Chapter Fifty-Six: Paimon Wants to Become Strong Too (Bonus Chapter for Reaching 5,000 Points in Rewards)

Chu Yun was somewhat looking forward to what special rewards he might receive upon reaching the second rank. For now, however, he was content; as his level increased, the experience he could gain from low-level creatures was gradually diminishing due to the difference in rank. He estimated that once he advanced to the second rank, it would become difficult to obtain meaningful experience from ordinary zero-rank creatures.

In truth, the total experience available had not lessened, but the conversion rate was continually dropping. Chu Yun remained optimistic; compared to the pace of this world, where it could take years or even decades to advance a single rank, he had only been here a few days and already possessed such strength—remarkably swift progress.

It should be noted that many professionals spent their entire lives stuck at a bottleneck, unable to advance. Chu Yun, on the other hand, seemed to encounter no such obstacles; as long as he upgraded steadily, he could continue progressing.

The Blackstone City Monster Slaughterhouse was located outside the city. Paimon hurried along, quickly bringing Chu Yun to the city gates.

Most monsters in the slaughterhouse were zero-rank; those above first rank were difficult to domesticate and were usually killed in the wild and brought back for sale. Blackstone City, as a frontier settlement, had a permanent population of roughly fifty thousand according to official statistics. Lately, with the approaching Festival of the Goddess of Life, many visitors had arrived.

Despite this, the city’s daily meat requirement was not excessive. Assuming each person consumed 300 grams of monster meat, fifty thousand people needed only fifteen thousand kilograms. Among domesticated monsters, the most numerous were Pick Pigs; each adult Pick Pig could provide over a hundred kilograms of meat.

The slaughterhouse typically processed around two hundred monsters per day, about half of which were Pick Pigs; the rest were other monsters. Smaller creatures were usually handled privately by taverns or citizens at home and did not require special treatment at the slaughterhouse.

In the Mirror World, the duration that dropped items could remain depended on their rank and matched the recovery time of the mirrored body: zero-rank items lasted one day, first-rank items two days. Since all slaughter points were centralized, it was more convenient to collect dropped items.

Chu Yun rode Paimon into the slaughterhouse. As he wore the Mage Guild’s insignia, the manager greeted him warmly and respectfully.

“Honored Mage, is there anything I can do for you?” The slaughterhouse owner was a portly middle-aged man whose smile squeezed the flesh on his face into folds.

Chu Yun handed him a gold coin. “My companion is hungry and would like some fresh meat. Please take me directly to the slaughter point.”

Paimon looked at Chu Yun in puzzlement. “Master~ Paimon has been very obedient, and Paimon isn’t hungry!”

“Little one, your master is a mage. This time, I’ll use food to enhance your abilities. Eat well,” Chu Yun replied via their pact.

“Thank you, Master~ Paimon loves getting stronger~”

The slaughterhouse owner asked no further questions and, at Chu Yun’s request, led him to the slaughter point. There, a dozen skilled butchers were busy at work. Chu Yun spoke to the owner, “Just pick meat worth a gold coin for it to eat.”

“And please find me a quiet, private place—I need to meditate.”

Not daring to delay, the owner quickly brought the best meat for Paimon and offered up his own office. After ensuring he was alone, Chu Yun entered the Mirror World.

The slaughterhouse still held many light spheres from yesterday’s drops, but their experience value was meager for Chu Yun. Paimon’s abilities were somewhat weak, so Chu Yun planned to enhance it, partly for research purposes.

With only himself as a sample, it was difficult to compare results. As he advanced, most ordinary experience would become less useful, so these freely obtained points could be used to cultivate subordinates. Thus, Chu Yun decided to begin some preliminary research.

He absorbed one of the light spheres himself and inserted another into Paimon; information quickly appeared in his mind.

[You gain 0.8 experience points.]
[Your pet gains experience points.]

Paimon’s information did not show experience or a progress bar, but the prompt indicated it could absorb experience.

One sphere after another was placed inside Paimon, and soon it leveled up.

[Your pet’s level increased to Lv4.]

After it absorbed most of the spheres, its level rose again. Chu Yun compared the experience required for Paimon’s upgrade to his own and found it needed much less, making it easier to level up.

Usually, the harder it is to level, the greater the potential, and the effects of advancement are more pronounced.

[Paimon Lv5]
Species: Earthwalker Dragon (Wind♀)
Bloodline: Lizard 61.21%, Bird 14.72%, Dragon 10.53%, ...
Attributes: Life 60, Physical Attack 8, Defense 6, Magic Attack 5, Magic Defense 6, Speed 24
Affinity: 72 points ❤♥♥

Paimon’s development was less an upgrade and more a rapid growth; its bloodline shifted slightly, with a higher proportion of dragon ancestry. Its size increased visibly under Chu Yun’s gaze. The butchers, unfamiliar with Paimon and busy with their own tasks, did not notice.

Besides leveling up, the light spheres granted Paimon several skills. Its bite ability was pushed to the maximum, and the skills for carrying passengers and hauling goods likely came from discarded old horses or cattle, not Pick Pigs.

Pick Pigs’ specialty, earth rooting, was also maxed out. Chu Yun hesitated about acquiring this unusual talent himself, but ultimately decided against it.

Paimon also gained a new skill: “Tough Skin 1.”

This skill was exclusive to monsters and unavailable to Chu Yun, so Paimon’s gains were considerable.

Abilities: Bite Lv6+2, Carrying Lv3+1, Hauling Lv3+2 (Earth Rooting Lv8)
Skills: Wind Blade 1, Swift Step 1, Wild Charge 1, (Tough Skin 1)

After recording his observations of Paimon, Chu Yun began meditating. He had a touch of obsessive compulsion; unless his mental energy was fully restored, he felt uneasy.

Once he had recovered, Paimon was at the door, excitedly rooting in the earth. Unlike Pick Pigs, which used their snouts, Paimon employed claws and legs.

Today’s changes were obvious. Paimon was awed by its master’s power and felt fortunate to have followed the right person.

Seeing Chu Yun emerge from the room, Paimon eagerly presented its spoils.

“Master, master~ Paimon dug up lots of earthworms and coins~”

Chu Yun’s eyebrows twitched at the mention of earthworms; his eyes lit up at “coins.”

It was an old coin pouch containing not only two gold coins but also several silver coins. With this, Paimon’s food expenses were not only covered but there was a surplus.

“Well done! In the future, whenever you have nothing to do, dig around a bit. Who knows, you might even uncover a fragment of divinity someday, haha. Remember, anything that glitters gold is treasure.” Chu Yun patted Paimon’s head, returning the earthworms as a reward.

The following hours, Chu Yun returned to Blackstone City, purchased materials needed for spellcasting, and began practicing Alertness and Messaging spells.

Though the gamer’s expertise allowed him to shortcut the construction of spell models, improving casting speed still required constant practice.

Besides the two new spells, Chu Yun repeatedly practiced his staple magic, especially the fire element summoning spell, which normally took nearly a minute to cast. Improving proficiency could greatly reduce casting time.

Chu Yun practiced in the Mirror World near the Mage’s Hostel, occasionally challenging other mages. When tired, he would retreat to his room to meditate.

Night soon fell. While meditating, Chu Yun heard a knock at the door.

“Chu Yun, it’s me, Anna. Are you available now?”

Anna had arrived as promised. Chu Yun opened the door.

Standing before him, Anna was noticeably more beautiful than in the morning. She had applied cosmetics, making her skin appear smoother and fairer. Perhaps the late hour and being alone with a strange man made her a little shy; a hint of charming blush colored her cheeks.