Bonding Reaction: Part 2

Out of the covenant chamber, and because Director Zhao had left early, there was no more news about the faculty transfer. Shao Zifeng did not go see him. After getting a quick bite at the canteen, he returned to his rented house.

Outside the rented house, Shao Zifeng took a small jug of water, and through the status display, he gave the baby snakes and lizards water in the pet house.

He took out a corn snake and let this gentle but nervous animal move in between his fingers. This had attracted Ballie's attention.

Ballie climbed to his hand from the shoulder, poking out its head, and sniffled at the corn snake curiously, causing the corn snake to freeze in fear.

Ballie reached out its little paw and patted the corn snake on its head. This made the corn snake even more scared as it curled around Shao Zifeng's finger and shivered.

After getting its vanity quenched, Ballie looked up and glanced at the cat in the corner, then jumped down from his arm and looked for the saber hilt.

The mutant domestic cat was still asleep at a corner. The water level in the bowl in front of it had dropped, which meant the cat had woken up before. Although the status indicator still showed it was critically injured, its breathing had regularized.

After settling all these, Shao Zifeng sat in front of the computer table and extended his fair and slender right hand.

A flame the size of his fist was burning and suspended on his palm. The flame's temperature was higher than that of an ordinary flame, and it was distorting the dimension in the surroundings.

Ballie who was enjoying itself with the saber hilt sensed the flame energy. It opened its eyes and looked at Shao Zifeng, nodding its head in satisfaction.

"You're truly my Eggie!"

Shao Zifeng directed the flame to land on his palm. The flame expanded abruptly and engulfed his hand, but it was not hot. It felt as warm as having a glove on during the winter. 

Still keeping the flame in control, Shao Zifeng wanted to expand the flame even further. Only then he realized he had reached his limit. He shook his hand to put off the flame and started to recall what had happened in the covenant chamber earlier.

At the moment he and Ballie established a covenant, he could already feel mild energy coming into his body through the covenant with Ballie. And his body sores from his vigorous exercise had disappeared with this soothing energy.

This mental activity had spiked since then. Unlike the increase in physical strength, the spike in mind power gave him the ability to sense everything, including that those people were recording his physical readings in the covenant chamber clearly.

Because of the lack of control over the skyrocketing mental activity, the external instrument had shown extremely high peaks and low valleys. Lucky for him, he had gradually kept his mental power in control with the help of Ballie before the third attribute of bonding reaction set in. He kept the fire element isolated outside his body and managed to conceal the fire attribute that he had mastered.

Although he had successfully concealed his ability in front of Chen Yixin and others, this had also prevented him from understanding the bonding reaction better.

Shao Zifeng took out his mobile phone and entered the pin. He hesitated for a while before launching the app with an 'X' logo.

The interfaces were still as simple as ever. He browsed every section of the app. After finding the Q&A section, he entered the keywords 'bonding reaction.'

As he entered the next screen, he found that there were many questions related to his search. So he randomly selected one.

I have a friend who has encountered something like the bonding reaction. May I know what is it?　

Thanks for the invitation. I was in Whiteagle. Just got off the plane and ordered a cup of Panama's La Esmeralda Estate coffee while waiting for my friend in high places in the White House discussing the prospects of the international market. I am optimistic about the Daxia investment market. By the way, what is your question? Bonding response? Coincidentally, while chatting, we talked about the bonding reaction. All I can say is that the bonding reaction is a very common phenomenon. In the United States of Whiteagle, every child who has covenanted a pet beast has encountered a bonding reaction. No big deal.

May I know which mega-corporation you are an heir to? The bonding reaction is no big deal? Show me what did you mean by 'no big deal.'

+1, I would like to know, too, for I am just a caveman, not knowing any better.

...

Shao Zifeng browsed through the trumpery and at last, found a few-year-old question about the bonding reaction at the bottom.

First of all, few combat trainers had a bonding reaction. If you encounter a bonding reaction in your first covenant, congratulations! You hit the jackpot. It will possess some abilities of your covenanted pet beast, such as physical enhancement, mental power elevation, and even part of the pest beast's abilities.

Of course, if you think would make you succeed overnight, then you could not be more wrong. Let us not talk about whether the pet beast with which you have a bonding reaction possesses any elemental attribute. Even if it does, you may not have it. Even if you have it, and I would be jealous of you, you are not going to learn the skill of the pet beast. After all, humans aren't pet beasts.

Various national research institutes have set up more than one subject to develop the capabilities of those combat trainers who have gained the ability to manipulate various elements through the bonding reaction. But the results of the experiments are far from satisfactory. The ability attached to long-range weapons would disappear after it exceeds a certain range from the combat trainers. Besides, it could damage the weapon itself.

There have been trials of short-range cold weapons attached with elemental power. Unfortunately, those cold weapons either turned into molten iron or pulverized. Instead of enhancing the weapons, it destroyed them. 

But don't be discouraged. There is a rumor that the country is actively developing new materials to conduct elemental power. Maybe in the years to come, humans can perform various special abilities in combat. In conclusion, I personally feel that this thing may increase your strength, but you won't achieve the kind of power beyond that of the 2nd order pet beasts. 

Shao Zifeng checked the date; the reply was dated back to five years ago. There was no telling if there had been new energy-conducting materials invented since then. Even if there were, if the value was not worth the money invested, none would be produced.

He continued to browse for information about new materials. However, other than the rumors of a wild-goose chase, there were people who just pretended to know something, but in reality, they knew nothing.

Putting down his phone on the table, Shao Zifeng started to plan. Now that he had a legal combat trainer identity on top of his underground one. In terms of pet beasts, Ballie was too unique. By hiding its ability and not letting it join the battle, other people would have thought that Ballie had been given up on.

Under these circumstances, he needed a pet beast that acted as a front for him.

Ballie was in the 2nd order, not far away from its first evolution. After the atavistic evolution, Ballie would look very different from the Fire lizard. By then, he could use it as Hidden Peak's pet beast.

Besides, the shadow engulfing him, and the unknown criminal force had ruined his plan twice recently. They might not mean it, but he just hoped that they had not noticed him.

Shao Zifeng was shifting his attention on pet beasts, thinking of what pet beast he was going to choose.

...

"Honey, take care of yourself while you are outside, okay? I and our children will wait for your return." Pei Yong was carrying his luggage while Sun Xiaoyuan was looking at him as she could not bear to see him leaving.

"I will only be away for a few days. Don't worry, I will come back before the baby comes." Pei Yong stepped forward to draw his wife into his arms. Feeling his wife shivering, he clenched his hands into fists. 

He told himself he must come back alive.