Chapter 73: Returning to the Border

Chapter 73: Returning to the Border

Outside the Floating Forest.

Deputy Officer Li and the others felt heavy-hearted as they stared into the distance.

The other three—Chen Fei, Cheng Cheng, and Bai Youyou—had already been rescued.

Only one rescue team had been lost inside.

However, the injured had been rescued one after another, though a few rescue team members were difficult to heal due to severe injuries.

As students, Chen Fei and the other two had been rescued relatively early.

They watched as the soldiers carried out the Soul Pact Masters from the rescue teams afterward.

The sight sent chills down their spines.

Some Soul Pact Masters and Soul Pets were covered in blood, clearly having gone through a fierce life-and-death battle.

It was only at that moment that they understood why the Dawn Cup’s reward of a wilderness expedition was considered the best prize.

Before this, they had thought that the Wild Soul Lands, though dangerous, were something anyone with hands and feet could manage.

But the hidden dangers only became apparent now.

If they had come alone, they would have died countless times.

“What exactly happened?” Bai Youyou whispered.

“Someone attacked us inside the Floating Forest…” Cheng Cheng said. “I encountered a few attacked contestants, and their injuries didn’t look like they were from those enraged Soul Beasts. The rescue teams were just very prompt…”

“Then why are these Soul Pact Masters from the rescue teams so badly injured…” Bai Youyou was startled. “Who were they trying to save? It must be serious… Could it be…”

“It must be Wang Che,” Chen Fei thought aloud. “Out of the four of us, only Wang Che hasn’t come out. The other contestants aren’t within our rescue scope.”

“No way?” Bai Youyou felt a bit sad and sighed. “Is this what they call ‘a fair face hides a tragic fate’? That guy is so handsome—if something happened to him… I’d be really upset.”

“Maybe the more outstanding a person is, the more hardships they face,” Cheng Cheng said.

“That Green Caterpillar… what a pity,” Chen Fei sighed with regret. “Its life as a caterpillar had only just begun…”

“Caw, caw~” Chen Fei’s Swift Thunder War Eagle squawked twice in agreement.

“…” Bai Youyou.

“…” Cheng Cheng.

“Enough, you all,” Deputy Officer Li shouted. “What nonsense are you talking? All of you, shut up!”

The three immediately fell silent.

Deputy Officer Li looked into the distance. Wang Che’s safety was important, but even more crucial was the plot of the Ghost Disciples.

Especially those four beams of light that shot up into the sky earlier—they made Deputy Officer Li’s heart race!

‘I hope the elder succeeds,’ Deputy Officer Li silently prayed.

Just then, two figures rushed out of the distant Floating Forest.

Seeing the leading figure, Deputy Officer Li let out a huge sigh of relief.

The elder had made it out safely!

But who was the person behind Elder Yanming?

Riding a sword, with an extraordinary aura—he actually seemed even more impressive than Elder Yanming?

The three behind also stared in slight disbelief.

Until they got closer.

“Isn’t that Wang Che?”

Deputy Officer Li was stunned. “The Magnetic Sword under his feet is Elder Yanming’s Soul Pet… Wow, I actually didn’t notice it earlier.”

“But at least he’s safe.”

Deputy Officer Li clapped his hands, looking excited and relieved.

Soon, Wang Che and Li Yanming landed safely.

When Wang Che stepped off the Magnetic Sword, he seemed a little reluctant to part with it.

He looked at the Magnetic Sword, patted its hilt, and said, “Next time we have the chance, let’s travel together again.”

“Zzz~” The Magnetic Sword emitted a few sounds in response, then flew back to Li Yanming’s side.

A Soul Ring flashed on Li Yanming’s body, and he immediately recalled the Magnetic Sword, then gave Wang Che a wary look.

He felt like a failure.

Back when he was taming the Magnetic Sword, a rather proud Soul Pet, it had taken him at least a month.

But now, in such a short time, it had become attached to someone else.

It felt as though the child he had raised for years, his tender cabbage, had been taken from him.

“Wang Che, you’re okay? That’s great!”

Just then, Chen Fei and the others walked over, looking Wang Che up and down.

“Thanks to Officer Li here, I’m fine.”

Wang Che pointed at Li Yanming beside him and spoke modestly.

“You scared me to death.”

Bai Youyou patted her chest. “I saw the Soul Pact Masters who came to rescue you being carried out, with heavy casualties. We thought something terrible had happened to you!”

Wang Che glanced at the injured rescue Soul Pact Masters and frowned slightly.

Wang Che knew that the military Soul Pact Masters who had come to rescue him had been ambushed by the Ghost Disciples.

The casualties were surely severe.

That Xue Batian, disguised as a rescue soldier and even carrying an officer’s certificate, must have taken those from these very people.

From the looks of it, the casualties were indeed unusually heavy.

“You’re just a student; don’t dwell on it.”

Deputy Officer Li patted Wang Che’s shoulder. “Don’t overthink it. From the moment we led you out of the border, your safety became our responsibility.”

The three felt the weight of those words and said nothing more.

At that moment, Li Yanming exchanged a few glances with Deputy Officer Li.

The two walked aside, seemingly discussing something.

Deputy Officer Li occasionally glanced back at Wang Che, his eyes concealing something.

The remaining four—Wang Che and the others—stood to the side, chatting among themselves.

Suddenly,

“Unbelievable!” Chen Fei crouched down beside the Green Caterpillar, watching it as it rested.

His eyes burned with fervor.

“What happened?” Bai Youyou and Cheng Cheng were startled and immediately walked over.

“Look!” Chen Fei pointed at the Green Caterpillar and said excitedly, “Its skin is glowing with a crystal-clear luster. It is full of power and also very beautiful. Its body looks like one complete piece. It is completely different from when I saw it before!”

“Every inch of its body seems to contain strong energy.”

“If it didn’t look like a Green Caterpillar, I would strongly suspect it is a fierce beast.”

“How was it raised like this?”

Chen Fei shook his head, as if he had fallen into a crazy state.

Bai Youyou: “…”

Cheng Cheng: “…”

“Wang Che, can I touch its tail?” Chen Fei said excitedly, “Of course, I absolutely won’t wake it up.”

Wang Che: “…”

Chen Fei’s eyes were shining.

Wang Che understood that look.

There was nothing else in his eyes.

“Alright.” Wang Che nodded.

So, Chen Fei carefully approached and gently stroked the Green Caterpillar’s tail with his palm.

It was like he was touching a rare treasure.

“So amazing!” Chen Fei muttered, “Its tail contains extremely powerful energy! The muscle density in its tail is probably even higher than my Swift Thunder War Eagle’s. Wang Che, your Green Caterpillar must have a tail-related Soul Skill, right?”

Not bad.

He could guess that just by touching its tail.

This Chen Fei was a talented person.

After all, the Dawn Cup matches were basically watched city by city.

Plus, the audience was mostly high school students from the same city, and the competition level was relatively low, so there were no commentators or recordings.

Some students used Communicators to record matches, but those usually only spread within their own schools.

Students from other cities rarely paid attention to Dawn Cup matches in other cities unless they were particularly interested.

Naturally, they wouldn’t know much about Wang Che’s Green Caterpillar.

“Let me think… tail, is it Rattler Tail Strike?” Chen Fei was extremely excited, “A weak Green Caterpillar can actually develop Rattler Tail Strike. That’s incredible!”

“Really?” Bai Youyou was shocked, “No wonder your Green Caterpillar won the Dawn Cup in Tianxin City…”

“Getting a Green Caterpillar to learn Rattler Tail Strike… that must be very difficult, right?” Cheng Cheng frowned.

Wang Che nodded and did not deny it.

For the current Green Caterpillar, it had already learned several powerful Soul Skills, and Rattler Tail Strike was one it had used before, so there was no need to hide it.

“More than just difficult.” Chen Fei stood up, his heart surging.

Such an amazing Green Caterpillar really opened his eyes.

Most importantly, it had only been a few days, and the Green Caterpillar had changed again.

And he saw it with his own eyes.

Chen Fei dared to say that this Green Caterpillar was very different from the one he first met at the border two days ago!

You could tell just from its appearance.

Wang Che must have not only had some special encounter in the Floating Forest but also used very powerful training methods.

Of course, Chen Fei didn’t ask more.

Soul Pact Masters all had their own ways of training Soul Pets, and they understood different Soul Pets differently.

But to train a Green Caterpillar to be this strong, he must have many special secrets.

It would be impolite to ask directly, and the other person wouldn’t reveal a single word.

At that moment, the Green Caterpillar slowly woke up.

The first thing it saw was Chen Fei’s big face, which scared it so much that it jumped up and immediately hid behind Wang Che.

It looked at Chen Fei like a beauty seeing a creep.

“Chen Fei, look how scared you made it.” Bai Youyou joked.

Chen Fei stood up, returned to his spot, and stroked the Swift Thunder War Eagle’s feathers.

“Your Swift Thunder War Eagle is also well-trained.” Wang Che glanced at it.

Chen Fei was obsessed with Soul Pets and was very good at training them.

His Soul Pet was definitely not weak.

“Yes.” Chen Fei was not modest. He looked at the Swift Thunder War Eagle, his eyes burning with passion, “But compared to your Green Caterpillar, I feel it’s still far behind. But I believe I can train the Swift Thunder War Eagle to be even better.”

“Gah!” The Swift Thunder War Eagle affectionately pecked Chen Fei’s shoulder.

“You two are making it seem like we’re not good enough.” Bai Youyou looked at Chen Fei challengingly, “We’ll see when we meet in the Qihang Cup!”

“In the Qihang Cup, your Swift Thunder War Eagle will probably evolve into a Fierce Thunder Warhawk at the Third Stage Evolution. But my Golden Thorn Grass and her Rolling Rock Weasel will also evolve to the third stage. After the Martial Soul awakens, it will also have a big impact on the Soul Pet.” Cheng Cheng also stepped forward, “I don’t think we’ll be weaker than Wang Che.”

Their Soul Pets were all young Rare Soul Pets.

Young Rare Soul Pets usually completed their Third Stage Evolution within a thousand years.

Most reached it around five hundred years of Soul Power Cultivation.

For example, the Swift Thunder War Eagle would evolve into a Fierce Thunder Warhawk around three hundred and seventy years.

The Golden Thorn Grass would evolve into a Crystal Thorn Grass around four hundred years of Soul Power Cultivation.

The Rolling Rock Weasel would evolve into a Quake Rock Weasel around four hundred and fifty years.

Their strength would all get a huge boost.