Solo leveling

Chapter 6: Solo leveling. "You disgrace!"

"How did House Jiang end up with an idiot like you for a descendant?!"

Inside House Jiang's compound in Chuanbei, the family head, Jiang Wen, slammed the table over and over, nearly choking on his fury.

He pointed at Jiang Li, who knelt before him, and roared:

"That was an SSR! You just let him go? And you let House Mo scoop him up!"

Jiang Li's face was covered in tears and snot as she protested miserably:

"Dad, how was I supposed to know an R Card could turn into an SSR after forming a contract?!"

She shuffled forward, grabbed Jiang Wen's trouser leg, and pleaded, "Dad, I can't accept this! You have to help me! That was the SSR I pulled! Let's go demand him back from House Mo!"

Jiang Wen's face turned livid as he ground his teeth.

"You still have the nerve to say that?!"

"No matter what rank of Contract Spirit you pull, you must never casually abandon them and let them dissipate. That's the most basic principle of being a Contract Spirit Master!"

"But you went and severed your first Soul Contract just like that! You even wanted to watch him turn to dust!"

He crouched down and gripped Jiang Li's shoulders hard. "Do you have any idea that a main damage-dealer SSR Contract Spirit could elevate our entire House Jiang into one of Great Xia's foremost families? Why would House Mo ever give him back?!"

Looking at his daughter, Jiang Wen honestly wanted to slap her to death!

An SSR!

The dream countless Contract Spirit Masters chased.

If he had contracted with one, he could have taken House Jiang soaring to new heights!

But his brain-dead daughter had ruined that opportunity.

Jiang Li sobbed so hard she could barely speak.

"Dad, I lost my pity pull. I just lost my temper for a moment! You have to help me get my SSR back!"

Jiang Wen gritted his teeth. "We'll just have to try. Even if we can't get him back, we have to make House Mo pay something!"

Night fell.

Inside the villa.

Xia Yuan and Mo Shiyu had talked well into the evening before he finally gained a general understanding of this world.

After such a long day, Mo Shiyu's stomach growled with hunger, and she prepared to order a lavish takeout meal.

Xia Yuan lounged on the sofa, his head hanging over the back, and waved at her.

"Hey, rich girl. I want this world's equivalent of a Manchu-Han banquet."

The corner of Mo Shiyu's mouth twitched. "What the heck is a Manchu-Han banquet? Besides, Contract Spirits don't need to eat. Your life is sustained by spiritual energy."

Xia Yuan leisurely lifted his head. "I'm different from other Contract Spirits. I like eating."

Please.

Though he had become a Contract Spirit, he had always loved eating. Naturally, he wasn't about to give up the joy of good food.

Left with no choice, Mo Shiyu ordered plenty of food for Xia Yuan.

Once they had eaten and drunk their fill, they got ready for bed.

Xia Yuan yawned. "So, where do I sleep?"

Mo Shiyu blinked. "You sleep? Contract Spirits don't need sleep, do they? Besides, you can stay in the Contract Spirit Space."

Contract Spirits could enter the Contract Spirit Space to rest. Like Pokémon, they didn't have to take up any physical space.

Xia Yuan waved a hand. "Nope, nope. What are you thinking, Chubby Yu? I'm not being a Pokémon. Get me a room. Oh, right, I also need a top-of-the-line computer."

The more Mo Shiyu heard, the more ridiculous she found it. "What do you need a computer for?"

Xia Yuan replied with a perfectly straight face, "Gaming."

Mo Shiyu: "??!"

What kind of decent Contract Spirit played video games?!

For the first time, she firmly refused.

"No. We're going to be busy. The National College Spiritmaster Championship starts soon, and I have to raise your level as quickly as possible!"

Xia Yuan only grew more shameless, flopping onto the sofa. "If you don't buy me one, I'm not fighting monsters. I'll just laze around every day."

Mo Shiyu stared at him with her beautiful eyes wide in disbelief.

Whose Contract Spirit was this willful?

Was he a little kid?

Did she have to play mommy and coax him?!

Besides, wasn't the Contract Spirit Master normally the one giving orders to the Contract Spirit?!

But when she saw his handsome face and the gleaming golden SSR above his head, Mo Shiyu couldn't muster any anger at all.

With no other choice, she agreed.

"Wait here, then. I'll go get your room ready."

"Sure. I'll go take a shower."

After spending the day together, Mo Shiyu had already gone from respectfully calling him "Senior Xia Yuan" to addressing him however she pleased...

His obnoxious, infuriating attitude made it impossible to respect him!

They had also grown a little closer, losing the stiffness of their first meeting.

By the time Mo Shiyu finished tidying the room, her back aching from the effort, Xia Yuan emerged freshly showered. His eight-pack was bare, and he had replaced his blindfold with sunglasses. Anyone who didn't know better would have thought he was heading off for a beach vacation.

For a young woman like Mo Shiyu, the sight was a little too much.

One glance sent her pretty face bright red. She hurriedly turned away, too embarrassed to keep looking, and stammered nervously:

"Y-you... you have to wear clothes at home!"

She suddenly remembered those scandalous news stories about Contract Spirit Masters and their Contract Spirits...

Quite a few Contract Spirit Masters had gotten intimately involved with their Contract Spirits.

Their relationship was simply too complicated. They were both partners and bound by shared interests.

If one was a man and the other a woman, spending every day together made it all too easy for that to happen...

At that thought, Mo Shiyu's brain started overheating.

If her SSR really asked for it, should she agree or not?

Drying his hair with a bath towel, Xia Yuan walked past Mo Shiyu and said with a cheerful smile:

"Thanks for the hard work, Master Chubby Yu. See you tomorrow."

Watching him saunter away, Mo Shiyu quickly shook her head, clearing out her less-than-wholesome thoughts.

She slapped her cheeks. "Get a grip! You can't think about abs all day. We have a dungeon to tackle tomorrow!"

The next day.

The Monster Dungeon area at Chuanda Spirit Master Academy.

Though it was only six in the morning, this prime leveling area was already packed and bustling!

Contract Spirit Masters accompanied by all sorts of Contract Spirits called out constantly in the party hall:

"Level 50 C Rank Contract Spirit leading leveling runs! Anyone with a support Contract Spirit can join for experience! Priority goes to girls and pretty female Contract Spirits!"

"Forming a party for a two-star dungeon! No E Rank Contract Spirits below level 30!"

"Level 60 B Rank Contract Spirit powerhouse leading a run! Ten Spirit Stones per slot! Taking a few tagalongs!"

"New Contract Spirit Masters forming a party for a beginner dungeon! No restrictions! We leave as soon as we have five!"

"..."

For their own safety, most Contract Spirit Masters at the academy chose to tackle Monster Dungeons in parties, just in case.

Partying up also increased their maximum combat strength, allowing them to tackle higher-level dungeons and earn generous rewards.

Of course, some Contract Spirit Masters ran dungeons solo.

But they were extremely rare, usually geniuses at the academy with powerful, high-rank, high-level Contract Spirits under their command!

The arrival of Mo Shiyu and Xia Yuan immediately made them the center of attention.

"Just as I thought. Even after hiding your rank, there's still no way to avoid drawing attention..."

Mo Shiyu sighed helplessly and glanced at the silver-haired man in black standing beside her, all 190 centimeters of him.

Xia Yuan kept smiling without a care, casually taking in his surroundings.

Sichuan University Academy's dungeon area was vast, covering who knew how many mountains!

From a distance, the mountainsides were covered in swirling vortices that glowed in different colors. Those were probably the dungeon entrances.

Xia Yuan clasped his hands behind his head and asked with a smile:

"So, Chubby Yu, which dungeon are we going to first?"

Mo Shiyu studied a dungeon map. "The safest beginner dungeon, of course. I'm not familiar with your combat strength or skills yet..."

Xia Yuan didn't want to waste time in a beginner dungeon. He knew exactly how powerful his Satoru Gojo template was. "Well, dungeons are divided into different tiers based on how dangerous they are, right...?"

Mo Shiyu glanced at him in mild surprise, nodded, and continued explaining:

"You know quite a bit for a Contract Spirit. By difficulty, Monster Dungeons go from beginner dungeons to one-star, two-star, three-star, four-star, and Five-Star Dungeons. Finally, there are the most terrifying of all, Abyss Dungeons!"

Xia Yuan nodded slightly. "All right. Let's start with at least a three-star dungeon."

Mo Shiyu's rosy lips parted in surprise. "Huh? What are you thinking? Absolutely not! This is our first dungeon run."

Xia Yuan glanced at her and considered it.

"True. I almost forgot you're still a rookie Contract Spirit Master. You'll hold me back."

Mo Shiyu's cheeks visibly puffed up as she growled under her breath, "Let's play it safe! If we die in a dungeon, it's all over!"

Xia Yuan spread his hands stubbornly. "Fine. A two-star dungeon. Any lower and I'm not doing it..."

Mo Shiyu clenched her fists in anger, but there was absolutely nothing she could do about him.

He was an SSR, after all...

Mo Shiyu asked helplessly, "Are we joining a party?"

Xia Yuan shook his head. "Doesn't joining a party mean splitting experience with other people? That's no good. I want to... level up solo!"