Chapter 1021: Not a Familiar, but a Person (Part 2)
Chapter 1021: Not a Familiar, but a Person (Part 2)
Beneath the dilapidated eaves.
Qiao Sang shot up from her sleeping bag, her eyes widening in shock as she gazed at the Mystic Rifts that seemed to cover the entire sky, and the Ghost Familiars emerging from them one by one. Her pupils constricted, and her face showed a mixture of surprise and disbelief.
"Are there really this many Mystic Rifts here?"
Migala frowned and said, "Absolutely not. If the internal conditions of Misty Town were like this, even with the news of the Soul Ferry Cat, there would be no way so many people would come here. And as far as I know, many Beastmasters who came to explore before were able to leave safely, though it was a rare occurrence."
Just as Qiao Sang was about to speak, a Ghost Familiar emerged from a Mystic Rift and let out a chilling "cackle", its eyes glowing purple.
Suddenly, a strange scene unfolded. She saw the Ghost Familiar staring at her transform into a massive, golden trophy, identical in appearance and size to the Interstellar Cup's championship trophy she had seen on TV.
Illusion—making the target see what they desire most in their heart to control them... Qiao Sang's mind was unusually clear, and she immediately understood what was happening.
She activated the Beastmaster Codex, and the Interstellar Cup in front of her transformed back into the Ghost Familiar.
The fifty-centimeter-tall Ghost Familiar, seeing her clear and focused gaze, took a step back, its expression wary.
"Xunxun!"
At that moment, a thirty-meter-tall Ghost Ring King appeared out of nowhere, roaring loudly.
The ruins around them trembled from the roar.
An invisible oppressive aura descended, and the overwhelming pressure made the Ghost Familiars present retreat, their bodies stiff and immobile.
Then, most of the wild Ghost Familiars fled.
Only a dozen larger Ghost Familiars remained, their faces hostile as they glared at the giant Ghost Ring King.
"Xunxun!"
Treasure Seeker brought its claws together, and the Ghost Ring King instantly grew to about sixty meters tall.
The dozen Ghost Familiars' eyes widened, they looked at each other, and then their Invisibility vanished.
"Xunxun..."
Treasure Seeker sighed in relief, wiping sweat from its forehead that wasn't really there.
The giant Ghost Ring King mimicked the gesture of wiping sweat.
"Wuwu!"
Bao Wu Wu looked at Treasure Seeker with admiration.
"Xunxun!"
Feeling the gaze, Treasure Seeker lowered its claws and stood tall and proud.
"I think we should leave here as soon as possible", Qiao Sang said, glancing at the Mystic Rifts still appearing in the sky. "Why don't we go now?"
Migala slowly replied, "I think this is a great opportunity for training."
Qiao Sang: "???"
Migala continued, "With so many wild Ghost Familiars around, there must be a lot of valuable items that will be brought out."
Valuable items... Qiao Sang immediately weighed the pros and cons.
With Bao Wu Wu by her side, she would be able to find valuable items quickly. From the looks of it, the Ghost Familiars emerging were numerous but not particularly high in level. The sheer number might be intimidating, but if she encountered something she couldn't handle, there was always Teacher Migala...
As she thought, Migala added, "Most Ghost Familiars absorb negative energy to enhance their power. With so many Mystic Rifts appearing, the people in Misty Town will continuously generate negative energy, providing a great opportunity for the Ghost Ring King to grow stronger."
Qiao Sang nodded seriously, "I'll follow Teacher's lead! Treasure Seeker!"
"Xunxun!" Treasure Seeker called out energetically.
"We're going to training!" Qiao Sang said.
"Xunxun!" Treasure Seeker's heart was filled with passion.
Grow stronger, grow stronger, it had to grow stronger!
Qiao Sang and Treasure Seeker exchanged a glance, then turned in unison to Fangy, starting to wake it up.
"Fangy, wake up!"
"Xunxun! Xunxun!"
Steel Treasure: "……"
"Fangy."
Fangy slowly woke up, and when it saw the scene in the sky, it instantly became alert, ready for battle.
After the events of Hidden Realm 53 and the defeat by Lulu, Fangy was much easier to rouse... Qiao Sang sighed in relief.
Fangy's alertness brought a sense of security.
"Ice Emperor!"
Suddenly, Lulu, who had woken up with the first Mystic Rift, stared ahead with a serious expression.
Qiao Sang followed her gaze and saw a large mass of black fog rolling in.
"Steel Blade."
Steel Treasure moved forward on its own, gradually increasing in size and flapping its wings, instantly creating a powerful gale.
Sand and debris flew, the already ruined buildings around them instantly disintegrated, and broken rocks and wood were swept into the sky.
The black fog was blown away.
A familiar, roughly seven meters tall, mostly purple, and shaped like a clock, flew backward and landed heavily on the ground.
Slowclock, a Ghost-type King-level familiar, with the Slow Trait, making everything in the world seem to move in slow motion... Qiao Sang recognized the familiar on the ground and felt a sense of foreboding, his expression turning serious.
At the same time, the remaining thin fog in front of them stirred, and a familiar, about ten meters tall, with a purple upper body and a light purple lower body, black eyes, and a black ribbon binding a woman, floated out. It resembled a balloon.
Boundary Balloon, a Royal-tier Ghost Familiar, rumored to be able to float to another world, and if it carries people and familiars, it can transport them to that world... Qiao Sang looked at the familiar, recalling the relevant information in his mind.
Fangy's expression turned wary, and it gradually increased in size.
"Save, save me..." the woman bound by the black ribbon said weakly.
Boundary Balloon glanced down, and a translucent energy surged from the woman's body, as if something was being sucked out.
Almost immediately, the woman's face visibly aged.
"That's vital essence", Migala said.
She didn't move, clearly not preparing to intervene.
Qiao Sang issued a command:
"Blazing Bomb."
Fangy immediately opened its mouth, and a beam of red and gold light shot out toward Boundary Balloon.
Boundary Balloon didn't dodge, instead opening its mouth and spewing a thick black wave.
"Bang!"
The red and gold beam completely overpowered the black wave, suppressing it and striking Boundary Balloon directly.
"Boundary!"
Boundary Balloon let out a cry of pain, flying backward and crashing into a half-collapsed building.
The woman fell as Boundary Balloon was thrown back.
But at that moment, Qiao Sang said:
"Don't let Slowclock escape."
"Xunxun..."
Treasure Seeker hesitated for a moment, then reacted, teleporting to Slowclock's shadow.
The shadows instantly connected, linking the shadow of Slowclock, who was spewing black fog toward Bao Wu Wu.
"Slow..."
Slowclock paused, looking down.
"Wuwu!"
Bao Wu Wu seemed to understand something, and it floated to Qiao Sang's side, its face filled with fear.
On the other side, the woman landed steadily on the ground, no longer appearing weak.
Boundary Balloon, covered in injuries, floated over to her and spewed translucent energy from its mouth.
The energy enveloped her, being completely absorbed into her body, and her face visibly rejuvenated.
At the same moment, a Gigantic Ice Spire, resembling a small mountain, appeared out of nowhere and smashed heavily onto Slowclock.
“Slow!”
Slowclock let out a piercing scream.
The woman's face turned grim as she asked:
“When did you notice?”
Qiao Sang replied calmly:
“When we entered Misty Town, Slowclock and the Drift Ball were following you, and you kept trailing me. Since you didn't make a move, I ignored you.”
“Moreover, that Black Fog earlier was probably one of Slowclock's Skills. I remember reading that Slowclock has an Inhaling Trait, capable of spewing black fog. Any target enveloped by the fog would be sucked into its body.”
“You must have wanted to take Bao Wu Wu away.”
“But you didn’t expect the black fog to be blown away so quickly. So, you implemented Plan B—having the Drifting Sphere pretend to be a wild beast companion to draw our attention, allowing Slowclock to take Bao Wu Wu away.”
What a worry-free student... Migala smiled contentedly from the side.
Completely accurate... The woman's expression was filled with seriousness and caution.
She had thought she would be dealing with the foreigner, but it turned out that the real threat was someone else, someone she had overlooked all along...
Now that she had been discovered, a fight was inevitable!
The woman shouted loudly:
“Suck!”
“Slow!”
Lying on the ground, Slowclock opened its mouth, and black fog surged out.
Almost simultaneously, Fangy opened its mouth, and a beam of light, red with gold, shot out at several times the speed of the black fog, striking Slowclock directly.
“Slow!”
Slowclock screamed as it was sent flying backward.
“Xunxun~”
Treasure Seeker stood still, but 2D Shadow Control transformed into 3D Mode, wrapping around Slowclock and pulling it back.
Fangy opened its mouth again, and a fierce Flame swept over its fangs. The Flameform giant Yan Jiaou's head appeared, synchronizing its movements, and bit down hard on Slowclock.
“Misfortunes Never Come Alone!” the woman shouted.
“Piao Jie!”
The Drifting Boundary Orb transformed into a purple light and charged forward.
But at that moment, the temperature around them plummeted.
The Drifting Boundary Orb was instantly encased in a thick layer of ice, freezing it in place.
“Bang!”
At the same time, the Flameform giant Yan Jiaou's head bit down hard on Slowclock, releasing a terrifying burst of Flames and a shockwave.
“Slow!!!”
Slowclock let out a heart-wrenching cry, its eyes rolling back as it fainted.
The woman's face turned deathly pale, realizing that her opponent was far more formidable than she had imagined.
She opened her mouth, finally speaking:
“I only want Bao Wu Wu to help me find the Soul Ferry Cat. Name your conditions, and I will agree to anything.”
“Wuwu...”
Bao Wu Wu silently moved a bit farther away from Qiao Sang.
Qiao Sang said coolly:
“No matter what you offer, I won’t agree.”
“Wuwu...”
Hearing this, Bao Wu Wu's face showed a look of gratitude, and it quietly moved closer to Qiao Sang again.
“I have less than three months left to live. Without the Soul Ferry Cat, I will die!” The woman's face was as pale as paper, her tone pleading.
A faint black fog enveloped her, rising upward.
Migala, seeing this, frowned, seemingly deep in thought.
“Xunxun~” Treasure Seeker, as if smelling something pleasant, brightened up and began to inhale large gulps of air.
Qiao Sang glanced at the Mystic Rift that had appeared not far behind her, sighed, and said:
“You should focus on how to safely leave this Misty Town. If you can’t get out, you might not even have three months left.”
The woman was taken aback, then seemed to realize something and turned her head.
Lulu's chill aura dissipated.
The ice shell on the Drifting Boundary Orb melted away.
“Let's go,” Qiao Sang said to Treasure Seeker.
“Xunxun~”
Treasure Seeker's eyes glowed with a blue light.
In the next second, he vanished along with Qiao Sang, Migala, and Fangy.
……
In Misty Town, the Black Fog grew thicker. Beastmasters either fled in panic, cried out in terror, or fought bravely... the scene was utter chaos.
Meanwhile.
High in the sky.
Treasure Seeker controlled the thirty-meter-long Dark Shadow, attacking the wild beast companions one by one.
Although Dark Shadow's power was similar to its original form, its wide area of attack allowed it to hit multiple wild beast companions at once.
Qiao Sang sat on Fangy's back, holding the Beast Egg.
Lulu stood behind her Beastmaster, continuously spewing Frost Breath at the wild beast companions appearing from behind.
"Did you notice anything just now?" Migala asked, hovering beside Qiao Sang.
Just now? Qiao Sang recalled for a moment and replied:
"Professional Beastmasters are indeed much stronger. The King-level familiar I just encountered didn't seem as powerful as the ones I faced in matches."
Migala: "..."
"Take a closer look at the people and the Black Fog", Migala guided.
Qiao Sang carefully observed the people below and the thickening Black Fog, then raised her head in surprise and analyzed:
"It seems like some of the energy in this Black Fog is flowing towards a single point. Is there a Ghost Familiar of extremely high level absorbing this energy?"
Normally, Ghost Familiars absorb energy within a limited range, but with so much energy flowing towards one direction without any sign of the Ghost Familiar, it was clear that this Ghost Familiar was no ordinary entity.
"You're right", Migala said gravely.
"Moreover, before we came here, I did some research. Once you enter Misty Town, the exit disappears. To leave, you either need a familiar that can see through illusions, a powerful familiar that isn't affected by the Black Fog and can leave at any time, or a Tether Line, which can be pulled by a Tether Jillow from outside the Black Fog."
"The Tether Line is actually a strand of Tether Jillow's fur. As long as it's infused with Mental Power, the Tether Jillow can sense it and pull the person out. Many people coming here will spend a lot to get one."
"Look at the people here. Many of them have a Tether Line bound to their wrists, and they've all tried to infuse it with Mental Power, but no one has managed to leave with a familiar."
Qiao Sang was taken aback and looked down. Sure enough, most people had a white strand of fur bound to their wrists, and some were even crying and shouting at it.
The Tether Lines have failed?
Now that she thought about it, the Beastmaster with the Slow Clock had a Tether Line too. No wonder she dared to attack me despite the Mystic Rifts... Qiao Sang's heart raced as she cautiously asked:
"Teacher, can you still leave?"
Migala glanced at her.
"Of course."
Qiao Sang sighed in relief but then asked, puzzled:
"Why have the Tether Lines failed?"
"Either the Tether Jillow that provided the Tether Lines has a problem, or there's something wrong with this Misty Town", Migala said gravely.
So many people couldn't have all gotten their Tether Lines from the same Tether Jillow. The problem must be with the town... Qiao Sang frowned and guessed:
"Could it be that a Ghost Familiar doesn't want us to leave?"
"Only a Psychic Pet can achieve a spatial lockdown", Migala said, looking in the direction of the surging Black Fog. "It's not a familiar. Someone doesn't want us to leave."
(End of Chapter)
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