All Things Are Contracts

Chapter 48

In the camp, a flying dragon descended from the sky. A woman jumped down from the dragon’s back. She was tall, wearing silver armor that didn’t conceal her shapely figure. Her wavy black hair fell to her waist. With bright eyes and red lips, she was stunningly beautiful, with a golden dragon claw-like mark on her brow. The light in her eyes wasn’t gentle, but exceptionally sharp, like a sword. People around bowed in greeting, not daring to look directly at her.

“Greetings, Your Highness.”

Everyone knew Mi Hongchen’s identity, but her sudden appearance here was rare.

“Have Cheng Lu come see me,” Mi Hongchen said.

Soon after, Cheng Lu led the family of three to Mi Hongchen.

“Greetings, Your Highness. This girl is the one you’re looking for,” Cheng Lu brought Meng Xiao Die before the princess. The girl looked at the princess with her strange red eyes. Dongzi and A Mei beside her were too nervous to speak. They had never seen such a scene before. That was the legendary female war god of the Eastern Kingdom, a figure of legend. They never imagined they would receive Mi Hongchen’s personal reception.

“Dragon… it’s really a dragon!” Meng Xiao Die was quickly attracted by the fire dragon nearby. She didn’t seem afraid at all.

The fire dragon turned around, blowing a small flame that dissipated in front of the girl, deliberately teasing her. Meng Xiao Die wasn’t scared, but giggled in delight.

“This little girl is quite brave and not shy,” Mi Hongchen praised, then asked Cheng Lu.

“Her contract object is her eyes? Can her gaze materialize into blade light?” Mi Hongchen confirmed, looking at the little girl’s eyes.

“That’s right. The blade light is very sharp. She’s so young and without any training has this kind of power. When she grows up, she’ll definitely be a powerful expert. I didn’t dare to be negligent and reported this news as soon as I received it,” Cheng Lu said.

Mi Hongchen came to the little girl’s side and picked her up, saying to her, “Try if you can cut this open.” Then she tossed a gold coin into the air. The little girl looked up at the coin, a flash of light glinting in her eyes. When the coin fell to the ground, it had been cleanly cut in half.

“Try again,” Mi Hongchen exerted her power, a fiery red energy enveloping another gold coin, which she tossed into the air again.

This time, the little girl stared at the coin for a long time, but in the end, the coin was still cut in half.

Mi Hongchen’s breathing became a bit rapid. Such a terrifying ability right after awakening, this child is truly a blessing for our Eastern Kingdom.

“Where did you find this girl?” Mi Hongchen turned to ask Cheng Lu.

“Uh… a friend of mine encountered her and had them come find me,” Cheng Lu explained, only saying it was a friend of his.

Mi Hongchen nodded, not pursuing the question further, only saying, “You and your friend should be rewarded. Tell me, what reward do you want?”

“Uh, discovering talent for the empire is our honor. How dare we ask for a reward? My friend is also a person who cares little for fame and fortune,” Cheng Lu certainly wouldn’t mention Zhanyue, still keeping the secret.

Mi Hongchen frowned, then waved her hand, and a bottle of pills appeared in front of Cheng Lu. “Inside are two fifth-grade Profound Entering Pills. Your cultivation is about to break through to the Profound Realm, right? Take these two Profound Entering Pills and share them. Clear rewards and punishments have always been an iron rule of the Eastern Kingdom. How can meritorious service go unrewarded?”

Cheng Lu accepted the pills and hurriedly thanked her. He didn’t dare refuse the person before him.

“I’ll take this little girl to the Academy Town first. Have Zhan Yunfei (Sun City Lord) arrange for people to send her parents to the Academy Town as well. Someone will receive them there,” Mi Hongchen said, then picked up Meng Xiao Die and jumped onto the dragon’s back.

“Your family of three will live in the Academy Town from now on,” Mi Hongchen said to Meng Xiao Die’s parents, then the flying dragon flapped its wings and flew towards the horizon.

“Captain Cheng… what about us…” Dongzi looked at Cheng Lu, at a loss.

Cheng Lu patted his shoulder, “Don’t worry, the princess will take good care of your daughter. I’ll go speak with the City Lord. You’ll probably be settling in the Academy Town from now on. It’s a complete change of fate.”

Dongzi and A Mei both showed joy on their faces. A Mei, still leaning on crutches with her leg not fully healed, couldn’t help but be happy. The couple felt even more grateful to Zhanyue in their hearts. If not for him, their family of three would have died in the rainy night, but now they had a chance at prosperity.

“Sister, are we flying in the sky?” Meng Xiao Die looked around, hiding in Mi Hongchen’s arms. It was so high, she was quite scared.

“It’s alright, don’t be afraid,” Mi Hongchen comforted her, an energy barrier blocking the strong winds of high altitude. “Your talent is extremely high. I’ll help you find a suitable teacher.”

“Teacher? Sister, are you sending me to the Academy Town?” Meng Xiao Die asked again.

“That’s right, the Academy Town is where you should go.” Mi Hongchen smiled. Facing a child, she wasn’t as cold as usual.

“After graduating from the Academy, can I go kill monsters and demons?” Meng Xiao Die continued to ask.

“Of course. When you grow up, you’ll become an important force in our fight against the Nightmares,” Mi Hongchen answered.

“Great! I’ll become a great hero like Brother Zhanyue in the future,” the little girl said happily.

Hearing this, Mi Hongchen’s body trembled, “Who did you say? Zhanyue? Great hero?”

“Yes, Brother Zhanyue saved our whole family that night. He was as warm as the sun. It was also he who told us to come to Sun City,” the little girl had no guile, very innocent, and spilled everything.

“Zhanyue, the friend Cheng Lu mentioned… it really is you. You little guy, you always manage to surprise me,” Mi Hongchen sighed softly. Although she hadn’t interacted much with Zhanyue, only meeting him twice, Mi Hongchen had a deep impression of him. “It’s good that you’re alive. There will be a chance to meet again.”

At this moment, Zhanyue naturally didn’t know someone was talking about him. In the bamboo forest, a white figure moved gracefully like a startled swan, like a swimming dragon. Holding a flaming sword, he performed a set of sword techniques without damaging a single bamboo leaf. Zhanyue’s movements and techniques had improved rapidly.

“Sister, how was my performance?” Zhanyue stopped, waiting for the illumination Goddess’s praise.

“You’ve initially mastered the Phantom Light Step and Phantom Form Sword Technique, but you lack actual combat experience,” the illumination Goddess replied. “Only true life-and-death battles can hone skills to the extreme.”

Zhanyue nodded, “No rush. Living in the martial world, how can one not face danger? Although I don’t like killing, I’m not a lamb. By the way, I’ve used up all the herbs I bought before. I need to buy some new herbs to refine another type of third-grade alchemy.”

“Cultivating both alchemy and martial arts, since you’ve chosen this path, you’re not allowed to give up. I don’t like people who quit halfway,” the illumination Goddess admonished.

“Yes, yes, yes. It’s my choice. I’m just working harder than others, watch me outwork them all,” Zhanyue had almost no recreational activities, using all his time on pill refining and cultivation, or perhaps he considered pill refining as recreation itself.

“That’s best. I was worried that at your age, with your blood running hot, you might indulge in women and linger in brothels,” the illumination Goddess said.

“Uh, women would only slow down my sword speed,” Zhanyue said.

“Is that so? I remember someone saying his dream was to take several wives and concubines,” the illumination Goddess said coldly.

“That’s because the right opportunity hasn’t come yet. If there’s anyone to blame, it’s you, sister,” Zhanyue suddenly said.

“What does it have to do with me?” the illumination Goddess was a bit speechless.

“There’s a saying in my hometown: ‘Having seen the sea, all waters pale; Having seen Wu Mountain, all clouds are plain.’ After seeing a peerless beauty like you, sister, I’m afraid my standards have become too high,” Zhanyue said.

“What waters and clouds? You sure know how to flatter in different ways. Unfortunately, I’m not some young girl. Your sweet talk won’t fool me,” the illumination Goddess laughed in response.

“See? Even sister’s realm isn’t something those shallow women can compare to,” Zhanyue said again.

“Smooth talker, I won’t bother with you. Hurry and prepare. In a few days, you’re going to Pearl City to attend that auction. You need to prepare funds in advance.”