The Contract Gate hummed as it slowly activated.
Faint golden runes flickered and flowed across the door, subtle ripples of space undulating around it.
Lin Xing’s spiritual power extended along the Contract Gate, using its energy to communicate with a destined Beastmaster.
Countless blurred spheres of light drifted before Lin Xing’s eyes, and what he needed to do was capture from among them the unique aura that both matched his own magic and responded to his summons.
Lumiya, with half a grilled sausage in her mouth, watched Lin Xing with a dreamy, expectant grin as he pressed his hand to the Contract Gate.
Her golden vertical pupils rolled dramatically.
Seriously?
This guy is at it again?
Does he really think he can win something good just by gambling on luck?
Back then, it was only because there was a kindred mark deep within his soul that he managed to connect with her, plus a little help from the Cosmic Will behind the scenes, that he succeeded at all.
Even with those one-in-a-billion blessings, this guy still fumbled for seven whole days!
And now he thinks he can copy that by sheer luck?
Swallowing her sausage, Lumiya glanced at Lin Xing with mockery in her eyes.
She was curious to see just what Lin Xing could pull off this time.
But suddenly, Lumiya’s chewing paused, her golden pupils narrowing sharply.
Wait a minute—the aura’s wrong. Did Lin Xing actually hit the jackpot this time?
By these standards, that’s a solid SSS Potential!
How did he manage to lure that over?
Lumiya dropped her teasing expression, her pupils flickering with a subtle golden light.
This aura didn’t just carry pure space energy—it even held a trace of her own kind.
She recalled how, before reaching into the Contract Gate, Lin Xing had given her a little pat.
Now she understood how he’d managed to get lucky!
He used her as bait!
The energy within the Contract Gate suddenly boiled.
Golden runes writhed and twisted like live snakes, and the once-misty gate became ever clearer.
A streak of greenish-blue light, flecked with shards of space, was rapidly approaching from deep within the gate. Its crisp cry grew ever sharper,
like jade striking jade, or windchimes ringing softly.
Next, a pale blue silhouette shot out from the gate, stopping half a meter before Lin Xing.
It was a bird, no bigger than a palm.
Its entire body was covered in Liu Li Bluebird feathers, with delicate golden specks along its wing edges and a tuft of bright red crest feathers atop its head.
Most striking was its tail—the feathers appeared woven from countless tiny points of light, and as it gently swayed, the very space around it seemed to ripple and dance.
The little fellow tilted its head, sizing up Lin Xing with lively violet eyes.
But after seeing Lumiya beside him, it flashed a knowing look, then perfunctorily nuzzled Lin Xing’s finger, letting out a crisp chirp.
Lin Xing could feel clearly: after the contract was formed with this little bird, a strange new trait had appeared within his own magic, creating a resonance between his mana and the surrounding space.
It was the extremely rare Space Attribute!
After forging their contract, the blue-green bird flew straight to Lumiya and affectionately rubbed her fingertips with its head.
Lumiya watched the little bird in amusement.
She’d run into this bird once while traversing worlds, when she’d found it tumbling through Space Turbulence.
The little thing had been so dizzy and battered by the turbulence, but since it looked cute, Lumiya picked it up and brought it along.
After a few years, she’d released it back into the wild with the thought of returning nature to nature—it absolutely wasn’t because it was too noisy.
Who could have thought Lin Xing could actually fish this little one out by using her as bait?
No matter what, this little one could break through the World Barrier.
Even if that was all it could do—if Lumiya hadn’t saved her back then, she’d have died in the turbulence long ago.
Lin Xing watched as the little bird circled Lumiya’s fingertip, nuzzling her affectionately, and a realization flickered in his eyes.
Back inside the Contract Gate, as he was sensing the light clusters, this streak of emerald light had been floating in the distance.
But as soon as he reached out, the little fellow seemed to recognize something, fluttered over with beating wings, not saying a word, looking all eager.
Lin Xing just assumed the little bird couldn’t speak. As for why it was so attached to Lumiya?
Lumiya’s so cute—it’s only natural she’d be popular!
“Since you followed Lumiya’s aura and you’re wreathed in green-blue light, how about calling you…
Little White ?”
??
As soon as he finished speaking, the blue-green bird fluffed up in protest. What a joke?!
She was a dignified Emerald Sky Bird! How could she be called Little White?
She’d rather be called Little Green like before!
That name sounded like some dumb cat, dumb dog, or dumb fox!
She flapped her wings furiously, pecked Lin Xing’s finger hard with her sharp beak. Look at me—my feathers glow blue-green, my crest is bright red—what part of me is “white”?
“Kidding, kidding~ Can you speak? What’s your name? Lumiya picked her own name, you know.”
Seeing the little bird puffing up, Lin Xing hurriedly tried to smooth things over.
The bird paused mid-peck, hopped to the ground, while both Lumiya and Lin Xing looked on in confusion.
Then, with a flash of blue-green light, a crisp voice suddenly rang out,
“I absolutely will not be called Little White! I am a proud Emerald Sky Bird! Of course my name is supremely grand! Listen, as my Beastmaster, your name must be as glorious as my own feathers. Remember my name well! Listen up! My name is Ao——…”
The voice abruptly cut off, as if someone had threatened her. Her previously proud tone suddenly turned meek, and all her swagger disappeared.
“Just call me Little Green from now on…”
Her soft, feeble reply sounded like a completely different bird.
As the light faded, a beautiful young girl was suddenly standing there, even a bit taller than Lumiya.
A dazzling red ahoge stood on top of her head, her hair a gorgeous emerald green, with a few strands at the tips sparkling like her tail feathers, swaying gently as she moved.
Her lips were as rosy and full as freshly picked cherries, now pouting slightly in indignation, clearly miffed about being forced to change her name—a lively, talkative look to her face.
She wore a short dress woven from blue-green feathers, its neat cut showing off a slender, fair waist.
The hem was decorated with delicate golden patterns, and a shimmering feather belt was tied loosely at her waist, accentuating her slim figure.
When she turned, the skirt flared lightly, giving her the nimble, airy feel of a bird about to take flight.
Most eye-catching were her legs—long, slender, and smooth, but not fragile.
Her calves were toned and shapely, with a circle of bright red feathers at her ankles.
When she stood on tiptoe, the defined arc of her muscles was clear to see, full of youthful vigor and grace.
Lin Xing and Lumiya were both stunned.
Lin Xing was shocked that his new contract bird was actually a humanoid Beastmaster—and a beautiful girl at that!
Lumiya was amazed that this little thing had actually learned to transform? And into a beautiful girl, no less?
All that chirping about being the prettiest in her flock was actually true?!
And those legs—so white, so straight—her height could only be a little over one-fifty, but her legs looked almost a meter long!
Was this the innate ability of bird-type beast transformations?
Lumiya went right up to touch—so soft, so springy, she couldn’t resist giving them another squeeze or two.
Who knew they’d feel this good!