52: Chapter 52 Congratulations and Concern

As soon as the interior of the Storage Ring was scanned by Qin Ding's Mental Energy, a profile of a wolf's head with its mouth slightly open immediately emerged on the band, and the grey ring turned black at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Since I can't inject any more Mental Energy, that means the binding is complete."

Having finished injecting his Mental Energy, Qin Ding opened his eyes and looked down at the Storage Ring on his hand.

Seeing that the grey Storage Ring had turned black and now bore the pattern of a wolf's head, Qin Ding froze for a moment.

"Isn't this the Earth Dog..."

The ring had turned black, and it now featured Dahei's likeness. Could this pattern have been influenced by the mental link between himself and Dahei?

Come to think of it, that made sense. He and Dahei had signed a Life and Death Contract, linking their lives together.

"Awoo."

[Boss, are you done yet? My fur is completely soaked.]

Squatting under the shower head in the bathroom and getting drenched for nearly several minutes, Dahei couldn't help but urge him a second time.

"Alright, I'm coming."

Answering the Earth Dog in the bathroom, Qin Ding took one last glance at the ring on his hand before standing up, grabbing a brush and a change of clothes, and walking toward the bathroom.

Before long, a strange, comfortable groan from a beast echoed from the bathroom.

"Woo..."

[It's a bit itchy, Boss. Use a bit more strength...]

Qin Ding frowned in silence and began to apply more pressure.

"Woo~"

[So nice... This brush is so, so comfortable~]

Dahei lay on the floor in utter bliss, enjoying the shower while basking in Qin Ding's service. The dried blood and dirt on his body were washed away, and the water flowing out was pitch black with a hint of red.

Even the bubbles were a bizarre, dark red.

Ten minutes later, Qin Ding's hands were aching from brushing before the black water finally ran clear, meaning the filthy Earth Dog was finally clean.

"Alright, shake yourself dry and wait to the side."

Having finished his work, Qin Ding casually tossed the brush into a corner of the bathroom and began stripping to take a shower. Dahei, completely unfazed, started shaking the water off his body by the door.

Then, acting all sneaky, he stole a glance back and quickly turned away, lowering his head to peek down below.

Huh... How come Boss's thing down there doesn't feel much smaller than mine? How could that be?

Facing the door, Dahei's wolf eyes were filled with uncomprehending confusion, seemingly unable to grasp why this was the case.

After thinking for a moment and failing to make sense of it, Dahei decisively stopped thinking about it.

"Awoo?"

[Boss, you said earlier that the New Year is coming up. When are we going to prepare a gift for Aunt Zhao?]

Qin Ding, who was washing up, didn't pause at all upon hearing this, only responding after a few seconds.

"In the next couple of days. We'll head out to the wilderness, and we need to keep it from Mu Xue. However, Mu Xue has been an Apprentice Breeder for a month now, so she'll likely spend most of this winter break at the Breeder Association."

"So there's no need to go out of our way to hide it."

Oh... in a few days? So we're going to the wilderness in a few days?

Dahei's eyes instantly lit up.

At Bai Muxue's home.

The door of the steam-filled bathroom was pushed open, and a cloud of warm mist billowed out first.

Bai Muxue walked out wrapped in a bathrobe, water still dripping from the tips of her wet hair. The bathrobe hung loosely on her, revealing a section of her pale, cool collarbone. She looked down to slip into the clean slippers at the bathroom door before bending over to scoop up the white fox that had followed her out.

"Now you're finally clean. I'll blow-dry your fur in a bit."

The newly bathed White Fox looked as if it had just gone through a hearty battle, slumping directly into Bai Muxue's arms the moment she picked it up.

"Ying..."

[So comfortable. I want to bathe again next time. A-Xue, you have to scrub me more...]

"Hehe, you like taking baths? Sure, I'll wash you again next time."

Bai Muxue gently stroked the White Fox's still-damp fur. She glanced back toward the living room, and a flash of disappointment crossed her eyes when she realized her mother wasn't back yet.

"Is she working overtime..."

Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Bai Muxue carried the White Fox back to her bedroom.

Twenty minutes later.

Having dried her own hair as well as the White Fox's fur, she was now sitting at her computer desk with the White Fox in her lap, looking at the messages on her phone.

[Mom: The school has already sent out notifications to us parents regarding your Class Competition. I heard that four students died in No. 11 High School's Class Competition this year. Fortunately, you guys are fine.]

[Mom: At the same time, Mom wants to congratulate you and Xiao Ding—one came in first, and the other second. But Xiao Xue, your second place was thanks to Xiao Ding's help, right? Mom doesn't quite believe you're that good at fighting~]

[Mom: Even though Mom can't make it back, I still congratulate you both on taking first and second place. You truly are the most outstanding children in the world.]

[Mom: However, Mom has to work overtime tonight and can't come back to host a celebration feast for you in person. There's food left in the fridge for you, Xiao Ding, Dahei, and the White Fox. Heat it up in a bit and invite Xiao Ding over for dinner.]

Bai Muxue stared fixedly at these messages for a long time. Her eyes curved slightly and the corners of her mouth curled up as a warm current of familial love flowed through her heart.

She muttered to herself.

"Mm... Mom is really sharp, guessing that Ah Ding helped me..."

As for the first message, Bai Muxue automatically ignored it. After all, of those four people, two had been killed by her—though that could actually be attributed to Dahei's contribution.

Without Dahei killing those two Green Wolves with lightning speed, she and the White Fox wouldn't have had such an easy time.

Thinking of this, Bai Muxue couldn't help but pinch the White Fox's cheek in her lap. "I almost forgot about you. You've been at level ten for quite some time now, and you've eaten plenty of high-quality, low-tier Spirit Beast meat and organs over the past few days."

"Plus, there's still one portion of the advanced cultivation fluid left by my teacher. It will definitely help you sprint to level eleven. Once you reach that, you can evolve too, and you won't look so much smaller than Dahei."

The White Fox, who had been so comfortable that it was about to fall asleep, brightened up slightly upon hearing this, forcing itself to sit up in Bai Muxue's lap.

"Ying?"

[I look like a tiny tot in front of him right now. Can I grow to be at least half the size of that big black wolf?]

Hearing this, Bai Muxue remained silent. It wasn't that she didn't want to say anything, but rather that she didn't dare to. She didn't even dare to look down at the White Fox.

After all, her thinking aligned with her teacher's: the White Fox could awaken the element of Mental Energy. Guided by spiritual items, the probability of this would increase significantly.

Therefore, what the White Fox said about becoming half the size of Dahei was unrealistic. How could a mental-type Spirit Beast grow that much from just one evolution?

And that was exactly why Bai Muxue didn't dare to say it.

"You'll definitely grow a bit bigger."

Di-di, di-di.

A high-priority notification popped up on the computer, and a familiar chat interface came into Bai Muxue's view.

[Teacher: The records for your Chang City Class Competition have been uploaded, and I've already looked them up. Not bad, Xiao Muxue! I couldn't tell before, but you actually have quite a talent for being a Beast Tamer. Second place in the Class Competition?]

[Teacher: I heard that four students died in your No. 11 High School? Our Xiao Muxue is so beautiful, did anyone have ill intentions toward you? Anyone pick on you?]