Meanwhile, on the stairs, Li Xue whispered to Lin Fang at the same time, as if she had heard her brothers' conversation in the reception hall, "Listen. Soon I'll text you everything. Where we met, our first date, and what we like about each other. I will also send the list of my likes and dislikes. Memorize it, okay? They're definitely going to try and trap us with questions. Whatever I texted you will be our official story, alright? And also, send some rough details about your background, education, residence, parents, likes and dislikes, etc. We have to look like a perfect couple, but since we just started seeing each other, I will use that as a pretext to ask for atleast a year of time."
Lin Fang gave her a nod. "Alright."
After a while, they reached the third-floor tavern. Inside, Li Chengfeng was slouched in a chair, a half-empty jug beside him and a foul breath of alcohol in the air as usual.
Li Xue raised her voice, "Uncle Li."
He groaned and cracked an eye open. When he saw Lin Fang, he blinked a few times as his eyes wandered around, only to see his niece. He muttered. "Tch… Where's that pretty girl?"
Li Xue rolled her eyes. "Behave, Uncle."
Lin Fang stepped forward and said. "Master Li, I came here to inform you that in one week, I'm going to participate in the tamer examination with the monster I've raised at home. Is it possible to resolve the Nemesis Spirit issue by then?"
Li Chengfeng bolted upright, turning sober all of a sudden, listening to those words. "A tamer? Are you insane?"
His voice echoed across the tavern.
"I told you before. The path of a monster tamer isn't for you. That should be obvious by now. With mana crystals on the market, you could learn combat techniques. Then, use them to draw out Nemesis' power."
"I'm sorry, but Master Li, I don't want to be a hunter," Lin Fang said firmly. "I want to be a tamer. Can you help me or not?"
Li Chengfeng stared at him for a long second before grunting, "Fine. Your life, your choices to make… and your consequences to bear."
He stood up, wobbling slightly, then steadied himself. "Fine. The first thing we need to do is deal with the Nemesis Spirit."
"Where are we going?" Lin Fang asked.
"Where Else? The Spirit Valley."
*Ding!
[You entered the Spirit Valley]
Sprawled before them was the same mystic grassland, brimming with translucent figures of various monster spirits.
"Take out the amulet," Li Chengfeng then said aloud, crossing his arms.
Lin Fang reached his neck and removed it. And then, all of a sudden, like smoke taking shape, the eerie black cat spirit materialized above his head.
This time, he saw it clearly. Lin Fang murmured under his breath, "This looks just like the one I absorbed."
Before he could think any more, a strange ripple passed through the valley. Every single spirit in the field stopped moving.
Then, they started bowing their heads one after another as if subjects were greeting their King. Even the Epic grade spirits, like the twin-headed flame hounds or the thunder bear spirit, all of them bowed toward Nemesis without a sound.
Lin Fang couldn't help but take a step back in shock, watching the scenario. "What's going on?"
Li Chengfeng exhaled slowly, folding his arms across his chest, and answered. "Nemesis is a Spirit King, Lin Fang. No spirit has the guts to stand in its presence."
Lin Fang glanced up at the spirit floating above him, and his fists tightened slightly.
Li Chengfeng continued, went on explaining.
With Nemesis on his side, he can suppress any spirit you can find, well, except for another spirit King or a pseudo Spirit King.
But that also means Lin Fang cannot form a soul bond contract with any spirit weaker than a Pseudo Spirit King that will willingly submit to him. Nemesis won't allow it.
Hence, according to Li Chengfeng, his only path forward as a tamer is to find another Spirit King willing to become his companion.
But Lin Fang inwardly scoffed at that statement. After all, he already has a full roster in his system.
As he cannot say it aloud, he can only go on with the flow.
Clearing his throat, he acted curiously, pointing toward the silent cat spirit that hovered above him. "So, how do I suppress it then?"
"Sit down," Li Chengfeng instructed, motioning with his finger. "Close your eyes and meditate. Try to form a mental link with it. If you can reach out, it would become easier to suppress its presence."
Lin Fang nodded and sat cross-legged right where he stood. He focused, trying to calm his breathing and pushing all thoughts aside. Slowly, he tried to reach out with his mind, like he was calling out for the spirit to talk to him.
Five minutes turned to ten, then in no time, more than forty minutes passed without any results. The black cat floated as still as a statue, watching with disinterest. Meanwhile, the system remained a silent spectator as if this wasn't its concern.
Finally, Li Chengfeng stepped forward, stopping him. "That's enough. Wear the amulet again."
Lin Fang opened his eyes with a sigh, slipped the amulet around his neck, and stood up. "So, what now?"
"We go into the wilderness," Li Chengfeng said simply.
"Eh?"
*
Back in the reception hall, Li Xue was tapping away at her tablet while she leaned back with her legs crossed on the counter. Her brothers are nowhere to be seen at the moment.
Spotting them climbing down the chairs, she hurriedly got up. "What happened?" She seemed to be expecting positive results.
But Li Chengfeng only replied flatly. "We're going out. Close the guild for the day." Taking a pause, he then added as an afterthought. "And bring Betty."
Li Xue blinked. "Betty?"
As Li Chengfeng nodded, Li Xue didn't question anymore and simply patted a drawer behind the reception counter. With a tiny click, the drawer slid open and out popped a fluffy white cat, yawning lazily.
"Betty, come on," she cooed.
The cat meowed and leapt onto the counter.
Lin Fang bent down to pet it. "Hey there, little…"
HISSSSS!
Betty's back suddenly arched, and her fur bristled, hissing at Lin Fang, who jerked his hand back in surprise. Hostility is clearly evident in this snow cat.
Li Xue quickly scooped her up, scolding her softly. "Hey, he is the one who cured you. Behave."
As she apologized, Lin Fang waved his hand with a smile, but his eyes were momentarily fixed on the cat, inspecting its data.
Name: Betty
Species: Frost Veil Cat
Element: Ice
Level: 16 (Suppressed)
Grade: Legendary
Potential: Overlord Tier (Level-70)
*
There wasn't much change to her status, except that she is no longer ill, and there was a suppression of the level of the cat, meaning the cat is stronger than it seemed on the surface. It reminded him of Po.
As Lin Fang wondered what could it be its true strength could be, Li Chengfeng glanced over and passed off a comment with a shrug. "She's half a step into Spirit King class. No wonder she reacted to Nemesis like that."
Lin Fang nodded slowly in understanding, rubbing his arm.