Monster Pet Evolution

by Stayrr

Three years ago, the animals and plants on Earth underwent crazy and unexplainable changes that included transformations, reversions, and the addition of otherworldly species. And it was the start of a brand-new type of profession in the new generation of humanity – Monster Trainers, people who specialized in taming monsters. On his 18th birthday, the protagonist of the story, Gao

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Read Monster Pet Evolution Chapter 201 - I've Become Stronger, but... online for free - AllNovelFull

Chapter 201: I've Become Stronger, but…

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Ji Hanwu was in a good mood when he arrived at home. He looked at Gao Peng, who was training his familiars by the lakeside. He coughed twice and then slowly walked towards Gao Peng.

"Little Peng, guess what your grandpa got you as a surprise?" Ji Hanwu flashed a mysterious smile.

Gao Peng thought for two seconds and said, "A Forbidden Magic Stone?"

Ji Hanwu paused.

I knew I shouldn't have divulged anything to this child! Why couldn't he let his grandpa be happy for a while!

When he saw Gao Peng laughing secretly, Ji Hanwu hit Gao Peng's head unhappily.

What a naughty boy.

"I know that there's nothing that grandpa can't do." Gao Peng smiled and gave his grandpa a thumbs up.

"Haha." Ji Hanwu smiled heartily, "Come look at what you wanted." Ji Hanwu handed the black bag he was hiding behind his back to Gao Peng.

Gao Peng took the bag and eagerly opened the box.

The brown box seemed to be made of some kind of wood. It felt warm, like jade, and it also emitted a woody smell.

The other materials needed for the evolution of the Adamantine Duck had been collected a few days earlier and placed in the laboratory freezer.

When he thought about promoting the grade of the Adamantine Duck, Gao Peng couldn't sit still. He immediately called the Adamantine Duck, who was swimming in the lake, to come over.

The Adamantine Duck, who was still in the lake, heard Gao Peng shouting at it, quickly flying over. At the same time, it kept making quacking noises.

Flamy used this chance to act as a translator. "The duck said, you've finally asked for me, I…"

"Shut up." Gao Peng pressed down on Flamy's beak. "I don't need you to be a translator right now."

"Grandpa, I'm preparing to promote the grade of this Adamantine Duck. Do you want to come watch?" Gao Peng said to his grandpa with a smile.

It wasn't convenient to disclose his abilities to other people, but sharing it with his relatives was fine.

Ji Hanwu's expression showed that he was very interested. "Let's go. I want to see how you promote this duck's grade."

The Adamantine Duck stood in the laboratory. It was interested in everything that was in the laboratory.

Since the last experiment, Ji Hanwu had allocated a certain amount of funds to Gao Peng's laboratory.

Initially, he had thought that it was just one of Gao Peng's hobby. However, when he learned of Gao Peng's abilities, he had decided to use his company's resources to fund him. A certain amount of funds would be given to the laboratory every quarter. Of course, only Gao Peng and Ji Hanwu knew the exact amount.

Some of the Soul Crystal Obsidian that could be used to determine a monster's grade had also been placed in Gao Peng's laboratory.

Gao Peng pressed his finger on a fingerprint scanner, and a drawer popped out. He took out two pieces of Soul Crystal Obsidian from the drawer and began to test the Grade of the Adamantine Duck.

A drop of the Adamantine Duck's blood dripped on the Soul Crystal Obsidian while the Adamantine Duck stared curiously at the black stone.

Immediately, purple light shone in the Soul Crystal Obsidian.

Ji Hanwu was somewhat surprised. He couldn't help but look over at this unremarkable looking Adamantine Duck. Who knew that it would be an Epic grade monster?

Then Ji Hanwu thought of something. It was currently an Epic grade monster. Little Peng wanted to promote its grade. Did that mean that it would be promoted to a Legendary grade monster?

Ji Hanwu felt astonished. One had to know that there were no known instances of someone successfully promoting a monster to the Legendary grade.

Of course, he wasn't sure if there were any unpublished successful cases. However, Ji Hanwu hadn't heard any news of successful cases through his own connections.

At the moment, he simply regarded it as Gao Peng's experiment. Of course, he had to support his grandson's hobby.

Ji Hanwu gave a thumbs up and patted Gao Peng on his shoulder. "Good luck. Grandpa believes that you will succeed."

Gao Peng laughed. "I also believe that I will succeed."

Gao Peng then began to prepare the reagents. Gao Peng mixed a few ordinary reagents as a warm up. He then randomly placed these successfully mixed reagents on the reagent rack beside him. Gao Peng's expression became very serious.

Ji Hanwu felt that it was very interesting when he saw his grandson look so serious.

It was as if an adult saw a child trying to wear grown-up clothes that were too big for them and then trying to act like an adult. One wouldn't be able to help but laugh.

Mixing the reagents was a fast process. The whole thing didn't take more than 20 minutes.

Gao Peng wiped the sweat from his forehead, still with a very serious expression on his face.

The other materials were expendable, but there was only one Forbidden Magic Stone. He couldn't afford to fail.

Ji Hanwu's smile gradually faded when he saw Gao Peng's serious expression. He observed Gao Peng conduct the experiment earnestly.

Those who were able to focus on their work were worthy of respect.

The final step was placing the Forbidden Magic Stone into the mixture. The ice-blue color of the Forbidden Magic Stone slowly faded when it was submerged in the mixture. Finally, the stone became transparent.

The originally green reagent took on a new color. It was now as blue as the ocean.

Gao Peng put his hands into the reagent. When it was as thick as his thumb and as long as his palm, he called the Adamantine Duck over.

In its mouth was a yellow rubber ducky. The Adamantine Duck wobbled over and Gao Peng yanked the rubber ducky out of its mouth. The Adamantine Duck suddenly grew worried. "Mine, mine."

Gao Peng held out his index finger and swayed it gently, "Drink this and this duck is yours."

The Adamantine Duck couldn't wait to swallow the reagents in Gao Peng's hands. It even swallowed the glass bottle.

"Wait a moment, I only wanted you to drink the liquid inside. I didn't ask you to swallow the glass bottle." Gao Peng was left speechless.

The Adamantine Duck took the rubber ducky out of Gao Peng's hand. Before it could take a second step, it fell onto the floor.

The Adamantine Duck started to twitch on the floor. Meanwhile, its yellow feathers started to shed. One yellow feather fell after another. Its beak started to recede. It looked shorter and thicker. From afar, it looked like it had grown very puffy lips.

"Is this the legendary saying of 'I've gone bald, but I've also become stronger'?" Gao Peng looked at his chin and then looked at the Adamantine Duck's transformation in suspicion.

Within a few minutes, all of the Adamantine Duck's feathers had fallen off, leaving its white skin exposed.

Who knew that the Adamantine Duck would have become so cute. Its meat also seemed to be very tender.

Gao Peng felt astonished. He quickly took out his phone and secretly took a few photos.

Once his familiar had grown up, all of this would be evidence of its dark past.

Subsequently, faint, blue colored runes started to appear on the Adamantine Duck's white skin.

More and more runes started to appear, all packed together. They appeared on its bald head, its deliciously meaty looking chest, and both the fat and skinny parts of its wings.

Wait a second, what was he paying attention to? Gao Peng quickly shook his head.

When he turned to look at the Adamantine Duck again, he saw that life had started to spread on the blue runes on its skin. All the runes were outlined and connected by a shining blue light.

Kha cha, kha cha.

The sounds of things colliding in the Adamantine Duck's body could be heard. It was as if its bones were exploding. The muscles on its body tightened, beautiful lines started to appear, and its body began to expand.

"Quack…" the unconscious Adamantine Duck murmured to itself softly.

"Poor duck, in order to become stronger, it had to go bald." Gao Peng looked pitifully at the Adamantine Duck lying on the ground. He hoped that it could accept the change in its appearance after it woke up.

"Why are all of its feathers gone?" Ji Hanwu, who had just gone out to make a phone call, saw the duck had gone bald.

"This is a normal reaction," Gao Peng said calmly.

Ji Hanwu nodded thoughtfully.

Chapter 202: Forbidden Adamantine Duck

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Within half an hour, the Adamantine Duck's height had grown by a head until it was about the same height as Gao Peng.

The muscles on its body were especially well defined. Its chest and back muscles had puffed up. The muscles on its wings were especially noticeable. The explosive growth in its muscles was simply unbelievable.

The blue pattern covered every inch of its body. As it breathed, the blue patterns looked like they were alive.

"Evolution successful."

[Monster Name: Forbidden Adamantine Duck

[Monster Level: Level 10

[Monster Grade: Legendary

[Monster Attribute: Gold

[Monster State: Healthy (Sleeping)

[Monster Weakness:

1. The Tianshu Stone of Counter Evil can cause extra damage to the Forbidden Adamantine Duck. 2. The Forbidden Adamantine Duck cannot use elemental energy.

[Requirements for Promotion to Mythical Grade: Two evolutionary routes: 1. Divine Adamantine Martial Duck. 2. Vicious Beast Duck.

So the next grade after Legendary is Mythical. Gao Peng looked at the items required for the promotion to the Mythical grade, then closed his eyes slowly. He got a headache just by looking at where the items were produced. Even traversing through the terrain to get them would be a problem.

Gao Peng took the opportunity to use a blood collecting device to draw blood from the Forbidden Adamantine Duck while it was asleep.

The blood collecting device bounced off after Gao Peng tried pushing it in. It felt like he was sticking it in rubber. He had to put in quite a bit of effort before he succeeded in pushing it into the duck's skin.

The blood, as red as rubies, was being slowly sucked out.

Gao Peng couldn't help but look closely at its blood. Why did Flamy's and the other familiars' blood not look as unusual as Goldie's had?

Gao Peng thought that it was reasonable to say the Epic grade Commander tier Earth Shield Spider was, from a certain point of view, in the same class as the Forbidden Adamantine Duck. This was because the Forbidden Adamantine Duck's grade would automatically drop down to an Epic grade once it was promoted to the Commander tier.

"That probably isn't the case," Gao Peng frowned.

From his past experience, when Commander tier familiars were promoted to a higher tier, they would automatically drop a grade. However, compared to familiars that were inexperienced, it was much easier for them to get back up to their original grades.

Will there be a special threshold for every grade? Even if a familiar's grade is downgraded, it would be easier for them to get back to that state compared to monsters that had never reached that grade before.

Gao Peng massaged his temples. These were all just guesses.

Gao Peng dropped the blood on the Soul Crystal Obsidian. The deepest part of the Soul Crystal Obsidian started to turn red. The red started to spread to the whole Soul Crystal Obsidian. Eventually, the entire stone was engulfed in red. It was as if the whole stone was burning.

Ji Hanwu, who had been standing next to Gao Peng, also saw what was happening. He couldn't hide the shock in his eyes.

He had actually succeeded!

His grandson had actually achieved something that no one else on earth had achieved!

Ji Hanwu closed his eyes and took a deep breath, trying very hard to calm himself. He moved forward to look at the Soul Crystal Obsidian and then looked at Gao Peng with an expression that conveyed many different emotions.

"We'll keep this between you and me. You'll tell the public that the duck was already a Legendary grade monster when you got it. Understand?" Ji Hanwu warned Gao Peng solemnly.

Gao Peng wasn't dumb. Celebrating his success in private was enough. If news of this got out, it would bring more trouble than benefits.

"I understand, grandpa."

Ji Hanwu than warned him about it several more times. He only stopped nagging Gao Peng after he was sure that Gao Peng understood.

Ji Hanwu cut Gao Peng off when he was about to speak. "Okay. I know you have your own little secrets. You don't need to share them with me, and I'm not interested in hearing them, either. This old fart will hand you the responsibility of promoting his familiars." He then placed both his hands behind his back and walked away while humming a song.

While leaving the laboratory, Ji Hanwu's eyes started to get wet, but he forced down the tears.

Qing Chang, can you see this from heaven? Can you see that your son is starting to show potential?

If I could go back in time, I would definitely respect your decision.

You can rest easy. Little Peng is your son, but he's also my grandson. I'll take care of him properly.

All his words and thoughts came out as a long sigh. They were all lost to the wind.

The Forbidden Adamantine Duck slowly woke up ten minutes after grandpa had left.

It got up from the floor in a hurry, trying to figure out how it had passed out.

Why is it so cold? The Forbidden Adamantine Duck looked down and saw the floor was covered in duck feathers.

These feathers look familiar. Such a familiar color, such a familiar pattern.

"You've woken up," the duck heard a very familiar voice say from its side.

The Forbidden Adamantine Duck turned around and saw Gao Peng smiling mysteriously at it.

"Quack?"

"I think you've grown handsome."

Unfortunately, the Forbidden Adamantine Duck was unlike Da Zi and the others. Otherwise, it would've noticed that Gao Peng was acting very unusual.

"I've always been handsome," the Forbidden Adamantine Duck answered very naturally. It then spread its wings to comb the feathers on its head.

When it touched its head, the bald texture caused it to notice that something was wrong. This touch feels wrong.

The Forbidden Adamantine Duck shook its head and walked out the door.

When it walked past a mirror, it accidentally saw its reflection. It saw an ugly bald fellow with strange blue patterns over its body looking back.

"Quack, quack, quack." This is definitely the ugliest duck I've ever seen.

The Forbidden Adamantine Duck started to roar with laughter. How could there have been such an ugly duck?

As the Forbidden Adamantine Duck laughed, its laughter grew weaker and weaker, until it couldn't laugh anymore.

I think that ugly duck is… me?

A cold wind blew through the laboratory, and the Forbidden Adamantine Duck had goosebumps on its skin.

"Quack!!!"

Gao Peng walked in front. Behind him was a featherless blue duck with well-defined muscles.

The featherless duck would, from time to time, rush forward and bite Gao Peng. However, the damage caused by the bite would be passed on to Da Zi instead.

Da Zi, who was sleeping, was suddenly woken up. It quickly crawled out of its hole and looked around. Who was it? Who was the one who hit me?

"I've already told you to stop hitting me. You going bald had nothing to do with me… right?" Gao Peng tried hard to appease Goldie.

Hmm… he doesn't have any feathers left on his body. The name Goldie doesn't really fit him anymore.

"Quack!" Goldie responded to Gao Peng angrily.

"Okay fine. You can continue to be called Goldie. This name will be in remembrance for the time when you still had feathers." As Gao Peng spoke, he couldn't help but let out a laugh.

They came to the lakeside. While flying and training in the air, Flamy inadvertently saw Goldie walking behind Gao Peng.

The lakeside suddenly became very lively.

A group of familiars gathered around Goldie to stare at it as if it were a monkey at the zoo.

Goldie sat on the ground angrily, unwilling to respond to anyone.

An hour later, Gao Peng was looking at a level 20 Red-clawed Wolfdog that Goldie had defeated. Although it was only a Normal grade monster, Goldie battling a monster that was 10 levels higher still shocked Gao Peng.

Not to mention, the later stages of the battle had been completely one-sided. The Red-clawed Wolfdog had no way of resisting. When faced against a thirteen-foot-tall duck that grew larger whenever it was hit, the wolfdog's claw attacks could only create shallow scratches on the duck's body.

The battle was over before halftime.

In the end, the wolfdog let out a whimper, turned around, and ran away with its tail between its legs.

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Chapter 203: Reporting In

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

There were many reasons why Goldie had become so strong. The growth in its strength after being promoted a grade was one reason, and the special characteristics it possessed was another. The last reason was the ability it had gained when it had been promoted to the Legendary grade, [Secret Power].

[Secret Power: Secret Patterns. Strong resistance to elemental attacks. The effectiveness of the ability is determined by the physical condition of the user.

(Effect one: Passive Effect: Strong resistance to elemental attributes. Additional resistance to water attributes. Effect two: Active effect: Secret Patterns will be activated temporarily when used. A vacuum sphere will appear around the body, canceling all types of elemental effects near the sphere. It will also expel all elemental effects within the sphere.)

Under Gao Peng's understanding, the first effect was to give Goldie passive resistance to elemental attacks. The second ability was to form an element-free sphere around its body. Did that mean it would forbid the elements from entering?

However, some monsters didn't just depend on the elements in the atmosphere since they had very strong elemental energy in their bodies. The elements in the atmosphere only served to help them magnify their powers.

The real effects of the ability would only be seen once it was used in battle.

Commander tier monsters weren't able to control their elements beyond their body. They mainly relied on the muscles in their bodies when battling. At most, they would be able to include some elemental effects in their melee attacks.

The Red-clawed Wolfdog was a fire type. It would cause a burn every time it used its claws to attack.

However, Gao Peng didn't see Goldie being burned. It was obvious that Goldie was completely immune to the fire.

A bald duck that became more powerful the more it was attacked and was also immune to elemental attacks?

Gao Peng shook his head.

Three days had passed in the blink of an eye. Gao Peng would finally be welcoming the start of his university life.

Yuzhou University, college town campus branch.

Although it was called a branch campus, the reality was that the student population at the main campus in the city center had been declining.

Most of the branches of the different departments of Yuzhou University had moved to areas in the college town that were more spacious.

That day was registration day for the new students at Yuzhou University.

Many large buses that picked up new students were parked outside the school. When the bus door opened, a countless number of people carrying big and small bags came pouring out.

All the students who had just gotten off the bus were either looking at the entrance of Yuzhou University in curiosity or with great longing.

Luggage was being taken out from the bottom compartment of the bus and handed over to the new students. An old man wearing a volunteer uniform was holding an umbrella and distributing mineral water next to the buses. The atmosphere was very lively.

It was the beginning of a new school year once again. Smart seniors, both single and not, had come to school very early to carry out a mystical ceremony to welcome new students.

Universities were mystical places, and welcoming new students was one of their mystical traditions.

When these thirsty seniors saw cute female juniors, they would become especially quick-witted. They would quickly walk over and say the following: "Hello fellow classmate. Since you're new in school, there are definitely a lot of things you still don't know yet, right? Yuzhou University is very big, and people who aren't familiar with the school will definitely get lost. I'll take you to where you need to register."

They would say such words to gain the right to welcome their female juniors. Sometimes, if there were attractive female juniors, the senior male students would compete among themselves. Only the best of them would win the right to welcome the attractive female juniors.

After they won the right to welcome their juniors, these seniors would lift up their heads and puff up their chests.

The confused female juniors who had just arrived at the school would be ferried away by their seniors to complete the entire registration process.

They would then arrive at the most important step of the entire process, getting their numbers or their messaging usernames.

Of course, not all female juniors would give such important pieces of information to their male seniors. That would depend on the luck of the pitiful male seniors.

"Hello junior, let me help you with your registration." A few seniors saw a good opportunity and rushed forward when they saw a black-haired girl wearing a black short sleeve shirt and sweatpants coming out from a bus.

When they moved closer, they got a clearer look at the girl's appearance. The cold expression on her face couldn't hide her beauty.

"Where's the registration for the monster trainer department?" the black-haired girl asked when she saw a few people around her.

Monster trainer department? She's a monster trainer student?

A bucket of cold water seemed to have been poured on the seniors' passion. They looked carefully over the girl's shoulder, but they didn't see any fierce-looking monsters.

The monster trainer department was a very special department at Yuzhou University. This department only had two majors. One was monster training, the other monster breeding.

The monster training major was a very special major that had been newly established by Yuzhou University. It was directly under the jurisdiction of the military and the government.

There were more male students in the department than females.

After all, monster trainers needed to take up positions that involved combat, so it would be unwise to provoke a monster trainer major. Other students would definitely have certain biases towards monster trainer students.

After the occurrence of a few tragedies at the school, the students in normal departments kept a respectful distance from the monster trainer students…

"Ahem. I'll take you there," one brave senior said as he walked forward. A few of the other seniors had backed down.

"Just tell me which direction it is. I'll go by myself," Jun Moyi said indifferently.

As if they had been relieved of a great burden, the senior quickly told Jun Moyi the location of registration for the monster trainer department. He then turned around and started looking for his new "prey."

Wearing a white graphic t-shirt on his upper body, his hair styled and clean, and wearing over-ear headphones, Gao Peng got off the bus and silently blended into a group while walking along with a piece of luggage that was half his height. He joined a group of new students.

Some of the female seniors who were sitting at the reception table for the new students saw Gao Peng, and their eyes glimmered. He looked like a good quality male junior. They exchanged a few words and then giggled. Sharing a few laughs with each other was a way to refresh themselves during the summer heat.

Gao Peng saw rows and rows of colored tents inside the school. Written on the tents were the names of the different departments and majors. They were all crowded together. Gao Peng had no idea where the monster trainer department's tent was.

"Junior, what's your major?" a bright and hearty voice said from beside Gao Peng.

Gao Peng lifted his head and looked. He saw a guy who was six and a half feet tall, taller than Gao Peng by a whole head. His physique was like that of a bull. He walked over with a smile on his face as if he wanted to help Gao Peng carry his luggage.

However, Gao Peng preferred to carry his luggage himself, so he politely refused.

"Hello senior. I'm a new monster trainer major in the monster trainer department."

Niu Di glanced at Gao Peng, who looked quite weak. Although he wasn't short, he was quite skinny. He'd had no idea that he would be a monster trainer student.

"I'm an accounting major. The registration for the monster trainer department isn't here. I'll take you there." Niu Di led the way in front. They kept turning around corners and walked for about ten minutes. Eventually, they saw a vast open field in front of them with trees scattered around. This meant that they couldn't see what was happening on the entire field. They could only hear the sounds of living creatures. It looked a bit chaotic when they glanced over.

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Chapter 204: Four Stars of Yuzhou

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"It's just ahead of us. You go ahead, I won't be coming with." Niu Di smiled. He looked as if there was something he wanted to say, but he couldn't.

Gao Peng nodded at Niu Di to show his appreciation for showing him the way.

Walking through the open field, Gao Peng saw that there was a group of people gathered. They looked different from the serious looking people who were there to register as students. Although there were computers, registration forms, and other such things present, the people who were there were just sitting. Most of them were chatting, seeming very relaxed. A few familiars were playing on the field.

When one of them spotted Gao Peng, he shouted, "There's another new student. Stop chatting."

When Gao Peng walked over, he could feel dozens of eyes looking at him.

"Brother, what's your profession? Monster trainer or monster breeder?" a white-haired youth asked Gao Peng with a smile on his face. He gave Gao Peng a wink.

"Monster trainer."

"Oh…"

Gao Peng felt half of the people stop looking at him.

The change in attitude was extremely obvious.

"Come over here to register. Have you brought your Examination Admission Ticket?"

"Yes." Gao Peng handed the Examination Admission Ticket over. The person who took it scanned it using a machine, and the computer quickly showed Gao Peng's information.

Name: Gao Peng

Age: 18 and a half years old

Examination Results: Highest scoring candidate in the first round exam in Chang'an City. Ranked 11th in the second round exam in Huaxia Region.

The data shown was simple and straightforward.

The name, age, and exam results could all be seen at a glance.

The old man who sat behind the computer suddenly stopped breathing for a second. He had initially thought Gao Peng was a nobody. It turned out that he was someone important.

This is the 11th ranked candidate in the whole Huaxia Region and the highest scoring in Chang'an City.

The two guys looked at Gao Peng carefully. The person who was responsible for registration suddenly expressed his shock. He slapped his forehead, pointed at Gao Peng, and said, "I remember now. The loafer. You were that loafer!"

The smile on Gao Peng's face suddenly froze.

What loafer?!

The loafers are my stupid and lazy familiars! I'm only the one who had to take responsibility for their actions!

The person seemed to realize he was being rude. He quickly apologized, "Sorry, I was just a bit surprised."

Another person who was helping a candidate register for the exam turned around and asked, "What's going on?"

"Another god is coming to Yuzhou University. The 11th ranked candidate in the second round examination. Even most of the sophomores and juniors in our school won't be able to beat him."

"Do you think he'll be able to challenge Mingge and his gang?"

"Umm, I think you're thinking about it too much."

"I'm not talking about now. I'm talking about in three or four years."

"Hou Mingge and all of the others would have graduated by then, you idiot."

The people who had walked away before all came back and started to stare at Gao Peng, sizing him up.

He was ranked 11th after all. That wasn't a low ranking by any means.

Unfortunately, it wasn't a big shock to them, as a female who was ranked fourth had already come and registered earlier. As that had already given them a shock, it was hard for them to be shocked again for the second time within a such a short timespan.

"Oh yeah. The new student who came earlier was also from Chang'an right? What a coincidence, both of the stars from Chang'an came to Yuzhou," a person on the side said, laughing as he spoke.

Another person from Chang'an? Gao Peng's heart skipped a beat.

"Hello. May I ask the name of that new student?"

The person replied, laughing, "I forgot that you guys might know each other, since you both came from the same place. Her name is Jun Moyi. Her personality is very cold. You should know her, right?"

Jun Moyi. Gao Peng thought about the giant black anaconda and started to recall some of his memories.

"I've met her before." Gao Peng smiled.

After completing the registration, another senior, who was a monster trainer in his sophomore year, brought him to the dormitory. The dorms were a bit far away from the school, so they needed a car to get there.

"At the beginning, the school was worried that we might accidentally destroy the school buildings and the dormitory, so they built us another dormitory somewhere else. From their point of view, familiars are all violent, but they were able to slowly learn the true nature of the familiars, so they began to allow familiars to access the other school areas. However, there are still many areas where familiars are not allowed."

Gao Peng listened in silence.

The senior appeared to be very talkative. He didn't care that Gao Peng wasn't responding. Throughout the journey, he kept happily sharing stories of Yuzhou University's more well-known figures.

Because the age for signing a Blood Contract and the age for going to college were both 18, it was very likely these strong and enthusiastic youngsters would become very strong monster trainers.

Some of the students who had too much free time would give nicknames to the monster trainers at Yuzhou University. Some of the names that were given made it seem like they were extremely talented.

Of course, these names were only used within the school. If these names were used in the real world, people would most likely not agree with the ones that were given.

However, there were four exceptions to this.

These four were the best monster trainers among all of the university students in Yuzhou City. Even the non-university students in Yuzhou City knew who they were.

Their abilities and their fame had greatly exceeded the confines of the university.

Of the four, two were from Yuzhou University. One was a student in his senior year, Xue Ming, and another was a junior student named Lin Xinrui. Neither of them had majored in monster training, but they had both switched to it after the school established the monster trainer department.

"Xue Ming is a permanent honorary member of the council of the base of Yuzhou. He basically isn't involved with the school anymore. Lin Xinrui doesn't appear in school that often, either. She's a world huntress. She's not in Yuzhou most of the time, though most of the areas around Yuzhou were explored by her." When he mentioned these two people, the senior suddenly seemed very proud.

While they were chatting, they arrived in front of a small double-story bungalow with red bricks and a white fence. Green Boston Ivy climbed up the fence.

"They're all single bedrooms, one student per room. Although there isn't a lot of space inside, they're well-furnished, and they all have air-conditioning and a fridge. They were donated by the chairman of Yuzhou University, Mr. Ji.

"Mr. Ji?" Gao Peng was slightly stunned. There weren't a lot of people with that last name.

"Yes. Ji Hanwu, director of the Southern Sky Group. We just call him Mr. Ji. Mr. Ji is Yuzhou City's protector. Yuzhou City has been invaded quite a few times by dangerous monsters, but they were all pushed back by Mr. Ji. Yuzhou City isn't in a good geological position. We're surrounded by mountains, and ever since the Cataclysm, there have been a lot of monsters. If it weren't for Mr. Ji, we definitely wouldn't have been able to live as peacefully as we do now," the senior said in reverence.

Gao Peng was silent. Only now did he realize that his plain looking grandpa had so many hidden stories.

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Chapter 205: Disaster in the Mountain

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Gao Peng entered the room and placed his things inside. Right after he opened his luggage, a dark green figure immediately burst out.

Silly flew two circles around the room and then moved steadily down towards Gao Peng's head.

However, he wasn't able to land on Gao Peng's head this time. Gao Peng used one hand to block Silly from landing on his head while he shook his head slowly and said, "No. We're outside."

Silly felt wronged. He tangled all of his tentacles and kept spinning in the air.

Gao Peng didn't want to bother with this creature. He wanted to clean the room first. No one had lived in this room since it had been built, and most of the electronics were still covered in plastic. They were all new.

After he was finished with everything, Gao Peng went back to the school to fetch his familiars.

Familiars weren't allowed to go in and out as they pleased. Every familiar that wanted to go into the school had to wear a specialized tracking device that allowed their locations to be seen at all times.

The tracking device could be removed after leaving the school, but the device had to be worn on school grounds. If the device was lost, it had to be reported to the school immediately. Otherwise, it would be treated as a serious offense.

This was to protect the students who had no familiars. It was like placing a group of sheep and wolves together. Some restrictions had to be placed on the wolves.

Along with the registration handbook for new students, there was also an exquisite looking, palm-sized student handbook for new students that wasn't too thick.

When Gao Peng opened the new student handbook, he saw that it introduced a lot of the school rules in detail.

In the evening, a tall young man in red clothes knocked on Gao Peng's door.

"Hello, are you Gao Peng?" The young man looked down and glanced at the list of names in his hands.

"Yes, I am."

"I'm Zhou Ze, your counselor. We're gathering at classroom 404 at noon tomorrow. Everybody in the class will be there so we can all get to know each other. This is the class messaging group. Remember to add yourself to the group so that you can see any notices." Zhou Ze handed Gao Peng a business card as he spoke. On the card were the words, "Monster Trainer Class Four," and beneath that were a bunch of numbers.

Gao Peng was speechless. He took the card from Zhou Ze's hand. Do we need business cards for group chats now?

After Zhou Ze left, Gao Peng took out his cell phone and searched for the group on social media, soon joining it. The chatroom was very lively. People were posting about everything and anything there.

Gao Peng quietly looked at his screen. After looking at it for a while, he realized that the nature of the discussion in the chatroom was not too different from the chatrooms from high school. He found it to be a bit boring, so he yawned and closed the app.

He shook his head and picked up Silly, who was sleeping on the bed, before he left the dormitory. Grandpa was still waiting for him to go back and have dinner.

It had been a week since Gao Peng had started school. Besides the first night, he had stayed overnight at the school every weekday. He only went back home on the weekends.

After a week, Gao Peng had become familiar with his classmates. He was able to call out some of their names, and he could recognize the faces of the rest.

The monster trainers who were able to get into Yuzhou University weren't weak. They would have to have a level 15 Elite tier familiar at the very least.

Some of them also had familiars that had reached the Commander tier.

Among those who had Commander tier familiars, Gao Peng was able to recognize some people he had seen during the second round examination. However, there were also some that he didn't recognize. He guessed that they had probably gotten their familiars to the Commander tier during the summer break.

There were four monster trainer classes that year, each class having around 20 people. This meant that there were only around 80 monster trainer students. If the single lonely monster breeder class was included, there would still be less than a hundred monster trainer majors. Of course, this may also have been due to the overall decrease in population.

The textbooks for the monster trainers were finally given out. All of the students received them.

The textbooks were different from what Gao Peng had expected. He had thought that the textbooks would be a formality. However, when he picked them up with his own hands, he could feel how heavy they were, and how in-depth they must have been.

"The Eighth Edition of a Comprehensive Collection of Monsters, Photo Color Edition," "Monster Psychology," "A Guide to Survival in the Field," "Flora Monster Identification Manual," "Geography of Huaxia District," "Precision Measurement of Yuzhou's Monsters…"

Looking at this pile of thick books, all the freshmen who took received them were stunned.

How was it that they were even thicker than their high school textbooks?

Wasn't the point that they could stop studying once they became monster trainers?

"Did you guys think that you would be able to stop studying once you became monster trainers?" Counselor Zhou Ze shook his head and sighed, "Such a mindset is wrong. We should always strive to learn. Do you want to be an illiterate monster trainer your entire life?

"The most important thing is that these are the facts you should learn. Of course, if you want to be the kind of monster trainer who's only going to hang around in the forests near the base cities, you won't have to learn these things. But if you want to improve yourself, you need to master all of this. These things may not be of much use most of the time, but they can save your life in critical times.

"Don't think that I'm joking. If you meet a monster in the wild and you don't know its habits, abilities, and weaknesses, you've already lost half the battle."

Gao Peng very much approved of the counselor's philosophy. Even if the school hadn't required him to, he would have still read through these books. For example, he had already read through the first to eighth editions of the Comprehensive Collection of Monsters no less than ten times. He could recite the information in the book from memory.

Gao Peng also liked the book "A Guide to Survival in the Field" a lot. There were many nuggets of wisdom from the author of the book, who was a very famous explorer. He had unfortunately passed away half a year ago earlier after being poisoned while on an expedition. Of course, this fact didn't take anything away from his skill!

That explorer had died because he had encountered a large and strong poison type monster in the wild. It'd had nothing to do with a lack of proficiency in his field of study.

Besides spending time studying these books, the monster trainer students were allowed to take part in other vigorous activities during the rest of the day. They were given quite a bit of autonomy by the department. Gao Peng felt like they were being left to do whatever they wanted.

He sometimes wondered if it was because they didn't quite know how to teach monster trainers…

"Gao Peng, do you want to join the student association with me? They have tasks that they need done every month. It would be a good training exercise for us," asked one of Gao Peng's classmates whom he was somewhat familiar with.

"What tasks do the student association receive?" Gao Peng was slightly distracted for a moment.

"The tasks are good for toughening people up!" the guy said quickly. "The previous task was to go to the Red Bean Botanic Garden to clean the streets. The garden isn't cleaned regularly, so a lot of low-level flora type monsters have appeared over there. That means that it's a place where you can train for free by fighting against monsters that aren't too dangerous. It can be a very good training exercise. How about it? Do you want to join the student association with me?"

Gao Peng was silent after listening to him. Isn't that just helping people clean stuff for free?

These newbies are too easy to trick.

Gao Peng could sense his passion, so he didn't want to rain on his parade. After all, joining the student association was a dream shared by many of the newbies. "I don't have the time to join the student association, but if you really want to, you should go ahead and join."

Three hundred miles from the Yuzhou base city, a small pitch black mountain shaped like a beehive shook violently. A dark fog appeared from the caves located at the foot of the mountain, as if the mountain itself had breathed them out. Low growls that reverberated between the mountains came from the holes and caves spread across the peak of the mountain, not stopping even after a long time..

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Chapter 206: Martial Law in the City

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

In the mountains, several monster hunters were walking in the forest with all their gear on. They carried bulging bags on their backs that contained very valuable monster organs.

The ground beneath them suddenly shook. The squad's familiars let out uneasy growls.

"What's wrong, Bei Bei?" one of the monster hunters stopped, turned his head and gently stroked a big white cat next to him. The big cat turned its head, its sapphire blue eyes full of panic and anxiety.

"Go, we need to go quickly," the big cat said quickly and anxiously.

Several of the monster hunters' hearts skipped a beat. Bei Bei had reacted very similarly in the past. Once, it had been because a Legendary-tier monster flew overhead. Luckily, the Legendary-tier monster hadn't noticed them, or it might have been that it just hadn't paid them any attention.

It was the same reason a person wouldn't step on a small bug for no reason. Only when the bug climbed up the person's leg would that person shake it off and then kill it.

"We need to leave this place quickly. Let's go back to Yuzhou City first," said one of the squad members immediately.

Just as they turned around, the earth beneath them shook. The earth seemed to have turned over!

When the earth turned over, a few of them and their familiars were thrown into the air.

They then saw something that gave them a very big shock…

"Dozens of monster hunters have gone missing in the mountains and forests in the northeastern part Yuzhou City," said a senior police officer in uniform with a frown. He was at the Yuzhou police station.

"Such a large number of monster hunters wouldn't go missing under normal circumstances," another senior police officer pointed out.

He gently tapped the table and decisively said, "Send some people to investigate immediately. We also need to seal off the northeast entrance to Yuzhou City. Prevent any entries and exits."

The meeting ended right after he finished speaking.

It wasn't the first time something like this had happened. Such things usually occurred when there was a rise in the number of monsters, or when new ferocious powerful monsters migrated to the vicinity of Yuzhou City.

It was the weekend, and Gao Peng had arrived at home. Grandpa sat at the dinner table wearing a white loose shirt. He lowered his head to drink some soup, then wiped his mouth with a napkin. "Don't leave the city during this time. It isn't safe outside the city."

Gao Peng placed the piece of meat in his chopsticks into his mouth. He felt the juices of the meat burst out in his mouth. He swallowed the meat in one gulp, not very sure what was going on.

It seemed like grandpa had just mentioned it in passing, but Gao Peng would remember what he said. He wouldn't go outside of the city no matter what.

"A lot of monster hunters have gone missing outside the city recently. The number keeps growing… the military has sent out teams to investigate, but some of them have gone missing as well. The situation is quite dangerous, so you need to be careful," Ji Hanwu said slowly as he watched Gao Peng eat.

"Okay." Gao Peng nodded.

That was all they spoke of the incident. Gao Peng didn't pay the situation any mind and life went on as usual…

Three days later, a message spread throughout the city. Yuzhou City had entered level five martial law. No one was allowed to go in or out without permission. The city had also entered high alert mode.

Immediately, there was a huge commotion throughout the entire city. In all the alleys and corners of the streets, people were talking. Countless numbers of people were discussing the matter.

Once the news was out, even the streets that were usually very busy had gone quiet. Most people stayed at home, and when they needed to go out, they would try to move quickly.

Many factories outside the city had been shut down. They were waiting for the police alert to end before resuming work.

In contrast, Southern Sky Group's factories were operating normally. The only difference from usual was that the factory workers were earning overtime pay.

The level five martial law hadn't been imposed since it had been created, though it could have been said that it was imposed during the Cataclysm.

It had taken many years for people to forget the pain caused by the Cataclysm, but this incident had renewed the memories of the pain. Most people scared easily. The atmosphere in the city had turned tense. In order to prevent any chaos from occurring, the city police had stepped up the number of patrols.

"Is the situation so serious that the White Dragon is needed to dispel the anxiety of the employees?" Gao Peng frowned. He lifted up his head to look at the Southern Sky Group's headquarter. The White Dragon rested on top of the building, its tail dangling off the building and swaying gently.

The White Dragon's mane moved with the wind. Its yellow pupils looked in every direction. Some of the group's employees who felt anxious about the current situation in the city were relaxed when they noticed the White Dragon's presence.

There was rain outside the window. The rain became heavier and heavier, but grandpa hadn't arrived home yet. Usually, grandpa would be home by this time.

Gao Peng stood on the second-floor balcony and looked in the direction of the company's building. He could see the top floor of the building from where he stood. If it weren't for the fact that the White Dragon was resting on top of the building, making him feel more at ease, Gao Peng would've called his grandpa to check on him.

Maybe he's in a meeting…

He looked over, worrying again. Then Gao Peng walked to the living room and switched on the TV.

The local Yuzhou TV station wasn't reporting about the martial law. It was showing entertainment programs or shows about the lives of ordinary people. Gao Peng watched the TV absentmindedly while gently touching Flamy's soft and smooth feathers.

Gao Peng suddenly heard the door open. He got up from the sofa and saw grandpa coming in with a black umbrella in hand.

"Grandpa, you're home." Gao Peng gave a sigh of relief. Learning of grandpa's status didn't make him happy. Instead, it gave him a sense of burden in his heart.

He had never wanted his relatives to be the so-called protectors of the city, nor did he want them to be heroes.

Protectors and heroes were celebrated and seen in a good light.

However, they also lived dangerous lives.

Gao Peng would be willing to admit he was a selfish, narrow-minded person who didn't have great ideals like saving the world.

He was willing to help others if he was able to, but if it was something that was out of his scope, he wouldn't force himself to help.

"Your Uncle Liu's Shadow Japalura has been promoted to the Lord-tier. I just went and helped a bit." Ji Hanwu smiled. "Thunder Shell Lord will also be promoted, too. It's at the peak of the Commander-tier. It should be able to break through to the Lord-tier this time."

"Was it successful?"

"It was. The changes to the Shadow Japalura were quite big. You might not even be able to recognize it." Ji Hanwu laughed.

"Grandpa, what's the reason for the martial law?" Gao Peng asked cautiously. He couldn't learn any information from the TV, but grandpa should have known something.

"It's a new type of monster…" Ji Hanwu shook his head, "It's a new type of monster. It isn't only us in Yuzhou who are facing this problem. There are signs of change all over the world. It's as if the monsters have become self-aware."

"New types of monsters?" Gao Peng couldn't imagine there being any new types of monsters that hadn't been discovered before.

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Chapter 207: Mountain Spirit

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"There are some scholars who think that myths of the past are not entirely baseless. Some scholars are starting to research ancient folklore." Ji Hanwu laughed.

"Do you think their line of thinking is correct?"

"I don't know." Ji Hanwu laughed. "But the monster that appeared is quite out of the ordinary…"

Gao Peng looked over at his grandpa.

"We're calling the monster Mountain Spirit. Some scholars wanted to name it Mountain God, but others disagreed. The word God shouldn't be given to any monster without good justification."

"Mountain Spirit," Gao Peng muttered to himself.

"Yes. A top monster trainer went and took a photo of the monster's body. Its body is a mountain. A living mountain. Truth be told, even I have a hard time believing it," Ji Hanwu lamented.

A living mountain? Gao Peng's heart sank. The first image that popped in his head was of a mountain with thousands of towering peaks crashing towards Yuzhou City like a wave.

If such a large mountain really smashed into Yuzhou City, the result would be catastrophic.

"There's been more than one Mountain Spirit photographed," Ji Hanwu added.

More than one?! Gao Peng gasped for air.

"Yes, fortunately, we discovered the average size of these Mountain Spirits isn't very large. The largest one is only about 1,000 feet high. It's more like a big hill than an actual mountain."

Oh, that's better. Gao Peng let out a sigh of relief. The size of these Mountain Spirits was smaller than Gao Peng had imagined, but even so, a monster of this size would be a handful for even Lord tier familiars.

"Besides, perhaps because of their size, they move very slowly. However, they have a strong killing power on the surface of their bodies. We suspect that the missing monster hunters were killed when they accidentally walked into the mountains while the monsters were disguised as ordinary mountains.

"You don't have to worry. I'll protect you, even if the sky falls down. Those Mountain Spirits don't harbor any hatred towards us humans. They've simply gained some intelligence, and if they have intelligence, that means that we can negotiate with them. If necessary, the military won't even need to use missiles. Simple explosives or carpet bombings would be able to blow up those mountains." Ji Hanwu smiled as he comforted Gao Peng.

"Grandpa, do you have photos of the Mountain Spirits?"

"A photo? I don't have one on me. If you want it, I'll bring one for you."

"Okay." Gao Peng was a bit disappointed. He had thought that he would be able to see the Mountain Spirits' features that day.

"Grandpa, what type of monsters are these Mountain Spirits? Are they elemental types?"

"No, they're natural types. Things from the natural world that have gained life and become self-aware are all classified as natural types. Some monsters, such as vine monsters, are classified as natural types."

Instead of calming down after learning the reason for the martial law, Gao Peng instead grew more worried.

The world was changing too fast. If he couldn't keep up with the change of every living creature on earth, that meant his life would be in danger.

When Gao Peng thought of this, he felt a sense of urgency. He felt that his growth was still too slow.

Although Da Zi and the others were provided with the best food and training environment that were available, Gao Peng still felt like something was missing.

Just as Gao Peng was preparing to go upstairs to bed, his grandpa said behind him, "Oh yes. The items that you asked me to keep an eye out for. I have some news about the Wanzai Moon Gold. A company in Xiangxi that I work with has just acquired it. They've agreed to do an exchange and send it over within a few days."

"Okay." Gao Peng nodded, then went upstairs and closed his bedroom door.

Grandpa had succeeded in helping him get the Forbidden Magic Stone. The Wanzai Moon Gold was something that was required in order to promote Dumby to the Legendary Grade, and he would soon have possession of it.

Although grandpa was his blood relative, and he knew that he didn't require nor expect anything in return for helping him, he still felt terrible about not being able to repay him for his help. He felt like a leecher.

I'm still too emotional.

Gao Peng shook his head. The change in situation had completely woken Gao Peng up. Before, when he had been alone, he would naturally never dare to bring too much attention to himself, but now, it was different. With his grandpa supporting him, he didn't need to worry too much.

Even if Gao Peng didn't fully understand everything, grandpa would know what to do. All he needed to do was hand over his finished products and then let the professionals handle the rest.

He could do whatever he wanted. There were tons of different materials stored in the laboratory freezer, enough to make dozens of different types of drugs.

Gao Peng put on his coat, opened his bedroom door, and went downstairs. While passing through the corridor, he took an umbrella from the umbrella stand and pushed the door open. Rain was pouring outside.

Da Zi, who had been sleeping downstairs, suddenly sensed his master's presence. It walked over to Gao Peng and lifted its head towards its master, wondering where its master was going at this hour.

Is it because… master wants to secretly take me somewhere to eat something delicious?!

Da Zi was suddenly full of energy and quickly forgot its sleepiness.

"It's raining very hard outside. You should go back to sleep." Gao Peng lowered his head, looked at Da Zi, and softly laughed.

Da Zi quickly shook its head. "Go. Go with you."

When Gao Peng heard Da Zi's tender voice, his heart softened. Da Zi cares about me the most. He was my first familiar after all.

Gao Peng knelt down and gently patted Da Zi on the head. "Okay. Let's go over together."

Da Zi swung its feelers around in excitement. It eagerly followed behind Gao Peng.

The fire in Da Zi's heart couldn't be extinguished by the rain hitting its back.

As Da Zi looked at Gao Peng working busily in the laboratory, it felt like it had been wronged. It went to a corner and curled up.

Gao Peng, you changed. You weren't sneaking out to eat something delicious.

Gao Peng looked down at the fifth concoction he had mixed. He stored it carefully and then labeled it. He used a pen and carefully wrote down the formula ratio and any precautions one should take note of.

There weren't a lot of materials in the laboratory. He could only mix up these five chemicals. I'll just give them to grandpa after I get more materials. He might not be able to handle it if I give him too much at once.

Gao Peng went back to the villa and placed the box containing the chemicals in the living room, then looked at the clock hanging on the wall. It was already two in the morning. He yawned and went back to sleep.

The next day, Gao Peng's phone rang while he was in class. He looked down and looked at the message. Grandpa had sent him a picture.

Gao Peng clicked accept, and the download bar started to progress…

Within moments, the picture was enlarged. It was a bit blurry at first, but then it became clear.

When Gao Peng saw the picture clearly, he almost let out a scream.

Holy shhh…

In the photo, a dark black hill was located among some mountains. The surface of the hill was sparsely populated, with a large number of caves scattered over the surface of it.

Gao Peng was able to recognize this exotic hill with only a single glance.

It was the strange hill that had kept attracting monsters that he had seen when he had gone into the forest.

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Chapter 208: Stripey in Heat

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Gao Peng looked at the photos on his mobile phone. Rows of data gradually appeared…

[Monster Name: Mountain Spirit

[Monster Level: Level 48 (Lord)

[Monster Grade: Normal

[Monster Attribute: Natural/Earth/Rock

[Monster Skills: Earth Mastery Level four

[Monster State: Slight Wound (Angry)

[Monster Weakness: 1. The Mountain Spirit's heart is the source of its life. 2. Moves very slowly.

[Requirements for Promotion to Excellent Grade: …

It was a level 48 Lord tier monster.

Gao Peng felt extremely troubled. According to grandpa, there was more than one Mountain Spirit near Yuzhou City. Gao Peng thought about the size of Yuzhou and thought about how little of the land they could actually investigate.

Yuzhou was a place with thousands of mountains…

What troubled Gao Peng more was that he hadn't seen this mountain's features at all before.

He was only able to see them now, which caused Gao Peng to doubt his ability.

After some thinking, Gao Peng arrived at this conclusion. It could have been that when he saw the Mountain Spirit, it was only at the beginning stages of its growth and hadn't completed its growth yet.

Flipping through the photos, he saw other photos of Mountain Spirits taken from different angles, but their sizes were smaller than the previous one. They also had lower levels than the first Mountain Spirit.

Gao Peng switched off his phone and continued to listen to the lecture.

The guy sitting next to Gao Peng felt curious. He used the tip of his pen to point at Gao Peng's elbow and asked, "Brother, the mountain you were looking at looks nice. Where is that?"

Gao Peng wasn't sure if the news about the Mountain Spirits was being censored, so he was reluctant to reveal anything. He answered by giving him a vague response.

Seemingly realizing Gao Peng's reluctance, the young man continued to poke Gao Peng's arm with the tip of his pen. "Don't be so stingy. I like photography. I usually take photos of monsters and familiars, and I think that's a good location. I'm preparing to go there to take two sets of photos for my familiar.

Going on top of the Mountain Spirit to take photos?

Gao Peng gave the young man an odd look and smiled. "You'll see this on the news soon. If you still wish to go, then you can."

The young man was thoroughly confused.

After the lesson, Gao Peng put all his books into his messenger bag and left the class along with the crowd.

Gao Peng overheard two people who were engaged in a conversation. "Dengli, how was the effect of the Bloody Butcher Drug you bought the other day? Did your Black Raging Kong evolve?"

"That drug is fantastic. My Black Raging Kong went through a lot of changes after taking it. Apart from the color changing to blood red, its strength also increased a great deal. The only downside is that its temper became worse. It disobeyed me a few times in these few days alone. Sigh. Nobody is certain when the next series of drugs will be released."

There was a wide empty space some distance away from the back of the lecture hall. Many familiars stood there. As they had been commanded by their masters, they lay on the ground quietly. Occasionally, some curious familiars would move and crawl around, sniffing at other familiars nearby.

Stripey laid quietly where it was resting, waiting for its master to come to fetch it. Stripey was now bigger than a tank. Its black-brown body seemingly devoured the sunshine around it. It crossed his legs at the front of its head and formed a shield that blocked its head. Its gigantic body slowly undulated as it breathed. Stripey's species, the Earth Shield Spider, was still unknown to humans. It was considered a new kind of undiscovered monster.

Everyone knew Stripey wasn't to be messed with just by looking at its external appearance. Its slim and black legs were like sharp spears on the ground. Barbs were hanging out at its joints. Its thick armor had caused it to lose some of its flexibility, but that was offset by its increased defense statistics. It gave off a powerful aura. No familiar would dare to go within fifteen feet of it.

Gao Peng moved closer, and Stripey remained in its position like a statue. When Gao Peng moved even closer, he could hear slight grunts coming from behind the shield…

This lazy bum has fallen asleep! Gao Peng slapped Stripey's shield-like front limbs while laughing. "My class finished. Stop sleeping."

Stripey quivered and moved its front limbs away gradually. Its blood red eyes hadn't opened fully. It was obviously not fully awake. It rolled its eyeballs slowly and realized that its master was standing right in front of it.

Happily, it moved forward two steps, its head continuously rubbing against Gao Peng's body. It was just like a child who hugged their parents to act cute.

"All right, all right, stop trying to act cute. You're already such a big spider, don't you care about people laughing at you if you try to act cute?" Gao Peng lightly stroked Stripey's big head.

"Does this spider belong to you?" A curious inquiry came from the side.

Gao Peng turned his head and saw a young girl with a ponytail. She was clad in a red floral skirt and sizing up Stripey.

"Yes, it's mine," Gao Peng replied. "What's the matter?"

"Is this a male or female spider?" the young girl asked hesitantly.

"Oh…" I don't know how to answer this question.

Suddenly, Gao Peng seemed unable to reply. It was because he wasn't sure whether Stripey was a male or a female. But since it was so timid, it must have been a male spider, because a female spider usually had a more violent character than males.

After giving it some thought, Gao Peng smiled. "Why don't you guess?"

The young girl was a bit annoyed. Why is this person talking like this?

"My familiar, Pearl, is a female White Wolf Spider. She recently… went into heat. If yours is a male spider…" the young girl's voice grew softer and softer. It was somewhat inappropriate for a young girl to say such things.

"I'm sorry, I apologize for what I said just now. It's because I'm also not clear on the gender of my familiar. I normally don't pay attention to these things." When Gao Peng finished speaking, he conveyed the girl's remarks to Stripey through the Blood Contract.

Once Stripey heard, his eyes lit up like light bulbs. When he finished listening to Gao Peng speak, Stripey began shouting wildly. "I'm a male! I'm a male!"

He gripped Gao Peng tightly with his front limbs, all eight eyes looking at Gao Peng pitifully and pathetically. "Master, master, please tell her that I'm a male."

"Really? Why can't I entirely believe this?" He wanted to tease Stripey. He pretended not to believe him.

"Let me show you." After he finished speaking, Stripey laid down on the ground to prove himself. When Gao Peng saw Stripey lifting up his butt, he gave him a kick. "Stop messing around. I have the final say."

After the girl finished listening to Gao Peng talk, she pointed to a big white spider in the distance and said with a sense of great burden, "That's Pearl."

Gao Peng looked over. About 65 feet away stood a big white spider that was about thirteen feet in diameter and seven feet tall. There was white hair on her neck and back. Her blue eyes were full of warmth, and her feet were very smooth and round. She didn't give off the fierceness that was normal of a spider. Rather, she had an unusual beauty about her.

When Stripey saw this female spider, he couldn't take his eyes off her. "Gao Peng, I think I'm in love."

Gao Peng chatted with the girl a while more while they scheduled their next meeting. Gao Peng had to drag Stripey away in the end. "Stop embarrassing us. She only wants your body, but you're already in love."

"She definitely likes me," Stripey said loudly.

"That's just wishful thinking on your part," Gao Peng said calmly.

"That's why you're still single," Stripey retorted.

The atmosphere suddenly took a turn for the worse. Gao Peng had been walking at the front, but he suddenly stopped. He turned his head around and there was a twisted smile on his face. When Stripey saw this, his blood ran cold.

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"Can you repeat that? I didn't hear properly," Gao Peng said softly.

Stripey felt the situation had just grown more complex. He looked at Gao Peng with extreme vigilance.

"Stripey, do you know that if you do this, you'll lose the master who you love oh so much?" Gao Peng lamented. He then punched himself with his fist.

Stripey suddenly felt pain on his face, as if he had just been punched by something.

They returned to the villa that night. Gao Peng gathered all of his familiars and said, "We're having a meeting tonight."

Da Zi sat obediently next to Gao Peng. Dumby crossed his hands in front of his chest, glaring like King Kong. Flamy was flying in the air, leaving a trail of flames in its wake. Goldie was staring at Stripey, who was standing in the center of the room, spacing out…

Flop! Flop! Silly was standing on top of Gao Peng's head and raising its tentacles, helping its master denounce Stripey. Of course, it would have looked more appropriate if it hadn't had a box of fruit juice in its hands.

Stripey sat in the middle of the room, looking innocent, like he didn't know what he had done wrong.

This isn't appropriate. I'm just a little spider. Why are you guys treating me like this?

"This afternoon, one of your friends, Stripey, disregarded his master for sex. He actually hit me because of a white female spider!" Gao Peng said bitterly and hatefully.

Da Zi looked at Stripey in shock. I had no idea you were like this. You hit master just because of a female spider? Spiders are ugly. Why would you hit master because of a spider?

Flamy sneered. Of course, it was that stupid spider. He'll have even less of a chance of competing with me for the position of most loved pet.

After Stripey received an ideological education, Gao Peng decided to punish Stripey by having him memorize the "Standards for being a Good Pupil and Child."

When Gao Peng remembered Stripey couldn't speak, he decided to have him write out the whole thing from memory.

An hour later, Gao Peng sat on a bench by the sandy shores of the lakeside with his grandpa as they enjoyed the sunset. Thirty feet away from them, also on the sandy shore, was a giant black spider writing quickly while looking distressed. He would, from time to time, let out an angry grumble and smash his claws in front of him.

What the heck is this! Why is this so hard to memorize. Why does something that can be so easily stated require so many words!

Stripey was studying painstakingly.

"The New World Allied Government has sent a few representatives to meet the Mountain Spirits and negotiate with them," said Ji Hanwu softly as he took a sip of tea and looked at the sunset.

"The reason those Mountain Spirits started to attack humans was because humans were destroying the balance of the forest, so they wanted to get rid of the humans who were disobedient," Ji Hanwu said softly.

Gao Peng frowned. "Destroying the balance of the forest? Is it because us humans cut down vegetation? That's not right. After the Cataclysm, the rate at which we cut down trees is much slower than the speed of growth of new trees. What kind of reason is this?"

"What the Mountain Spirits meant by destroying the balance was us killing monsters. The irony is that the teams we sent out to the Mountain Spirits have discovered a large amount of monster corpses on the bodies of the Mountain Spirits.

"Ha." Gao Peng couldn't help but let out a laugh. Some of the juice in his hands spilled on the back of his hand.

"Fwut juice, fwut juice." Silly got down from Gao Peng's head and landed on the back of his hand, using its tentacles to pick up the fruit juice. It looked very satisfied. Its throat produced a very satisfied gulping sound.

"That's quite the double standard they have there." Gao Peng couldn't help but laugh as well. These Mountain Spirits were quite interesting.

"They're a group of ignorant and uneducated creatures. It's impossible for the entirety of Yuzhou City not to kill any monsters. If these mountains are willing to retreat, fine. If they remain stubborn…" Ji Hanwu gave a slight smile.

"Does grandpa think they'll retreat?"

"Those Mountain Spirits aren't very intelligent. They can't be compared to the intelligence of humans. If we have a good strategy, they'll definitely—"

"Grandpa, your phone is ringing," Gao Peng alerted him.

"Okay." Ji Hanwu nodded his head and picked up the cell phone on the table next to him.

"Hello. Are there any results on the discussion?"

"Ji Hanwu, there…"

Ji Hanwu became silent after hearing the message that was conveyed through the phone.

"Grandpa? Grandpa?" Gao Peng called him quite a few times.

Ji Hanwu put down the phone slowly. He looked very calm.

"What's the result? Is it about the Mountain Spirits?" Gao Peng asked curiously.

"The situation is still under control. You can rest easy." Ji Hanwu nodded and then stood up, "I need to go to the restroom."

"Grandpa, you're going the wrong way. The restroom is at the back," Gao Peng shouted.

"I know. Old people need to walk more often. I'm going to the toilet in the company's headquarters. You just stay here and don't move." Ji Hanwu waved his hands without turning to look back.

Suddenly, Gao Peng heard a dragon's cry. He turned around and only saw clouds floating in the air. There was nothing else there.

Maybe he was just hearing things.

Grandpa's bathroom break sure had been long. Gao Peng looked at the time. Almost 40 minutes had passed. Gao Peng thought perhaps he had been delayed by other things because of his old age.

Another half an hour had passed, and the sky was getting dark. Only now did Grandpa slowly walk back towards Gao Peng.

"I was delayed by some problems at the company." Grandpa sat down calmly and made himself a cup of tea, then drank the whole thing in one gulp.

Gao Peng didn't think much of it. He turned around and asked grandpa, "Grandpa, have you finished preparations for the Royal Mountain Wolf Bird Army you wanted to establish?"

Ji Hanwu thought for a while. "Preparations for the Mountain Wolf Bird Army has almost finished. It is just that we are short on manpower. I have ordered someone to enlist a Mountain Wolf Bird King. The king will then control the strongest Mountain Wolf Bird in their flock. We should then be able to control the entire flock after raising them up for a period of time."

Mountain Wolf Birds were a hierarchical species. At the top was the Mountain Wolf Bird King. The next in line were the strongest Mountain Wolf Birds in the flock, though they would all obey the orders of the Mountain Wolf Bird King.

It wasn't that there hadn't been attempts at domesticating the Mountain Wolf Birds. There was just one huge problem, and that was their huge appetites. They had to eat a lot and weren't very strong.

Spending time and resources on another familiar would be more cost-effective.

However, the situation now was different. After taking the Royal Drug, their appetite might have grown a bit larger, but their strength would also definitely grow as well.

If one could properly manipulate these flying type monsters, they would be able to dominate the skies.

In the forest right outside Yuzhou City, half of the trees had been destroyed. There were signs of destruction everywhere. It was as if the area had just been hit by a thunderstorm, for the whole area was incredibly muddy. The holes on the ground had turned into puddles.

The middle of the destroyed area was filled with black rocks that had been cracked open. The black rocks gave off an ominous atmosphere.

There were traces of red inside the cracked rocks.

The cries of birds filled the air. A big gray bird landed, and several people jumped off from its back. They took a few pictures of the area and picked up rock samples.

One person who was using an instrument to search for something stopped searching and said, "The Mountain Spirit's core has been taken away."

"As expected. Take some of the samples of the Mountain Spirit back."

The group of people quickly got back up on the bird and left the area.

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Chapter 210: Three Seconds

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"Mr. Ji destroyed a Mountain Spirit an hour ago with a sudden powerful thunder strike. He gave a clear indication on where us humans stand. We're willing to hold discussions, and we are willing to negotiate, but we will not yield! This is our bottom line. Mr. Ji acted as the human's representative when he delivered this punch to the Mountain Spirits!" said a senior military official sitting at a military conference table.

"It's definitely because Mr. Ji couldn't stand the attitude of the Mountain Spirits, so he stepped forward to help us."

"Mr. Ji undoubtedly cares about all of us."

"If those Mountain Spirits remain stubborn, we'll continue to show them what we have!"

The Mountain Spirits were able to feel the destruction of one of their own. They became visibly agitated and also very emotional.

A small number of Mountain Spirits wanted to avenge their fallen compatriots, but most of them felt scared.

When they had gained consciousness and became sentient, they had realized they possessed great strength. They could destroy the lives of everything that lived near them. As time went on, they became more and more arrogant.

They even thought that they were all powerful, since they were the lords of the mountains.

However, they had suddenly received the news that one of their compatriots had fallen.

These Mountain Spirits started to panic and felt uneasy. They weren't invincible, after all.

This had given Yuzhou City the upper hand in the upcoming negotiations.

Although Stripey had lied before, Gao Peng still regarded him as someone who kept to his word.

Since Gao Peng had promised Stripey that he could go make little spiders, he wouldn't go back on his word.

"Let's go. I'll bring you there today," Gao Peng said when he woke Stripey up. He brought Stripey to school with him.

Right after he started walking, a bunch of familiars rushed towards them…

"What are you guys here for?" Gao Peng was speechless.

The response he received from the familiars were their continual stares. None of them spoke, although their eyes were sparkling.

Gao Peng didn't know how to react. "Whatever floats your boat.."

Two hours later, Gao Peng arrived at the place where he and the ponytailed girl had agreed to meet. He looked at the warehouse and sighed. "We're just going to have two familiars mate so they can reproduce. Why did we need to meet in such a secluded place, as if we were doing something bad?"

"Ahem." The ponytailed girl turned around in embarrassment. "Don't think too much of it. I just think that this sort of thing… should be done in a secluded place."

"Whatever floats your boat." Gao Peng felt helpless.

Half a minute later, Stripey's entire body grew stiff. He nervously looked at the heads peeking out from the surrounding walls. "Can… can you guys not watch? Especially you, Goldie!!"

One yard in front of Stripey, a yellow duck was squatting on the ground. It leaned forward, stretched its neck, and stared at Stripey.

"What are you planning on doing, sitting so close?! Also, didn't you go bald? Why have your feathers grown back??" Stripey was going crazy.

Stripey stretched out one of his feet and kicked forward. A yellow feather coat dropped from Goldie's body, revealing its bare skin.

"Quack!" Goldie let out a shout. It turned around and ran away while wiggling its bum.

Da Zi disdainfully said, "Hurry up. It's something that only takes three seconds."

"Three seconds?!" Silly stared at Stripey, its eyes full of curiosity.

"It doesn't take me only three seconds!" All of Stripey's hairs stood up.

In the end, none of the familiars got to see what they wanted to see, because Stripey had spun a large number of white spider webs around him. It was impossible to see what was happening from the outside.

"Bah!" Flamy fiercely spat out some spit.

"Useless spider!"

"Coward!"

The rest of the familiars spat in disdain and left.

The spider web started to disappear after half an hour, when Stripey crawled out. On his back was a white female spider. The female spider's blue eyes had turned red. She was biting down on Stripey's back shell.

"This is…" Gao Peng squinted his eyes.

When Flamy saw what was happening, it retracted its neck.

Gao Peng knew that in the animal world, it was very likely that a female spider would eat the male spider after they mated. If there wasn't enough food around, the male spider would act as nutrients for the female spider.

Gao Peng thought this female spider was evolved and educated. He'd had no idea it would act in such an uncivilized manner.

Gao Peng shook his head in disappointment. He was unsure if this had been done intentionally or unintentionally by the ponytailed girl, or whether she even knew her familiar would do this, but he was, nevertheless, very unhappy that her familiar was doing this.

The white female spider on Stripey's back had blood in her mouth. Stripey's shell was much harder than she expected, so she had lost quite a few of her teeth when she bit Stripey. Blood was pouring out of her mouth. Stripey started to feel annoyed at the female spider. He flipped over suddenly and threw the female spider off his back.

Stripey's enormous body was pushing on the female spider, rendering her completely immobile. Hiss!!! Stripey hissed angrily, his anger pouring out like a flood. The female spider pinned under Stripey was completely stiff. The red color in her eyes had disappeared. Instead, her fearful eyes looked at Stripey, and her mouth was begging for mercy from him.

"Ahh! What is your familiar doing?" the ponytailed girl screamed when she saw what was happening. She looked at Stripey in a way that made it seem like she was the one who had been wronged.

Gao Peng frowned and waved towards Stripey. "That's enough, Stripey. Let's go."

After he gave the female spider a threat, Stripey slowly got up and strutted out.

"This is the Royal Mountain Wolf Bird Army we trained. They have met our required standards," a man in a white coat and glasses said respectfully to Ji Hanwu while they were in a wide open field.

In the field, there was a gold and black carpet that was wiggling slowly. There was a huge sealed metal box next to it.

If one were to give the carpet a closer look, they would see that it was made up of golden feathered sparrows that were half the height of an adult man.

The giant sparrows had black patches around their eyelids, and they also had a lot of black feathers on their wings.

"Caw! Caw—" a clear sounding cry rang out from the Royal Mountain Wolf Bird.

Among them was a Royal Mountain Wolf Bird that was taller than the others by a couple feet and much bigger. It flew apart from the group and landed obediently in front of a youth in a black shirt.

This Royal Mountain Wolf Bird was not only much bigger than the other Royal Mountain Wolf Bird, but it also had a crown like growth on its head.

Ji Hanwu looked at the researcher and said, "Let's test their combat effectiveness."

The researcher nodded, a look of fanaticism in his eyes. "Chairman Ji, the power of these Royal Mountain Wolf Bird is absolutely beyond imagination. I really want to meet the man who created the Royal Drug…"

As he spoke, he told his assistant to open the cage.

The sealed metal box opened slowly, and a roar came out. Then a ten-foot-tall and twenty-foot-long giant wild boar ran out. The wild boar's fang protruded from its upper lip. Its ferocious looking fangs were in a spiral pattern.

The ground trembled every time it took a step.

This was a Commander tier swine type monster. Under normal circumstances, Mountain Wolf Birds would never attack a monster of this level. The only way they would ever do something like this was if they outnumbered it at a ratio of at least 10,000 to one and were starving.

A single bird cried out, and countless Royal Mountain Wolf Birds flew into the air. The air was filled with the sounds of "Caw! Caw! Caw!"

A Royal Mountain Wolf Bird let out a cry and flapped its wings wildly, morphing into a black shadow, then rushing towards the Commander tier wild boar.

It was like a signal. A group of densely packed Royal Mountain Wolf Birds flew towards the Commander tier wild boar, surrounding it.

The boar's pitiful cries could be heard, as well as the sound of it being torn apart.

Ten minutes later, the Royal Mountain Wolf Birds fluttered away. All that was left was blood and bones that still had some flesh hanging off of them.

"This isn't even their limit. If these Royal Mountain Wolf Birds continue to take the Royal Drugs, their strength will continue to advance further…" the researcher exclaimed in admiration. "Who was the person who invented this drug? He's a genius!"

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---

Read Monster Pet Evolution Chapter 211 - Qian Zhengming online for free - AllNovelFull

Chapter 211: Qian Zhengming

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Hehe, my grandson is a genius, of course. Ji Hanwu looked at Gao Peng and smiled without saying a word.

Heading into the night, Gao Peng began to train his familiars.

At the center of the training ground, Dumby and Goldie were preparing to battle. Perhaps because of its nutritious diet, Goldie's level had successfully risen to thirteen.

Covered in yellow feathers, Goldie slowly made its way to the center of the grounds and removed its yellow feather jacket, revealing chalky white skin and lumps of bulging, well-toned muscles. The blue patterns on its skin flowed with color as though it were coming to life. With a gentle flap of its wings, its muscles and bones made a powerful sound.

Goldie took in a deep breath, and then out of nowhere, took out a wooden necklace and placed it around its neck.

"Wait, where did that necklace come from?" Gao Peng said suddenly. There was something wrong with this scene.

"It was me. I thought Goldie's temperament wasn't bad, and it would probably look good wearing a necklace, so I gave it one. The little duck seems to like it," said Ji Hanwu from the side, chuckling.

Goldie waddled one step forward, stretching its left wing out. The tip of its wing was curved gently upwards.

Its right wing stretched out diagonally behind it. Its body hunched slightly, and it furrowed its brows as it looked towards Dumby with a serious expression.

Really serious!

"Quack!" Goldie's duck muscles rippled as it planted its right foot into the ground. In the next moment, it turned into a mini white tornado, rushing towards Dumby.

With a leap into the air, after turning 720 degrees, Goldie clenched its right wing and sent it crashing down on Dumby!

Slap! Dumby casually swatted Goldie away with a palm.

Goldie flew back at an even faster speed.

Goldie's natural ability, Gui Power, only had a certain probability of being triggered, and it wasn't something with a 100% success rate. This time, it clearly hadn't been triggered.

Not willing to yield, Goldie crawled back to its feet and rushed at Dumby again in an angry waddle. Once more, it was sent flying into the air with a single kick from Dumby.

During this whole process, Dumby didn't use too much strength, just enough to send Goldie flying.

After this kick, Goldie's ability was finally activated. With a flash of purple light, Goldie's body grew a bit in size.

From the start, Dumby was holding back, or else a full strength punch could very well have sent Goldie to its grave.

As such, after more than ten minutes of battling, Goldie's height slowly approached Dumby's. Goldie's toughness and strength had exploded by quite a bit, allowing it to manage to last a few rounds against Dumby.

Gao Peng silently shook his head. Goldie's level was currently too low. Against an enemy that was way stronger, Goldie would be finished before getting a chance to activate its abilities. Other monsters wouldn't hold back like Dumby.

If in the future, Goldie's abilities were used more and more often, others would become familiar with this ability and find countermeasures.

Of course, this was just because Goldie's level was too low, so it was easy for higher level monsters to thoroughly crush it.

After half an hour, Goldie's body size had ballooned to over 25 feet tall. Gao Peng then realized that this increase in body size wasn't based on a ratio of its current body size, but rather a continuous, fixed increase based on the first increase in body size.

For instance, if the first activation of the ability allowed Goldie to increase its initial body size by one unit, the second activation would cause an increase in body size by one unit as well, and it would be the same for the third activation, as well.

This was an arithmetic progression, not a exponential progression, which made sense. Without any limits to its growth, this ability would be too much.

In the end, Goldie actually rather enjoyed the battle. It had never grown this big before. The 30-foot-tall Goldie curiously looked down at the world beneath its feet. "Quack!" This world is so fascinating! As long as I keep getting hit, the world keeps getting smaller and smaller!

The next day at class, Gao Peng walked hurriedly into the classroom. Although the lecturer wasn't there yet, the classroom was almost full. This lecturer's class was extremely popular.

Gao Peng looked upset. This was an elective that he liked very much. He couldn't have been so unlucky that there were no seats left, right?

Gao Peng scanned the classroom and finally found an empty seat towards the back of the class on the left and went to take a seat.

Just as he sat down, without even having the time to warm the seat, someone next to him said coldly, "There's already someone sitting there, go find another seat."

Already someone there?

Gao Peng looked down at the seat, but it was empty. There were no books or anything of that sort that belonged to anyone.

After a moment's thought, Gao Peng got up.

Seeing that Gao Peng had obediently gotten to his feet, the person smiled.

Gao Peng stared at the empty seat, then shouted at it, "Get lost!"

With that, he planted his bottom down again and smiled to the boy in red, "Okay, there's no one there now."

The boy in the red shirt clenched his fists as his face turned pale. He felt the stares of those around him, laughing at him. Qian Zhengming had never felt this way before. He turned and glared at Gao Peng. "You little rascal, are you playing with me?"

Gao Peng chuckled. "First come, first served. There's no such thing as saving a seat for someone. You can't blame anyone else for being too late. If you really want to play the good guy, you can give up your own seat when your friend comes."

"!@#*%, I'll kill you!" That person had quite the temper, immediately roaring back.

The commotion was rather loud, and quite a number of people in the classroom had heard him clearly. Even the lecturer who had just arrived couldn't help but look over.

With the attention of so many people, this red shirt boy seemed to grow confident. "I'll give you three seconds. Scram, or I'll make sure you won't survive in this school."

At this point, Qian Zhengming simply felt like he was a mighty deity, looking down at a meager existence with a death wish.

"That guy in the red shirt is Qian Zhengming, right?" whispered someone in the classroom.

"His family is from Jingnan, aren't they? I heard his family is rather powerful there."

But at the same time, those who had heard other rumors wore strange expressions on their faces. They somehow knew that Gao Peng also had quite the background, as the grandson of an important figure.

Normally, Gao Peng was very low-key within the school, so most didn't know of his identity. But even the few that did would definitely not casually speak of it.

"Why won't you listen when people speak to you nicely? Give me three seconds, eh?" Gao Peng smiled coldly, got up, grabbed Qian Zhengming by his hair, and dragged him towards the exit.

"Let go, let go of me!" Qian Zhengming cried as he was dragged out of the classroom. Gao Peng's large hands had an iron-like grip on his head.

Just like that, Gao Peng led Qian Zhengming out of the back door. Just as they were about to leave, Gao Peng turned and looked back. With a smile, he said to the lecturer at the podium, "Please go ahead with your class, sir."

With the energy that had been fed back to him from Stripey, Dumby, Da Zi, and the rest of his familiars, Gao Peng's physical strength wasn't something that Qian Zhengming could compete with.

Like he was dragging a dog on a leash, Gao Peng dragged Qian Zhengming all the way to the toilet.

Inside, Gao Peng threw Qian Zhengming on the floor and stepped on his chest with his right foot so that he couldn't move. Gao Peng bent down and tossed his phone at Qian Zhengming's face. Then Gao Peng said coldly, "I won't have you saying that I, Gao Peng, bullied you. The phone is here. Call everyone that you know right now."

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Chapter 212: Resolution

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Gao Peng was no Gao Yanei. He wouldn't bully his fellow classmates using his identity. But when he was bullied, letting the matter slide with a smile was not his style.

Qian Zhengming was no fool. After seeing Gao Peng's reckless confidence, it was clear to him that he wasn't bluffing. But he was, after all, still a hot-blooded young man. The humiliation and rage had already erupted in his heart like a volcano.

His face turned as red as a beet as he viciously glared at Gao Peng.

Just you wait, I'll admit defeat if I can't beat you, but if you dare act as though you have such authority, I'll make sure you regret ever being born.

For this Gao guy to have acted so arrogantly, he must have had a respected background here. Although his family back in Jingnan had some power, it would still take a while for their influence to reach this area. Qian Zhengming began to gradually calm down.

To deal with this guy, he had to use his influence in the local area.

Qian Zhengming picked up the phone, fiddled with it for a while, then said with his face flushed red, "You…"

"What do you mean 'you'? Hurry up and make your calls." Gao Peng smiled coldly and added more force with his right foot, forcing Qian Zhengming to cough under the pressure.

Qian Zhengming opened his mouth wide and roared in anger, "You have to unlock the phone for me!" Gao Peng was stunned. It seemed like he had forgotten about the phone's passcode.

He cleared his throat, and Qian Zhengming received another slap to the face. "You can't even unlock a phone! What good are you? Use your own phone!"

Feeling thoroughly wronged, Qian Zhengming swore silently as he took out his own phone.

Whipping out his phone, he first called the boss of a company in Yuzhou City that his family worked with. This number had been given to him by his father when he had left home, in case he ran into a prickly situation.

The phone rang three times before it was picked up.

"This is Zhou Xuanhu, what's the matter?"

"Uncle Zhou, this is Qian Zhengming. My father is Qian Sanmao. I got your number from him before I came to Yuzhou," said Qian Zhengming pitifully.

There was silence on the other end for a moment, then after some thought, he said, "Oh, it's little Qian. What took you so long to call Uncle Zhou after getting to Yuzhou? I'm holding a banquet at home tonight; do you want to come over for dinner?"

Qian Zhengming cleared his throat. "If you don't mind, Uncle Zhou, I'll make my way over for dinner tonight."

"Haha, sure. I'll have my secretary send the address over to you."

"Uncle Zhou, I'm in a bit of trouble right now. I got into a conflict with this guy called Gao Peng…"

"Gao Peng?"

"Mm, that's right, Uncle Zhou, do you know him?" Qian Zhengming felt some hesitation in his heart.

"If I remember correctly, your dad said you were studying at Yuzhou University?"

"Mm, that's right." Qian Zhengming felt like Uncle Zhou's tone of voice had suddenly changed. Could it have been that he really knew this Gao person?

"Oh, what was it that you said earlier?"

Qian Zhengming had an uneasy premonition. "I got into a conflict with this guy…"

"No, not that. Before."

After a moment's pause, Qian Zhengming said, "If you don't mind, Uncle Zhou, I'll make my way over for dinner tonight?"

"Mm, it's actually not too convenient for tonight's banquet. We'll have to arrange another date then." With that, the call was cut, leaving the busy tone…

On the other end of the phone, Qian Zhengming was left with a look of bewilderment on his face as he stared dumbly at the phone screen.

He looked up to see Gao Peng, who had an amused expression on his face. "Keep calling."

Qian Zhengming felt his heart racing. He knew a few people in Yuzhou, but they were just delinquents and people of that sort. The only one with any real power was Zhou Xuanhu. Even on a day-to-day basis, when his father spoke to Zhou Xuanhu, his words were respectful.

For the other person to put down the phone just from hearing his name, what kind of person could Gao Peng actually be? In no time at all, Qian Zhengming's heart was racing. He was too used to using his identity to oppress others instead.

In the past, back in his old city, this method had worked for him every single time. Back home, the base city he had lived in was a medium sized one, and his family had basically had control over the entire city's movement of goods, as well as some of the trade of familiars there. His family had ties with both official and black market partners. When he had been in high school, he had been an unchallenged tyrant who relied on his family's authority to do whatever he wanted. Before coming to Yuzhou University, his father had instructed him not to stir up trouble here. Only after arriving at university had he started to control his temper.

At this moment, Qian Zhengming's phone suddenly rang. The name written on the phone was "Brother Mao."

Picking up the phone, he heard his father's deep voice. "Did you cause some trouble at school?"

"I didn't…" Qian Zhengming began habitually, then swallowed his words halfway. "…cause too much trouble."

"Did you offend a student called Gao Peng?" n the other end, his father's voice seemed to become even deeper.

"Yes," whined Qian Zhengming. I didn't just offend him, he's stepping on me right now.

"Right now, immediately, apologize. I'm flying over to Yuzhou immediately." His father's voice sounded a little weak. "You're already nineteen. Be more aware of the consequences of your actions."

The usually domineering Qian Zhengming fell silent. This was the first time his father had spoken to him in such a manner. In the past, when he had made mistakes, his father would simply give him a good spanking with a stick or a belt. Suddenly, he realized that his father would be turning fifty soon.

Putting down the phone, Qian Zhengming bit his lips and said, "I'm s-sorry."

Gao Peng smiled. "In the future, will you still casually say stuff like '!@#*%' anymore?"

His father had already instructed him to apologize. For someone with his background, he knew better than anyone else the threat of authority. Qian Zhengming quietly shook his head.

Upon seeing the silent Qian Zhengming behaving like a frightened bird, Gao Peng lost all interest in continuing. To be fair, Gao Peng didn't have the horrible personality of a sadist. It was just that the expletives Qian Zhengming had used earlier had touched a sore spot in Gao Peng's heart.

Gao Peng lifted his right leg and turned to leave the bathroom. "All right then. Since you understand your mistakes, this matter is settled."

It was best to settle matters in one go. From the looks of it, Qian Zhengming wouldn't continue to cause trouble for him. Such problems had to be settled cleanly in one go. If this were a case where the son got his father involved, it would be a nuisance.

Returning to the classroom, the quiet sounds of discussion suddenly came to a stop as Gao Peng walked in. Almost everyone looked over, staring at Gao Peng with complex expressions. Gao Peng saw two familiar faces in the front row, Jun Moyi and the pony tailed girl from the day before.

Jun Moyi looked as stoic as usual, calmly eyeing him.

The pony tailed girl, on the other hand, seemed to be avoiding his eyes.

Qian Zhengming wasn't the most influential of the Monster Trainer majors, but he was extremely active and involved in many student activities. Furthermore, he often generously treated people to meals and was clearly someone with quite a background.

Some of the people in the class had silently labeled Gao Peng as "NOT to be offended."

And for the few that knew who Gao Peng was, they silently offered their prayers to Qian Zhengming instead.

That night, after school, there were a bunch of people sitting in the private room of a restaurant. They were the members of the student committee for the current batch of Monster Trainer majors.

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Chapter 213: Skeleton Tyrant

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"Brother Qian, what kind of background does that Gao guy have?" asked someone at the dining table curiously.

"I'm not sure." By then, Qian Zhengming had already changed into a new set of clothes and gone back to his room to take a shower. After all, lying down on the bathroom floor hadn't been a comfortable experience.

"So arrogant. Brother Qian merely spoke a little louder, and he started getting physical first just because he was strong." The person next to Qian Zhengming felt indignant for him.

"Okay, it's all right. This matter is already over," said Qian Zhengming with a little smile.

"Brother Qian, you treat us to dinner so often. Shall we find a day after school to teach him a lesson?"

"This is already a matter of the past. I'm grateful that you guys are willing to help me, but we've already settled this matter between ourselves," said Qian Zhengming lightly, as though this was simply an insignificant matter.

"That Gao Peng normally does everything on his own, and we never see him make contact with anyone. He's a weirdo."

"That means you don't understand. Gao Peng is from Chang'an!"

"He's from Chang'an?" Qian Zhengming was stunned.

"That's right, he was the first in Chang'an for the Monster Trainer College Exams, and eleventh for the Huaxia regional competition," said a Monster Trainer student who had taken note of the exams and knew Gao Peng's results.

"Then doesn't that mean that he qualified for the World Youth Trainer Championship?" asked a student curiously.

"Your information is outdated. For some reason, he dropped out of the competition a long time ago."

"That's a real pity," said someone gloatingly, his words filled with sarcasm.

The others joined in and laughed.

Qian Zhengming sat at his spot, quietly listening to the discussion, seemingly indifferent to what was being discussed.

He felt that it was a good thing that this had happened to him. After this incident, he had become more mature. If not for Gao Peng, he would probably still have been just like he was before, egotistical and arrogant.

Qian Zhengming's phone suddenly rang. He picked up the phone. "Hello, Dad. Mm, I'm near school. You've already reached the school?" Qian Zhengming said in surprise. He hadn't expected his dad to arrive so soon.

Then, Qian Zhengming's expression changed. He apologized to the rest, "I have something going on, so I'll leave first. Enjoy your meal."

With that, he hurriedly pushed open the door and left the private room.

"Little Peng, the Wanzai Moon Gold has arrived." This time, Old Man Ji didn't have Gao Peng guess the item.

Evidently, Gao Peng's quick wit had left him with an extremely strong impression.

"This material is for Dumby, right?" Old Man Ji asked out of curiosity.

After all, Yin-attribute materials were rare and seldom used in experimental processes.

"That's right. I'm preparing to have Dumby promoted to Legendary grade," said Gao Peng as he received the box containing the material.

Gao Peng had already restored Dumby's grade to Epic a month before.

After all, Dumby had already reached Epic grade before, so the materials needed to restore his grade were relatively simpler to obtain.

For Dumby's next evolution, the steps required were completely different from the previous evolution. One could even say that they proceeded in two different directions altogether.

The gloomy forest was located at the bottom of the mountain range, with a quiet lake behind it.

In a wide empty patch in the middle of the forest, Gao Peng was bent over, placing the bones of ghouls on the ground. The arrangement of the bones followed a strict ratio and placement pattern, just like he was creating a summoning circle for a ritual.

"Here, and here…" Gao Peng mumbled to himself, as the brush in his hand drew an outline on the dry soil. A blood red liquid seeped into the loose soil.

Under the dim moonlight, the marks left behind by the liquid created multiple pitch-black lines.

Long before the procedure that day, Gao Peng had already practiced dozens of times. He was only missing the material for the last step, while all the other earlier steps had already been practiced by Gao Peng.

After a whole half hour of preparation, an altar that was designed in a sinister and weird style appeared on the ground.

Along the sides of the altar, rows of white bones were sticking out of the ground, making the scene look like a cult ritual.

"Dumby, carefully walk to the center of the altar," Gao Peng instructed Dumby.

Without a hint of hesitation, Dumby walked in with large steps. As he stepped to the center of the altar, the ground suddenly caved in, like quicksand. This was an extremely bizarre scene, as even though the ground was loose, it was definitely nowhere near quicksand.

At that moment, the altar seemed to come to life. Each individual bone around the altar ignited with a ghostly white flame.

"Now is the time." Gao Peng drew in a deep breath, opened the box, and took out the Wanzai Moon Gold from within.

This was a strange piece of gold, no larger than the size of a fist, and it was covered in random patterns.

On the surface of the gold was a small depression that was filled with something that looked like green copper rust.

The moment the Wanzai Moon Gold left the box, the activated altar began to produce a whiny low hum. Under the quiet night sky, deep and disorderly sounding whispers filled the air.

Gao Peng took two steps forward, and his body began to produce a strange glow. Evidently, he was under attack from an unknown source of energy, and the damage was currently all being transferred to Dumby.

The energy of this attack posed no threat to Dumby.

Gao Peng had Dumby open his mouth, then placed the Wanzai Moon Gold in his mouth.

Dumby continued to sink, until finally his entire body was buried under the soil. All that was left behind was a small lump of earth.

The soil within the altar continually released balls of white light that travelled outwards. The strange white lights continued to spread until they became mere specks of light in the air.

As the white lights increased in number, the rate that they moved outwards increased in speed, and the area covered by the white lights expanded as well.

From afar, the patch of earth seemed to have caught fire, becoming extremely eye-catching in the dark of the night.

In the white flames, the blurred forms of shadows seemed to appear.

Gao Peng blinked and took a second look. There were, indeed, shadows. The shadows were semi-transparent and each of their shapes was unique.

The shadows seemed to have their own simple forms of consciousness, for they floated within the flames in a random manner.

This whole process lasted for half an hour. Then the flames started to recede back towards the center. Or rather, instead of receding, the altar simply stopped releasing balls of white light.

Finally, the area became silent again.

In the quiet and dark night, under the glow of the moonlight, the white bones refracted a muted glow.

Sha—

A black and burly skeleton palm stretched out from the earth. The thick bone joints looked like they were filled with power.

Following that, another palm reached out from under the ground.

Then an entire gigantic body slowly rose from the ground.

The figure of an ape was already similar to a human. If one were to say that the figure of the Skull Ghoul Ape was similar to that of an ape, then the evolved form of Dumby was more similar to that of a human. The only difference were the two arms, which were longer and thicker than those of a human.

At its shoulders, two thick and curved bones extended out diagonally backwards from the edges of the shoulder bones, looking like a ring that wasn't fully closed yet.

The colour of the bones had changed from silvery gray to a scary, pitch-black color. Instead of growing in size, Dumby had shrunk a little, and was only around thirteen feet tall now.

The number of ribs in Dumby's chest had increased from 10 to 36, becoming more tightly packed. In the chest cavity, a heart made out of strands of blood beat rapidly.

The eye sockets burned with white flames.

Lowering his head, Dumby slowly opened his right hand. A ball of white flames slowly rose from his palm.

With a sudden swish of his arm, the flame on his palm entered the earth beneath his feet.

The ground began to rumble. A white skull burrowed out of the ground, until finally a skeleton wolf that was a yard tall and two yards long emerged.

The eye sockets of the skeleton wolf also had white flames. It obediently crawled to Dumby's feet and bent its knees, prostrating in front of Dumby.

In front of Gao Peng's eyes, a row of words flashed.

Evolution Success—[Skeleton Tyrant]

Chapter 214: An Indignant Da Zi

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

[Monster Name: Skeleton Tyrant

[Monster Level: 30

[Monster Grade: Legendary

[Monster Skills: Bone Harden Lv2 Control of the Undead Level 1

[Special Characteristics: Blood Thread Heart (Effect 1. Passive effect: uses a certain amount of blood threads to form a Blood Thread Heart. When possessing a Blood Thread Heart, the quality of all physical capabilities will be increased. The passive effect is lost when the Blood Thread Heart is destroyed. Effect 2: activating the Blood Thread Heart can trigger heartbeat resonance, which can be used to control the heartbeat of others in such a manner.)

Flame of the Undead (Effect 1. Active effect: inserting the Flame of the Undead into a complete an intact corpse will resurrect it and transform it into a bone-type undead, with strength proportional to how powerful it was while alive, but the resurrected undead cannot exceed the level of the Skeleton Tyrant. Effect 2: Undead resurrected by Flame of the Undead can continue to grow, but cannot exceed the level of the Skeleton Tyrant. The Skeleton Tyrant can absorb the resurrected undead for its own growth.)

[Monster Weakness: Light-type

[Pathways for Promotion to Mythical Grade: …

This time, Dumby's increase in levels had been great. Before the evolution, Dumby had only been at level 26. This time, besides a promotion in grade, his level had increased by four whole levels as well.

From this evolution pathway, Dumby also gained a new ability. Flame of the Undead seemed to be a type of summoning ability, except that it also had its limitations. A corpse was required, and without corpses, the ability would be useless.

But the second ability of Flame of the Undead had Gao Peng deep in thought. Being able to absorb the energy of the resurrected undead for his own use, eh?

Indeed, living up to the name of "tyrant."

The newly evolved Dumby seemed rather curious as it took a wobbly step. It seemed as though it hadn't become fully accustomed to the sudden burst in power.

"Dumby, follow me," said Gao Peng.

Before evolving, Da Zi's mandibles had only left a mark on Dumby's bones when using their full force. After the evolution, Gao Peng wasn't sure how Dumby's defenses had improved, so the best way to test this out was to…

"Da Zi, give Dumby's thigh bone a good bite," instructed Gao Peng.

Because Dumby had just evolved, Da Zi seemed unable to recognize him. Da Zi could only faintly smell a familiar scent from Dumby.

Suspiciously eyeing Dumby, Da Zi slowly crawled over. Dumby's body was faintly releasing some sort of aura. This aura made Da Zi very uncomfortable, and at the same time, created a sliver of fear in the bottom of its heart.

Then Da Zi suddenly regained its senses. I, the Merciful Liberator Zi, scared?!

Angrily, Da Zi crawled up to Dumby, opened its mouth wide, and viciously bit down on Dumby's thigh.

Kacha!

A piece of its mandible the size of a grain of rice was chipped off, but Dumby's white bones were undamaged.

Da Zi paused for a moment, then turned and ran. No matter how much Gao Peng shouted, Da Zi kept going, straight into the depths of the forest.

"Da Zi, come back!" Gao Peng kept shouting.

Watching Da Zi flee, Gao Peng felt helpless. He, too, knew that this was tough for Da Zi.

Being his first familiar, Da Zi's capabilities hadn't increased by much, and it was even growing slower than his other familiars.

Epic grade Stripey, Epic grade Flamey, Legendary grade Dumby, and Legendary grade Goldie. Only Silly was still in the same grade as Da Zi, Perfect grade. But Da Zi wasn't bitter, like Silly, who had no desire to be strong and was just happy drinking juice every day.

Da Zi wished more than anything to become stronger so that he could stay by Gao Peng's side every day and protect him.

But Da Zi suddenly realized one day that Gao Peng's other familiars were becoming stronger and stronger. Its role in protecting Gao Peng no longer seemed as important. All it needed to do was tag along and shout "666" to cheer them on. This made Da Zi feel fearful and insecure.

This had nothing to do with any bias on Gao Peng's part. It was just that he had evolved his familiars based on what rare evolution materials he could get his hands on, and this wasn't something he had control over.

If the materials used for Goldie or Stripey or any of the others could have been used for Da Zi's evolution as well, Gao Peng would definitely not have hesitated, but the fact was that such matters were really up to luck.

"I, I will go find Da Zi." Dumby bent down, gently swept aside the dirt on the ground, and carefully picked up the pale purple chip that was the size of a grain of rice. Gently closing his fist, he strode in large steps in the direction Da Zi had headed.

Gao Peng could have many familiars, but in the world of each familiar, there was only one Gao Peng.

Da Zi indignantly squatted on the ground, digging a hole under a tree before burying itself in the ground. Dumby soon appeared from behind and quietly watched as Da Zi buried itself in the ground, leaving only a small head and two antennae in the air.

Roar… Dumby gently patted Da Zi on the head. The white flames in his eye sockets flashed gently, and a ball of flame drifted out and entered Da Zi's head, temporarily connecting the minds of Da Zi and Dumby.

"Da Zi," said Dumby.

Da Zi's head turned around to look at Dumby, but Da Zi did not speak.

"We are friends," said Dumby as he stretched out his right hand.

Da Zi still didn't reply to Dumby.

"You dropped this just now." Dumby opened up his right hand. In his palm was a small purple chip the size of a grain of rice.

Da Zi took a look and almost burst into tears. I dropped that only because I bit you. Return my front tooth to me!

"Look." Dumby looked down and gently pointed to a spot on his thigh. That was the spot that Da Zi had bit into. There were a few thin cracks on it that were obvious to the naked eye.

Da Zi coldly snorted. "Wounds from my bite don't look like that, liar."

Dumby rubbed his skull sheepishly. "I'll take note next time."

"Master likes you best," Dumby continued as he squatted down to pat Da Zi on the head. "We need you too."

Da Zi was still throwing a tantrum and remained silent. Then it felt Dumby getting up and leave.

Hmph, you said you needed me yet you're gone the next moment! Liar!

After ten minutes, footsteps could be heard from behind Da Zi. "What are you coming back for? Even if you come over, I…"

A faint aroma entered Da Zi's nose.

In Dumby's left hand was half of a roasted chicken. Dumby placed the roasted chicken a couple feet from Da Zi's head.

Da Zi's vision was completely absorbed by the roasted chicken as Da Zi stared at it unblinkingly.

"I forgive you."

With that, Da Zi crawled out of the ground and attacked the roast chicken, wolfing it down in large bites. As it ate, Da Zi mumbled, "I will definitely become stronger than all of you."

"Definitely," said Dumby softly.

"One day, I will definitely become the Merciful Liberator Zi!" Da Zi firmly believed in itself.

Merciful Liberator Zi? Dumby was confused. What is that?

"That's a super powerful centipede that can even fly!" Da Zi's eyes were filled with yearning. The centipede really was super powerful.

"You will be as powerful as that." Dumby nodded his head.

"Hmph!" Da Zi proudly lifted its head.

After Dumby's comforting, Da Zi finally came back with its mouth dripping grease. Gao Peng comforted Da Zi by saying that they would head into the jungle the next day to find materials for its evolution.

Only after that did a certain jealous centipede contentedly lie down and go to sleep.

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Chapter 215: Phantom Japalura

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The next morning, Gao Peng was still lying in bed, but Da Zi had already eagerly climbed onto Gao Peng's bed, flattening Gao Peng with its entire body and lowering its antennae to rub against Gao Peng's face.

Woken by Da Zi's constant pestering, Gao Peng groggily opened his eyes. He was greeted by the sight of two ferocious mandibles snapping in front of his face.

"All right, all right, stop being naughty." Gao Peng tried to push Da Zi aside, but Da Zi was just too heavy. He couldn't make Da Zi budge, even after a few attempts.

"If you keep squishing me, you can forget about going out today."

Upon hearing its master's words, Da Zi finally obediently crawled off the bed.

After getting out of bed and washing up, Gao Peng shook his head and smiled wryly. Right now, although the government had already begun negotiations with the Mountain Spirits, the situation still didn't look optimistic. The wilderness was still rather dangerous.

After explaining his reasons for heading out to Grandpa, he was first hesitant, then he nodded his head. "Go quickly and return quickly then. Don't hang around out there for too long. The situation with the Mountain Spirits is currently stable, but the words of those monsters can never be trusted. Monsters are known for going back on their word. The reasons for their actions are usually simply based on their mood.

"Also, since you're just looking for materials, don't bring too many familiars, or else it will affect your maneuverability."

Gao Peng nodded to show that he understood. This time, he had only prepared to bring Da Zi and Dumby, as well as Flamy and Silly. Only four familiars for this trip.

Dumby's level and grade was the best among his familiars, and because of Flamy's species potential, its growth was extremely fast. It had already reached level 28 a few days before. According to how humans have classified monsters, Flamy was already an intermediate Commander-tier familiar.

Bringing Silly along was no hassle, as its size was small. But most importantly, having Silly beside him was like having a portable storage space, which was extremely convenient.

Gao Peng was just hoping for a day to come where Silly's portable space could contain living things. That way, it would be like having his own portable floating fortress. Just by opening up the portable space, he could release his familiars. Furthermore, Silly was able to travel in the water, land, and sky.

Thinking of this, Gao Peng couldn't help reaching out to Silly, who was just resting on his head, and rubbing its head.

Mm, it's getting smoother. If I'm rubbing it every day, sooner or later, it's going to shine.

"Old Liu is coincidentally free nowadays. Let him join you on this trip." Ji Hanwu was still a little worried. He told Gao Peng this after a bit more thought.

With that, he made a call to Uncle Liu. In no time at all, two black figures could be seen in the distant sky, flying at an extremely fast speed. Finally, they made a firm landing right next to the lake.

The two Lord-tier halos rotated slowly beneath their feet.

[Monster Name: Phantom Japalura

[Monster Level: Level 41 (Lord Tier)

[Monster Grade: Excellent

[Monster Skills: Hardened Scales Level 3 Heightened Dynamic Vision Level 1

[Special Characteristics: Shadow Assassin (Effect 1, Passive Effect: when it is silent and still, it will blend in with its surroundings perfectly, matching both color and body temperature to its surroundings; Effect 2, Passive Effect: its special skin allows it to absorb sound as well as vibrations, allowing it to move silently and remain almost undetectable.)

The Shadow Japalura had undergone a complete transformation. Not only had its name changed from Shadow Japalura to Phantom Japalura, it's body had also undergone great changes.

Originally, it had the appearance of a camouflage print lizard that had grown multiple times in size. Right now, its body had increased by at least eight times, which meant that its length, width, and height had all doubled.

Its multicolored scales changed in color with the surroundings, blurring its appearance. The ratio of the size of its head to its body seemed to have decreased a lot from before, and its yellow eyes had a vertical line in the middle for pupils.

What was most eye-catching about the Phantom Japalura, however, was the pair of wings that stretched outwards from the area spanning its ribs to its pelvic bone.

There was also a membrane as thin as a cicada's wing covering the area where the wings were connected to the body. The wings had a large surface area and were roughly twice the size of its entire body.

When the Phantom Japalura lay quietly on the floor without moving, these wings would be folded inwards and tucked neatly by the sides of its body. With the camouflaging effects of its scales, one could vaguely notice that there were two bulges at the sides of the Phantom Japalura's body, but it would be hard to tell that it had actually grown a pair of wings.

If Gao Peng were to describe this monster, he would say that after evolving, the Phantom Japalura was like a giant dragon from Western mythology.

The other Lord-tier familiar was the Blood Eye Bearded Vulture. Its level hadn't changed since two months earlier, remaining at level 42, but its body had many more scars compared to the last time Gao Peng had seen it. Some of the scars were small and others were large; some were already close to healing while some were just scabbing. It gave off an oppressive, ferocious aura.

Gao Peng recalled Uncle Liu mentioning that the Blood Eye Bearded Vulture had relied on manic training in order to breakthrough to Lord-tier. Its grade was also the lowest possible at Normal grade, and this was hard to promote based on pure physical strengthening alone.

For such a type of familiar, it was almost a miracle that the Blood Eye Bearded Vulture had managed to reach its current level.

After just one look, Goldie's attention was captured by the Blood Eye Bearded Vulture, its eyes lighting up. It felt that this large bird seemed to give off the same kind of vibes as itself.

Goldie hurriedly waddled over, curiously staring straight at the Blood Eye Bearded Vulture.

The vulture's originally shut eyes opened to a tiny slit, giving Goldie a cold look. Then its brows knit together ever so slightly.

The air rang with a crack like thunder, and in the next moment, Goldie's yellow feather jacket was suddenly stripped off, revealing its bare, naked body.

"Quack!" Goldie's eyes opened wide as it immediately closed its legs, trembling in fear as it looked at the Blood Eye Bearded Vulture.

"Uncle Liu, let's go here first. If we don't find anything, then we can head here, here… and then here."

Uncle Liu nodded his head slowly. "Okay, let's go then."

With that, Uncle Liu had Gao Peng rde on the Blood Eye Bearded Vulture. The vulture had feathers on its back and was a much more comfortable ride than the Phantom Japalura with its smooth scales.

After that, the Phantom Japalura's sharp claws threaded through Dumby's shoulder bones and lifted him up into the air. In the next moment, the two familiars were already ascending into the skies.

"Ah, wait! Uncle Liu, I still haven't gathered my other familiars!!!" The air rang with the lingering sound of Gao Peng's screams.

"We're not out to play house. What was the point of bringing so many familiars? We'll head out fast and return early."

Silly was still being worn on Gao Peng's head, and its tentacles were being whipped around wildly by the wind. It happily made its excited puchi puchi noises.

Sensing the aura of two Lord-tier monsters, the monsters flying in the air hastily made way, and their trip was smooth.

After half an hour, the two familiars descended from the skies.

"This should be the first location." Uncle Liu took out a GPS locator, tapped on it a few times, and extracted a map to compare to their surroundings.

Gao Peng's face had turned purple from the cold. He released his trembling hands and slid off the back of the Blood Eye Bearded Vulture, sneezing many times in a row after he got down.

Gao Peng took a look at the GPS locator in Uncle Liu's hands and said, "We're here." Gao Peng was suddenly speechless. He recalled how he'd had such a tough time running around the jungle, taking a few days to arrive at the location. It had only taken Uncle Liu a half hour flight.

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Chapter 216: Flame of the Undead (2)

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

They had reached a small lake, which wasn't all that rare in the mountainous terrain outside Yuzhou city.

What intrigued Gao Peng most was the fact that someone had discovered lightning moths around this lake.

Lightning moths were extremely docile insects that normally fed on flower pollen and the roots of certain plants.

They usually traveled in swarms in order to compensate for how weak they were individually.

Lightning moths also preferred to live in damp and dark environments as close to an abundant source of electricity as possible, as they needed to regularly replenish their bodies' internal supply of electricity.

Silence had fallen over the lake. Even the insects didn't dare chirp in the presence of the two Lord-tiered familiars.

The Shadow Japalura lazily slipped into the water. Only its spine could be seen slicing across the surface of the water. It seemed to like its new surroundings.

"I knew I should have brought Da Zi along. Da Zi is also an Electric-type monster, so it'd be more sensitive to the presence of other Electric-type monsters," muttered Gao Peng to himself.

Da Zi currently had 16 evolutionary routes to choose from. Each one of them required a different ingredient.

Gao Peng had picked a few places to search for some of those ingredients.

After thinking for a moment, Dumby walked towards the edge of the lake and waved its hand at the water. A white hot blaze flew out of its palm over the water, which then began to boil.

Gao Peng saw white fish skeletons jump out of the water.

Dumby splayed out its hand and pressed down.

The rattling skeletons went still instantly. White flames burned in their empty eye sockets as they stared at Dumby in silence.

Dumby then turned to its master and said, "Master, they can help you find whatever it is you're looking for."

Gao Peng stared at the scene before him in amazement. Dumby's mass resurrection technique had caught him off guard.

"Have them pick up anything from the bottom of the lake that has a high concentration of spiritual energy," ordered Gao Peng, confident that Silly's portable space would be able to hold anything they could find.

Dumby nodded. The resurrected fish dove back into the lake after receiving an unspoken order from Dumby.

A few moments later, some of the fish rose back to the surface with strangely shaped plants and rocks in their mouths.

"Um?" Gao Peng picked up a rock that one of the fish had brought to him. It was gray and no bigger than his thumb. On the outside, it looked like any other rock. However, there was a crack on its side that widened gradually to reveal a strange blue marking.

[Item Name: Water Spirit Stone (Low Purity)

[Item Description: Contains high levels of water elemental power. Can easily form a vein in the ground. Has a wide variety of uses.

A few other fish had also brought him pieces of Water Spirit Stones. Gao Peng picked them up and figured that there might have been a vein of Water Spirit Stone at the bottom of the lake. The stones' low purity level suggested that the vein had formed only recently.

Most Spirit Stones had lots of uses. For instance, they could be used to build igloo-like buildings, where monsters of the same element as the Spirit Stone could live and speed up their own evolution processes.

However, this method seemed primitive to most people. Countless experiments had been conducted to come up with ways to use Spirit Stones more efficiently.

Though none of fish could find the ingredients for Da Zi's evolution, the discovery of the vein of Water Spirit Stone in the lake was more than enough to make up for it.

However, the lake was a few hundred miles away from Yuzhou City. Mining the Water Spirit Stone vein wouldn't be a simple matter.

Uncle Liu was fascinated by Dumby's mass resurrection ability. "This pile of bones can resurrect other monsters?"

"Yes, it's Dumby's newest ability."

Uncle Liu curiously looked at Dumby. "That's a pretty useful ability, but isn't it already on the close-combat evolutionary path? Why did it obtain a summoning-type ability? It's not a good idea to let your familiars have such a jumbled skillset."

Gao Peng didn't know how to explain it to Uncle Liu. Letting one of his familiars reach Legendary grade was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and Gao Peng wasn't in a position to be choosy about how it happened.

As a Legendary monster, Dumby's power also had to be Legendary-level. As far as Gao Peng knew, there were no limits to its Flame of the Undead skill. It could even bring about a zombie apocalypse if it wanted to.

However, in order to do so, Dumby would need to have a large supply of complete skeletons. Also, the level of the souls resurrected by Dumby couldn't be higher than its own.

After looking around for a while, Gao Peng finally saw an electric maple forest 100 feet away from the lake.

Electric maple trees were capable of storing electricity. This must have been the reason why lightning moths had appeared in the vicinity.

"Not here, let's go to the next area," Gao Peng said to Uncle Liu.

Dumby, who had been standing on the edge of the lake all this time, aimed its left hand at the lake. Suddenly, a dense layer of fish bones surfaced from the lake and exploded, releasing the flames of the undead into Dumby's open palm.

A 2-foot-tall pillar of fire rose up from Dumby's palm and entered its skull. It now seemed to have become even more powerful than before.

At that moment, Gao Peng thought he heard in the air the cries of thousands of souls being torn apart.

The white flames in Dumby's eye sockets gradually seeped into the rest of its body, hardening its bones even more…

Even after searching the four areas that he had marked out for that day, Gao Peng couldn't find any of the ingredients necessary for Da Zi's evolution.

However, he had discovered a quick way to help Dumby become stronger.

In all four areas, Dumby would resurrect an army of skeletons to aid Gao Peng in his search. It would then absorb the flames of the undead from the skeletons when it was done with them.

Maybe these skeletons contained nutrients essential to Dumby's metabolism, or maybe Dumby needed the energy the resurrected skeletons had built up inside their bones from moving about.

Every time Dumby absorbed the flames of the undead, its aura grew even more powerful.

At the end of his search, Gao Peng was surprised to find that Dumby had reached Level 31.

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Chapter 217: A Happy Accident

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Seeing how quickly Dumby had leveled up, Gao Peng suddenly had an idea to help it level up even more.

If I can pull this off, Dumby may be able to gain a couple more levels very quickly…

"We better leave now. There's a Mountain Spirit living in this area… Right now, we humans aren't exactly on good terms with its kind. It would be best if we stayed out of their… Damn it," cursed Uncle Liu under his breath.

A low rumbling sound echoed in the distance. The ground began shaking violently, as if a herd of horses was now stampeding towards them.

Gao Peng looked down and saw the pebbles on the ground rattling around his feet.

"Let's go!" said Uncle Liu hurriedly.

The Blood Eye Whisker Vulture spread out its wings and lowered its body, letting Gao Peng ride on its back.

The Shadow Japalura lifted Dumby up and carried Uncle Liu on its back. Together, they flew up into the air.

Looking back down, Gao Peng saw a cloud of dust rising into the sky. Through the cloud, he could make out a massive figure moving towards them.

Gao Peng drew in a sharp breath.

Nothing could have prepared him for the sight of a 300-foot-tall Mountain Spirit moving inexorably towards them.

Those with weaker wills would have immediately run in fear at the sight of it.

"Hu… mans…" it said, its voice rumbling from the depths of the earth. It sounded so indistinct that Gao Peng thought he was imagining it at first.

Only when the Mountain Spirit repeated what it had said did Gao Peng realize that it was speaking to them at that moment.

"Uncle Liu, I think the Mountain Spirit is calling us," shouted Gao Peng.

"What did you say?" Uncle Liu shouted back. The wind had drowned out Gao Peng's voice.

"The Mountain Spirit is calling us!" said Gao Peng, pointing at the Mountain Spirit behind them.

"Relax, it can't catch up to us!" said Uncle Liu, patting his chest confidently.

"That's not what I said. I'm saying it's calling us!" shouted Gao Peng. How hard of hearing can you be, uncle?!

"Don't worry, it can't fly!" said Uncle Liu, grinning.

Gao Peng fell silent for a moment. "Uncle Liu, are you deaf?" he shouted.

"What, are you calling me deaf?" said Uncle Liu, appalled.

Gao Peng decided not to continue the conversation until the Shadow Japalura was flying close enough for Uncle Liu to hear him clearly.

"I see, you're saying that the Mountain Spirit is calling us. Yeah, I heard it too," said Uncle Liu. "Let me tell you something. You're still young. You have much to learn about this world. These creatures cannot be trusted. First, they lure you in with their sweet words, then they try to eat you."

Gao Peng hesitated for a moment. "Why don't we go down and hear what it has to say? We'll fly just close enough to have a conversation with it."

They had flown so far ahead that they could no longer hear the Mountain Spirit behind them.

"All right then, but I'm telling you, Mountain Spirits may be made of stone, but they are all rotten to the core," said Uncle Liu.

Gao Peng nodded impatiently. "Yes, you're right. These Mountain Spirits are always up to no good!"

Uncle Liu glared at him with a strained smile on his face. You little twerp…

When it saw Gao Peng and the others disappear into the distance, its head drooped down dejectedly.

"Hey, big guy, you want something from us?" shouted Gao Peng from the back of the Blood Eye Whisker Vulture.

The Mountain Spirit stopped in its tracks and turned around.

"Human, I would like to make a deal with you…"

Ten miles away, a couple of humans and their familiars were resting near a mountain stream.

"Did a Mountain Spirit just pass by?" a man in a black singlet said worriedly.

"Yeah, it's supposed to be living in a valley to the north. Why did it suddenly appear here? We were almost spotted by it," said a young man beside him. The young man had short hair and a lively pair of eyes. He was carrying a camouflage backpack on his back, and in his left hand was a chunk of meat. He tore off a piece of it and fed it to a red wolf beside him. The wolf happily gobbled it down.

"No, we were definitely spotted by it. It simply ignored us," said a lady in a yellow jacket and black sweatpants.

"How can you be so sure?" the man in the black singlet said, frowning.

"My brother once told me that Mountain Spirits don't have eyes or noses, that they rely on their brainwaves to sense all life forms in their vicinities," said the lady.

"So you're saying that nothing can hide from it?"

"Well, there are many monsters out there. One of them might have the ability to fool its senses," said the young man, patting his thighs as he stood up. "Let's go, aren't we supposed to help you hunt—"

Suddenly, an indistinct rumbling up ahead interrupted him. The young man said, "Maybe we should wait a bit."

The Mountain Spirit had lumbered across the mountain stream in front of them. Two huge bird-like creatures were now hovering above it.

The Shadow Japalura was wreathed in a green aura that was shaped like a pair of tattered wings. The Blood Eye Whisker Vulture beside it was cloaked in a turbulent white aura.

The three of them stared at the two Lord-tiered monsters with bated breath, fearing that the slightest movement might anger them.

"One of them is carrying something in its claws."

"Must be its dinner."

"Someone's on the flying-type monster," said the man in the black singlet, rubbing his eyes as if he couldn't believe what he had just seen.

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"Are they Lord-tier familiars?!"

"He must be one of the top monster trainers in Yuzhou. Doesn't Mingge have a Lord-tier familiar as well?" said the man in the black singlet.

"There's no point coveting other people's familiars. I believe Bao Yan here will be able to evolve into a Lord-tier familiar someday!" said the bushy-browed young man firmly while patting the back of his red wolf.

The Shadow Japalura suddenly let a roar out into the air, causing the red wolf to tremble and fall on its butt.

Gao Peng had his hands wrapped around the Blood Eye Whisker Vulture's neck while a fierce wind blew at his face. He couldn't believe his luck when the Mountain Spirit offered to help him obtain his prize.

The prize in question would allow Da Zi to evolve into a Six-Winged Thunder Centipede. Its evolved form would allow it to fly, giving it maximum mobility in the air.

However, the Mountain Spirit's offer had come with a price. It wanted Gao Peng and Uncle Liu to do something for it in return.

Mountain Spirits were more intelligent than other monsters. The reason why it had chosen Gao Peng and Uncle Liu was because it knew that most humans were capable of negotiating.

Although humans were physically weak, they were capable of taming powerful creatures. A Mountain Spirit would only ever approach a monster trainer it deemed worthy of its time, that is, a trainer with powerful familiars under their command.

"Humans… over here…" the Mountain Spirit rumbled. "Bathe me in their blood, and I will do what you ask."

The Mountain Spirit had come to a halt. Before it lay a wide cavity in the ground. In the middle of the cavity were a couple of huge holes. A round head poked out from one of them and sniffed at the air, then it hurriedly squirmed back into its hole, as if it had smelled something rotten in the air.

[Monster Name: Armadrillo

[Monster Level: Level 32 (Commander-tier)

[Monster Grade: Normal

[Monster Attribute: Earth/Gold

[Monster Ability: Earthwalking Level 2

[Monster Weakness: Fire

Are Armadrillos giving the Mountain Spirit a hard time? thought Gao Peng.

According to the legends, armadillos had been able to travel freely beneath the earth. The Armadrillos that they had evolved into had probably gained a more powerful version of this ability.

However, Gao Peng had a hard time believing that a Lord-tier Mountain Spirit would be inconvenienced by a single Lord-tier Armadrillo.

"There are a lot of them… down there," said the Mountain Spirit slowly.

"Smoke them out," Uncle Liu ordered the Blood Eye Whisker Vulture.

The vulture began flapping its wings until it had whipped up a fierce wind.

With a ripping sound and a flash of green light, the wind struck the ground, raising a cloud of dust in the air.

Cries of pain could be heard in the midst of the explosion.

The Blood Eye Whisker Vulture swooped down in a flash of light. When it flew closer to the ground, it let go of Dumby and sank its claws into something else in the smoke.

The Blood Eye Whisker Vulture emerged from the smoke with an Armadrillo squealing frantically in its claws. It sank its claws deeper into its prey and tore open its body, letting its blood and entrails fall from the sky.

The Armadrillo's blood and flesh fell upon the Mountain Spirit, which then absorbed the offering through its black stone skin. A satisfied burp rumbled from deep inside it.

"Okay, I've killed one of them for you. Now, can you tell me where our prize is?" asked Uncle Liu.

The Mountain Spirit didn't move. "Not enough… One is not enough…"

"Tell me where is it, and I'll help you catch more Armadrillos," said Uncle Liu coldly.

The Mountain Spirit hesitated for a moment. Finally, it simply said, "In the east." Uncle Liu tried to coax a more precise answer out of it, but his efforts were all in vain.

The Armadrillos hiding beneath the ground were all startled by the Blood Eye Whisker Vulture's assault. Some of them fled from their holes, while others scurried past the Mountain Spirit's feet.

With a swing of their tails, the Armadrillos parted the earth before them and dove into the ground, dodging the black stones the Mountain Spirit flung at them from its feet.

"Four more, I still need four more," shouted the Mountain Spirit.

After placing Uncle Liu on the Blood Eye Whisker Vulture's back, the Shadow Japalura flew towards one of the holes and jammed its body into it. Moments later, a panicked squealing came from the ground. The Shadow Japalura crawled back out of the hole with a half-dead Armadrillo dangling from its jaws.

It then nimbly plucked three more Armadrillos out of their holes.

The stones on the Mountain Spirit shifted excitedly as it greedily eyed the pile of dead Armadrillos now lying in front of it.

"The thing you're looking for is on a cliff five mountains away to the east," said the Mountain Spirit impatiently.

"I think we should hold onto the last Armadrillo carcass, in case this was all just a trick," said Uncle Liu. He let the Shadow Japalura fly into the air with an Armadrillo carcass in its mouth and signaled for the Blood Eye Whisker Vulture to fly Gao Peng to his prize.

"We Mountain Spirits never lie!" roared the Mountain Spirit.

Ten minutes later, the Blood Eye Whisker Vulture returned with an uprooted tree in its claws. The tree was entirely black. However, its roots were as white as snow, and electricity crackled from them.

Gao Peng poked his head out from behind the vulture and gave Uncle Liu an okay signal.

Upon seeing this, Uncle Liu ordered the Shadow Japalura to drop the last Armadrillo on the Mountain Spirit.

"Now why would a Lord-tier Mountain Spirit crave Armadrillo meat?" asked Uncle Liu.

"Who knows? Maybe there's something in their bodies that helps Mountain Spirits evolve, or maybe it just wanted us to get rid of the Armadrillos so that it could have whatever is buried in the ground all for itself," said Gao Peng.

Uncle Liu raised an eyebrow at Gao Peng. "Then why don't we take it for ourselves?"

"This is all just a guess. Besides, we got what we came here for. I wouldn't say this has been a wasted trip."

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Chapter 219: The Slaughterhouse

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Half an hour later, Gao Peng and Uncle Liu finally reached the manor. The Blood Eye Whisker Vulture made a steady landing on the grass. After dropping Uncle Liu and Dumby on the ground, the Shadow Japalura glanced at the lake, as if it longed to go for a swim in the water. However, for some reason, it decided against it and simply lay on the ground with its eyes shut and its tail waving lazily about behind it.

Gao Peng's limbs had gone numb during their flight through the cold air. After jumping down from the Blood Eye Whisker Vulture's back, Gao Peng rubbed his arms and took in a deep breath.

At that moment, Gao Peng realized just how convenient it would be to have a Lord-tier flying-type familiar of his own.

Both his grandfather and Uncle Liu had a Lord-tier familiar that could fly them around whenever they wanted. Also, they didn't need to worry about being confronted by other Lord-tier monsters, as fights between Lord-tier monsters were usually quite rare.

Knowing that one false move could put them in a dangerous position, monsters at such a high level would never deliberately pick fights with each other.

At least with a Lord-tier flying-type familiar, Gao Peng would be able to travel around the city with ease. He would no longer need to bother his grandfather and Uncle Liu every time he needed a lift. As both of them were busy people, it certainly seemed unreasonable to expect them to arrange their schedules around his own.

Right now, the flying-type familiar under Gao Peng's command that was most likely to reach Lord-tier first was Flamy. Despite only being with Gao Peng for a few months, thanks to a balanced diet and innate potential, Flamy had managed to reach Level 28.

Unlike humans, who required more than ten years to mature to adulthood, most animals only needed a few months to reach maturity.

Suddenly, the rest of Gao Peng's familiars scrambled out of the manor to greet them.

Da Zi bitterly glared at its master.

Gao Peng coughed. Despite Da Zi's pestering, it had still been left behind by Gao Peng and Uncle Liu.

"All right, stop looking at me like that. Look what I brought you," said Gao Peng, pointing at the huge uprooted tree behind him.

Goldie curiously approached the tree, ready to sink its beak into it.

Da Zi slapped Goldie with a claw. It's mine! Gao Peng brought it back for me! None of you are allowed to touch it!

Goldie staggered to one side and stared at Da Zi in confusion. "Quack?" Then it waddled away.

Flamy observed the tree for a moment in the air, then lost interest in it and flew away.

Da Zi stretched itself out across the tree, its feelers waggling inquisitively in the air.

"Gao Peng, how should I eat it?" asked Da Zi. "I don't eat trees. Trees don't taste good."

"No one said anything about eating it. I don't think you need to eat this thing to evolve," said Gao Peng, rapping his knuckles on Da Zi's head.

"What is it?" asked Uncle Liu as he approached the tree.

Gao Peng took a look at the tree's description.

[Plant Name: Lightning Bell Pine

The tree's fruit would be an essential ingredient to Da Zi's evolution into a Six-Winged Thunder Centipede.

"I still haven't gathered the rest of the ingredients for your evolution. Don't worry, I'll help you evolve tomorrow," said Gao Peng, patting Da Zi's head. "Let's plant the tree now, before it withers."

Da Zi excitedly got down from the tree. With Dumby's aid, Gao Peng managed to plant the Lightning Bell Pine tree beside the lake.

At night, the tree stood silently beside the lake, its exposed roots gleaming with a white light. The tree's golden fruits shone like light bulbs from its branches, where Da Zi lay curled up inside a bird's nest.

In another corner of the forest, after hunting for food the whole day, a purple-feathered eagle returned to the cliff with its bounty, only to discover that its nest had vanished into thin air. "Squawk!" A piercing screech echoed across the forest.

"Grandpa, I just discovered a way to help Dumby evolve quickly," said Gao Peng to his grandfather in the living room. "But I need to run it by you first."

The method he had in mind might have seemed ethically questionable to some. However, as long as it worked, he would have no qualms about using it.

"Well, you are my grandson. Do you really need my approval to do anything?" said Ji Hanwu, chuckling.

"Does the company have its own slaughterhouse, or at least, a place to handle the bodies of dead monsters?" said Gao Peng.

"Of course. It's still operational right now. I can take you there if you want," said Ji Hanwu. He put on a black coat and headed out to the slaughterhouse alongside Gao Peng.

The facility was located to the west of the industrial area. Gao Peng rarely went there, as it was quite far from the headquarters and the manor.

Up ahead, Gao Peng could see black smoke rising into the sky and hear the roar of machinery in the distance. Human-shaped figures bustled about near the factory's gates.

When they reached the gates, a man in a black suit and yellow tie briskly strode towards them. "Chairman Ji, what brings you here?"

Behind him stood a couple of people in various uniforms. He must have been in charge of everything that went on in the facility.

"Working overtime?"

"Yeah, we have a new batch of stock coming in tomorrow. Might as well finish everything we have today," said the man, smiling.

"I see. I'm just giving my grandson a tour around the place. Zhao Pu, walk with us. The rest of you can go back to your posts."

Everyone else nodded and left, leaving the man named Zhao Pu with Gao Peng and his grandfather.

"Mr. Zhao, how do you usually process monster bones in this facility?" asked Gao Peng.

Zhao Pu glanced at Gao Peng. So this is Chairman Ji's grandson, he thought.

His face broke into a smile. "We either grind the bones into nutrient rich bone meal or just feed them directly to the familiars."

"I would like to see where you process the bones."

Gao Peng and his grandfather were then brought to a warehouse where monster bones from different parts of the facility were gathered.

Bits of bone and flesh still clung to some of the bones.

However, Gao Peng seemed disappointed by the sight of the shattered bone fragments. Dumby required complete skeletons in order to bring them back to life. It wouldn't be able to do anything with what the facility had right now.

"Mr. Zhao, I didn't think the bones you have here would be so… broken up," said Gao Peng.

"What do you mean? Aren't they still whole?" said Zhao Pu, scratching his head.

"Next time, try to maintain the integrity of the bones," said Ji Hanwu, glancing at Gao Peng.

"Ah" was all Zhao Pu could say. Well, that's easier said than done, he thought.

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"Do you remember the way to the slaughterhouse now?" asked Gao Peng.

"Yes," said Dumby, nodding.

"Good. From tomorrow onwards, you'll bring all of those skeletons in the facility back to life and absorb the Flames of the Undead from them. Did you get all that?" asked Gao Peng.

Dumby thumped its chest, indicating that it had understood what Gao Peng had said.

Gao Peng and Ji Hanwu went back to the manor to turn in for the night, while Dumby returned to the treehouse that Gao Peng had built for it and its child in a 40-foot-tall tree.

The treehouse was made of branches tied together with pieces of vine. When Dumby started climbing up the tree, a small head poked out of the treehouse's window and warily peered down.

After seeing that it was Dumby, the little thing retracted its head from the window. Suddenly, a red blur bounded out of the door and leapt into Dumby's arms, then let out a soft purr as it clambered up to Dumby's head.

Gently holding its daughter in one arm, Dumby continued climbing up the tree with his other hand. Despite turning into a skeleton, it still remembered how to climb up a tree like any other monkey.

"Did you behave yourself today?" Dumby asked its daughter.

The Red River Ape looked up at it with teary eyes and began counting its fingers. When it was done, it cried out excitedly, "I thought of daddy nine times today!" The small Red River Ape then looked at Dumby expectantly, as if it was hoping to be rewarded for its actions.

"That's not what I meant," said Dumby, frowning.

Even though Dumby's fleshless face showed no emotion, the small Red River Ape was able to sense that its father wasn't in a joking mood.

"I learned three words today… Human language is so hard to learn. Can I not learn it?" said the small Red River Ape, now clinging to its father's arm.

Dumby hesitated for a moment, then it said, "No." It placed its right hand on the small Red River Ape's head.

I can't let you be a small Red River Ape forever. I'll beg the young master to let you evolve if I have to. I can't protect you forever, but I can give you the power to protect yourself, thought Dumby as he stared at the starry night sky from the edge of the treehouse.

"Boss, I guarantee that you won't be able to buy 220 pounds of these high-quality golden-winged cicadas at such a low price anywhere else!" said a young man wearing a blue mandarin jacket and a straw hat to Liu Senlin outside the gates of the Southern Sky Group.

"All right, I'll take your word for it. I'll transfer the money to your account shortly," interrupted Liu Senlin. He then beckoned at a security guard nearby to pick up a huge box on the ground.

Before the young man could say anything else, Liu Senlin sharply turned around and walked away.

The young man sighed as he watched Liu Senlin leave. "I was going to tell him that those golden-winged cicadas were nasty… Weird, why would anyone buy so many of them anyway? They're not exactly edible, and they have an extremely bad temper… Rich people sure are strange," muttered the young man as he turned to leave as well.

The security guard frowned as he held the box in his arms. Under normal circumstances, he could carry a 220-pound object without too much trouble. However, just then, he could feel hundreds of fleas madly jumping around in the box, threatening to burst out of it at any moment.

The box soon reached Gao Peng. He opened it, making sure that it was what he had requested.

"Come out, Da Zi. It's time for your evolution," shouted Gao Peng.

Da Zi nearly tripped over its legs as it excitedly scrambled down from the tree.

Gao Peng then placed the box on Da Zi's back. The usually hyperactive Da Zi obediently carried the box to the laboratory without jostling it too much.

Gao Peng extracted the wire cage inside the box. The holes on the wire cage were so small that not even the walnut-sized cicadas couldn't escape through them.

The golden-winged cicadas had filled practically half of the wire cage.

Some of them were still clinging to the corners of the cage, while others were hanging upside down from the top of the cage.

"I'll first need to prepare a special solution using these golden-winged cicadas… then I'll let the Purple-Backed Thunder Centipede soak in it…" muttered Gao Peng. A pained expression contorted his face as he looked at the golden-winged cicadas jumping about inside their cage. There were at least a hundred of them, and he had to extract a certain organ from each and every one of them. This process would take him at least half a day to complete. Also, the extracted organ could only be preserved for six hours.It would lose its vitality if it was left out in the open any longer than that.

He called his grandfather on his cellphone. "Grandpa, I need an assistant to help me out with this. Yes, someone who doesn't mind getting their hands dirty… What? No, nothing like that! I just want someone who won't mind doing a bit of hard work."

Gao Peng let out a long sigh when he hung up the phone, then he began handling the golden-winged cicadas.

Half an hour later, the doorbell rang outside the laboratory. Without turning his head away from his work, Gao Peng simply said, "Come in."

Someone pushed open the door and entered the laboratory.

"Professor Gao, I'm your new assistant for today."

Gao Peng glanced up. Before him stood a beautiful lady in a white lab coat whose hair was tied into a ponytail behind her head. He had met her before. It was Xu Qingzhi.

She has quite a high hairline, thought Gao Peng.

Not knowing what was going on inside Gao Peng's mind, Xu Qingzhi simply stood there without a sound. This wasn't her first time working in a laboratory setting. However, she hadn't expected someone as young as Gao Peng to be her boss for the day.

She had assumed that Gao Peng was just one of the researchers working in this laboratory. Who would have thought that he was in charge of it?

"All right," said Gao Peng curtly. He knew why she had been chosen to be his assistant. Her father and uncle were the top of the Southern Sky Group. Gao Peng's grandfather must have figured that it would be best to employ someone who was already part of the "family," as most of the things in the laboratory were classified.

Gao Peng's hands didn't slow down one bit during his thought process. He crushed a golden-winged cicada's head with a metal rod, ending its life instantly. He then deftly carved out its wings with a scalpel and put them inside an empty container. The rest of its body was thrown into a bin.

'What are you still standing there for? Come and help me with these golden-winged cicadas," said Gao Peng brusquely.

"Oh, okay." Xu Qingzhi carefully listened to Gao Peng's instructions and was able to pick things up quickly. At first, her movements were clumsy, but soon, she was able to handle one golden-winged cicada every half a minute.

Two hours later, they finally managed to clear out all the golden-winged cicadas from the cage.

"Alright, we're done here. You can go now," said Gao Peng, waving her off.

"Huh?" Xu Qingzhi stared at him in disbelief.

Bang! Gao Peng slammed the door in her face.

For the next half hour, Gao Peng carefully prepared the concoction necessary for Da Zi's evolution.

He held the test tube containing the concoction up to his eyes. A white smoke was coming out of it. At times, a blue flash of light appeared in the translucent liquid.

He then added a large volume of hot water into a reaction vessel. Once the vessel was full, he poured its contents into the test tube.

Crackle!

A flash of electricity appeared in the test tube.

A few drops of the liquid flew out of the test tube onto Gao Peng's face. Da Zi, who had been lazily licking the tips of its feet on the ground this whole time, suddenly jerked up, as if it had been electrocuted by something.

"And finally, the last ingredient." Gao Peng took out nine pinecones from the freezing chamber, each of them adorned with a lightning pattern.

He then dropped the pinecones into the concoction. Inside, they dissolved into a golden liquid before disappearing entirely in the test tube's mixture.

The boiling liquid began cooling down until its surface was as smooth as a mirror.

"All right, Da Zi, jump in," said Gao Peng.

Da Zi raised its head and waggled its feelers at its master, then it crawled into the experimental tub.

Boom!

As soon as Da Zi entered the tub, a sound like thunder rumbled from it, rattling everything in the room. It was so loud that it could even be heard outside the laboratory.

Xu Qingzhi bolted upright and narrowed her eyes at the closed doors of the laboratory behind her. What on earth is he doing in there?

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Read Monster Pet Evolution Chapter 221 - Six-Winged Thunder Centipede! online for free - AllNovelFull

Chapter 221: Six-Winged Thunder Centipede!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Xu Qingzhi twisted her mouth with displeasure when she recalled how coldly Gao Peng had treated her just before. She could not have cared any less about him right then.

The tumultuous noise continued for more than ten minutes. Finally, silence once again fell upon the laboratory.

Xu Qingzhi simply waited outside with a paper cup in her hand. She had already drank three cups of water.

Hope everything's all right inside, thought Qingzhi.

The laboratory's spotless white doors were pushed open, and Gao Peng stepped out of the room in a flowing white robe. He then sat down on the sofa and said, "Pour me a cup of water, thanks."

"Oh," said Xu Qingzhi. She poured a cup of water from the water dispenser and handed it to him.

After, she sensed that something wasn't quite right with this picture. I'm your assistant, not your maid! she thought angrily.

"Is the evolution process complete?" asked Xu Qingzhi cautiously.

"Not quite, we'll still need a few more hours," replied Gao Peng. Upon seeing Xu Qingzhi's bored expression, he said, "If you have nothing else to do, you could help me tidy up the freezing chamber."

In the Monster Slaughterhouse, all the monster corpses that the Southern Sky Group wanted taken care of were handled.

Every day, lots of monster corpses were processed here. All the meat, blood, and other valuable materials that could be harvested from them were transferred to other processing plants for further processing. The bones that remained were kept inside a huge warehouse.

On that day, all warehouse personnel had been reassigned to other posts. Only Dumby stood in the middle of the warehouse.

Well preserved bones rolled out of a chute and into the warehouse, which was at that moment, filled with the stench of blood.

Dumby stood silently beside the chute, raising its arm when the chute was closed.

Flames began crackling in its skull and then spread across Dumby's arm until they finally pooled in its palm, forming a white, watermelon-sized ball of fire.

Dumby hurled the ball of fire at the pile of bones, which was shattered into pieces in an instant.

The warehouse was once again as silent as a tomb.

After a long while, there was a clatter from the pile of bones. White flames suddenly erupted from it!

Bones now rolled down the bone pile, while skulls' jawbones clacked noisily against their teeth.

Thousands of skeletons were brought back to life inside the warehouse.

The surveillance camera installed on the warehouse's ceiling flashed twice before it went dead. In the surveillance room, the slaughterhouse's supervisor coldly said, "Pretend you didn't see anything just now. From now on, turn off the surveillance cameras every time it's inside the slaughterhouse. Do I make myself clear?"

The security guard nodded obediently.

His wife had a job in the Southern Sky Group, and his daughter was attending a kindergarten which was sponsored by the group as well. He had too much at stake to disobey his superior.

In the warehouse, Dumby straightened its black finger bones and then closed them together.

All of a sudden, the reanimated skeletons collapsed to the ground. White flames emerged from their bones and swirled into a huge ball of fire in the air, which was then absorbed by Dumby's body.

A shiver ran through Dumby's body as the inferno continued to burn in its eye sockets. Its Blood-Thread Heart was thumping heavily against its chest.

After a while, Dumby calmed down, its bones now much shinier than before.

Dumby seemed unperturbed by any of this. It pressed a red button, and what was left of the bone pile exited the warehouse through another chute in the corner.

Twenty minutes later, the chute at the top of the warehouse opened, and a new pile of bones was dumped into the warehouse.

Something hissed inside the laboratory. Gao Peng put down the magazine he was reading and pushed open the laboratory door.

Inside, a purple figure was circling in the air, making loud hissing sounds.

Gao Peng frowned, since the sound was grating on his ears.

"Da Zi, stop."

The figure came to a halt in the air. The hissing sounds had also stopped.

[Monster Name: Six-winged Thunder Centipede

[Monster Level: Level 28

[Monster Grade: Epic

[Monster Attribute: Electric

[Monster Ability: Thunder Mastery Level 2

[Monster Weakness: Its heart lies in its seventh body segment. Hitting it there will render its whole body limp and numb.

[Special Characteristic: Thunder Wings (Passive effect 1: Increases its speed and wing beat frequency to the point that it can affect its enemies' senses by producing a thunderous noise with its wings. The effect of said noise is dependent on its wing beat frequency.)

(Passive effect 2: The Thunder Wings effect will gradually strengthen all of the monster's wings. At first, it will only have one pair of Thunder Wings. Later on, all three pairs of its wings will be transformed into Thunder Wings. This process is irreversible.The monster's Thunder Wings will become even sturdier and sharper than the wings of other monsters.)

[All Possible Legendary Evolutions: 1. Dragonblood evolution 2. Storm evolution 3. Darkness evolution 4. Ancestral evolution

So this is Da Zi's new ability, thought Gao Peng.

He closely observed the wings on Da Zi's back. Its front pair of wings seemed quite different from the rest. Its other wings were translucent and as thick as a finger, seeming like they were made of a soft and elastic substance.

However, its front pair of wings were a light golden color. The patterns around the edges of the wings and veins in the middle were a light shade of gold, while the rest of its wings was transparent.

Da Zi's overall appearance had also changed a lot. Its mandibles were more slender and sharper than before, like a pair of long sickles.

And its eyes were cold and black. Its feelers had grown longer as well. Barbs had grown out of Da Zi's leg joints. Its body was now even longer and more elegant than before.

"Looking good, Da Zi," said Gao Peng.

Da Zi clicked its mandibles happily. Power now surged throughout its body. It was sure it had become Gao Peng's strongest familiar!

Then it leapt onto Gao Peng without realizing just how heavy it had become.

Bam!

Gao Peng was completely flattened to the ground by Da Zi.

This was what Xu Qingzhi saw when she entered the laboratory.

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Chapter 222: Stop!

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"Your familiar really likes you," said Xu Qingzhi, smiling. The scene before her was one she was all too familiar with.

Gao Peng tried to push Da Zi aside. "This little fellow got a little too excited after completing its evolution. All right now, get off of me," he said, patting Da Zi's wings.

Xu Qingzhi covered her smile with one hand.

She had a feeling that there was more to Da Zi's current form than met the eye.

"I've tidied up the Freezing Chamber. Is there anything else you want me to do?" she asked.

"Get me some black arrow peach, the venom glands of a poisonous fruit frog…" Gao Peng began naming various types of ingredients to her.

Xu Qingzhi nodded and turned around to retrieve Gao Peng's ingredients from the Freezing Chamber.

Gao Peng used the ingredients to concoct a bottle filled with a black mixture. When everything was finished, he placed the final product inside a box and stepped out of the laboratory.

"We're done for today. You can go back to your post… Also, should I pay you for your services today? asked Gao Peng awkwardly.

Xu Qingzhi raised a brow. "The Group will be doing that. Of course, you can still give me a tip if you would like."

Gao Peng coughed and began striding away with his hands clasped behind him. "Da Zi, we're leaving."

During his experiments, Gao Peng had remembered the Dark Dodder that he had captured a while ago in the underground sewer. He had kept it inside a container for half a month, so it must have calmed down by now.

The container was kept in the villa's basement. Gao Peng climbed down a ladder into the basement, which was cluttered with all kinds of things. The container was sitting in a corner of the basement.

Whatever was inside it didn't weigh much. Gao Peng figured he could carry it out of the basement by himself.

He lifted the whole thing out of the villa and opened it beside the lake.

Here, Gao Peng felt that he could take on the Dark Dodder if it tried to do anything funny. Inside the container, lay a vine as long as a rope.

"Are you dead?" Gao Peng shouted at the Dark Dodder.

It didn't budge.

Gao Peng was stunned. However, he didn't try to touch it. Despite being a plant-type monster, it was still a monster, and he knew better than to provoke wild monsters like that.

"Da Zi," shouted Gao Peng.

A streak of lightning flashed out from the pine trees nearby. Da Zi appeared beside Gao Peng, its wings filling the air with a whirring sound.

Da Zi curiously approached the container and eyed the Dark Dodder inside.

"Chirp?"

"You can eat it if you want," said Gao Peng.

Da ZI shook its head. The dead vine-like thing inside looked unpleasant.

"I'll take you out for a walk if you eat it." Da Zi's eyes lit up.

It bit into the Dark Dodder without any hesitation.

Without warning, the motionless plant lashed out at it. Da Zi quickly took a few steps back and glared furiously at the writhing plant.

Most monsters tended to extremely aggressive when they were startled.

The Dark Dodder slithered out of the container like a snake. Its leaves had bundled together on its body like sharp blades.

Da Zi swooped down at it. The plant's blade-like leaves grazed against Da Zi's body, giving off a grating sound.

Then Da Zi sank its teeth into the Dark Dodder. Only then did Gao Peng order the centipede to stop its attack.

Wild monsters like the Dark Dodder were usually difficult to tame. Without using such a heavy-handed approach, Gao Peng probably would not have been able to subdue it. Plant-type monsters were also known for their extraordinary self-regenerative abilities. Most of them could grow back a broken limb in less than two days.

The Dark Dodder was now trembling like a leaf. It hurriedly slithered away as it saw Da Zi moving towards it.

Gao Peng frowned. At first, he had thought about taming the Dark Dodder to become part of his team. In his opinion, a good team was one that covered all aspects, such as drawing enemy fire, aerial support, and long-range firepower.

Right then, Gao Peng didn't think the Dark Dodder was even worthy of a place in his team. It was just too weak compared to his other familiars, in terms of level or grade.

Still, Gao Peng believed that he could draw out the Dark Dodder's potential. He just needed to tame it.

"I guess we'll just keep it as test subject for now. Once it's tamed, I'll let Grandpa give it to someone else," he said before ordering Da Zi to chase the Dark Dodder back into the container. He locked the container back in the laboratory inside a chamber.

That night, Dumby came home from the slaughterhouse. Gao Peng noticed that its bones were now gleaming, as if someone had polished them.

He was also surprised to see that Dumby had reached Level 33.

So this is how much a familiar can level up with the right method, he thought.

However, not everyone could level up their familiars the way Gao Peng did. After all, most people didn't have access to a slaughterhouse like he did.

"At this rate, Dumby will be able to hit Lord-tier before the World Youth Trainer Championships…" Gao Peng began feeling excitement bubbling inside him.

The day of the Championships was drawing close.

It was a few minutes past six in the evening. Gao Peng suddenly realized that he hadn't slept in his university's dormitory in quite some time. Most of his nights had been spent in his grandfather's villa.

Grandfather had not returned home yet. He had been called away on urgent business to Yuzhou that afternoon, and he had even brought the White Dragon along with him.

Gao Peng decided then that he would sleep in his dormitory that night.

It would be a waste of money to not sleep in his dormitory at least once considering that he had already paid for it.

Gao Peng went to the garage. The garage door slowly opened, and a light flickered to life on the ceiling, revealing rows of expensive-looking cars left untouched in the garage.

He decided to drive a black all-terrain car out of the garage. Just as he drove past the villa's gates, a figure appeared in front of it.

Goldie stood solemnly before Gao Peng's car, clad in a yellow feather coat.

He poked his head out of the window and said, "Goldie, what are you doing here?"

Goldie's quack echoed in Gao Peng's head. "Master, stop!"

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Chapter 223: Goldie's First Day in School

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The yellow duck was staring dumbly at Gao Peng. A few gray feathers were poking out of its yellow feather coat.

Gao Peng opened the door to let Goldie in.

However, the door was a bit too high for it. Goldie tried to climb into the car a couple of times, but ended up tumbling backwards each time. Its yellow feather coat was now covered in grime.

"Quack!" Goldie angrily kicked the car door.

Gao Peng narrowed his eyes at the dented door and said sternly, "Kick it again, and I'm taking back that coat!"

Goldie looked at him apologetically. "Quack!"

Goldie had gained two levels, now Level 16. It had also grown three feet taller, just barely reaching Gao Peng's shoulder.

The feather coat that he had bought for Goldie had originally been a bright yellow color. However, after a month's wear, there was now a layer of grime on it.

Realizing that Gao Peng was looking at it, Goldie quacked loudly at him.

Its quack was then translated into a single word in Gao Peng's head. "Go!"

Gao Peng stepped on the gas pedal, and the car drove out of the villa with a roar.

Goldie, who had never experienced such speed, was simply thrilled by the experience. It stuck its head out of the window and quacked joyfully in the wind. Its hood had also come off, revealing its bald head, but Goldie was too excited to care at that moment.

When they finally reached the university, Gao Peng opened the door for Goldie, who stumbled out of the car, its face flushed with excitement. It waddled over to Gao Peng and hugged his legs with its wings. "Let's go one more time!"

"Next time," said Gao Peng, pushing Goldie away. "Come on, it's getting late."

"Gao Peng?" a voice called out uncertainly behind him.

Gao Peng turned around and saw Xu Qingzhi closing her car door and looking at him strangely. She said, "It's really you. For a second, I thought I was going crazy."

Gao Peng smiled. Just then, a duck wearing a yellow feather coat waddled out from behind him.

Xu Qingzhi's eyes widened when she saw Gao Peng's duck. However, after noticing the strange blue markings on Goldie's balding head, she quickly rephrased what she wanted to say. "Is this one of your familiars? Such a… poor thing, already losing its hair at such a young age," she said sympathetically.

Gao Peng tried to stifle a laugh and pulled Goldie's hood back over its head. "Keep your hood up. You don't want everyone to see your bald head now, do you?"

Goldie quacked quizzically at him. What is this human talking about? Are they talking about how good looking I am?

Xu Qingzhi smiled at the sight of Gao Peng teasing his duck. It was a side of him she had never seen before.

"Don't you usually stay at your grandfather's place?"

Gao Peng's face tensed. In a low voice, he said, "I just wanted to experience the hardships of the common folk… Don't blow my cover for me now."

"Oh, I see," said Xu Qingzhi, nodding. When Gao Peng finally walked away, she realized what he had said. Hardships of the common folk my *ss! she cursed at him.

"Qingzhi, who's the cutie you were talking to? Is he your boyfriend?" asked a tall girl who had rushed over to Qingzhi from the entrance of the parking lot.

"No way. He's just the son of my dad's colleague," replied Xu Qingzhi moodily. "I see being single for so long hasn't improved your taste in men at all."

"Here I am, showing concern for you, and this is how you show your gratitude? For shame!" retorted the tall girl.

Goldie didn't take up much space at all inside Gao Peng's room.

Some familiars couldn't stand sleeping under the same roof as other familiars. Like horses and hunting dogs in the olden days, these familiars preferred to live by themselves.

However, Gao Peng had never encountered such an issue, as he had always slept with Da Zi in the same room. Sleeping with his familiars usually gave him a sense of security.

The night passed without a sound from either one of them.

The next day, after waking up, Gao Peng brought Goldie out for a jog near the lake.

"We need to keep our bodies in good shape all the time!" said Gao Peng sternly to Goldie.

"Look at how short you are! Barely even five feet tall! That won't do! If you want to grow any taller, you better start exercising now. Do you hear me?" Da Zi had always jogged with Da Zi and the others in the past. This was the first time he had brought Goldie out for a run.

Goldie nodded seriously.

"See this lake?" said Gao Peng, pointing at the 100-hectare-wide lake.

"Yes!" quacked Goldie.

"Let's set a mark here and run once round around the lake."

Gao Peng then began leading Goldie around the lake. The duck's tail bobbed up and down behind it as the duck waddled steadily behind Gao Peng.

After jogging once round around the lake, Gao Peng turned around and saw that Goldie was calmly waddling towards him without any sign of exhaustion, as if it could still run another lap.

Have I underestimated its physical capabilities? Gao Peng thought. It might look slow-witted, but it's still a Legendary grade monster.

"I'll practice my martial arts for a bit. You can go play around if you want. Don't go too far now," said Gao Peng.

Goldie nodded and waddled off into the tall grass nearby.

Gao Peng began practicing the martial arts that his grandfather had taught him, making sure that every muscle was amply stretched with each move. It was a form commonly practiced for people to keep themselves in shape. His grandfather had told him that this form could be used to defend oneself only against other humans, warning Gao Peng that he would be better off using something else against the monsters in the wild.

After practicing his form two more times, Gao Peng suddenly heard panicked quacks and derisive laughter from a nearby flower bed.

"Hahaha, it looks so stupid! Does it really think it can hide the fact that it's got no feathers by wearing a feather coat?"

"Whose familiar is it? What a bloody joke."

"This duck's got blue markings all over it as well. Must be going through its rebellious phase, eh?"

Gao Peng was able to hear their every word all too clearly.

He stopped what he was doing and turned towards where the voices were coming from, frowning.

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Chapter 224: Red Jewel Lizard King

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Before Gao Peng even took two steps, one of the voices said from across the flower bed, "Oi, the duck's mad. It tried to attack me!"

"Careful now. It's still a monster. However ridiculous it looks, it's not something we can deal with on our own."

"Chill, I have my familiar with me…"

Boom!

Something heavy fell to the ground, followed by Goldie's angry quacking and someone's dog yelping.

"Brother Chai, you all right?"

"I'm all right. Help me up, quick. The duck tried to kick me! Thank god I moved out of the way in time."

"Li Xiao, quick, get that duck under control with your familiar."

"Not interested. You guys picked on it first. Let's just go get breakfast. Why are we even trying to pick a fight with a duck in the first place, anyway?" said a voice with a heavy Yuzhou accent.

When Gao Peng finally made his way across the flower bed, he saw the peculiar sight of a yellow duck riding on a Snow Lion Mastiff's back, giving it the thrashing of its life.

It was a Level-19 Excellent-grade Snow Lion Mastiff.

Even without triggering Goldie's passive ability, the Snow Lion Mastiff wasn't a match for the duck, simply in terms of pure physical strength.

Even a Commander-tier monster would have been beaten within an inch of its life by the Level-16 Goldie if the fight continued any longer.

Goldie was furious, extremely furious.

It had always thought of itself as a typical Adamantine Duck.

However, Goldie had grown insecure after losing its yellow feathers.

Any self-respecting duck would never allow itself to be stripped of its feathers. They were, after all, an essential part of its identity. Only ducks stuffed inside the freezer could go without their feathers.

After much fervent pleading, Goldie had finally managed to convince Ji Hanwu to have a yellow feather coat made for it.

When it put on the feather coat, Goldie felt glamorous, as if it had regained its feathers.

While it had been playing by itself, it had suddenly spotted a black, juicy-looking beetle in the grass.

As it had chased after the beetle in the flower bed, a huge foot had come out of nowhere and stomped on it.

Not at all fazed by this, Goldie had simply waited for the foot to move out of the way so that it could feast on whatever remained of its prey.

However, the group of people who had come to a halt before Goldie had suddenly pulled off its coat!

"Mine! It's mine!" Goldie quacked angrily. It had begun beating the Snow Lion Mastiff until its face was all red. Tufts of fur had fallen off it as well.

No one had believed what they were seeing. Chai Guangming had been especially shocked by this, as the Snow Lion Mastiff that was being beaten to a pulp by the yellow duck was his familiar.

"Stop, you filthy duck!" shouted Guangming.

Goldie shot him a dirty look from the corner of its eye. You're the one who took my coat. Don't worry, you'll get yours once I'm done with this.

"Quack!" Goldie sharply swung its head down and struck its beak hard on the mastiff's head, knocking it out instantly.

Goldie then menacingly waddled towards Chai Guangming, its naked body rippling with muscles.

Its webbed feet made crunching sounds on the ground with each step it took.

"All right, show some mercy, duck. I'll tell him to give you back your coat." said Li Xiao, who was wearing an oversized white t-shirt.

"Does the duck look like the merciful kind? Goldie, beat him up," said Gao Peng coldly. He had stepped out of the flower bed and was now hatefully looking at Chai Guangming, who was still holding onto Goldie's coat. Gao Peng was able to grasp what was going on through his Blood Contract with Goldie.

Only he himself was allowed to tease his familiars. The guy named Chai Guangming had absolutely no right to take Goldie's coat from it and then mock its appearance like that.

Then there was the other guy in the white t-shirt. He had done absolutely nothing to help Goldie. What right did he have to order Goldie around?

"Gao Peng?" Everyone's faces froze. They all recognized him.

Ever since what had happened last time, lots of people in the university had looked into Gao Peng's background and were now aware of who he was.

"We didn't know it was your familiar…" Li Xiao tried to explain.

"I didn't know it was all right to bully familiars that aren't yours," said Gao Peng coldly.

He noticed Li Xiao's familiar, a 10-foot-long lizard, standing behind him. Its limbs were long and slender, its eyes bright, and there was a crown of red jewels on its head.

[Monster Name: Red Jewel Lizard King

[Monster Level: Level 21 (Commander-tier)

[Monster Grade: Excellent

[Monster Attribute: Wood/Poison

[Monster Weakness: 1. Fire 2. Gold

"I'll call us even if you let your lizard fight my duck," said Gao Peng.

"Ah?" The others looked at each other, then looked at Goldie. Could this duck really be a Commander-tier familiar?

Lord-tier monsters could be identified by a glow around them, while monsters below Lord-tier could only be recognized by their auras.

Monster trainers usually had to rely on their monsters' more acute senses to understand the strengths and weaknesses of other monsters.

"Master, I'm getting a strange vibe from the duck. However, I don't think it's a Commander-tier monster," the Red Jewel Lizard King said to Li Xiao.

Li Xiao felt more reassured by this.

However, he feared that Gao Peng would hold it against him if his duck lost to his lizard. Li Xiao wasn't so confident about taking on the challenge.

If he won the fight, he would probably incur Gao Peng's wrath. If he lost, he would have to live with the shame of having a Commander-tier monster that had lost to a duck.

After much thinking, Li Xiao came to a decision. "No, I won't fight."

He then said to the other two, "This had nothing to do with me. I tried to tell you guys not to mess with the duck. Fix your own problems. I'm going to get breakfast." Then Li Xiao walked away with his familiar.

After watching Li Xiao walk away, the other two looked at each other and apologized to Goldie as they gave it back its coat.

"Quack!" Goldie grumpily quacked at them. It then lifted its wings up, letting the humans before it know that they had its permission to put its coat back on it.

A strange thought occurred to Gao Peng. Why do I feel like I'm the bully here? Goldie's the one who was being bullied by them.

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Since they had already apologised, Gao Peng decided not to hold it against them.

After taking Goldie's coat back from Chai Guangming, he patted the duck's head.

"Let's go. I'll put this on for you."

"Quack." Goldie looked at Gao Peng with its head tilted to one side, then lifted its wings up, letting Gao Peng slide its coat back on. Gao Peng stood up and brushed a bit of dirt off of it.

"You know, no one will ever marry a duck who can't even dress itself," said Gao Peng.

"Nonsense!" Goldie retorted. "I have a two-storey duck shed near a lake. Every day, I get to eat all kinds of fish and drink the tastiest mountain spring water. I'm the richest duck in the city! I'm even richer than the ducks I see on your television programs," said Goldie haughtily.

"Where did you even get these ideas?" said Gao Peng, rapping his knuckles on Goldie's head.

"Stop hitting my head! I'm going to become even more stupid, and it'll be all your fault!" said Goldie, glaring at its master.

Chai Guangming was surprised to see this gentle side of Gao Peng, who was fussing about his duck like a mother.

Gao Peng only had one class that morning. When class was over, he started packing his books into his bag.

"The student association just discovered a new type of monster. Do you want to come and take a look at it?" Jun Moyi suddenly said to him.

"A new type of monster?" Gao Peng said. "I wouldn't mind taking a peek, but would it be all right to do so? I'm not really a member of the student association."

"We're allowed to invite our friends to help out. The student who made the discovery was one of the seniors at our university," replied Jun Moyi.

"All right then. I'll go."

This was the story of Li Yu, who lived in Yuzhou.

On the eve of the cataclysm, his old house had been completely destroyed by an earthquake. He had been forced to move to a new place.

His new home had been fully paid for by the New World Allied Government.

After losing both his parents as a child, he had lived in an orphanage for as long as he could remember. He managed to finish university with the help of the orphanage's matron and some of its more generous donors, and he was even still able to keep in touch with one of his childhood friends from the orphanage.

Recently, Li Yu had been troubled by the constant bickering of a married couple that lived above him. They would always be at each other's throats over the most trivial things in the middle of the night.

He knew that it was normal for married couples to fight sometimes, and he could still handle the amount of fighting these people were doing upstairs every night.

However, the problem was that his place was on the highest floor!

Li Yu was sitting anxiously on his bed. His curtains had been pulled aside to let the silver moonlight shine through. He shook out a cigarette from his pack and lit it with a lighter, then took a deep draw from it and slowly puffed smoke rings out into the air.

Like clockwork, from the ceiling came the voices of a man and woman arguing about something.

"I told you, it has nothing to do with him!"

"Why don't you believe me?"

"Don't give me that crap. Someone saw you two going to a hotel after dinner…" The voices grew fainter. Then there was the sound of a scuffle, followed by tables and chairs being turned over.

"I'm on the top floor. Who the hell is up there watching a family drama?" Li Yu was about to go mad. He had gone up in the morning to see who had been making all that racket. However, there had been nothing upstairs. Aside from the flowers his neighbor had planted, there was no place on the rooftop for anyone to live.

Li Yu got out of his bed.

"That's it! I can't take it anymore! It's been a month since I had a good night's sleep! I'm going to give whoever's up there a piece of my mind!"

As Li Yu stood up, a yellow dog leapt to the ground from his bed and began rubbing itself against his legs.

Good thing I have my familiar with me. Li Yu felt even safer having his familiar with him.

He'd had it for almost two years. Though he was always too busy with work to train it properly, his familiar had been able to reach Elite-tier on its own.

Such a fierce-looking dog would give even a ghost a good scare.

He had also recently given his familiar a dose of the Southern Sky Group's Earth Drug Type One, which had helped it evolve into an Earthen Golden Retriever.

"Hope the drug is as good as they say…" muttered Li Yu.

He opened the door to the stairs and stared into the darkness of the stairwell. A cold breeze blew from it, sending a shiver down Li Yu's spine.

"Woof!" The Earthen Golden Retriever let out a bark, triggering all the motion sensor lights in the stairwell.

Li Yu stared at the empty stairwell, where the stairs were now illuminated by a pale white light.

After thinking for a while, he went back to his place and brought two chopping knives out from his kitchen.

With his dog by his side and a pair of chopping knives in his hands, he now had nothing to fear!

"Let's go!" said Li Yu, his elegant face contorted into a snarl.

He hadn't been able to sleep well for a whole month. That night, he was going to put an end to all his sleeping troubles once and for all.

Seeing its master go up the stairs, the Earthen Golden Retriever quickly ran after him.

The rooftop was just beyond a huge door. Though it wasn't locked, it was quite heavy. With all his strength, Li Yu was able to push it open.

He could still hear the couple's fierce fighting from behind the door. When it opened, only an empty rooftop greeted him. Everything before Li Yu was bathed in the silver moonlight at that moment.

The noise had vanished without a trace.

"Woof?" The Earthen Golden Retriever rushed out into the empty rooftop and began prancing about playfully.

Most Earthen Golden Retrievers still retained the playfulness of the golden retrievers that they had evolved from.

Where did… it go? Li Yu cautiously observed his surroundings.

However, he failed to realize that the motion sensor lights in the stairwell had been put out, plunging the stairs back into impenetrable darkness. Suddenly, a pair of withered, blue-black arms reached out from the darkness to hug Li Yu from behind…

"Woof!" The Earthen Golden Retriever sensed that something was wrong. Its eyes widened when it looked back at Li Yu, and it quickly dashed back towards him.

"What's wrong?" Sensing the panic in his familiar, Li Yu quickly exited the stairwell and stepped out onto the rooftop.

The Earthen Golden Retriever ran around him in circles as Li Yu inspected his body. Then he shivered.

There were two blue-black palm prints on both of his arms! A sudden piercing pain gripped his arms when he touched the affected area.

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"This is Li Yu. He graduated from Yuzhou University."

Gao Peng and Jun Moyi were now sitting in a restaurant in front of a short-haired young man in a gray suit. The man looked terrible. Black bags hung beneath his eyes, as if he hadn't been able to sleep well for quite some time.

"I've been sleeping in my office these days," said Li Yu with a sigh. "Do you know what it's like, being too afraid to go back to your own home? I still remember the day I first time I heard the 'couple' above my place fighting with each other. For god's sake, I live on the top floor! Who could possibly be living on the rooftop?"

Everyone around the table looked at Li Yu sympathetically.

"Don't worry, we're all gathered here to help you solve your 'ghost' problem," said a third-year student who had been talking to Li Yu. He was also the head of the student association's communications department.

The Monster Training department's student association fell outside the jurisdiction of Yuzhou University's student council. Though anyone could train a monster, students from the Monster Training department put more time and energy into honing their own skills as Monster Trainers than students from other departments.

Ever since Xue Ming had assumed the title of honorary chairman of Yuzhou's city council, the student association had become a bit too bureaucratic.

This was one of the reasons why Gao Peng hadn't joined the student association.

"That would be great," said Li Yu with a strained smile.

Then everyone followed Li Yu back to his place.

Most of the members of the student association still saw Gao Peng as an outsider. However, it was Jun Moyi who had brought him along. They were also aware of who Gao Peng was. None of them were stupid enough to say anything unexpected to him.

Since they were probably dealing with a monster, everyone had brought their familiars with them.

Gao Peng turned to Goldie, who was waddling beside him, and softly said, "Don't go running off on your own now. At the first sight of trouble, you carry me out of there and run as fast as your legs can carry you, got it?"

Goldie frowned. "But I can't carry you, I'm just a duck."

Gao Peng stared at it, speechless.

You're the only duck I know who can snap a tree in two with a single kick!

Jun Moyi had brought a black two-headed hunting dog with him. Its eyes, tongue, and claws were all red.

"Where's your Black Anaconda?"

"It's too big to bring around the city. Yuzhou's streets are a lot narrower than Chang'an's," said Jun Moyi, shaking his head.

"I see," replied Gao Peng.

They followed Li Yu up to his apartment building, which had 13 floors in total.

They didn't see or hear anything as they walked along the empty corridors, feeling like they were on a trip through a forest.

They finally reached the top floor, and Li Yu opened the door to his place. "An An, I'm home," he shouted.

Only silence greeted him.

Gao Peng, who was standing behind Li Yu, suddenly detected an unbearable stench in the air. It smelled like rotting fish.

"Smells like something died in here," said Jun Moyi, who was standing beside Gao Peng.

"An An!" screamed Li Yu from the bedroom.

The others entered the bedroom to find out what had happened.

Apparently, Li Yu's Earthen Golden Retriever had died in the bedroom. The summer heat had accelerated the corpse's decomposition, allowing its smell to fill the entire apartment in just one day.

"It's my fault. I shouldn't have left it at home alone," said Li Yu.

"From the look of things, the monster we're dealing with is highly aggressive and quite strong by itself…" muttered the head of the communications department.

In the past, he had led members of the student association on less complicated missions. However, this was the first time he would have to deal with a familiar's death. This wasn't going to be a simple matter to handle.

"Should we let the police handle this?" someone asked.

"We're already here. Might as well see this through. The monster's level probably isn't that high. Otherwise, it wouldn't be lurking in the shadows like a coward."

"You scared?"

"I've dealt with more dangerous monsters. This is nothing!"

Everyone began arguing with each other about whether or not they should continue their monster hunt.

Gao Peng sighed.

"Let's go, Goldie," said Gao Peng, patting the duck on its head.

At first, Gao Peng had only wanted to know what kind of monster the student association was dealing with. However, he had grown tired of their bickering. If all this wasn't resolved that day, he would probably have to ask his grandfather to send someone over to do something about it.

Just then, Gao Peng stopped in his tracks.

According to Li Yu, the monster had been haunting him like a ghost. Wouldn't it try to ambush him if he went down the stairs on his own?

Gao Peng began thinking about this in silence. Then he said, "Let's just wait for everyone else."

Then everyone went up to the rooftop. However, there was nothing to be found there.

The communications department head frowned. Li Yu had told him that the monster would appear on the rooftop every day. Maybe it was hiding in a corner.

"Maybe…" started Gao Peng. "Maybe the voices that Li Yu heard didn't come from the rooftop…"

"Then where could they have come from?" someone asked.

"From the walls."

Li Yu shivered at this, then laughed weakly. "You must be joking…"

"I was just suggesting a possibility," said Gao Peng, smiling.

"I still think the monster is somewhere on the rooftop," said one of the students.

"But we've looked for it everywhere here. There's just no sign of it," another student said.

"Are you sure you've looked everywhere?" asked Gao Peng. He couldn't believe how inexperienced these people were.

"Yes, I'm sure we've looked everywhere on the rooftop."

"What if the monster's clinging to the side of the apartment building right now? What if it could turn invisible?" said Gao Peng.

"That's just preposterous."

However, the communications department head said, "I think Gao Peng might be on to something. I mean, it can't hurt to take a look there."

There was nowhere for the monster to hide on the wall of the building.

Then something happened.

Just as one of the students looked over the edge of the rooftop, a shrill cry pierced the night air. Startled, the student who had craned his head over the edge of the rooftop fell backwards and landed on his rear.

A white hand slammed onto the edge of the rooftop menacingly.

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Ah!!" A shrill scream pierced through the silent night sky.

One of the girls who was standing near the edge of the rooftop immediately backed away from the creature, her face frozen in terror.

Gao Peng checked the creature's attributes.

[Monster Name: Green Haunt

[Monster Level: Level 20

[Monster Grade: Normal

[Monster Attribute: Ghost/Ghoul

[Monster Ability: Illusion Level 1

[Monster Weakness: Light/Holy/Electric

[Monster Status: Healthy (Nervous)

[Special Characteristics: It feeds off of fear. It can convert the fear of other living beings into Yin-type attacks.

The fact that Gao Peng could check its attributes must have meant that they were dealing with a monster.

They shouldn't have had too much trouble with it if they had treated it like any other monster and not some phantom that had once haunted superstitious minds in ancient times.

Knowing its ability and weaknesses would also give them an edge against it.

Unknown to everyone, a thick fog had suddenly descended upon the rooftop.

Two tendrils of fog slowly rose out from the edge of the building and began searching them up and down.

Below the balls of fire was a long, slender body. Its bald head was filled with lumps, which a sickly yellow pus dripped from.

"What is it?" someone asked, too afraid to take another breath.

Droplets of water suddenly flooded beneath them until their feet were submerged in a layer of water.

Gao Peng tried to pull out his right leg from the water, but it immediately pulled him back down.

"What a troublesome ability…" said Gao Peng, narrowing his eyes at the Green Haunt. He couldn't help but feel an appreciation for how real its illusions had felt.

"Run!" shouted the communications department head. A monster capable of altering its surroundings must have been above Commander-tier. None of their familiars could possibly match it.

He then ordered his familiar to cover their retreat. "You guys go. I'll try to hold it back while you report this to the police. This is beyond our abilities."

Seeing that the humans still trying to put up a fight, the Green Haunt became even more enraged. It expanded its body like a balloon and let out a horrible shriek, which stirred up a wind around it.

"My god," said the communications department head under his breath. It had grown more than 20 feet tall. Its arms were now as long as spears.

"Quack!" Startled by a sudden quack nearby, he turned around and saw a duck running past him, leaving a golden trail of light in its wake.

"Come back!" The communications department head, Cao Jin, head tried to grab the duck's tail, but failed.

The yellow duck's webbed feet made slapping sounds against the concrete floor as it rushed towards the Green Haunt. It leapt 10 feet into the air, its wings flapping continuously on both sides.

It aimed its right foot at the monster's leg, ready to kick it roughly.

It was like watching David aiming a kick at Goliath's leg.

Suddenly, the duck's body gleamed with a blue light. Then, like a needle popping a balloon, the illusion vanished. The puddle of water that had appeared beneath their feet, the vicious-looking entity, and even the thick fog in the air all evaporated instantly.

The duck had managed to dispel the Green Haunt's illusions!

Cao Jin could now clearly see everything on the rooftop.

A two-foot-tall, sickly-looking creature was clinging to the edge of the rooftop, glaring evilly at everyone. It had a bulbous head and stick-like limbs protruding from its body. It let out a horrifying shriek.

Goldie kicked it in the face. That will teach you not to shout!

Bang!

The Green Haunt was kicked off the rooftop by Goldie.

"Why did you do that?!" said Gao Peng angrily. The sound of something hitting the ground reached his ears just as he craned his head over the edge of the rooftop.

Damn.

Upon seeing Goldie fixing its feathers with its beak without a care in the world, Gao Peng didn't know whether to laugh or hit its head.

He had wanted to capture the Green Haunt and bring it back home to study further. Who would have thought that Goldie would send it falling to its death?

Nothing could have survived such a fall.

"Where did the monster go?" someone asked. The others, who had been hiding inside the stairwell, warily poked their heads out from the doorway, only to find Cao Jin standing like a statue on the silent rooftop.

Jun Moyi, who had watched everything with an impassive face, patted the heads of his two-headed dog and calmly walked down the stairs.

The Green Haunt had landed on a flower bed.

When Jun Moyi reached the spot where the Green Haunt had landed, all that he could see was a puddle of green blood. Its body had disappeared.

"Woof!" The two-headed dog let out an excited bark and began following the monster's scent to the other side of the flower bed.

Gao Peng and the others soon caught up to Jun Moyi. Just then, they saw a figure carrying something in its arms up ahead. Sensing their presences, the figure immediately bolted.

"Stop!" shouted Cao Jin.

The two-headed dog's eyes grew redder as it ran after its quarry.

No bipedal could outrun a quadruped like Jun Moyi's dog. Seeing that the dog was closing in on him, the man threw the Green Haunt's body to the ground and ran into an alley.

The dog did not slow down its pursuit. It then leapt forward, each of its head sinking its fangs into the man's legs and causing him to fall over.

Gao Peng and the others finally caught up to them. "Is this monster yours? Why would you do this to me?" asked Li Yu, visibly agitated. He then give the stranger a hard kick.

"I've got nothing to do with it. It's not my monster. I just thought I could earn a bit of money by selling its corpse," said the man, shielding his head with his hands.

"Li Yu, I think we should turn him over to the police," said Cao Jin.

Soon, the police arrived at the scene and started interrogating everyone. The Green Haunt's corpse and the man who had tried to abscond with it were then brought back to the station.

Gao Peng glanced wistfully at the Green Haunt's corpse. Unable to find any use for it, he decided to let the police have it.

When all was said and done, Li Yu began thanking everyone for helping him out and promised to treat everyone to dinner one of these days.

After waving goodbye to everyone, Gao Peng got on a taxi and went back home.

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Chapter 228: Is Anyone Available Tonight?

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Besides letting out a grunt when Gao Peng told him his destination, the taxi driver didn't say a word for the entire journey.

Not at all fazed by the driver's silence, Gao Peng simply watched the scenery pass by outside the window.

The streets grew emptier as the car drove on.

"Mister, the Southern Sky Group isn't this way," said Gao Peng.

"I'm just taking a detour to avoid traffic on the highway," said the driver. The driver's voice sounded hoarse, as if he hadn't used it in a long time.

Gao Peng narrowed his eyes at him, then spotted a public bathroom nearby.

"Stop the car. I need to use the toilet."

The driver swerved the car to the right. "We'll reach the Southern Sky Group in 20 minutes. Just try to hold it."

Goldie, who had been quietly sitting beside Gao Peng, suddenly leapt up and struck the driver's head with one of its wings!

The driver was dazed for a moment. There was a throbbing pain in the back of his head. An evil look suddenly flitted across his face.

Cursing under his breath, the driver said, "Don't move too much back there, little guy. There must be something wrong with your bladder if someone as young as you can't hold it in for just a bit longer." He let out a chuckle, as if there was something funny about what he had said.

"Goldie, beat him up," Gao Peng said loud enough for the driver to hear.

The driver's face went pale as he immediately stepped on the brakes. "Let's not do anything hasty now."

Gao Peng calmly stepped out of the car and pulled Goldie out after him. "You should have stopped when I told you to. Tell me, who sent you?"

The driver shook his head. "Let's not jump to conclusions," he said, raising both his hands to show that he meant Gao Peng no harm.

At the same time, the trunk silently opened and a white-furred monkey stealthily climbed out of it.

Thanks to its padded feet, it didn't make a sound as it made its way across the asphalt.

The white-furred monkey slowly approached Gao Peng from behind, its eyes gleaming menacingly.

Then it struck him in the back of the head.

As Gao Peng fell, he saw the monkey hit Goldie's head, as well. A purple light flashed across Goldie's body. Without warning, the duck's body expanded.

The driver's look of glee turned to one of surprise. Why is it still standing? Something's not right, he thought.

Gao Peng began rubbing the back of his head. Even though he wasn't seriously injured, his head still smarted.

He saw a three-foot-tall white-furred monkey glaring at him, its dark green eyes twinkling in the darkness. When it realized that Gao Peng was looking at it, it grinned at him and aimed a kick at his crotch.

That is one evil monkey, he thought.

Gao Peng quickly shielded his crotch with his hands, and the monkey's foot landed on the back of his hand.

The sudden pain in his hand was redirected to Goldie, whose body expanded again with a flash of purple light.

Goldie had already grown six feet. Its yellow feather coat was now on the verge of bursting at the seams.

It pulled down the coat's zipper with its wings and shook off its feathers, revealing sturdy muscles beneath.

[Monster Name: Frost Corpse Monkey

[Monster Level: Level 20

[Monster Attribute: Yin/Corpse

[Monster Grade: Excellent

A Corpse-type monster, right after our encounter with the Green Haunt. This couldn't simply be a coincidence, thought Gao Peng. The driver must have come to avenge the Green Haunt's death. Let's see who else you're working with.

The driver's face contorted into a snarl as he shook a metal bar out of the sleeve of his jacket and swung it towards Gao Peng.

Gao Peng easily caught the metal bar in his left hand.

His body still retained the positive effects of his familiars' growth. Though he probably wouldn't have been able to handle the monkey on his own, he could still knock its master out with his bare hands.

Recalling the boxing form his grandfather had taught him, Gao Peng slammed his right foot down and channeled his power through every joint of his body into his right fist.

He then struck out his fist, making an explosive sound ring through in the air.

The driver was instantly sent flying across the road when Gao Peng's punch connected.

After realizing that its master had been knocked out, the Frost Corpse Monkey screeched and leapt at Gao Peng.

Goldie bent over and closed its beak over the monkey's head. Goldie had grown so big that the monkey could barely reach its chest.

"Don't eat it," said Gao Peng, wary that the monkey might have been poisonous.

Goldie hesitated for a moment, then spat out the Frost Corpse Monkey and stomped on it.

With the driver and his familiar finally taken care of, Gao Peng surveyed his surroundings.

He was now in an empty alley with only a couple houses nearby. Having heard the commotion outside, the people inside had all closed their windows and turned off the lights.

Gao Peng carried the driver's body into the trunk, then let Goldie break all of the Frost Corpse Monkey's limbs and had the duck keep a close eye on the monkey in the backseat. When everything was settled, Gao Peng stepped on the gas pedal and began driving back to the Southern Sky Group.

After a while, Gao Peng got out of the car and tried to call his grandfather. However, his grandfather didn't pick up.

He then tried to call the number his grandfather had given him. Someone picked up on the other end after two rings.

"Young master, how may I help you?" said the voice on the other end courteously.

"Is anyone available tonight?" asked Gao Peng.

There was a silence for a moment. Then the voice said, "Please wait for a moment. Where are you now, young master?"

"I'm outside the company."

"We'll be on our way." The voice then hung up the phone.

A few minutes later, Gao Peng heard the faint whirring of a helicopter in the sky. Looking up, he saw two white lights shining down on him as three helicopters slowly descended towards him.

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Chapter 229: Ghosts and Spirits

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

A couple of rope ladders rolled down from the helicopters, allowing everyone in them to descend to the ground.

A man stepped out from the crowd of people who had gathered beneath the helicopters and approached Gao Peng. "What are your orders, young master?"

All of them were wearing black battle armor and visored helmets. Though their heights were uneven, they looked sharp and cool, like unsheathed blades ready for battle.

Gao Peng looked them over.

"There's only twelve of you. Will that be enough?" The Southern Sky Group's security team was a few times bigger than this.

The man who had approached him took off his helmet, revealing the face of a thirty-year-old man with bushy brows, sunken eyes, and dark skin. Though he wasn't overly attractive, the man exuded an air of maturity.

"I think you'll find that we're more than enough to help you resolve whatever issue you might be having with the utmost discretion," said the man. He added, "Twenty years ago, it was Chairman Ji who saved my life. All of us here are indebted to him in some way. Now we help him handle his less… scrupulous affairs."

Gao Peng nodded. "After helping my friends with something, I got into a bit of trouble with someone from a shady organization. I'm just an ordinary university student. This might be a bit out of my capability…"

"I understand," said the man named Huang Ya.

Gao Peng then walked towards the taxi. "I managed to subdue him." He opened the trunk and pulled out the taxi driver.

The driver, who had been lying unconscious inside the taxi's trunk all this time, groggily woke up when his face hit the ground. He felt himself being dragged away.

Huang Ya began interrogating the driver in a corner. Ten minutes later, he walked back to Gao Peng, his face serene. "Young master, I have the information you want. He's a member of a Xiangxi-based criminal group. He was going to take you back to their meeting spot. He didn't count on you catching on to his true nature so soon. There are seven members in his group. Their strongest familiars are a mid-stage Commander-tier Night Terror Ghost and an early-stage Commander-tier Ghost Child."

Only two Commander-tier monsters? thought Gao Peng.

He had thought that he was being targeted by a huge shadowy organization with hundreds of members under its command. He hadn't expected to be nearly kidnapped by mere thugs.

Then again, large-scale criminal organizations, which usually kept a tighter leash on all their members, wouldn't have been so bold as to commit their crimes out in the open.

Gao Peng looked at Huang Ya and the others and asked, "Do all of you have your familiars with you?"

"Of course we do. You can rest easy, young master. You're only dealing with street thugs," Huang Ya said, nodding.

After receiving Gao Peng's orders, Huang Ya and the others climbed back into their helicopters. Gao Peng said, "Capture those two Commander-tier familiars alive if possible."

Huang Ya looked back down from the side of his helicopter and flashed Gao Peng the okay symbol.

Then he adjusted his earpiece and spoke into the microphone. "Our target is the Xingmao building in Yuzhou's old city area."

A woman and a bald man were lying on a bed in a small room. There was a bookshelf beside the bed and an LCD television on the wall.

The occupants of the bed were a couple from Xiangxi.

The man was called Yuan Peng, and he was beginning to feel anxious. Two hours earlier, Brother Qi had been arrested by the police. It had been an hour since Brother Si had gone out, and Yuan Peng still hadn't heard anything from him.

"Let's go," said Yuan Peng, sitting up and slapping the back of the woman beside him.

The woman was called Ah Li. Stray strands of hair had fallen across her beautiful face. The left side of her face had turned red after lying on her pillow for a bit too long. "Brother Peng, what's wrong?"

Yuan Peng rubbed his bald head restlessly. "Something's wrong. Brother Si sent me a message earlier saying that he had picked up a university student. But there hasn't been a single message from him since then. I couldn't even get through to him on the phone."

Yuan Peng put on his jacket and said to the woman, "Get dressed, we're leaving."

"Aren't you going to call Bin Zi and the others?" asked Ah Li.

"Brother Si might have bitten off more than he could chew. Let's hit the road now before the cops find us," said Yuan Peng. He had come to Yuzhou with a couple of his friends after a job back in Xiangxi. He had amassed a small fortune since arriving at Yuzhou and had already been considering ditching his friends. This was the perfect chance to do so.

Yuan Peng opened a drawer and took out a black bag that contained stacks of cash and assorted jewelry.

After putting on his running shoes, Yuan Peng pulled out a porcelain vase. A white smoke emerged from it and settled into the shape of a two-foot-tall white creature with long, delicate limbs and a pair of red eyes. It somewhat resembled the Green Haunt.

When the creature popped out of its container, it happily clung to Yuan Peng's leg and began rubbing its oversized skull against his pants.

Yuan Peng extracted a piece of bone from his pocket and gave it to the Night Terror Ghost, which nibbled on it contentedly.

Yuan Peng was able to calm himself down considerably at the sight of his familiar, then he opened the wooden door and walked out into the corridor.

Outside, Yuan Peng could see a couple of monsters lazing about in the dark courtyard, including Bin Zi's familiar.

When they reached the first floor, Ah Li beckoned at a wolf-like monster in the courtyard. The monster got to its feet and happily ran towards Ah Li with its tongue hanging out of its mouth.

Just when the two were about to exit the courtyard, a voice called out from behind them.

"Where you going, boss?" asked Wang Bin, curiously looking at Yuan Peng and his wife.

Yuan Peng froze, then he said, "I'm going out for dinner with Ah Li."

"Are you thinking of running away?" asked Wang Bin.

"Run? Where could I possibly run off to? Oh, Brother Bin, you and your imagination," said Yuan Peng, chuckling. "How about this? Why don't you come along with us?"

Bin Zi was the master of the other Commander-tier familiar in their group.

Wang Bin asked, "If you're just going out for dinner, why are you bringing luggage with you?"

An awkward silence fell over the courtyard at that moment.

Before Yuan Peng could speak, he suddenly began to feel his entire body going numb. Immediately after, he fell to the ground with a thump.

His wife Ah Li also collapsed to the ground beside him.

After realizing what had happened, the Night Terror Ghost let out an unearthly howl and stirred up a terrible wind in the courtyard.

Soon, dark shadows began circling in the air above the courtyard. The trees around them shook violently in the wind.

Suddenly, a horse neighed somewhere, breaking the silence of the night.

A burning red silhouette leapt over the fence into the courtyard. The sounds of knives clanging against one another filled the air, completely drowning out the wail of the ghostly wind.

The ghost-like creature behind Wang Bin hugged its master's leg as it warily eyed the burning red horse standing in the middle of the courtyard.

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Chapter 230: The Blurring Lines between Fact and Fiction

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Huang Ya's eyes swiveled from the Night Terror Ghost beneath the crimson horse's hooves to Wang Bin, who stood nervously in a corner.

Huang Ya held out his hand. "Welcome to the Southern Sky Group."

Wang Bin swallowed, then rubbed his right hand on his shirt and nervously shook Huang Ya's hand with it. "T-thank you."

The man standing before Wang Bin had just offered him a job. At first, he had been hesitant to accept it. Even though he had no education, as someone with a Commander-tier monster, he knew that he deserved more.

Then the man had mentioned the Southern Sky Group's Security Division.

Even though Wang Bin had only been in Yuzhou for three months, he was aware of just how powerful the Southern Sky Group was.

One half of the city belonged to the Yuzhou city government, while its other half was under the Southern Sky Group's influence.

The group had many large-scale companies branching out from it, giving it the foothold it needed in various fields and industries.

Most people would have given an arm and a leg to work at the group's headquarters.

As for Wang Bin, he had always wanted a stable job. In order to repay Yuan Peng and his wife for the kindness they had shown him in the past, Wang Bin had hoped that Huang Ya would spare their lives.

However, he began to have second thoughts about repaying them when he remembered that the couple had been ready to abandon him just now.

"Let's go, Reb Blood," said Huang Ya to the crimson horse standing in the middle of the courtyard.

The horse snorted and trotted past Huang Ya with its head held high.

The Night Terror Ghost lay on the ground with a gaping wound in its chest. A lava-like liquid slowly dribbled down from the edge of the wound.

Huang Ya took out what looked like a spray bottle and misted out a silver metallic net over the Night Terror Ghost. He then tied the other end of the net to the crimson horse's tail.

The horse neighed and swished its tail about irritably.

"We're done here," said Huang Ya. He thought about getting on the horse's back, then dismissed the idea when he realized that the horse was glaring at him warningly.

"Wait," Wang Bin suddenly shouted.

Huang Ya turned around with a smile. "Yes?"

"Will… will Brother Yuan Peng and his wife be killed?" asked Wang Bin.

"That's just one of the occupational hazards people in their line of work face every day, kid," said Huang Ya indifferently.

Wang Bin fell silent. He knew that a second chance was more than criminals like him deserved.

Two hours later, Huang Ya and the others had reported everything that had happened to Gao Peng, who had agreed to Wang Bin's recruitment.

It turned out that Yuan Peng's gang had dealt drugs and at times, sold their services as hired thugs.

Gao Peng didn't bother asking Huang Ya how he would deal with Yuan Peng and his wife.

"The Night Terror Ghost is his familiar. The Ghost Child belongs to Wang Bin," said Huang Ya.

A crimson horse stepped forth from behind Huang Ya, dragging behind the two ghost-like creatures it.

[Monster Name: Red Blood War Horse

[Monster Level: Level 32 (Commander Tier)

[Monster Status: Healthy (Haughty)

[Monster Grade: Excellent

[Monster Attribute: Fire

[Monster Ability: Sunfire Level 2

[Description: It still retains the hardiness of the war horses it has evolved from, making it resistant against evil spirits.

[Monster Name: Night Terror Ghost

[Monster Level: Level 27 (Commander Tier)

[Monster Status: Heavy Injury (Angry)

[Monster Grade: Excellent

[Monster Attribute: Ghost/Ghoul

[Monster Ability: Illusion Level 2

[Monster Name: Ji Spirit

[Monster Level: Level 23 (Commander Tier)

[Monster Status: Healthy (Scared)

[Monster Grade: Normal

[Monster Attribute: Ghost/Ghoul

[Monster Ability: Illusion Level 1

[Description: One of the 24 mythical spirits of old, a Ghost Child is usually childish and timid in nature. It is also sometimes called the Wailing Night Spirit.

Gao Peng was stunned as he read the Ji Spirit's description.

This was the second time he had been brought face to face with a monster with an actual legend behind it, the first being the Aquatic Dragon.

The ghost-type monsters of that day had evolved from various kinds of mountain and tree spirits. However, the legend behind the 24 spirits wasn't as terrifying as the other legends Gao Peng had heard.

According to the legends, the 24 spirits were low-level phantoms that had lurked on the periphery of man's consciousness in ancient times.

There was one spirit, however, that stood out from the rest: the Pa Spirit, which was also known as the Flying Zombie. Once feared as the god of drought, it was believed to be capable of slaying a dragon and swallowing the entire sky.

"Young master, are you interested in the Ghost Child?" asked Huang Ya, realizing that Gao Peng was looking at the timid ghost creature intently.

It seemed that Huang Ya and the others didn't even know the monster's real name. This wasn't the first time people had called a monster by a name different from the one recorded in his database.

The Ji Spirit took a few steps back and eyed Gao Peng warily as he approached it.

It really is timid, thought Gao Peng.

Seeing a Commander-tier monster like it shrinking away from him made him think of a lion backing away from a rabbit in fear.

Gao Peng picked up a stone and threw it at the Ji Spirit. It jumped up in fright and quickly hid itself behind the Night Terror Ghost.

A while later, it poked its head out from behind the Night Terror Ghost and looked at Gao Peng nervously.

"Tell Wang Bin that I would like to study the Ji Spirit for a while," said Gao Peng.

Huang Ya nodded. "No problem. Take as long as you like."

Gao Peng chuckled. Glancing at the Hot-Blooded War Horse, he said, "You can also bring your familiar to my lab whenever you're free."

When all was said and done, he ordered Goldie to bring the Ji Spirit back to the manor.

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Chapter 231: Red Blood War Horse

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

It had been two days since those tumultuous events.

Cao Jin, a junior in the student association, acquired Gao Peng's mobile phone number through his connections. He called Gao Peng and told him what had happened that day. The person who had been brought to the police station had already given up his accomplices, but when the police had arrived at the building the accomplices were staying in, they had already gone.

Cao Jin specifically reminded Gao Peng that the accomplices might have received news in advanced and escaped! He urged Gao Peng to be especially careful and said that if Gao Peng noticed anything felt off at any time, he could call Cao Jin immediately.

Gao Peng remained silent for a while, and then tactfully said to Cao Jin, "Those people have caused quite a commotion. It's unthinkable that they would stay in Yuzhou City. They might have moved to another base city."

Cao Jin didn't really believe him. In the end, he reminded Gao Peng to be careful again.

The Night Terror Ghost that had been caught wasn't used to being the subject of experiments.

It could feel that its master had died. This filled the Night Terror Ghost with hatred towards Gao Peng. Whenever Gao Peng moved his hands towards it, it would use its illusion ability to scare Gao Peng.

Unfortunately, every time the illusion ability was used, it was canceled out by Goldie, who stood next to Gao Peng.

Goldie, with its ability to cancel out others' abilities, was a natural counter to these illusions.

It was like using an illusion charm on a statue or winking to a blind man.

Gao Peng didn't mind it. As a matter of fact, he seemed to be enjoying it.

It was because he hadn't seen many illusion abilities before. It was hard to come by a specimen that he could observe. Whether or not it could actually be successfully used as an attack wasn't important.

He just wanted to test the power and the limit of the illusion ability anyways.

They were separated by a glass wall. The Night Terror Ghost inside the glass kept slamming against it in anger.

It used its illusion ability to turn Gao Peng's surroundings into hell. The earth cracked beneath Gao Peng's feet and magma spurted out, while evil demons that were on fire climbed out of the cracks and hungrily looked at Gao Peng.

Gao Peng turned around and saw smaller ghosts at heights that came up to his waist. Gao Peng calmly wrote down on his notebook, "Looks very realistic."

He used his legs to step on the illusion, and his legs went through it. He felt a slight resistance. He also felt some heat.

Gao Peng lowered his head and wrote in his notebook, "It can affect the other senses, like sense of touch and temperature."

When it saw that Gao Peng didn't feel any fear, the Night Terror Ghost changed the illusion, and the environment suddenly changed. The magma beneath his feet and the monsters in front of him all disappeared. The ground beneath him turned into a field of white snow. The walls were covered in ice, forming a pattern. A whistling wind came from the dark corridor.

There was a faint snoring sound coming from the depths of the corridor, as if a wild beast was about to come out from the other end of the corridor.

"Although this isn't the first time I've witnessed an illusion at work, it's still…" Gao Peng was amazed at the illusion's level of realism.

Gao Peng suddenly had an idea. If he used monsters with such abilities to open a haunted house or a 4D experience center, he would definitely make a lot of money. It would cost him nothing, so the revenue would be equal to the net profit.

Too bad this Night Terror Ghost won't listen to my orders. It must really hate me. Gao Peng smiled. He really was a mischievous kid.

Gao Peng tried to appease the Night Terror Ghost behind the glass window. "Okay, that's enough. We've finished testing. Go and rest for a while, otherwise you won't get a midnight snack." He pulled down the shades and turned away.

The only sound that could be heard in the room was the angry screams from the Night Terror Ghost. Its illusions were going crazy. Mountains were cracking and there were volcanic eruptions in the corridor… Of course, they were all just illusions.

Xu Qingzhi, standing outside the door, knocked on it and said, "Great Master Gao, Huang Ya is here to see you. He says that he made an appointment."

"He has an appointment, yes. Bring him in," Gao Peng replied, not even lifting his head up to look away from the drug he was mixing.

Xu Qingzhi rolled her eyes and left. Great Master Gao. This title made it sound like he was some sort of dealer.

"Ummm…" said Huang Ya as he walked in, feeling somewhat embarrassed. He had asked around and found out very easily that most of the popular drugs that were sold by the Southern Sky Group came from Gao Peng's laboratory.

He had looked into it even more and found out that there was only one person who worked in this laboratory. That person was Gao Peng…

After the initial shock and a short time to readjust his mental state, Huang Ya was finally able to understand how awesome Gao Peng was.

It turns out that this fellow is truly talented.

"No wonder Master Gao is so skilled. While others are playing, you're conducting your experiments. This is the reason why you're so skilled!"

Gao Peng looked at Huang Ya and smiled. "When I first saw you, I thought you were a very serious person."

Huang Ya laughed brightly. "I'm serious when the situation calls for it. It's still better to be casual most of the time."

Huang Ya looked at Gao Peng while he was speaking. He only relaxed when he saw that Gao Peng's expression hadn't changed for the worse.

"Did you bring your familiars?"

"Yes."

"Good. Follow me. I've already prepared the required materials." As he was speaking, Gao Peng opened a door in the laboratory that led to another corridor. He did this so he could bring in the Red Blood War Horse.

The Red Blood War Horse arrogantly looked at its surroundings.

Huang Ya repeatedly told the familiar through their Blood Contract, "My love, he can help you evolve. You don't need to be so haughty."

The Red Blood War Horse laughed arrogantly, looked up to the sky, and said, "Why do I need to risk my life?"

Huang Ya felt helpless. If he had known, he wouldn't have shown it Lu Bu's Biography. It had become too emotional and thought of itself as some sort of pureblood red hare."

"Do you want to eat this?" Gao Peng took out a bottle of drugs from the laboratory and regarded the proud horse with a fake smile.

The Red Blood War Horse laughed arrogantly. "I won't fall for…"

Gao Peng opened the bottle of drugs and an extremely alluring scent started to spread around the laboratory.

Other familiars would only find the scent to be pleasant. However, for the Blood Red War Horse, the scent made the blood in its veins pump harder and increased its heartbeat.

The Blood Red War Horse was tempted, but its pride didn't allow it to do something so lowly.

Its eyes were starting to spin, the Blood Red War Horse starting to neigh at Huang Ya. It brushed its head against Huang Ya's shoulder.

"Huang Ya, if you can help me get that drug, I'll let you ride me once!" the Red Blood War Horse said to Huang Ya.

It knew that Huang Ya had always wanted to ride it, but it had never allowed him to do so. However, for this drug, it was willing to lower its standards a bit.

Huang Ya was moved. If it had been another familiar, he wouldn't have cared. However, the Red Blood War Horse was an equine type familiar, and it was also very handsome and cool looking. What man wouldn't want to ride such a cool and handsome looking horse?

However, he had finally found the Red Blood War Horse's weakness, so Huang Ya wouldn't agree so easily. He steadied himself and said, "No deal. I get to ride you at least ten times! And a minimum of three hours each time!"

"Don't push it!" The Blood Red War Horse looked at Huang Ya angrily.

"You don't want it?" Gao Peng smiled fakely. He let the bottle slip out of his hands. The bottle smashed on the ground and made a loud noise.

"NO!" the Red Blood War Horse's eyes almost popped out. It was like its heart was bleeding.

Gao Peng stepped on the spilled drug, then slowly took another bottle of the exact same drug out from his coat.

"I still have this drug. As long as you want it, I can make you endless amounts of this drug," Gao Peng said softly. "And I can make even better drugs than this."

The Blood Red War Horse gulped. This human, this human is really evil…"

Gao Peng then handed the bottle to Huang Ya. "The drug is now in your master's hands. How he chooses to use it is up to him. I have no control."

After he finished speaking, he waved his hands to thank his guest.

Huang Ya cast a thankful glance at Gao Peng, then took the Red Blood War Horse and left.

As for what kind of deal Huang Ya and the Red Blood War Horse made, it was none of Gao Peng's concern. However, from what he had seen that day, he was able to determine Huang Ya was an intelligent person.

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Chapter 232: Aquatic Dragon, Evolution

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

"Grandpa, you're here." Gao Peng, who was training his familiars at the lakeside, saw his grandfather walked over and greeted him.

"Training your familiars again?" Ji Hanwu looked over to the familiars Gao Peng was with.

Da Zi and Stripey were having a dazzling battle. Both of them were Epic grade familiars, and both of them were around level 30. One had a flying attack ability, and the other had its spider webs to control the battlefield. The spider webs were enough to mitigate the fact that Stripey couldn't fly. Sometimes, the battle grew so intense that it was difficult to tell who was who.

However, the fight on the other side was even more intense.

"Haaa," Goldie raised its foot and jumped, its 30-foot-tall body going into the air with its flat beak pointing downwards and the tops of its wings clenched into fists. Then it punched forward. The muscles at the tops of its wings were pushed together and almost formed a spherical shape.

Bang!

Dumby was sent flying by Goldie's punch, but landed steady on the ground. It used the black bones in the sole of its foot to hook on the ground, digging deep into the dirt.

"Not bad…" Dumby said slowly. He straightened his right hand, reached for his back, and held onto his black tailbone. He suddenly pulled forward and the four-foot-long tailbone instantly broke away from his vertebrae. Each part of the bone started to straighten. It became a sword in Dumby's hands.

Red veins emerged from the crack of Dumby's fingers. The red veins slowly entangled around the bone sword, making the bone sword more durable and much easier to control.

Dumby had only been in the slaughterhouse for three weeks, yet his level had grown rapidly from 33 to 39. He was only 2 levels away from being promoted to the Lord-tier.

The speed in which Dumby was gaining levels was beyond Gao Peng's expectation. However, it had slowed down ever since Dumby had reached level 36. Dumby had been stuck at level 39 for three days.

Goldie had also been leveling up very quickly. The speed at which it leveled up was fast simply because it was Gao Peng's lowest level familiar. It had reached the Commander-tier two weeks before, and it was currently at level 24. After Goldie was promoted to the Commander-tier, its grade was downgraded from Legendary grade to Epic grade. Since it had reached the Legendary grade before, it wouldn't be difficult for it to reach it again.

Gao Peng had to use a lot of precious materials to restore Goldie back to Legendary grade.

When a Legendary monster and an Epic monster fought, and their levels were both similar, the Legendary grade monster would dominate the battle.

This was why Dumby was the best sparring partner for Goldie.

Dumby first summoned hundred of undead monsters to surround and attack Goldie. Goldie's body expanded to the preposterous height of 35 feet due to the attacks from the undead monsters surrounding and attacking it.

Then Dumby stopped casting its Flame of the Undead ability. Just because it could summon the undead to fight for it, it didn't mean it couldn't fight using its own strength.

Another effect of the Flame of the Undead was that it discreetly strengthened Dumby's bones. Coupled with the Blood-Thread Heart's explosive power, Dumby was extremely terrifying to fight against at close range. If someone mistakenly assumed Dumby was a frail necromancer and wanted to beat it by bypassing its minions and attacking him directly, they would be met with a world of pain.

"Kill!" Dumby pointed its sword forward and rushed out. It opened his body wide, making itself look like a mountain rushing forward.

Its sword fighting skills had been taught by a hired sword master.

Dumby's bones were harder than the best metal wheels on the market, so he didn't need any armor. However, some of the ancient human sword fighting techniques were of use to Dumby. His body proportion was similar to that of a human being. Some of the sword fighting techniques that were suitable for humans were also suitable for Dumby.

It didn't matter that Goldie was able to expand hundreds of times in size. In the end, Dumby was still the victor of this battle.

Dumby could've ended the battle right as it began. However, he was helping train Goldie, which was why the battle lasted for as long as it did.

After all, the difference in their levels was extremely large. Even though Goldie had risen in level, it was still currently at level 24. Besides, most of Dumby's attacks were purely physical. Goldie's elemental resistance ability was of no use.

"Not bad," Grandpa praised. "You're now strong enough to protect yourself."

Gao Peng was happy that he could hear his grandpa's praise.

"There's one more week before the World Youth Trainer Championship," Grandpa said to Gao Peng. "For you to be a referee at your current level is a bit iffy. If you want to convince the public and silence all criticism, you need to have a Lord-tier familiar before entering the competition!"

Gao Peng went silent. This issue gave him a headache. Going by the current speed of Dumby's growth, he should have been able to reach level 40 by the time he entered the competition. However, getting to the Lord-tier required even more time.

Gao Peng didn't doubt his ability to get his familiars up to the Lord-tier, but he needed more time.

"The White Dragon is preparing for its breakthrough tonight," Grandpa suddenly said.

"Oh." Gao Peng was somewhat shocked. However, after thinking for a while, Gao Peng remembered the first time he had seen the White Aquatic Dragon, when it had already been at level 50. Now that a few months had passed, it would have been strange if it had stayed at Lord-tier. "Okay. I'll help guard for you tonight," Gao Peng said seriously.

Ji Hanwu laughed heartily. He only patted Gao Peng on his shoulders and didn't say anything else.

If the White Aquatic Dragon evolved, it would be promoted to the Legendary Emperor-tier monster. This was the highest monster tier that humans had made contact with.

Uncle Liu's two Lord-tier familiars rushed over, perhaps because the White Aquatic Dragon was about to have its breakthrough.

The night was approaching, the sky getting darker and darker. The dark clouds in the sky gradually covered the moon, blocking the moonlight and lowering the visibility. A crescent moon rose from the horizon, its light shining on the lake. The night was incredibly quiet.

Small ripples started to appear on surface of the lake, and they were coming from the center. The speed started to become faster and faster. In the end, they turned into violent waves on the lake's surface.

Swish!

A column of water rushed towards the sky, rising hundreds of feet high, then falling and splashing in all directions like a fountain.

However, the falling water droplets that flew into the sky didn't fall back into the lake. Instead, they evaporated into the air.

Gao Peng stood on the second floor of the villa. He could feel the air growing more moist and see the visibility decreasing.

Half an hour had passed, and the White Dragon had engulfed nearly the whole Southern Sky Group. The company's workers had all stopped working. They gathered together and discussed what was happening.

Some of the upper management stood by the building's windows and stared in the direction of the villa with serious expressions on their faces.

People who had a more sensitive sense of smell were already able to smell a change in the air.

In the meantime, a huge figure emerged from the lake. It was wandering about in the thick fog, swallowing the clouds and spitting out smoke while moving around like it was wind.

However, when Gao Peng saw the White Dragon's attributes, he felt shock instantly. Suspicion started to fill his heart.

This… White Dragon is already at level 51.

Does this mean it was already successfully promoted? Or did it just reach its breakthrough just now?

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Chapter 233: Putting on a Show

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The Aquatic Dragon wandered around in the fog, its body looking blurry. Only its scales and claws could occasionally be seen.

A person in the military district of Yuzhou City picked up a call. He didn't dare act slowly. "Emergency message. Ji Hanwu's Aquatic Dragon is breaking through to a higher tier."

"The Aquatic Dragon is having a breakthrough? It should be around the highest level of the Lord-tier. If it breaks through, it'll reach the Emperor-tier…"

There was a period of silence. Some people were in deep contemplation. Others were starting to wonder about the consequences of this development.

Although the relationship between the Southern Sky Group and the Yuzhou government seemed good on the surface, they even cooperated with the military. At the end of the day, Ji Hanwu wasn't a figure in the military or the government.

Ji Hanwu was the Southern Sky Group's chairman.

Ji Hanwu was also the reason why the Southern Sky Group was able to be so influential and act as independently as it did. The protection the Aquatic Dragon offered to the city was the reason the delicate situation there could be maintained.

And according to rumors, half of the city's population's first name was Ji!

The influence Ji Hanwu and the Southern Sky Group had over Yuzhou City was obvious.

One of the senior officers frowned. He thought for a while and said, "Ji Hanwu is from Yuzhou, and he's one of us."

"Ji Hanwu is actually all right. At least he doesn't throw his weight around. Besides, he's quite respectful of the military," a younger senior officer said.

Besides him, another slightly older senior officer laughed. "That's only because you don't what kind of person Ji Hanwu is. It isn't that he doesn't respect the military, but because he's smart. If you knew what he did in the past, you would know he isn't a benevolent person."

The discussion went on for a while longer, but they couldn't reach a consensus. In the end, everyone turned their attention to three people. The three of them were the real authority of the military in Yuzhou. They were also the people who had the final say when making decisions.

The three of them were sitting in a row. The person on the left was an old man with white hair and a mustache above his upper lip. His eyes were close together. He looked very calm, though everybody was looking at him. The old man said slowly, "There are pros and cons if we choose to deal with Ji Hanwu. We still have the ability to suppress him right now. Although Lord-tier monsters are strong, it's still possible to defeat them. However, once it goes up to the Emperor-tier, the situation will be much harder to manage.

"I'm familiar with Ji Hanwu. We've crossed paths quite a few times before. If we really want to take action against him, we need to employ a blitzkrieg tactic to quickly end the fight. Otherwise, we will have to face his wrath."

The people in the room were puzzled. The old man had said so much, but none of them were clear about whether he wanted to take action or not.

"Now is the best time to strike. If we miss this opportunity, who knows how long we'll have to wait again."

"What the hell are you guys thinking? We haven't even finished dealing with the monsters outside, and now you want to start a fight among ourselves?" said a man on the far right of the room. He was about 30 years old. His eyes had the look of an eagle's, and his skin was a dark red color. When he finished speaking, he got up and angrily left the room.

The room went silent. Someone said softly, "Long Xing left."

"Really… this fellow always has an attitude problem. Just because he has a strong familiar…"

A middle-aged general who sat in the middle said, "That's enough. A decision has been made. Everyone is to follow orders and not interfere. Anyone who does so will be court-martialed." He got up and left the room after he finished speaking.

The middle-aged general left the room with a tired expression on his face. Someone behind him ran after him and called out, "Sir!"

"What is it?" The middle-aged general's tone didn't sound pleasant.

"Sir. I have an opinion. I agree that we're not in a position to act, but can we find someone to take action for us? We can leak the information of Ji Hanwu's familiar. There are definitely people out there who don't want Ji Hanwu's familiar to break through," he said while smiling carefully.

Wang Hongming looked at the man with a blank expression, then patted him on the shoulder and asked, "What's your name?"

"Sir, my name is Li Liang." The man quickly gave a salute.

Wang Hongming laughed and gave Li Liang a profound look without saying anything. "That's enough. Go back. Stop thinking about leaking the information. There's no one in Yuzhou City who would dare touch Ji Hanwu."

Gao Peng couldn't see what was happening outside because of the fog. He could only hear the White Dragon's moans. It sounded quite terrifying, and when he saw the dragon, it looked like it was in pain.

The Southern Sky Group's headquarters was flanked by a mountain at its back. The villa was located in the suburbs. Yuzhou City had been built entirely on top of mountains, so the entire city was surrounded by endless mountains.

A dark figure emerged from the sky, a Multi-colored Giant Tiger. It was three feet tall and five feet long. It stood on the foothills and looked down on the White Dragon below.

Five feet didn't sound very long, but when seen up close, it was longer than some cars.

When the Multi-colored Giant Tiger looked down on the White Dragon who was in the process of evolving, its eyes were full of greed. However, it was a bit hesitant. As it had a naturally cunning personality, it was very suspicious of what it was seeing.

The Multi-colored Giant Tiger was a Lord-tier monster that lived in the wild. However, its interaction with certain people had allowed it to hear news of a White Dragon breaking through. When it heard the news, it had eagerly rushed over.

Monsters with dragon blood were a great dietary supplement for it! But it was suspicious of whether or not this was a trap.

The Multi-colored Giant Tiger thought humans were deceitful. After it had been captured and placed inside a zoo for three years, it had learned that humans weren't to be trusted!

Inside the fog, the White Dragon had become aware of the presence of the Multi-colored Tiger. It gulped secretly. It suddenly had to put in even more effort.

It kept tossing, turning, and moaning inside the fog.

Groan…

Groaaan…

Roarrrr…

Gao Peng felt like something was off. This sound. Why does this sound like… it sounds like a husky?!

It can't be! I must be mistaken!

This made Gao Peng feel confused. In his mind, the White Dragon was a proud and mighty dragon. That notion was being challenged by what he was hearing.

On the mountain peak, the Multi-colored Giant Tiger perked its ears and listened carefully. Its eyeballs stared at the White Dragon below as its body suddenly arched and made an action that showed it was prepared to pounce.

The White Dragon below didn't notice. It just continued to roll around in the fog, making moaning sounds, and occasionally making banging sounds by smashing against the mountain walls.

The Multi-colored Giant Tiger suddenly halted in its pouncing stance and returned to its position on the mountain looking beneath. Its eyes showed a crafty look.

It stuck out its tongue and licked its lips. The Multi-colored Giant Tiger kept staring at the bottom.

Emm? Why did the sound disappear?

The Multi-colored Tiger felt uncertain. It wanted to go and see what was happening.

When it looked down, a pair of orange eyes the size of water tanks were staring at it.

The White Aquatic Dragon clung tightly to the mountainside and stared at the tiger quietly.

It was an awkward situation.

The Multi-colored Giant tiger was full of questions, Weren't you in the process of evolving just now? How did you finish evolving so quickly?

The White Dragon smiled fakely. Do you know how tiring it was to keep roaring?"

"Aaahhh!" The sounds of a screaming tiger filled the air.

Three of the White Dragon's claws were deeply embedded into the skull of the Multi-colored Giant Tiger.

In the air, a White Dragon held the Multi-tiger Giant Tiger in its claws, then forcefully ripped it in two!

The spilled blood stained the Aquatic Dragon's claws, causing them to turn red and white.

It was extremely eye-catching!

Chapter 234: Kangaroo

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

The Lord-tier Multi-colored Giant Tiger's blood spilled all over the mountaintop. Those who'd had motives to work against Ji Hanwu or had an axe to grind with him were left in shock.

Some of the smarter people guessed that Ji Hanwu could have been using his White Dragon to trap his enemies.

It didn't matter what they thought was correct; those with ulterior motives had already decided to stop whatever that they had planned.

Inside the villa, Ji Hanwu hung up the phone.

A substantial amount of spies had been found in the Southern Sky Group. The company had purged them once in the past, but some had still remained. Ji Hanwu used this opportunity to do another cleanup.

Sure enough, whenever Ji Hanwu showed even a hint of weakness, all those in hiding revealed themselves.

Technology department, the Southern Sky Group's Headquarters

Although it was called the technology department, it had laid dormant for a long period of time. It had many restrictions placed on it, because all of the Southern Sky Group's huge research laboratories were controlled directly by Ji Hanwu. The technology department only had control of its own experiment laboratories.

But even so, it was still under the control of the higher-ups of the company.

The main doors swung open, and a group of people walked in. At the front was a man who was six feet and three inches tall. He had a blank expression on his face, his body as muscular as a bull. He was wearing a black security uniform.

The staff member who was standing closest to the main door was filling out documents. When he saw the group of men coming in, he dropped the documents in his hands out of shock.

It was Xu Heti, the head of the security department!

Xu Heti walked in the direction of the department head's office right away. He didn't walk into the office, but rather, allowed his familiars to walk in first.

His familiar was a nine foot tall kangaroo that was as strong as an iron tower.

The muscles on its body were well-developed and as strong as granite. There were black marks on both sides of its nostrils. Its bunny like ears was big and long. Even its ears were muscular.

The thick tail behind it wrapped around its waist, the surface of its fur was golden yellow, and the soles of its feet were thick and slender. The kangaroo had a scar under the corner of its left eye.

Its most exaggerated feature was its fists. Although a normal kangaroo was muscular, their upper limbs were relatively slender. This kangaroo's upper arm muscles were extremely huge. Its majestic muscles almost seemed like they were dancing when they moved.

It placed one of its feet on the department head's door and knocked it down with one kick!

A black shadow emerged in the office. The kangaroo's ears swayed, its eyes suddenly lighting up as it lowered its head quickly. A black tail tried to scurry out of the room, but unfortunately, it was seen by the kangaroo when it looked down.

The kangaroo lifted up its right hand and caught the tail perfectly. It gripped it ruthlessly and threw it!

Bang!!!

The sound of the impact could be heard throughout the entire floor.

The kangaroo rushed forward, made a fist with its left hand, and punched out. A scorpion type monster was hit in the head with a rapid punch, and it instantly died.

Xu Heti walked into the office and found it was empty. The only thing in the room was the monster that had just been killed. Zhao Guanyi, the person who this office belonged to, had long fled.

The office was a bit messy, which showed that the person had left in a hurry. There were even some documents scattered on the floor. The drawers had also been left open. Xu Heti wasn't surprised. He smiled while looking at the body of the scorpion.

"Take the body to the slaughterhouse and let it decompose. It hasn't been long since Zhao Guanyi left.

"Aureate, go and find our cute department head, Zhao," Xu Heti said to the kangaroo.

The kangaroo nodded lightly. Its small face wore a very serious looking expression.

It squinted its eyes, twitched its dark nostrils, and started to analyze the various gases in the room.

The kangaroo lifted up its head. It squinted its big black eyes and hugged its chest with its arms. The tail that was wrapped around its waist had loosened and was on the ground, gently brushing against the floor, making a scratching sound.

Zhi, zhi, zhi. The kangaroo opened its eyes and looked out the window. It tensed all of its muscles, causing its blood vessels and blue veins to puff up.

Boom!

A cloud of dust appeared, and a sharp scream was heard throughout the office.

Large tables and chairs in the office were sent flying. Several female clerkes screamed in horror. A big hole appeared in the window, and within moments, the kangaroo jumped out of the hole.

Before the Cataclysm, kangaroos had been the animals that could jump the farthest and highest in the entire animal kingdom.

Bang!

The sound of the landing could be heard far and wide.

After it landed, it jumped again, jumping hundreds of feet away. It had completely disappeared from where it had started.

It only left a mess at the office.

Xu Heti ordered some of his subordinates from the security department to take people who worked closely with Zhao Guangyi away.

The documents I have on me possess a lot of information about the Southern Sky Group's internal matters. The Sky River Group has promised to give me at least the deputy director position if I can bring it to them.

Zhao Guangyi felt very eager. The Southern Sky Group and the Sky River Group had never gotten along. The two were big competitors with each other in the market.

This had been true even before the Cataclysm.

It was a pity that the Lord-tier monster I was in contact with was killed. Who knew that old fart Ji Hanwu still had a trick up his sleeve. His Aquatic Dragon had probably evolved a long time ago. Damn it!

That tiger is also quite cunning. It wasn't willing to sign the Blood Contract with me, but it was happy to take the gifts I gave it. It kept taking the benefits without giving anything back!

Also, I'm the head of the technology department, but even I'm unable to access information on the Southern Sky Group's technology. That Ji Hanwu doesn't trust anyone. He has to have a hand in everything! What a detestable fellow!

Full of grievances, Zhao Guangyi got in the car he had arranged beforehand. "Fortunately, I had foresight. Hehe, I hope the familiar I left at my office can kill a few people."

Just as the engine turned on, Zhao Guanyi's expression changed. He could feel the familiar he left at the office die.

Damn it! How could they have reacted so quickly?!

Zhao Guangyi quickly started the engine, slammed on the gas pedal, and drove onto the road.

A monster in the back seat smelled Zhao Guangyi's presence. Its head peaked over, and it used its tongue to lick Zhao Guangyi's arms.

Zhao Guangyi looked over. When he saw what it was, he felt relieved. It was his familiar, an Adamantine Sand Lizard. It wasn't at a very high level, but at least it was a mid-level Commander-tier monster, strong enough to defend itself in most cases.

In normal circumstances, the benefits he received from his position would allow his familiar to be at a much higher level that it was currently. However, because he wanted to gain the favor of the Multi-colored Giant Tiger, he had given most of the items he had earned to the tiger. He hoped he would one day win the tiger's favor, then be able to make it a Lord-tier monster straight away.

However, all his efforts had turned to nothing. That Lord-tier Multi-colored Giant Tiger had become a snack for the White Dragon.

Zhao Guanyi's already terrible mood became even worse. If I'd have known that tiger would be so useless, I would've put all my effort into training my Adamantine Sand Lizard.

Zhao Guanyi looked out of the window and saw a black figure falling from the sky. Within moments, that black figure landed on the road, stood up, and blocked his path.

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Chapter 235: Is a Monster Cooler if it has a Longer Name?

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Zhao Guangyi was shocked. Not only did he not step on the brakes, but he also pressed all the way down on the gas pedal. The violent impact caused Zhao Guangyi to be thrown forward. His chest was stopped by the seat belt, while the airbag popped up to protect him.

A car that was going at 60 miles an hour was stopped dead in its tracks.

In front of the car, a very strong kangaroo leaned forward. Its tail was lifted high, forming a stable triangle with its legs. Its thick arms reached forward, and the car's hood was completely twisted and broken, like paper that had been shredded.

The kangaroo's arms were deeply embedded in the car's hood. The engine was torn apart, and the car's engine was completely destroyed. A large amount of white mist emerged from the hole in the broken hood.

Hisss… A wave of strong heat came from the broken car hood.

The kangaroo's muscular golden arm slowly emerged from the hood.

Bang!

It slammed its fists together.

The Golden Sand Lizard opened its eyes and hissed. It had sat in the back because of its large size.

The kangaroo used just a tiny bit of strength in its capable front paws and tore off the car door. It was like tearing a tissue. Just like that, there was a big hole in the car.

When its master was in danger, Zhao Guangyi's familiar defended him, no matter the reason.

Sensing that this kangaroo was not to be messed with, the Golden Sand Lizard opened its mouth, puffed up its lower jaw, and made a threatening sound. If the kangaroo just went away, it wouldn't choose to engage in a fight to the death battle with it.

The kangaroo saw a familiar coming out from the car's trunk, so it cracked its neck and sneered. It raised out its right hand, stretched out all five of its fingers, and rolled back four of them, leaving only the middle finger up. It used its middle finger to gesture for the Golden Sand Lizard to come forward.

The Golden Sand Lizard was unable to comprehend what such a gesture meant.

The lizard was no small familiar, at 13 feet long. Its rough looking tail was laid on the road, destroying the surface of the cement. Its skin had granules that looked like carborundum, and the granules were extremely rough and hard. It was the perfect accompaniment to the Golden Sand Lizard's brute force. If these granules landed on its enemies, it would tear their skin apart.

The kangaroo was slightly disappointed when it realized that this stupid little lizard couldn't comprehend it's cool posture. It shook its head. Since you're so stupid, I might as well just kill you.

The kangaroo slammed its right leg on the ground and swung its tail. The strong force the kangaroo exerted and the inertia from that force made it so that only a blur if the kangaroo could be seen in the air.

Even with its powerful vision, the lizard still had trouble keeping up.

Bam!

The kangaroo threw a hook kick that landed on the Golden Sand Lizard's lower jaw. The kick threw it 30 feet backward. It spun around in the air several times before landing on the ground.

"Weak, too weak." The kangaroo shook its head regretfully. This wasn't the first monster it would kill.

This is not… not the slightest bit challenging!

Boom!

It made a white mist appear where it stood. The kangaroo couldn't be seen through it. It would only appear when it attacked, to throw punches and kicks, and they all landed on the Golden Sand Lizard's body. All the attacks came as fast as lightning and exploded on impact like nuclear blasts!

What use is having high defenses when they're so slow? It's simply an easy target!

An afterimage of the kangaroo appeared in midair. Its two big nostrils shot out a strong gust of air as its right fist threw out a flurry of punches that were as fast as light.

By the time one finally catches light, it will have already landed on that person's body.

Boom!

The Golden Sand Lizard's body was suspended in midair. Suddenly, there were explosions all over its body.

The numerous punches that had come before had already greatly reduced its body's defenses. The last punch was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Amidst the sea of blood, the kangaroo pulled back its fists, its tail winding back around its waist. It would lift its tail up high to help it stay balanced, but that didn't mean that it wouldn't be able to walk if it didn't have the tail to assist it.

Its strong legs were constantly moving. This was also one of the ways the kangaroo trained its agility. It went back to the car, seeing that the driver's seat of the beat-up car was empty. It seemed that Zhao Guangyi had secretly escaped during the battle.

The kangaroo gave a cold smile, then gave the driver's seat a few sniffs. It then walked over to the sidewalk next to the road.

It walked for about 30 feet and then stopped in front of a bush. It bent down and grabbed at the bush. When it pulled its hands out, Zhao Guangyi was in its hands.

It jumped and flew hundreds of feet into the air. It only had to take a few jumps before it arrived back at the Southern Sky Group's building.

"Dad," shouted Xu Qingzhi at the burly man who was over six feet tall. She was standing behind Gao Peng.

Gao Peng looked over to Xu Heti, who was the head of the security department at the Southern Sky Group. Gao Peng had heard this name before, but he had never seen him in person.

Behind Xu Heti was an insanely muscular kangaroo. It was close to ten feet tall. Before the Cataclysm, most kangaroos had only been a little over five feet tall.

This kangaroo's fur was golden, and its hair was soft and shiny. It didn't look that different from other kangaroos except for its size.

[Monster Name: Golden Dazzling Light Boxing Champion Kangaroo

[Monster Level: Level 40

[Monster Grade: Perfect

[Monster Skills: Extraordinary Sixth Sense Level 2

[Monster Attribute: Light

[Monster State: Healthy (Active)

[Monster Introduction: A kangaroo who loves kickboxing and muscle training. It has become very strong because of its long-term training and a diet high in nutrition. It gained its extraordinary sixth sense ability through a mixture of natural born talent and hard training.

The Golden Dazzling Light Boxing Champion Kangaroo held a man wearing a green and white suit, who it tossed onto the floor. The kangaroo curiously looked at its surroundings. Its nose kept sniffing as if everything around it was very thrilling.

It saw Gao Peng looking at it. The Golden Dazzling Light Boxing Champion Kangaroo turned around to look at Gao Peng, its black eyes full of curiosity.

The kangaroo's muscles looked very exaggerated, but its head was relatively small. Its eyeballs were black and round, and there was a huge contrast between the muscles on its body and its head. It was unsettling, like if Arnold Schwarzenegger had a baby face…

After exchanging a glance with Gao Peng, it smiled and revealed its front teeth.

What is Extraordinary Sixth Sense? This was the first time Gao Peng had seen this ability.

Gao Peng only knew what it was after he read the introduction to this ability. Monsters with this ability had a greatly enhanced sixth sense. The creature's visual sense, sense of smell, sense of touch, sense of taste, and sense of danger were all greatly improved.

For most monsters, this ability was useless, because improving their senses wouldn't do much to help them. It was just a very small benefit.

However, for monsters such as the Golden Dazzling Light Boxing Champion Kangaroo that fought up close and personal, it wouldn't be just a small benefit. Instead, it would be a huge advantage.

As expected, the longer a monster's name is, the cooler it is…

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Chapter 236: Be Prepared, Onward to the Capital

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

This kangaroo was incredibly strong.

Even Dumby would have had difficulties fighting against it if Dumby didn't use his Blood-Thread Heart, an ability that would deal 1,000 in damage to the enemy and 800 in damage to himself.

Getting into a melee battle while possessing a sixth sense was too much of an advantage.

It would be able to predict every move its opponents would make. How would it be possible to fight against it?

The only way to win would be to move faster than its sixth sense or to use an ability that suppressed the effects of the sixth sense.

When Ji Hanwu looked at Zhao Guangyi, who was lying on the floor, he sighed and said, "What am I going to do with you?"

Zhao Guangyi trembled, not daring to speak.

"I was the one who helped you pay off your father's three million dollar gambling debt, right?" Ji Hanwu said softly.

"Yes…" Zhao Guangyi lowered his head even more.

"I've given you a fair salary, and I trained you as one of my trusted aides. However, you've greatly disappointed me." Ji Hanwu spoke very calmly.

Zhao Guangyi didn't dare to speak.

"Sigh." Ji Hanwu stared at Zhao Guangyi and slowly said, "Do you know what I hate most? It's understandable if you wanted to leave. You could've gone anywhere you wanted, and I wouldn't have bothered you. But you shouldn't have taken those documents. That was your mistake."

"Chairman Ji, please give me another chance." Zhao Guangyi bowed towards Ji Hanwu.

"Little Peng, if it were you, how would you handle this?" Ji Hanwu turned around and asked Gao Peng, who was next to him.

Gao Peng hadn't expected Grandpa to suddenly ask for his opinion. Gao Peng lowered his head and exchanged a glance with Zhao Guangyi.

Xu Qingzhi and Xu Heti both looked at Gao Peng. They were both curious as to what Gao Peng would say.

Gao Peng was silent for a while. He then muttered, "Make an example out of him."

Zhao Guangyi's face turned pale. He started to plead, "I was wrong. Please, Master Gao, Chairman Ji, I've worked for many years with the Southern Sky Group. I have given my blood, sweat, and tears for this company."

Xu Heti felt a bit surprised. He hadn't expected Gao Peng to act so firmly. He had thought that Gao Peng would tell him to go easy on Zhao Guangyi.

Gao Peng let out a long sigh. He struggled with his thoughts, then made a final decision. It was wartime, after all. Desperate times called for desperate measures.

Since he had already said it, it was reasonable to elaborate, "Grandpa, we cannot set a bad precedent. If we forgive someone who betrayed the company, what would other people think? People would be lining up to betray the Southern Sky Group! Since they could just ask for forgiveness if they're caught." Gao Peng turned to look at Zhao Guangyi and then asked, "Department head Zhao, how old are you?"

Zhao Guangyi hid the grievances in his heart and said, "I have been in the Southern Sky Group for 18 years. I turn 40 this year."

"40 years old… You're already 40 years old. Why do you behave as if you were three? Choosing to do something without considering the consequences."

Xu Qingzhi giggled. She realized that it might have been a bit inappropriate for the occasion, so she held back the laughter.

"It was a momentary mistake," Zhao Guangyi pleaded.

Ji Hanwu didn't even glance at Zhao Guangyi. He turned his gaze towards Gao Peng and gave a comment on his grandson's opinion. "Good thinking. If we were living in a peaceful era, we would, of course, let the law take its course, but we're living in a new world now."

Ji Hanwu turned to look at Zhao Guangyi. "Since you're old, I won't take any actions against your family."

When Zhao Guangyi heard this, he knew that he wouldn't be able to escape death that day. He forced a bitter smile and said, "Thank you, Chairman Ji, for your mercy."

Ji Hanwu waved his hands and indicated for Xu Heti to bring Zhao Guangyi downstairs. "Make sure there are no loose ends. If anyone asks, tell them it was an experiment gone wrong, and he, unfortunately, died at his post."

As Gao Peng grew older, Ji Hanwu would let him grow familiar with the darker side of the company.

He didn't want to raise his grandson to be sheltered.

The fog that surrounded the Southern Sky Group building faded, and the White Dragon went back into the lake.

When Gao Peng went to the lawn, he saw a spider buried in the dirt. Only a few of its legs were exposed.

"I'll ask my White Dragon to go to the forest and catch a few monsters for you. Your little skeleton needs complete bodies in order to evolve faster, right? I'll ask the White Dragon to find a few high-level monsters," Ji Hanwu said slowly, walking beside Gao Peng.

"There's no need to go to such trouble…" Gao Peng felt a bit uncomfortable with asking the White Dragon to go out of its way to do this for him.

Ji Hanwu shook his head. "It's no trouble. It would be extremely glad if I asked it to go out. If it could, it would spend every day outside."

"In that case…" Gao Peng didn't know whether to laugh or cry. He hadn't expected the White Dragon to have such a personality.

The White Dragon had already been promoted to the Emperor-tier. It was the most powerful monster in Yuzhou City and the surrounding areas. Even the Mountain Spirits had quieted down considerably.

With the slaughterhouse and the White Dragon catching food for it, Dumby's evolution speed had really picked up. It was as if it had gotten on an elevator.

It was promoted to the Lord-tier on the four days later.

It was in the dead of night. Dumby's head was drooping, when the Flame of the Undead in his eyes suddenly blazed, and the fire engulfed his entire body. Only a dark figure could be seen under the blaze. The original dark red color of the Blood-Thread Heart had turned a vivid shade of red, as red as blood. In the center of his chest, its heart was slowly moving up and down.

Some of its joints became finer and smalle, while a few new small bones had grown around his body. It was like a simple robot turning into something more complicated and sophisticated.

The flames suddenly vanished. The Flame of the Undead returned to its eye sockets, its red heart went back to normal, and the colors all become dull again.

[Monster Name: Tyrant Skeleton

[Monster Level: Level 41

[Monster Grade: Epic

[Monster Skills: Bone Harden Level 3, Control of the Undead Level 2

[Special Characteristics: Heart of the Bloodseeker (Effect 1, Passive Effect: It will use up energy from the Blood-Thread Heart to form the Heart of the Bloodseeker. When the Heart of the Bloodseeker is active, it'll boost all the attributes of the Skull Ghoul Ape. When the Heart of the Bloodseeker is attacked, the passive ability will be removed. Effect 2: When activated, it will stabilize the functions of the heart, allowing it to beat steadily. It can be used to manipulate the speed of the heartbeat and the rate of blood flow.)

Flame of the Undead (Effect One, Active Effect: …)

[Monster Weakness: Holy Type Monsters

The Blood-Thread Heart had evolved into the Heart of the Bloodseeker. The effects didn't really change. However, after spending more time with Dumby, Gao Peng realized that Dumby's physical attributes had become two times stronger.

Gao Peng had also noticed it had an active ability to control the flow rate of its blood…

Controlling the blood flow rate. I should use that if I get the chance.

A Lord-tier, Epic-grade familiar. Gao Peng felt very confident. This year's World Youth Trainer Championships are going to be a piece of cake.

Another day passed. It was a new day, and the sky was bright. Gao Peng had dressed up, and he went out with his familiars following beside him.

"I won't see you out today. Be careful when you're outside." Ji Hanwu patted Gao Peng on his shoulder.

Gao Peng nodded to show he understood.

"Remember, as long as you still possess the general upper hand, a temporary loss or setback is harmless, "Ji Hanwu said again, feeling worried.

Gao Peng climbed into his vehicle and went to Yuzhou Airport. When he made it to the airport, he took a flight to the capital.

The first ever World Youth Trainer Championships would be held in the Huaxia Region's capital.

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Chapter 237: Pig Dragon

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

Before the cataclysm, Yuzhou airport had been a huge spacious international airport, with great passenger flow.

After the Cataclysm, it had been refurbished to become an important flight base in the southwestern region. It was also listed as one of the two airports in Huaxia.

Actually, constructing such a spacious airport in mountainous Yuzhou had been costly. Refurbishing and reconstructing Yuzhou Airport had required a mass amount of manpower and material resources.

The silver-white hall stood tall in the airport entrance. Ever since the Cataclysm, the dangers of flying had risen, increasing the cost of flights and decreasing the frequency of arrivals and departures of planes, thus resulting in an originally high-quality, cheap transportation turning into a luxury.

Many high-class cars and luxury trucks stopped in front of the airport. Some passengers with luggage hugged their relatives and friends before they departed.

At the front of the airport security lane, soldiers armed with real rifles and ammunition were on duty.

The driver came down from the seat quickly and opened the door for Gao Peng, intending to carry his luggage.

"No, thank you. I can do it myself," Gao Peng declined the driver's offer. "I'll stop here. You may go back now."

The driver bowed to Gao Peng before driving off.

A big truck stopped behind them, and from the rear compartment a row of familiars walked out.

Carrying a bottle of fruit juice, Silly slowly drifted over, touching Gao Peng's shoulder with its antenna stealthily. Noticing that its master wasn't responding, Silly intended to move closer quietly, planning to…

Poh! Without turning his head, Gao Peng grabbed at Silly's cool, soft body precisely with his left hand.

"Pu ji, pu ji…" Silly struggled with much dissatisfaction.

Beside the airport security check-in lane, there was a special lane for familiars.

Gao Peng let a few familiars go through the security check-in for familiars while he himself went through the human check-in lane.

The airport was extremely wide, and the ceiling was covered with incandescent lamps. The floor, made of hard, smooth basalt granite, was extraordinarily elegant under the light.

Some familiars were walking around the airport lounge, which was extremely spacious. Being at the airport showed that their status wasn't ordinary. Correspondingly, their levels were also generally high.

"Oink, oink." The sound of a pig echoed in the ear.

Lifting his head, Gao Peng saw a humongous monster gradually moving past him.

This monster was very weird. It was slender in shape, and it had thick and strong limbs. It looked like a monitor lizard, yet with a pig's head.

A fat head with big ears, eyes smashed into a seam, big drooping ears as big as fanning leaves, and fleshy whiskers by the sides of its nose.

This monster was about 65 feet long and 20 feet tall. With its humongous size, It looked extraordinarily outstanding in the airport lounge.

Gao Peng was curious how such a huge familiar would be loaded onto the plane. Just this monster alone would take up the entire passenger cabin of an aircraft.

[Monster Name: Pig Dragon

[Monster Level: Level 38

[Monster Grade: Excellent

[Monster Skills: Fat Storage: Level 1, Visceral strengthening Level 1, Tough pigskin Level 1

[Monster Attribute: Earth

[Monster State: Healthy (Hungry)

[Monster Preference: Eating/Watching Movies/Sleeping

[Monster Weakness: 1. Wood types. 2. Not eating for a long time, as the strong stomach acid can rot the stomach sac.

[Monster Introduction: Evolved from farm pigs, awakened from dragon blood, with a huge appetite, powerful digesting ability, it is categorized as an omnivorous monster.

Gao Peng was shocked. Its attributes and abilities were really in line with its introduction, since it had evolved from a hog farm.

Hopefully this hungry creature won't just consume anything it comes across. At this thought, Gao Peng moved further away from the Pig Dragon.

Gao Peng found a place and sat down. Dumby, being in full skeletal form, attracted a lot of attention, but people change their lines of sight after a second look. Even though Ghoul-type monsters were rather rare in Yuzhou, they were still only rather rare.

After all, southeast of Yuzhou was Xiangxi.

Regarding the familiars under his charge, only Dumby had advanced to the Lord-tier. Flamy was second, having broken through to Level 34 just the day before.

Apart from this, Da Zi and Stripey were level 31, Silly level 26, and Goldie level 25.

These were the levels of the familiars under Gao Peng at that moment. To have upgraded to such levels within half a year was largely due to good nutrition, eating top quality ingredients every single day.

For example, Flamy hadn't even managed to slim down yet… Its feathers were shiny and bright.

"Oink, oink." The Pig Dragon stayed for a while in the lounge and finally stopped not too far away from Gao Peng. It became flighty in front of a man sitting opposite it.

Shortly after, a man shrieked, "How can you be hungry so soon? Didn't you eat two cows just before coming to the airport?"

Gao Peng turned his gaze and stared at the size of the pig dragon, mourning quietly for this man.

That's rather terrible…

Grandpa's White Dragon could just feed on clouds and water every day to offset most of its daily energy consumption. Meat was optional, considered dessert after a meal.

In spite of this, his grandpa would transport a whole truck of fresh seafood as the White Dragon's dessert. Well, the big truck used had 16 wheels.

A normal family could hardly afford this… Eating like this would cause them to go bankrupt.

Though the size of this monster was much smaller than White Dragon, its appetite was relatively big as well.

"I'm spending all the money I earn just to feed you, Pig Dragon." The man was almost in tears. "The food in this airport is extremely costly. Just a bowl of beef noodles would cost 50 dollars. Can't you just bear it?"

"Oink oink." The Pig Dragon wasn't responding. Half kneeling and half lying, it wriggled, all its fatty flesh surging like waves.

"Why don't you just eat me. Eat all 100 pounds of me," the man said hopelessly.

In the end, the man called the people in charge of the airport and told them, "This Pig Dragon of mine eats anything when it gets anxious." The man looked like he wanted to cry, but no tears came out.

The staff workers of the airport suddenly became very nervous, cautiously looking at this giant beast.

"Relax, I've trained it. It doesn't eat humans." The man immediately waved his hands. "It's just that when it gets hungry, it will eat tables, chairs… It will basically eat anything."

In the end, the man and the airport negotiated and agreed to a deal—he spent around a million Alliance credits to have over a dozen tons of meat delivered to the airport through special means.

The Pig Dragon's eye lit up as soon as it saw meat. It immediately ran towards the forklift carrying the packaged meat. Sounds of "pa, pa, pa" came from the body of the Pig Dragon as its rolls of fat slammed against each other.

"Isn't that Gao Peng?" Far away, someone in the lounge of the airport raised his hand and pointed towards Gao Peng, who was seated on another side.

"Hey, it looks like it really is Gao Peng. So, he's also at the airport."

"But the thing is, why is he seated in the airport? I thought he already retired from the Alliance Monster Trainer Youth Competition?" someone asked, puzzled.

He was a member of the Yuzhou student association, and he was going to the capital specifically to watch the Monster Trainer Youth World Competition. After all, one wouldn't want to miss the opportunity to view such a grand event.

At the same time, he also had the intention of going to support a member of the student association, Jun Moyi.

Initially, Gao Peng had also qualified, but then, Gao Peng had chosen to retire for the third round after the second round of the examination had ended. Under the hype and promotion of Han Yuanming, the incident became known throughout the entire Huaxia region, though many people still thought it was quite regrettable.

In the end, a person who shouldn't have been there suddenly appeared.

"Is it because he regrets his decision and wants to go watch the competition?" someone asked in a whisper.

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The whole group went quiet when someone muttered that sentence.

Some of the members of the student association looked at one another. They didn't know what to say.

The relationship between the people from the student association and Gao Peng was a complex one.

When the incident with Qian Zhengming had occurred, many of the student association members had been unhappy with Gao Peng. Qian Zhengming was one of them, after all. Even though Qian Zhengming had been a little bossy, he was very generous with the members of the student association. He wouldn't hesitate to spend money on them.

If any other person had dared to bully anyone from the student association, they would definitely have met consequences.

However, when some of Qian Zhengming's fair-weather friends wanted to retaliate on his behalf, Qian Zhengming had stopped them. At the same time, information about Gao Peng's family background had started to spread.

From the Southern Sky Group family.

They were all students from Yuzhou University. It was impossible for them not to know about the Southern Sky Group. Even the everyday items they bought came from the Southern Sky Group.

At that moment, it seemed as if everyone had something stuck in their throat.

When it came to family backgrounds, no one in Yuzhou City would be able to match Gao Peng. The only people who would be comparable to Gao Peng were the son of the highest-ranking military officer in the base city of Yuzhou or the son of the city's mayor.

The incident just slowly faded away. No one brought it up again.

After that, the incident with Li Yujia, a school senior that had already graduated, had occurred. Gao Peng had helped a lot during that incident. The members of the student association who were there with Gao Peng during that incident came out of it with a positive impression of him. Gao Peng didn't seem as arrogant and despicable as the rumors had made him out to be.

The members of the student association could be separated into two groups when it came to Gao Peng. Some of them didn't like him, while another group of people wanted to make Gao Peng like them so that they would have an easier time getting a job at the Southern Sky Group.

Qian Zhengming was also part of the group at the airport. He wore an unreadable expression when he saw Gao Peng. His father had rushed to Yuzhou City from their hometown and brought him along to the Southern Sky Group headquarters so that they could apologize to Gao Peng. In the end, Gao Peng hadn't even appeared. Only a messenger had appeared to convey a message from Chairman Ji Hanwu. The message was that it was only a small matter between children and that the Qian family shouldn't worry.

Through this incident, Qian Zhengming had matured quite a bit. His prickly personality had smoothened considerably.

Qian Zhengming stopped looking at Gao Peng, then looked at his own familiars in silence.

One was a large turtle with sharp and angular edges that was as large as a tabletop. Its exposed feet were covered with scales, and there were a few sharp thorns on the edge of its shell.

"Oh, it's a pity. If Gao Peng also joined the World Youth Trainer Championships, we would have had three contestants from Yuzhou University," sighed a bespectacled boy with silver hair.

"I know there are three candidates from Imperial University. They're so proud of them, always claiming that they'll win the gold, silver, and bronze on the university forums," said a slightly chubby guy in a red t-shirt. He threw a few potato chips into his mouth.

Gao Peng was just a small matter to them. After discussing him for a while, their topic slowly started to change. Their topic of discussion turned into who had the best chance of winning the competition, and what kind of familiars would appear from different countries.

Gao Peng, who was sitting on the other side, also saw them. Jun Moyi was part of their group. Gao Peng gave her a nod in greeting.

After a while, one of the airport staff came in and looked at Gao Peng. He bowed down and said softly to Gao Peng, "Hello, Mr. Gao, your private jet is ready for takeoff. Are you ready to go now?"

Gao Peng nodded. "Let's go."

Gao Peng thought for a while, then walked over to Jun Moyi. They shared the same hometown, after all.

"Young sister Jun… Jun Moyi, my flight is about to take off. There are still a lot of seats on the flight. Do you want to fly with me? Waiting in the airport is a waste of time anyway."

A private plane… is he that rich?

The group of people were left speechless. Someone suddenly thought of the popular saying, "Do you think rich people are happy? Yes, their happiness is beyond your imagination."

In the end, she rejected Gao Peng's offer, since she had already bought her ticket.

The plane started to land after six hours in the air.

When he arrived, there were people at the airport waiting for him. Ten trucks were parked outside the airport, forming a convoy. Passersby were shocked when they saw this. These were all Dongfeng Trucks! Which rich family did they belong to?

Using ten trucks to pick up someone at the airport! What a terrifyingly rich person they had to be.

Gao Peng sighed. He had already said that he didn't want to cause a scene. A normal car would have been fine, but ten luxury trucks had come instead. It was too high profile.

The front door of the truck at the front of the convoy opened. Out came a middle-aged man dressed meticulously in a western suit with a white glove on his left hand. He walked towards Gao Peng and gave a bow. "Young Master Gao, please get in the car."

Gao Peng nodded and gracefully walked into the backseat of the truck. The rear was extremely spacious. There was a small refrigerator next to the seat and an LCD TV in the front. There was even a game controller.

They arrived at their destination after half an hour. It was a mountain villa that wasn't too far from the airport.

Right after Gao Peng got out of the truck, a white-haired old man walked towards him with a smile on his face. There were quite a few people following this old man.

"Haha. You're old Ji's grandson, right? I'm Zhou Tianmin. Just call me Grandpa Zhou. I've known your grandpa for over forty years." The old man patted Gao Peng on his shoulder. "Not bad. You look quite strong. A man should be strong."

The old man's face was full of wrinkles, and he wasn't very tall. He was only about five feet and five inches tall, wearing a red Chinese traditional suit.

He looked very old, but Gao Peng didn't feel any prejudice against him because of it. Before he came, Grandpa had already introduced his old friend.

Zhou Tianmin, one of the 12 elders of the Monster Trainer League and former chairman of the Nine Mountain Group. Although he had relinquished his position as chairman, he had given the post to his eldest son.

He was also a top-notch monster trainer who possessed a top-notch Lord-tier familiar.

Gao Peng was curious as to why his Grandpa hadn't joined the Monster Trainer League. With his wealth and ability, he would have had no problem with becoming one of the elders of the league if he had wanted to.

Grandpa had only replied with a slight smile, "Not interested."

As for how they had met, Grandpa hadn't given any details.

"Grandpa Zhou, you look quite healthy," Gao Peng praised him. There were only pros, no cons, of being generous with his praise.

Zhou Tianmin laughed happily. "I'm already old. I'm close to eighty."

Although he did look old, his bones still looked very sturdy. He didn't look like someone who was eighty at all.

They went into the mountain villa. Zhou Tianmin led Gao Peng to the dining room first. "You probably didn't have anything to eat on the plane, right? Eat something to fill your stomach first."

"Okay. Sorry for troubling you, Grandpa Zhou." Gao Peng wasn't someone who didn't know how to interact with other people. It seemed that the relationship between Grandpa and Zhou Tianmin was quite good. He was also staying at his house, so he had to act humble and be polite.

While they ate at the dining table, Zhou Tianmin started to speak. "I've brought up the topic of you being a referee with them. I took your grandfather at his word and wanted to forgo doing the experiment, but there are some people who are making an issue out of it, so I'll have to trouble you to come with me tomorrow to conduct an experiment. That will shut those people up."

"Okay." Gao Peng smiled.

The next day, Gao Peng followed Zhou Tianmin to the capital's Purple Sea District.

There was a purple lake that as big as the sea located there. That was where the name came from.

The Monster Trainer League's Huaxia Region's headquarters was located in the Purple Sea District.

They entered the Monster Trainer League building using a private entrance. This entrance was usually not accessible to most people; only certain important people were able to use it.

"Regarding the issue with you being a referee, both Old Ye and I approve, but Old Ping Jiang from Japan doesn't agree." Zhou Tianmin shock his head as he spoke.

Old Ping Jiang?

Gao Peng tried to match that name with people that he knew. In the end, he could only think of Ping Jiang Men, one of the 12 elders of the Monster Trainer League.

"You're simply too young. Actually, you aren't so different from the contestants in age." Zhou Tianmin laughed.

Gao Peng thought to himself, Of course, there isn't a big difference, I was a contestant who withdrew.

"That's why Old Ping Jiang doesn't think you're suitable for the role. He wants someone who's more steady and calm as a referee."

Gao Peng stayed silent, not knowing how to respond. In such cases, whatever he said would seem inappropriate.

"However, I think that giving that role to a young person would be motivating for those young contestants. Don't you think so?" Zhou Tianmin stopped walking. There was a very spacious training room in front of them.

The training room was huge, about 30 feet tall. It was almost like a stadium. It was divided into many different sections, with quite a few people training in some of the sections.

Of course, most of them were for familiars to train in. There were also sections that were only for humans, but they were the minority.

"You can rest assured, my boy. It's just to shut them up." Zhou Tianmin laughed lightly. "This is Huaxia, after all. What we say goes. They can't really interfere."

"Elder."

"Elder Zhou."

A few people who knew Zhou Tianmin came to greet him.

Their eyes were filled with awe and respect. It seemed like Zhou Tianmin was a very prominent member of the Monster Trainer League.

Zhou Tianmin waved his hands at them. "You guys can just ignore me. I came here with this young man to conduct a few experiments. Just continue with whatever you were doing."

Zhou Tianmin's word spread and people stopped coming over. They gathered into small groups and glanced over in their direction.

A few attractive women wearing sporty tank tops came over. They used towels draped over their shoulders to wipe the sweat off their bodies.

"Grandfather, what brings you here?" asked one of the women as she walked over. She was very tall, wore her hair in a ponytail, and was in a gray tank top and black shorts. Her legs were long and pale.

She curiously looked over at Gao Peng and saw Gao Peng glancing back at her.

Zhou Tianmin laughed, then introduced her to Gao Peng. "This is my granddaughter, Zhou Mengmeng. She's in her third year at the Imperial University two years ahead of you in school."

He then turned to Zhou Mengmeng and introduced Gao Peng to her. "You need to call him your little brother. He's Grandpa Ji's grandson."

"Grandpa Ji?" Zhou Mengmeng's face was blank for a while as she thought. The only Grandpa Ji that her grandfather would speak of so seriously was the Grandpa Ji in Yuzhou.

She only knew that Grandpa Ji and her grandfather were old acquaintances. They would also sometimes call each other on the phone. However, she wasn't aware of the details of their relationship.

"My name is Zhou Mengmeng," Zhou Mengmeng greeted Gao Peng. Her eyes turned the shape of crescent moons as she smiled.

"Hello, I'm Gao Peng." Gao Peng nodded in response.

Zhou Tianmin was happy that Gao Peng could meet his granddaughter. "Don't look down on your little brother even though he's two years behind you—the reason he came to the capital was to take part in the World Youth Trainer Championships."

Zhou Mengmeng nodded, not exactly shocked. With Grandpa Ji's level of wealth, joining the World Youth Trainer Championships wasn't a big deal.

The world was very realistic. If one had power and wealth, one would be able to achieve more than others.

The other girls that were with Zhou Mengmeng couldn't help but glance at Gao Peng. They were also from influential families, but they were nowhere near comparable to Zhou Mengmeng's status.

Whether it was with his family background or his talent, Gao Peng was able to gain people's attention. It didn't hurt that he was easy on the eyes. The only downside was that he was two years younger than them.

"Good luck. Get a good rank in the competition," Zhou Mengmeng encouraged Gao Peng.

"He's not a contestant. He came here as a referee," Zhou Tianmin said.

"…" Everyone became silent.

Zhou Mengmeng's eyes suddenly widened. A few of her companions held their breath and looked at Gao Peng in disbelief, as if they were listening to a mythical story.

Zhou Mengmeng wasn't willing to believe what she had just heard. Gao Peng should be in his first year of university, so he's probably 20 years old at most. That means that he wasn't part of the first generation of monster trainers.

However, her grandfather wasn't someone who liked to make jokes. His face was also very calm when he had spoken. He had shown no indication that he was joking.

That means that… what grandfather said is true?!

But… but… He's too young.

"I was only able to become a referee thanks to Grandpa Zhou's help." Gao Peng bowed towards Zhou Tianmin to show his gratitude.

This meant he was admitting it to be true.

Gao Peng thought for a while and said, "Testing Dumby's strength would be enough, as long as Dumby showcases his skills well. Da Zi and the others aren't at high enough levels. They won't able to shock and awe the students."

However, Da Zi, Flamy and the others were at very high grades. The lowest was an Epic grade. There were even Legendary grades among them. If it had been just one or two familiars that were of that grade level, people would still attribute it to luck.

If three or four of them were in high grades, people would say that it was due to his grandfather's immense riches.

But five or six? Could they still say it was due to luck or money alone?

When something reached a certain level, it was obviously not just a matter of luck.

Besides, he'd had Da Zi and Stripey for a long time. This was all information that was readily available.

They hadn't been carefully selected by his grandfather before being given to him. They were familiars that had belonged to him ever since he was young.

Zhou Tianmin thought for a while and decided to observe Dumby's test before speaking.

The first task was to test Dumby's level.

There were staff members who were responsible for video recording. A few special pieces of equipment for the test were brought over.

"There's no need for so much trouble." Gao Peng shook his head. He then said softly, "Dumby."

Dumby heard his master calling and turned over to look at him. The Flame of the Undead in its empty eye sockets was burning. Dumby gave a slight nod, and a white aura suddenly appeared beneath its legs.

The aura wasn't big. It was only about ten feet wide, and Dumby's feet were at the center of it.

The aura looked like it had been formed by piecing pieces of bones together. There were some blood-red silk-like things in it that would appear on and off.

A Lord-tier aura could be stored inside one's body. This was a way Lord-tier monsters, or familiars, showed their powers. At the same time, the aura of Lord-tier familiars would also intimidate lower tier monsters.

It was similar to the aura of intimidation that had been exhibited by dragons in western folklore.

The Lord-tier aura was very calm. However, the people watching felt uneasy.

Zhou Mengmeng felt even more shocked.

She was 21 years old and had been training familiars for three years. However, her highest level familiar was only a high-level Commander-tier monster.

Gao Peng was younger than her by two years, but he had already produced a Lord-tier familiar. How the heck had he trained it? Zhou Mengmeng couldn't figure it out, and this greatly affected her own self-confidence.

It wasn't just Zhou Mengmeng who was affected. What was happening there had attracted the attention of everyone in the training room.

"That… that is a Lord-tier familiar," a person cried out in surprise.

A Lord-tier familiar was still among the most powerful familiars, no matter the place.

In the middle of the training room was Dumby. He wore a black robe that only exposed a small part of his body. There was no trace of dark bones beneath the black robe that was visible.

Only the white-colored Flame of the Undead and the equally white Lord-tier aura were visible.

Zhou Tianmin was stunned for a while, then a smile formed on his face. "Lord-tier. You, little punk, hid this quite well. Hahaha. I want to see the faces of the people who opposed making you a referee."

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Chapter 240: Mountain Villas

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

In the training room, some of the familiars who were training suddenly stopped and looked over alertly. Some of them started to make threatening noises with their throats.

When Dumby came into view, it was as if they had turned into ducks who were being strangled by the necks. The sounds suddenly stopped.

When Dumby left their field of vision, they started making noises again.

Lord-tier monsters were still quite rare. After all, being at the Perfect grade was a prerequisite for evolving.

There were tons of monsters around level 40.

The level 40 monsters were stuck at their tiers and couldn't evolve, the reason being that they weren't yet at the required grade.

Dumby just stood there quietly. Gao Peng ordered him to absorb the aura back into his body, and Dumby did as he was told.

Dumby's grade didn't matter anymore. He was a Lord-tier monster, and Lord-tier monsters possessed immense power.

Gao Peng let out a sigh of relief. He didn't need to worry too much, especially with his family background, but it was always good to minimize any problems that might have popped up.

Zhou Tianmin brought a video file to his office and turned on a projector. A hologram projection appeared…

A conference table suddenly appeared in the room.

There were 12 seats at the table, most of them were empty. The elders weren't the type of people who would spend most of their time in an office. Zhou Tianmin uploaded the video file. The other elders would receive it once they entered their offices.

After he finished uploading the file, he clasped his hands behind his back and left the room while humming a children's song.

Now he just needed to wait for the others to receive the news.

That evening, in the Tianyuan Building in the Neon District, a fifty-year-old man with a yellow complexion and meticulously combed hair calmly turned off a projector. His eyes didn't show any signs of anger. He was very calm and had a tiny smile on his face. "This is interesting. So, this is Ji Kun's grandson. If I remember correctly, he should be eighteen and eight months old. He was able to train a familiar to the Lord-tier even though he's so young. He's definitely a genius."

He stood up and looked down at the bustling Neon District. It was dominated by bright city lights, and the people were all dressed well. The Tianyuan Building was located in the most prosperous area in Edo City, and it was also located in the most prestigious area in the Neon District.

"I wonder… when will such a genius emerge in our Neon District…" Ping Jiang Men moved his hands in front of his body and adjusted his collar. "Though, with me, Ping Jiang Men, around, it should be enough!"

At the same time, a giant black monster roared into the night sky. Its hands were half-stretched, hugging against the building. Its black body blended into the building. In the dark of the night, it looked as if the Tianyuan Building had completely disappeared from the most prosperous street in the city. There wasn't the slightest hint of light coming from the building.

At the foot of the building, pedestrians walked past it without much thought, not even noticing the current appearance of the Tianyuan Building.

Only a few of the pedestrians noticed that something was wrong. They looked in the direction of the building in fear.

On the other side of the Atlantic, in the Eagle District, a luxurious party was being held in an opulent villa. A female secretary in a gray suit walked downstairs towards a blond young man who was embracing a sexily dressed lady. She calmly said, "Elias, sorry for disturbing you, but there's news from the meeting—"

Before she could finish speaking, she was interrupted by Elias. "Sorry, I'm having a party right now. If you have something you need to tell me, just tell me tomorrow."

The female secretary still wanted to say something, but Elias held up his finger and said arrogantly, "You're just an unimportant secretary that they sent over, and I'm your boss, so you need to keep your mouth shut. It probably isn't anything important. If it were, the people from the national assembly would've contacted me already."

After he finished speaking, Elias brought the girl he was with away from the villa. There was a swimming pool behind the villa that was almost like a small lake.

Elias gave the girl in his embrace a kiss and said softly, "Do you want to see my big boy?"

The girl suddenly looked very flustered. "Now?"

Elias laughed heartily, turned towards the lake, lifted up his right hand, and shouted like a madman, "Rennes!"

Boom!

Ripples started to form on the surface of the lake. They were accompanied by a long hum as a large monster emerged. There were greenish black rocks that looked like coral on its body, along with long red stripes. A red Lord aura shone its light in all directions, turning the entire lake a shade of red.

It opened its gigantic mouth and revealed rows of sharp teeth that were pointed inwards. The giant monster moved out of the lake, its slender body rushing up as if it was flying into the sky.

"Oh my god!" The girl in Elias' arms widened her eyes and covered her mouth with her right hand. She couldn't help but stiffen, and her entire body went cold.

The giant python flew into the air, wantonly revealing its body. The long stripes sparkled in a bloody red.

Finally, the giant python flew back into the bottom of the lake.

Elias suddenly squeezed his nose. "Damn, what is that smell." He had smelled a very strong odor.

He looked down and saw that the girl had gone limp. Her pupils were dilated.

"F*ck!" Elias suddenly became uninterested. He dropped the girl by the lake and left.

He lit up a cigarette and suddenly thought of the news the secretary had mentioned. He went upstairs to turn on the projector.

After he had finished watching the video, he threw his cigarette into the ashtray, seemingly unimpressed. "What the hell. This is just a waste of time. It's only a Lord-tier monster. That skeleton was quite cool though."

This year's World Youth Trainer Championship contenders were monster trainers who came from all over the world. They had all graduated high school.

In order to make managing all the people easier and to minimize the chances of any accidents, each of the contestants had brought along a group of people from their own country to stay with them in the mountain villas.

Gao Peng got out of the car at the edge of the mountain where the villas were located. He walked over curiously.

Although he was a referee and didn't need to stay at the mountain villas, he was still curious about the contestants from abroad. Many of these foreign contestants were regarded as gods on the internet, and many of them were chosen as favorites to win the competition, as well.

Gao Peng disagreed. He had never held the belief that things from foreign countries were better.

Gao Peng, who was outside of the villa, saw large groups of people gathered. Many of them were squeezed together. Gao Peng overheard some of their conversations and realized that these people were groupies. Before the Cataclysm, these people would have followed around movie stars and pop stars, but now, the target of their affections was powerful monster trainers.

Gao Peng touched his face. Maybe someone like me?

Most of them were young students, perhaps in middle or high school. Among them were reporters hoping to get interviews with the contestants. Unfortunately for them, the contestants had been told not to give interviews to simply anyone.

There were quite a few security guards stationed at the mountain villa. The guards had blocked the crowds, keeping them outside.

Gao Peng walked forward and showed his clearance card for the guards to let him in. He then walked into the villa.

The place was very lively, since all of the people there were there for the competition. When Gao Peng walked in, he saw different familiars walking in different parts of the villa. He also saw contestants of different ethnic groups chatting with one another.

The competition was the next day, so many of the contestants felt very excited. Others were resting due to jet lag.

The familiars were all restraining themselves. None of them had gotten into any altercations with other familiars.

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