The sun was already on its way to the horizon, as if in just a few inches, the giant fireball would touch the very edge of the earth.
People began adjusting their routines, preparing for nightfall. Stall owners on the streets started packing up their equipment as night vendors prepared to take over their spots. However, some remained, selling goods suitable for any time of day.
A blue bird flew into the corner of a restaurant, landing in front of a beggar.
"Did you find him?" Apollo asked, his expression serious. Normally, he would never let his mount fly beyond the reach of his senses, but this time he made an exception, allowing the shrunken water-attributed falcon to scout the city. Of course, he had repeatedly warned Bluetooth not to draw attention, or the bird would face punishment.
Fortunately, Bluetooth was smart enough to avoid angering his owner.
The blue bird began chirping while circling in front of Apollo.
Apollo listened carefully, and the more he listened, the deeper his frown grew. "I see…" he muttered, staring seriously at his mount.
Bluetooth then landed on Apollo's shoulder, rubbing his face against his owner affectionately. But as the bird enjoyed himself, Apollo raised a hand and flicked him away.
The water-attributed falcon was sent spinning toward the wall, making a thudding sound upon impact. Bluetooth fell to the ground, feeling dizzy and in pain.
Shaking his head to clear the dizziness, Bluetooth stared at Apollo with fear in his eyes.
"You do know you're a bird, and I'm a human, right?" Apollo asked, irritation evident in his tone. "How the hell am I supposed to understand what you're chirping about?"
Hearing the outburst, Bluetooth lowered his head, tears threatening to fall from his beady eyes.
Seeing this, Apollo's anger subsided. He was annoyed that his monkey still hadn't returned, even after a few hours. However, it wasn't right to take out his frustration on the innocent Bluetooth. Letting out a sigh, he decided to spend some of his Alm Points.
A light blue translucent screen materialized in front of him:
Spirit Cultivation: None
Physique Cultivation: 3rd-Step Qi Condensation Stage
Attributes: Lightning, Water
Companions: Bubba (Monkey)
Beggar Disciples: Don Blanc
The number of Alm Points calmed him. Unlike before—when every purchase drained his Alm Points, which he could only replenish by begging for hours or completing missions—his Alm Points now increased on their own.
This led him to suspect the System had hidden features to enable this, as he still had missions back then.
Apollo glanced at his "worker" sitting in the beggar spot with a satisfied smile. With Don earning Alm Points for him and the Automatic Alm Points Producer supplementing it, his balance steadily increased. Even though the growth was slow, progress was progress, and he wasn't about to complain.
He then opened the System Store.
"Sort the items to help me understand animals," Apollo instructed. The store interface immediately began organizing itself.
This was what he liked most about the store—it had everything he needed, and with a simple command, he could find anything.
When the sorting was complete, numerous related items appeared on the interface.
"Start from the cheapest."
The positions of the items shifted, and the cheapest one appeared at the very top.
"Basic Animal Communication Technique," the beggar muttered the name of the first item with curiosity, then began reading its description and uses.
Basic Animal Communication Technique: A basic communication technique designed to understand the language of the animal kingdom. Once learned, the user can talk with any animal...
After reading the description, Apollo couldn't help but be amazed. Although the technique had the word "basic" in it, the beggar knew it was far from ordinary, especially since it came from the System.
It would cost him 50 Alm Points, which definitely stung, but he felt the technique was worth it. This communication technique would allow him to talk to any animal, from insects to bears, though the animal's ability to communicate would still depend on its intelligence.
After mulling it over for a while, he finally bought the item.
The interface in front of him disappeared, and a white light materialized, forming into a scroll.
Apollo touched it, and the moment he did, the scroll dispersed into particles of light that entered his forehead.
Suddenly, new information appeared in his mind. He instantly learned the Basic Animal Communication Technique as if it had always been part of his knowledge.
Unlike other techniques, where he needed to familiarize himself with movements and progressively learn, this kind of technique was instantaneous.
When he opened his eyes, the understanding in his mind surged before settling into calm clarity.
Apollo glanced at his mount, still leaning against the wall and tucking its body beneath its wings.
"Bluetooth," Apollo called out.
The water-attributed falcon looked up slowly.
"Come here," the beggar said, patting his shoulder with a smile.
The falcon hesitantly flew up and perched on Apollo's shoulder.
"I'm sorry," Apollo apologized. This was rare for him, but it didn't mean he abandoned the principle of admitting one's mistakes. "That's your fault, so you can only blame yourself."
At first, when Bluetooth heard the small human apologizing, his eyes lit up, and he couldn't help but feel happy—though it didn't last long.
The falcon looked away, frustration simmering inside.
"Anyway, why don't you—" Apollo couldn't finish his words as, in the next second, a high-pitched voice interrupted him.
"Dmn kid, fck you. I hope you die worse than death. If not for the fact I felt a special bond with you, I would have escaped. I f*cking hate you. Once this bond disappears, I will eat your eyes out. I will eat your tongue, I will eat your…"
Apollo's wide eyes slowly landed on the bird perched on his shoulder. The falcon didn't stop ranting, as if afraid to miss a single second of expressing his hatred for the beggar.
Apollo continued to stare at his mount for a few moments before he'd had enough. He imbued a small amount of refined Qi around his fingers and flicked the blue bird away. This time, the impact against the wall was much stronger.
"It seems I haven't taught you enough of a lesson to fear me," Apollo said, his voice cold as killing intent erupted from him. "You want me to die worse than death? Haha, I'll let you taste it first!"
"W-what? He can understand me?" Bluetooth muttered in shock, raising his body.
"Hell yeah, I can understand you!"
"Crap, I f*cked up," Bluetooth groaned, letting himself fall to the ground, closing his eyes peacefully as if pretending to sleep.
This is just a dream. A very peaceful dream.