Astral Pet Store (WN)

"I'm going to meet a couple of friends, and then train in seclusion."

Su Ping thought of something and said, "You must be extra careful in the following days."

The maid knew what Su Ping meant; his consideration made her feel warm. She then said, "Master, don't worry. We're not involved in this; the Rain Clan wouldn't give us a hard time. It is you who should be careful, master."

"Sure."

Su Ping waved his hand and said goodbye. Then, he went to the Fighting Heavens Academy where Joanna and Tang Ruyan were stationed.

Su Ping's arrival was an immediate cause of upheaval among some of the students.

A prince had died in a recent duel held at the arena; the shocking news had swiftly spread in the Fighting Heavens Academy; many knew of the matter and were discussing it. They didn't expect the hero of the story to show up in their academy.

Many students recognized him thanks to energy projections of the fight.

He was a brutal man who was daring enough to kill a prince. Everybody wanted to see if he had three heads or six arms.

"The man who dealt with a prince came to our academy!"

"Isn't he a student of the Unifying Heavens Academy? Why is he here?"

"Oh my god, nobody in our academy has offended him, right?"

"What are you afraid of? This human won't stay alive for too long. Just you wait; the Rain Clan will definitely take action!"

"The Rain Clan hasn't been lucky as of late. One of its princesses died in an accident recently. Then, a prince was killed in a more brutal way. Even his body was fed to a dragon!"

"Keep your voice down! He's here!"

Many students were looking at Su Ping from a distance. Nobody approached him.

Su Ping was rendered speechless after hearing their whispers. Did nobody tell them it was the prince who challenged him to a duel? I am the reasonable one here!

Su Ping shook his head. He didn't stay too long; he didn't want to be observed like a gorilla in a zoo.

He found Joanna and Tang Ruyan on their islands; he told them it was time to go back.

Su Ping left directly after picking up the two women.

Many felt relief when they saw Su Ping leave the premises. Then relief changed into astonishment; it was an unbelievable thing for them to feel pressure from a human Celestial God, especially when the latter was clearly outnumbered.

Tang Ruyan was baffled by the discussions she overheard. She didn't know what had happened until she asked Joanna; then she also felt amazed, not expecting something that monumental to happen while she was cultivating.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

Joanna asked back, "What could you have done even if I would have told you?"

"…"

Tang Ruyan didn't know what to say. She felt her insignificance again.

She inwardly heaved a sigh, then looked at Su Ping who remained casual and peaceful. She wondered when she could catch up with him, so she could be helpful if he ever was in need.

She had witnessed Su Ping's growth, which was devastatingly fast. Would the day come when he would really need her?

Su Ping found a quiet place, then skillfully set up barriers and examined the environment with care. After that, he summoned the system to send them back.

Even if bigshots he couldn't perceive were watching him, there was nothing more he could do. After all, he had tried his best to hide well. If he was caught in his next visit, he could simply wait until the system automatically sent him back.

…

The three of them returned to the store after going through the familiar teleportation.

Then, they all resumed their own tasks.

Su Ping opened the pet room's door and saw both Green Lady and Loulan Lin inside the store. There were a few boys next to them.

Su Ping felt confused; he walked over to see them.

"You're back." Green Lady smiled at Su Ping, and suddenly narrowed her eyes. "Your aura…"

Su Ping quickly concealed his presence and chuckled. "I made some progress. Huh? It's you?"

The three boys turned out to be the little Chaos Beast, the Vast Sky Thunderous Dragon, and Greeny.

Su Ping was rather surprised. Did they learn how to transform into human beings already?

"Back?"

The nearby Loulan Lin was confused after hearing Green Lady's remark.

Where could he have been? Why did she say he was back?

Is she just covering for him?

However, she noticed Su Ping's aura when he walked out. There seemed to be a dragon sleeping inside his body, which made the once joyful air inside the store heavy and solid. He was rather scary too.

Su Ping was obviously different from before.

Did he have such a significant change after staying just one day in that room?

Could doing that kind of stuff really improve his level?

Loulan Lin immediately remembered a lot of rumors she had overheard and couldn't help but blush. She soon turned pale, once she saw the two gorgeous girls that walked out following Su Ping.

"Boss!"

A joyful voice rang from another corner of the room just then. Su Ping turned around, only to be astonished since he saw a teenager who looked handsome and somewhat wild. The teenager's hairstyle was truly eye-catching; it looked like a collapsed chimney!

The young man didn't run to him; instead he was crawling over at a fast pace.

Green Lady frowned upon seeing that. "What did I teach you?"

She couldn't have been scarier. The young man with a strange hairstyle was so frightened he quickly rose from the ground; his gait was very strange, as if his legs were broken. He staggered towards Su Ping, and spoke with his tongue sticking out now and then, "Boss, I—I'm your strongest guard!"

"…"

Su Ping was lost for words.

The scent and aura were right, but he still found it hard to believe it was the Dark Dragon Hound!

Su Ping watched the young man approach, and his eyes then focused on his weird hairstyle. He asked with twitching eyelids, "Why did you turn into this?"

"Huh? You don't like it, boss?" The Dark Dragon Hound was scared; he looked pitiful. "Green Lady said that I must follow my heart during the transformation. This is what I've turned into after following my heart!"

Su Ping was rendered speechless after seeing how pitiful he was. He could only heave a sigh and shake his head. "I like it. But your hair…"

"It's very cool, isn't it?" asked the excited Dark Dragon Hound.

"…"

Su Ping glanced at him, then finally stopped himself from criticizing any further. He had allowed them to transform, so it was better to let them assume the appearance they liked.

"Where's the Little Skeleton?" asked Su Ping.

"Lying there with that bald dude." The Dark Dragon Hound turned his head and pointed.

Su Ping heard the footsteps, and saw two boys walking toward him. One of them was bald, and the other had black hair; both of them were kids. The bald boy ran quickly when he saw Su Ping, in a way that would knock into anyone who stood in his way.

The black-haired boy, on the other hand, seemed taciturn; he glanced at Su Ping and approached unhurriedly.

Su Ping glanced at them and laid his hand on the bald boy's head; he would have thought it was the Little Skeleton, had he not recognized his aura.

"Why didn't you grow your hair?" Su Ping looked curiously at the bald boy, whom the Purple Python had transformed into. He kept on thinking that the Little Skeleton should have been the bald one of the bunch.

"Hair makes me feel hot," said the bald boy innocently, raising his head.

"…"

Su Ping was rather lost for words. It seemed that he would need a new pillow.

He touched the boy's bald head; it was rather cold, seemingly no different from the Little Skeleton's head.

The Little Skeleton watched Su Ping pet the Purple Python. Then, he moved closer, grabbed Su Ping's other hand, and placed it above his head. He said in a stubborn and innocent way, "Touch me."

Su Ping was dazed for a moment, not expecting the pet to be jealous.

However, he regained the familiar feelings he had with the Little Skeleton as he saw the boy's black and pure eyes.

Although the Little Skeleton's appearance had changed, his aura and personality was exactly the same.

Also, both pets had become capable of talking after the transformation. They still had a way to go, but they would soon become as human-like as the Ascendant State pets with more practice.

He petted the Little Skeleton, and found that his hair was clean and smooth. Su Ping said to Green Lady with a smile, "It must have been exhausting to teach them. Thank you for your hard work."

"Not really. Your pets are very smart; they grasped the skill the moment I taught them," replied Green Lady with a smile.

Su Ping smiled and looked at Loulan Lin. "Why do you keep staring at me?"

Loulan Lin gritted her teeth. "Is there nothing you want to say to me?"

"?"

Su Ping was puzzled. He thought for a moment and asked, "Do you want any food?"

"…" Loulan Lin almost jumped out of fury, but she managed to keep herself in check. She thought, Who am I? I'm not related to him in any way. Why would he explain things to me?

He felt sore and in pain as she thought about that.

Su Ping was deep in thought as he looked at Loulan Lin's lowered head. This time, he stopped joking and said in a low voice, "Come with me. Let's talk."

It was impossible to avoid the matter forever. Besides, she was a girl willing to sacrifice herself to protect him during the assassination attempt.

Su Ping couldn't forget her instinctive reaction during that life-and-death moment.

Loulan Lin was dazed for a moment. She felt somewhat panicky as she looked at Su Ping's solemn expression, but she was somehow hopeful too.

Su Ping took Loulan Lin away and entered a room.

It was one of the test rooms; no one was able to hear what was going on inside after Su Ping closed the door.

Outside of the door—Tang Ruyan stomped in fury. "That flirt!"

Joanna stood next to her; she remained calm and seemingly unfazed; she merely furrowed her eyebrows.

"You…"

Su Ping and Loulan Lin were left alone in the room. Loulan Lin was rather nervous at the moment; she was blushing. She usually wasn't such a shy girl, but her heart was somehow racing at that moment.

"Earlier when I visited your family, I overheard something about your marriage." Su Ping looked at her with complex feelings; he didn't know how he could clarify the matter without hurting her.

"I'm an undevoted and incapable man. I don't intend to marry anyone at this moment."

Loulan Lin shivered; the redness on her face disappeared. She lowered her head even more after Su Ping said that, unwilling to let her face be seen.

Her hands—which were crossed behind her back—were already clenching.