Chapter 00185: Weakened Version of the Divine Pet Contract
# Weakened Version of the Divine Pet Contract
Chapter 185
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 185: Weakened Version of the Divine Pet Contract
"When the clan members return the Young Master to the North Star Moss Plain, the clan will send ten more Rock Wolves to join the ranks."
Huh? He Yue was taken aback; this content sounded somewhat familiar.
He quietly asked his brother, "Is it talking about the Divine Pet Contract?"
Though his voice was low, the Wolf Demon had exceptional hearing, and Lu Xin was quite displeased: "It is not a Divine Pet Contract; Rock Wolves will never be pets!"
"Alright, alright."
Seeing them all riled up, He Chunhua quickly spoke to calm them down, "This agreement is quite good."
Taking advantage of the moment, Lu Xin added, "Also, each wolf must eat at least seven pounds of good meat every day."
"That's not a problem."
Isn't it just about providing meals? Would the army fear a few gluttons? He Chunhua went to the market youth's cart, took out paper and pen to write down the contract, making two copies, signing one, and then bringing it back for the Wolf Demon to review.
Lu Xin found another old wolf to come over and verify the contents, confirming repeatedly that there were indeed only two sentences—only then did he stamp his paw print on the contract.
Thus, the contract was established.
As the strange beings in the sky had already moved away, the werewolves gradually calmed down.
The pack of wolves approached to nuzzle and sniff at it; somehow, they communicated, and the werewolf licked them a few times.
One wolf, not knowing where it had found a blood-red orb that resembled a lantern, offered it to the werewolf.
After the latter consumed it, its eyes gradually brightened, and it began to wag its tail, becoming more amiable towards the wolf pack.
Thus, Lu Xin asked He Chunhua to retract the Silken Web, and the wolf pack surrounded the werewolf as they descended the mountain.
They needed to send the Young Master out of the Shihuan territory before dawn to distance themselves from the strange beings.
Lu Xin and another wolf, Lu Jin, stayed behind as agreed.
As for how to transport the werewolf back to the North Star Moss Plain, that was the internal matter of the Rock Wolf Clan, and they did not inquire further.
Seeing that the situation here was stable, the guards of the Deer Ming Garden took their leave and returned to the mountain.
Ke Jihai and the He family’s carriage had broken down, so they had to ride horses down the mountain.
The captive that He Yue had injured was still alive; after simply treating his wounds, they interrogated him on the spot.
It was hard to say whether this person lacked toughness or if Ke Jihai's methods were ruthless, but he quickly confessed, admitting that he and a few others were pawns left in Shihuan City by the Xunzhou Shepherd Nian Zhanli, and the masked man controlling the strange demon beasts, referred to as Mr. Dong, was an assassin hired with a large sum by the Grand General.
Both Ke Jihai and He Chunhua were common enemies, and upon learning that they were both heading to the Zhu family’s night banquet, Mr. Dong decided to eliminate them all at once.
"This person is so arrogant!" Ke Jihai laughed in anger, "Daring to assassinate a court official protected by Yuanli, and even hoping to kill two at once!"
"Mr. Dong is quite formidable; I've heard he has killed many officials."
He Chunhua interjected, "Why did you wait until his werewolves were captured by me before coming out?"
"We didn't dare to come out early."
The man forced a smile, "Mr. Dong's pet beasts are ferocious and bloodthirsty; when enraged, they even kill their companions and cannot cooperate with others in battle. We originally had ten people, but one unfortunate fellow was bitten in the head by that Ghost Ape a few days ago and eaten."
Next, Ke Jihai pressed for more intelligence, such as how many rebel remnants were left in Shihuan and the capital, where they were hiding, and who the contacts were, but this man had a low status and knew very little insider information.
Fortunately, he still knew where his superior lived and what his name was.
After obtaining this information, Ke Jihai bid farewell to the He family: "Lord He, we shall meet again; it will likely be soon, whether on the battlefield or in the court."
He Chunhua clasped his fists in return: "I wish General Ke victory on the battlefield, slaying enemies far and wide!"
"Good, slaying enemies far and wide!" Ke Jihai laughed heartily, then turned to He Lingchuan, "Kid, I’m increasingly optimistic about you; let’s have a drink when we meet again."
He Lingchuan nodded: "Alright, I will prepare good wine to welcome the general."
Ke Jihai then took the captive and left in a hurry; he needed to ride under the stars to return to the capital.
It was easy to imagine that the capital would once again be filled with turmoil the next day, and who knew how many heads would roll.
The Wolf Demon Lu Xin stayed behind.
The wolf pack had tracked Dong Rui to this point and had gathered quite a bit of information along the way, which could be explained to a few humans.
Of course, He Lingchuan also assured it that staying behind meant there would be meat to eat.
"We like deer meat; mutton is also acceptable."
They had just arrived at the Deer Ming Garden when they encountered many spotted deer, so fat that they couldn't run fast.
If it weren't for the concern of alerting the humans...
The hungry wolves began to drool.
In the northern lands, deer meat and Rock Goat meat were top-tier delicacies, beloved by every wolf.
"No problem, as long as you answer any questions, there will be plenty of tender mutton tomorrow morning."
What everyone was most concerned about was the identity of the masked man, Dong Rui.
"Have you ever heard of the 'Demon Puppet Master'?"
The He family members naturally shook their heads.
"Is he a Beast Tamer?"
"No, he is a Demon Puppet Master."
Beast Tamers are also one type of sorcerer, and there are many of them; their characteristic is, of course, commanding beasts in battle.
But no Beast Tamer's demon pet is as strange as Dong Rui's.
"He rarely appears in the Yuan Kingdom; you know very little about him. This person will stop at nothing to capture powerful demons, conducting cruel and unimaginable modifications and refining them into puppets to control and kill!" For the sake of meat, Lu Xin indeed exhibited twelve parts of patience to explain, "As far as I know, he has committed crimes in at least seven kingdoms, from high officials to commoners, and even many famous sorcerers have died at his hands."
"That Ghost Ape is the son of the Left Imperial Guard General of the Beijia Kingdom; it is said he was only fifteen when Dong Rui abducted him. For over a decade, the Beijia Kingdom has been seeking revenge on Dong Rui, but this person is exceptionally vigilant and slips away at the slightest hint of danger."
"So, that Ghost Ape is not yet thirty?" He Yue asked in surprise, "Monsters generally have long lifespans, and their cultivation progresses slowly. Its strength and size look like it should be at least three or four hundred years old."
"That is Dong Rui's ability. It is said that he once boasted while drunk that he fell into the secret realm of an ancient immortal while being chased by enemies, where he learned the abilities of beast refining and beast taming, and he further developed them, merging the characteristics of many demon beasts to create monsters like the Ghost Ape, even able to artificially inflate their cultivation by several hundred years. But the cost is that this process is extremely painful; the modified demons lose their reason and become extremely violent and unstable, often going mad. It is unknown what methods Dong Rui used to make the demon puppets obey orders."
"How many demon puppets does Dong Rui have?"
"It is said that three often appear; now that the Young Master has returned, it has become two."
Lu Xin thought for a moment, "But whether Dong Rui has other demon puppets, no one knows."
"The captive just now said that Dong Rui was hired with a large sum by Dong Haoming."
"Money cannot buy him."
Lu Xin shook his head, "Only precious materials can move him."
He Lingchuan still had a question: "During the previous battle, the Ghost Ape was already suppressed by General Ke's Yuanli; how did it suddenly become invigorated and transform into two four-armed forms?"
Lu Xin frankly admitted he did not know: "Logically speaking, the Ghost Ape should not be able to transform into such a form, and it is unclear what tricks Dong Rui played during the modification. Our Young Master also... underwent some strange changes."
Demons cannot transform into human forms unless their original forms are similar to humans, like monkeys.
After being modified, Lu Ze surprisingly took on the appearance of a werewolf, which shocked the Rock Wolf Clan.
"As far as we know, many countries have issued bounties for Dong Rui, regardless of life or death. Of course, the rewards for capturing him alive will be particularly generous."
He Lingchuan laughed: "The demon puppets he created can actually resist Yuanli; everyone wants to explore this secret."
This mystery has far-reaching implications, but with the high bounty on Dong Rui, he continues to commit crimes and remains at large.
"Dong Rui returns empty-handed this time; two of the three major demon puppets were injured, and one was lost. He will definitely seek revenge on you."
He Lingchuan flashed a smile at the Wolf Demon: "What do you mean by you and us? From now on, we are all on the same side."
Finally, they descended the mountain.
The He family returned to the inn, first settling Madam He, and the Medicine Ape Lingguang took the initiative to come over to tend to He Lingchuan's injuries, and only then did it come to the three of them discussing behind closed doors.
He Lingchuan had long wanted to ask: "Tell me about the Divine Pet Contract."
He had heard of the Divine Pet Contract but had never delved into it before.
He Yue smiled: "Uncle Hao once raised a hawk demon named Little Gray, which was his avian pet, and a contract was made."
At this point, He Lingchuan also found it strange, "Strange, why have I never raised a demon?"
He increasingly felt that the original body seemed to have everything going for it in Blackwater City, but in reality, it was nothing significant.
It only had a bit of money, enough to put on airs in front of ordinary villagers.
"Almost no one raises demon pets in Blackwater City."
In rural areas, demons are far more ferocious than humans.
"You now have the opportunity."
If he wanted to cooperate better in the future, he would need to form a contract with the wolf, "Rock Wolves must choose their partners themselves."
Next, He Yue began to educate his brother.
It turned out that whether one was a Beast Tamer or an ordinary cultivator raising demons, the prerequisite was the Divine Pet Contract.
This was not a modern invention but a creation of ancient immortals; they subdued powerful demon beasts and used the power of contracts to bind and control them.
Later, the immortals gradually disappeared, but this method remained.
Of course, the Divine Pet Contract has evolved into many versions over time.
The method Dong Rui uses to control his demon puppets must be closer to the original version of strong master, weak pet, while the "alliance" proposed by the Rock Wolf Clan is a weakened variant of the Divine Pet Contract, where demons and humans do not have a subordinate relationship, and their statuses are equal, retaining only the most important rule from the Divine Pet Contract:
Contract partners cannot harm each other, and under certain specific conditions, they can also share external damage.
For example, this version of the alliance stipulates that as long as the contract partners are within ten zhang of each other, either the human or the wolf can activate the "Shared Fortune and Misfortune" effect, transferring half of the damage to the contract partner, with a duration of twenty breaths.
Additionally, He Chunhua had also heard that the Rock Wolves are most famous for their endurance talent.
If the contract partner is in the same space as it, they can mostly share this characteristic.
Thinking about it, wolf packs can run continuously for ten hours while chasing prey, so their endurance is indeed outstanding.
"So, endurance just means good stamina?" He Lingchuan rubbed his hands together, "This is good, this is good; can it be used at any time?!"
For example...?
(End of Chapter)