Chapter 27: Bonding Reaction: Part 1

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
As Shao Zifeng opened his eyes, an endless starry universe came into view. There were illuminated patches, clusters of faint and bold light, and some constellations that were moving slowly under his feet.
“Ballie?”
Shao Zifeng scanned his surroundings but found no trace of Ballie. He became anxious and started to call out.
“Ballie! Ballie! Ballie!”
His voice reverberated around him before it gradually faded into the distance, but he still did not get a response from Ballie.
Just when he felt like he was over a barrel, an unknown star in the far distance suddenly lit up. He sensed an affable feeling coming from that direction.
“Ballie?”
Shao Zifeng called out to it again. As his voice faded, that unknown star flickered once more. Shao Zifeng was enlivened, and he headed toward that star.
He was walking alone in the starry space, crossing galaxies of various colors one after another. Occasionally, meteorites would zoom past him, but other than that, the universe was basically at a standstill.
He had been traveling for a long time, yet it seemed that he had only walked a short distance. Right when he was about to give up, he found himself arriving before that flickering star. He extended his right hand and placed it on the star.
The star flickered violently for a moment like a heartbeat. Then, an energy line shot out from the star to link with another star.
After that, another line shot out to link with yet another star.
As the beat of the “heart” grew faster and faster, more lines were connected to the other stars.
Ten lines…
Fifty-five lines…
Seventy-eight lines…
A hundred and thirty-nine lines…
Looking from a distance, all the stars were linked with lines while Shao Zifeng acted as the center. The entire thing slowly painted the picture of a double-winged dragon.
As the last line connected, the star map that was shaped like a dragon was seemingly given a breath of life. It raised its head and roared, but it was silent. When the dragon soared and reached a certain altitude, it turned around and dived toward Shao Zifeng.
Halfway through its plunge, the starlight dragon shrank, solidified, and became lifelike before it disappeared between Shao Zifeng’s eyebrows.
“Eggie?”
…
There was a silence in the covenant chamber. The only sound came from the electronic beeps of the instruments. Chen Yixin led a group of staff members to record, as well as summarize today’s appraisal and registration. The data would later be compiled into a report and sent to the Appraisal Bureau for archiving.
“Madam, who is this kid? Why do we have to conduct an appraisal for him?” A skinny man with glasses had completed his job and approached Chen Yixin to help her monitor Shao Zifeng’s data.
“I have no idea, but the university has attached great importance to him.” Chen Yixin glanced at the skinny man and whispered, not upset about being interrupted.
“Important? Armadillo Lizards are rare, but this one just doesn’t make the cut. The personal attention given to this matter is simply uncalled for,” the man with the glasses whispered. When he saw Chen Yixin’s gentle smile, he was stunned by it.
Upon hearing what the man said, Chen Yixin continued to smile and say nothing. The man with the glasses reveled even more in her smile.
Chen Yixin was in her thirties and not pretty by any standard, but her light yellow…. ahem, her gentle temperament was her most attractive quality to anyone who spoke to her.
Besides, she was a distinguished professor at Sucheng University, leading a research team by herself. Although of a third-rate university, she had recently stolen a lot of limelight. Her reputation had caused her team members to become too proud to notice the rare Armadillo Lizard.
It was indeed weak, but Chen Yixin had a feeling that the situation was off as if she had omitted something. With a desire to find the truth, she personally led a team to perform the covenant ceremony for Shao Zifeng’s pet beast.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
Just then, the instrument in the chamber suddenly sounded the alarm, and a flashing red light attracted the staff, who quickly stopped what they were doing.
“It’s a bonding reaction! I can’t believe that it’s a bonding reaction!” the man with the glasses exclaimed at once, breaking the silence in the chamber. That was followed by the staff bursting out in awe.
“Quiet! Everyone, back to your positions. Monitor Shao Zifeng’s physical readings in real-time and report back to me.” Chen Yixin looked unusually serious as she stared at Shao Zifeng in the middle of the covenant array.
“Madam, the covenantor’s physical fitness has improved slightly, but because of his weak physique, the covenantor’s overall quality uplift is low.”
“Madam, the covenantor’s mental activity enhancement curve is abnormal; the peak is extremely high and the valley extremely low. Fluctuation is disordered… The activity value has returned to normal with a small uplift.”
“Madam, we haven’t detected the attribute fluctuations around the covenantor. It looks like the bonding reaction has not triggered attribute enhancement.”
After Chen Yixin received all the reports, the alarm sound triggered by the bonding reaction stopped. She looked at Shao Zifeng in the array and sighed in silence. “What a shame.”
…
Shao Zifeng opened his eyes as an unprecedented feeling that he could not describe rose within him. Something had become closer to him, and he was happy about this additional feeling.
“Eeeek!”
A shadowy figure leaped into his arms and gripped his clothes on his chest as its tiny skull snuggled up against him. It was making a sound as if it was talking to him.
He felt a warmth fill him inside as he petted its tiny skull with a tender expression on his face.
“Congratulations, you have become a combat trainer, Shao Zifeng.” Chen Yixin walked up to him with a gentle smile.
“Not yet. I haven’t gotten my certificate.” Shao Zifeng looked like a shy young boy who was talking to a pretty woman.
Ballie lay in Shao Zifeng’s arms and twitched its mouth akin to a human.
“Shao Zifeng, do you feel any changes in your body?” Chen Yixing looked at the good-looking young boy and wore a kind smile. She had not noticed it when she had been far away, but now, she realized how good his skin was. She almost could not hold back the urge to touch him.
“I don’t think there are any, but I feel that… the soreness from my exercise a few days ago is gone.” Shao Zifeng frowned as he felt his body.
“Chen Yixin sighed. She did not know if the kid’s encounter had been good or bad; he had a one-in-a-million bonding reaction, yet due to the covenant pet beast’s less-than-ideal strength, it did not produce any meaningful uplift in strength. “Well done, Shao Zifeng. There was a bonding reaction during the covenant process. Treat your pet beast with care and the two of you will become good partners in the future!” she said after a pause.
She turned around and left. If not, she was afraid that she would use Taka Kato’s…1 her beautiful hand to poke Shao Zifeng’s face.
As the staff members followed Chen Yixin and left, silence returned to the covenant chamber. Only Shao Zifeng was left standing on the spot in silence.
He looked in the direction that Chen Yixin had gone.
“Bonding reaction? Interesting!”
A smile appeared on his lips as a fleeting light flashed in his eyes.