"So, it's been three days already, huh."
In the living room, under the explanation of the bountiful girl Nangong Siyao, Xiao Ye seemed a bit dazed.
Today was the fifth day since entering the Youth Training Camp. In cultivation mode, he couldn't sense the passage of time, and before he knew it, so much time had passed.
Nangong Siyao clung to Cheng Bingxi's arm, her eyes filled with excitement. She hadn't gotten to snuggle with Cheng Bingxi for three days, and inside, she was getting hungry for it.
For the past three days, after training, Nangong Siyao waited outside Xiao Ye's apartment to see if his cultivation was finished.
She would absolutely never admit that she often leaned against the door, secretly listening to what was going on inside Xiao Ye's apartment.
Cheng Bingxi suddenly looked anxious and jumped up, rushing into the bathroom.
"Crap, I've got four days of Oreos backed up inside me. I gotta go take care of business."
Xiao Ye was speechless, *Do you really have to describe your bathroom break in such detail? Just go already.*
As Cheng Bingxi dashed off, the bountiful girl Nangong Siyao gazed after her with curiosity. Suddenly, a breathtakingly handsome face filled her view.
Nangong Siyao blushed and scooted away a bit, saying angrily, "What do you want?"
"I should be asking you that. Why'd you show up at our apartment so early this morning? Got business or what?" Xiao Ye asked back.
"I—I came to find Cheng...I mean, I'm here to tell you that the City Guard Pavilion Master needs to see you guys!" Nangong Siyao reflexively wanted to say she came to snuggle with Cheng Bingxi, but quickly changed course and got to the point.
"Yeah, the City Guard Pavilion Master wants you guys to go see him after your cultivation ends."
Xiao Ye frowned. The Pavilion Master—that's basically the highest commander of the City Guard Army, same level as the Mangyuan Base City Lord. And he's looking for him for what reason?
Shoving those thoughts aside, Xiao Ye's attention returned to Nangong Siyao, who had quite the spectacular figure.
"Do you want to restore your SSS-tier template?" Xiao Ye asked.
Nangong Siyao's face fell and she said, "Of course I do! I dream about it! But there's no way, I have absolutely no clue where to even start."
As she spoke, she muttered to herself in a self-deprecating tone.
"Maybe the heavens just don't like me and are deliberately screwing me over."
Xiao Ye locked eyes with her, "I've got a way!"
Nangong Siyao lifted her head, looking totally unconvinced.
Xiao Ye took out a Rule Fragment Crystal from the system space and handed it to her, thinking to himself, *Patch up the broken template.*
The Rule Fragment Crystal dissolved into a colorless glow and merged into Nangong Siyao's body.
Nangong Siyao's body went stiff. She asked in disbelief, "What was that?"
She actually sensed endless power surging up from deep within, her Contractual Power strengthening nonstop.
[SSS-tier Five-Clawed Golden Dragon Template (Incomplete): Eleven Rule Fragment Crystals / Twelve Rule Fragment Crystals]
The Rule Fragment Crystal that had merged into the bountiful girl's body relayed this information.
Nangong Siyao was so excited, she ran next door to grab a template level testing device. It was pretty small—she'd gotten it personally from her City Lord father.
"Beep beep beep!"
With the bountiful girl bursting with excitement, the results from the testing device came out!
[SS-tier Four-Clawed Dragon King Template]
Nangong Siyao was stunned.
Just then, a knock sounded at the door, along with the bald instructor's voice,
"Xiao Ye, Cheng Bingxi, go to the City Guard Army's command center immediately. The higher-ups want to see you."
"Roger that, instructor," Xiao Ye replied.
Nangong Siyao rushed over and grabbed Xiao Ye's shoulders, asking excitedly, "SS-tier template! What's going on?"
Xiao Ye glanced at her and said, "Let's go out first. We'll talk when we're back."
After he spoke, Xiao Ye had the Rule Fragment Crystal manifest so he could retrieve it, grabbed it, and put it back in the system space. Suddenly, Nangong Siyao felt her Contractual Power rapidly drain away, her strength dropping to where it had been before.
Cheng Bingxi came out of the bathroom, and Xiao Ye dragged her off to the City Guard Pavilion's command center.
The City Guard Pavilion covered a massive area. The Youth Training Camp was just a small outer segment. As soon as they stepped out of the dorm building, the two were picked up by a squad.
Nangong Siyao checked her talent template again, but when she saw the results, her smile froze.
[C-tier Serpentine Dragon Template]
Seeing that, Nangong Siyao became dejected, like a cripple who just got hit with frost.
It took her a while to accept reality.
*Xiao Ye, he must have a way.*
Nangong Siyao's mood recovered just a little.
But then she started worrying again. *For Xiao Ye to help her restore her SSS-tier template, he must've paid a huge price. She wasn't the type to just mooch off others, so she had to give something of equal value in exchange.*
"But that's gotta be an exotic treasure that's beyond being measured with money. Even if I sell myself, probably still wouldn't get enough Crystal Cores."
"I'm willing to offer myself!" Just thinking of what she'd told Xiao Ye before, Nangong Siyao's face reddened. Xiao Ye was top-tier in looks, temperament, and talent, but every Beastmaster could only contract with one template.
"This sucks! If only Beastmasters could contract with more than one partner!"
Nangong Siyao held her head and rolled around on the couch, super frustrated, her spectacular assets thoroughly squished.
City Guard Pavilion's command center.
The roads were wide, security was tight, and order was impeccable. Every segment, you could spot fully armed troops.
Entering the estate, they were led by guards to a massive office.
Inside sat a middle-aged man with a square face. He was on a call at that moment.
"Pavilion Master, you're something else. You immediately saw that Xiao Ye and the other one were both SSS-tier, perfect for Hell Level training," he said,
The middle-aged man was surprised, "What Hell Level training?"
"Hey, Pavilion Master, don't pretend. I know you really care about Xiao Ye and his partner. Every time before training, you tell me to crank their training difficulty up to the max!"
The voice on the other end belonged to the so-called training maniac, the bald instructor, who said admiringly,
"It really works, too. The training below Hell Level doesn't do jack for them. It only makes sense to start at Hell Level!"
*Hell Level training was the only thing that worked?*
A flash of delight crossed the middle-aged man's eyes. *Is Mangyuan Base City about to produce some real dragons?*
But, *he reminds him every time before training?*
The middle-aged man's expression changed, and he started frantically searching his drawers, looking pissed.
*Fucking hell, that little brat swiped my token again!*
That token, a symbol of authority, was mostly used for remote command and communication. Normally, he'd just hand down orders to the guards instead of using it.
From outside came a report, "Reporting, Pavilion Master! Xiao Ye and Cheng Bingxi have been brought here."
The middle-aged man hung up, his face instantly calming, with a look of anticipation lighting his eyes.
"Come in!"
When Xiao Ye and Cheng Bingxi entered, they heard him laugh out loud and say,
"I've heard Mangyuan Base City has produced two giant dragons. Now that I see you in person, I'm not disappointed."
The two responded with humility, "You're too kind."
The middle-aged man pointed at the large map on the wall and said seriously, "Mangyuan Base City borders the Demon Beast Mountains. This whole area is crawling with Demon Snakes and giant pythons, and there are Flood Dragons causing trouble in the shadows. To establish our defenses, we've been fighting the Demon Snake Forest for centuries, which is the only reason the city has survived this long."
Cheng Bingxi blurted out, "Uncle, you guys really have it rough. The citizens here are super grateful..."
Xiao Ye slapped a hand over Cheng Bingxi's mouth, signaling her not to speak carelessly.
"Mm-mm-mm!" Cheng Bingxi didn't get it.
Xiao Ye whispered in her ear, "The Pavilion Master's words have three layers of meaning."
"First layer, the City Guard Pavilion is this city's most crucial defensive line, and they've poured generations of life and energy into it."
"Second, it's only under the Pavilion's protection that the people here can live and grow in safety, so we should be grateful."
"Third, he just called us Mangyuan Base City's giant dragons because he wants to see where we stand."
Cheng Bingxi got it!
*Big shots really could pack a ton of meaning into a single sentence.*
She patted her chest, feeling so relieved to have contracted with Xiao Ye. Otherwise, with her brain, she would have probably blurted out something super embarrassing.
After that, Xiao Ye looked the middle-aged man in the eye and said firmly,
"Pavilion Master, I believe, one day Mangyuan Base City will sweep right through the Demon Snake Forest!"
The middle-aged man's eyes lit up, and he broke into a smile, "Good! Well said!"
"But..."
"Even though our City Guard Pavilion keeps getting stronger, the Demon Beasts are multiplying exponentially. It's getting a little tricky."
Xiao Ye said, "..."
*Xiao Ye was speechless. This City Guard Pavilion Master was digging a pit for him the whole time, just waiting for him to fall in.*
*No wonder he made it to the top—none of these guys were simpleminded.*
(Please add to your reading list)