"The Ancient Moon Mercenary Group is a Tier 3 mercenary group, relatively average in Earthstar City with only a few hundred members. The leader of the group is my cousin, Fan Xiechen. Actually, I've been relying on this group since high school, regularly going outside the city to train. It's only in the wild where I feel that vastness, freedom, excitement, and challenge," Fan Qingmei said as if to herself.
Kent nodded thoughtfully, "You don't like university life?"
"University life? It's fine, but it's just not for me," Fan Qingmei lowered her voice. "How do I put it? I probably don't need to be taught and I don't like being taught."
"So, what about you?" she asked in return.
"Me? I'm a bit different from you. I chose this major because I have a strong desire for exploration. I want to go farther, hunt stronger monsters, and conquer even greater alternate spaces," Kent replied calmly.
"Wow, that's amazing! I didn't expect you to have such ambition. With your performance, no wonder the campus beauty has her eye on you. I didn't get it at first, but now I think you two are really a perfect match," Fan Qingmei praised.
"Yeah, both of us are serious about it," Kent accepted the compliment, then changed the subject, "By the way, why did your mercenary group only send you here to check things out?"
Fan Qingmei took a bite of beast meat, followed by a sip of white liquor, then waved her hand, "I requested to come myself. I've done this kind of thing a lot. In other words, I'm more inclined to act independently. You're not bad either, braving the icy wilderness alone. That's pretty impressive."
She sincerely complimented him.
The two of them chatted aimlessly until it was completely dark, at which point they set up their tents and went to sleep.
The night passed peacefully.
The next day, as soon as the sky brightened, they hurriedly got up. In the north, the winter days were short, so they had to set off early.
"Taiyin Mountain is in the Mongolian area, and we have a long way to go. We'll have to cross a vast grassland along the way. By the way, do you have any quick travel methods?" Fan Qingmei looked into the misty distance.
The snow had stopped, but the wind still howled like a knife, and the sky was dark and oppressive as if it were going to collapse. The thick fog in the mountains shifted restlessly, forming a swirling sea of mist.
Since the Earthstar anomaly, both the ecological and geographical environments of Earth had been affected, causing the average annual temperature to drop by nearly ten degrees. The northern regions in January were now around minus twenty degrees Celsius.
Fortunately, human physical resilience had also greatly increased, with the human body now several times stronger than before the anomaly, especially for mercenaries who had honed their bodies. Of course, the insulation of clothing had also improved.
Kent summoned Garfield, his King of Cats. Seeing its massive size, he thought to himself, "It's time to get them a larger Beast Tamer Bracelet."
The Beast Tamer Bracelet has a space specifically for living creatures, much like a spatial bag, but with varying sizes.
Of course, this was no problem for Kent, who could easily spend a few more credit points to upgrade it.
He leapt onto Garfield's back. With its large, soft golden fur, it was like lying on a natural blanket. Garfield's smooth, steady gait was so comfortable that Kent could practically sleep on it, as if in a train sleeper.
Fan Qingmei looked at Garfield in awe, "Sky-Level elite! Kent, did you say this evolution is from a golden elite directly to a sky-level elite?"
"Yes," Kent responded, feeling a surge of heat in his chest, "I'm actually an Advanced Beastmaster."
"Impressive, my junior!" Fan Qingmei's gaze became slightly heated as she took a deep breath, "Can you help me? For some reason, one of my beasts hasn't evolved for a long time, and even its level growth has slowed down significantly."
Kent nodded, "Sure, but I charge for it."
Helping others' beasts evolve required him to consume essence blood and possibly other resources, but he wouldn't overcharge. It would be a fair price.
Fan Qingmei hesitated a little, then quietly tested, "I don't have much money left. Since my dad remarried, I haven't received a penny from home. I've been doing missions for years, earning a few million credit points, but expenses are high. Right now, I only have about a million credit points. If that's not enough, can I owe you the rest?"
Kent wasn't too concerned about money. He had a system, and making money was easy for him. So, he agreed immediately.
"No problem. Let's settle this, just summon your beast, and let me take a look."
Fan Qingmei breathed a sigh of relief, her eyes sparkling as she looked at Kent. She waved her hand, and two of her beasts appeared.
One was a majestic snow-white warhorse, a sky-level elite at level 47. The other was a small, double-axe-wielding goblin, a sky-level mid-tier at level 42.
"I've always been curious about your beasts. Now that I see them, they're extraordinary," Kent marveled.
The warhorse was self-explanatory, capable of traveling thousands of miles a day, a classic top-tier mount.
The goblin, however, was quite unique. It wasn't an Earthstar creature—it was a native beast from an alternate space, a sentient being from the dark space. Goblins were greedy, cunning, ugly, and sinister, yet they were capable of using tools and had a rudimentary language and civilization.
Fan Qingmei enjoyed Kent's praise, raising her eyebrows and smiling, "I agree, both of my beasts are unique. This Sky-Walking Snow Steed is great for riding. Its combat abilities are average, but it's an excellent mount. It can walk on water, ice, and mountains, and even briefly hover. It's an excellent companion for wild battles."
She then pointed at the goblin, "This Shadow Goblin comes from the dark space. You know, the dark space is ranked among the top hundred in the alternate space rankings. The Shadow Goblin is a sentient creature from that space. While its growth potential is low, and its combat power is average, it has many strange and crafty abilities. After using those abilities, I feel like an experienced, despicable assassin."
Kent nodded repeatedly. After reading their attributes, he could tell that both of these beasts had some very unique abilities, which made him slightly intrigued.
However, his own three beasts were even more impressive.
Garfield was a sky-level elite Sky Cat King, Wukong was a naturally grown sky-level elite Diamond Monkey with tremendous growth potential, and Bajie was the only life form from a mysterious small realm, just like Wukong, with the same elite tier—also a sky-level elite.