Evan Chu heard Rhea Yang's shout loud and clear. When he turned around, he saw the feisty girl charging at Shadow with her sword drawn, attacking in a blur.
"Rhea, stop! That's my contracted beast—don't hurt him!" Evan shouted urgently, scooping Shadow into his arms and dodging her sword with a quick sidestep.
"Evan Chu, when did you get a monster pet? I never saw you catch one! Be honest, what's going on here?" Rhea eyed Evan suspiciously, half believing, half doubting.
Evan was struggling to even speak, his whole body weak from the poison. Just moving a little made his blood circulate faster, and he was about to collapse.
"Rhea, he's my contracted beast. He can get rid of the poison for me. I was so out of it, I actually forgot what he could do. Just keep watch and guard the area!" Evan felt like saying these words was harder than dealing with a hundred women—he was almost out of strength.
"That puppy is your monster beast? Evan Chu, how many secrets are you hiding? What kind of beast is this—I’ve never seen anything like it! And it can detoxify poison?" Rhea fired off questions like a rapid-fire cannon.
Evan knew it was weird for a pet to appear out of nowhere, but the real shock was that this beast could actually remove poison. This was no ordinary companion.
Rhea stared at Evan’s contracted beast—its puppy-like body and odd little horn on its head made it look strange, but the fact that it could detoxify was even crazier. Like master, like pet—they were both freaks.
Evan shot Rhea a look. Why was this girl so dense? He could barely talk and she was still chattering away. Once the poison was gone, he’d show her what he was really made of.
"Would you believe me if I said my contracted beast is a ninth-rank monster cub? There’s a lot I can’t explain right now, but I need you to keep this secret. When the time is right, you’ll understand everything." Evan forced the words out, enduring the pain.
"Fine! I won’t ask. Let your pet detoxify you—I'll stand guard!" Rhea knew she wouldn’t get more answers, so she stepped aside, ready to see how this puppy would handle poison.
Evan sat down on the ground, while Shadow—the Bloodshadow Berserker Lion cub—stood before him. Evan was just as curious: what method would this little guy use to remove his poison?
Suddenly, Shadow’s body glowed with red light. A suffocating aura erupted from his tiny frame, and Shadow began to grow—transforming from a puppy into something bigger than a bull.
The scariest part was its head—half the size of its body, twisted and monstrous like a demon from hell. Its mouth was as wide as a washbasin.
Evan stared in horror. Holy crap, this was its way of detoxifying? That was way too terrifying. He could sense that Shadow’s aura now was even stronger than the giant serpent’s.
Rhea couldn’t tear her eyes away. Her mind was a total mess—she just couldn’t believe what she was seeing. It was too miraculous, too unbelievable.
The newly transformed Shadow suddenly let out a deafening roar, opening his blood-red jaws. An overwhelming suction force erupted, pulling in loose stones and weeds from all around.
Rhea was completely speechless. Then, right before her eyes, Evan—who was sitting on the ground—got sucked straight into Shadow’s mouth.
Rhea was stunned. "What the—?" Even with her quick reflexes, she was totally flabbergasted. Weren’t they supposed to be detoxifying Evan? How did he end up inside the beast’s mouth?
"Evan Chu!" Lily Tang snapped back to her senses. That beast had just swallowed Evan whole! Furious, she slashed at it with her sword.
But before her sword could strike Shadow, a massive suction force swept her up. She tried to retreat, but it was too late—she was pulled into Shadow’s body as well.
"So this is how I die!" That was Rhea’s only thought, though she was bitter about it. Who would’ve guessed she’d be swallowed alive by a monster that looked like a puppy?
Just as Rhea was sure she was done for, she realized she felt no pain at all. Instead, she found herself in a vast, endless world—gray and silent, with no sign of life anywhere.
The strangest part was, there wasn’t even ground beneath her—she was floating in midair, just like a Heaven Martial Realm expert. "Where am I? I got sucked in by that puppy, but I don’t see any guts or organs!"
Suddenly, that suction force hit her again. Her muscles felt like they were being torn away, her mask vanished, and every last piece of clothing was stripped off her body.
Rhea panicked, but she couldn’t move at all. She could clearly feel a strange power surging through her meridians, leaving behind nothing but bone-deep pain.
Then black filth began oozing out of her pores, stinking horribly. Rhea had already fainted by then—if she’d seen all that grime coming out of her, she wouldn’t know what to think.
When she finally woke up, the first thing she saw was Evan Chu’s familiar face, grinning mischievously at her.
"Evan Chu, where are we? Are we dead?" Rhea blurted out. She’d landed in a strange place, suffered through endless agony, but now felt light and comfortable—like her strength had grown.
No sooner had she spoken than a sudden thought struck her. She hurriedly checked her body, remembering that all her clothes had been sucked away.
But now she was wearing clothes again—except they were all wrong. These were a man’s robes, and it was obvious who they belonged to: Evan Chu.
"You’re awake. How do you feel? Pretty wild, huh? I bet you’re stronger than ever now," Evan said, grinning mischievously.
(This chapter isn’t over yet ^.^ Click next page to keep reading!)
Rhea stared blankly at Evan, then noticed Shadow—the puppy—napping nearby. "Wait, didn’t it swallow both of us? How are we totally fine now?"
"He was detoxifying me. When you saw him swallow me and tried to attack, he swallowed you too—and conveniently upgraded your physique, purging all the impurities. Now you’re basically a genius on par with me," Evan said, sounding proud. He was genuinely happy for Rhea.
Evan had no idea why Shadow had this ability. Detoxification by sucking people in? It was wild—almost too wild to believe.
Rhea eyed Evan suspiciously, half convinced, half skeptical. Suddenly, she seemed to realize something, and let out a piercing scream. "Aaaah!"
"Why are you screaming? Did you eat something weird?" Evan jumped at her shriek.
Rhea glared furiously at Evan. "Did you change my clothes?"
"Yeah! Nice figure, by the way. Soft skin, and that part is really big—and super soft." Evan grinned shamelessly.
"You saw everything?" Rhea’s face burned with fury as she forced out the question.
"What do you think? I saw everything worth seeing—and even the parts I shouldn’t. I think I even accidentally touched you. Not bad at all! So, any thoughts?" Evan replied, totally unfazed.
Evan answered calmly, not worried about what Rhea might do. He knew this fiery girl would probably just make a scene, maybe cry a little, or demand he take responsibility.
Rhea finally snapped. Her rage could have wiped out a top-tier expert. "My thoughts are simple—gouge out your eyes, chop off your hands, and then kill you!"
"Whoa, so violent? No room for negotiation? Or maybe a little compromise?" Evan teased, deliberately provoking her further.
"Not a chance—prepare to die!" Rhea snapped, striking at Evan with a palm attack.