Chapter 125: Hatching Time

The cold windy breeze occasionally blew throughout the Red Sea Shelter that night. 

Our group was finally back in our party's quarters and we were accompanied by Yang Mei Mei and Luo Zehn. Apparently, all of the free quarters were all used by the other candidates for the Red Sea Tournament, and as such, there was no place for Luo Zehn to stay. As for Yang Mei Mei, she never had a place, to begin with, and had been staying in these quarters for a few days now. 

"Where are you heading?" I asked as I saw Liu Zhi, Blade, and Wu Yan sneaking out of the place. They were trying so hard to not make any noise but it was futile since I was already awake, to begin with. 

Wu Yan's mouth opened in a short 'o', surprised that I was still awake. As for Liu Zhi and Blade, they were a bit reluctant to answer since it was probably a secret mission from Shen Rong. 

"Oh that, we thought you were asleep so we didn't bother waking you up." Liu Zhi lightly answered as he scratched his head. "We thought the tournament must've tired you out." 

"Yeah, and we're just going on an easy reconnaissance of a labyrinth that Shen Rong found recently. Since he found two of them at the same time, he decided to leave the other dungeon to us since he expected to be preoccupied of the first one. Of course, all the rewards would be evenly split to those entering so we would have told you to accompany us sooner or later. Right now, we're just going to scout the area a bit." Blade went into more details regarding their secret mission.

As for Wu Yan, her eyes lit up at seeing me awake. She must've wanted me to accompany them but she couldn't voice it out since she expected me to be tired, just like how the others expected me to. Lightly stretching my appendages as soon as I got up, I approached the group without even preparing anything. 

"Yong Rui, you don't have to force yourself. The semi-finals are tomorrow." Wu Yan concernedly mumbled as she drooped her head down low. 

"Well, I can't miss this chance now, can't I? When it comes to reconnaissance, the more people you have, the better the result is. That's why you can count on me. And also, I'm guaranteed to win tomorrow. Those cultivators are just a bunch of show-offs. I'm guessing they've never stepped out of their Shelter to hunt rabid humans. Did you see their hands? They were as soft as porcelain!" 

The three of them lightly chuckled. 

"All right, you can join. But if it gets dangerous, we would prioritize your safety no matter what. We need you to win tomorrow, after all." Liu Zhi patted me on the back as he assured me of my safety. Compared to before, Liu Zhi is finally acting like the leader he is. 

"What comes around goes around. A favor for a favor." I responded. "If you ever get in trouble, then I'll prioritize all of your safety. I'm a pretty good meat shield, you know." 

"Yeah, I find it hard to believe but we witnessed it first-hand. How do you even regenerate that fast? Is it because of a unique constitution? Or do you practice a secret cultivation technique?" Liu Zhi asked. "I mean, I've always tried to detect the Healing element in your Qi Energy but I never detected anything. You know what? Never mind, let's just go. You can be mysterious all you want, Yong Rui. It's part of your identity after all." 

"It's nothing special. I just have a unique constitution that's all. Anyways, what kind of dungeon is it? There are different kinds of dungeons, right?" I forcefully changed the topic.

Our group, now complete once again, headed out of the house while leaving Luo Zehn and Yang Mei Mei. I'm guessing that the two of them were light sleepers and that they didn't bother keeping their guards up inside the house. Well, it could also mean that Luo Zehn is planning to spy on us later but I doubt he'd do that after everything we've gone through with Liu Zhi's party. 

"Yongrui, Yongrui," Hui-ying called out in my mind. It's been so long since we last talked... or maybe I'm just remembering it incorrectly. 

"Is something wrong?" I whispered underneath my breath. I didn't want Liu Zhi and the others to label me as crazy especially since I always talk to myself. In any case, Hui-ying's voice sounded rather urgent so she must have special news for me. That or she was just obviously excited about something. 

"N-no, I just want to say that your Bad Egg is finally hatching!" Hui-ying exclaimed. "Also, I received some information from the System about the dungeon that you'll be checking out. I'll be informing you before we get there but first, I want you to check out the Bad Egg. Please? I really want to see what it hatches into." 

Our group was just about to head out from the Red Sea Shelter when Hui-ying notified me about my Bad Egg. That's why I stopped for a little bit as soon as we got out of the entranceway. 

"You guys go on ahead. I have something to do first." I paused and then headed to another dimension. Well, if they were really curious, they might follow me. But it's not that I mind them following me. 

Once I reached an inconspicuous place, I retrieved the Bad Egg from my storage ring. It must've absorbed an enormous amount of Qi Energy that led to its maturity stage. Now, the cracks were all over the place and some of the broken-off pieces of the eggshell were beginning to peel off. 

I know what I needed to do.

Directing my Qi Energy towards the Bad Egg little by little, the Egg started glowing like an Egg being roasted in a furnace. And then, a shimmering bright light escaped the cracks of the Egg, making me flinch and cover my eyes. The brightness almost blinded me since I had enhanced sight just like how my other senses were enhanced. 

"It's coming out, Yongrui!" Hui-ying excitedly exclaimed in my head. 

"Shut up, I can see that." 

Beads of sweat trickled down my forehead as I applied more and more Qi Energy towards the Bad Egg. It really lives up to its name. Even though it's this close to hatching, it still wouldn't budge. What is this Bad Egg made of, seriously? 

A resounding roar erupted from the Bad Egg, making me almost lose my focus but I managed to maintain my composure. Turns out, the roar wasn't even that great. It was like a roar of a newborn lion's cub, which was more like a purr than a roar. 

The Bad Egg shook for a couple of minutes before it finally broke into little pieces. The eggshells were like mirrors from a different dimension as they dissipated from the air the moment they touched it. Their color was different as well, sort of monochromatic. This just goes to show that some sort of mythical beast or a powerful entity would be born from the Bad Egg. As to why the System gave the Bad Egg to me as a reward, I could only wonder. 

"Look! It's an Astral Lion! Wow! I remember this guy! He's from my world, one of the mythical beasts to ever exist. There were seven of them just like in our legends." Hui-ying exclaimed. "Whaaaa, this brings back memories of days old." 

'Finally, you've finally proved yourself useful to me, Hui-ying.' I said to myself, almost letting out a small chuckle. 

"Yongrui, you do know that I can hear all your thoughts, right? Hmph~" I could totally see her pouting in my head right now. "And yes, I remember a bit of my past all thanks to the System and you, Yongrui. Now stop dilly-dallying and make the Astral Lion, or rather, cub, to imprint itself to you."

"How do I do that?" I asked.

"The same way you would form a contract with a Spirit Beast."

I tried to wrack my brains around it but I couldn't remember how. Well, I never really thought about forming a contract with a Spirit Beast even in the past, let alone integrating with it. That's why I have no prior knowledge when it comes down to it. 

"I have no idea how to do it." I reluctantly admitted to my own shortcomings. 

"Well, we can't help it then. Just press your thumb towards the Astral Lion's head after you make a small cut on it. Your blood will seal the bond between you and your Astral Lion." 

"Why do you keep on calling it an Astral Lion? It's just a cub, you know." After leaving a comment, I complied with everything that Hui-ying told me. Since she knew more than I did when it comes to Spirit Beasts, or rather, Mythical Beasts for that matter, I guess I should just listen to her.

And then it happened.