Chapter 99: Fan Li Strikes the Cat
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Fan Li was somewhat bewildered. He had just been feeding a cat in the Jiangshan Pavilion, so how had he suddenly been summoned to such a strange space?
He looked around. It seemed like a small world, but there were no mountains, no rivers, no flowers or grass—just an empty, white void.
“System, check the current situation,” Fan Li thought to himself.
To his surprise, the little white cat had been transported here with him.
“Ding!”
“Congratulations, host, you have successfully activated the [Battle for Allegiance].”
“Mission [Steal the Divine Beast] in progress. Completion rewards: [Son of Heaven’s Sword]. Good luck!”
Fan Li rolled his eyes at this.
Good luck?
More like luck my foot.
He already knew the intel: Emperor Jiajing had battled fiercely for seven whole days and nights to subdue the Vermilion Bird of the Ming dynasty.
Emperor Liu Xie of Han had struggled even more, barely taming the Black Tortoise divine beast after half a month of bitter fighting.
“So this is the ‘Battle for Allegiance’ battlefield established by the Heavenly Dao law? There won’t suddenly be some fierce demon jumping out to force me into combat, will there?”
“I only have two clones who have been training day and night, and I’m only at the seventh grade of the Qi Refining realm.”
“Fighting a divine beast would be like an egg striking a rock...???“
As he was lost in thought, the little white cat suddenly struggled free from his arms and scampered several paces ahead before turning back to face him.
Fan Li was startled.
This space was full of danger; the little creature couldn’t be allowed to run around recklessly.
If it collided with the divine beast, it might be swallowed in an instant.
“Come back here, good kitty, I’ll feed you crescent moon meat,” Fan Li coaxed softly.
The cat’s eyes sharpened, revealing sharp teeth and claws.
Yet when it heard the words “crescent moon meat,” it inexplicably softened, even retracting its little newly shown tiger teeth slightly.
“Ding!”
“Host has been targeted by the divine beast. Battle is about to begin. Please proceed with caution.”
Fan Li was taken aback.
Targeted?
Where was the divine beast?
He finally fixed his gaze on the little white cat, looking at it with suspicion.
Could it be... the divine beast itself?
The system’s notification continued:
“[Battle for Allegiance] automatically balances the combatants’ power. Divine beast’s current realm: First Grade Transformation Spirit.”
“Detecting increased favorability of the divine beast toward the host.”
“Divine beast has voluntarily lowered its realm to Seventh Grade Qi Refining.”
Fan Li hadn’t fully processed this, but he caught the words “favorability increased,” so apparently the fish treats hadn’t been wasted.
He was secretly pleased, when suddenly the little white cat swiped a paw at him from a distance.
Clang!
It was a metallic slicing sound!
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A visible white light, like a blade, flew toward Fan Li with a cutting force.
Although Fan Li’s cultivation level wasn’t very high, his experience was considerable.
He immediately recognized that this white blade was formed from condensed spiritual energy, but its power was quite limited.
He had witnessed fierce battles involving the Blood Phoenix Sovereign against Wu Zhui and Lü Chunqiu, and had seen Emperor Jiajing and Liu Xie’s combat at the Three Emperors’ Summit.
The little white cat’s skills were on par with his own.
“So, you’re a divine beast sent from the heavens?” Fan Li said as he dodged the white blade with ease.
“Awwoo!” the little white cat howled in response.
“Defeat you and become your master?” Fan Li added.
“Shh!” the little white cat snorted coldly, as if saying: defeat me first, then we’ll talk!
They exchanged dozens of moves—Fan Li mainly defending, the white cat mainly attacking.
He was surprised to find that despite being at only Seventh Grade Qi Refining, the little white cat’s spiritual energy was like a vast ocean, never running dry.
After dodging several more white blades, Fan Li heard the system’s voice:
“Friendly reminder: Within the current space, the divine beast is blessed by the Heavenly Dao, granting it an [infinite] spiritual energy state.”
“Damn!”
Fan Li rolled his eyes again.
Wasn’t this cheating?
No wonder Emperor Jiajing’s peerless strength took seven days and nights to tame a divine beast of equal level.
The Son of Heaven’s fate should be invincible among peers!
“Hey!” Fan Li suddenly shouted, and the little white cat paused.
Seeing it cooperate, Fan Li smiled, panting.
“You’re the one who’s cheating. Don’t blame me next. After all, a man’s strength isn’t just about cultivation level, right?”
“Meow...” the little white cat made a confused sound, seemingly unable to argue but a bit reluctant.
Fan Li ignored it.
He quickly rolled up his sleeves and produced a variety of strange items.
“Trick me with fish, then hit me?”
“Today, Second Master will show you what it means to wield the right steel on the blade, spine, and hilt.”
“What it means to have money move the millstone.”
“What it means for quantitative change to spark qualitative transformation.”
As he spoke, Fan Li slipped rings onto all ten fingers, wrapped a jade belt around his waist, swapped his blue headscarf for a golden crown, and replaced his cloth shoes with tiger-head embroidered golden boots.
The little white cat’s eyes grew wide; suspicion turned into fear.
Once fully adorned, Fan Li pulled out several porcelain bottles and began downing top-grade pills as if they cost nothing.
“Ding!”
“Detected significant decrease in divine beast’s favorability toward host. Please subdue the divine beast promptly!”
Despite the system’s urging, Fan Li wasn’t worried.
Mumbling, he said:
“Introducing the Fan Trading Company’s [Heaven-Grade Money-Can-Buy-You-Strength Set].”
“Enhances attack, defense, spiritual energy, and speed. One set costs 99,999,999 spiritual stones. Second set half price.”
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“With proof of Chu nationality and purchase on your birthday, enjoy an additional 1% discount.”
As his words fell, Fan Li became a blur and vanished from the spot.
The next second, he appeared before the bewildered little white cat again.
…
Half a day later, Fan Li returned to the Jiangshan Pavilion in the Fan Mansion.
He was dressed splendidly, without the slightest hint of having endured a grueling battle.
The little white cat, however, looked listless and now curled up in Fan Li’s arms, half-asleep.
“Ding!”
“Congratulations, host, on subduing the celestial guardian divine beast. Reward: [Son of Heaven’s Sword]!”
A sheathed long sword floated quietly before Fan Li.
The sword measured three feet seven inches; one side of the scabbard was carved with sun, moon, and stars, the other with flowers, birds, insects, and fish.
Looking at the hilt, one side was inscribed with agricultural and animal husbandry techniques, the other with strategies for unifying the four seas.
Though unsheathed, Fan Li could tell at a glance this was a heavenly-grade divine weapon rivaling the legendary Xiang clan’s Overlord Spear.
Otherwise, it wouldn’t deserve the name [Son of Heaven’s Sword].
“Due to the host’s high-quality completion of the mission, an additional selectable reward is granted. Please choose one from the following options.”
“Option one: a life-extension pill.”
“Option two: a slight increase in divine beast favorability.”
“Option three: upgrade of the [Dust Fate Necklace].”
Fan Li shook his head.
These extra freebies were mere embellishments.
The life-extension pill was nice, but there was only one.
Moreover, once he completed the [Harem Turmoil] mission, the system would reward him with two Cycle Pills, each granting an extra 60 years of lifespan.
The second option was also trivial—divine beast favorability? He had just bullied the little creature, no wonder it disliked him now.
But since a mere fish feast could soothe it, wasting the rare system reward on this was unnecessary.
“I’ll choose option three, upgrade the [Dust Fate Necklace].”
Though unsure what the upgrade entailed, Fan Li had a gut feeling this was the right choice.
“Ding!”
“[Dust Fate Necklace] upgrade successful. Added video call function.”
“Chu Emperor Xiang Ning requests a video call. Host, do you accept?”
Fan Li was speechless.
How did she learn so fast?
“Accept...”