Lu Fei looked in the direction Zhao Biao pointed. There stood a man with his hands behind his back, his posture perfectly upright, like a machine.
"Fifth Councilor!"
Lu Fei walked over, grateful.
"Thank you, Fifth Councilor, for saving my life."
This explained everything. The snake-headed, human-bodied monster must have been scared away by Fifth He's imposing presence, and the gash on the ground was caused by the handsome white contracted beast he had seen before.
Fifth He did not engage in pleasantries with Lu Fei, his voice already cold.
"What happened here?"
"It was a..." As soon as the words left his mouth, Lu Fei stopped. He recalled the seemingly threatening advice the snake-headed, human-bodied monster had given him before leaving. He smiled and said, "It was a group of rampaging [Marching Ants]. Fortunately, you arrived in time, or I would have been devoured by them."
"But the powerful aura I sensed did not seem to emanate from [Marching Ants]."
Lu Fei was startled. *Could he have seen through my disguise?* he thought.
At this moment, Zhao Biao provided a crucial assist.
"Fifth Councilor, we were indeed being chased by a group of rampaging [Marching Ants]. It seems Lu Fei brother fell off his mount mid-way and was surrounded by them."
Lu Fei quickly chimed in.
"Yes, yes, Old Brother Zhao Biao, your tiger ran too fast, and I couldn't hold on. I happened to be startled and fell off its back."
Zhao Biao apologized, "Oh dear, it's all my fault for not paying attention. I'm so glad you're alright."
While they exchanged pleasantries, Lu Fei secretly glanced at Fifth He, noticing his brow slightly furrowed in thought.
"Besides the rampaging [Marching Ants], did you see any other contracted beasts?"
Lu Fei nodded. "The situation was critical at the time, and I was surrounded by the rampaging [Marching Ants]. I didn't notice any other contracted beasts."
Fifth He let out a breath, not pressing further.
He then mounted the snow-white, magnificent contracted beast and looked at Qiu Xia and Zhao Biao.
"You two will return with me. So many people have died here, and the higher-ups need an explanation."
Upon hearing this, Qiu Xia and Zhao Biao's faces fell, looking as if they had lost their parents.
Just as Fifth He was about to fly off, he suddenly stopped and turned back.
"You two send him back first, and then return to headquarters."
With that, he rode away on [Long Bo].
After Fifth He left, Qiu Xia and Zhao Biao exchanged glances. Though they didn't interact much with Fifth He, it was the first time they had seen him so concerned about someone.
When Lu Fei suddenly went missing, Zhao Biao quickly found Qiu Xia to rendezvous. They contacted headquarters immediately. They had expected the headquarters to dispatch one or two more powerful beast tamers, but they never anticipated Fifth He himself would come.
Even more surprising was that Fifth He had arrived riding his legendary SS-class contracted beast, [Long Bo]! It was well known that Fifth He rarely summoned [Long Bo] for combat, but today, to save time, he had ridden it all the way.
This left the two of them in disbelief.
After Fifth He had gone far, Qiu Xia smiled and said, "Young friend Lu Fei, the danger in this area has not yet passed. Let us escort you back first."
Lu Fei smiled and nodded.
"Thank you, Old Brother Qiu Xia, Old Brother Zhao Biao."
Riding their flying contracted beasts, the group soon left the forest under Lu Fei's guidance and returned to the small cabin on the Forget Worry Grassland.
After sending Lu Fei back, Qiu Xia and Zhao Biao prepared to depart.
Lu Fei suddenly called out to them.
"Brothers, you two offended Tu Tian thoroughly in the forest just now. What are your plans for the future?"
Lu Fei had been keeping this matter in mind. The two were merely hired beast tamers, essentially working for the wealthy. If they were targeted by a prominent family like the Tu family, it would be difficult for them to continue their careers.
Qiu Xia gave a wry smile. "Young friend Lu Fei, you don't need to worry about us. We are members of the association. I doubt they would dare to do anything overt."
Zhao Biao said with a laugh, "I'm fine, one person's meal is enough for the whole family. Old Qiu has a few children to support at home. If I lose my job, hehe..."
Qiu Xia shot Zhao Biao a glare.
Watching them tease each other, Lu Fei smiled in understanding.
"If you can't manage there anymore, come to Cang Town. I'll support you then."
The two looked at Lu Fei in unison, a hint of doubt in their eyes.
What kind of wealthy family would send their young master out for training like this? They would at least arrange for some bodyguards.
To avoid offending him, they both smiled and agreed.
Then, they mounted their contracted beasts and left the area.
Watching their receding figures, Lu Fei let out a sigh, feeling a genuine warmth. He hadn't encountered such pure-hearted individuals in a long time.
As he stood lost in thought, a figure approached from behind.
"Yo, kid, you're back!"
Lu Fei turned and looked at the man in patched clothes, holding a large wine gourd.
The drunkard sized up Lu Fei and smiled. "Why is your clothes so tattered? Did you come back from begging?"
Lu Fei rolled his eyes at him.
He complained, "Brother, what kind of place did you send me to? I almost lost my life there!"
The drunkard yawned.
"Do you think training is like a holiday?"
Then, he thought better of it.
"Hey, don't you try to play dumb and make excuses for me. Did you find the Clear Heart Grass and Dongting Flowers I asked for? And have you killed those ten rampaging contracted beasts?"
Lu Fei moved his spatial ring, and soon, a pile of strange, indescribable objects fell out. Some were eyeballs, some were contracted beasts' arms, and others were leg bones. Most bizarrely, there was a desiccated corpse, completely drained of life, like a piece of paper.
"One, two, three... nine..."
The drunkard picked up the desiccated corpse. "Kid, this is clearly an ordinary contracted beast. Do you think you can trick me?"
Regarding the desiccated corpse of this [Parasitic Beast], Lu Fei was also filled with questions.
"Brother, is there a possibility for rampaging contracted beasts to recover into ordinary contracted beasts?"
The drunkard pondered for a moment.
"It's said that some scientists are researching this, but there don't seem to be any successful cases."
He looked at Lu Fei. "Kid, what are you trying to say?"
Lu Fei explained, "When I first encountered this [Parasitic Beast], it was attached to a massive primate contracted beast. It was eventually defeated by my Iron Head. I captured it alive to show you first because I felt it was different from other rampaging contracted beasts, as if it still retained a trace of clarity."
"But for some reason during the process, it suddenly regained its consciousness."
Upon hearing this, the drunkard frowned slightly.
"Kid, you're not making up an excuse to cover up for not completing the mission, are you?"
Lu Fei pouted. "How could I!"
"Look at it now. Do you think I could have done this?"
At this moment, the drunkard's expression gradually became serious.