Under One Person: Rebuilding the Glory of the Beast Master

[Evolution Complete]

【White Plus Black】

Breed: Iron-bristled Pig

[Current Evolution Stage: Beast (Beginner)]

[Potential Rating: D+]

【ability:

Ironfur Kill: The bristles harden like steel needles and can be actively released to inflict piercing damage on nearby targets.

Thick skin: The stratum corneum of the skin is three times thicker, providing stronger resistance to blunt and sharp objects.

Brute Force: Strength increased by 300%

[Note: This target has surpassed the limits of ordinary beasts and entered the realm of exotic beasts, and can continue to evolve.]

Zeng Su stared at the lines of text on the screen, unable to come to his senses for a long time.

A potential rating of D.

Baijiahei's original potential rating was E+, but after evolving, it reached D. Although it's only level one, the difference of level one is a bottomless chasm.

More importantly, there's the label "Mythical Beast (Beginner)".

In the tradition of beast tamers, "exotic beast" is a very weighty term. It is not a level that ordinary wild animals can reach through training, but rather requires generations of selection, careful breeding, and the perfect combination of favorable timing, location, and human factors before a single beast can be born.

In the two-hundred-year history of the Zeng family, there are only seven recorded strange beasts, the most recent one dating back to the generation of Zeng Qing'an's grandfather.

And now, at the age of eight, a strange beast has been born in his hands.

In the entire world of Under One Person, powerful beasts are extremely rare. The most famous ones are like Liu Kunsheng, a shaman from Northeast China. However, beings like Liu Kunsheng are not beasts, but rather exist somewhere between animals and spirits.

In *Under One Person*, only one character, Old Meng, appears as the "Beast Master," a temporary worker with connections to all official supernatural forces during the new era. Of course, in this current era, Old Meng's father probably hasn't even been born yet!

Furthermore, Lao Meng is no longer considered a beast master; he has applied the beast master's methods to another field, becoming a completely new supernatural profession: a biologist. This also shows that in the world of Under One Person, beast masters are truly pathetic, their skills having been lost to time.

However, things are about to change.

The first thing that changed was Bai Jiahei's physique. His body, which originally weighed four or five hundred pounds, was now at least two sizes bigger. The muscles on his shoulders and back bulged up like two small hills. His limbs were thicker than before, and his hooves were also bigger, making a dull "thump" sound when he stepped on the blue bricks.

Secondly, there's the fur color. Originally, the white and black coat had a black body and a white head, but now this feature is even more pronounced—the white fur on the head is so white it's almost shiny, as if it's been bleached, while the black fur on the body is so black it's almost black, with a faint metallic sheen.

The most noticeable change is in the mane.

The original mane of Baijiahei was short and stiff, similar to that of an ordinary wild boar. But now, a row of mane stands tall, extending from the back of its head to the base of its tail, each hair as thick as a chopstick, gleaming coldly in the snow.

Zeng Su reached out and touched it.

hard.

It wasn't the prickly hardness of ordinary bristles, but genuinely "hard"—like touching a row of steel needles. He flicked it with his finger, producing a crisp "ding," exactly like the sound of flicking a piece of metal.

"Good heavens," Zeng Su said. He had originally been thinking of using Baijiahei as a mount in the future, but now who would dare to sit on it? He was afraid that if he sat on it, it would be full of holes and he would immediately have his period.

Bai Jiahei turned to look at him, and his eyes had changed. Before, Bai Jiahei's eyes always gave people a dull, innocent (foolish) feeling, but now Bai Jiahei's eyes were clear and bright.

This is the brilliance of wisdom.

Bai Jiahei nudged Zeng Su's hand with its head, the force so great that Zeng Su staggered. No matter what it becomes, the master is still the master.

"Alright, alright, I know you're happy." Zeng Su patted its head with a smile. "Wait—don't move yet, let me see your teeth."

He pried open Bai Jiahei's mouth.

The white and black tusks, which were originally only two inches long, have now grown to nearly five inches, and their shape has changed—they are no longer the upward-curving tusks of ordinary wild boars, but extend straight forward with sharp tips like two daggers.

If this thing were to stab someone, it would go right through them.

Zeng Su released his grip, took two steps back, and looked Bai Jiahei up and down.

"Iron-mane Boar..." he muttered the name of this evolutionary path, thinking that the name was quite fitting.

With its iron-like bristles, iron-like tusks, and muscles as thick as iron, this isn't a pig; it's clearly a tank dressed in pigskin.

He suddenly remembered the words on the system panel: "Can continue to evolve."

A D+ Ironfur Boar is already this powerful, so what will it be like after another evolution? C-rank? B-rank? Or A-rank?

He took a deep breath, suppressing the jumbled thoughts in his mind. Now was not the time to think about these things; the most important thing now was—

"Su'er!"

Zeng Qing'an's voice came from outside the courtyard, filled with barely suppressed urgency and worry, "Su'er, are you alright? That commotion just now—can Grandpa come in?"

Zeng Su glanced at Bai Jiahei (a brand of diapers), then at his own cotton-padded coat soaked with sweat, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Grandpa, come in! It's alright!"

The courtyard gate was pushed open, and Zeng Qing'an was the first to rush in, followed by Zeng Runzu and several members of the Zeng family.

Everyone stopped in their tracks the moment they saw Baijiahei.

There was a full three seconds of silence; even breathing stopped, which showed the shock on everyone's faces.

"This...this is Baijiahei?" Zeng Runzu's eyes widened, his mouth agape, as if he could fit an egg in it. "How did it become like this? Was that the noise we were just hearing?"

No one answered him, because everyone was stunned by Bai Jiahei's current appearance.

A colossal beast, its body bulging with muscles, its mane standing upright like steel needles, its fangs like swords, and its eyes sharp, stood there like a monster that had stepped out of ancient times.

What Zeng Qing'an cared about most was the aura emanating from Bai Jiahei.

As a seasoned practitioner who had spent his entire life practicing the methods of a beast master, he knew all too well what this Qi meant.

"A strange beast." Zeng Qing'an's voice trembled slightly. "This is... a strange beast."

These two words were like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, causing an uproar among all the Zeng family members present.

"A strange beast? Chieftain, you're saying this is a strange beast?"

"That can't be right. How many years has it been since the Zeng family produced a strange beast?"

"This Qi... it really is the Qi that only strange beasts possess!"

"Su'er is only eight years old, and he's already raising a strange beast at eight?"

Ignoring the surrounding noise, Zeng Qingan walked step by step to Bai Jiahei, hesitated for a moment, and gently pressed his hand on Bai Jiahei's shoulder blade.

Bai Jiahei did not resist; in fact, he shifted his body slightly to allow Zeng Qingan's hand to press against him more firmly.

Zeng Qing'an's Qi entered Bai Jiahei's body, and then he fell silent.

Silent for a long time.

It took so long that Zeng Runzu couldn't help but call out "Dad" before he slowly withdrew his hand, turned around, and looked at his grandson.

Zeng Su stood in the courtyard, his cotton-padded coat soaked with sweat and clinging to his body, his hair wet, and a few gray marks on his face. But in Zeng Qing'an's eyes, this eight-year-old child was radiant.

"Su'er," Zeng Qing'an's voice was a little hoarse, "How did you do that?"

Zeng Su had already prepared his answer to this question.

"This is my innate ability."

"Okay." Zeng Qingan only said one word and didn't ask any more questions. Knowing this was enough.

He turned to face the clansmen who were still whispering among themselves, his voice not loud, but everyone could hear him clearly: "No one is allowed to talk about what happened today. You all know what the consequences will be if word gets out that the Zeng family has a strange beast."

Everyone's expression tightened, and they all nodded.

Zeng Family Village is too weak to hide any strange beasts. If people were to find out that the Zeng family produced a genius who could raise strange beasts at the age of eight—

That trouble is far greater than what Lord Ma's two hundred or so bandits could handle.

The principle that "possessing a treasure is a crime" is well known in the world of supernatural beings.

"Go back, everyone." Zeng Qing'an waved his hand. "Everyone should do their own job. Feed the pigs if you're supposed to, patrol if you're supposed to. Keep today's events to yourself."

The crowd responded and left the courtyard one after another.

Zeng Runzu walked at the back. When he reached the door, he turned back, glanced at Bai Jiahei, and then at Zeng Su. His curiosity reached its peak, but seeing his father, he didn't dare to ask any more questions and followed the others.

Only Zeng Qing'an, Zeng Su, and Bai Jiahei remained in the courtyard.

The snow started falling again, fine and dense, landing on the white and black iron-gray mane, making a rustling sound.

Zeng Qing'an sat down on the threshold, pulled out a pipe from his waist, stuffed it with a pinch of tobacco, lit it, and took a deep drag. The smoke billowed from his nostrils, torn apart by the cold wind.

But the atmosphere was completely different.

"Su'er," Zeng Qing'an spoke, his voice much lower than usual, "Do you know how much a strange beast is worth in our world of supernatural beings?"

Zeng Su thought for a moment and then shook his head, saying, "I don't know."

Zeng Qing'an shook his head: "One hundred taels of gold is the price of an ordinary exotic beast. As for Bai Jia Hei, although I haven't figured out its abilities yet, just based on the Qi it exudes, it's worth at least five hundred taels of gold. And there's no market for it."

Zeng Su remained silent.

"Do you know what this means?" Zeng Qing'an turned his head and looked at his grandson, his eyes filled with something Zeng Su had never seen before—not pride, not satisfaction, but a heavy, oppressive seriousness.

"This means that from today onwards, you are no longer an ordinary eight-year-old."

Zeng Qing'an tapped his pipe on the threshold, and the ash fell into the snow, extinguishing with a hiss.

"You are someone who holds five hundred taels of gold in your hand. In this world, five hundred taels of gold can do a lot of things. Some people will want to steal your gold, some people will want to buy your gold, and some people will want to turn you into their gold."

Zeng Su understood what his grandfather meant.

Exotic beasts are very valuable, worth hundreds of gold coins. But a beast master who can raise exotic beasts at the age of eight has never appeared in the world of supernatural beings. If anyone knew of his existence, various forces would swarm in like sharks smelling blood.

"That's why I told them not to tell anyone." Zeng Qing'an stood up, put his pipe back in his waistband, and the excitement on his face had completely disappeared, replaced by dejection and helplessness.

Then Zeng Qing'an sat down on the threshold without saying anything more. The tobacco in the pipe was refilled pot after pot. Zeng Su didn't say anything but stayed by his grandfather's side, and Bai Jiahei also lay down to the side.

Amidst the swirling smoke, Zeng Qing'an's gaze pierced through the courtyard wall and the swirling snow, landing on the Jianghu (martial arts world) he had traversed thirty years ago.

He thought of many people and many things.

He recalled a Miao Gu master he had met in western Hunan years ago. This master was exceptionally talented and could control the Golden Silkworm Gu at the age of twenty. He was known as a once-in-a-century genius, making him feel inferior to him.

What happened? Because he flaunted his wealth, he was targeted by the local chieftain, and the entire village was massacred overnight. The young man's tendons were severed, and he was kept like a dog in the chieftain's courtyard for three years to be raised with Gu poison, until he was finally tortured to death.

He recalled a disciple from a small sect he had met in Guanzhong who had mastered an exquisite flying sword technique, which even the older generation of masters praised highly, and he himself could only look up to him.

But because he was too outstanding, he was targeted by the "Quanxing" gang. They tried to recruit him, but when they failed, he was found dead in the street the next day, and his flying sword disappeared without a trace.

He recalled his father's last words as he held his hand: "Qing'an, our Zeng family's craft is good for making a living, but not for getting ahead. Remember, never let outsiders know that we have something good."

He didn't quite understand at the time, but after traveling around the world, he understood everything.

In this world, a genius without a powerful backer is like a piece of fat meat that everyone wants to take a bite out of.

The Zeng family was too small and too weak to protect Zeng Su.

Zeng Qing'an knocked the last bit of tobacco ash clean and looked at Zeng Su beside him. Bai Jiahei's massive body, like a small mountain, sheltered the two of them from the wind and snow.

"Grandpa, is there something you want to tell me?" Zeng Su asked.

Zeng Qing'an looked into his grandson's dark eyes, which were so deep that they didn't seem like those of an eight-year-old child.

He had always known that this grandson was no ordinary person, but today's events forced him to re-examine some things.

"Come on, let's go home and have dinner first, then Grandpa will have a good talk with you."

"Hmm!" Zeng Su nodded, then patted Bai Jiahei's head, and Bai Jiahei obediently ran back to its nest.

The grandmother and grandson entered the main room. Liu Hua had already reheated the food twice. As she placed it on the table, she was still muttering, "You two are such a handful! You're not even eating? Su'er is still so young, what if he gets hungry..."

"Grandma, I'm not hungry." Zeng Su sat down, picked up the bowl, and took a mouthful of rice.

"You have to eat, even if you're not hungry!" Liu Hua picked up another piece of cured meat for him with her chopsticks. "Look at you, you've gotten so thin."

Liu Hua is an ordinary person who can't manage too many things. All she knows is that she can't let her grandson suffer.

Zeng Qing'an barely touched his chopsticks. He held his teacup and watched Zeng Su eat. Only after Zeng Su had almost finished eating did he speak.

"Su'er, do you know about the Trinity Gate?"

Zeng Su paused for a moment.

Trinity Gate.

Of course he knew.

In the comic he read before his transmigration, the Trinity Sect was an extremely special entity.

The sect is the number one in the world of supernatural beings, with extremely strict rules and a very demanding system for accepting disciples. Each generation has few disciples, but each one is a top-notch expert.

More importantly, the Sanyi Sect has a rule: it does not accept people without roots or foundations, people with evil intentions, or people with mediocre talents.

These three rules effectively shut out the vast majority of people with supernatural abilities.

But what Zeng Su cared about most about the Sanyi Sect was not its power, but its later fate.

The Trinity Clan will face annihilation in the near future.

But that's a story for later. Right now, it's 1929. The Sanyi Sect is still at its peak, and the Great Immortal Zuo Ruotong is still alive. The Sanyi Sect is still the orthodox sect that the entire world of supernatural beings has to look up to.