Chapter 51 Hard to Raise

Chapter 51 Hard to Nurture

Moonlight Bay is located at the southernmost part of the continent, a border town of the Klotant Kingdom. Because it is near the sea, its economy and transportation are highly ranked.

The forest nearby is called the Magic Forest, which was once home to many high-level monsters.

Ever since Ling Qingjue cast a protective spell over the town, the monsters in the Magic Forest were also affected, gradually leaving behind only lower-level monsters.

Three hundred kilometers away from Moonlight Bay lies another forest, the Demon Beast Forest.

There, many tenth-level monsters roam, and it has yet to be fully explored, with only the outer perimeter mapped.

Meng Shu was heading to the Demon Beast Forest.

Before leaving, Ling Qingjue thrust a bunch of potions into his hands without explaining their purpose, simply telling him not to die.

Meng Shu tried to use the system to check the effects of these potions, but the system told him: "Search error! Special potion, self-developed by this character, not within the system's classification range, unable to determine the effect."

There were three bottles of red potion and three bottles of blue potion, stored in small glass vials.

Meng Shu put all the potions into his inventory. "You can brew potions?"

Ling Qingjue was already lying on a small rocking chair in the sunroom, soaking up the sunlight. He let out a vague snort of laughter. "What do you think?"

He picked up a scroll and laid it over his face to block the light. "Go ahead, don't be stingy with them. I've got plenty of this."

"Didn't you say adventurers who use potions are all useless?" Meng Shu blurted.

Ling Qingjue was both amused and annoyed by his bluntness.

He had called Meng Shu an idiot.

Too lazy to coddle him, he admitted outright, "Yeah, I mean you're useless. Don't give me any trouble. Use the potions when you have to. It's no big deal being useless."

"Oh..." Meng Shu packed up quickly. "I need to register at the Adventurers' Guild. I might be gone two or three days."

The Demon Beast Forest was far away and fraught with danger. Explorations required approval from the Adventurers' Guild, and usually, people formed teams to explore together.

"I hope Xu Linzhou doesn't come after me..." the thought gave Meng Shu a headache. "He's only level two now. I'm afraid he'll pester me into going with him."

"Can't you just say no to him?" Ling Qingjue said impatiently.

Meng Shu grimaced. "He throws fits, cries, and threatens to hang himself. What can I do?"

"Then let him hang himself. If he dies, I'll deal with it."

Easy for you to say. With how soft-hearted Meng Shu is, if someone actually hung themselves in front of him, he'd kneel and beg them not to die.

He gave a bitter smile and didn't argue further. "I'll go without telling him—just make sure he doesn't find out... But Jia Zhao will probably come with me. There are only a few of us in the Adventurers' Guild."

"Jia Zhao... who?" Ling Qingjue didn't recall anyone by that name.

Meng Shu paused. "That white-haired man."

"What white hair?" Ling Qingjue had a poor memory for people and events; many things didn't concern him.

Just like when he couldn't remember Meng Shu's name at first.

Jia Zhao had almost been beaten to death by him, and he still couldn't remember the man's name.

Meng Shu kindly reminded him, "That white fox! The one you severely injured, coughing up blood. You waved your hand and healed him, and he never paid you for the treatment!"

"...Ah, him."

Ling Qingjue lowered his eyelashes, seemingly deep in thought. He snorted. "When you see him, remember to collect that debt for me. Three hundred thousand. Have it transferred to your account."

"...Collect the debt for you?"

"Yeah." Ling Qingjue's voice remained lazy as he lounged in the rocking chair, his face hidden by the scroll, his expression unreadable.

"If he doesn't pay, beat him up. You can already defeat him."

Collecting debts?

After all these twists and turns, he was back to his old trade.

A series of unpleasant images flashed through Meng Shu's mind. He gritted his teeth and reluctantly agreed. "Alright, I'll do my best to collect it for you."

The atmosphere suddenly quieted.

Meng Shu's left hand nervously rested on his sword hilt. He cleared his throat, like a husband about to leave for work. "Well, I'm off?"

Ling Qingjue pulled the scroll down from his face a little, revealing a pair of deep, emerald eyes.

His eyes crinkled gently. "Come back early."

Meng Shu's delusion deepened.

What was with this feeling of a hardworking husband going off to support his wife!

Just a delusion. Definitely a delusion.

If Ling Qingjue ever knew he had such a terrifying thought, he'd surely tear him to pieces.

As soon as he stepped out, Ling Qingjue removed the scroll and casually set it aside.

A tier-10 mage's inherent talent, Spirit Transmission.

Amplified by his Demon King bloodline, the observation range of Spirit Transmission increased.

A mirror immediately revealed Meng Shu's figure.

Ordinary Spirit Transmission could only observe the environment within a certain distance around the caster, but Ling Qingjue's could span across the continent. As long as he knew the target's name and appearance, he could observe them.

Ling Qingjue's expression turned cold as he stared at the person in the mirror.

He couldn't easily go out, so he couldn't protect Meng Shu at all times. But that fox was up to no good, and Xu Linzhou was even more of a nutcase.

When he first arrived in the town, he vowed to forever protect this land, at the cost of not being able to leave Moonlight Bay for long.

A self-made prison.

But his Space Magic was strong enough; if something really happened, he could teleport over at any time.

...

On the other side.

Unaware that he was being watched by a pair of eyes, Meng Shu busied himself with his gear as he walked.

He couldn't afford that expensive equipment. His current gear was too low-level for his class.

But an enchanted sword cost millions at the very least.

A decent sword cost an astronomical amount; he didn't even dare to glance at it.

If he could get his hands on a proper sword, Meng Shu would have the guts to solo a tenth-tier monster.

When he arrived at the Adventurers' Guild, he briefly explained his purpose to the guild master.

As he expected, the guild master suggested he form a party.

Meng Shu quickly stopped him. "Don't inform anyone else. Just let Jia Zhao come with me, and don't let Xu Linzhou know!"

"What aren't you letting me know?"

A clear young voice spoke from behind him.

Xu Linzhou asked quietly, "What are you keeping from me?"

Meng Shu's legs went weak.

When did he show up?! How did he not notice?!

The guild master smiled awkwardly and rubbed his hands together. "He's been staying at the Adventurers' Guild for the past few days, waiting for you to come back..."

Meng Shu was surprised. "Why didn't you go to Moon Bay to wait? You could have come to my house to find me."

"Heh..." Xu Linzhou rolled his eyes.

Because a certain cat threw a tantrum and forbade him from approaching that small villa again.

Xu Linzhou had no choice but to stay at the Adventurers' Guild. After waiting a week, he finally found Meng Shu.

He pouted and continued asking, "What are you hiding from me?"

Meng Shu stammered, "It's nothing, just... before, you lent me money to buy clothes, right? I'll pay you back now."

"Did Ling Qingjue tell you to return it?" Xu Linzhou snorted coldly, crossed his arms, and declared with conviction: "Only petty people and tsundere cats are hard to deal with!"