Chapter 222: Contracted Beast?

"Hahahahaha!!!"

Lin Tianhao burst into laughter.

"Awesome!"

"No wonder you're my son, Lin Tianhao!"

"So satisfying! So damn satisfying!"

Lin Tianhao turned again to Nie Zhenguó:

"Nie Lao, listen to this!"

"Passed a Hell-level raid in one minute!"

"This has truly blasted Dragon Nation's prestige across the entire world!"

"Given this legendary achievement, since there's no Forbidden-class exclusive weapon..."

"Then at the very least, you've got to hand out a national treasure to reward my son, right?"

Hearing Lin Tianhao's words,

Nie Zhenguó snapped out of his profound shock.

He cast a deep glance at Lin Mo.

"Alright, I already decided on your son's reward long ago."

"Lin Mo."

"Have you... ever heard of a 'Contracted Beast'?"

"Contracted Beast?"

Lin Mo blinked in slight surprise.

He had never heard that term before.

Beside him, Lin Tianhao's eyes lit up sharply, "Contracted Beast? That's great! Perfect!"

Seeing the confusion in Lin Mo's eyes,

Nie Zhenguó smiled:

"Contracted Beasts are a completely new phenomenon that first appeared two years ago."

"Think of them as a summoner's summoned creatures—but unlike summoner summons, each person can bond with only one Contracted Beast."

"And they generally possess formidable combat power."

Lin Mo understood.

A pet system, huh?

Nie Zhenguó continued:

"Our Dragon Nation has spent countless resources to acquire a batch of Contracted Beasts."

"Currently, there are still over a dozen idle Contracted Beasts."

"It's not that we're unwilling to give them away."

Nie Lao sighed, sounding resigned.

"But not everyone has the ability to make them submit."

"If they despise you, even if you crush them with force, they'd rather die with you than sign a contract."

At this, Nie Lao gave a bitter chuckle:

"In two years,"

"our Dragon Nation has had fewer than ten successful Contracted Beast bonds."

Nie Lao's gaze flicked toward Guhe beside him.

"Look."

"Even your own university's Principal Gu, after trying multiple times, couldn't make a single Thunder-type Contracted Beast bow its head."

At these words,

Guhe, who had been quietly watching the drama, turned beet red.

"Cough! Cough! Cough!"

Guhe cleared his throat, trying to save face:

"Nie Lao... you're talking business—why bring me up out of nowhere?"

"I... I just didn't like those things! I thought those Thunder-types were too volatile, too unsuitable for me..."

Before Guhe finished speaking,

"Pfft!"

Lin Tianhao let out a scornful snort.

"Principal Gu, stop making excuses—you just can't do it, that's all."

He slapped Lin Mo's shoulder:

"But it's not your fault—you can't possibly compare to my son."

Lin Tianhao held his head high, brimming with confidence.

"Who is my son? A prodigy unmatched in ten thousand ages! He masters multiple High-Grade skills in a single day!"

"What's a little Contracted Beast?"

"Hey! You good-for-nothing Lin Tianhao!"

Guhe was furious, jabbing his finger at Lin Tianhao's nose, "You praise your son fine, but you've got to kick an old man like me too, right?"

"I was once the top genius of Beijing!"

Watching the two elders bicker,

Lin Mo sighed and rubbed his forehead.

His father...

Was an absolute troublemaker.

He could stir up hostility anywhere.

Luckily he was strong enough—or his personality would've gotten him beaten to death in a sack eight hundred times over.

"Alright, alright."

Nie Zhenguó laughed and calmed them down.

He turned to Lin Mo:

"Lin Mo, today we open the Contracted Beast Vault for you. You may test any of the unbound Contracted Beasts inside."

"If you have the ability to make them submit, choose whichever one you like."

Lin Mo didn't hesitate:

"Thank you, Nie Lao!"

Nie Zhenguó nodded in satisfaction.

With a wave of his hand,

"Let's go!"

Tian Shu Mansion, Underground Level -3.

The group walked down a long corridor.

Security here was extremely tight.

Along the way, numerous defensive arrays lined the path, and Lin Mo faintly sensed several terrifying presences lurking in the shadows.

Zhang Qi led the way, performing dual biometric verification—retina and fingerprint.

Click.

The massive door slowly slid open on either side.

"We're here."

Zhang Qi stepped inside and flipped a switch on the wall.

Snap!

Rows of spotlights blazed to life, illuminating the space ahead as bright as daylight.

Lin Mo looked around.

It seemed to be a spacious hall resembling a second-floor observation platform.

At the hall's far end stood a massive explosion-proof glass wall.

"Come on, son."

Lin Tianhao rubbed his hands together eagerly, urging Lin Mo forward.

Lin Mo followed the group to the giant glass wall and looked down.

Through the glass,

below lay a colossal circular arena, its area rivaling a football field.

Around the arena's perimeter were over a dozen extremely spacious large cages.

Inside each of these cages,

rested over a dozen massive, bizarrely shaped... Contracted Beasts!

Each one looked undeniably dangerous!

The leftmost area.

A giant unicorn lay sprawled on the ground.

Its entire body was covered in crimson scales, with molten-like flames seeping through the gaps in its armored hide.

Atop its head, the sharp horn burned with an eternal flame that never dimmed.

Beside it, a terrifying two-headed hound dripped dark red sparks from its mouth, scorching tiny craters into the floor.

Across from them, in another section,

a massive monkey rested as well.

Its fur was blue-purple, with flickers of lightning weaving through its coat, radiating a savage aura.

"So these are the pact beasts…"

Lin Mo muttered in astonishment.

These things, just by appearance alone, were undeniably powerful—absolute bosses.

Imagine fighting alongside a boss you carry with you—how overwhelming would that pressure be?

Nie Zhenguo looked down at the colossal beasts below and spoke slowly:

"Lin Mo, what you see here are all the pact beasts our Dragon Nation has gathered but have yet to be tamed."

"Go on. Give it a try."

"Any one of them—if you can make it bow willingly, it's yours."

Nie Zhenguo pointed to a door leading into the arena.

Lin Mo took a deep breath, a fiery spark of battle lust igniting in his eyes.

Pact beasts no one has tamed?

Then I'll give it a shot!

"Understood."

Lin Mo turned and walked toward the staircase on the side of the hall.

Not long after,

Lin Mo reached the entrance to the underground arena.

He stepped one foot inside.

In an instant,

all the pact beasts

seemed to sense the extraordinary elemental spirit within Lin Mo.

They rose in unison, their gazes locked firmly on him.

"Hm?"

Lin Mo halted.

He was momentarily stunned by the simultaneous stare of a dozen colossal beasts.

What's going on?

At that moment, in his skill bar,

【"Fireball Spell" let out a derisive scoff: "Hmph. All trash."】

【"Lightning Strike" flickered with lightning, showing utter contempt for the pact beasts.】

【"Ice Spike" wore a look of disgust: "Low-grade elements. Disgusting. Yuck!"】

【"Earth Shield" poked its head out: "Big bro, third bro, and fourth sis are right."】

"..."

Lin Mo was speechless.

These are the very things Old Nie treasures—how dare you dismiss them as worthless?

Meanwhile,

on the observation platform upstairs,

everyone's expressions changed at once.

Lin Tianhao frowned slightly:

"Why are these beasts reacting so strongly?"

"Last time Old Gu came, they couldn't even be bothered to lift their eyelids."

"Hey hey hey, that's enough!"

Gu He shot Lin Tianhao a glare.

If he weren't outmatched, he'd challenge this guy to a duel right now!

Inside the arena,

Lin Mo frowned.

Might as well go take a look.

He took another step forward.

As Lin Mo entered,

the flaming unicorn's front legs buckled, and it knelt down.

Its proud head sank deeply to the ground, the flame atop its horn instantly suppressed to a mere flicker.

Immediately after,

as if triggered by a chain reaction,

every single pact beast lowered its proud head.

Like welcoming their sovereign, like offering the most humble submission to the supreme elemental sovereign.

"..."

Lin Mo stopped walking and slowly raised a questioning mark.

???

Why are you kneeling to me?