Chapter 54: Abduction (Part-4)
Meanwhile, in the warehouse, a pulse of light burst into the air, and with a flash, Black appeared.
"Wha..." Jiang Fei stumbled back. The giant thug also froze in surprise, his baseball bat half-raised in wariness.
The Direwolf pup stood there innocently, its black eyes scanning the room... then zeroed in on Lin Fang, beaten and chained on the ground.
Its fur bristled, and a low, rumbling growl erupted from its tiny throat.
"Hah! A puppy? Are you trying to mock me now?" Jiang Fei scoffed at first, until he felt the crushing pressure that came with it, radiating from Black’s little frame. "What the hell...?" the thug muttered, stepping back.
Lin Fang raised his head slightly, a weak grin curling at his bloodied lips. "Go. Beat them up. But don’t kill them."
Black’s eyes lit up in joy.
In the next instant, a radiant glow surged from its body. The ground beneath its tiny paws cracked as an intense aura erupted outward. Its body began to grow rapidly.
Fwoooom!
Within seconds, the once-cute Direwolf now towered at 24 feet tall.
Jiang Fei’s eyes went wide with disbelief. "A Commander Tier?"
Lin Fang’s eyes turned serious as he stared at the two. "Now, it’s too late to regret, Jiang Fei."
Jiang Fei’s face went pale as he stared up at the monstrous Direwolf towering over him like a mountain. But the burly man beside him stepped forward. "Based on its aura... It’s only a Commander Tier," the man muttered. "Let me handle it, Boss."
*Oraa*
With a battle cry, he charged.
However, Black didn’t flinch a bit. The Direwolf’s massive paw moved at the same time. As the man’s fist collided with the dense fur, a sickening crack echoed through the warehouse.
"GRAAH,"
But it didn’t erupt from the Direwolf.
The thug screamed instead, stumbling back while clutching his shattered hand. He made a swift decision and leapt away, barely landing beside Jiang Fei.
"Young Master..." he gasped, teeth gritted in pain. "It... it was hiding its real strength. That’s no Commander. It must be a Lord Tier Beast, possibly higher. We need to leave. Now."
"What?" Jiang Fei’s voice cracked with disbelief. His hands trembled as he stared at Lin Fang, bloodied and bruised, but laughing at the scene in disbelief. "How that bastard had a Lord Tier beast? How is that possible... Zhi Yan... O’ my Yan’er... It wasn’t enough that you are keeping him in your house and introducing Master Li to help him, now you even gave him such a beast?"
"Young Master," the bodyguard then said sternly, warning him. "If we continue... There is a high chance we might not make it out alive. I’m not a match for the beast, and neither does Young Master have his monster companion to protect him. Moreover, look around. There are no cameras. No witnesses. Even if he talks, no one will believe a street rat against Young Master. You will have chances in the future. Let’s go."
Jiang Fei stood frozen, and the disbelief turned into intense hatred all of a sudden. Grinding his teeth in fury, He glared at Lin Fang like he wanted to rip him apart with his bare hands. "You’re telling me... we have to run away like cowards against someone like him?" he growled. "I? Jiang Fei?"
Without waiting for a response, he reached under his shirt and grabbed a jade pendant hanging from a red cord.
"No! Young Master!" the guard’s eyes widened. "You can’t take that off! It’s not worth..."
"Shut up!" Jiang Fei snapped at him. Then, with a violent tug, he yanked the pendant off his neck.
At once, a pulse of dark energy surged from his body, and within seconds, Jiang Fei’s form began to change. Muscles ballooned, bones cracked and shifted, and his skin turned an unnatural shade of red. His fine clothes tore apart as he doubled in size, now standing nine feet tall, monstrous and beast-like, like a raging Ogre.
He let out a deep, guttural roar, shaking the warehouse walls.
The guard backed away, almost growling under his breath. "What’s wrong with this brat. These spoiled rich brats and their stupid ego..."
Meanwhile, Jiang Fei lunged forward, but not at Po. He tried to rush past the Direwolf, aiming straight for Lin Fang, who was still tied to the chair.
But Black moved faster.
WHAM!
A massive paw slammed into Jiang Fei’s side just as he was about to go past it, resulting in him flinging like a ragdoll into the far wall. *Bam* Metal pipes bent and concrete cracked on impact.
As the dust settled, Jiang Fei’s monstrous body twitched... then slowly shrank, turning back human. His body now lay on the ground in an unconscious state, naked, and his flesh torn.
"Young Master!" the guard’s voice cracked as he ran over, dropping to his knees.
He checked for signs of life. There’s still a pulse, but the skin all over his body seemed torn and blistered. The guard hurriedly lifted him up before shooting a glare at Lin Fang. "You’ll pay for this," he whispered under his breath, running away at his fastest speed.
Black put a leg forward and bent its body while letting out a growl, in a stance to chase both of them. But Lin Fang, still lying on the ground, raised a shaky hand. "Don’t follow. Forget about it."
Black paused and looked at him. With a silent blink, it gave a nod and took a step back.
"Ugh..."
With a groan, Lin Fang forced himself upright, wiping the blood from his mouth.
He opened his character interface, fingers trembling slightly as he navigated to the Nursery Pen tab.
His gaze settled on Tempest, now a Level-23 monster. He clicked [End Nurture].
*Ding!
[Tempest has been recalled to Pet Inventory.]
Then, without hesitation, he tapped on [Combat Merge], selecting Tempest as the target.
[Tempest will enter hibernation mode. Merging initiated.]
[Stats transferred to Host.]
As a familiar surge of raw power burst through his limbs, Lin Fang gritted his teeth, took a deep breath, and let out a roar. "Ha."
CLANG!
The steel chains binding him snapped like twigs under his enhanced strength. He stood up, panting heavily. "Alright... getting out is easier than I expected. I guess they only used normal metallic chains because I’m a plainfolk."
He then patted his pockets quickly. His phone wasn’t there. Perhaps, fell somewhere on the way, or they threw it away so that his location cannot be tracked.
But fortunately, his wallet was still there in the back pocket. Inside, a couple of 100 Yuan notes remained, slightly crumpled but intact. "Phew... Atleast have enough money to get back home."
In the modern world, credit, the world’s only legitimate virtual currency, is used everywhere. But many people also keep cash of their respective countries. Northern Yan, just like the rest of the countries in the Zhonggou continent, uses the common currency of the Union of China, the Yuan. And each Yuan is worth 4.8 credits if you have to exchange.
And when he thought of home, a couple of images appeared in his head. "I wonder if the others are worried... Zhi Yan, Li Liu..."
His heart sank for a moment, remembering another figure.
"And Shang Wei... By now, he should’ve already boarded his flight." Lin Fang clenched his jaw. "I need to find a way to contact him. Fast. Can’t lose 6 million credits over this."
Then he let out a sigh. "For now, let’s return home."
An hour later...
Evergreen Apartments;
The front door creaked open. Lin Fang stepped in, covered in minor facial bruises, clutching the now shrunken baby Direwolf in his arms.
Inside the living room, Yu Xiaofei was seen sitting on the couch, scrolling anxiously through her phone. The moment she saw him, her eyes widened in shock.
"Lin Fang?" she shot up. "Where the hell have you been? Do you know how worried we were?"
He flinched slightly at her voice but offered a weak smile. "I’m sorry. I... got lost. I got into the cab and selected the wrong destination on the map, ending up at West Harbor."
Her eyes dropped to the Direwolf nestled in his arms, blinking innocently. But she didn’t say anything and crossed her arms as if she were unconvinced by his reason. "That doesn’t explain why your phone’s unreachable. Zhi Yan and Hao Bin are out scouring the streets right now for hours."
Lin Fang could only awkwardly smile at her. "I lost my phone somewhere. Can you call them and inform them that I’m home?"
She frowned, still looking at the bear cub that was now munching on a bamboo shoot from Lin Fang’s pocket. In the end, she nodded.
"Thanks." He gave her a faint smile and slipped into his room.
As soon as the door closed, Yu Xiaofei’s expression changed. Her fingers flew across her phone screen, and she raised it to her ear.
Elsewhere, at the Guild District, Sector 14;
Li Chengfeng grunted as he blocked yet another swipe from Leng Xuenyi’s wolf, while she wore a metallic blank mask on her face. Unlike in the trials, the wolf no longer looked like a Lord Tier beast. It was a Level-58, a King Tier beast right now. Meanwhile, His sword was lying on the ground, broken into two halves.
"You’re strong," he muttered, struggling to maintain his ground. "Who are you associated with?"
Xuenyi’s eyes flashed with coldness as she watched him closely. Her wolf growled, circling around him like a predator closing in for the kill. "I’m asking you again, where is Lin Fang?" she demanded in a low growl that matched the aggression of her wolf.