Mengland smiled and shook his head. Ever since this disciple became a mercenary, he had changed. Before, he wouldn't say a word, but now he couldn't stop talking.
"I brought you wine today. I don't know where you'll run off to tomorrow, so I'll consider you an adult today and approve your drinking."
Li Xi eagerly fetched two cups, rinsed them with water, and poured in the wine brought by Mengland. The fragrance of the clear wheat wine was captivating, with a malt aroma. Although this was not a fine wine, it was not cheap. It cost ten copper coins for a cup at the tavern, which was two days' living expenses for a poor family.
Mengland then opened the other things he had brought, all of them cooked food: a whole roasted chicken, prepared river fish, filling the entire table. This was a feast that even Mido had never eaten on Thanksgiving.
Mengland raised his wine glass. "Mido, after drinking this cup, you are an adult. You must understand that a man has to bear his responsibilities. No difficulty can defeat you. The world of adults is painful, but it is also happy."
Li Xi respectfully raised his cup. Not everyone could say such words to you. Someone who can guide you at a critical moment is a life mentor. Just for the fact that Mengland always remembered Mido's birthday and protected him, Li Xi was willing to call him master.
"Thank you, Master."
They drank it down in one gulp. Li Xi smacked his lips. It was very similar to the beer from his previous life, but not as smooth. The wheat wine here was more like inferior beer, likely due to substandard craftsmanship.
Seeing Li Xi drink it without any strange expression, Mengland laughed heartily. "I thought you were quite honest, but I didn't expect you to be stealing drinks behind my back."
Li Xi awkwardly touched his head. In his memory, Mido had never touched a drop of alcohol. It was indeed unusual for him to have such an expression when drinking for the first time today. However, the key was that the soul in Mido's body was Li Xi, an adult who had drunk countless times before. What reaction could this inferior beer possibly elicit in him?
"Eat, eat quickly."
Mengland didn't dwell on the matter. Which man hadn't stolen a drink before adulthood? He himself had stolen his father's wine more than once before he came of age.
Li Xi looked at the food on the table; he was indeed hungry. He ate ravenously. Mengland ate only a few bites, content to watch Li Xi eat while pouring himself more wine.
"Mido, I don't know why you want to be a mercenary, but that doesn't mean you can't come back. If you encounter any difficulties, don't bear them alone. Come back and find me. Your parents died on the front lines and entrusted you to me. I will take care of you for the rest of your life."
Li Xi nodded while eating, remaining silent. This kindness was too great, and Li Xi had no idea how to repay it. He had earned so much money, completed so many missions, and reached his current level of strength, yet he hadn't even returned to the blacksmith shop. It was all because he didn't know how to handle this sentiment.
It was easy to imagine the hardships Mengland had endured for a child of a few years old to survive the great chaos and protect his family property.
Li Xi cleared the table in a whirlwind of activity. "Master, I've completed quite a few missions and earned a lot of money. I want to give you a gift."
As Li Xi spoke, he took out the spatial ring with a capacity of one square meter that Aisi had given him. He erased his mental imprint and handed it to Mengland. "Master, this is a spatial ring with a very small space. I obtained it during a mission. Please accept it as a gift."
When Mengland heard it was a spatial ring, he immediately spread his large palm. "This thing is too expensive. You don't need to give it to me. Sell it, and it will be enough for you to live comfortably for half your life."
Li Xi dangled the silver ring on his finger. "I have a better one, and besides, the money I earn now is enough to last a lifetime."
With that, he grabbed Mengland's hand and lightly sliced his finger with it, forcing a drop of blood onto the spatial ring, instantly binding it.
During the process, Mengland tried to resist, but Li Xi's seemingly frail hand was as unyielding as steel. No matter how hard Mengland struggled, Li Xi remained motionless.
Mengland finally realized that the Mido before him was no longer the Mido of the past. He sighed softly, but his eyes were filled with pride. He put the spatial ring on his little finger. "It seems I'm getting old. Since you are so strong, remember to come back and honor your master more often. I'm counting on you to support me in my old age."
Such candid words could only be spoken by the closest of people. Li Xi puffed out his chest and, imitating a mountain ape, thumped his chest loudly. "Master, you can close your door and go home now, and I can support you. It would be best if you added a mistress. If one is not enough, I can support ten or eight. As for junior apprentices, even a hundred is no problem for me."
"You brat..."
"Hahahaha!"
Mengland and Li Xi chatted until late into the night before Mengland left. They talked about many things, both trivial and significant, but they avoided mentioning any past sad or painful events. They only discussed recent happenings. For example, Andy had fallen asleep while working at the forge, not because he was too tired, but because he had stayed up all night the previous night sneaking a peek at a girl bathing, so excited that he couldn't sleep. Andy still thought no one knew, but the truth was that only Andy didn't know; everyone else knew, including the girl herself, who simply chose not to expose him.
Mengland told this story as if sharing a joke with Li Xi, but Li Xi understood Mengland's intention. Andy was about to get married, and today, after coming of age, he could also find a wife and settle down according to local customs.
This was the first time Li Xi had realized that even honest people could use subtle hints to urge someone to marry, and in such an indirect way.
If it were the old Mido, he definitely wouldn't have understood, but Li Xi, being an old hand, understood every word.
"There's no rush for a wife. You need to find a good one, like Aisi – strong, with a good figure, beautiful, and wealthy."
Li Xi sat on the rooftop all night without sleeping. With his current strength, sleeping or not was irrelevant. Moreover, having absorbed dragon blood, the essence of his life had changed. To call him human would be less accurate than calling him a dragon descendant. He could go months without sleep without any issue.
Greeting the early morning sun, Li Xi arrived at the mercenary hall. He first looked towards a familiar spot, but instead of seeing who he was looking for, he saw Aisi sitting there, looking tired.
"Sister Aisi, why are you so tired? Did you miss me so much while I was out on a mission that you couldn't sleep at night?"
Aisi rolled her eyes with a hint of annoyance. "Just a little kid, and you dare to tease me. Believe it or not, I can get the mission system to block you and put you on the blacklist, citing 'teasing the priest of the God of Mercenaries' as the reason."
Li Xi pretended to be scared but then chuckled, "I came of age yesterday, so I'm not a kid anymore. Besides, I wasn't teasing you. You can't abuse your power and blacklist me; that would be disloyalty to the God of Mercenaries."
Aisi was speechless and finally squeezed out four words from between her teeth: "Sharp-tongued."
After the playful banter, Li Xi returned to his original question. "Sister Aisi, did you go on a mission?"
Aisi nodded, then paused and spoke seriously. "Speaking of which, that mission is quite related to you. I should tell you about it."
"Oh? What mission?"
"Do you remember the sewer mission I assigned you?"
Li Xi nodded. Of course, he remembered. That fiend's head still bore the marks of his two steel needles, which were worth forty copper coins each. In the past, forty copper coins would have been half a month's food expenses. He would definitely make that fiend return them if he had the chance.
"Do you know where the ground location of the Abyss Demon Tablet you discovered is?"
Li Xi shook his head. He really didn't know. He had been almost driven crazy by the moles underground; how could he know where it was?
"Where?"
"It's directly beneath the manor of the great merchant Bellos, which is the place where you encountered the corrupted Frank during your mission."
Aisi's statement surprised Li Xi, and he immediately sensed a strong undercurrent of conspiracy. There was a story here! His eyes lit up, wide and round. "Could it be that the great merchant Bellos is also a human traitor?"
The term "human traitor" specifically referred to humans who betrayed the continent and sided with the abyss. During the great chaos, human traitors were countless. Too many people filled with resentment had defected to the abyss, corrupted themselves, and become human traitors to seek revenge on society.
Aisi shook her head. "According to the intelligence we have gathered, Bellos did not defect to the abyss. It was his butler, Bohr, who defected, and he was the one who placed the Abyss Demon Tablet on the second underground level."
"Bohr?"
Li Xi had a slight impression of the old butler. When he went on the mission, that old man hadn't even smiled. After Li Xi killed Frank, he had simply given him ten gold coins and dismissed him, not even saying thank you. At the time, Li Xi had thought he was just grumpy and looked down on mercenaries. Now, with Aisi's explanation, the old butler's behavior back then seemed very abnormal.
Li Xi suddenly thought of the tunnel dug by Frank and his four companions. "Did Bohr also corrupt Frank and the other four?"
Aisi negated Li Xi's guess again. "No, the situation was quite the opposite. Frank and the others wanted to sneak into the castle to steal something valuable, but they dug up to the underground altar and were infected by the abyssal aura emanating from the Abyss Demon Tablet. If not for the Abyss Demon Tablet, their abyssal aura wouldn't have leaked, leading to the later mole infestation, and then you wouldn't have had to clean the sewers, discover the Abyss Demon Tablet, and finally be caught by us."
Li Xi was speechless. According to this, he should actually thank Frank and the other three. Such a small incident had led to so many chain reactions.
"Did you catch him?"
"No, he escaped. What's more, not only did he escape, but he also took the city lord's youngest son. We've been busy with this for the past two days, but despite searching the entire city of Cado, we haven't found any trace."
"This old guy is truly formidable, managing to kidnap the city lord's youngest son right under the noses of so many experts. Cunning and treacherous, I am no match for him." Li Xi gave a thumbs-up in admiration, indicating his respect. To dare to do such a thing when the continent had already achieved victory was truly extraordinary.
"Get lost. Do you know the trouble he's caused?" Aisi chided Li Xi playfully. "This incident happened two days ago, and it can no longer be kept secret. You'll soon see the mission posted. Mercenaries of any level can accept it. If the city lord's son is successfully rescued, you can choose any piece of equipment from the city lord's treasury. Providing clues will also earn a substantial reward."
The city lord's treasury must contain treasures not found elsewhere. The condition was very tempting, but Li Xi was not interested. According to Aisi, the priests of the various temples and the people from the city lord's mansion had searched for two days without any results. For mercenaries like them, who only found out about it two days later, the chance of success was no greater than winning the lottery.