and his posture—even in the fetal position—was designed to catch the eye. Lying next to him was his Spirit Beast: a perfectly healthy, beautiful Emerald Cloud Deer. The deer looked less distressed by the exam failure and more distressed by its master's proximity.
"My destiny! My glorious path! Shattered!" Gao Ming roared, clutching a scroll to his chest. "I was promised a Tier-5 Ranking! I was meant for the Imperial Guard! Instead, I am told my Spirit is Untamable! I would rather die!"
A stern-faced examiner stood over him. "Enough, Gao Ming! Your talent is mediocre. Your deer is perfectly fine; you are the failure. Get up!"
Su Ye smiled. Perfect.
He walked past the examiner and crouched down next to the wailing student.
"Your name is Gao Ming?" Su Ye asked quietly.
Gao Ming immediately lowered his volume slightly—the better to hear the new audience member—but maintained the trembling lip. "Who asks? Are you here to witness my shame? My tragic downfall?"
"I'm Master Su Ye," he said. "The Master of the Twilight Stable. And I specialize in fixing unnecessary drama."
Gao Ming scrambled up to his knees. "The Twilight Stable? You mean the graveyard? I'm not a dying beast, sir! I am a star! A star that is being tragically suppressed by a corrupt system!"
"Oh, I agree," Su Ye said, looking at the Emerald Cloud Deer. "They called your Spirit Untamable, correct? Let me take a look at your bonding technique."
Gao Ming, eager for a showcase, dramatically threw out his hand and attempted a low-tier Spirit Contract Chant. He spoke the words with perfect, theatrical resonance.
The Emerald Cloud Deer, which had been placidly chewing grass, immediately tensed. Its eyes widened, and it took three quick, nervous steps backward, trying to bolt away from the connection.
"See!" Gao Ming wailed. "It hates me! It rejects the bond!"
Su Ye sighed. He reached out and gently placed a finger on the deer's snout.
Zzzzt.
Su Ye's mind was instantly flooded with sunshine, green meadows, and the sound of wind chimes. It was a beautiful, placid mental space.
The Ancestor was a majestic, silver-horned Divine Stag. It was calm, regal, and currently looking profoundly irritated.
"The boy is perfectly fine," the Stag Ancestor sighed, its voice like the gentle rustling of leaves. "He is powerful. My descendant respects him. So why does he keep shouting at us?"
"He's trying to form a contract," Su Ye thought.
"It sounds like he is attempting to summon a storm!" the Stag snapped. "His energy is volatile and his voice is loud. My descendants are creatures of stillness and subtle resonance. When he shouts those commands, it feels like an avalanche rolling over us! We don't run because we are untamable; we run because he has the internal volume control of a broken gong!"
"Tell him to stop performing!" the Ancestor commanded. "He needs to whisper the command. He needs to approach the contract as a shared secret, not a theatrical performance. And he needs to change those ridiculous, bright green robes. It hurts my eyes."
Su Ye pulled his hand back, slightly deafened by the mental yelling.
"Gao Ming," Su Ye said, looking at the distraught student. "Your deer is not untamable. You are just being excessively loud."
"Loud?"
"Your spiritual chant is overwrought. Your energy output is too aggressive," Su Ye explained. "You treat the contract like a stage play for the audience, not a conversation with your beast. The deer is a gentle Spirit of the Forest; when you shout the contract, it thinks you're yelling about a forest fire and naturally flees."
Gao Ming blinked, the theatrical tears drying instantly. The concept of his performance being a flaw was revolutionary. His whole life was performance.
"So... I need to be more... subtle?" Gao Ming asked, testing the word.
"Try to contract it again," Su Ye instructed. "But this time, whisper the words. Don't look at the examiner. Look at the deer's eye and imagine you are sharing a secret."
Gao Ming was still skeptical, but curiosity outweighed his dramatic need for martyrdom. He inhaled deeply, closed his eyes, and lowered his voice until it was a breathy, almost inaudible whisper. He focused all his performance energy inward, projecting quiet intent toward the deer.
The Emerald Cloud Deer stopped chewing. It took a hesitant step forward. As Gao Ming finished the contract word, a faint, pulsing green light enveloped both student and beast—a smooth, successful bond.
The examiner's jaw dropped.
"Impossible! A successful low-tier contract!"
Gao Ming looked at the deer, then at his hand, then back at Su Ye. The look in his eye shifted from theatrical misery to genuine, wide-eyed wonder.
"I... I did it," he whispered. "It accepted! Master Su Ye! You are a genius! You saw my inner light where the blind system saw only darkness!"
"I saw the deer running away," Su Ye corrected dryly. "But yes. You are fixed."
Gao Ming fell to his knees again—but this time, in genuine reverence, not melodrama. "Master! You have saved my path! I pledge my life to your tutelage! I will be your most devoted disciple!"
The dramatic personality confirmed, Su Ye thought with a slight headache.
"Good," Su Ye nodded. "Welcome to the Twilight Stable, Disciple Number Three. Your first task is to stop wearing those robes. They clash with the aesthetic of the courtyard. And you will never, under any circumstances, shout again."
Gao Ming nodded rapidly, his voice already reduced to a reverent murmur. "Yes, Master. I will whisper my devotion."
Su Ye looked at the three enrollment slots on his official parchment. All three were filled. The challenge was complete.
Su Ye returned to the Twilight Stable and found Grand Elder Shen, the highest authority of the Guild Hall, waiting for him.
The Grand Elder stood silently in the middle of the yard, watching the chaos with an unreadable expression.
Luo Bing was wrestling the massive Thunderfire Lion—which was now fully recovered and growing larger every day—on the ground. She wasn't fighting it; she was using a large, specialized bristle brush to clean its teeth, forcing it to chew on special bone treats to maintain oral hygiene, all while the Lion purred contentedly.
Lin Fan was sitting cross-legged next to the pit, allowing his Shadow Bat to drink condensed moisture from the Tortoise's shell, using the unique energy field to stabilize the bat's fragile Qi flow.
Gao Ming, dressed in a muted grey hemp robe (a dramatic downgrade for him), was whispering the Taming incantations to a previously "feral" Wind Wolf while gently combing out its matted fur.
"Master Su Ye," Elder Shen said, his voice quiet. "I came here expecting to find a condemned grave. Instead, I find... a zoo."
"It's a sanctuary, Elder Shen," Su Ye corrected, handing him a clean stool. "Please sit. Would you like some tea? The Wind Wolf is surprisingly good at finding premium herbs."
"I am told you recruited the Imperial Princess, the Metal Genius, and the Star Pupil Gao Ming in under two days," Elder Shen said, ignoring the tea offer. "And all three were considered failures by my best Masters."
"They were only failures because your Masters were looking for the wrong kind of flaws," Su Ye said, sitting on the Tortoise shell. "Princess Luo Bing was over-cared-for and spoiled. Lin Fan was terrified of his own potential. Gao Ming was addicted to drama. I simply addressed the psychological flaw, and the biological flaw fixed itself."
Elder Shen looked around the humming, productive stable. He watched the massive Lion obediently open its mouth for a brushing, the formidable Tortoise basking peacefully, and the three top-tier geniuses working with quiet, focused humility.
"You have fulfilled the mandate," Elder Shen admitted. "You have your license, and you have your students. But know this, Su Ye: The established order will not tolerate a rogue variable. Master Mo and his allies will attack your methods, your students, and your stable. They will try to find a way to destroy your reputation."
Su Ye smiled, entirely unconcerned. "Let them try, Elder Shen. I am ready. I have the strongest defense in the Kingdom."
He patted the Obsidian Tortoise shell beneath him.
"And a pig that can eat lawsuits."
Elder Shen shook his head slowly, a faint hint of curiosity in his ancient eyes. "You are not a Tamer, Su Ye. You are something new entirely. You are... a Healer of Souls."
The Grand Elder stood up, pausing at the gate. "Do not leave the Twilight Stable, Su Ye. Remain isolated. It is the only thing that might keep you alive."
"I have no intention of leaving, Elder Shen," Su Ye said, looking at his new family of former failures. "The world's trash keeps bringing itself to my doorstep."