Pirate: It’s not a phantom beast, it’s a phantom god!

Chapter 378 Taolong's Partner

"AIBO!"

A pair of dark eyes suddenly opened, as if they had experienced some intense nightmare, their obviously enlarged pupils filled with lingering fear.

"hu~hu~"

"Where...is this...?"

Taolong's hoarse voice drifted weakly through the quiet courtyard, almost drowned out by the chirping of insects on the grass...

“I… my partner…”

Having just regained consciousness, Taolong subconsciously wanted to stand up to look for something, but an unprecedented feeling of weakness suddenly struck him.

This inner and outer powerlessness made it incredibly difficult for him to even move a single finger while he was in his chair.

"My...my body..."

"Ugh...!"

Even the slightest thought caused Taolong to clutch his head in pain, waves of dizziness making him nauseous, and he even dry-heaved several times.

This is an extreme physiological reaction caused by the body not receiving energy for an extended period of time.

Sure enough, along with the vomiting, Taolong's stomach was also affected and began to convulse violently. A frantic hunger kept eroding his newly regained rationality... Primitive instincts gradually took over his body.

Nothing else matters at this moment; the only thing he, or rather this body, must do now is to eat immediately.

Anything is fine, whatever it is!
Wild beasts, wild fruits, weeds, soil... even one's own flesh and blood—anything will do!

"Eat...eat!"

"Are you hungry?"

"?!"

Just as Taolong unconsciously opened his mouth, wanting to tear off pieces of his own flesh to satisfy the terrible hunger that penetrated his very soul, a voice brought him back to his senses.

"Your nutritious meal is ready, come and eat."

As the voice faded again, an irresistible aroma wafted into Taolong's nostrils... It was the smell of food!

As if a sliver of strength had been squeezed from his very soul, his body, which had been extremely weak, miraculously sat up!

His eyes were so hungry he could barely see, and all he could see were blurry dots. But Taolong still instinctively reached out, stumbling towards the source of the aroma...

……

……

"Awoo! Awoo!"

"woo woo woo woo!"

"Goooo~"

"Goooooooo~"

The sound of tearing and biting, like that of a wild beast, came from the courtyard, shattering the original peace and tranquility.

Tao Long, a pirate who was already quite famous on the sea, had never been so disheveled. He grabbed handfuls of food and stuffed them haphazardly into his mouth, swallowing them without even chewing.

At this moment, he was less eating and more simply stuffing food into his stomach...

His ferocious expression made one wonder if, had he not lacked the right tools, he might have simply cut open his stomach and poured the food inside.

Even a beggar in a poor country who fights with dogs for food looks far more elegant than he is now eating.

……

The food on the white porcelain plate was decreasing at an alarming rate, but in contrast, Taolong's sanity points were gradually recovering.

Normally, someone who has been starving for a long time should not suddenly binge eat like this, but it seems that the person who made the nutritious meal has taken this into account...

The food that emitted a faint glow transformed into gentle, pure energy after being swallowed, directly replenishing the exhausted body without causing any negative physiological feedback.

"Whoo~"

Finally, after half an hour of feasting, Taolong comfortably lay back in his chair, clutching his stomach which hadn't changed much.

He stared blankly at the azure sky, letting out soft, contented hums.
This was truly comfortable… Taolong had never felt so comfortable in his life—his body felt like parched land, cracked beyond recognition, suddenly receiving a shower of sweet rain.
He felt warm all over, from his limbs to his bones, and his whole body even began to emit a faint glow.

"Mmm~~~~ This is so delicious~" "I'm alive~ I'm alive~"

"So food can actually be this delicious... What kind of pig swill have I been eating before?"

Recalling the otherworldly delicious food he had just tasted, Tao Long, who usually had little interest in food, couldn't help but have his eyes open.

"It seems my cooking suits your taste quite well~"

"?!"

Tao Long, who was savoring the taste of the previous meal, froze upon hearing this voice.

"Miss La!"

His body, now fully charged, regained its ability to think. He quickly glanced around and then widened his eyes.

The small courtyard around him was so familiar. When he was chased by those strange monsters and had nowhere to run, he prayed countless times that he could return to this quiet and peaceful courtyard in the next instant.

"I...I'm back?!"

Tao Long murmured in disbelief.

"Yes, I'm back."

La, wearing an apron, walked in through the back door, carrying a plate with gold trim.

The plate contained slices of fruit, each one of uniform thickness and as translucent as jade.

"Here you go, dessert after the meal."

La placed the fruit plate on the table in front of Taolong, and Taolong, as if possessed, picked up a piece and put it in his mouth.

Even though it was clearly not the time for dessert, and he had many questions to confirm, he still instinctively chose to eat a bite of the fruit on his plate first.

"Tell me about your experiences over there."

La Dui Long's behavior was not surprising, so he naturally sat down in the chair opposite him and asked.

"……there?"

La's words made Tao Long, who was biting on a piece of fruit, pause for a moment.

To be honest, this fruit, which I don't know what it is, doesn't taste good... or rather, it doesn't have any 'taste' at all. Tao Long felt like he was eating razor blades, and felt nothing except for the burning sensation in his throat.

However, Taolong was completely preoccupied with these matters at the moment, because La had just mentioned "over there"...

He suddenly raised his head, forced down what was in his mouth, and then asked:

"You, you know me... no, you know that place?!"

"Yeah. I know."

"I'm the one who took you there."

La replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

"This was originally a trial prepared for you... to send you alone to that unfamiliar world to find a 'partner' who is compatible with you."

"Although it took quite a long time, it seems you have succeeded now."

"Congratulations."

"..."

"Forehead……"

Tao Long opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

Upon hearing La Jian's straightforward admission that she had orchestrated everything, Tao Long felt a wave of dizziness wash over him, and countless questions flooded his mind in an instant...

[Was all of this orchestrated by Ra? Why would she do such a thing?]
[Trials? What are trials?]
What exactly is going on in that world?!
[Were those monsters real? Or was it just a dream?]
[And there's the matter of 'partners'...]
"Amu~Amu~"

"?!"

Just as Taolong was clutching his head, his thoughts starting to race again, a strange cry suddenly rang out in his mind.

This was not a human voice, but the roar of some non-human creature... However, the roar was very familiar to Taolong, extremely familiar!

His long time spent together in the elven world made him almost immediately and instinctively reply:
"AIBO (partner)?"

(End of this chapter)