Jia Xiu Takes the Exams

[Available auxiliary patron contract slots: 1]

Jia Xiu had nothing to hesitate over with this sole slot.

Rather than wait who knew how long to encounter another powerful creature willing to sign a contract, he might as well go straight to Bubu.

Besides, Bubu counted as quite a powerful creature. Even as an undead, it had 28 Charisma. Before its death, it definitely hadn't been any ordinary fairy.

At the very least, it had been a fairy lord, perhaps even had the makings of a fairy king.

It was more than qualified to become a warlock's patron.

Faced with the contract Jia Xiu drafted on the spot, Bubu didn't know what an auxiliary patron was, but it knew that following the boss meant getting materials to eat, and that the boss would never hurt it.

Bubu signed the contract without hesitation.

And so, a peculiar bonded pair—"my retainer is also one of my patrons"—was officially born.

[Auxiliary patron contracted: Bubu]

[The following spells may be learned: Faerie Fire, Blink, Speak with Animals, Speak with Dead, Charm, Invisibility, Mist Step, Hypnosis, Cosmic Shift, Phantom Slayer...]

[Choose one of the following traits to inherit: Magic Resistance / Elemental Affinity / Mana Regeneration]

Bubu's long list of spells unfolded before Jia Xiu's eyes.

Unfortunately, most of them couldn't be learned yet. His current abilities only supported the use of second-circle spells at most.

Still, it would save him quite a bit of trouble searching for spellbooks in the future.

As for the trait, Jia Xiu chose Elemental Affinity without the slightest hesitation.

When he had first met Bubu and seen its traits, there were two that had made him especially envious: Innate Spellcasting and Elemental Affinity.

What he wanted most was Innate Spellcasting. Since that wasn't available, he could only choose Elemental Affinity.

[Trait inherited: Elemental Affinity]

Almost instantly, Jia Xiu felt his senses change.

It was like ears that couldn't distinguish a single note suddenly gaining perfect pitch.

He could now clearly sense the elements present in the space around him and even distinguish their elemental properties.

He didn't need to think through the process at all. It happened entirely by instinct.

In the past, this was something he could only accomplish after a whole series of tests, verifications, and calculations.

Both his spellcasting efficiency and his efficiency in researching new spells had increased greatly.

So this is the world of freakish talent?

It seemed Bubu wasn't just a stat monster—it was a mechanics monster too!

Having gained elemental perception, Jia Xiu was like a child who had just received a brand-new toy. He couldn't wait to try it out.

He opened the spellbook granted by the demonic contract. The spell recorded inside was one he had been researching lately: Mage Armor.

Saint Dero's examination included not only a written test but also several rounds of practical combat. Though he didn't know the exact rules for the practical portion, learning some protective spells couldn't hurt.

After raising his level and attributes and gaining this trait, Jia Xiu could see far more places in the Mage Armor runes that could be adjusted.

"Let me see whether I can make the armor form in a specific location..."

Several days passed in a flash, and before he knew it, the day had come for Jia Xiu to leave for Larven and take the exams.

Before departing, Jia Xiu went to Aunt Susan's house. Aunt Susan held a family gathering as a farewell for Jia Xiu before he headed to the big city.

There weren't many attendees. Aunt Susan's husband had died young, while her son had joined the army and was stationed far away at the border. He hadn't returned in years. In this era, it wasn't easy for ordinary people to travel home to visit family.

Thus, only her younger sister Peggy's family came. However, they all seemed rather talkative, and successfully made the house lively.

Bubu was probably the happiest of all.

Peggy's two children were about the same age as Bubu—well, the same mental age.

They quickly became good friends.

The three of them had now formed a knightly order and gone to challenge the goose raised by the old man next door.

Bubu had challenged it alone last time and suffered a narrow defeat.

The reason for that narrow defeat was that Bubu had been too chivalrous. It hadn't used a single spell, nor had it used its sword, Severance. It had simply taken a tree branch and sparred with the goose until the first touch.

But the goose had no sense of martial honor. Seeing that it couldn't win fairly, it called over its companions and ganged up on Bubu. No matter how high Bubu's Agility was, its Strength and Constitution weren't enough to withstand a beating from a whole flock.

So this time, Bubu had brought two "aides" to back it up. If it was a one-on-one duel, then fine; if it turned into a brawl, it wasn't afraid either. It swore to conquer the old man next door's geese.

As for Jia Xiu, he was in the kitchen.

He was going to do something he had wanted to try for more than two years, but had never had the chance to do.

Kill a chicken.

This place was called Creekwood Town. How could he not kill a chicken?

Jia Xiu skillfully grabbed the hen by the base of its wings and lifted it. With his other hand, he found the joint connecting the chicken's head and neck, then gave it a hard yank.

A quick way to kill a chicken.

A useless little life hack.

Then he drained its blood and scalded off the feathers.

It didn't draw the entire town's hatred. That was a little disappointing.

Jia Xiu was making chicken stewed with mushrooms. There were no spices, soy sauce, or MSG here; he used onions in place of scallions, and even the salt wasn't very pure. But the chicken truly was free-range, and the mushrooms were genuine wild mountain mushrooms. The result was fairly good, and the fragrance filled Aunt Susan's house.

Of course, perhaps he had simply lived here too long, and his sense of food had already gone off.

"Dinner's ready!"

Bubu and its two "aides" happened to return at that moment, covered in mud. By the look of them, they had gone through a fierce battle.

"We defeated the evil Deer-Eagle Beast horde!" Bubu announced proudly.

"Does the old man know he's raising Deer-Eagle Beasts?" Jia Xiu teased.

"Our Bubu is so impressive. It even knows about Deer-Eagle Beasts."

Aunt Susan never let Bubu's enthusiasm be dampened.

"Wash up and come eat. I can't wait any longer. I've never eaten food cooked by a knight in my life..."

Aegni, Abyss of Exile.

This was a dark plane filled with pain and torment. Exiles, fallen ones, and followers of evil gods struggled to survive in this twisted world.

Amid drifting shattered sky islands, bottomless rifts, and fetid poisonous swamps lay a labyrinth, within which countless souls drifted.

They were the collection of the God of Deceit and Curses.

Those lost souls whose souls had been swindled away wandered through this labyrinth as decorations until they completely dissipated.

At the center of the labyrinth stood the temple of the evil god Morpheus.

Inside the temple, He held a wineglass as He inspected the faith He had gained through deception.

Suddenly, He noticed that He had lost contact with an altar that had originally belonged to Him.

This was perfectly normal. As an unpopular evil god, it was common for His altars to be destroyed.

He had noticed this particular altar because it had existed for over twenty years.

For it to have lasted so long—even though it hadn't provided much faith over those twenty-odd years—its rarity alone made it valuable enough.

He cast a spell, intending to investigate what exactly had happened to the altar.

"Hmm... My faith has been intercepted? Someone actually dares intercept His faith? Is it a god with a higher divinity?

"Whew—no. Thank goodness. Then who is it...

"An undead? An undead dares steal faith? Don't let me find you..."

Having identified the target, Morpheus began searching for that arrogant undead.

"Oh? It was a fairy in life, and its bloodline is quite unusual. How interesting. It even signed a contract?"

Someone capable of signing a contract with such a special undead...

Morpheus's interest in this contractor soared. If He could deceive this contractor out of their soul...

An evil smile appeared on His face.

"Let Me find you."

Morpheus cast the spell again. Yet a mutation completely beyond His expectations occurred.

The guiding runes began to flicker, gradually warping in shape.

[It's burning, it's burning, it's burning!]

What was this thing?

Morpheus panicked. In His long life, He had never encountered such a bizarre phenomenon.

He tried to stop casting, but the spell was completely beyond His control. It continued running, drawing on His mana as it did.

Soon, a phantom giant hand emerged from the gibberish.

Morpheus was so nervous He felt like retching. What was this?

Slap!

The giant hand gave Him a solid, resounding slap across the face.

The damage was low, but the humiliation and intimidation were off the charts.

Then the gibberish transformed into a line of text.

[This is a warning]

Morpheus stared at the warning, unable to stop trembling. He regretted it—regretted it so much. Why had He gone looking for trouble?

A mighty evil god crouched on His own bed, hugging His knees, small, pitiful, and helpless...