Long Haochen's Mount Partner (III)

"He succeeded." The one-eyed old man cried out in delighted surprise. The Radiant Body gradually returned to normal, and the golden patterns filling the sky vanished along with it.

Sweat had already appeared on the old man's forehead. Clearly, sustaining such an enormous teleportation array was an immense burden even for him.

The moment he heard that it had worked, Ye Hua rushed over at once. Arriving beside the old man, he looked toward the center.

As the golden light faded, Long Haochen's figure gradually appeared before them. Aside from his somewhat pale complexion, there seemed to be no other change.

As his soul returned, the first thing Long Haochen felt was emptiness—an emptiness that seeped from within to without. The Internal Spiritual Power in his body was nearly exhausted. The slowly rotating funnel-shaped vortex had almost come to a standstill, and even the Holy Guiding Spirit Furnace's glow had dimmed considerably. Fortunately, as a knight, he still possessed External Spiritual Power. Though he felt hollow inside, it did not affect his ability to move normally.

Instinctively, Long Haochen turned his gaze toward the presence before him. He had spent so much effort and had been at Knight Holy Mountain for an entire month—for what, if not this?

But when Long Haochen saw the partner that had formed an Equal Contract with him, he froze. Ye Hua and the one-eyed old man in the distance froze as well.

Their stunned silence was not because the Magic Beast partner Long Haochen had summoned was too powerful. It was because it was simply...

It was a lizard a little over a meter long, its body covered in a thin layer of black scales. The shape of those scales was rather strange—somewhat trapezoidal at the top, while their sides curved downward and inward until they met, making them resemble the Tower Shields carried by heavy knights.

Its head was no different from that of an ordinary lizard. A pair of tiny red eyes blinked up at Long Haochen, filled with an indescribable intimacy. Its snake-like tongue flicked in and out as it seemed to be sensing his aura at his feet.

If that were all, Long Haochen would not have been so stunned. At most, he had merely summoned a level-two Earthfire Lizard. But this lizard's body was crisscrossed with no fewer than a dozen wounds, dark-red blood flowing from them. There was also a huge bulge protruding from its neck, nearly as thick as its neck itself. Combined with the scars covering its body, calling it ugly would have been a compliment.

Long Haochen had never imagined that after all his hardships, the one he would ultimately summon would be a level-two Earthfire Lizard that appeared crippled, even malignantly mutated. Ever since he began cultivating, everything had gone smoothly for him. This was the first blow he had ever suffered.

"Wuu wuu—" The Earthfire Lizard seemed to greatly enjoy Long Haochen's aura, rubbing itself against him again and again, its little red eyes brimming with affection.

A bitter smile appeared on Long Haochen's face. Through the Equal Contract, he could sense the Earthfire Lizard's strength. Its Cultivation Level was only around the middle of level two.

King of the Star Brilliance Unicorns, did you deceive me? You said that even you were not qualified to form a contract with my body of light, yet what was this before me? A level-two Earthfire Lizard.

Ye Hua silently walked to Long Haochen's side and pulled him up from the ground. "The setback you're facing is nothing compared to what I endured back then. If you cannot find a suitable mount partner in the Holy Mountain, then seek one through hunting in the future. If you can reach the level of a Divine Seal Knight, then even subduing a dragon would not be impossible."

With a clang, Ye Hua drew the heavy sword from his back, and a sharp killing intent surged forth.

As though sensing the threat to its life, the Earthfire Lizard flashed behind Long Haochen despite being covered in wounds. Only its head with that swollen bulge remained exposed as it looked fearfully at Ye Hua.

"Teacher, what are you doing?" With a clang, Long Haochen barely managed to draw his heavy sword in time, blocking Ye Hua's downward slash with its hilt.

Ye Hua paused. "You foolish boy, don't tell me you intend to take this little cripple with you? You should know that unless you kill it after forming a contract with it, you will never again be able to form an Equal Contract with a Magic Beast."

There was unwillingness in Long Haochen's eyes, helplessness, and even a trace of anger. Yet there was not the slightest hint of killing intent.

"Teacher, do you remember the story you told me about you and your Mountain Shaking Eagle partner? When you were at your most difficult moment, it chose you. You treated it as family. Wasn't I the same? Only at the very last moment did I summon this little fellow. Though it is not powerful, though it is even crippled, it is still the partner who formed a contract with me."

"We are partners, so I must protect it. Even if I never have a true mount for the rest of my life, I cannot abandon it simply because I disdain it. It is not because I fear leaving behind some shadow. From the moment we formed the contract, it became my family."

As he spoke, Long Haochen slowly crouched down and gently stroked the Earthfire Lizard's head. Its scales actually felt as smooth as silk beneath his fingers, not hard at all.

The Earthfire Lizard did not move. It was as though it had turned into a statue, staring blankly at Long Haochen with its little red eyes.

"Don't worry, little fellow. I won't abandon you. Nor will I make you fight for me. I only hope that you can be my friend, all right?"

The Earthfire Lizard's eyes regained their sparkle. Its tongue stretched out and lightly licked Long Haochen's hand.

Ye Hua sheathed his heavy sword and let out a heavy sigh. "You child... you are simply too soft-hearted, too attached to your feelings."

Long Haochen looked apologetically at his teacher. "Teacher, don't worry. I will cultivate diligently. Even without the help of a mount partner, I definitely won't lose to Gui Wu. Teacher, my Internal Spiritual Power has been completely exhausted. Could you help treat my partner's wounds?"

What else could Ye Hua say? He could only nod silently. "All right."

Just as golden light began to shine from his hand and he was about to use a recovery skill, the one-eyed old man, who had remained silent for quite some time, suddenly shouted in a deep voice, "Wait."

"Hm?" Long Haochen and Ye Hua both turned toward him.

The one-eyed old man said gravely, "If you do not want it to die, then do not treat it."

Long Haochen rose to his feet and asked in confusion, "Senior, why is that?"

The old man's single eye looked at him earnestly as he smiled. "You are very good. Truly very good. In you, I see the compassion and benevolence within the knightly code. Unfortunately, although your heart is kind and you do not reject this little fellow, I fear you still cannot take it away. Because it possesses a Dark Constitution. If you use Light Attribute skills to heal it, you will only harm it."

"Dark Constitution?" Long Haochen said in surprise.

The old man nodded. "Among the Magic Beasts summoned through the teleportation array, some come from planes similar to the abyss. Regardless of their own attributes, they are born with a certain Dark Constitution. Any Magic Beast with a Dark Constitution will immediately be shredded by the Great Light Formation once it leaves this cave. Yet within this place, it cannot be sent back to its original land through the contract. No array-based magic can function here. Though I find it strange that a Magic Beast with a Dark Constitution would feel close to you and form a contract with you, I must say that coming here has almost been a case of it seeking its own death."

"What?" Long Haochen was greatly shocked. The Earthfire Lizard also seemed to understand his words. Pressing tightly against Long Haochen's body, it trembled violently, its little red eyes filled with terror.