Xu Xin stood up: "Come down with me."
The two of them went down to the treehouse.
"Attack me," Xu Xin gestured to Lou Feiāer, wanting to test her current strength.
Looking at her, there didnāt seem to be any of the characteristic transformations of a middle-level mutant creature, such as the enlargement of attack parts.
The Silver King had wolf teeth, Mimi had cheetah claws, and all the middle-level mutant creatures he had encountered had more or less changes in appearance.
He remembered that last time when Lou Feiāer erupted, her attack method was claw-like, similar to Mimiās. But when he looked at her hands, they were still the same size, without any changes, not even the length of her nails.
"Huh?" Lou Feiāer was stunned, then stepped back and shook her head continuously, "No, no, no, I canāt..."
"Itās just a spar, whatās impossible about it? Do you think you can harm me now? Attack me," Xu Xin frowned and ordered.
"I...I..." Lou Feiāer raised her hand, took two steps towards Xu Xin, then put her hand down and shook her head frantically, "No, I canāt harm you, even in a spar, I canāt unleash my strength, and that defeats the purpose of sparring."
"That exaggerated?" Xu Xin frowned.
"You can let Mimi Silver King fight with me; I can strike at them," Lou Feiāer suggested. She really couldnāt bring herself to hit Xu Xin, as every part of her body resisted it fiercely.
Thatās the only way.
Xu Xin thought for a moment and went up to bring Mimi down.
In terms of combat strength, Mimi was stronger. Moreover, just like Lou Feiāer, it was also an agility type.
"Do you need a weapon?" Xu Xin asked Lou Feiāer. She didnāt have the natural weapons of a middle-level mutant creature, which would put her at a disadvantage against Mimi.
"Hmm..." Lou Feiāer pulled out two blue-grade stone daggers from her waist, "These will do!"
"Alright, you two, just spar lightly."
"Three, two, one, start!"
As soon as Xu Xin finished speaking, Mimi shot forward, leaping right in front of Lou Feiāer, and swiped its claws down.
"So fast!" Xu Xinās pupils contracted; at this speed, he absolutely couldnāt react.
Lou Feiāer, however, didnāt panic. She twisted her body at an odd angle just enough to dodge Mimiās claw, then swiftly swung her dagger!
Mimiās claw wasnāt just a one-time move; it clashed again with the dagger, and with a "crack!", they immediately separated, watching each other with caution.
Lou Feiāerās dagger already had a noticeable notch and a faint crack.
The blue-grade stone daggers were no match for Mimiās sharp claws.
"Youāll give me a new weapon, wonāt you, my master?" Lou Feiāer, body tense, lowered slightly, her crimson eyes locked on the equally poised Mimi ahead.
"If you perform well, I can give you a purple-grade weapon."
Lou Feiāer was a very strong combatant, completely obeying Xu Xinās commands, so weapons were essential for her. Even if Xu Xin didnāt have a weapon, he would make sure she did.
Moreover, now that she had consumed the heart, she might retain her consciousness during outbursts.
That would absolutely be an extraordinary power! Originally, in her outburst mode, she was already a brighter entity than most middle-level mutant creatures.
Now that sheās upgraded to a middle-level mutant creature...
Does she have the strength of a high-level mutant creature?
"...Then pay attention!"
This time Lou Feiāer took the initiative, pushing off the ground and charging towards Mimi with incredible speed.
Her figure moved swiftly from side to side, leaving afterimages in Xu Xinās vision, confusing him.
The two clashed again, exchanging blows in seconds, the light and clashing sounds of their short weapons filling the air.
It was too fast; without enhanced vision, Xu Xin couldnāt see clearly, relying only on his enhanced hearing to catch the absurdly fast frequency of the daggers and claws clashing.
So fast!
Seconds later, after an intense exchange, they quickly parted.
"Crack!" Both daggers in Lou Feiāerās hands shattered, scattering debris everywhere.
Both she and Mimi were panting slightly.
Neither of them had sustained any injuries.
But that was because of Xu Xinās order to spar lightly; their attacks were mainly directed at each otherās weapons or claws.
This resulted in Lou Feiāerās blue-grade stone daggers shattering into pieces.
Even Mimi lifted a paw slightly, its paw numb from the impact.
"Alright, letās stop here," Xu Xin called off the spar.
Lou Feiāer plopped onto the ground, rubbing her arm, "Wow, Mimi is really strong. Its speed is definitely faster than mine, and itās stronger too. If we continued, Iād definitely lose."
Mimi walked over, patting Lou Feiāerās shoulder with its paw, seemingly acknowledging her strength.
"Itās normal that youāre slower than it," Xu Xin was quite satisfied, "Mimi is a cheetah, the fastest land runner on Earth; the reflexes of a feline arenāt something humans can match."
"Sigh..." Lou Feiāer was a bit disheartened, "So, does that mean Iām naturally much weaker than Mimi?"
"A humanās greatest advantage is the ability to use tools; itās an unparalleled edge over beasts," Xu Xin was already quite pleased with Lou Feiāerās strength.
He even felt a bit relieved that Lou Feiāer couldnāt spar with him, thankful he didnāt choose to test her against himself.
Although his current battle abilities are already strong, allowing him to utilize his strength to the fullest, when facing someone as swift as Lou FeiāEr, he might not even touch her, while she could attack him repeatedly.
Of course, first, she must breach his defense of purple-grade steel armor, and with the blue-grade stone dagger in Lou FeiāErās hand, it is completely impossible to break through his defense.
But if she had a purple-grade dagger, her combat power would certainly increase exponentially!
"Master, can I have a purple-grade dagger?" Lou FeiāEr looked up at him, her eyes filled with anticipation, much like a little girl waiting for a gift.
"Alright, stop acting. Get up, Iāll take you up." Xu Xin shook his head.
"Okay, Master!" Lou FeiāEr quickly got up and obediently followed behind Xu Xin.
She had completely regained control over her awareness and returned to the Ghost Spirit personality she had when she first met Xu Xin.
Of course, now she is especially obedient and her heart is filled with gratitude towards Xu Xin.
Xu Xin looked up at the sky.
Itās the middle of winter, with short days and long nights, so even though it is not yet six oāclock, the sky is already completely dark, with a crescent moon hanging in the sky.
Seeing this crescent moon, he breathed a sigh of relief. Generally, special situations happen on moonless nights. With the moon out tonight, it indicates that it is basically safe and risk-free.
Xu Xin took Lou FeiāEr and Mimi back into the treehouse.
He took out the purple-grade leopard claw he had just cut and made a leopard claw dagger for Lou FeiāEr on the spot.
Lou FeiāEr took the dagger and lightly sliced her own skin, immediately leaving a noticeable bloody cut.
"Hissāso sharp!" Lou FeiāEr gasped softly, her eyes glowing.
Xu Xin looked at her somewhat speechlessly: "Are you using yourself to test the knife? Didnāt you see the effect of this dagger?"
[Leopard Claw Dagger (Purple): An extremely sharp and keen dagger. The damage it causes to enemies will not heal. Be careful not to hurt yourself!]
A dagger that can cause unhealable wounds!
Just one stab could make the opponent bleed to death!
"This little wound... really canāt heal! So powerful! Purple-grade is really strong!" Lou FeiāEr was so excited. It was her first time using a purple-grade weapon, and before this, she didnāt even know purple-grade weapons had special effects.
To test the daggerās ability, Xu Xin first used green-grade hemostatic grass on her, but it was useless, the bleeding didnāt stop. Then he used blue-grade hemostatic grass, which finally stopped the bleeding, and the wound slowly began to scab, although the healing was much slower.
It seems this daggerās ability greatly slows down healing, and in battle, if thereās no chance to apply medicine immediately, even a small wound could be fatal.
Not to mention a stab wound; severe injuries may not be recoverable even with suppressed hemostatic herbs!
Not bad.
"Follow me." Xu Xin led the still-joyous Lou FeiāEr to the third floor.
After a day of healing, the Snow Wolf had mostly recovered and was playing with the Silver King and Mimi.
Xu Xin called over the Snow Wolf, petted its head, then pointed to Lou FeiāEr and said to it, "From now on, she is your second master. Wherever she tells you to go, you go, understood?"
The Snow Wolf King looked at Lou FeiāEr and found she was an intermediate mutant creature even stronger than itself, so without any resistance, it walked over to her and bowed down in submission.
"This..." Lou FeiāEr was stunned.
She couldnāt believe that the Snow Wolf, which Xu Xin had brought back this morning, was actually given to her!
The treatment was too good for her, and she couldnāt accept it immediately.
"Lou FeiāEr, Iām assigning you a task," Xu Xin said, looking at Lou FeiāEr.
Lou FeiāEr looked up, dumbfounded, at Xu Xin.
"From now on, youāll be responsible for exploring and locating treehouses of other survivors around, whether in area 188 or other areas. You will bring them to our territory, just like you brought back Le Youfang. Iām giving you the Snow Wolf to make this task easier. Do you understand what Iām asking you to do?"
Lou FeiāEr immediately regained her composure, her eyes sparkling. She stood up straight and gave Xu Xin a not-so-standard salute: "Yes, Master!"
Xu Xin waved her off: "Itās already late today, donāt go out. Get some rest."
Lou FeiāEr didnāt leave; instead, she holstered the dagger at her waist and bowed her head to Xu Xin.
"Master, thank you. I... what I did when we first met, Iām really sorry!"
She understood the importance of this task, and for the first time felt valued. Adding that Xu Xin had given her so much, she was deeply moved and must express her gratitude.
Although the apology was long overdue, she felt she had to voice it.
"Alright," Xu Xin waved his hand somewhat helplessly, "you donāt need to be like this, it feels awkward. Just listen and obey in the future."
"I will obey, I will obey!" Lou FeiāEr nodded vigorously, then ran towards the kitchen, "Iāll go make food for the master, hehe, and letās call Wenxi to eat together later!"
Watching Lou FeiāEr run into the kitchen, Xu Xin smiled.
Now, both sides could truly let go of the little bit of wariness they had.
Speaking of Wenxi, he wondered how she was doing and what she had discovered.
He was just about to go down to the first floor to dismantle the corpses of other low-grade mutant creatures when suddenly, a familiar voice echoed in his ears.
[The beast tide attack has ended. Congratulations to all survivors who endured the beast tide, your treehouse communication function has been restored!]
This voice made Xu Xin tense up immediately!
That mysterious voice! Itās back!
This is the first time it appeared in the four days since the second phase began!
Is this world about to enter a new phase again?!