King of Beasts

“What do you mean by not expecting to pass stage 5?” Lu Ran frowned, “I suspect you’re trying to provoke me.”

Manager Ying rolled their eyes, “I’m just being realistic. If you can clear all the stages, I won’t stop you.”

“With the former guild leader and Lin Nian as two of the ten arena masters, it’s certain that Xia Country will secure a large portion of resources. Other countries wouldn’t be pleased to share more with Xia, so when the First Generation gatekeepers are arranged, you’ll probably face the strongest one, maybe even the First Generation of the Eagle.”

“While it may not be absurdly strong, I’m sure its pet beast will be at level 60, possibly having undergone a second-stage evolution, becoming part of the overlord species.”

“Understand?”

“They’re not going to let us take resources easily; it’s an unspoken rule.”

“We enjoy the feast, but we have to let other countries at least sip some soup.”

“Is the rule 3V3?” Lu Ran asked.

“No, it’s 1V1,” Manager Ying replied, “but you have to clear all five stages consecutively.”

“This 1V1 means a contract card VS a contract card. If I have three pet beasts in one contract card, how will the Alliance respond?”

Manager Ying: …?

“When the time comes, I’ll try out the 1V1 matches in infinite city to see if I can summon all three simultaneously.”

“If even infinite city considers sword spirit and sword grass as part of general ha, and they are acknowledged as one unit, the Alliance can’t deny it, right?”

“If General Ha, sword spirit, and sword grass all reach level 40, going three against one, even if the opponent is a level 60 First Generation pet beast, it’s not impossible to win…”

“See? Thinking about it this way, is there really hope to clear all five stages? Would the Alliance recognize it if it truly happens?”

“This kind of thing…” Manager Ying smirked, “do you even need to ask?”

“If you’re from a small country, it would definitely be against the rules.”

“But as long as you have powerful backing, it’s perfectly legitimate.”

“However, the key is whether General Ha and the two retainers can defeat the First Generation.”

“If you win, Xia Country will back you, but if you lose, it would be quite embarrassing.”

“That’s true,” Lu Ran said, stroking his chin.

“However, the Alliance would never expect your General Ha to have two contract retainers,” Manager Ying said. “As long as you don’t expose yourself, the Alliance won’t have time to change the rules, and you can catch them by surprise.”

“But everything hinges on your ability to win.”

“If you can clear all stage 5,” Manager Ying grinned mischievously, “it won’t be Xia Country breaking an unspoken rule; it’ll be that the rule itself is too weak.”

“If the First Generation gatekeepers can’t even beat a Fourth Generation, what can they do?”

Lu Ran pondered.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

“So, when is this Alliance Challenge taking place?” he asked.

“It starts in a week and lasts for 30 days. You can challenge at any time during those 30 days.”

“We have three challenge slots. One is for Qin Ming, one for you, and the third is yet to be decided,” Manager Ying said.

“Oh, then there’s plenty of time,” Lu Ran said. “I’ll prepare when I’m ready, no rush.”

Lu Ran continued chatting with Manager Ying for a bit.

He received the “Shapeshifter Trait Crystal” from them.

With the crystal in hand, Lu Ran quickly lost interest in chatting and hurriedly prepared to fuse it with Cloud Baby.

The fusion process went smoothly and Cloud Baby’s second trait slot was finally complete.

As expected, Cloud Baby also awakened a species talent.

[Species Talent]: Adaptability

[Effect]: If the shaping target aligns with its own attributes, it can exert even greater power.

This talent was easy to understand. Now that the weather elf has water, thunder, and ice attributes, if it shapeshifts into a grass-type divine deer, Cloud Baby won’t achieve a perfect transformation, and its power will be considerably less than that of a real divine deer.

But if it shapeshifts into a water-type divine dragon, the transformation effect will be much stronger.

“Let me know when the former guild leader returns,” Lu Ran said as he bid farewell to Manager Ying and returned to the necromancy secret realm.

Cloud Baby has now become combat-ready since the team’s two strong members are well-suited for it to transform into.

Whether it’s the ice cloud sword dog or the thunder cloud dragon king, both possess considerable strength.

Necromancy Secret Realm.

Lu Ran watched as Cloud Baby, transformed into the ice cloud sword dog, wielded an ice sword and unleashed the fierce Blizzard Sword Qi, slaying necromantic creatures left and right.

He also witnessed it transform into the thunder cloud dragon king, striking down with even more terrifying thunder, with a single bolt wiping out a vast array of enemies.

However, it wasn’t overwhelmingly powerful. Relying solely on the shapeshifter trait wasn’t enough to make Cloud Baby as formidable as General Ha and the others.

Currently, it was only at an average sovereign pet beast level.

It might have been an issue with its ability development; General Ha’s strongest sword intent and the sudden death king’s top-tier defense weren’t inherited by Cloud Baby.

Of course, it could also be that General Ha’s nurturing was too specialized, and the physical prowess of the sudden death king was unsuitable for a shapeshifting creature like Cloud Baby, preventing it from grasping the essence fully in its transformations.

Lu Ran realized that they would have to wait for the former guild leader’s feather of Kunpeng to see if it could elevate Cloud Baby. It needed a more fitting transformation target!

…

Breakthrough Secret Realm.

In the historical projection of the Star-Moon Continent.

A tall and sturdy old man with long mustache and eyebrows, wearing a straw hat and gray cloth clothes, slowly emerged from the ruins riding a Qilin.

“Sigh.”

“Why bother provoking me,” he mused, while many beast taming experts gathered on the mountain-top swallowed hard.

“Who is this elder?”

“An entire legendary force, wiped out just like that!”

“I heard it was because this Fenglei Mountain was bullying and trying to snatch this old man’s treasured possession, not knowing they had provoked a tough cookie…”

“How come I’ve never heard of this person before?”

“Well, it’d be strange if you had,” said the former guild leader of the Xia Country Beast Taming Alliance, counting the spoils while watching the countdown.

As time ran out, the spectators watched in astonishment as the elder’s figure gradually blurred, and the surrounding space shattered!

Meanwhile, on Blue Star, in Infinite City.

The old man’s image slowly appeared in his private room. He left Infinite City in a daze and entered a room filled with mountains and rivers of spiritual energy.

“Xiao Lin,” the old man called out, his voice remarkably penetrating. A moment later, footsteps approached the door, and a glasses girl carrying a notebook knocked and entered.

She looked at the elder with delight and said, “President, you passed the Level 5 breakthrough secret realm.”

“Yes,” the old man nodded, then shook his head, “Sigh, starting from the Level 3 breakthrough secret realm, the difficulty just kept escalating.”

“The Level 4 breakthrough secret realm already caused so many first-generation beastmasters to fall, and this Level 5… it’s likely to claim another batch.”

“Now that I’m back, it’s Lin Nian’s turn to enter the secret realm, right? With her temperament, she might encounter quite a bit of danger.”

The novice, Level 1, and Level 2 breakthrough secret realms seemed fairly straightforward and not too hazardous to the old man. Getting a high rating might be a challenge, but passing through was relatively easy.

However, starting with the Level 3 breakthrough secret realm, it seemed as if Infinite City intended to filter out the elite. Each attempt grew more treacherous.

Many capable beast tamers also met their end within those realms.

To ensure that Xia Country always retained its top-level combat strength, the former guild leader and Lin Nian’s group agreed that they, as the first-generation, would enter one at a time.

After his turn, it would be another’s.

Secretary Xiao Lin was taken aback and said, “President, was this breakthrough secret realm very perilous?”

“Indeed,” the old man stroked his beard and said, “The breakthrough task invariably involves provoking a legendary force, facing their full onslaught. Even if you complete the task, most beast tamers find it difficult to survive the 30 days to exit successfully.”

“You’ve worked hard,” the glasses girl sighed, “Did you sustain any injuries, President?”

“Almost,” he chuckled, “In the end, I couldn’t hold back… I attacked that force’s main base. Luckily, the legendary beast tamer there was just a push-over, near the end of his days. Otherwise, I would’ve been in real danger. Haha, I mustn’t be so reckless next time.”

“Later on, you should have a talk with Lin Nian and advise her to be cautious in the breakthrough secret realm.”

Secretary: ???

Secretary: ???

Is this a case of poor leadership leading to underlings following suit!?

She parted her lips slightly to ask more, but the former guild leader waved his hand and said, “I’ve been away this past month; did anything significant happen?”

“Yes,” the secretary quickly reported the critical events from those days, especially the Black Dragon incident, to the former guild leader.

Upon hearing this, the former guild leader’s expression shifted slightly, “So much has happened, huh?”

“A level 70 Ancient Black Dragon, huh…”

“It’s fortunate these kids managed to hold it off; otherwise, we would have been in big trouble.”

“Manager Ying mentioned that the Black Dragon needs to be dealt with within a year,” the secretary noted.

“That’s a minor issue,” the former guild leader said. “Did you say that the cat and Lu Ran nearly drained the treasury of advanced and low-level resources?”

After a pause, the secretary replied, “Pretty much. It was the twelve branches that made the decision. Although some in the governing management disagreed, the twelve branches overruled them.”

“Haha,” the former guild leader chuckled. “Well, as long as the matter is resolved satisfactorily, there’s nothing for anyone to complain about. They do have some guts, and I have to admit, I’m impressed with that cat’s capability. As for that boy Lu Ran having such potential, that’s no surprise to me.”

“I honestly thought that cat was going to bolt with the resources…” the secretary confessed.

“Then it would have been in big trouble. Unless it fled to the Star Moon Federation, I would have turned it into cat-head cookies,” the old man stated.

“Oh, right, President, Manager Ying contacted me and said Lu Ran wants to meet you once you’re available.”

“Lu Ran, huh?” the former guild leader mused. “Where is he now?”

“He should be on the other shore island.”

“The other shore island… that’s far. Arrange for us to meet in Infinite City.”

That afternoon.

“Lu Lu Lu Ran-“

Lu Ran emerged once again from the necromancy secret realm. Despite nurturing the artifact spirit for so many days, there still wasn’t any sign of activity. However, with abundant resources, he wasn’t worried about enhancing the overall strength of his team.

Zhu Kaixin rushed over, signaling Lu Ran not to proceed with another secret realm challenge: “The former guild leader is out.”

“Get ready to head to Infinite City. He wants to see you.”

“Hmm, Manager Ying said to meet at the cat-eared maid café in Public Infinite City.”

Lu Ran was surprised. “The former guild leader likes that sort of place?”

Pig Deity: ?

“What are you talking about? It’s obviously just a convenient place to talk!”

Pig Deity pointed at Lu Ran, implying how ridiculous it was to think that the former guild leader at his age would be interested in catgirls.