173: pastor

"Consultant, are you okay?!" Du Ruo noticed that something was wrong with Consultant, her expression changed, and she hurriedly supported him.

"I'm fine..."

Consultant shook his head and said with effort; the Eternal Darkness Domain from just a moment ago had truly exhausted his Beast Taming Power completely.

Precisely because of this, the Eternal Darkness Domain and the black flames on the Rock Snake vanished along with it.

In the dueling arena, the Slime's body swayed, and under the remaining glow of the Crimson Crescent Moon, it transformed back into its original 'blob' shape.

"Rock Snake, come back quickly!"

Mu Xuan dared not wait any longer and issued the command to the Rock Snake.

This Rock Snake's vitality was indeed tenacious enough; even though half of its body had been severed, it still stubbornly crawled to the edge of the arena, and subsequently, its body began to shrink rapidly.

In just a few seconds, the Rock Snake had returned to a length of a dozen centimeters, but its body was still covered in pitch-black scorch marks!

The entire dueling arena fell silent for several seconds.

After a while, Mu Xuan raised his head, trembling slightly.

His eyes were filled with shock, reluctance, doubt, and other emotions, but in the end, he forcibly suppressed these feelings, leaving only one...

Admiration!

He glanced at Consultant, then looked at the Rock Snake in his arms that no longer had any combat ability, and slowly raised an arm, sighing softly:

"I... lost."

As these words left his lips, the Host finally came back to his senses from the shock of that sword strike just now.

"Mu Xuan... has conceded!"

"Let us congratulate his opponent, Consultant, and his soul familiar, the Slime!"

"This is the most brilliant match I have ever seen in my life!"

Following the Host's announcement, the lights throughout the venue gradually returned, illuminating the face of every spectator.

Their faces showed either shock or confusion, and quite a few people had not even reacted yet!

"That person won?"

"Is that a Slime? What was that move just now? And where did that sword come from?!"

"Why do I feel like that Slime is not in the same world as us?"

"It's simply too terrifying; I want to go find a Slime to be my Soul Magical Beast too!"

"Stop kidding yourself; even if you were given a hundred Slimes, you couldn't train one like that!"

Besides these people, the two individuals who had supported Consultant from the very beginning were now acting as if they had gone crazy!

They were shouting loudly, as if they were the ones who had defeated Mu Xuan!

Many others were also infected by their emotions, joining in to cheer for Consultant...

In contrast, after Mu Xuan conceded, he remained silent and carefully checked the condition of the Rock Snake.

Only after confirming that the Rock Snake was no longer in life-threatening danger once the black flames were extinguished did he breathe a sigh of relief.

But after relaxing, a deep sense of frustration followed!

Since reaching adulthood, this was the first time he had tasted defeat in a Beast Taming duel!

As the son of the Weibai City Beast Tamer Alliance Museum Master, his three magical beasts were all very powerful, and his experience as a Beast Tamer far exceeded that of many others.

Yet, he had sent out three magical beasts in succession, and all three had been defeated by a single Slime!

The lowest-level magical beast, which didn't even have a rank!

"Heh... heh hahaha!"

Mu Xuan's heart was filled with grief, indignation, and confusion, but in the end, he could not help but laugh out loud.

He slowly stood up and walked towards Consultant.

Consultant also picked up the Slime to check it over.

The Slime was covered in a lot of grit, but the injuries it had sustained earlier had already healed by the end.

Apart from the Slime's own magical power and Consultant's Beast Taming Power being completely depleted, there were no other issues.

Speaking of depletion, if that sword strike just now hadn't decided the outcome, or if Mu Xuan had commanded the Rock Snake to make a desperate final attack, Consultant and the Slime really wouldn't have had any options left.

However, that approach would certainly have resulted in mutual destruction, and no normal Beast Tamer would make such a choice.

"Consultant... right?"

Consultant had just finished checking the Slime when he heard a voice behind him.

He turned his head to look and saw that Mu Xuan had already arrived at his side.

"Yes."

Clutching the Slime, Consultant suspected that this playboy intended to be relentless and find some excuses.

To his surprise, Mu Xuan, standing opposite him, actually managed a wry smile, extended his hand toward Consultant, and said softly:

"Congratulations, Consultant. You are the most powerful and unique Beast Tamer I have ever met!"

"From now on, I will take you as my goal and continue to improve my own strength as a Beast Tamer. I hope we can have the chance to cross paths again!"

Compared to his arrogance during their first meeting, Mu Xuan now seemed like a completely different person; not only was his tone much more polite, but his attitude was also sincere!

However, this demeanor of his left Consultant's fists, which he had clenched for a 'real fight,' with nowhere to land, leaving him feeling quite uncomfortable.

"I still prefer the way you looked when you were unbridled and arrogant. How about... you go back to that?"

That way, he could justify mocking his defeated opponent again.

As it turned out, after Mu Xuan paused in surprise, he gently shook his head.

He looked at Consultant and Du Ruo, who was standing to the side, and bowed his head, saying, "I apologize for what happened earlier."

At this, not only was Consultant uncomfortable, but even Du Ruo's expression became rather strange.

Consultant looked at him, and his mind suddenly recalled the system prompt from that time.

[…A playboy with a mischievous personality who only acknowledges strong Beast Tamers.]

The corner of Consultant's mouth twitched slightly.

This system… it really is accurate when it comes to judging people!

"It's fine, we've gotten to know each other through the fight, right?"

Consultant had no choice; he couldn't keep badgering him, so he casually brushed it off and brought the topic back,

"I came here to challenge the Museum Master and obtain the qualification to go to Caiyou City. Could you help me notify them?"

Even though the battle just now had been intense, Consultant had not forgotten his purpose for coming here.

Since this Mu Xuan was the Museum Master's son, having him provide an introduction would certainly be much more convenient.

"That's no problem at all, but..."

Mu Xuan agreed quite readily, but halfway through his sentence, he chuckled and turned his head to look in a certain direction.

The place where his gaze was fixed was a corner of the spectator stands!

That was the direction Mu Xuan had gazed toward earlier during the match.

Everyone followed his line of sight.

Sitting there was a man who looked to be in his forties or fifties.

After noticing the gazes of the people around him, the man curled the corners of his mouth and looked up.

His appearance was plain, yet he bore a slight resemblance to Mu Xuan, and his eyes were flashing with a sharp light!

The people nearby exclaimed!

"Museum Master Mu?!"