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"Wu Liuqi, what were you even doing?"
Once the burly man left, Sam turned back, raised a fist, and bonked Wu Liuqi on the head, instantly raising a bump.
"If it weren't for Erlong, you'd be selling yourself to pay off the debt!"
Liu Erlong: "…"
Okay, I take it back!
This guy isn't reliable either!
After grumbling inwardly, Liu Erlong noticed Sam himself was now troubled.
He couldn't stop imagining the future. One day, when the mercenary guild grew big and people asked about their very first mission…
Under relentless questioning, he'd have to admit that Wu Liuqi once had no money to pay for food and ended up being forced to wash dishes.
Just thinking about it sent chills down his spine.
Damn it, the ultra-dimensional mercenary guild's image would instantly drop to rock bottom~
Not long after, Liu Erlong led them to a hotel that looked pretty ordinary. "This is where I'm staying. If you don't mind, you can stay here too."
"…"
Sam and the others exchanged looks.
Crap. We just remembered.
We don't have money in this world.
Liu Erlong didn't know their situation. Seeing them stay silent, she assumed they agreed, and casually pulled out her small money pouch.
"One room for each of them!"
"!!!"
That generous?!
Wu Liuqi and Sam's eyes went wide as they instantly adopted worshipful looks, like they were gazing at a rich goddess.
Elsa and Kurama were much calmer. One was a future queen, the other the legendary Nine-Tailed Fox. This kind of expense was nothing to them.
"Oh, right. Do you want to eat something first?" Liu Erlong asked.
It wasn't sudden kindness. Sam and the others were her lifesavers.
Compared to her life, this bit of money was nothing.
"Yes, yes!" Wu Liuqi nodded enthusiastically at the mention of food. He was still savoring the taste of that barbecue.
Sam rubbed his stomach too. He was getting hungry.
Elsa and Kurama didn't object either. They were actually pretty curious about the food in this world.
The hotel was a two-story building. The first floor was a simple dining area, the second floor for lodging.
After the owner showed them to their rooms, everyone gathered downstairs to eat.
Because the town was close to the Star Dou Great Forest, anyone who could run a hotel here had some backing. The soul beast meat they served was from higher-year beasts, with better texture and flavor.
For Elsa and the others, who were eating soul beast meat for the first time, it was surprisingly good. Meat that carried energy like this was a brand-new experience.
"This town survives by relying on the Star Dou Great Forest, right?" Elsa asked Liu Erlong during the meal.
She would be crowned queen soon, so she was quite interested in this kind of development model. Living off local resources.
If parts of her kingdom adopted something similar, the results might be pretty good.
"Yes," Liu Erlong nodded. "There are quite a few towns like this around the Star Dou Great Forest."
"Usually, towns like this are several dozen to about a hundred kilometers away from the forest."
Liu Yan chimed in while stuffing grilled meat into his mouth. "It's far, but it's safer."
Elsa: "…"
Thinking back to the soul beasts they'd encountered earlier, she immediately understood why.
Soul beasts were not friendly at all. One wrong move and people died on the spot.
"I was even thinking about catching a few cute soul beasts to take back as gifts for my sister," Elsa said regretfully, shaking her head. "Didn't expect them to be all so vicious…"
Sam and Wu Liuqi: "..."
Catch a soul beast and bring it back for your little sister?
As a pet?
Wow, you really came up with that idea?
…Though honestly, it doesn't sound half bad.
After all, in this Douluo parallel world, soul beasts are genuinely powerful. If you caught one and gave it to a weaker family member as a "pet," that pet could double as a pretty solid bodyguard.
"I vaguely remember there being a country that set up a soul beast reserve," Sam said after thinking it over. "They specifically raise soul beasts there. The ones raised in captivity might be gentler. Probably more suitable as pets."
He added with a grin, "We could even go check it out sometime. Call it a vacation."
Kurama snorted coldly, clearly unhappy.
Whenever the topic of "pets" came up, it felt like they were subtly hinting at him…
"A country-run soul beast reserve?" Liu Erlong froze. "You mean the Soul Beast Forest?"
"I honestly don't remember the name," Sam shrugged. "I just know there's a place like that."
Truth be told, he kind of wanted a soul beast pet himself. Some of them looked insanely cool, while others were downright adorable.
Like Xiao Wu, that little bunny girl. Super cute.
And spicy rabbit head? Absolutely delicious.
"If it's the Soul Beast Forest, then yeah, it might actually be possible to tame one," Liu Erlong said. "The soul beasts there don't actively attack humans."
"The Star Dou Great Forest is completely different. That's a wild soul beast habitat. The soul beasts there are far more ferocious, and they see humans as natural enemies."
Which made sense. Humans had to hunt soul beasts to keep cultivating. Of course they were enemies.
"Still, I think there are places that sell soul beast pets," Liu Erlong scratched her cheek, sounding unsure. "I just don't know where."
She trained obsessively, after all. Stuff like this wasn't really on her radar.
Elsa: "…Is that so? Then could you help me look for one later?"
Liu Erlong smiled. "No problem!"
"....."