Chapter 23

Back on the boat, everything turned silent and tranquil. Cao Yan did a quick check on himself and sensed a slight increase in his mental and spiritual capacity.

It verified the fact that Eggy had evolved to the second stage. When the demon pet advanced, the demon pet trainer would also level up to reflect that.

After entering the cabin, Wang Li began to loosen up as well.

This night’s encounter was the first in the 22 years of her life. She had never experienced such fear, panic, loss, worry, and giddiness. It was as though she had been through all of it in one night.

At this moment, in this little cabin, although her worries for her family still weighed heavily on her heart, she at least felt safe for once in the entire night.

She looked at Cao Yan and realized that he was lighting up a little oil lamp in the cabin.

That scary spider was gone and had not followed them inside.

Wang Li was a little puzzled. “You’re a pet trainer at such a young age. So, why are you living in a small boat?”

A demon pet trainer was right at the top of the pyramid in this world. Hence, living on a boat, such a small and old one at that, was really unbefitting of his status.

Wang Li shifted to the window and gazed out at the boundless sea and bright moon.

The moonlight shone on her face through the window, making her tall nose look even more defined. Her features looked like they were sculpted by an artist.

“You’d better not stand by the window. That’s such an open place. We don’t know anything about your kidnappers. They might be tracking you down the entire night. The place where the fight happened is not far away from the harbor, so they might come here to check.”

Cao Yan’s words did not fall on deaf ears. Besides, what he said was very likely to happen. Wang Li quickly closed the window and retreated back into the cabin.

“You’ll stay here tonight. I’ll be next door. Call me if you need anything.”

Wang Li had been in a state of fear and panic the whole night. Therefore, even though Cao Yan had some things to ask her, he was not in a rush to do so. After finishing his words, he moved towards the little cabin next door.

Wang Li pressed her little lips together and said, “I know I can’t go home right now and I don’t want to trouble you either. However, I can’t help but think if there’s a way for me to secretly let my family know so that they won’t be so worried about me.” She looked meekly at Cao Yan.

It was normal to think about one’s family, so Cao Yan nodded and said, “I’ll think of a way tomorrow.”

“That’s great. Thank you,” Wang Li said delightedly.

“How are you going to thank me?” Cao Yan turned around and asked.

“…”

It was already late at night. In the sealed cabin, a male and a female were all alone… and the male asked the female how she was going to thank him.

Wang Li started to imagine things that would make one blush. She stuttered apprehensively, “How, how do you think I should thank you?”

“What’s your job?” Cao Yan asked.

“I… work at the Magic Metropolis Demon Pets Trading Center, in charge of evaluating and selling demon pets.” Wang Li could not really understand Cao Yan’s line of thought, but she still answered truthfully.

“You actually do something related to demon beasts. I could use you in my new shop.”

Cao Yan was rather happy. Could the fake system be reliable for once? That I’d find an unexpected advantage after interacting with her?

“If you want to thank me, work for me.” Cao Yan was straightforward in telling her his request.

“Oh… okay.” Wang Li blinked. She was a little embarrassed after thinking so badly about her savior. She did not hesitate, or even inquire about the job, and agreed to it. In any case, under the current circumstances, she would not be able to return to her job. It did not seem like a bad idea for her to show her gratitude by working for him.

The night was pleasant and quiet.

Wang Li slept in Cao Yan’s cabin while the small cabin next door became Cao Yan’s temporary shelter.

As he lay on the bed, he could sense that Eggy was hiding in the shadows at the side.

After instructing Eggy to guard the place at night, Cao Yan was prepared to have a peaceful sleep. However, the system had other plans. The screen interface popped up in front of him, with the words: “The points exchange system has recommended something useful for the host. Please take a look.”

Cao Yan said in astonishment, “Something useful for me? But I only have 50 points (20 points leftover from the spiritual potion and 30 points from saving Wang Li). Even if there is something useful for me, can I afford it?”

The words changed. “Yes.”

…

Magic Metropolis.

In a mansion close to the city center.

“…When we rushed to the scene, the fight had already ended. There were five corpses, including Cui Heng. It’s still unclear who went up against us and killed him. From the traces of battle, though, we can tell that Cui Heng was killed by combat robot fighters… The latest news we got was that the fellow we kidnapped together with the target had just returned home. However, the target’s missing. I’ve already gotten people to keep an eye on the target’s family.”

Cui Heng was the elderly man killed by the combat robot fighter, and also the person who first kidnapped Wang Li, while the “target” was referring to Wang Li.

The man reporting was middle-aged, and he was standing in front of a tall, bulky young man around 30 years old. His brows were thick and dark, and his face was gloomy at the moment.

How this all started was actually simple. The young man had chanced upon Wang Li in Magic Metropolis some time ago. He could not contain the urge within, but because of his identity, he could not stay in Magic Metropolis for long. So, he ordered his subordinates to run a check on Wang Li and bring her out of the city. Next, he would leave Magic Metropolis with her at any time.

Cui Heng, the elderly man, was the one in charge of the operation, but no one expected an accident to occur halfway.

As for the combat robot fighters, they were a group of adventurers frequenting the Green Jungle. They would often be employed to head to the forest to catch demon beasts, explore ruins, look for minerals, and more. They would do whatever put food on their plates.

In the forest, far away from the human population, things like law, order, and rules lost their restrictive powers. The group had often done a lot of illegal stuff. At night, as they were about to return to Magic Metropolis from the forest, they chanced upon the elderly man, Cui Heng, and his team safeguarding two carts. They thought they could make a windfall out of it.

In addition, the dark, quiet, and deserted place prompted them to take action. Therefore, they were just purely robbing.

The whole killing process was by chance. There was no plan or fixed motive.

In that case, it would be almost impossible to find out the complete truth.

That was also why the fake system told Cao Yan that there would not be any further troubles if he saved Wang Li.

As long as Cao Yan and Wang Li kept their heads down for some time, this matter would slowly be lost and forgotten along the passage of time. The three parties involved would never bring this matter up again.

Soon after, the youths would leave Magic Metropolis, marking the end of the kidnapping saga.