Chapter 2

“Heh, as expected, the poor fool likes to pick up trash.”

Liu Pan glanced at Xia Muqing with disdain and spread his hands. “Do whatever you want with it, just give me a refund.”

His complete disregard for the little Swiftwind Dog’s well-being made Zhu Ning, who was always fond of nurturing young mythical beasts, absolutely disgusted.

Zhu Ning didn’t bother arguing with him.

Her breeding center was actually quite profitable, and they weren’t short of that little bit of money, so she simply refunded Liu Pan.

Liu Pan walked away arrogantly, and before leaving, he shot a glance at Xia Muqing. “Idiot.”

Xia Muqing, holding the little Swiftwind Dog, didn’t even spare him a glance.

Once the breeding center became quiet again, Zhu Ning apologized with a sincere expression. “I’m sorry, Xiao Xia, I didn’t expect something like this to happen.”

“You don’t need to feel sorry for me or try to defend me,” Xia Muqing replied. “If it really comes to it, I’ll just raise this Swiftwind Dog at the store. It can be the store’s mythical beast…”

Xia Muqing shook her head. “No, Sister Zhu, I really want this little one.”

She rubbed the little Swiftwind Dog’s head, and the Swiftwind Dog lifted its head, timidly licking her palm with its tongue.

Its soft fur was as pure and white as snow, and its small body was warm and comforting, like a little furnace.

“I think it has a noble bloodline and great potential,” Xia Muqing said. “Liu Pan didn’t appreciate it, but that’s just because he’s blind.”

Zhu Ning: “…?”

Xia Muqing smiled without speaking.

In fact, just now, when she was petting the little Swiftwind Dog, a golden-framed prompt suddenly popped up in front of her.

【Reminder: A rare trait mythical beast has been detected within 10 meters!】

It was exactly like the prompts that would appear when capturing wild mythical beasts in the game.

Xia Muqing had worked at the breeding center for a year and had encountered hundreds of different mythical beasts, but this was the first time she had seen a “rare trait” prompt.

The little Swiftwind Dog’s trait was definitely not inferior!

—

Xia Muqing insisted on keeping the Swiftwind Dog, and Zhu Ning thought it was because she didn’t want to make her feel sad, so she was touched.

In the end, Zhu Ning refused to accept any payment from Xia Muqing and instead gave her several boxes of nutritional supplements and home training equipment.

Xia Muqing’s little bicycle couldn’t fit it all, so it had to be mailed to her home.

After repeatedly thanking Zhu Ning, Xia Muqing set off with the Swiftwind Dog. The refreshing wind brushed her cheeks as the little Swiftwind Dog lay quietly in the basket, its snow-white fur gently trembling in the wind.

Xia Muqing: “The wind feels nice, right?”

“If you like it, should I call you Xiao Feng (Little Wind) from now on?”

The Swiftwind Dog licked its little paw: “Woof?”

Once the official contract was made, Xia Muqing could store it in her spiritual space. However, before that, she wanted to spend a few days bonding with the little Swiftwind Dog, which would help build their rapport after the contract.

Mostly, she wanted to give the little Swiftwind Dog a chance to move past its sadness and regain its spirit.

By evening, there was quite a bit of traffic on the road. Xia Muqing skillfully maneuvered her bicycle through the cars. Along the way, she saw a few young people with flying mythical beasts being stopped by traffic police.

“Please show your city flying permit.”

The group didn’t have their permits and were docked reputation points. Both the people and their beasts looked dejected.

A green-feathered hawk perched on the shoulder of one of the officers. It was a powerful first-level evolved mythical beast, with its head held high, exuding a proud posture. Its sharp eyes missed no illegal actions.

When Xia Muqing arrived at her apartment complex, she saw a figure from a distance.

“Muqing!”

Xu Ling waved enthusiastically at Xia Muqing. “Where have you been? I’ve been waiting for so long!”

Xia Muqing quickly braked. “Sorry, I had some things to take care of and got off work late. So, how’s it going? Did you contract a mythical beast?”

Xu Ling happily spread her arms. “Yeah, I ended up choosing the Bright Moon Oriole. The compatibility is really high, look!”

A flash of white light passed, and a small bird the size of a palm appeared in Xu Ling’s hand.

Its feathers sparkled like stars, with a crescent moon pattern on its forehead. Standing on one leg, it looked elegant and beautiful, almost holy. Xia Muqing couldn’t help but feel a little envious. “So pretty, how much did it cost?”

Xu Ling: “200,000 Star Coins.”

Xia Muqing: “……”

Wow, rich people!

Not only was the Bright Moon Oriole beautiful, but it was also powerful. Despite its small size, it was an extremely rare spiritual-type mythical beast. Its song could not only soothe fatigue but also serve as an attack method, leaving others defenseless.

But as envious as she was, Xia Muqing knew how much Xu Ling had sacrificed for it.

After buying the Bright Moon Oriole, Xu Ling’s family was now basically broke. It was a last-ditch effort to get a good score on the college entrance exam next year.

“Actually, there was also a chance to buy a Azure Nether Serpent. That one is purely an offensive mythical beast, even stronger than the Bright Moon Oriole.”

Xu Ling sighed. “But for me… I just can’t get past my mental block. Whenever I think of the cold, scaly body of a snake, I get goosebumps. But now that I think about it, it’s kind of a shame. If I had bought the Azure Nether Serpent, I’d have more confidence in getting into a top university’s Beast Taming department.”

Xia Muqing: “You’d better not say that in front of the Bright Moon Oriole!”

Bright moon oriole: “Chirp!”

Xu Ling suddenly realized and hurriedly patted the Bright Moon Oriole’s little head. “I didn’t mean it like that. I really can’t accept that snake physically!”

“You’re the best, smart and beautiful, and you sing so well. How could the Azure Nether Serpent compare to you?”

Seeing her friend flustered as she tried to explain to the Bright Moon Oriole, Xia Muqing couldn’t hold it in and let out a soft laugh.

“I think the Bright Moon Oriole is better too,” she said. “The Azure Nether Serpent is too fierce. Most Beast Tamers can’t control it. The little Oriole is much cuter, and it’s more compatible with you.”

Xu Ling shot her a grateful look.

Finally calming the Bright Moon Oriole, Xu Ling returned it to her space and let out a sigh of relief.

“Having a mythical beast really makes a difference. I’ll have to be more careful with what I say from now on.”

Xu Ling muttered as she pulled out her phone from her pocket. “Muqing, what mythical beast are you planning to buy? Do you have enough Star Coins?”

“I didn’t buy the Azure Nether Serpent. I still have 30,000 Star Coins left. I can lend you some if you need it. You know how important the starting mythical beast is. I feel like it’s better not to go for something cheap, otherwise…”

Xia Muqing: “I’ve already gotten a mythical beast.”

She picked up the Swiftwind Dog, which had been hidden in the bike basket, and showed it in front of Xu Ling. “Ta-da~”

“Swiftwind Dog?”

Xu Ling gasped. “It’s so cute! Its fur is beautiful, not a speck of impurity!”

“Where did you get such a beautiful Swiftwind Dog? You didn’t borrow money again, did you?”

Xia Muqing touched her nose. “No, no. This is… a gift from my boss.”

“Such a good boss?” Xu Ling was skeptical. “I don’t believe it. Is there something wrong with this Swiftwind Dog?”

She tentatively reached out her hand to pet the Swiftwind Dog’s head.

“Woof!”

The Swiftwind Dog, which had been calm until now, suddenly leaped up and pounced on Xia Muqing like a wind vortex!

Xia Muqing was knocked into its embrace and instinctively stepped back a bit. “What—”

“Splash!”

A stream of water suddenly shot from the side, hitting the exact spot where Xia Muqing had just been.

“Hey, what’s wrong with you? Why are you spraying your water gun on your sister?”

A woman hurriedly ran over from the hallway, grabbed the child playing with the water gun next to Xia Muqing, and gave him a tap on the back. “Apologize right now!”

Xu Ling stood there, stunned.

“If I’m not mistaken…”

“Just now, the water gun wasn’t even triggered, and the Swiftwind Dog already…”

As she recalled the game content, a thought suddenly flashed through Xia Muqing’s mind.

The hint was indeed correct, the Swiftwind Dog’s characteristic wasn’t “fear” at all.

It was an extremely rare… danger premonition!

—

“You mean, this Swiftwind Dog was returned by the buyer because it was timid?”

“Yes,” Xia Muqing nodded, “But clearly, timidity was just a surface trait.”

The real reason lay in the “danger premonition” ability.

Xu Ling didn’t have a deep understanding of this characteristic, as Blue Star’s research on mythical beast traits was still at a superficial level, but Xia Muqing understood it clearly.

In the game, this was an S-rank rare trait.

Not only was it rare, but the “danger premonition” ability was also incredibly powerful. It allowed the mythical beast to sense potential dangers around it in advance, enabling it to take precautions.

In combat, it was practically a cheat.

But therein lay the problem.

The Swiftwind Dog was still too young and too weak. The world outside was full of dangers for it, and its powerful trait brought not only a premonition of the future but also an ever-present fear.

Other mythical beasts’ sharp claws, the endless stream of steel vehicles, humans who could easily kick it away…

Day after day of constant anxiety had gradually shaped the Swiftwind Dog’s fearful and introverted personality. Its powerful talent had become a shackle, limiting its growth.

Xia Muqing gently stroked the Swiftwind Dog’s fur, her tone especially soft: “Don’t be scared, Xiao Feng. No one here will hurt you. Let’s get stronger together, okay?”

“Awoo.”

Xu Ling looked at the Swiftwind Dog enviously: “How nice, you really got lucky.”

After hearing Xia Muqing’s description, she could roughly understand how powerful the “danger premonition” ability was.

“I wonder who its original owner was. If they knew they missed out on a mythical beast with a rare trait, they’d probably be so angry they’d spit blood…”

Xia Muqing: “Oh, I’ve met its original owner. You know them too.”

Xu Ling: “…?”

Xia Muqing smiled and said, “It’s Liu Pan.”

Xu Ling: “…Pffhahahaha!”

Xu Ling clutched her stomach, laughing so hard she couldn’t catch her breath: “Wow, that’s just so fitting! Serves him right! He’s selfish and pretentious, always walking around like he’s better than everyone else, with his nose pointing to the sky… Ugh, I’ve disliked him for so long!”

“Go for it, Muqing. Take good care of the Swiftwind Dog, and make sure you show that guy some color during the subject exams!”