The Big-Eater Zi Yan
Huo Yuhao's tense nerves finally relaxed, and he let out a long sigh of relief, "Looks like there's no problem. Between humans—hmm?"
His words abruptly stopped!
The white runes quickly merged, connecting the two people's auras.
Bite!
A clear, resonant sound echoed simultaneously deep within their souls. This signified the successful completion of the contract, and the runes' light completely faded.
The instant the contract was completed, an incredibly clear stream of information flowed into Huo Yuhao's senses without any obstruction!
"You—you're a Warcraft?!" Huo Yuhao exclaimed in shock.
As dusk fell, the mountains and forests were shrouded in darkness.
A campfire was burning brightly, and the leaping flames illuminated the profiles of Huo Yuhao and Zi Yan.
Zi Yan sat cross-legged on the ground without any regard for her image, holding a roasted monster leg that was thicker than her whole body in her arms.
She was tearing at the food with astonishing speed, her eating manners exceptionally wild. Her little mouth was stuffed full, and her face was covered in grease.
--
"Ugh! Although it tastes really good—" Zi Yan mumbled indistinctly, "The energy contained in the corpses of ordinary magical beasts is too little! It can only barely fill my stomach, it's not enough to satisfy my hunger."
Huo Yuhao did not eat with Zi Yan.
He sat quietly by the fire, his fingertips unconsciously tracing invisible lines on his knees, his icy blue eyes reflecting the red flames, appearing somewhat absent-minded.
After accidentally signing an "Equal Contract" with the little girl in front of him, his main task became how to terminate the contract without any side effects.
Unfortunately, this Equal Contract Formation is a bug-level formation capable of cross-world teleportation and altering the bloodlines, lifespans, and souls of both parties to the contract.
Even with Huo Yuhao's current abilities, it would take considerable time to research and completely remove it without harming anyone.
"Um... is there any food left?" Zi Yan's voice interrupted Huo Yuhao's thoughts.
He looked up, and even though he was mentally prepared, his eyelids twitched involuntarily.
In just a short while, the beast that he roasted, weighing several thousand pounds, was completely devoured, leaving not even a bone fragment. It all ended up in Zi Yan's tiny belly!
Her flat stomach seemed unchanged, showing no sign that she had just swallowed a mountain of meat.
"You... you're still not full?" Huo Yuhao's tone carried a hint of undisguised surprise.
Zi Yan shook her head in frustration, patting her still-empty stomach. "Not enough energy, I'm not full."
"Energy----" Huo Yuhao pondered for a moment, then with a thought, a fist-sized, crystal-clear fruit radiating an icy aura appeared in his palm.
Cold Blood Fruit is one of the main ingredients for refining certain Sixth-Grade Pill.
"Yes! This is it!" Zi Yan's eyes lit up instantly, and she almost pounced on it, her little face filled with pure longing.
"This fruit has so much more energy than that huge Magic Core -less beast from before!"
"Can magical beasts directly consume medicinal herbs?" Huo Yuhao looked at Zi Yan's longing eyes, hesitated for a moment, and then handed her the Cold Blood Fruit.
Although it is known that the effects of taking medicinal herbs directly are far less than those of refining them into pills, and that they may contain impurities, these should not be a problem for magical beasts.
"Thanks!" Zi Yan cheered, grabbed the Cold Blood Fruit, and without even looking at it, swallowed it in two gulps.
However, after finishing her meal, Zi Yan's face scrunched up slightly, her pink tongue stuck out a little, and she fanned her mouth with her little hand, looking like she was eating in the old cafeteria.
However, a satisfied smile quickly spread across her face.
Is this medicinal herb unsuitable for you?
Huo Yuhao noticed her aversion to the Cold Blood Fruit, so he asked her about it. At the same time, he was also pondering:
Through the soul information transmitted via the Equal Contract, Zi Yan is a dragon-type magical beast called the "Ancient Void Dragon," skilled in spatial power. Perhaps—this kind of cold-natured medicinal herb is not suitable for her?
"No!" Zi Yan shook her head decisively, "All the medicinal herbs taste terrible!"
"But—" her eyes were incredibly determined. "In order to grow up quickly, I must eat them! No matter how awful they taste, I have to eat them!"
"In that case—" Huo Yuhao's lips curled up slightly, "I do have a way to make the medicinal herbs taste a little better."
"Huh?" Zi Yan's eyes widened, and she pounced on Huo Yuhao, her voice full of longing. "Really? Really?"
Can it really become tastier?
Huo Yuhao didn't explain, but instead took out another high-grade medicinal herb from his storage ring. Then he took out some ingredients and a bunch of bottles and jars.
Even without the sense of closeness brought about by the forced Equal Contract, Huo Yuhao subconsciously treated Zi Yan as his own Soul Spirit because of his many years of interaction with the Soul Spirit, and was always willing to grant her requests.
After a while, Zi Yan lay contentedly on a smooth rock, her little hands stroking her now swollen belly.
"I'm full—burp—" She let out a small, satisfied burp, her face beaming with an unprecedentedly happy smile, "So delicious! It's so delicious! Huo Yuhao!"
Zi Yan declared confidently, "From now on, I'll protect you in the Inner Academy! Anyone who dares to bully you, I'll beat them up!"
Looking at her bossy demeanor, and recalling her earlier state of being a starving ghost, Huo Yuhao couldn't help but chuckle.
"Alright." Huo Yuhao smiled and pointed towards the Inner Academy: "It's getting late. If we don't go back soon, Great Elder Su Qian will probably get worried."
Upon hearing this, Zi Yan sat up with a swift movement, her belly round and plump, yet her movements remained agile.
"Let me take you home!"
Zi Yan secretly planned: After sending him back this time, she'll know where he lives. Then she can find him anytime she wants to eat!
Moreover, although this person initially had an unpleasant aura, he gradually became more and more handsome! It would be very prestigious to have him as a follower!
A few days later.
In Huo Yuhao's office in the Inner Academy, sunlight streamed through the windows, casting shadows on the floor.
At this moment, Huo Yuhao's main body was handling some affairs of the academy.
"Hiss—another new school rule! It seems we need to be more careful about how we use these new training grounds! One elder per place might not be enough."
An elder responsible for dealing with the forces in the Black-Corner Region hurried in.
"Chief Elder!" The elder bowed respectfully, then took out a rather heavy-looking scroll from his Storage Ring: "This is a list of stolen goods that recently leaked from several major auction houses and the underground black market in the Black-Corner Region. As per your instructions, we have focused on items that may contain spatial energy."
"Most of them have been seized by our people and stored in the Black Emperor Sect Auction House's secret vault."
Xiao Jiang