Monster Pet Evolution

Da Zi turned around to find that Gao Peng had started walking towards the base of the cliff.

Startled by the commotion, the Corpsedeer pack had long fled the place. Chen Hanqiao unsteadily came down from the cliff. He jogged up to Gao Peng, his face looking somewhat apologetic. "I'm sorry, I..." He left his mouth hanging open for a moment, but no sounds came out.

Gao Peng looked him over and smiled faintly. "I was their real target. You were simply caught in the crossfire. I'm the one who should be apologizing for involving all of you in my conflict with these people."

Chen Hanqiao simply smiled, unsure of what to say. A burly middle-aged man stepped forward from behind Chen Hanqiao. His arms were as thick as logs, his eyes vibrant. Even though there were a few bruises and scars on his face, but otherwise, he seemed to be the picture of health.

"Chin up, kiddo. It was only a minor setback. It's only been five years since the Cataclysm. We still have plenty of time to build ourselves back up," said the middle-aged man, patting Chen Hanqiao on the shoulder.

Chen Hanqiao looked up at him wearily. He had evidently not gotten over the loss of his familiar.

A familiar's death could cause serious damage to its trainer's soul. Scientists had conducted experiments to show that upon a familiar's death, not only would its trainer lose the Soul Power that they had gained from their familiar while nurturing it, but they would also receive a huge blow to their own souls and later on, succumb to a period of emaciation.

However, if said trainer already had a strong soul to begin with, their familiar's death probably wouldn't have much impact on it. It was noteworthy that this period of emaciation wouldn't last indefinitely.

"Thank you for saving us from those fiends," said the middle-aged man earnestly. This man had an indescribable charm to him, making him a reassuring presence for most people. This must have been the reason why he was able to lead a monster-hunting group of his own.

"Don't blame yourself. We were the ones who were ambushed and had our familiars killed by these people and whoever's behind them. We can only blame ourselves for being far too weak to put up a fight. Survival of the fittest is the only rule that matters in this world. Weakness has no place in it. Still, I have no intention of letting such a cowardly attack go unpunished," growled the middle-aged man.

After hearing what his father said, Chen Hanqiao's expression shifted. Clenching his fists, he said through gritted teeth, "I will avenge my Electric Luster Bear! I don't care how long it takes; I will not rest until justice is served," he said.

The middle-aged man held his fist in his hand, bidding Gao Peng farewell. Then he led his monster-hunting party out of the forest.

The man let out a long whistle. The ground trembled, and a moment later, a Commander-tier Earthstrider Devilworm, whose body seemed to have been bisected, popped out from the ground before the middle-aged man and began nuzzling him. The man looked surprised, as if he hadn't expected it to be so intimate.

"Let me escort you back," said Gao Peng. The middle-aged man didn't object.

Along the way, Gao Peng found out that the man's name was Chen Nianhua. A Chinese person from overseas, he had come to the mainland with his son to worship their ancestors when the Cataclysm happened. Both father and son had remained here ever since.

Gao Peng asked them if they would like to join the Southern Sky Group. He quite admired Chen Nianhua.

"We've lost everything. Our entire monster-hunting party is finished... and I just canceled my Blood Contract with this one here," said Chen Nianhua, gesturing at the Earthstrider Devilworm.

Most of their familiars hadn't survived the ambush. One of the few survivors included the Earthstrider Devilworm, who still hadn't come out of the battle unscathed. If it wasn't for its unique physiology, it would have met the same fate as the other familiars back then.

In order to keep his familiar alive, Chen Nianhua had ordered the Earthstrider Devilworm to dive back into the ground and canceled his Blood Contract with it.

"Why are you still here? Back then, I trapped you in order to sign a Blood Contract with you. After all these years, you've given me nothing but the cold shoulder. I thought you hated me," said Chen Nianhua, still unable to believe that his familiar had come back for him.

The Earthstrider Devilworm simply lay coiled on the ground and gave the man's chest a nudge with its head. Seeing that this didn't elicit a reaction from him, the worm lowered its head beneath Chen Nianhua's hand.

Chen Nianhua heaved a long sigh, then produced a dagger from his pocket and cut one of his fingers with it. He pressed his finger against the Earthstrider Devilworm's head.

"I'm glad that your familiar decided to re-establish its Blood Contract with you," said Gao Peng with a smile.

Desolion leaped down from Gao Peng's arms and landed on the mat of moss on the ground. The Phytophagous Symbiotic Moss was instantly frozen. With one casual wave of its claw, Desolion smashed the fungal mat into pieces, then lowered its body, ready to leap back into Gao Peng's embrace—

A dragon claw appeared before it. Da Zi glared at it warningly, shaking its head.

Back in the Southern Sky Group, Gao Peng let Chen Hanqiao and the others change their clothes and rest for a bit after taking nice, hot baths.

"Just these two duc... humans?" said Goldie, looking at their captives from the corner of its eye. "Da Zi, you're growing weak. You're no longer fit to be my rival."

Seems like Gao Peng went out this time just to take care of these two humans. Good thing I didn't go with him. It would have been a waste of my time, thought Goldie.

"Not true. I killed three Lord-tier familiars on my own. Isn't that right, Gao Peng?" said Da Zi angrily.

Gao Peng nodded. "Yeah, Da Zi did take down three Lord-tier familiars by itself."

"Oh?" Goldie turned to look at Da Zi with a mix of surprise and renewed respect. Immediately after, it turned around and laughed, showing its bald scalp to everyone behind it. "Hahahaha!"

What TV show is the duck obsessed over this time?! thought Gao Peng, frowning.

Goldie always snuck into the manor's home theater to watch its favorite films when no one was looking. In truth, Gao Peng and his grandfather rarely used it, so Goldie was always able to indulge in his hobby without meeting any resistance, and it did so quite diligently.

Later, Gao Peng loaded the two unconscious masked men onto Flamy's back, which then flew them to the riverbank.

Turbulent waves raged across the river's surface. Various aquatic lifeforms popped their heads out of the water. Flamy coldly gazed down at them.

A ripple spread across the surface of the water. Then, a wrinkled brain emerged from the water. It was surrounded by a group of monsters. "Daddy, Daddy..." they chirped excitedly. Gao Peng stared at the scene before him, speechless.

Why are none of my familiars normal?! This is definitely not what I asked for!

"Master, see how well I've raised them," said the Growing Brain humbly. "Come say hello, little ones. This is your grandpa."

"Grandpa, Grandpa," cried the group of monsters. Thanks to the Growing Brain's psychic transmission, Gao Peng could hear these monsters' voices loud and clear.

"This is Uncle Flamy."

"Uncle Flamy, Uncle Flamy," shouted the monsters in unison.

"Enough. I need you to do something for me. Can you extract other people's memories?"

"Yes, but it's a barbaric procedure. Most monsters can't handle the strain and are left brain-dead as a result," explained the Growing Brain.

"That's quite all right. I want you to read the memories of these two. I want to know who wants me dead. These two bozos don't have enough brains between them to set up such an elaborate ambush."