"Bang."
Lu Yuan closed the door and stroked Meowmeow's broad face on the bed.
"Meowmeow, how did you get to the Douluo Continent?"
"Meow~" (Master, everything suddenly went black while I was fighting. When I opened my eyes again, I was in that dark room, meow.)
"Meow!" (Oh, right, Master! When I traveled to this world, I found this thing on me out of nowhere. Do you know what it is, meow?)
Meowmeow wriggled out of Lu Yuan's arms and pulled a glass bottle from somewhere behind its back.
The bottle contained green energy and a small, gleaming golden sun.
"Meowmeow, did you pull that out of your Four-Dimensional Pocket? Wait! This is... the Crowned Magic Cat's Leader Form item!"
Lu Yuan's eyes widened. He took the bottle from Meowmeow and examined it closely.
"So Meowmeow can still evolve into a Leader Form after traveling to the Douluo Continent."
"Oh, right, Meowmeow, do you have any more bottles like this?"
Meowmeow shook its head and spread its paws.
How could this be!
Lu Yuan's head drooped at once. Did that mean Meowmeow could only evolve into a Crowned Magic Cat in the end, and never into a Fighting Cool Cat?
"Never mind. At least there's still the Leader Form. That's better than a Magic Cat, anyway."
Lu Yuan comforted himself.
"Uwaa~"
Meowmeow clutched its belly, its cheeks puffed out, looking terribly uncomfortable.
"Meowmeow, what's wrong?"
Lu Yuan fretted helplessly and was just about to reach out to check on Meowmeow when its stomach contracted. Its mouth opened, and it abruptly spat out a glass bottle containing purple energy and a deep blue moon.
"This is...!"
Delighted, Lu Yuan picked up the glass bottle, then scooped up Meowmeow and spun around the room in excitement.
"Meow? Meow!" (Master, what's happening, meow? I'm so dizzy, meow!)
Lu Yuan set Meowmeow down and excitedly pointed at the purple glass bottle.
"Meowmeow, you can evolve into a Fighting Cool Cat!"
What Meowmeow had spat out was none other than the Fighting Cool Cat's evolution item.
"Meow? Meow!" (Really, Master, meow?)
Lu Yuan nodded. Suddenly, he sensed something, as though something was about to emerge from his body.
Lu Yuan put Meowmeow down and immediately closed his eyes. A burst of spiritual light suddenly flared before him, and an antique parchment book fell out of it.
"Meow?" (Master, what are you doing, meow?)
Lu Yuan hurriedly opened his eyes and reached out to catch the book.
"Meow!" (Wow~ Master, is that the Pet Compendium?)
Lu Yuan shook his head.
"No, it's the Soul Beast Compendium."
Lu Yuan opened the parchment book, whose cover bore the large words "Soul Beast Compendium." Meowmeow's name and silhouette suddenly appeared on the blank pages inside.
Pop~
A strange pink fruit, somewhat resembling a peach, sprang out of the Soul Beast Compendium. It was none other than the Coco Fruit Lu Yuan had seen in the world of the Kingdom of Locke.
"Meow." (Master, it's a Coco Fruit!)
Lu Yuan watched as Meowmeow stared at the Coco Fruit in his hand with wide, watery eyes, waving its little paws like a beckoning cat-a perfect picture of a greedy little kitty.
"Here."
Lu Yuan handed the Coco Fruit to Meowmeow.
"Meow!" (Thank you, Master, meow!)
Meowmeow took the Coco Fruit and happily munched on it with narrowed eyes, making crisp crunching sounds now and then.
Lu Yuan suddenly felt something unusual in his body. He raised his right hand, and abundant deep blue soul power seeped out around his palm and arm.
"I guessed right. External martial souls in the Douluo World can cultivate on their own and raise a Soul Master's soul power level. And after Meowmeow ate the Coco Fruit, the experience that would originally have raised its level became an increase in my own soul power, visible to the naked eye."
In those few brief moments alone, Lu Yuan saw himself reach the threshold of level-one soul power.
"Meow." (Master, will Meowmeow get more Coco Fruits to eat in the future?)
Meowmeow finished the Coco Fruit with great satisfaction, crumbs still clinging to the corners of its mouth, and patted its little belly.
"Of course. Now that you can evolve into a Fighting Cool Cat, I certainly won't say things like 'Don't even dream of eating a single Coco Fruit' the way I did when we first met."
Lu Yuan affectionately stroked Meowmeow's head, then took out the Soul Beast Compendium and waved it before Meowmeow.
"This Soul Beast Compendium is similar to the Pet Compendium. Every Soul Beast recorded in it gives a Coco Fruit reward."
Now Lu Yuan could rest easy. With a cheat like this, he no longer had to worry about his soul power level advancing too slowly.
"And from what I can sense, every time my soul power level breaks through another ten levels, I'll gain another cheat from the world of the Kingdom of Locke-uh, no, I mean a Locke ability."
At this, Lu Yuan could not help excitedly imagining the possibilities. After all, Star Magic, which could stun enemies and deal damage, and Wind Field Magic, which could send people flying, would both count as decent self-created soul skills on the Douluo Continent.
If he could also use Gulu Balls, or even King Balls, to capture Soul Beasts, that would be even better.
"Meow!" (That's my master for you! You even have abilities like that, meow!)
"Of course! Just look at who your master is. Lu Yuan-the man destined to become a god on the Douluo Continent."
Just as Lu Yuan was singing his own praises, with Meowmeow listening without tiring of them, Old Tom's voice came from outside the door.
"Yuan, Meowmeow, come out and eat."
"Meow!" (Time to eat, meow!)
Meowmeow excitedly looked toward the door. It had never eaten food from the Douluo Continent before.
Lu Yuan watched with a smile. Such a glutton. No wonder you grew into a Chubby Meow.
With a practiced motion, Lu Yuan tucked Meowmeow against his hip with one arm and left the room.
Three steaming bowls of noodles sat on the dining table. In the middle was a generous spread of dishes made with meat from the wild boar Lu Yuan had caught in the mountains a few days earlier, along with other ingredients.
"Grandpa, is this... are we expecting a guest?"
Lu Yuan looked in confusion at the three bowls of noodles and the third stool, but Old Tom pointed at Meowmeow in his arms.
"I prepared that for Meowmeow. It's part of the family too."
At those words, Meowmeow covered its mouth, its eyes brimming with tears. Lu Yuan smiled knowingly and placed Meowmeow on the third stool.
Meowmeow, who had to stand on the stool to reach the table, immediately picked up the chopsticks and began slurping noodles. The sight made Old Tom laugh heartily.
"I knew my old eyes hadn't deceived me. This cat not only understands people, it's very clever too. Sit down and eat, or this greedy little kitty will finish everything."
After Old Tom praised Meowmeow, Lu Yuan answered him, and the three began enjoying the feast celebrating Lu Yuan becoming a Soul Master.
After eating and drinking its fill, Meowmeow's belly looked even more like a green ball. It rubbed its round stomach and lay back on the wooden chair with its eyes closed, not forgetting to let out a satisfied burp.
Lu Yuan was watching Meowmeow and did not notice Old Tom holding a small cloth bundle with something wrapped inside until he offered it to him.
"Grandpa, what's this?"
Old Tom smiled mysteriously. "Just open it and see."
Lu Yuan took the bundle and carefully peeled back the wrinkled old cloth, layer by layer. Before its contents were fully revealed, he caught a fishy scent of the sea.
Once the cloth bundle was open, he found a smooth, solid piece inside, white tinged with yellow and somewhat resembling ointment.
"Is this... whale rubber?!"