At this moment, the old man was staring intently in Vincent's direction.
Vincent, who had been a complete bystander during the sudden situation, felt the sharp gaze of the old man. He remained in his position, waiting for the old man to speak.
"Are you just gonna let them die?" the old man spoke in a hoarse voice.
Vincent raised his brows upon hearing the question.
'He probably thought I was with them,' he thought.
Hence, he answered, "I'm not with them."
The old man did not respond and kept his eyes on him.
Both of them remained silent for a moment.
Vincent finally broke the silence. "If you don't have any questions, I'll be leaving then," he said as he was about to turn around, but the old man's voice halted him.
"You may leave, but leave the fat rabbit behind."
Vincent and Mochi wore the same stunned expression.
"You again?"
"Me again?"
Vincent couldn't help but wonder what they found in Mochi—why all of them wanted her. Even Mochi was confused about why she was attracting so much attention.
"Do you have something you're hiding from me?" he asked as he observed her. However, Mochi simply gave him a genuinely clueless expression.
He then shifted his attention back to the old man. "You want her?"
The old man did not respond, but his expression said it all. He wanted him to leave Mochi behind.
Vincent smirked and said, "If you want her, you can try to convince her. If you manage to convince her, then I'll let you have her."
His words made Mochi furious. She began pulling Vincent's hair.
"What are you doing? Are you giving me away?! Huh?!" she yelled, clearly upset, but her voice grew softer as her eyes began to water.
"I-I thought you said y-you wouldn't throw me away…"
Hearing her voice, Vincent realized he had made a mistake. Just as he was about to explain that he was only joking, the old man's voice interrupted.
"Come and be my pet, fat rabbit. I have a lot of good stuff with me."
As he said this, he revealed several fruits in his hands that emitted a thick aura of Origin Energy.
The moment Mochi sensed it, her sadness was immediately washed away. Her ears perked up, and her saliva began to drool.
Vincent was dumbfounded by her sudden change in reaction.
From sadness to greed in the blink of an eye. He could only wryly shake his head in slight annoyance, but he kept silent and watched as the old man attempted to convince Mochi to be his pet.
The old man noticed his actions had an effect. He couldn't help but reveal a subtle smile as he reached out his hand holding the vibrant fruits.
"Come, be my pet, and these are all yours."
Mochi stared greedily at the fruits in the old man's hand. Her eyes darted between Vincent and the old man—or, more accurately, the fruits—as though she was considering it.
To Vincent's surprise, Mochi hopped off his shoulder and jumped toward the old man.
"You—" he was at a loss for words.
The old man happily caught Mochi as she landed in his hand. He let out a soft chuckle, clearly satisfied. However, before he could savor the moment, the fat black rabbit suddenly disappeared, taking the Origin Fruits with her.
His mouth hung open as he slowly shifted his gaze back to Vincent. There, he found the fat black rabbit already back in her usual spot on Vincent's shoulder, hugging the Origin Fruits.
Now, it was the old man's turn to be speechless. Pointing a trembling finger, he stuttered, "Y-You…"
Mochi paid no attention to the old man's reaction and quickly devoured an Origin Fruit in one bite.
Vincent was stunned for a moment before wryly smiling at Mochi's actions. This kid really had her way of cheating people.
The old man's expression was quite the performance. His joy turned to shock, then to anger. A heavy pressure began to radiate from his body.
"To think I got cheated by a Primal at this age. I must have gone senile…" the old man muttered self-deprecatingly, lowering his head slightly.
Vincent furrowed his brows as he sensed the old man's strength.
Xu Zheng, Tier 2 (5★)
The old man—Xu Zheng—began to release a soft wave of purple aura.
Then, Xu Zheng snapped his head up and glared at him, his lips curling into a malicious smile before his figure vanished, reappearing in front of Vincent.
His hands, claw-like and surrounded by a purple hue, slashed toward Vincent's face. However, his smile faded immediately as his claws struck nothing but air. Vincent's afterimage vanished.
Xu Zheng quickly scanned his surroundings, only to find Vincent and the fat black rabbit in his previous position, staring at him with nonchalant expressions.
This infuriated him.
"I guess I'm not the only one at this age with strange hobbies," Xu Zheng sneered. He assumed Vincent was his age, disguised as a Tier 1 Origin Warrior.
It was the only explanation. After all, it didn't make sense for a Tier 1 to evade his sudden attack. Although he hadn't gone all out, his speed was far too great for a normal Tier 1 Origin Warrior to handle.
Without hesitation, Xu Zheng rushed at Vincent again, aiming to rip away his mask.
But this time, as Xu Zheng appeared before him, Vincent didn't dodge. This would be his first time fighting a Peak Tier 2 Origin Warrior since upgrading his stats.
It was true he had killed a Tier 3 Primal, the Howling Spire Lord, but that had been more of a sneak attack. He hadn't exchanged blows with it directly.
So, he decided to meet Xu Zheng's strike head-on with his own strength.
Bam!
Vincent's fist collided with Xu Zheng's claw strike, creating a deafening sound and sending a shockwave that blasted the nearest trees.
Vincent remained firmly rooted in his position, while Xu Zheng was forced back several steps, shock evident in his eyes as he felt his numbed arm. Experience more content on empire
In that single exchange, Xu Zheng could already tell—Vincent's physique was stronger than his own.