43: Harvest Festival

Lin Yan wore a sighing expression, like a piece of rotten wood that couldn't be carved. "Think about it carefully. 'Datong Wind' and bird-type pet beasts—that would definitely pluck all their feathers clean."

Li Wen: That's right. No wonder he looked like he wanted to devour the Azure Wind Bird.

"Still doing well? What are you doing here?"

Although she felt strong, she was ultimately kind to people.

"My junior brothers and I came to collect our master's mission allowance," Lin Bufan maintained his lazy demeanor.

"What did you say?"

Zhu Ling also understood. The general meaning of the sentence was, 'Is it really okay for you to be so direct? Perhaps you should rephrase that.'

"Oh, my junior brothers and I came to assist our master with a reconnaissance mission. What brings you here?"

Even the most aloof person has moments when they open up. Once the conversation reached this point, there was plenty to complain about.

"Isn't there a place nearby called 'Flower Valley'? I took on a mission from a Rat Faction elder to find a blue Flower Spirit."

The Flower Spirit is purely an ornamental pet beast, completely non-aggressive, but as a pet, it's very popular.

This is also related to its trait. Taking the blue Flower Spirit as an example, its trait is 'Melancholy Flower.' Each color of Flower Spirit possesses traits related to different emotions, which is why a specific color was requested.

And one of Zhu Ling's four teachers is precisely the only researcher specializing in the evolutionary history of both Rat Faction and Chicken Faction pet beasts. Recently, on a whim, she decided to study the Flower Spirit.

"As a result, I couldn't find one for several days straight, so I realized something: I also need to cultivate someone to assist me."

"It just so happens that the Harvest Festival is being held nearby, so I brought him here to get some experience. Anyway, his 'Spatial Rift' talent hasn't even been triggered yet, so he doesn't even qualify to be a reserve member."

"Indeed, compared to your 'Mythical Revival,' the trigger difficulty is quite high. Your talent only works on relatively ancient ruins, and you've been in your element since joining the First Bureau."

Lin Bufan began to seriously consider whether to train his junior brothers. Both of them were good candidates for getting work done.

He just needed to encourage them to participate in the event. After all, there were rewards. Li Wen should have no reason to refuse, and as for Lu Chen, if Li Wen participated, would he not participate?

"Wait, I'll talk to my teachers."

Lin Bufan turned and walked towards Li Wen and the others. Li Wen whispered, "Did Senior Brother find out we were talking smack about him behind his back?"

"It's fine, your Senior Brother is very magnanimous and won't mind such things. Besides, if anything happens, I'll cover for you all, what's there to be afraid of?"

As Lin Bufan was about to approach, Lin Yan spoke up.

"Bufan, it was all them two talking, it had nothing to do with me."

"Talking about what?" Lin Bufan was confused.

Li Wen: ???

Lu Chen: ???

So, 'covering for us' meant dumping a bucket of shit into our pockets?

"Teacher, no more joking, I'm talking about something serious."

"Speak, I'm listening."

"Isn't the Harvest Festival being held here recently? I want them both to participate in the fun activities."

Before Lin Yan could speak, both of them simultaneously waved their hands, wanting to refuse.

Lin Bufan immediately said, in a light tone, "There are rewards. First place gets a Tier 3 Dark-element beast core."

??????

Li Wen: "Senior Brother, waving my hand isn't a refusal, it means I need more money."

Seeing Li Wen agree, and not wanting to be left out, Lu Chen said, "Senior Brother, waving my hand isn't a refusal, it means no need to say more."

Witnessing a 'Sichuan face-changing' act, everything was as expected.

"Since they both agree, there's no problem. The reconnaissance was originally a solo mission, you two can't help much anyway."

"However, the event seems to be in three days. For these two days, just take them out to the wild casually. Lu Chen hasn't even contracted his second pet yet, so see if he finds one he likes."

After receiving confirmation, Lin Bufan turned back.

After Senior Brother left, Lu Chen began his traditional act.

"Teacher, why are you afraid of Senior Brother?"

"Mainly because I can't quite grasp your Senior Brother's temper, and I, as a teacher, am not good at combat. I'm afraid that after he gets a few more monarch-level beasts, he'll start 'respecting his teacher and valuing the Dao.'"

"You two are relatively kind, so I believe you wouldn't do that."

Li Wen: Are you sure? In that instant, I already wanted to 'respect my teacher and value the Dao.'

"You two can explore the surroundings on your own today. Tomorrow, follow your Senior Brother; I won't be in charge of you anymore."

...On the spot, only Li Wen and Lu Chen remained.

"What do you say? Do you have anywhere you want to go? If not, we'll head back to the hotel."

This question seemed to have some huge destructive power on Lu Chen, instantly making him 'red-hot' (embarrassed/flustered).

He struggled for a long time before finally managing to blurt out a sentence.

"I want to go to the Marriage Tree and pray for a good match."

"What? You? The Marriage Tree?"

"Dude, you're not running a fever, are you?"

Lu Chen straightened his face. "I'm serious. Although I'm devoted to the cultivation business, that doesn't mean I don't want to fall in love."

"I've never been in a relationship until now, so it's not strange to be a little curious, is it?"

Although this was very un-Lu Chen, it seemed genuinely necessary to go see it, because he himself was also a 'mother-single' (never been in a relationship).

Why not use his memories from his previous life to fall in love? Because he was also a 'mother-single' back then!

Well, he absolutely had to go see what was going on.

The entire village was built around the mountains, but it wasn't too large. They reached the Marriage Tree in just a moment.

As Li Wen approached, a group of Red String Bell on the tree swarmed around him, instantly turning the scene into a symphony of "Ling~ Ling~ Ling~."

"Ya?"

"Ling~"

"Ya?"

The cute creature on his head also began communicating with the Red String Bell. Li Wen was a little curious.

"What did they tell you, Ya Bao?"

"Ya~"

"They said you have too many red strings of fate, so you're definitely not devoted. Bah, you scumbag Beastmaster."

Li Wen: So, that means I'm a playboy?

But at least he had red strings of fate, meaning he was still normal.

Wait, if he had many red strings of fate, yet he was still 'mother-single,' could it be that he was the 'wooden' one?

While Li Wen was in self-doubt, Lu Chen stepped forward, and the Red String Bell scattered.

To Lu Chen's stunned surprise, they all returned to the tree, until it became quiet again.

A smaller Red String Bell flew down from the tree, actively flying into Lu Chen's hand. While Lu Chen was still in a dazed state, it directly bit his finger, actively completing the contract.

"Ling~"

It let out a joyful cry, then affectionately rubbed against Lu Chen.

Ya Bao brand translator, automatically translating for you.

"It said Lu Chen only has one red string of fate, is very devoted, and it likes Lu Chen very much."

On the scene, two faces were utterly dumbfounded.

Lu Chen: I just completed a contract like this?

Li Wen: Am I really impaired when it comes to romance?