“Although this wick can possibly help a person hold on for a while, the moment the energy contained within is exhausted or the wick is pulled out, that person will immediately stop breathing.”
“However, this wick cannot be removed haphazardly. Once it has been taken out once, it basically cuts off the Soul-Sucking Lamp's path to evolution. The damage caused to the Soul-Sucking Lamp's foundation by removing the wick is permanent.”
Qiao Sang was stunned for a moment: “Didn't you say before that if the Soul-Sucking Lamp loses its wick, it's like a person losing their heart and they'll drop dead immediately? And you also said the human body wouldn't be able to withstand it.”
Liu Yao: “...”
“They would drop dead, and the human body wouldn't be able to withstand it; it's just a matter of sooner or later,” Liu Yao said, forcibly saving face.
Qiao Sang didn't suspect anything and continued to ask, “Then how long at most can the wick stay inside a human body?”
Seeing that Qiao Sang wasn't dwelling on that point, Liu Yao breathed a sigh of relief, and his tone became more relaxed: “It should be around three days.”
Three days...
The timing was wrong.
Based on the period the Soul-Sucking Lamp had been missing, it had clearly been over half a month...
“Then what if the wick has stayed in a human body for about half a month?” Qiao Sang thought for a moment and asked.
Liu Yao fell silent for a moment before answering, “That should be impossible. Without energy replenishment, the wick's energy would be exhausted in three days. Once it loses its effect in the human body, the person would stop breathing on the spot.”
“Furthermore, without its wick, the Soul-Sucking Lamp wouldn't be able to replenish the energy in its own body and would soon be unable to sustain itself.”
It had to be said that having a knowledgeable person around was great; this one phone call gave Qiao Sang a direct lead on the Soul-Sucking Lamp's whereabouts.
After hanging up the phone, Qiao Sang ordered takeout while standing where she was.
Since the wick's energy would run out and it couldn't stay in a human body for long, the Soul-Sucking Lamp would definitely have to return every couple of days to replenish the wick's energy to ensure the old lady's safety.
A Soul-Sucking Lamp without a wick would need to both accumulate energy to replenish the wick and maintain its own movement; it must be at some energy gathering spot that ghost-type pets enjoy.
What the Soul-Sucking Lamp likes is essence, which is nothing other than young people—places with lots of hormones.
Bars, schools, clubs, or competition venues currently hosting events should be where it is.
Hanggang City was so large that searching would be too troublesome. The Soul-Sucking Lamp returned every few days to replenish the wick, and since the old lady was unaware, it must come late at night when everyone is asleep and the world is quiet.
If it was truly as she guessed, she could just wait for the rabbit to run into the trap.
If not, the wick's consumption limit was three days at most, and the school team assembly was in five days. There were still two days of leeway to think of another way.
Thinking this, Qiao Sang looked up and asked with a smile, “Ya Bao, do you want to rest?”
“Ya.”
Ya Bao honestly shook its head.
Rest?
No! Its energy was limitless!
“No, you *do* want to rest,” Qiao Sang said, looking at Ya Bao with a smile.
“Ya...”
Ya Bao looked back blankly; it didn't want to...
One minute later.
Xiying Residential Area.
In the shade by the main gate of Building 5.
A majestic red-and-white pet lay on the ground, with a slender young girl lying on top of it.
Qiao Sang lay on Ya Bao, holding her phone and waiting for her takeout.
Ya Bao didn't want to rest, but she did.
...
9:00 PM.
Hanggang City.
Linhu Reservoir, under the pedestrian bridge.
Many people were walking from the surroundings toward this spot, and then they never came back out.
As the perspective zoomed in, a secret door could be seen at the base of the bridge.
The door opened automatically, and inside was a cacophony of voices and bustling energy, a completely different world from the outside.
This was an underground illegal beast-taming competition venue.
The entire venue was filled with the smell of sweat, tobacco, and the scent of hormones.
“Poison-Many Scorpion!”
“Soul-Sucking Lamp!”
“Soul-Sucking Lamp!”
The surrounding spectators shouted the names of the two pets, with the vast majority shouting for the Soul-Sucking Lamp.
In the competition arena.
A completely purple Poison-Many Scorpion lay motionless on the ground.
The referee came to its side and began the countdown.
“1.”
“2...”
Just then, the motionless Poison-Many Scorpion flicked its long tail, and several poison needles shot out of thin air, their silver tips gleaming sharply.
The spectators supporting the Soul-Sucking Lamp changed expression; they hadn't expected a sneak attack at this stage!
The attack speed of these poison needles was simply too fast. The Soul-Sucking Lamp was caught off guard, and several needles entered its body.
“Soul-Sucking Lamp! Crush it!” a man with a scarred face roared from the command post.
The Soul-Sucking Lamp's vision was blurred, and the voice ringing in its ears felt as if it were drifting from a far-off place.
It gasped for air, wanting to activate its wick, but the moment it sensed its interior, it suddenly realized it no longer had a wick.
“Soul-Sucking Lamp, what are you dazing off for? Crush it!” the scarred man shouted.
“Soul-Sucking...”
Enduring the intense pain in its body, the Soul-Sucking Lamp slowly raised its claw, condensed a Shadow Ball, and threw it toward the blurred figure on the ground.
...
“What happened to you at the end? Your reaction was so slow,” the scarred man complained in the competition backstage.
The Soul-Sucking Lamp looked at him expressionlessly.
The man's heart trembled, and he quickly changed his tone: “Luckily we won in the end, otherwise we would have worked for nothing this time.”
The Soul-Sucking Lamp didn't speak.
“Here, this is your reward.” The man was used to the Soul-Sucking Lamp ignoring him and tossed a box over on his own.
The box was thrown in front of the Soul-Sucking Lamp and fell to the ground.
Seeing this, the man was startled: “Hey, I didn't do it on purpose; you just didn't catch it!”
The Soul-Sucking Lamp's ears were buzzing; it couldn't hear what this man was saying, it only knew that it couldn't collapse right now.
“We've been cooperating for so many days, why haven't you changed at all? You don't even consider that without me, you wouldn't have been able to enter the competition.” The man grumbled as he picked up the box from the ground and handed it to the Soul-Sucking Lamp.
The Soul-Sucking Lamp's vision was blurred. It tried to focus, and finally, for a brief moment, it saw clearly what was in front of it.
It breathed a sigh of relief; the fight hadn't been in vain.
The Soul-Sucking Lamp wanted to reach out its claw to take it, but as it moved, it found it had no strength.
“Soul-Sucking.”
The Soul-Sucking Lamp let out a cold cry.
The man paused, turned to the Long-Tailed Snake beside him, and asked, “What did it say?”
“Wei wei.”
The Long-Tailed Snake translated.
After hearing the Long-Tailed Snake's words, the man's mouth twitched. He opened the box, took out the item inside, and stuffed it into the Soul-Sucking Lamp's mouth.
“You really are a handful,” the man complained while stuffing the item in.
After swallowing the item, the Soul-Sucking Lamp finally regained some strength, and its senses recovered slightly. It spent a small amount of its limited energy to wrap the item inside its body, not wanting it to merge into its own system.
“Are you coming again tomorrow?” the man asked.
The Soul-Sucking Lamp nodded.
Seeing that the Soul-Sucking Lamp was finally acknowledging him, the man grinned: “You know, we've known each other for so long, yet you still won't tell me where you're from. You should know that wild pets are very dangerous around here; if you hadn't met me, you would have been captured long ago.”
“I think we get along well. How about this: once my Beast-Taming Codex gets its next page, you just contract with me.”
The Soul-Sucking Lamp ignored him and turned to float toward the door.
It was not a wild pet; it had a beast tamer.
(End of Chapter)