21: Chapter 21 Blood Spirit Fruit is ready

The two chatted intermittently while eating.

"Qin Ding, I still don't know how to shake the spear shaft. I saw you practicing it this morning. Could you teach me this afternoon?"

"Sure."

"I also don't know how to do the spear thrust, and I'm not proficient with the spear coil either."

"Alright, I'll teach you later."

After finishing their meal, they sat quietly on the ground, chatting and discussing their cold weapon practice for the afternoon. As time passed, students began to return to the martial arts field.

When they saw Qin Ding and Bai Muxue sitting side-by-side on the ground chatting, they weren't surprised at all; they had known about the relationship between the two long before the Beast Taming Class was merged.

It was probably a kind of unspoken, tacit understanding? They weren't sure, but they were quite content to be spectators.

After all, who doesn't love seeing childhood sweethearts end up together?

Wan Kang looked around and nodded subconsciously, "Without that show-off Li Dong around who can't stand seeing others do well, the air feels much fresher."

Unexpectedly, someone beside Wan Kang heard this and looked hesitant. After struggling for a moment, he finally spoke up about what he had heard during lunch.

However, his voice was very low, as if he was afraid of being overheard.

"Li Dong? I heard he transferred to Class 3. Just now at lunch, I heard Li Dong and the Class 3 monitor plotting to kill Qin Ding's Black Dog during the Class Competition at the end of the semester."

Wan Kang: !

Wan Kang whipped his head around, looking at the person behind him with utter astonishment, the caution written all over his face. Words of shock blurted out.

"Are you serious?"

His voice wasn't quiet, attracting the attention of many. The person who spoke became instantly embarrassed. Seeing this, Wan Kang pondered for two seconds before decisively grabbing the other person's hand and walking toward Qin Ding and Bai Muxue.

"Big Black? I didn't bring him from home. How about you? Did you bring your white fox to school?"

"No, I guessed you didn't bring yours, so I didn't bring mine either. I was afraid the little one would get bullied. Combat between beasts isn't prohibited in the Iron Garden; the 'nanny' only ensures that the beasts in the Iron Garden aren't severely injured or killed."

Just then, the two people talking noticed Wan Kang approaching and tacitly stopped speaking. Their expressions showed some surprise when they saw Wan Kang dragging someone along with him.

Qin Ding: "This is..."

"Say what you just said again. No one can hear us here."

Words? What words? And why be afraid of being heard?

Although Qin Ding didn't know what it was about, the fact that they were being this cautious meant it clearly wasn't a simple matter.

At this point, the man didn't hesitate. Adopting a "go for broke" mentality, he repeated what he had heard in the cafeteria.

"I, I only heard this much, monitor..."

After finishing, Xu Hai looked at Qin Ding with some trepidation. When he saw that Qin Ding was completely calm, he felt surprised.

To hear something like that and still remain calm? He truly lived up to his reputation as the top martial arts student at No. 11 High School who always maintained the first place in physical fitness tests.

On the other hand, Bai Muxue, standing to the side, seemed to have ice crystals forming beneath her porcelain-white face, her eyes like two cold, venom-tipped stars.

She knew very well that Qin Ding and Big Black had signed a Life and Death Contract.

"What is your name?"

"Xu Hai."

Silently memorizing the name, Qin Ding nodded with a calm expression, mentally sentencing Li Dong to death.

"Thank you, Xu Hai."

Just then, Instructor Liu Jun strode into the martial arts field, "Alright, let's start class."

Wan Kang and Xu Hai left. Bai Muxue, with a cold face, wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Qin Ding speaking first.

"Let's practice the spear first. Li Dong's matter isn't important."

Once he seized the opportunity, it wouldn't just be as simple as killing a beast, so Li Dong's matter was, naturally, unimportant.

The words Bai Muxue wanted to say were stuck in her throat. It wasn't because of what Qin Ding said, but because she saw the look in his eyes—it was a kind of calmness, an eerie calmness.

In almost an instant, Bai Muxue understood Qin Ding's thoughts.

"Okay."

Time trickled by, and soon it was time to end the school day. The students put down their weapons one by one, said goodbye to Instructor Liu Jun, and left the martial arts field.

"Mu Xue, I have some things to buy, so I won't be heading back with you today."

"Alright, then I'll be going first."

At the school gate, the two parted ways. Bai Muxue walked in the direction of her home, while Qin Ding walked to the bus stop and boarded a bus heading to the Beast Tamer Commercial Street.

This place had Breeder shops, spirit item shops, cold weapon shops, and spirit beast cub shops, selling everything related to Beast Tamers and Breeders.

He had come once before out of curiosity, but that was the only time.

After getting off the bus, Qin Ding had a clear goal and headed straight for a spirit item shop that looked quite decent from the outside.

"Hello, sir, may I ask what you..."

"blood spirit fruit."

The attendant's words were interrupted before he could finish. The rest of his sentence stuck in his throat, and after a two-second pause, he nodded.

"Very well, sir. Please wait at the front desk, and I will go pack the spirit item for you now."

Soon, the attendant came out holding an exquisite box and opened it in front of Qin Ding, "Sir, you can now open the item identification app developed by the Federation to scan and confirm."

Qin Ding said nothing, merely glancing at the displayed Life Records, and said decisively: "No need, just pack it up."

[Spirit Item: blood spirit fruit]

[Description: For spirit beasts with ordinary aptitude, there is a certain probability of raising their aptitude by one level. For spirit beasts with inferior aptitude, there is a small probability of producing a miraculous effect.]

The miraculous effect, that should be what the Life Records evaluated for Big Black; there's a probability of triggering a rebound from rock bottom, right?

Qin Ding's decisiveness surprised the attendant slightly, but out of professional courtesy and respect for the customer's request, the attendant didn't say anything more. Instead, he carefully and slowly packaged the item in front of Qin Ding and solemnly handed it to him.

As for why he gave the goods before collecting payment? It was because spirit item shops like this were backed by the Federation.

The Federation allowed shop owners to break the limbs of those who skipped out on payment without the shop owners being held liable. Furthermore, the runaway customer had to pay the full amount for the items they tried to escape with—it was full compensation, not just payment.

Taking out the prize card given by the school, Qin Ding made the payment decisively. When the attendant saw the prize card, a trace of surprise was clearly visible in his eyes.

Leaving the spirit item shop, Qin Ding headed toward a rather impressive-looking cold weapon shop.

He placed an order for a 2.4-meter-long spear.

"Young man, I've heard your requirements clearly, but I'll state this upfront: this item is being custom-made according to your specifications. Once it's forged, it cannot be returned or exchanged. The deposit is 5,000 federal currency, and the remaining 15,000 will be collected in one month."

As for asking whether Qin Ding was confident he could wield a spear he had custom-ordered himself, or suggesting he reconsider, the shop owner said nothing.

Don't be silly; the shop owner's goal was to make money, and besides, he had already stated that once customized, it couldn't be returned or exchanged.

"I understand."

After leaving his personal information and contact details, Qin Ding took the bag containing the blood spirit fruit, left the Beast Tamer Commercial Street, and boarded the bus home.

One month later, pick up the spear.

Participate in the school's Class Competition, kill Li Dong's Brocade Fighting Chicken, if there's still a chance...