Astral Pet Store (WN)
chapter-261

Was the family head a part of this? There was something funny about the matter.

At first, Liu Jianxin didn’t plan on wasting much time talking to this Liu Yuan.

Liu Yuan and Liu Jianxin only enjoyed a superficial relationship. Theoretically speaking, they were related somehow or other when in fact the two of them had never been close.

When Liu Yuan mentioned something about some fierce competition between the stores and guaranteed admission to the Elite League, Liu Jianxin regarded it as nonsense He didn’t even bother to think about what Liu Yuan was describing. To Liu Jianxin, none of this mattered; he would rather spend time talking with Liu Yuan about cultivating and training.

After all, strength reigned supreme. Everything else was rubbish.

And yet, there was a twist.

The twist being the family head’s involvement.

As such, the competition concerned not only Liu Yuan but the entire family.

What Liu Jianxin found intriguing was the family head’s level of involvement, to actually having loaned his strongest pet to Liu Yuan’s store.

This Eight Hell Beast was the family head’s most cherished pet. Usually, even for the most talented of the family’s younger generation, merely catching a glimpse of the Eight Hell Beast was extremely difficult. Why would the family head allow the Eight Hell Beast to stay at Liu Yuan’s crappy store and put it on display?

That was unbelievable.

On the other hand, Liu Jianxin didn’t think that Liu Yuan was boasting. He would never have the courage to do that.

A moment later, Liu Yuan said, “I will think about it.”

“Of course. Thank you, Jianxin. I appreciated it.”

“Okay.”

Liu Jianxin hung up immediately without wasting another second.

If he could achieve a good result in the Elite League, he would have to claim that it had been all thanks to Liu Yuan’s store. Seriously?

Liu Jianxin sneered in contempt. Even if he were to agree to this proposal, he doubted whether people would trust the story or not when he claimed such things. However, since the family head was involved, this competition had become a serious matter for the entire family. Being a family member, Liu Jianxin couldn’t sit around and do nothing.

Mu Chen, it’s been three years. Do not let me down…

Liu Jianxin focused his mind back on his training. As he looked at the sharp sword in his hand, a glint of fierceness flashed past his eyes. He jumped into the yard and resumed his practice.

“That will do.”

Liu Yuan breathed in relief. He could hear it in Liu Jianxin’s tone.

Liu Jianxin did not give a definite answer. Still, Liu Yuan knew it was unlikely that Liu Jianxin would turn him down when he mentioned the family head’s Eight Hell Beast. To displease the family head over such a trivial matter would not be worth the candle and Liu Jianxin understood that.

That was right. Liu Yuan had applied the tried and true “moral kidnapping.”

That was why he went to the family head first to ask for his pet. Liu Yuan wasn’t merely borrowing a pet. He was borrowing the family head’s authority.

From then on, his store’s business became the family’s business. When other family members considered whether they should help out or not, they would have to take the family head’s influence into account.

Besides, the store was a major matter for Liu Yuan, but it was insignificant in the eyes of people like Liu Jianxin. Liu Jianxin wouldn’t lose anything if he helped out; on the other hand, it would be a chance for others to sow discord if he didn’t help Liu Yuan. The choice to be made was obvious.

Liu Yuan grinned as he called another person.

Pixie Pet Store.

Su Ping called back his Inferno Dragon and closed the door.

Once the Inferno Dragon had returned, Su Ping pulled up the system shop and bought a set of temporary contracts, twenty in total.

He had been taking orders nonstop and it was the time for him to actually do some work.

Su Ping unfolded the painting and said to Tang Ruyan, “You, back to the scroll.”

Tang Ruyan had no idea what Su Ping was going to do next. After a day in the store, she had found something queer about it: up until then, she had not seen any master trainer.

Besides, there were several places in the store she could not access. Those places appeared to be protected with powerful seals.

Why would anyone establish seals in this shabby place?

Since she could not figure it out, she wanted to stay in the store to probe into the many secrets.

“Why do I have to go back? I have to work tomorrow, right? I can sleep here. I am fine with that.” Tang Ruyan acted as if she were cool with that arrangement and she headed toward the sofa, lying on it at once.

Su Ping darted her a glance. “Cut the crap. Do not make me throw you back in.”

“You!”

Tang Ruyan sat up. “Can’t you act more like a gentleman?” she shouted out in anger.

“Miss Tang, please.”

“No!”

“In you go!”

Su Ping used his mental power; he grabbed her and threw her into the scroll.

He rolled up the scroll to cut off the continuous bellow. Ah, quietness at last.

“All right then. Let’s go and train pets.”

Su Ping turned around and grinned at Joanna who was by the door of the pet room.

Joanna raised her eyebrows. “Us?”

“Yes, us.”

Su Ping walked into the pet room. All the nursing pens were occupied and the storing space was fully packed with pets as well. “How about we revisit your hometown?” He said to Joanna.

Surprised, Joanna stared at Su Ping. “You mean now?”

“Of course.”

Su Ping adopted a quite courteous attitude. “Can you contact your true self?”

“What for?”

“Ask her to find a place where pets can develop quickly. Even risky places will be fine. We’re not afraid of death. You know what I mean.”

III

Joanna had managed to gain some understanding about that store.

Su Ping made money from training pets for other people.

That was the general business model of other pet stores as well. Only, Su Ping’s way of training pets was “special.”

Joanna cast a meaningful look at Su Ping. She wondered what the point of him doing those things was.

He should have saved the strength to train himself.

Pets?

He should have trained pets of his own. Pets were merely tools. Training other people’s pets was a fool’s business.

That being said, since Joanna had been bonded with the store, despite the questions, she had to work with the store and Su Ping. Besides, she did miss the Divinity. She wanted to find out if Su Ping’s way of visiting the Divinity was the same as when he visited other worlds.

After all, being guarded by Superior Gods, the Divinity was different from the other discarded worlds.

“Okay.”

A moment of silence later, Joanna replied, “I will send people to find you a place most suitable for cultivation after we arrive at the Divinity. Your goal is to double the strength of some of the pets, right?”

“More or less. Places either with harsh environments or rich energy will do,” Su Ping added.

“Sure.”

Joanna nodded.

Su Ping was relieved to see her agreeing so readily. Again, he chose to go to the Divinity for this round of professional training.

He would have to spend many energy points but given the amount he had recently earned, he could afford this trip.

Besides, training in the Divinity would not only save him time but also earn him divine energy.

All of his pets currently possessed divine energy but in a small amount, which could only sustain one or two skill releases. He planned on collecting more during that trip He was also eager to see if the divine energy would transform when accumulated to a certain amount.

Su Ping picked up his notebook to select the pets he was bringing with him.

He categorized all the pets into three groups. First, pets signed up for simple professional training without the customers buying the package for guaranteed admission of a good ranking.

The second group was for customers who had bought the package for guaranteed admission to the Top 100.

The third group was for customers who had ordered the package for the Top 10.

The third group was the top priority for Su Ping and he had just gotten one customer for that very package. But, if he could open up his store at night, he assumed all the remaining spots would have been taken up. After all, a fair share of people were wealthy.

Su Ping planned on training pets of the first group. For the other two groups, there were other services involved other than training. He could take his time.

He chose some pets and built contracts with the pets with the temporary contracts. Then, he pulled up the list of cultivation sites.

Before he entered, he thought of a question. “System, can employees be revived?” “No.”

IIII

“If employees die in the cultivation sites, they will revive in the store directly. They will not die for real. The employees’ souls are bonded with the store. The employees need not worry about their lives unless their contracts are canceled or if they violate the employee’s code of conduct,” the system added.

That answer stunned Su Ping.

After the system said the first sentence, Su Ping began to wonder if he should let Joanna stay in the store. Unexpectedly, there was a big twist in the system’s following sentences.

The twist came so abruptly that Su Ping remained confused for a moment.

If he understood it correctly, the system was implying that… Joanna would never die, right?

How incredible that was!

Not even he, the store owner, could enjoy this benefit. It sounded like Joanna was the store owner whereas he was the employee!

“What?”

Joanna saw how Su Ping stood rooted on the spot, with expressions constantly changing on his face. Nervous, her heart skipped a beat.

Su Ping came back to his senses. He looked at her and heaved a sigh with troubled feelings. “How lucky you are.” “??!”

“Cherish it.”

Su Ping shook his head but offered no further explanation lest Joanna would grow smug because of it.

“Let’s go.”

He darted a look at the charge and sighed again. Joanna was along for the ride without having to worry about losing her life. He hoped one day she could understand how fortunate she was.

A swirl was generated in the air.

The strong force sucked both Su Ping and Joanna in.

Looking at the familiar spatial swirl with wide-open eyes, Joanna felt the way of access was identical to the one when she went to that low-level, desolate world with Su Ping.

The next moment, the familiar air that was full of divine energy she had been craving for overwhelmed her.