Shu Bao did not know that his beautiful friend had secretly helped him. However, when the beautiful friend arrived, he only saw him in his mouse form, so he did not connect the two together. He only thought that the mouse looked quite similar to the one that couldn’t open the door. What was the name of that mouse again?
Fu Qing had a vague feeling that the name was right on the tip of his tongue but couldn’t remember it. In the end, he left with that question lingering in his mind.
On Shu Bao’s side, after Feng Shou launched the indestructible attack, the necromancer army charged forward. However, it was not the real Feng Shou leading the charge but a phantom of Feng Shou. The real Feng Shou, following Shu Bao’s instructions, quickly headed in the opposite direction.
Under Shu Bao’s guidance, Feng Shou saw a door suddenly appear in an area that had been empty. As the door opened, a reminder from its new friend urged it to rush through the door.
Without hesitation, Feng Shou leaped through the strange door with Shu Bao on its back.
In an instant, the world before him brightened. Feng Shou, feeling uncomfortable, briefly closed its eyes. When it opened them again, his eyes were still moist from the discomfort, but it was reluctant to close them again.
It happily trotted around the bedroom, eventually finding itself instinctively at the window. Peeking out through the wooden window, it gazed at the bright world outside.
Feeling the pleasant warmth of the sunlight, Feng Shou let out a joyful whine, which successfully attracted the attention of others in the tribe.
The Xia Wang people were worried about Shu Bao, who had not returned yet. So they would occasionally glance at the second floor of the mission hall, as the deity had returned from there last time.
This time, however, when they turned around, they saw a horse!?
The horse even looked at them with dark, expressive eyes. They could see curiosity and confusion on its face.
Hearing the news, the high priest hurried towards the mission hall, fearing that the deity might be in trouble. When he reached the entrance, he saw the deity emerging from inside, riding an exceptionally large black horse!
The high priest stood there dazedly, watching as the deity rode away at full speed, leaving behind only a gust of wind.
The horse sped away, galloping through the tribe and racing towards the exit. It then leaped over a fence gate that was as tall as a person.
After that, the horse began to run wild outside the tribe, occasionally letting out a joyful whinny, as if it were a child that had been confined for a long time and was suddenly released to play.
The Xia Wang tribe members stopped in their tracks, watching the horse and the deity on its back.
“True to the deity’s reputation, they can even ride a horse!”
“Last time it was a cat, the Rain Girl, and the dragon egg. This time it’s a horse. What will it be next time?”
“The deity is amazing!”
Despite the disproportionate size, with the small Shu Bao riding such a large horse, the Xia Wang tribe members were filled with admiration due to the deity’s aura. No one found it strange that Shu Bao was riding a horse, despite the odd size ratio.
While Feng Shou enjoyed the sunlight and ran freely, Shu Bao on the horse’s back was having a rough time, bouncing up and down with each of Feng Shou’s steps. Shu Bao could only hold onto the horse’s mane to avoid falling off.
Once Feng Shou had run enough and began to stroll on the grass, Shu Bao finally let go of the mane, noticing that he had pulled out a strand of it. He thought for a moment, then took out a wooden comb he had made a few days ago from his system bracelet and started to groom the horse.
Feng Shou turned his head to look and made an effort to hold still, making the grooming process easier for Shu Bao.
After they had crossed into the real world, the necromancer general had disappeared due to the daylight. Feng Shou remained calm, as the necromancer general was not always on the horse in the chaotic world.
Seeing Feng Shou’s calm demeanor, Shu Bao understood that the horse could control the appearance of the necromancer army. This was likely why the necromancer army would occasionally disappear in the dark world, as Feng Shou did not always summon them.
After finishing the grooming, Shu Bao patted the horse. “This place is quite safe. You can stay here if you like, but don’t harm other living beings.”
The horse nodded repeatedly, indicating its understanding.
Shu Bao then jumped down from the horse’s back. Feng Shou looked at him with a hint of apprehension.
Shu Bao patted Feng Shou’s face to reassure it. “Don’t worry. I’m just going back there. If you’ve had enough of playing, you can come back. It’s best to return by night, and don’t wander too far to avoid getting lost. If you plan to leave this place, just let me know in advance.”
Shu Bao rambled on, and the hint of apprehension in Feng Shou’s eyes faded. Feng Shou, at this moment, did not wish to return to the tribe—it had not explored enough yet.
It was clear that in Feng Shou’s distant earliest memories, the original world had also been filled with light. However, after a night of war, the world had never been bright again.
From Feng Shou’s various reactions, Shu Bao guessed that Feng Shou must have originally lived on a planet in a cold weapon era. Later, during the chaos of war, the master was killed. At that time, a black meteorite fell, breaking through the reality and the chaotic world.
Feng Shou entered the dark world and, driven by its obsession, created the necromancer army. Since then, it lived in the chaotic world. Although its lifespan was extended due to mutation, it had not seen sunlight again until now. So, when it was back in the sunlight, it was exuberantly frolicking.
When Shu Bao returned to the tribe, the high priest’s concerned gaze met him. The high priest scrutinized him carefully. Shu Bao cooperatively raised his paws and spun around twice to show that he wasn’t injured. Only then did the high priest relax.
Then, the high priest remembered another important matter. “Deity, did you find the news about the Monarch-level Beast?”
Shu Bao tilted his head. “Yes, I did!”
“Really? That’s great! Will it pass by our tribe?”
Shu Bao thought for a moment. “It will.”
“I see.” The high priest was immediately troubled and suggested, “In that case, why don’t we stay outside the tribe for the next few nights? We won’t stay in the tribe for now.”
Since avoiding the Monarch-level Beast was not an option, they could stay outside the tribe at night to avoid entering the chaotic world. They could return once the Monarch-level Beast had left. Although staying outside at night was also quite dangerous, it was still better than facing the Monarch-level Beast.
“That’s not necessary. The Monarch-level Beast is grazing outside; it will probably come back soon. If we hide, it will probably follow us,” Shu Bao said, glancing at Feng Shou, who was casually wagging its tail outside the tribe.
The high priest, puzzled, followed Shu Bao’s gaze and saw the tall and magnificent horse. After a moment of silence, the high priest spoke with a hint of suspicion, “Is that… the Monarch-level Beast?”
“Sort of.” Feng Shou itself did not possess the power of a Monarch-level Beast, but the undead army it created had strength comparable to that of a Monarch-level Beast.
The high priest’s expression became very complicated. Did the deity’s investigation into the Monarch-level Beast’s whereabouts result in riding it back? What kind of operation was this?
Staring at the black warhorse grazing outside the tribe, the high priest felt it was quite surreal and even wondered if the deity had found the wrong target. However, soon, when the labor wolves returned with supplies and encountered the warhorse, they all retreated and cautiously circled around before returning to the tribe.
The high priest finally believed that the horse outside was truly extraordinary.
“Then we should…” The high priest was about to say that everything should proceed as usual when Shu Bao interrupted, “Let’s stay outside tonight. It’s indeed not suitable to stay in the tribe these days.”
The flow of time was different between the two worlds. In the chaotic world, there would certainly be some relentless beings lingering nearby. Shu Bao had no intention of exposing the tribe to the chaotic world excessively at this time.
Thus, the high priest notified everyone that they would not be staying overnight in the tribe for the next two nights. He also consulted with the Wolf King to arrange for a wolf patrol to protect the safety of the Xia Wang tribe’s people during the night.
So, before nightfall, the tribe members began preparing to leave. They packed several tents. For safety, they also took the two dragon eggs and other valuable supplies…
The tribe was bustling with activity. Shu Bao, on the other hand, went to the mission hall to continue accepting tasks. The submission time for magic tasks had long exceeded twenty-four hours, and new tasks had been available for a while. Only now did Shu Bao have time to review them.
【Collect 10 Lord’s Hearts. Task Reward: Magic Academy Blueprint.】
Upon seeing the task reward, Shu Bao’s eyes lit up immediately. It sounded like another building, and a very important one related to the future number and quality of mages in the base. Shu Bao was eager to see what the Magic Academy could offer.
However, what exactly was a Lord’s Heart? It sounded like something quite difficult to obtain. Was it the kind of lord he thought it was? Shu Bao’s gaze shifted to the warhorse not far away.
Feng Shou sneezed loudly, then shook its head in confusion and continued to graze. It felt like the grass under the warm sunlight tasted particularly good. It wanted to eat more as if it might not get to eat it again if it returned to the pitch-dark world at night.
Shu Bao withdrew his gaze, thinking he wasn’t the kind of mouse who would investigate the horse’s heart just for the sake of a mere Magic Academy, even though he was indeed somewhat curious.
Collecting 10 Lord’s Hearts would surely be quite challenging, so it seemed like buying them was the better option. Shu Bao wondered how his snake teammate’s work was progressing and whether it would be enough to purchase the Lord’s Hearts.
As dusk fell, the Xia Wang tribe’s members departed from the tribe in a grand procession. Of course, they didn’t venture too far, in case any unexpected events occurred at the tribe.
They set up tents at the temporary base, with patrolling forest wolves on the perimeter. The camp had a warm fire with sizzling roasted meat, creating a cozy and picturesque scene.
Feng Shou, having tired from running, lay resting beside Shu Bao. The little white cat kept a wary eye on it, and the Rain Girl looked on with a mixture of concern and resignation, seemingly unsure how to handle the large creature.
Shu Bao continuously offered fruit to the Rain Girl to prevent her from crying. Camping outdoors and having rain would be quite inconvenient.
As night deepened, many in the temporary camp retired to their tents to sleep. Finally, when it was time for the chaotic world to descend each night, Shu Bao and the high priest both looked toward the tribe not far away.
To their surprise, the tribe still stood there and had not disappeared. They wondered if it was because there was no one left in the tribe, thereby lacking the conditions for entering the chaotic world, or if it was just that the tribe left a trace in the real world even after entering the chaotic world each night.
Shu Bao swallowed the small wild fruit skewered on his claw and stood up, saying to the high priest beside him, “I’m going to take a look.”
The high priest opened his mouth as if to stop him but could only finally say, “Be careful.”
As soon as Shu Bao moved, Feng Shou also moved. Even though Shu Bao indicated he was just going to walk around the tribe and didn’t need to ride, Feng Shou followed closely behind him.
The little white cat and the Rain Girl exchanged glances, sensing their positions were in jeopardy, and both got up to follow.
So, instead of a stealthy departure, Shu Bao was followed by a tall, fine horse, a conspicuous white cat, and a Rain Girl making incessant meowing sounds.
Shu Bao looked back at the trio with a headache: “…” If he ever encountered the Nan Ming legion again, his identity as a beast tamer would likely be inescapable, considering he was inexplicably followed by a bunch of magical beasts.
Noticing Shu Bao’s gaze, the white cat slapped the Rain Girl on the head. The Rain Girl’s small raincoat was knocked over her head, so she hurriedly reached out with her little short arms to adjust it, leaving her no time to meow.
Seeing this, Shu Bao couldn’t say anything more and continued moving toward the tribe.
With her vision blocked, the Rain Girl, sensing that Shu Bao was about to leave, became a bit anxious and made a whimpering cry. The little white cat, startled, quickly extended its tail. The Rain Girl then clung to the cat’s tail, stumbling along to avoid falling behind.
