Chapter 32: Magic Pet

The location of Cajeron's gun modification shop was extremely hidden. Unless one deliberately searched for it, few people could find this gun modification shop located at the most remote corner of the garage's second floor. Even the signboard was very inconspicuous; if one wasn't paying attention, they might think it was a small shop that had already gone out of business.

The people here took less than three minutes to replace the barrel for Li Mochen. It was worth noting that the barrel had indeed been reinforced and modified, with the bullet's muzzle velocity slightly higher than the original.

However, after this, Li Mochen did not immediately return to the Black Mamba Gun Retail Store to test the gun. Instead, he purchased some medicinal herbs at various stalls on the second floor, then looked around a few magic pet shops inside the garage, but was disappointed each time. Finally, holding onto his last hope, he came to the first floor of the garage, to a large magic pet shop located next to the up-and-down passage, occupying over eighty parking spaces.

Business here was extremely good, even better than the Black Mamba Gun Store. The dozen or so employees inside were too busy to handle everything. After Li Mochen entered, no one came to greet him, so he had to look around on his own.

In just a moment, a sense of helplessness quietly arose in Li Mochen's heart.

Most of the magic pets here were small magical creatures in their infancy, or even unhatched ones. The remaining small portion consisted of expensive fantasy species such as elementals and fairies, and among them were even undead and dark creatures. Moreover, all of them were in a state of slumber, either locked in animal cages or sealed in tempered glass bottles of various sizes.

Li Mochen recognized nearly four-fifths of the magical creature species. Although he hadn't finished reading the book "A Preliminary Exploration of Magical Creatures," the original owner's knowledge in this area was still passable.

What was reassuring was that the prices of the magic pets here were clearly marked, not seeming too much of a rip-off. But it also troubled him: any creature with a bit of strength was priced no lower than five thousand gold shields.

About two minutes later, a female sales guide finally walked over: "Sir, are you looking for a magic pet companion? May I ask what attribute you need? Could you tell me? Any specific requirements for abilities or level?"

She discreetly glanced at the things Li Mochen was carrying, then her attitude became even more enthusiastic, smiling warmly: "At your age, you probably haven't contracted a magic pet yet, right? If it's your first time, you need to choose carefully. I suggest you prioritize elementals or magic-friendly types among magical creatures. This will help you cultivate magic power and condense battle qi. After all, it's a peaceful era now, and battles below level ten rarely occur—"

"Stop!"

Li Mochen interrupted the sales guide, then said without much hope: "What I want is a creature with combat power at level three or above, preferably with fire abilities and some development potential. No requirements on species, but the price must be under five thousand gold shields. If not, then I think I can leave."

In fact, Li Mochen was already preparing to leave. He himself felt that the conditions he proposed were quite absurd and excessive.

"Under five thousand gold shields?"

The female sales guide was clearly taken aback, and indeed showed a troubled expression: "That's a bit difficult. Hmm~ we do have some in the store, but sir, these usually come with various hidden flaws or deficiencies. Once sold, we generally are not responsible."

There really are some?

Li Mochen became interested: "Can I take a look?"

"Then please follow me."

The sales guide immediately led him to the south corner of the store, then pointed to a whole row of animal cages and tempered glass bottles ahead: "These are all available. You can pick one that suits you. I recommend this 'Fire-Eyed Eagle.' Not only is it fire-type, but it's also the safest among all the magical creatures here. Of course, there's a good chance it will escape from you."

But Li Mochen's expression turned strange. He stared fixedly at this row of 'goods,' then asked half-doubtfully: "Are you sure their prices are all under five thousand gold shields? If I'm not mistaken, this Hungarian Blood-Winged Dragon is one of the dragon species, right?"

Although according to the explanation in "A Preliminary Exploration of Magical Creatures," this Blood-Winged Dragon only had a thin dragon bloodline, with an adult limit of only level fourteen, it was still a dragon species with some potential for evolution.

Pure-blooded dragons, upon reaching adulthood, were basically at the demigod rank. Those with particularly strong power could even rival the gods.

What was extremely surprising was that next to this Fire-Winged Dragon were also the unicorn subspecies Night-Horned Winged Horse and the phoenix subspecies Blood-Striped Sparrow—

"It is indeed a dragon species."

The sales guide was first puzzled, then smiled: "It seems you don't know much about magic pets, sir. For these mythical creature subspecies, what's truly valuable are their eggs or newborn cubs that haven't opened their eyes. For those that have already hatched or opened their eyes and seen their parents, it's generally very difficult for ordinary people to tame them. After all, no magic pet contract can guarantee one hundred percent that they won't turn against their master."

Li Mochen was well aware of this knowledge: mythical creatures are never slaves. Only in some very special circumstances would they become human magic pets.

And subspecies of mythical creatures, even if only a trace of bloodline remained, were not easily subdued by humans.

"Those who can truly suppress their instincts are mostly powerful outlaws. But for them, it's better to directly subdue an adult giant beast; no one has the patience to wait for them to grow up slowly."

The sales guide continued to explain: "Moreover, their characteristics are very obvious, and there are some issues with their origins. Even if we forge a magic pet license for you, it's useless. So if you decide to buy, you must be extremely careful when using them later—in all aspects, in every sense—and it's best not to take them out on the street."

Li Mochen blinked, then unhesitatingly pointed to one of the tempered glass jars: "I'm very interested in this one. Yes, this Shadow-Fire Dragon. I want your store's lowest price."

"Lowest? I'm sorry, this is already the lowest. I can only sell it to you for 3999 gold shields; I can't lower it further. Maybe you could check other stores?"

The sales guide seemed very confident: "Sir, I believe there is no store in the entire Laurel Street black market that offers better service or lower prices than ours. Even for a Shadow-Fire Dragon at the same price, our care for it is not comparable to that of other small shops."

Li Mochen sighed inwardly. He was very frugal, but under information asymmetry, it seemed he had to compromise.

This was likely the best option. He had looked at other magic pet shops before but had been disappointed each time.

First, those shops didn't have the variety he wanted; second, the prices were too inflated. For the same Night-Horned Winged Horse, another shop had quoted 8000 gold shields, clearly trying to fleece him.

"Alright, but I need a shadow material dog tag."

As far as he knew, any magical creature not registered with the Magical Creature Management Office and not wearing a corresponding license would be captured or killed by patrolling police the moment it appeared on the street. This kind of license was commonly referred to by the magic community as a 'dog tag.'

The Shadow-Fire Dragon he wanted had the ability to hide in shadows, nearly invisible. But if the little thing was wearing a conspicuous chain tag, its invisibility would be useless.

Although it was just a forged license, having one was better than not.

"That can be arranged—"

The sales guide beamed with a smile. Although the transaction amount was small, it was still a performance: "I'll prepare it for you shortly. Do you also need a magic pet contract? We can provide you with the best one, worth 3,200 gold shields, which can minimize the chance of the pet turning against you."

"No need!"

Li Mochen shook his head. He couldn't afford to buy that, and more importantly, he didn't need it.