Advance, Cola!

After picking up the delivery, it was nearly noon. Chen Yuan simply ate in town.

He had the snail rice noodles he had been craving for ages.

After finishing and leaving the shop, the two little ones waiting outside both rushed over. But when they caught the scent of snail rice noodles on Chen Yuan, their reactions differed.

Cola sniffed with his nose, circled Chen Yuan several times, and his expression grew stranger and stranger.

Then Cola looked up at Chen Yuan, his round eyes rolling as he let out a knowing cry: "Awooo!"

So Master liked eating that stuff too!

A dark line appeared on Chen Yuan's forehead. He gripped Cola by the neck, met his gaze, and said in a low voice, "Don't get any wild ideas. This is proper food."

"It's—"

"Not the same as yours!"

Meanwhile,

After smelling the scent on Chen Yuan, Flame Cloud Falcon frowned slightly, a trace of disgust appearing in his eyes. While Chen Yuan was lecturing Cola, he quietly edged backward.

Noticing Flame Cloud Falcon's movement, Chen Yuan rubbed his forehead helplessly. "I used to sneer at snail rice noodles too. Only after trying them did I realize how fragrant they were."

Afterward,

Seeing that it was still early, Chen Yuan went to the supermarket and bought a batch of supplies.

While checking out, Chen Yuan looked at his steadily shrinking wallet and inexplicably felt a pang in his flesh.

Though he had once worked within the system, his salary had been rather low. In the matchmaking market, he would have been a decidedly unpopular commodity.

Fortunately, he was far away in Xuanhe Village, and his material desires were not high to begin with. Since graduating, he had managed to save up some money.

But after becoming a Beast Tamer, his daily expenses had suddenly soared, and his wallet had rapidly shrunk, leaving Chen Yuan under a little pressure.

"I wonder how much my salary is now?" He was now directly affiliated with the Baokun City Beast Tamer Association. His pay and benefits should be much better than before.

While imagining his salary and benefits, Chen Yuan drove toward Xuanhe Village.

A long while later,

Chen Yuan parked his sedan outside the farm. After placing the supplies he had bought in the warehouse, he hurried into the main hall.

He sat on a wooden bench and carefully opened the delivery package. Cola beside him had long been craning his neck in anticipation.

Beneath the wooden chair opposite them, a red-orange figure was curled up—Sparkling Flying Cat cautiously poked out his head, his black eyes studying the man and beast whose faces were full of anticipation.

But he did not come out, instead continuing to hide beneath the chair.

Chen Yuan noticed the little fellow's movements. As he unpacked the delivery, he smiled and said, "Stop hiding all day. Go out and move around more."

Based on Cola and Spark's descriptions, along with what Chen Yuan had seen for himself, Sparkling Flying Cat should have been bold and sly by nature.

Yet ever since Chen Yuan had verbally reprimanded him, Sparkling Flying Cat had become somewhat timid, always hiding away in every corner.

Had Spark scared him?

"Sparkling."

Sparkling Flying Cat answered softly, his eyes flickering constantly. He crouched there in silence for a moment, then actually stretched out a paw with caution and shifted out from beneath the chair.

Then,

Sparkling Flying Cat slowly crawled up in front of Chen Yuan, though he still kept a certain distance from him and Cola. Tilting his little head, he curiously examined the things in the box—two utterly ordinary-looking blades of grass.

"Sparkling?"

Watching Chen Yuan stare unblinkingly at the grass, Sparkling Flying Cat's expression grew even more puzzled. Countless guesses flashed through his mind, and only after a long while did he nod in sudden realization.

Just like how I like eating fruit, this human must like eating grass!

Sparkling Flying Cat silently committed this discovery to memory.

"So this is Wind Whisper Grass?" Chen Yuan lowered his head and stared at the Wind Whisper Grass in the box, murmuring softly.

Wind Whisper Grass was not much different from ordinary grass, except that whenever he drew close, he could distinctly feel a breeze brushing past him.

"This might be what makes Wind Whisper Grass special."

Chen Yuan reached out and touched the Wind Whisper Grass. A breeze swept over his fingers, while the sound of wind seemed to howl beside his ears.

First time collecting Wind Whisper Grass, Origin Points +2

Name: Wind Whisper Grass

Level: Level 2 Resource

Effect: Can be used to strengthen Wind-type Contracted Beasts

Very good. He had gained a total of five Origin Points today.

A brilliant smile spread across Chen Yuan's face. He then looked at Cola beside him and asked, "Are you ready?"

"Awoo?"

Cola looked utterly confused.

Chen Yuan patted the dog's head and laughed. "Of course, ready to advance."

Then Chen Yuan summoned Cola's current status panel:

Race: Condensing Wind Hound (Collected)

Attribute: Wind

Level: 4 (Tier 1)

Favorability: 87

Skills: Wind Blade (Basic 2.8/3) + Wind Treading Step (Basic 1.0/3) +

Quality: Ordinary

Conditions to advance to Elite quality: Unlockable

Chen Yuan had a full 18.1 Origin Points, so he was brimming with confidence. His gaze sharpened as he called out, "System, add points for me!"

In truth, he could have waited for Cola to raise his skill to the Proficient level himself, saving the hard-earned Origin Points.

But... it was like having a delivery arrive at home and refusing to open it. Chen Yuan simply could not wait.

In an instant, Chen Yuan spent 0.2 Origin Points to raise Cola's Wind Blade proficiency to the Proficient level.

Then Chen Yuan handed the two blades of Wind Whisper Grass to Cola. "Hurry up and eat them."

"Awoo..."

Cola looked at the Wind Whisper Grass before his mouth and instinctively shook his head, resistance flashing in his eyes.

What dog ate grass?

"If you want to catch up to Spark's progress, if you want greater strength, then eat it." Chen Yuan glared at Cola.

Hearing this, Cola could only cover his eyes, a look of facing death without flinching appearing on his face as he swallowed the Wind Whisper Grass in one bite.

"Awooo, awooo..."

Cola chewed the Wind Whisper Grass for all he was worth, only to discover that it was not as awful as he had imagined. It was fragrant and crisp, with an unexpectedly delicious taste.

"Awoo?"

After finishing, Cola raised his head and looked at Chen Yuan with a face full of expectation.

He wanted more!

Chen Yuan laughed and scolded, "Eat, eat, eat. All you know is eating."

Yet just then, Cola suddenly felt something begin changing inside his body. A breeze sprang up around him, stirring the dust on the ground.

Chen Yuan took Sparkling Flying Cat and moved a little farther away, so as not to disturb Cola's advancement ritual.

Spark and Moistening Duck emerged from who knew where. The former quietly watched the process, a faint light flickering in his eyes as though he remembered his own advancement.

The latter widened his eyes, blankly staring at Cola shrouded in the breeze.

So jealous, quack.

Just like Spark's time, Cola's advancement ritual lasted a full hour.

"Awooo, awooo!"

After finishing his advancement, Cola dashed over to the full-length mirror in the corner and examined his current self—he was a whole size larger than before, his features more handsome and spirited, and the tail behind him longer and fluffier.

Other than that, there was no difference.

"Awoo..."

Seeing that he had not changed much, Cola lowered his head in disappointment.

Chen Yuan walked over to Cola, crouched down, and stroked his head as he comforted him. "You're much stronger than before, and you have a whole group of friends with you. What is there to be dissatisfied about?"

Cola abruptly turned his head, only then noticing them in the corner—Sparkling Flying Cat blinked and stared at him without moving; Spark lightly nodded at him, as if showing his approval; Duckie stood with his hands on his hips against the wall, grinning.

Everyone is here with you, quack.