Chapter 28: Encounter, a One-Star Spirit Eater!

"Ska, ska~"

A hoarse sound echoed through a dim, dense forest.

In the depths of the woods, a young man with purple hair looked helplessly at the Spirit-Feeder beside him. "I know you're hungry, but you have to hold on."

"If you keep talking about being hungry, I’m going to start feeling it too."

He couldn't help but rub his own hollow, empty stomach and sighed. "If I’d known it would turn out like this, I should have grabbed a bite before we started."

"Now that we’re out in the middle of nowhere, there’s no way to get out, so we’ll just have to stay hungry."

"Ska~"

The Spirit-Feeder’s head drooped slowly, its expression turning dejected.

"It’s alright, Xiao Pi."

The purple-haired youth patted the Spirit-Feeder’s head, his gaze shifting to some newly transplanted flowers in a patch of soft soil nearby, his eyes gleaming with shrewdness.

"By tomorrow at the latest, the organization will send someone to pick us up."

"We’ve already managed to steal these rare flowers and seeds. Once we hand them over to the organization, we’ll definitely receive a huge bonus."

"When that time comes, we’ll buy the highest-quality ingredients and eat our fill!"

Upon hearing his Spirit-Chef’s words, a look of anticipation bloomed in Xiao Pi’s eyes.

The highest-quality ingredients...

Ever since it was born, the ingredients it had eaten were only the most ordinary kind, and because the purple-haired youth’s cooking skills were lacking, the taste was, to put it mildly, indescribable.

It was said that those top-tier ingredients, even when prepared in the simplest way without any seasoning, were exquisitely delicious.

Just thinking about it made Xiao Pi swallow hard, its stomach feeling even hungrier than before.

For the sake of the feast to come, it would just have to endure for now!

-----------------

"Qin Lang, are you sure it’s here?"

Reaching the end of the road and looking at the dense forest ahead, Zhao Qian couldn't help but look puzzled.

"I can't be entirely certain, but judging by the tracks, the culprit definitely entered the woods," Qin Lang said, looking at the dense growth before them. "And the forest is a good place to hide, isn't it?"

"It’s hard for surveillance to cover this area, and the soil is fertile."

"I was wondering how they planned to preserve those rare flowers. After all, since they went to such lengths to steal them, they must want them to stay alive."

"If they're in the forest, they could temporarily transplant the flowers into the soil to preserve them."

"Now that you mention it, that makes sense." Zhao Qian nodded slightly, a flicker of excitement in her eyes. "Let’s go in and take a look!"

Qin Lang fell into deep thought.

Both he and Zhao Qian were Spirit-Chefs who could use Star-Spirit Protection to defend themselves. Even if the opponent were strong, they couldn't be harmed in a short time, and if a Spirit-Feeder lost its combat capability, it would immediately return to the Star Pulse.

Cao Dongdong had already gone back to call for help, and reinforcements would arrive soon.

As the advance team, it wouldn't hurt to go in and check.

If the culprit was really inside, they would find a way to stall.

If the person wasn't there, they would simply look elsewhere.

Thinking this, Qin Lang nodded.

"Let’s move!"

With a soft rustling sound, the two humans and their two spirits quietly entered the forest. Considering that the flower thief might be hiding nearby, they remained tacitly silent, moving as softly as possible.

As time passed, they ventured deeper into the woods.

A moment later, Zhao Qian paused, grabbed Qin Lang by her side, and whispered.

"Did you hear a strange sound?"

A sound?

Qin Lang held his breath and listened carefully to the surroundings. Soon, he heard an unusual noise.

He signaled to Zhao Qian to "go check it out," and the two moved even more lightly, cautiously approaching the source of the sound.

As the noise became clearer, their expressions turned peculiar.

This sound... why did it sound like someone with a hungry stomach?

"Look there!" Qin Lang tapped Zhao Qian, pointing in a certain direction.

Through the gaps in the tree trunks, they saw a purple-haired youth sitting on the ground, with a deep green Spirit-Feeder floating beside him.

"Is that the flower thief?" Zhao Qian whispered.

Qin Lang scanned the area around the youth and quickly spotted several unusually vibrant flowers, identical to the stolen ones.

"That's him!" his tone turned firm.

Having found the thief, both of them showed expressions of delight.

"Let me check the strength of his Spirit-Feeder." Taking a deep breath, Qin Lang took out his phone and scanned the Spirit-Feeder from a distance.

[Type: Spirit-Feeder]
[Level: Lv15]
[Flavor Attribute: Astringent]
[Elemental Attribute: Dark]
[Spirit Skill: Culinary Modification]
[Battle Skill (Excluding self-learned skills): (Dark) Shadow Assault, (Psychic) Phantom Camouflage]
[Experience Value: 23/100]

The level was over Lv10; it was a one-star Spirit-Feeder!

Qin Lang’s heart jolted, and his expression turned solemn.

They had two Spirit-Feeders, but the opponent's was a higher level.

Could they win?

For a moment, he had no answer.

Beside him, Zhao Qian had also finished her scan. Compared to Qin Lang, she had more experience in Spirit-Feeder battles and wasn't intimidated by the level; instead, she quickly began analyzing the balance of power.

"Salty counters Astringent, Astringent counters Fresh."

"The opponent's attacks will only deal half damage to Danbao, but Bub’s attacks will also only deal half damage to it."

"The opponent is a Dark-type; its only weakness is the Light-type. Neither of us has Light-type battle skills, so we can only deal standard damage."

"The opponent’s awakened battle skills are Dark and Psychic. Psychic can counter Water, Fire, Lightning, and Wind."

"But [Phantom Camouflage] is not an offensive skill."

After a brief analysis, Zhao Qian looked at Qin Lang, her eyes eager. "If they don't have any powerful self-learned skills, we can take them!"

Following Zhao Qian’s analysis, Qin Lang and Danbao couldn't help but look at her with admiration.

Amazing, to be able to memorize so many elemental interactions!

The corners of Zhao Qian’s mouth curled up. "Are we fighting?"

Qin Lang looked at the purple-haired youth again.

The rare flowers were worth a fortune; the thief's motive was likely to sell them for money.

This meant the person probably didn't have much wealth.

Learning self-taught battle skills was expensive.

Thinking this way, it was unlikely the opponent had many self-taught skills, and even if they did, one would be the limit.

Still, to be safe, Qin Lang quickly checked the effects of the two known skills.

[(Dark) Shadow Assault (Native): Power 60, quickly dashes a certain distance, dealing small-area Dark damage along the path and at the destination.]
[(Psychic) Phantom Camouflage (Non-native): Camouflages the user to hide; dispelled upon attacking or taking damage, and adds 10 points to the next attack.]

Dashing, stealth, and a power boost...

The hesitation in Qin Lang's eyes turned into determination.

"Let's attack together and take him down!"