Chapter 87

Seeing the crystal dragon finally bow in submission, the yellow-quality long knife immediately stopped above its neck. Li Mang's face lit up with joy, but he was not overwhelmed by happiness. He cautiously said, "But if I'm not mistaken, spirit beasts are born with the ability to recognize their masters, right?"

Since it had already compromised, the crystal dragon had no reason to remain aloof. It let out a howl and spat out a green light ball from its mouth, its spirit immediately becoming more listless.

Li Mang had long researched countless materials and knew that each spirit beast's method of recognizing a master was different. Some could sign soul contracts, others could form mental resonances, and there were all sorts of methods. The green light ball spat out by the crystal dragon was its life essence. The life essence was a vital essence that could control its life, something only high-level spirit beasts possessed.

Overjoyed, Li Mang carefully took it, placed it in front of him, and inhaled, swallowing it into his body.

Although Li Mang did not know exactly where the life essence went, he could clearly feel that he now had control over the crystal dragon's life and death, and it only took a thought. Additionally, if he died, the life essence would also be extinguished, and the crystal dragon would die as well. Therefore, Li Mang no longer had to worry about its loyalty, unless the crystal dragon had the intention of dying with him.

"Crystal Dragon... from today on, I'll call you Jinglong! Eat a few Yan fruits first, and I'll go catch some food to help you recover." Since it was now his "own dragon," Li Mang naturally wouldn't neglect it. He placed a bag of Yan fruits in front of it and personally ran a long distance to the Niuyang Mountain to catch black turtles. Because of his agility, he could now catch black turtles effortlessly. He quickly returned to Zhaoyao Mountain with six black turtles.

"Ao!" After eating some Yan fruits, Jinglong had recovered a lot of strength. Seeing the black turtles Li Mang had brought back, its eyes shone like red lights. It first used its claws to secure the turtle, then opened its mouth and bit down, tearing open the turtle's underside with a rip and feasting heartily.

"Wow, impressive!" Li Mang was amazed. It would take him a long time to dissect a black turtle, but Jinglong could tear it open easily.

Nourished by the black turtle's flesh and blood, the crystal dragon recovered quickly. However, its strength was still only about one-fifth of its peak. In terms of level, the black turtle was only a yellow-quality spirit beast, while Jinglong had already reached the mystic beast level. Six black turtles were naturally insufficient to restore it to its peak state, which was inevitable.

"Jinglong, I'm about to return to the real world. Go find food on the nearby mountains. Recover to your peak as soon as possible, as there might be a fierce battle soon!" Li Mang instructed.

Since it had just recognized him as its master, Jinglong's attitude towards its new master was naturally not affectionate. It only nodded and then howled, flying up into the sky and diving into the Lijin River to swim joyfully, occasionally swallowing some strange fish. Jinglong was very fond of this new living space, which was hard to find in the outside world.

The only thing that bothered it was that from today on, it had to obey Li Mang, its master. For a crystal dragon with dragon blood, this was very frustrating, but it was too late to change. With its life essence controlled by Li Mang, it had no other choice.

...

With the crystal dragon finally recognizing him as its master, the heavy burden on Li Mang's shoulders suddenly lifted, and he felt very relaxed. Although it was only around four or five in the morning, he opened the door early, planning to exercise in the morning to release his joy.

"Who's there!"

However, as soon as he opened the door, he saw a black shadow leaning against the threshold, which startled him. He immediately floated back and drew the dagger from his waist, his expression cautious, and the joy he had felt vanished instantly. Several thoughts flashed through his mind: Who is this? Is it someone sent by the Inner Eagle to kill me and cover up the truth?

"Waited for you for a long time, aren't you going to invite me in?" The person at the threshold stood up and asked, his voice deliberately lowered.

Under the light from inside the room, Li Mang finally saw the person's face. He had messy hair, ragged and dirty clothes, looking like a beggar on the street.

This was a young man whom Li Mang was not unfamiliar with, his former predecessor, named Xiao Yan. Li Mang found Xiao Yan's arrival unbelievable. Wasn't he supposed to be insane? Wasn't he locked up in the inner courtyard? There seemed to be more to the story.

Li Mang was cautious but also very curious. He had a vague premonition that Xiao Yan's arrival might reveal the mysterious Inner Eagle of the Yanhuang Academy. So he quickly hid the dagger and softly gestured, "Please come in!"

After he entered, Li Mang cautiously locked the door.

Xiao Yan did not hesitate, walking to the water dispenser and pouring himself a cup of warm water, which he drank down. He seemed not to notice Li Mang's slightly furrowed brow and sighed, "This room is much more comfortable. The inner courtyard is full of lunatics, and there's constant fighting. Even if you're not crazy, you'll be driven mad!"

"If you hadn't been pretending to be insane, this would still be your dormitory," Li Mang said slowly, trying to steer the conversation to the main topic. He didn't have time to waste on small talk.

"It wouldn't have been, either. If I hadn't been pretending to be insane, I would already be ashes buried on a hill in my hometown," Xiao Yan replied with a cold laugh.

"Oh? What do you mean by that?" Li Mang asked innocently, his mind racing while his expression remained calm. Xiao Yan had managed to pretend to be insane for so long without being discovered, so he was definitely not an ordinary person, and his intentions were unclear. Li Mang did not dare to be careless.

"I've been observing you for a long time. I know you're a smart person and can't possibly misunderstand me!" Xiao Yan said, hinting at something.

"Ha ha." Li Mang responded with a laugh. In this situation, he couldn't be swayed by flattery. It was a trap, and the more the other person praised you, the easier it was to make a wrong judgment, which was taboo.

Perhaps sensing Li Mang's attitude, Xiao Yan did not continue. He sat down at the coffee table and said seriously, "I didn't pretend to be insane out of choice. Someone wanted to kill me to cover up the truth, so I had no choice but to do it."

"..." Li Mang listened silently, not interrupting.

Xiao Yan looked at him deeply and continued, "This story starts with my predecessor, Gan Fenghua, a promising psychic with the ability to see through the truth of all things."

"Psychic?" Li Mang couldn't help but interrupt.

"Yes, a psychic. He could see through the truth of all things," Xiao Yan nodded.

"Go on!" Li Mang asked curiously. Seeing through the truth of all things alone wouldn't be enough to make Yang Fan kill him, right?

"Once, Yang Fan took him on a mission and obtained a treasure. The treasure was genuine, but Yang Fan switched it, and Gan Fenghua noticed. That night, Gan Fenghua was killed by a mentally unstable psychic while trying to escape!" Xiao Yan said, squinting his eyes.

"Is there any evidence?" Li Mang asked in a serious tone.

"Of course. Gan Fenghua knew he was in danger and left evidence in this small courtyard to save himself. However, Yang Fan sent a non-human psychic, and before he could speak, his head was blown apart!" Xiao Yan answered.

"Where is the evidence?" Li Mang asked expressionlessly, though his heart was not calm. Was the Inner Eagle ultimately Yang Fan?

"Not yet, wait until I finish speaking before you see it," Xiao Yan said calmly, continuing, "I accidentally discovered this secret, and Yang Fan wanted to kill me to cover up the truth. I had no choice but to pretend to be insane. The security in the inner courtyard is extremely tight, so he couldn't do anything to me."

"Why didn't you expose him?" Li Mang asked, voicing his doubts.

"Better not stick your neck out. I'm just an ordinary person. No matter what happens to Yang Fan, I won't have a good outcome, so I didn't dare to take the risk," Xiao Yan smiled and shook his head. After a pause, he added, "He visited me many times with a kind face. This was our agreement: I would remain silent, and he wouldn't go to extremes. We coexisted peacefully... but I didn't want to pretend to be insane for the rest of my life!"

"So, you want me to stick my neck out now?" Li Mang raised an eyebrow, finding it absurd.

"You're a psychic, and you're stronger than me. More importantly, you're more of a threat to Yang Fan. He wants to kill you, and even if you pretend to be insane, you won't escape. You have to stick your neck out, whether you like it or not," Xiao Yan said, smiling with narrowed eyes.

"..." Li Mang was annoyed by Xiao Yan's confident attitude but had no response. He understood that if what Xiao Yan said was true, he would end up dead if he didn't stick his neck out.

"Ha ha." Xiao Yan laughed, already knowing Li Mang's choice. He bent down and pressed a spot on the floor, revealing a hidden compartment. Inside was only a memory card, a common one.

"Gan Fenghua was a cautious person. When he sensed something was wrong, he turned on the recording function on his phone. The recording contains Yang Fan's voice, enough to bring him down!" Xiao Yan handed the memory card to Li Mang.

"Bang!"

The door suddenly burst open, and a piece of the door flew in, piercing through Xiao Yan's body and pinning him to the sofa.

...

PS: The battle has begun. Do you still have your monthly votes?