Chapter 44 - 38: Jinling Prism Arena_1
Chapter 44 - 38: Jinling Prism Arena_1
Under Mr. Husky's licking, King of Sudden Death played dead once again before long. Because it didn't want to bathe in dog saliva.
And Mr. Husky only wanted to figure out what exactly that tingling sensation was after touching King of Sudden Death...
"Thunder Attribute?"
Lu Ran pondered by the side, it was quite normal for some signs to manifest in advance if it was close to evolving into a Dominator Species.
When I have time... I'll find an Attribute Stone and test it to find out.
If it is the Thunder Attribute, that would be pretty good, since it is acclaimed as the most powerful attribute in terms of destructive power.
At this moment, King of Sudden Death felt quite peculiar.
It felt a tremendous strength hidden within its body, but though the strength was mighty, temperament wasn't something that could change easily; it stared blankly at the man and dog before it, not daring to move.
The intelligence of a lizard isn't low, and now, after evolution, there was more spirit in King of Sudden Death's gaze.
"Let's set some ground rules first,"
Lu Ran looked at it, knowing he couldn't allow it to roam freely anymore.
Perhaps King of Sudden Death didn't even know that its combat power was now comparable to that of a lion or a tiger.
Despite its small size, if it were to unleash its full strength and speed, it would truly be terrifying, especially given its diminutive size, which made it far more threatening than a lion or tiger. If it set its sights on you, you might not even know how you would die.
Something like assassinations in someone's home... would be far too convenient.
Of course, that's just an example, as King of Sudden Death aside from being a bit more active during hunting, was quite peaceful...
"From now on, your territory will still be this house, and you are not allowed to go out on your own. I will prepare food for you, and you must not touch anything else in the house."
The old King of Sudden Death running around the house used to be harmless because it was weak, but now if it started to dismantle the household, it probably wouldn't be slow, and could easily cause accidents, like a fire.
"Gah." King of Sudden Death didn't understand, since it had always been like this.
"Remember this again, be obedient, or else I'll make you truly drop dead." Lu Ran
warned, frightening King of Sudden Death so much that its eyes bulged, and it played dead again.
When dealing with animals or pet beasts, you can't anthropomorphize them. Letting them know that your fist is harder can sometimes be more effective than heart-to-heart talks.
"Sigh..." Lu Ran scratched his head, well, for now, that's how it would be, he said, then he dialed Fang Lan's number.
Soon, she answered the call.
"You're back!!" Fang Lan said in surprise, "Not easy, oh our cultivation fanatic even remembers to come home."
"Don't try to tarnish my reputation in Infinite City by giving me a nickname as well," Lu Ran said, "What I did was strive and make progress!"
"Hmph."
"Are godfather and godmother home tonight?"
"They are."
"How about going out for dinner together?" Lu Ran asked.
"Sure, I'll call them, what do you want to eat?"
"How about Sichuan or Hunan cuisine?" Lu Ran said, these past days, keeping up with Mr. Husky, his diet had been a bit bland.
"OKOK." Fang Lan said, "I'll pick the restaurant, see you there."
After hanging up the phone, Lu Ran picked up King of Sudden Death and put it in his pocket, saying, "Today, you will come out with me to see how well you adapt to the outside environment. Let me know if you feel uncomfortable anywhere. If you can adapt well, I will gradually expand your territory in the future."
"Woof woof woof!" In the living room, Mr. Husky, lying on the carpet playing with a toy, looked over. Why, why couldn't its territory be expanded?
"You're too big, you would scare the elderly and children. Without me by your side, you are not allowed to roam alone, be obedient," Lu Ran said.
After being tamed, Mr. Husky was very sensible, but Lu Ran still leashed it every time he took it for a walk.
Is it a fault to be big?
Mr. Husky was stunned, then glanced at King of Sudden Death poking its head out of the pocket.
So small, not cute at all.
It remembered this grudge.
King of Sudden Death: ???
That evening, outside a Hunan cuisine restaurant.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Lu Ran arrived early. After a while, a yellow taxi pulled up at the curb.
A middle-aged man wearing glasses and a woman exuding the aura of a scholar were the first to get out of the car.
Following closely behind, Fang Lan emerged transformed in appearance.
As she had said herself... she had dyed her hair purple, the loose side ponytail, combined with the two bangs framing her face, and the snake-like red diamond-shaped earrings,
had a unique charm.
Add on the black vertical-striped high-neck body-hugging sweater and a leather-belt black A-line skirt which accentuated her figure, her dark aura was particularly distinct, fitting the ID of the Five Poison Sect Saintess perfectly.
"Godfather, godmother, Fang Lan, this way," Lu Ran called out when he saw them.
Hearing Lu Ran's voice, the three approached.
"Xiao Lu, you finally got out of Infinite City, we were all so worried," Mrs. Fang, Su Ya, expressed relief upon seeing Lu Ran whole, without missing limbs.
"Haha... sorry to have worried you," Lu Ran said sheepishly, scratching his head. "Understandable, it's the age to be playful, and we can't really keep Fang Lan in check either," Mr. Fang, Fang Yuhang, sighed, first looking at Fang Lan.
Fang Lan had transformed herself in such a way that he almost had a heart attack; he almost really created an alternate account.
But after seeing it for a while... it's still okay... his daughter is beautiful.
Then Mr. Fang turned to Lu Ran and said, "Xiao Lu, what are your plans for the future? Are you planning to become a Beast Trainer?"
At that time, with the dawn of the Beast Training Era, the profession of a Beast Trainer could be said to be the hottest career, coveted by countless youths.
"Right," Lu Ran said, "Godmom and Goddad, let's go inside and talk while sitting."
"I'm starving to death, let's go in and order," Fang Lan giggled on the side, ha, today Lu
Ran was finally nagged at.
Mr. and Mrs. Fang were no ordinary pair either.
Both were graduates of Jinling University, holding doctoral degrees, and had taught
there before; Mr. Fang and Lu Ran's father were close buddies, their relationship being
exceptionally good.
As for now, the couple managed the largest pet hospital in Green Sea City.
So, just like Lu Ran, Fang Lan, the daughter of a Veterinary Aristocratic Family, also had a pure Beast Training background.
In the reserved private room, Mrs. Fang laid it out, "Your dad and I know we can't persuade you guys. If it were the old industries, with our capabilities, we could still help you out a bit, but with this, it's so sudden, and no one knows what the future holds.
"We've already said, you don't need to worry about us," Fang Lan said, exasperated, as she was already doing quite well on her own. "How can we not worry?" Mr. Fang frowned, "We haven't told you yet, but your mom and I have contacted some connections in Jinling. We've already started looking into pet beast pharmaceuticals; our hospital might even transition to a pet beast hospital." "Your mom and I will also teach and study at the Beast Training University, focusing on the common ground between external pharmacology and pet beast pharmaceuticals." "We just hope that when the time comes, if your and Xiao Ran's pet beasts get hurt, we could provide more help."
"Ah??" Fang Lan was taken aback, and Lu Ran, who was munching on popcorn on the side, was also startled.
"What, you guys are going to Beast Training University to teach??" Fang Lan stood up,
she meant to say something, but eventually, she sat down resignedly, "Whatever, do as
you please."
How could it be that even at the Beast Training University, one couldn't get away from their parents?
"Uh, thank you, Godmom and Goddad," Lu Ran touched his nose, feeling their good intentions, though it seemed he and Mr. Husky might not need a doctor.
Wait, that's not entirely true; the Divine Deer Pendant couldn't currently cure toxic effects and other abnormal states, only physical injuries!
Looking at it this way, they did indeed need a strong medical backing.
"Cough cough, Xiao Ran, and Fang Lan, but we're just ordinary people. Even if we learn about pet beast pharmaceuticals, I fear we might not be able to delve too deeply" suddenly, Mr. Fang coughed and said.
Fang Lan and Lu Ran were both high-potential Novice Beast Trainers from Infinite City's Third District, bound to come across some influential figures in the future, like Doctor Gu. By then, they might access more advanced information, prompting Mr. Fang to make
this earnest request.
"Your dad, he dreams of becoming a Beast Trainer," Mrs. Fang said scornfully. "He's
getting on in years and yet acts like a child."
"You don't understand," Mr. Fang glared back.
As they started to bicker, Lu Ran and Fang Lan were both getting a headache. Fang Lan
hastily intervened, "Right, my birthday is next month. Have you all prepared my gifts
yet?" "Birthday..."
Fang Lan suddenly interjected. It wasn't a big deal for Mr. and Mrs. Fang, but Lu Ran suddenly panicked.
"Hm?" Fang Lan looked at the startle, Lu Ran, and said, "Don't tell me you forgot my
birthday."
"Your birthday's not for a while, wait, it's already mid-August..." Lu Ran suddenly realized, "Damn, I think I missed something important."
"What?" Fang Lan looked at him, puzzled.
Lu Ran gave a bitter smile, "A few days ago, it seems
was my master's 60th birthday.
Originally, I wanted to visit him, seeing as it's been so long since we last met, but I completely forgot because of Beast Trainer matters."
"My revered master helped me a lot during the time when my parents passed away"
Mr. Fang asked, "Is he the same master who taught you Sword Dao when you were living
in Jinling as a child? I remember, it's called 'Prism Arena, right?" "Right," Lu Ran said, scratching his head frantically, "It won't work. I have to make a trip
to Jinling in a couple of days to make amends."
"You definitely should go see the old man and explain things to him. He will be very
happy if you can make it," Mrs. Fang said.
"Mhm." Lu Ran nodded.
Just then, Fang Lan added solemnly, "Do you think your master will kick you out of the
sect if he finds out you taught the swordsmanship he taught you to a Husky..."
Lu Ran: ???
"Um." Mr. and Mrs. Fang also looked at Lu Ran, still going?
***
Prism Arena, with its long history, is quite renowned in a region of Jiangnan and
nowadays, as the current head, Jiang Dou, who since the age of fourteen, has been visiting and challenging the major Sword Path factions of Xia Country. By twenty-six, he claimed to have no equal in the entire country. He then traveled abroad and returned at
the age of thirty.
It could be said that Prism Arena is considered leader in the Sword Path Community not just in Jiangnan, but across the entire country nowadays. From a young age, Lu Ran showed interest in swordsmanship. His parents spent a
fortune on connections to send him to Prism Arena to study Sword Dao. As a child, Lu
Ran was quite promising, displaying extraordinary talent, and was personally taught by Master Jiang Dou.
He was just a step away from becoming a "Closed-door Disciple." However, the playful Lu Ran fell in love with shooting and asked his revered master a
fatal question:
"Master, if I had a gun and you had a sword, and we were to duel, who would be more formidable?" That question left his revered master unsettled for a long while...
"Beyond seven steps, the gun is faster; within seven steps..." "The sword is faster?" young Lu Ran innocently asked. "The gun is faster and more accurate," his revered master said.
And so, having his answer, Lu Ran turned away from his revered master to pursue
shooting. Remembering this past, Lu Ran also felt helpless about his "naughtiness" as a child - how could he be so heartless...
Thankfully the old man wasn't rigid. Although he regretted that Lu Ran did not follow
this path, he knew that Sword Dao was just something outdated, no longer suitable for this society.
What Lu Ran didn't expect was that after his parents died, Mr. Jiang Dou Sr., somehow hearing the news, came to visit him, even wanting to take Lu Ran back into the arena to
look after him. But by that time, Lu Ran's heart was even less inclined towards Sword
Dao.
"Now it's actually because of Beast Training that I've picked up Sword Dao again..."
That evening, after returning home, Lu Ran booked a high-speed train ticket to Jinling, planning to leave the next morning.
"Hmm... now I've even developed the 'Beast Sword Stance. The old man should be very pleased! As for missing his big birthday, he will definitely understand... And as for teaching swordsmanship to a Husky... a teacher has to teach, regardless of their pupil's
nature!"