Under Song Jie's patient coaxing, the little black cat finally gave in to the food.
Lingling, standing nearby, watched curiously. "Song Jie, how did you know it liked to eat?"
Song Jie chuckled. "This guy was attached to someone's shadow earlier just to eat."
"I see." Lingling nodded in realization.
So this demon was after food! No wonder it hadn't hurt anyone.
Although the little black cat could control others through their shadows, it knew that the sensations it felt weren't truly its own. Now, with all this food right in front of it, how could it possibly resist?
"Did you convince it?" Lingling asked.
"This time, I think so."
Song Jie wasn't completely certain, but he could feel that the creature's hostility had vanished.
He crouched down and said softly, "Want to join me?"
The little black cat nodded repeatedly like a chick pecking grain.
Song Jie smiled. "You really are a little glutton."
Before long, he completed the contract with the black cat. Since it had become his contracted beast, he no longer needed to maintain the Holy Shield.
Lingling watched as the cat continued to eat, shaking her head. "It sure can eat." She then took out her phone and stepped aside to make a call.
A moment later, she returned. "The matter's settled. Grandpa Ling will handle the cleanup and public explanations."
When they got back to the Azure Sky Hunter Union, it was already past one in the morning.
Old Man Bao was still awake, and when he saw them, he seemed to already know the outcome.
"You've worked hard these past few days. Get some rest," Old Man Bao said.
Lingling simply nodded, collapsed onto the sofa, and instantly fell asleep.
Song Jie smiled at the sight, then turned to Old Man Bao. "I'll head back now."
Leaving the guild, he went straight to his dorm to pack his things and move back to his rental apartment.
Winter break had started days ago, but he hadn't had time to pack until now.
His apartment was a three-bedroom unit, comfortable and spacious. The landlord even gave him a discount since he lived alone.
He already had the advancement materials from Old Man Bao; all that remained was for his Wind-Riding Skyhawk to break through.
Now that he had an additional contracted beast, the burden on his shoulders felt even heavier.
Time passed quickly, and winter break came to an end.
At the same time, Song Jie's Basic Summoning Magic underwent a metamorphosis:
Dimensional Summoning → Dimensional Summoning +2 → Spatial Shift → Skill Theft → Dimensional Replication!
After several experiments, Song Jie found that "Dimensional Replication" was truly broken!
It could create an identical replica of a summoned beast. For example, casting it on the Wind-Riding Skyhawk produced two identical Skyhawks of equal strength.
The replica's destruction wouldn't affect the main body, though only one summoned beast could be duplicated at a time.
Even so, it was an extremely practical skill.
When the new term began, Song Jie planned to visit Dean Xiao before heading into cultivation at the Three-Step Pagoda.
His Light Element was on the verge of breaking through to the third level, and he wanted to solidify his foundation before attempting an Advanced breakthrough.
Upon arriving at Mingzhu Academy, he met with Dean Xiao, who gave him the approval note to enter the pagoda.
The guards recognized him immediately and let him through.
Outside, students whispered in awe.
"It hasn't even been that long since he last entered. How is he allowed in again?"
"You don't know? He defeated two hundred and fifty new students in a row!"
"What?! That's insane!"
Inside the Three-Step Pagoda, Song Jie decided to cultivate on the second floor this time.
The second floor's cultivation speed was twice that of the first — a fortyfold increase in total!
However, the longer one cultivated inside, the slower the effects became, as the pagoda's power gradually diminished with repeated use.
After climbing to the second floor, Song Jie sat cross-legged and began cultivating his Light Element.
On the first day, he successfully broke through to the third level of the Light Element.
He then spent three more days attempting to reach the threshold of the Advanced level but ultimately failed.
Switching focus, he began cultivating his Summoning Element, as he now had three summoned beasts and needed far greater magic energy to sustain them.
Seven days later, his Summoning Element was close to the third level, though not quite there.
"Next time I come here, the speed will probably be slower," Song Jie thought, "but progress is still progress."
When his time in the pagoda ended, he stepped outside and finally turned on his phone.
A message from Lingling popped up:
[Lingling: Big job. Respond immediately when you see this!]
Song Jie quickly replied.
During the winter break, he and Lingling had completed two bounty missions together, earning over a million in rewards — and becoming quite familiar with each other in the process.
It was early March, and the weather was still chilly.
Wrapped in a down jacket, Song Jie arrived at the Azure Sky Hunter Union, where Old Man Bao and Lingling were waiting.
"You're here?" Old Man Bao greeted him with a knowing smile.
Song Jie nodded and sat down, warming his frozen hands by the heater.
"This is the Light Element Spirit Seed that Tang Yue asked us to find for you," Old Man Bao said, placing a glowing magical artifact on the table.
Song Jie's eyes lit up. He finally got what he'd been waiting for!
...
Author's Note:
The first half (completed version) of Versatile Mage: My Magic Has Gone Beyond Limits! is now available on Patreon!
🔗 patreon.com/Shadow_demon_007
Thank you all for your continued support! 💙