A Request for Twelve Magic Cores

"Monster!!!"

Sun Lei cried out in alarm and stumbled back several steps, his eyes filled with panic and wariness.

His hand instinctively reached for his waist, wanting to grip his weapon!

But when Sun Lei touched his empty scabbard, he realized that his weapon was gone!

Because of the explosion, his sword had long since flown off who knew where.

"My sword..."

Sun Lei froze for a moment, then lowered his head to look at his waist.

All his strength lay in swordsmanship; he was not proficient in Fist Technique.

"No other choice."

He gritted his teeth and hurriedly drew the scabbard, using it as a sword as he raised his head and watched Moss with a wary expression.

Man and mouse faced off just like that.

The firelight flickered constantly, and only now did Sun Lei finally get a clear look at Moss!

Fluffy snow-white fur, ruby-red eyes—she actually looked small and adorable!

If not for the flames circling Moss, Sun Lei might have thought she was nothing more than a harmless little pet!

After who knew how long, Sun Lei swallowed to ease his parched throat.

Seeing that Moss still had not moved, doubt gradually rose in his heart.

How had his injuries recovered?

If it had been a rescue team, they could not possibly have healed him and then simply left him where he was!

But if it had not been the rescue team, then who had healed his injuries?

With wounds like those, Sun Lei did not believe his body's natural healing ability could have recovered from them.

Thinking of this, Sun Lei could not help looking at Moss, who was still quietly sitting on the rock, and cautiously asked, "My injuries... were you the one who healed me?"

"Mo!" (Indeed, it was I!)

Moss nodded, responding with a proud expression.

Seeing that Moss had actually understood him and even nodded in reply, Sun Lei could not help but stare blankly.

"So that's it. You're a Spirit Beast..."

Sun Lei lowered the scabbard in his hand slightly, feeling immensely fortunate!

He had never expected to encounter an exceptionally rare Spirit Beast—and for it to save his life!

Spirit Beast was an alternative term for monsters.

Most monsters possessed an innate hatred for humans and would immediately attack the moment they saw one!

But nothing was absolute; a very small number of monsters bore goodwill toward humans.

Some were naturally peace-loving creatures, while others were monsters that had been tamed by humans and bred for generations!

Still others had developed intelligence and civilizations capable of communication.

People gave these monsters names distinct from monster.

Spirit Beasts! Demon Beasts! Alien Races!

Spirit Beast was the collective term for wild monsters that bore goodwill!

These Spirit Beasts would not attack humans without reason!

Of course, they would still fight back if humans attacked them.

Spirit Beasts came in all kinds of forms and possessed all manner of abilities, some strong and some weak. They were a group of exceptionally intelligent monsters.

Because of these Spirit Beasts, a profession had also emerged among humans that formed combat power by contracting Spirit Beasts—Beast Tamers.

"Mo?" (Spirit Beast? What's that?)

Moss paused slightly, not understanding what Sun Lei meant by Spirit Beast.

But she had no intention of finding out. She would learn eventually anyway.

Since Sun Lei had already awakened, there was no need for her to stay any longer.

Moss raised a paw and waved at Sun Lei, then turned around, preparing to search for another exit from the sewers.

But seeing Moss turn to leave, Sun Lei grew anxious and hurriedly called out, "Please wait!"

"Mo?"

Moss turned back toward Sun Lei and gave a puzzled cry, not knowing what else he wanted.

Sun Lei took a deep breath and tried hard to remain calm before slowly speaking:

"Thank you so much for healing my injuries, but could I ask you for one more favor?"

As he spoke, Sun Lei took a small pouch from his clothes, placed it on the ground, and continued:

"I want to find my teammates. I know you can understand what I'm saying."

"There are twelve Bronze Rank magic cores here. This is all I have on me right now. Would it be enough as payment for your help?"

After saying that, Sun Lei looked intently at Moss.

Monsters did not actually coexist peacefully with one another.

They attacked each other for the magic cores inside their opponents' bodies.

And by absorbing those magic cores, monsters could grow even stronger!

It could be said that magic cores were not only hard currency among humans—they were also something monsters coveted!

Sun Lei did not know whether Moss would agree, because no one had ever done something like this before.

But this was his only option. He needed Moss's strength!

Moss could control fire, and fire meant light!

Without light, even if Sun Lei had weapons, less than a tenth of his strength would be usable. He might not even know which way to go!

On top of that, she possessed healing abilities powerful enough to mend all of his injuries!

Those abilities would be of enormous help to him right now!

Sun Lei knew he had to seize this chance and win Moss's assistance!

Without Moss, he could probably only stay where he was and pray that the next thing he encountered would be a rescue team rather than a monster!

Meanwhile, Moss was also constantly considering whether she should accept Sun Lei's request.

To be honest, those twelve magic cores were far too tempting for her!

The moment Sun Lei took them out, Moss had nearly agreed to his request!

But Moss also understood just how dangerous it would be to get involved in this incident!

The World Gate's arrival would definitely bring many monsters!

Faced with such a situation, humans would inevitably dispatch many Awakened Ones to deal with the World Gate.

Yet even so, the situation did not look optimistic.

The sewer had collapsed for some unknown reason, and Sun Lei had been alone, badly injured, and unconscious. All of that pointed to one thing!

The monsters that had arrived were extremely powerful—powerful enough to force back Sun Lei's team, or even wipe them out entirely!

That was why Moss did not really want to get involved. Sticking to the principle of lying low, hiding was the safest choice!

But!

Moss jumped down from the rock and walked over to the small pouch, taking a look at the magic cores inside.

A full twelve magic cores—Moss was practically drooling!

"I was planning to refuse, but they're offering way too much!"

Moss muttered to herself. In the end, she decided to agree to Sun Lei's request!

"Mo!"

Moss stood before Sun Lei and nodded, indicating that she accepted his request!

When Sun Lei saw her nod, his face immediately lit up with joy, and he hurriedly said:

"Really? Thank you!"

As he spoke, Sun Lei slowly crouched down and extended a hand toward Moss, carefully moving it closer to her.

"Then I'll be counting on you, little one!"

"Mo!"

Moss looked at Sun Lei's outstretched hand and placed her paw on it.

Thus, one human and one rat temporarily formed an alliance!

"Can I call you Little Mo?"

Now that they had decided to act together, Sun Lei felt that he needed to give Moss a name.

After all, he had never seen a Spirit Beast that looked like Moss, nor did he know that she was actually a rat.

"Mo!"

Moss nodded, agreeing to it.

Little Mo was fine. Moss felt there was nothing wrong with calling her that.

"Then I'll call you Little Mo. Little Mo, I'll be counting on you!"