This spirit was covered in black feathers, but with a vivid tuft of fiery red on its forehead. Its wings were folded, and it perched quietly on a section of railing.
It was a small fire crow.
A fire-type spirit!
A rare spirit!
"Is this small fire crow also a spirit for sale at the Spirit Nurturing House?"
"Yes," Zhao Liangcai said. "This small fire crow was introduced by the Spirit Nurturing House over a year ago. It was originally meant to be the flagship spirit, to boost the reputation of the An City Spirit Nurturing House."
"But..."
He shook his head. "This small fire crow isn't easy to get along with. You know, if a spirit has resistance, you can't form a contract with it.
"This small fire crow isn't as easy to fool as ordinary spirits. Many customers have taken a liking to it in the past, but in the end, they couldn't contract it and had to give up.
"Our An City branch brought in this small fire crow, but since it couldn't be sold, it caused cash flow problems for the Spirit Nurturing House for quite a while."
Su Hao thought for a moment and asked, "How much is this small fire crow being sold for?"
Zhao Liangcai: "When we brought it in, it cost one million eight hundred thousand. The initial listed price was three million.
"But... several customers who took a liking to it all failed to contract it, forcing us to lower the price to attract more people to try contracting with it. No matter who it was, though, they couldn't earn this small fire crow's approval.
"It went from three million down to two million, then one million, and now this small fire crow is only selling for three hundred thousand."
"Huh?" Su Hao was puzzled. "Only three hundred thousand? Even if it gets contracted, that's a huge loss."
"There's no helping it. The Spirit Nurturing House has a rule that only juvenile spirits can be sold, but this small fire crow recently entered its growth stage. If it can't be sold, it'll have to be sent back to the breeding base."
As they spoke,
Su Hao noticed a customer inside the Spirit Nurturing House walking toward the small fire crow.
Zhao Liangcai pursed his lips, looking like he was expecting a show.
"Is this spirit really only three hundred thousand?"
A young man in a suit confirmed again.
"Yes, sir, only three hundred thousand. This spirit has no hidden ailments either; it's just that it has a strong personality and is hard to contract, which is why it's still here."
"Alright, I'll take it."
"Sir, you should try first. It only works if you can contract it."
The staff brought out a blood collection tool and jade powder, taking a drop of blood and mixing it with the fiery red jade powder.
The suited young man picked up the box of jade powder. "I'll do it myself."
He approached slowly, a professional smile on his face.
The small fire crow heard the commotion, glanced at him, then turned its head away.
Staring at the wall, deep in thought.
The smile on the suited young man's face froze slightly. After a moment's thought, he held the jade powder box out in front of the small fire crow.
Whoosh—
The small fire crow flapped its wings, fluttering as if trying to fly away.
"Hey, don't go!"
The suited young man reached out to grab it, but the staff nearby couldn't stop him in time.
Suddenly,
"Caw, caw!"
The small fire crow opened its beak and spat out a burst of sparks.
Startled, the young man quickly pulled his hand back, but a few sparks still landed on his sleeve and palm.
Only then did the staff manage to say, "Please do not grab the spirit in any way."
The young man winced, clutching his hand, and snapped, "How does your Spirit Nurturing House manage its spirits?!"
The staff glared at him, unflinching.
"Contracting a spirit is a mutual agreement. If you can't do it, please take the door on the left."
The suited young man was taken aback by the retort.
Then he remembered—
The Spirit Nurturing House wasn't a service industry; there was no "customer is king" here.
Strictly speaking, the Spirit Nurturing Houses set up in each city were meant to give ordinary people a chance to contract a spirit.
This was a government-run establishment!
The suited young man snorted and slunk away.
"This small fire crow really does have... a strong personality."
Su Hao's eyes narrowed.
[Spirit: Small Fire Crow] [Basic Info: Fire-type, Growth Stage.] [Description: Dance, feathers, scatter, feathers... This is a small fire crow obsessed with feathers.] [Detailed Info: ...]
Su Hao looked and suddenly paused.
In the "Learned Moves" section, it wasn't empty.
There was one move: Feather Substitute.
"Brother Zhao, aside from being hard to contract, does this small fire crow have any other notable traits?"
Zhao Liangcai wasn't sure, so he called over a staff member to ask.
The staff member said, "How to put it, this small fire crow is a bit aloof. It doesn't play with other spirits and often stands there all day without doing anything unusual."
"This small fire crow was naturally born, right?"
This time, Zhao Liangcai answered, "Of course it's a naturally born spirit. You won't see spirits born from previous generations at the Spirit Nurturing House.
"You've taken a liking to this small fire crow, huh? Haha, no wonder. If you can contract it, I can knock off a hundred thousand on my authority. Any cheaper, and even I, as the store manager, can't manage it."
Zhao Liangcai knew Su Hao's family situation well.
He added with a smile, "But don't get your hopes up too high. This small fire crow is very proud. Quite a few official spirit masters have been interested in this unique spirit, but none could win it over."
Su Hao was indeed tempted.
Not being born from a previous generation meant the small fire crow's move wasn't inherited.
It had learned it on its own.
That was even rarer.
Feather Substitute was a relatively advanced move.
Combined with that description...
"Maybe... this small fire crow has exceptional talent in using feathers."
And it was a rare fire-type.
It could learn many powerful long-range moves, so its role wouldn't overlap with Silkworm Baby's.
Now that he had the conditions to raise a second spirit, having two spirits would give him a huge advantage in both the five-school practical drill and the college entrance exam.
Most importantly, it was cheap.
Only two hundred thousand!
"Though, I don't seem to have two hundred thousand right now either."
...
Zhao Liangcai finished signing the contract and left to enjoy himself.
Su Hao stayed at the Spirit Nurturing House.
He wanted to see if any customers would come—on Monday afternoon, he was the only spirit master in the whole place. If a customer showed up, he'd be the one to make money.
Su Hao, who was preparing to raise a second spirit and needed to speed up his earning, was hopeful.
Unfortunately,
By the time it got dark, not a single customer had walked in.
There were a few people browsing spirits, but only one actual sale, and it had nothing to do with him.
"How am I supposed to trick—no, contract with this small fire crow?"
Su Hao pondered.
He didn't rush to approach the small fire crow.
First impressions were important.
And he wasn't someone with natural maxed-out charisma.
"Silkworm Baby, what do you think?"
"Goo! No!"
Silkworm Baby glanced at him and ignored him.
It had been tricked away in a daze back then!
Hmph, lousy spirit master!
Su Hao turned Silkworm Baby back to face him, locking eyes, and said earnestly:
"Think about it—if I contract a second spirit, won't you have a little brother in the future?
"So, to get a minion to boss around, shouldn't we figure this out together?"