Lin Mo wasn't particularly concerned about Little Black's combat strength.
The little guy looked dumb and adorable through and through.
Just a puppy—even with a super heart, how strong could it really be?
He was actually more worried about hurting it.
That was why he had it fight while holding a sword in its mouth.
Sword against sword—at least that way, its body wouldn't be injured.
And because he hadn't expected it to show much fighting power at all,
Lin Mo chose the testing location casually—
The basement level of the Knights of Favonius.
Lisa's laboratory.
"Ready?"
Lin Mo looked at the sword-holding pup and asked.
"Woof—grr!!"
The puppy clamped the sword between its teeth and growled fiercely in reply.
Yet even like this, it was still unbelievably cute.
Without realizing it, Lin Mo relaxed his guard.
"Alright. Come on."
He assumed a stance and smiled.
"WOOF!!"
The sword-holding puppy lunged forward in a flash.
"So fast!"
Lin Mo's eyes widened in shock.
Clang!!!
The sound of clashing weapons rang out, so sharp it made Lisa cover her ears and shut her eyes.
Lin Mo's hurried block—
was actually forced back half a step by the puppy.
"How is that possible?!"
He was genuinely startled.
Even Dvalin's wind-element dragon breath had never pushed him back even a fraction.
How could this little black puppy possess such terrifying strength?
"Grr!!"
The puppy growled again, sword still in its mouth,
and lunged at Lin Mo once more.
Clang!!
Another piercing collision echoed through the lab.
This time, Lin Mo blocked it with ease, not moving an inch.
Yet the seriousness in his eyes only deepened.
An attack that required his full attention just to block cleanly—
if someone else were to face it…
By now, Lin Mo was almost certain.
The super heart inside the puppy was taking effect.
Though he had only used a very small amount of material to modify its heart,
he estimated that the puppy possessed at least one-tenth of his own strength.
One-tenth might sound insignificant.
But that was more than enough to crush the vast majority of lifeforms on the continent of Teyvat.
At the very least, this single puppy could easily beat a Stonehide Lawachurl into submission.
Ruin Guards—and even Ruin Graders—wouldn't stand a chance.
After all, Ruin Guards were merely bottom-tier technology from Khaenri'ah.
The super heart inside this puppy, however, could already be considered cutting-edge Khaenri'ahn tech.
"Grr!!"
The puppy growled again, clearly preparing to attack once more.
"That's enough. Let go of the sword—no need to test anymore!"
Lin Mo gestured for it to stop.
But the puppy ignored him.
It didn't continue attacking,
yet it still glared at Lin Mo fiercely, refusing to back down.
"What? You think you can beat me?"
Lin Mo flicked its forehead lightly.
"Yelp!!"
The puppy growled again, stubbornly standing its ground.
At that moment, Lisa spoke up.
"Little brother, it says it wants to challenge you. It wants to grow stronger."
"Huh? You can understand what it's saying?"
Lin Mo was genuinely surprised.
This woman really knew everything, didn't she?
"I studied animal languages back at the Akademiya in Sumeru,"
Lisa replied with a nod.
She then looked at the ferocious little puppy.
"This little thing seems very battle-hungry… It still wants to challenge you."
"That's… troublesome."
Seeing its aggressive nature, Lin Mo felt a headache coming on.
"It really is an unstable factor,"
Lisa agreed, nodding.
"If it were weak, being a little combative wouldn't matter much.
But it's actually quite strong. Leaving it in Mondstadt could cause all kinds of trouble…"
…
With Lisa saying that,
Lin Mo could already imagine the scene—
The entire Knights of Favonius being utterly demolished by a single puppy.
Absolutely not!
That could never be allowed to happen!
If word got out, where would the Knights' dignity go?
It wouldn't just damage morale—
it might even send some people into depression.
One could already hear the mockery:
"Can't even beat a dog, and you call yourselves Knights of Favonius?"
Thinking of that,
Lin Mo immediately crouched down and looked the puppy straight in the eyes.
"Little guy, you understand what I'm saying, right?"
The puppy's expression remained fierce,
but it still nodded its small head.
"You want to challenge the strong. I can give you a suggestion."
As Lin Mo spoke, he pointed out the window toward the southeast.
"In that direction, across the vast sea, lies an island nation called Inazuma."
"There, you'll find many people like you—
the ronin, the Kairagi, the wandering fighters who love to test their blades against others."
At that, Lin Mo swept his hand grandly.
"Go! Swim across the sea! Head to Inazuma!"
"On the other side of the ocean, you can fight to your heart's content.
You can become even stronger!"
…
Lin Mo's words stirred a deep longing in the puppy's heart.
The desire for battle surged uncontrollably.
Without hesitation, it leaped straight toward the open window!
"Well… that takes care of the unstable factor."
Watching the puppy's retreating figure, Lisa smiled faintly.
"But little brother, isn't your method a bit… cruel?"
"Ahem…"
Lin Mo coughed awkwardly.
"The Kairagi and ronin are also unstable elements in Inazuma," he said defensively.
"Sending the puppy there is basically helping the Shogunate eliminate hidden dangers!"
"Yes, yes~"
Lisa didn't pursue the topic further.
Instead, she gazed into Lin Mo's eyes and asked with a smile,
"So? Was the surgery a success?"
"Well… it was successful, but there seems to be a hidden issue…"
A trace of concern surfaced in Lin Mo's gaze.
"You're worried that after the surgery, your temperament might change too—
that you'll become hot-blooded and battle-obsessed like the puppy, right?"
Lisa saw straight through his thoughts.
"…Yes."
Lin Mo didn't deny it.
"Maybe the technique still has flaws. I'll need to look into possible improvements."
"Actually, the technique itself is already perfect,"
Lisa said with a knowing smile.
"I know exactly where the real problem lies."
"Where?"
Lin Mo asked immediately.
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T/N:
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