Chapter 42: We Will Also Follow Our Benefactor, After All, She Was Personally Selected by the Young Lady of the Xia Family!

Liang Xiaofei originally decided to pledge his loyalty to Lin Yao purely out of gratitude for a favor.

However, after spending some time by Lin Yao's side, he realized that he had struck an absolute goldmine.

Lin Yao's methods and potential were far more formidable than he had ever imagined.

As long as Lin Yao was not cut down in his prime, following him would be akin to aiding the founding of a new dynasty.

By continuing to follow Lin Yao down this path, he was bound to reap unimaginable rewards!

After organizing his thoughts carefully, Liang Xiaofei slowly began to speak:

"My initial choice to follow Lord Lin Yao was to repay a debt of gratitude..."

Without exaggerating or embellishing, he recounted his own plight, the events that transpired after meeting Lin Yao, and shared everything he could appropriately reveal to the Shen brothers from beginning to end.

At first, Shen Nanqian and Shen Sankun did not pay much attention to his words.

Because the two brothers were only interested in Lin Yao's Shadow Werewolf beast and cared little for anything else.

Yet, as Liang Xiaofei continued speaking, they gradually became completely engrossed.

By the time Liang Xiaofei finished his account, Shen Nanqian remained silent, while Shen Sankun wore an expression of absolute astonishment.

He could not help but press further, asking: "Can the Shadow Mark given to you by your benefactor really be used as a refinement scroll?"

"And it extracts an additional 30% of pure energy every single time?"

"Furthermore, you can leave the Shadow Devourer behind in place to refine pure energy while you receive it remotely?"

If all of this was true, Shen Sankun desperately wished he could get his hands on a Shadow Mark immediately!

A free 30% bonus on every single extraction of pure energy!

Even with his relatively simple mind, he could easily calculate that over time, this would accumulate into a massive, staggering amount of pure energy.

Moreover, the other capability of the Shadow Devourer was equally heaven-defying.

Previously, after hunting down several of Qin Tanlang's subordinates and their spirit beasts, he and his brother had been forced to hurriedly scavenge the spoils and flee in panic, terrified that Qin Tanlang's faction would track them down. They had never dared to linger long enough to use refinement scrolls to extract energy.

Had they possessed a Shadow Mark back then, they could have simply left the Shadow Devourer behind to slowly refine the pure energy for them.

In contrast, Shen Nanqian was far more concerned with the Shadow Werewolf itself.

As soon as Shen Sankun finished his rapid-fire barrage of questions, Shen Nanqian immediately followed up: "Does Lord Lin Yao manage to summon at least two or three Shadow Werewolves every single day?"

Liang Xiaofei nodded and recounted the details patiently, explaining everything while even demonstrating the miraculous effects of the Shadow Mark on the spot for the Shen brothers.

Having gained a deeper understanding of Lin Yao's strength, Shen Nanqian found his resolve beginning to waver.

The current situation within this small pocket dimension was extremely perilous.

If he and his brother were to cross paths with Qin Tanlang's faction alone, they would have no choice but to flee in disarray.

Running away, however, was no permanent solution; they could not possibly escape every single time.

Choosing to cooperate with Lin Yao at this juncture, or simply deciding to follow him directly, was undoubtedly an excellent way to ensure their own survival.

Shen Nanqian began to weigh his options seriously: Should he temporarily cooperate with Lin Yao? Or should he take the plunge and directly pledge allegiance to this benefactor?

He clearly could not make up his mind immediately.

Neither Liang Xiaofei nor Lin Yao was in any rush.

With plenty of time still remaining, they were more than happy to let Shen Nanqian ponder over it at his leisure.

While Shen Nanqian was still weighing the pros and cons, Shen Sankun could no longer contain himself and blurted out:

"Brother, let's just pledge our loyalty to the benefactor as well!"

Shen Nanqian asked offhandedly, "On what grounds?"

Scratching his head, Shen Sankun replied, "I think the benefactor is quite remarkable. Not only has he shown us grace, but an expert like Brother Liang is willingly following him, not to mention that the two young misses of the Rose Family have also given him their approval."

"Those two young misses of the Rose Family are figures who have witnessed grand spectacles aplenty. If Lin Yao didn't have some genuine tricks up his sleeve, how could they possibly have taken a fancy to him?"

Shen Sankun's words served as a timely reminder to Shen Nanqian.

The two young misses of the Rose Family, Xia Mengying and Xia Yumeng, must have crossed paths with countless exceptional spirit tamers.

If Lin Yao lacked immense potential and the ability to secure massive future benefits for them, those two young misses would never have looked upon him with such favor.

At this thought, Shen Nanqian was already deliberating how he would approach Lin Yao shortly to present their request to join the benefactor's ranks.

Lin Yao was entirely unaware of the calculations going on in Shen Nanqian's mind.

At that moment, thanks to the diligent labor of the Shadow Devourer, a vast stream of pure energy was being continuously funneled back to him, steadily elevating his level.

Before long, his level broke through to Level 13!

Only two levels remained until the Level 13 benchmark he had agreed upon with Murong Nancheng.

Whether he could reach Level 15 before the national college entrance examinations, however, remained difficult to say.

While his level was rising, Lin Yao continued his process of "troop production."

The number of Shadow Werewolves under his command increased from thirty to thirty-one!

Naturally, one could never have too many spirit beasts like the Shadow Werewolves, especially since he would soon engage in a decisive battle against Qin Tanlang and his cohorts; having a large army under his command would naturally grant him higher odds of victory.

Having successfully generated the thirty-first Shadow Werewolf, Lin Yao placed three crystal stones before himself.

With the decisive battle looming, both Xia Mengying and Zhu Zhihan were currently adjusting their states and preparing for the upcoming combat.

Xia Yumeng trotted over to Lin Yao's side, staring with wide-eyed curiosity at the three skill crystals in front of him.

Parting her delicate lips, she asked in a soft, sweet voice, "Which skill are you planning to enhance with these three skill crystals?"

Lin Yao had long since grown accustomed to Xia Yumeng's mood swings.

Whenever danger loomed, this young lady would affectionately address him as "Hubby" at every turn.

Yet in times of peace, her tongue would revert to calling him "Old Monster Lin Yao" or simply address him directly as "you."

Casually picking up a skill enhancement crystal to weigh it in his palm, Lin Yao beckoned to Xia Yumeng, signaling her to come closer.

Without standing on ceremony, Xia Yumeng sat right down beside him and naturally leaned her small head against his shoulder.

The faint, refreshing fragrance unique to her drifted into Lin Yao's nostrils as she drew near.

Lin Yao was slightly startled, a sense of quiet contentment blooming in his heart.

He had to admit that whether it was Xia Mengying, Xia Yumeng, Zhu Zhihan, or his nominal aunt An Ruomeng, Lin Yao held a deep fondness for all of them.

Even towards great beauties like President Han Yanran and Guardian Murong Nancheng, he felt a lingering spark of desire.

The beautiful things in this world were meant for anyone to pursue.

Living a lifetime meant embracing whatever made one happy, within the bounds of mutual acceptance, so that one's days might be filled with fewer regrets.

Only after Xia Yumeng had settled comfortably against him did Lin Yao finally answer her previous question: "I plan to enhance the Energy Bullet."