“In the Apocalypse, I Only Make Contracts with Super-Hot Male Gods” - Chapter 17

Jiang Changyi didn’t want to be a third wheel. As an ordinary person, he also had no way to help with treatment, so without saying a word, he quietly slipped away.

After all, all he ever wanted was to protect his family. Completing the mission was just a way of repaying Chen Yonglong for saving his life.

On his way back to the west cafeteria, Leo flew back to him, holding two red-glowing objects in his mouth.

“Leo~ (These are magic crystals, the energy cores condensed inside monsters~)”

Jiang Changyi held one up, studying the little thing carefully under the faint moonlight.

The two diamond-shaped crystals were about the size of his thumb, glowing with an eerie red light. Jiang Changyi could really feel some kind of energy inside them.

He asked, “Don’t tell me you dug these out of the giant monster dragonfly corpses?”

“Leo~ (Of course~ I killed one, then took another from the one Master killed~)”

“Leo~ Leo~ (If Master absorbs them, you can restore energy! Once you’ve accumulated enough, you can even grow stronger~ And magic crystals make great sacrifice offerings, way better than monster corpses~)”

Leo flipped and twirled in the air, lively as a child.

Jiang Changyi could tell it wanted praise. It looked just like Jiang Changsi back when she was little, jumping around happily after scoring full marks on a test.

He knew kids should be praised more, so he didn’t hold back. He reached out, rubbed Leo’s fluffy little head, and smiled. “Leo, you’re amazing! You actually took down such a huge beast way bigger than you!”

“Leo~ Leo! (Hehe! Just wait till I grow up—I’ll get even stronger! But Master, you’ve got to gather more magic crystals to feed me~)”

“W–what?!” Jiang Changyi’s smile froze. “You mean… your growth also requires magic crystals?”

He had assumed Leo ate meat or grass or something. But magic crystals too?

Just a moment ago, he had been fantasizing about summoning a whole army of creatures to fight monsters and dig up crystals for him. But if raising summons also consumed magic crystals…

God, so he couldn’t even play the part of a stingy master exploiting his summons?

“What about the red beetles and zombies we killed earlier—don’t they have magic crystals?”

Leo: “Leo~ (Nope~ Their level’s too low~)”

Jiang Changyi’s dream shattered.

Still, he quickly accepted reality. Absorbing the magic crystals’ energy to restore stamina, he continued toward the west cafeteria.

After all, there was still one giant monster dragonfly corpse here. It might’ve been killed by that archer awakener, but he had contributed too, hadn’t he?

Besides, they didn’t even know about magic crystals inside the corpses. He was practically giving them valuable intel. Otherwise, how many crystals would they miss out on?

“I really am such a good person~”

Jiang Changyi’s mood instantly improved. Cheerfully, he returned to the west cafeteria—only to find that all the giant dragonflies had already been shot down, the last one falling from the air like a pincushion riddled with arrows.

Killing those monsters hadn’t been easy. They had some intelligence, and once they realized humans wielded long-range weapons, they stopped swooping near the ground so readily.

It was Zong Qiong who had dashed across open ground to the west cafeteria, taking command and directing the guard squad’s defense and attack in an orderly fashion, slowly exterminating all the dragonflies.

“You, from the first squad—you’re the only one who survived?” Zong Qiong asked. His shoulder bore a bloody wound, suggesting he too had brushed against death more than once.

Jiang Changyi understood what he really wanted to know, so he shook his head. “Chen Yonglong isn’t dead, but he’s injured. As for the others, I don’t know.”

“Oh, and by the way—those giant dragonfly corpses have some kind of energy crystals inside them. I dug one out just now. You guys should check too.”

Zong Qiong had already regarded Jiang Changyi differently for making it to the west cafeteria alone. Hearing that last bit, his brows rose in surprise.

“How did you find out?”

Jiang Changyi had been expecting this. “I got lucky and killed one. Blew its head apart, and the crystal just dropped out.

“You know how in a lot of web novels, this kind of thing shows up? So I guessed it might be the same.”

After listening, Zong Qiong didn’t press further. But there was a faint look in his eyes, as though saying, ‘If you’re going to lie, at least don’t treat me like an idiot.’

Guo Beibei walked over, sounding a little surprised. “So you really aren’t an awakener? And yet you managed to coordinate a plan like Zong Qiong?”

After the battle, she had already learned of Zong Qiong’s strategy. While impressed by his daring and foresight, she was also amazed at Jiang Changyi’s capability.

The wind tousled her hair, but her spirit was strong—she looked both capable and fresh.

Jiang Changyi recognized her. She was the proud star of the archery club—cheerful, straightforward, and fun, with plenty of fans thanks to her streams and videos.

And the only reason Jiang Changyi knew her was because of his ex-boyfriend—

His name was Peng Pai, a broke student with barely a cent to his name.

The two of them had gotten together because rumors of Jiang Changyi working as a male model at Black Horse Club had spread too far. As someone with the same orientation, Peng Pai quickly guessed that Jiang also liked men.

Once he was sure, Peng Pai kept finding chances to meet Jiang—bringing him breakfast, lending him an umbrella when it rained, taking notes for him in class.

Faced with such sweet gestures and flattering words, the love-naïve Jiang soon fell into the trap of “being loved.”

At first, he returned the money for every breakfast, wanting to keep distance. But after Peng Pai’s persistence, Jiang slowly came to believe someone truly liked him.

So they started dating, entering a sweet honeymoon phase.

Peng Pai had developed a love for archery, but with his monthly allowance barely enough for food, he had no money for even a beginner’s bow and the necessary gear.

Jiang Changyi couldn’t bear to see his partner watching others shoot with longing, so he spent the money he earned modeling at Black Horse to buy Peng Pai the best beginner’s bow.

Seeing Peng Pai’s bright smile, Jiang thought it was worth lowering his own food quality for half a month.

That was why, by accompanying Peng Pai to the archery club so often, Jiang became familiar with Guo Beibei—though they’d never spoken to each other.

Just as Jiang was about to respond to Guo Beibei, a skinny young man with a 3:7 parted hairstyle swaggered over, chin raised arrogantly.

“Tch, he only made it here because he got lucky! Or maybe he dragged his teammates down—otherwise, how could he be the only one to cross half the school and survive?

“Wasn’t there supposed to be an awakener in their squad too? Bet that guy’s already dead, thanks to this gigolo!”