Bear School Astartes

With the mythical speed of the Qilin, from the moment Lann started using the Magic Ring to summon it, it took less than three hours for it to arrive from the coastline of Gos Velen.

It charged along the sparsely populated winding paths to the edge of Vizima Lake, where it slowed appropriately, transitioning out of the [Lightning Flash] state.

Thankfully, it didn’t let the wind pressure from the Ancient Dragon’s robust body and extraordinary speed stir up waves on Vizima Lake out of nowhere.

As the Qilin stepped onto the calm and clear lake water, arriving at the Da Gun Temple on Black Seagull Island, Lann was surprised to find that in his few months in the Yarnan World, this [Phantom Beast] had undergone noticeable changes.

The Qilin treaded upon the water, its inherently strong frame supporting the naturally elegant demeanor of its race.

Much like the king among steeds, the Qilin, even while simply walking gracefully, appeared like an ethereal and noble creature surveying its territory.

Its skin, covered with tiny intricate scales, remained a pale blue leaning towards white, complemented by deep blue lightning patterns.

The whitish mane on its nape, front chest, and joints of its four legs fluttered like leaping flames in mid-air, even in the absence of wind.

This was the static electricity effect on the Qilin’s body.

These did not astonish Lann, for the New Continent Ancient Dragon inherently stands at the apex of the biological chain, possessing a regal demeanor and majesty naturally.

Maria and Adeline almost held their breath instinctively as the Qilin walked on water at a slow pace.

Because the Qilin, termed as the [Phantom Beast], had both an inherently superior temperament and physique.

The hunters of Yan’an excel at hunting beasts.

Yet even in the eyes of Maria, a Yan Nan Hunter, the Qilin was undoubtedly not something that could be categorized with ’beasts’ in their conventional context!

Hence, on one hand, Maria felt a subconscious sense of caution when watching the Qilin, occasionally emitting electric sparks and visibly powerful in its muscles and bones.

On the other hand, upon seeing Lann’s relaxed and friendly demeanor, she couldn’t help but admire the New Continent Ancient Dragon’s natural and wild beauty.

Yet elsewhere...

”I say...” Faced with the stately and slowly advancing Qilin, Lann suddenly spoke solemnly, ”Did you manage to eat something randomly?”

”Neigh?!”

Instinctively, the Qilin’s demeanor shifted much like a guilty dog.

The Qilin, previously full of regal bearing, suddenly lowered its two front hooves steeply, pressing its upper body down, with its ruby-like eyes darting left and right.

But Ancient Dragons are ultimately Ancient Dragons; after instinctively taking this action, the Qilin seemed to immediately comprehend.

It swiftly stood back up, leaving a lingering shadow, while its feline-like face turned aside, avoiding Lann’s staring gaze.

Striving to project an image of ’nothing happened’.

The Demon Hunter squinted his eyes, walked over, and forcibly adjusted the Qilin’s head, which was intentionally not looking at him.

His amber-colored cat eyes suddenly deepened, creating a gaze that made the Qilin shiver involuntarily, as though something had seen through it.

But soon after, Lann’s eyes restored to a normal state, and his expression turned indifferent.

”It seems normal growth, fortunately, you didn’t go to the sea and eat something random, the sea waters are deep.”

Though the latter half of his words sounded like nonsense, it was actually a double entendre, and Lann believed the Qilin’s intellect could understand.

Even in this Magical Middle Ages world, there are even large ocean-going ships docked at Novigrad’s ports from several other continents, conducting global commerce.

However, human exploration of the ocean remains tiny and superficial.

Only a few stable routes have been established with the Warlocks’ assistance, while the opening of new channels often incurs severe losses.

Creatures in the ocean, even with the Demon Hunter’s centuries of accumulated monster knowledge, are described with only brief mentions.

And Lann had heard from Geralt and Dandelion about encountering a mysterious sea civilization resembling fishmen, along Hidaris’s coastal areas that are not far.

Who knows, within the vast and boundless depths of the ocean in this world, the civilization activity might be more frequent than on land.

If the Qilin ran off into the deep sea and consumed some magic artifact from a deep ocean civilization...such a possibility, Lann finds himself tangled in thoughts.

But now it appears the Qilin wisely refrained from provoking things in the deep sea...or maybe it’s simply timid, not daring to provoke.

Anyway, it seems that the differences in the Qilin’s physique are due to the outrageous natural growth patterns of New Continent creatures.

The Qilin now appears largely unchanged from when Lann previously ventured to Yarnan.

Except there are now crystal-like organizational structures resembling the Qilin’s azure horn, emerging from beneath the skin on its shoulders and outer sections of its four limb joints.

On the external sections of its limb joints, seemingly mindful of joint mobility, there’s only one not-so-long piece.

But on the Qilin’s shoulders, four pieces per side, slightly shorter than the Qilin’s azure horn on its head, high-energy crystal structures grow in ring formation from its muscularly defined shoulders, resembling a circle of threat-inducing rams.

Fiery sparks are discharged from the tips of these horns as the Qilin pants, and occasionally, electric sparks between adjacent tips connect and flash as electrical arcs.

So now, besides possessing the ethereal and noble aura typical of its species, the Qilin’s aggressive azure horns add a touch of intimidation.

Clearly different from the usual Qilin.

If placed within the research classifications of the New Continent Expedition Team, it would likely earn a title of ”Second Category.”

’After all, I didn’t eat anything else!’

Under the shimmering light of Lann’s variant ”Yakxi Rune,” the Qilin’s hooves pranced about, initially making a stubborn remark before explaining.

’My body has been itching for several days, and then these horns grew out.’

’I’m not sure why, but they’re really useful.’

It lifted its hoof, revealing the high-energy crystalline horns on the outer joint of its front hoof, the sharpness of which sent chills down one’s spine. Even the muscles of the Golden Lion dared not confront the azure horns of the Qilin directly.

Yet, this Ancient Dragon merely kneeled and brought up its leg, using the perfectly sharp horn to scratch its own chin.

’Look, I can scratch my chin by myself now!’

’By the way, I now find it much easier to control lightning.’

The corner of the Demon Hunter’s mouth twitched... the ”by the way” part is probably the most crucial part, isn’t it?

But looking at the Qilin, feeling comfortable, using its knee horn to scratch its chin, he opened his mouth but couldn’t say a thing.

With a ”smack,” Lann’s palm hit his forehead, letting out a long sigh.

Then, he swung the wide hooded cloak behind him.

Seizing the horns on the Qilin’s shoulder, Lann mounted its back.

’Remember, don’t discharge!’ After riding the Qilin, Lann twisted his body to readjust, then patted it warningly, ’Did you forget to ask Rong Buqiu to help you put on the Magic Horse Harness before you picked me up? Now my butt feels a bit numb from the electricity.’

The Qilin didn’t feel anything from Lann’s deadly slap, but it still reduced the already slight current running across its skin.

’...Huff!’

’Came too quickly, I forgot...’

Only with the Qilin, Lann entirely believed its ”I forgot” remark and accepted it with another sigh.

Lann extended his hand from beneath the cloak covering his chilling yet sturdy armor, reaching out to Maria and Adeline.

”Are we supposed to ride this?”

The Blood Saintess looked cautious but a bit excited as she accepted Lann’s outstretched hand.

”The Qilin has a good temperament, no need to worry.”

Lann explained with a smile.

The Qilin, speechless, tilted its head, its beautiful pale fluffy tail swished once.

The Qilin seemed to have grown in size as well; even with Lann sitting on it, there was still space on its back. The two Ladies of Yarnan are similar to normal humans in size, making it perfectly sufficient.

Maria did not need Lann’s hand.

The sleek and confident Female Hunter merely held onto the Qilin’s back and leaped gracefully onto its saddle.

To prevent Adeline from falling off due to unfamiliarity, Lann placed her in front for easier care, while the poised and agile Female Hunter sat with her legs together, on Lann’s back.

The Blood Nobility of Cainhurst certainly knows noble education; women of nobility consider elegance in posture, and indeed, they sit this way when riding.

Putting on the hood to conceal his face and hair.

Like a Yan Nan Hunter, Lann pinched the brim of his hood and bowed slightly to bid farewell to the Lady of the Lake.

The lady, sitting on the throne of waves, casually raised her hand to him.

Their days are still long ahead, which is one of the reasons the Lady of the Lake is so joyful yet unhurried in Lann’s presence each time.

The Qilin’s white-maned hooves trotted a few times, then ran straight across the lake.

Perhaps to facilitate the Qilin’s run, in the midday of early autumn, a thick mist suddenly enveloped the lake, obscuring the form of this beautiful creature.

The Demon Hunter didn’t venture to the tavern in the village within Dark Water after stepping out of the Celestial Sphere Convergence Rift for a drink as he used to.

By the way, to chat with the head spy Taler, who seems to have made this village his office.

Given the circumstances, it would be quite troublesome to explain his companions from the Otherworld.

Might as well head straight to Gos Velen.

It’s worth noting that not having his customary drink upon return made Lann a bit uncomfortable.

With passengers, the Qilin couldn’t exhibit its full speed.

Thus, it was late at night when Lann and his companions finally traversed all of Velen, hearing the sounds of the western ocean waves.