Chapter 81: The Daily Life of Digimon and Their Tamers

The Stegosaurus Digimon suffered a fatal blow and lost its last chance before it could even use its special move. Under the laws of both worlds, its unstable, protein-like body began to disintegrate and revert to data. Among this data, a single byte—the most basic and primordial—slipped through the veil between the two worlds in a state undetectable by anyone and vanished into the void, while the rest of the data began to slowly dissipate.

"After finally obtaining some usable data, how could I just let you disappear like that?" Feng Xue's body emitted a powerful suction, and the scattered data instantly seemed to find a target, surging toward him.

Unlike in the Digital Monsters’ world, where he had only absorbed the holy and dark factors, this time he took in all the chaotic data, ignoring only the other six types of factors.

In truth, the reason Feng Xue had refrained from absorbing data in the Digital Monsters’ world was his concern that, upon entering the real world, the data would disperse, causing his strength to decline dramatically. But now that he was in the real world, evolution was, of course, his primary consideration.

Though still in his growth phase, the amount of data within him was not insignificant. After centuries of intense hunting, had his dietary preferences not been so exceptionally strict, he would have evolved to the mature stage long ago—perhaps even to the ultimate form.

Even now, as a mere growth-stage Digimon, he possessed at least 500 kilobytes of data—about the size of a 250,000-word novel.

"Amazing! So this is a battle between Digimon?" Liu Ji had no idea what thoughts had flashed through Feng Xue’s mind at that instant; she was simply awed by the scene before her.

So this was a Digimon battle?

That’s what Liu Ji thought.

Unlike the card games played on a table, this was a real, living battle—survival of the fittest, where the weak became nourishment for the strong. What was once a dull comparison of data on a tabletop was, in reality, captivating and unpredictable. Strength alone did not guarantee victory; it was not just a contest of special moves, but a battle of tactics, skill, and experience.

Liu Ji realized she was falling in love with this dangerous game.

"Let’s go home," Liu Ji pushed down the adrenaline rushing through her and spoke in as calm a tone as she could manage, though her trembling hands betrayed her inner turmoil.

"I know." Having harvested a trove of data, Feng Xue was clearly in high spirits. The white short bow in his hand reverted to its original gauntlet form, and with two or three leaps, he landed behind Liu Ji.

As for the smashed roadside flowerbed?

By tomorrow, the traffic division would likely chalk it up to a late-night car accident...

…

The night passed, and under the first rays of morning light, Liu Ji slowly opened her eyes. Her shoulder-length straight hair and round face might not have matched, but on her, they created an especially endearing look.

"Impmon? Impmon!" Her expression suddenly shifted as something came to mind, and she called out hurriedly, but there was no response.

"Was it just a dream?" Liu Ji thought in disappointment. Yet the blue Arc Device on her desk made it clear that everything had truly happened.

"It’s real!" Liu Ji clutched the Arc Device, her face determined. As if responding to her conviction, the device began to glow—a compass-like dial projected itself into midair.

Was it really acceptable to have naked-eye 3D projections in the year 2000?

"What’s this?" Liu Ji seemed to understand the purpose of the dial and began a treasure hunt following its indicator. However, the moment she opened the door, she collided headlong into a sudden white figure.

"Where on earth did you disappear to?" Sitting on the floor and rubbing her sore forehead, Liu Ji didn’t need to look up; the signature priestly robes gave away the identity of the newcomer—it could only be Impmon.

"Making breakfast, of course!" Feng Xue held a tray with two breakfasts on it.

The meal was simple: tomato and egg soup with steamed rice, plus two light side dishes.

In the Neon District, it was customary to have a hearty breakfast, so Feng Xue had thoughtfully prepared rice.

"You! Using the kitchen so early in the morning—what if someone catches you?" Liu Ji’s expression darkened. Usually, her breakfast was made by her grandmother (well, technically her maternal grandmother), and if the two of them had run into each other in the kitchen, who knows what might have happened if she’d been startled!

"Don’t worry. Your mother left early for work today, and your grandmother went out to the morning market—otherwise, where do you think the groceries come from? When she gets back, she’ll find the breakfast I prepared for her. Now, try it." Feng Xue replied nonchalantly, helping himself to some kelp salad. Though he hadn’t cooked in nearly a thousand years, his skills hadn’t diminished in the slightest.

"Hmph!" Liu Ji pouted but didn’t argue further. She picked up her bowl and started eating, only to soon be won over by the refreshing side dishes, devouring them enthusiastically.

…

"My, my, Mr. Fox is visiting again today!" It had to be said that Liu Ji’s grandmother had impressive composure—or perhaps a very robust heart. She accepted the story of "Mr. Fox" without the slightest hesitation. That said, shouldn’t it have been a snail maiden repaying a debt of gratitude? Was it just because Liu Ji was a girl that the one repaying the favor had to be a boy?

"Is… is that so…" Liu Ji’s face was flushed with embarrassment, fidgeting like a schoolgirl caught doing something behind her parents’ backs. Well, she was a schoolgirl, but for a usually strong-willed girl to suddenly show such a coy side drew an amused look from her grandmother.

"It’s all your fault! Who knows what Grandma has gotten the wrong idea about!" Dressed in her V-neck white blouse school uniform, Liu Ji finally looked her age, though she kept grumbling.

Feng Xue didn’t mind; he was always patient with little girls. He pulled out a lunch bag from who-knows-where and handed it to Liu Ji. "I hear you need to bring lunch to school here, so I made one for you. It’s called a ‘lunch made with love,’ right?"

"What are you even talking about?" Liu Ji snatched the lunch, her face bright red, and dashed off toward school without a backward glance.

Feng Xue chuckled. Of course he knew what a "lunch made with love" was; he just found it amusing to tease this tomboyish girl and watch her act the part of a shy little lady.