As he watched the Steel-Armored Rhino leave, Xu Ran suddenly realized something was wrong.
The Happiness Points notifications had stopped.
With the Steel-Armored Rhino temporarily gone, it made sense that it would stop providing Happiness Points.
But the Shadow-Hunting Lizard was still eating...
He instinctively looked over, then jumped in alarm at the Shadow-Hunting Lizard's condition.
The Shadow-Hunting Lizard's black eyes had lost their luster. It stared blankly at the unfinished food in its bowl, utterly motionless, as though petrified.
What...
What was going on?!
Xu Ran was baffled.
He had clearly succeeded in lifting the Shadow-Hunting Lizard's spirits with delicious food. Why had it suddenly become like this?
"Um... Shadow-Hunting Lizard... are you okay?"
Xu Ran spoke cautiously.
"Meow?" (What's wrong?)
Purple Cloud gently patted the Shadow-Hunting Lizard's back with a paw, looking concerned.
The Shadow-Hunting Lizard slowly raised its head and gave Xu Ran a vacant look. Then, without even glancing at the unfinished food in its bowl, it trudged toward the Stone Forest and slowly sank into the shadows.
So in the end... I was the only one abandoned by my Beast Tamer...
Xu Ran: "!!!"
Watching the utterly inactive Happiness Points notifications and the Shadow-Hunting Lizard's dejected behavior, he was absolutely certain that something had gone terribly wrong!
"Meow~" (Are you okay?)
Purple Cloud darted over to the shadows of the Stone Forest and called into them again and again. After a while, it returned to Xu Ran's side, crestfallen.
The Shadow-Hunting Lizard gave no response.
Xu Ran sighed and raised his voice. "Shadow-Hunting Lizard!"
Everything around him was silent. Only his voice echoed between the Wilderness and the Stone Forest.
"I know you can hear me!"
"I'm sorry. I still don't know why you're feeling so down!"
"But I promise I'll do my best to help you get back on your feet!"
"So please don't give up on yourself!"
Everything remained silent.
After waiting a little longer, Xu Ran put away the Shadow-Hunting Lizard's food bowl, picked up Purple Cloud, and turned to leave.
For now, he would give it some time alone.
"Old buddy, you did great!"
Outside Qingzhou City, Du Heng patted the Steel-Armored Rhino's head, his expression full of satisfaction.
Even after several days apart, he and the Steel-Armored Rhino were still perfectly in sync.
"Du, why do I get the feeling your Steel-Armored Rhino has gotten stronger after spending a few days boarding with that young shopkeeper?" Zhang Yun studied the Steel-Armored Rhino for quite a while before he finally spoke.
"Yeah, I feel the same way. That Wind Rend Griffin was pretty strong, but the Steel-Armored Rhino blocked it so easily?" Liu Gu rubbed his chin. "That much improvement in just a few days is a little ridiculous!"
"I honestly don't know." Du Heng shook his head and spoke with some embarrassment. "I've been so busy these past few days that I haven't had time to visit the Steel-Armored Rhino. Last night, I only had enough time to say hello to the young shopkeeper."
"You haven't been giving your Steel-Armored Rhino enough attention. You'll have to make it up to it," Liu Xue teased.
"You're right." Du Heng nodded firmly and turned to the Steel-Armored Rhino. "Once we're back in the city, I'll take you to that earth-type Contract Beast amusement park you've always wanted to visit. We can spend a few hours there before I take you back to the boarding shop!"
Unexpectedly, the Steel-Armored Rhino wanted no part of that.
Go all the way around and enter the city through the City Gate? Then spend hours at a Contract Beast amusement park?
What a waste of time!
Having left the Contract Beast boarding shop, the Steel-Armored Rhino had only one thought: return to the Mud Pit where it could romp freely, play in the mud, and eat two meals a day prepared by Xu Ran.
"Roar~" (Can you teleport me straight back to the boarding shop?)
Du Heng's mouth twitched. "What did you say?!"
He could hardly believe his ears.
After summoning a Contract Beast to their side, a Beast Tamer could indeed teleport it back to its original location, but few Beast Tamers did so.
Beast Tamers and their Contract Beasts were the closest of companions. Naturally, the more time they could spend together, the better.
Yet now, the Steel-Armored Rhino was actually asking him to send it back.
Back to the boarding shop, no less!
It was even willing to give up the reward it had once wanted most just to go back!
Seeing Du Heng remain silent, the Steel-Armored Rhino nudged him with its massive head, urging him on.
"Roar~" (Hurry, hurry!)
The mud was calling!
Du Heng took a deep breath, raised his hand, and sent the Steel-Armored Rhino back.
The members of the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad exchanged looks. After a long silence, Yan Fan remarked in a faint voice, "Could this be... the irresistible pull of home?"
"...Stop talking." Du Heng clutched his chest, suddenly feeling a deep, deep ache in his heart.
"I think I might have misunderstood."
Sitting in the ground-floor shop, Xu Ran reviewed the details of his interactions with the Shadow-Hunting Lizard over the past few days and spoke with a complicated expression.
"It wasn't the delicious food that lifted the Shadow-Hunting Lizard's spirits."
The Shadow-Hunting Lizard followed the same feeding schedule as the Steel-Armored Rhino: twice a day.
For convenience, he always fed both boarding guests together.
Now that he thought about it carefully, the Shadow-Hunting Lizard would steal a few glances at the Steel-Armored Rhino every time it ate. Each time it looked at the Steel-Armored Rhino, it provided a few more Happiness Points.
And the Shadow-Hunting Lizard's emotional breakdown had happened when the Steel-Armored Rhino was teleported away.
That was it!
The clues were so obvious. Why hadn't he noticed them all along?!
"It looks like I was too careless."
Xu Ran let out a deep sigh, filled with self-reproach.
"Meow~" (I'm responsible too.)
Purple Cloud rubbed against Xu Ran's palm, trying to comfort him.
Its Beast Tamer hadn't noticed, but as a Contract Beast, it should have understood other Contract Beasts' thoughts better. Yet it hadn't realized in time either.
It really should have known better.
"I should have realized sooner that the Shadow-Hunting Lizard was in love with the Steel-Armored Rhino."
Purple Cloud froze.
It discreetly took a few steps back.
Well... it really couldn't tell that.
"Even though they're both male, and even though they're different species." Xu Ran pounded the table, looking increasingly frustrated with himself. "Love can transcend everything!"
"I've thought of a solution." Xu Ran's eyes grew brighter and brighter. "When the Steel-Armored Rhino comes back, I'll have a talk with both of them and get them to try accepting each other. That's sure to stabilize the Shadow-Hunting Lizard's mood!"
Purple Cloud couldn't help taking a few more steps back.
It was only a Transcendent Rank Contract Beast. Why did it have to endure pressure far beyond its Growth Rank?
If two Elite Rank Contract Beasts wanted to kill Xu Ran, there was absolutely nothing it could do to stop them!
"Huh?" Looking at the boarding environment Control Hub as it suddenly issued a notification, Xu Ran's eyes lit up. "The Steel-Armored Rhino teleported straight back?"
"It could have come back with Uncle Du. Why did it teleport?"
"Could it be..."
"It couldn't bear to leave the Shadow-Hunting Lizard either?!"
"Come on, Purple Cloud!" Xu Ran stood, his eyes brimming with excitement. "Let's go have a talk with those two!"
"Meow!!!" (Don't go!!!)
Purple Cloud's fur instantly stood on end, and it clamped its teeth around Xu Ran's trouser leg.
It had to tell Xu Ran the real reason it had guessed!
Otherwise, neither it nor Xu Ran would make it out of the first basement level alive today!
Before you continue