Starting with the Broken-Winged Frost Butterfly: Beast Taming

Chapter 83 Supreme Soul Crystal

The dying words of the Xuan Yin Wan Hun Banner sent a shiver down one's spine, and the joy of turning defeat into victory vanished as quickly as if doused with ice water.

"Does this ancient kingdom still possess dormant, deadly weapons?"

"Judging from their tone, it's not just one or two—"

A gloomy atmosphere hung over everyone's hearts.

The weariness of the soul is magnified infinitely at this moment.

But the battle is not over yet.

The skull staff and the blood-soaked drum, like madmen, launched a fierce attack without regard for anything else.

"My elder brother has fallen; I will take you all down with me!"

The skull staff's jaws opened and closed as if weeping, and a fierce aura surged within its empty eye sockets.

Instead of deliberately condensing bone arrows and blades, it ignited all the necromantic essence stored within its body, causing countless bone fragments to rise into the air and mercilessly annihilate anything that approached.

"Thump!"

The rapid drumbeats came in waves, and the blood-soaked drumming also squeezed out the source of blood energy. Blood mist covered the sky and formed a thick barrier, preventing everyone from leaving.

"I'm sorry, I've reached my limit."

Meng Baixuan grasped the Taiping Stone Pendant, and a hemispherical protective shield rose up. On her pale face, she finally managed to force a smile.

"What a pity, if only we had held on a little longer."

Wei Dan regrets that although the four-day trip was short, the friendship forged through life and death is something that is hard to cultivate in the daily life of the city, and is therefore invaluable.

"Hiss hiss hiss!"

With a wild and untamed spirit, Mo Ji Mei Yao charged into the bone formation and engaged in a duel with the skull staff.

Not to be outdone, Xuexi set her sights on the Blood-Soaked Drum.

The six-pointed frost angel wings, dazzling and holy, moved as if entering an empty land, suppressing the blood-red great drum.

The rumbling sound continued for a while.

Finally, Mo Ji Mei Yao broke the skull staff, Xue Xi froze the blood and beat the drum, and the two sides were evenly matched.

"What exactly did the Xuan Yin Wan Hun Ban (Myriad Souls Banner of Dark Yin) mean before it died?"

Zhu Ran stepped forward and pressed for details about the skull staff.

Although its body was broken, a trace of its soul remained, and it was not completely dead.

"It means exactly what it says!"

The skull staff sneered, "You humans dare to invade our home so easily? Do you really think we're easy to bully?"

"To tell you the truth, the three of us brothers are among the more average in terms of military strength!"

"If any of the true strongmen of my clan awaken, you will all die!"

Zhu Ran frowned, his confusion deepening.

Could it be that those explorers of the secret realm overlooked something?

After scanning the area three times, I was certain that there were no more secrets in this hidden place; in reality, I had only glimpsed the tip of the iceberg.

The real "monster" is still lying dormant, waiting for its chance to emerge.

Zhu Ran couldn't help but feel a little uneasy thinking about this.

But when he continued to press him, the skull staff sneered again, and actually ended its own life, extinguishing its soul fire, leaving only two broken pieces of the staff on the ground.

"—If it's not a lie, we'd better report this information to our superiors as soon as possible!"

Gui Zizhi sighed softly, his gaze fixed on the dark depths, a lingering sense of melancholy and worry lingering between his brows.

"I hope it's not true."

Yin Xiong's throat bobbed, his voice hoarse: "If the Profound Yin Myriad Soul Banner, the Skull Staff, and the Blood Drum can be considered mediocre," he couldn't imagine how more powerful weapons and beasts would manifest themselves.

Everyone fell silent upon hearing this, and the cave was completely quiet.

Zhu Ran picked up a chip about the size of a thumbnail.

That was a strange object that fell down after the Xuan Yin Wan Hun Banner died and turned into dust.

As Qin Tao was about to leave, she examined the crystal and returned it, calmly saying, "This is a top-grade soul crystal that can aid in spiritual growth; it's almost impossible to find on the market."

Beside them, five pairs of eyes looked over, all revealing an unusual light.

After the Xuan Yin Wan Hun Banner died, it didn't even leave behind its physical body, but it gave birth to a crystal chip, which shows how valuable it is.

Upon hearing that something related to the soul was essential for a beast tamer's growth, the envy was almost overflowing.

Zhu Ran put it into his arms, appearing indifferent, as if he were accepting an ordinary object.

But her heart was already in turmoil.

Top-grade Soul Crystals can not only promote the spiritual growth of Beast Tamers, but also expand their potential and increase the possibility of them reaching the third life level in the future.

Those wealthy and noble families, upon hearing of this item, would be willing to fight for it even at an exorbitant price, for the sake of their family's inheritance and for the sake of their younger generations.

"Would you like the Skeleton Staff?"

Qin Taozhi picked up the two bone staffs and tossed them over: "Take these and play with them. Ordinary mature B-rank undead are like old men in front of these bone staffs, utterly vulnerable."

Zhu Ran was quite surprised, and even a little embarrassed.

Strictly speaking, Qin Taozhi contributed a great deal to this battle, and they should share the spoils equally.

"You want to beat the drums with blood?"

Zhu Ran made this guess because Xian Xue Lei Gu was seriously injured and was currently frozen, so he was still some distance from death.

"Not interested."

Qin Tao shook her head. "But what about you? A contract?"

"The Blood Drum is very suitable for large-scale battles. To some extent, the benefits it brings to the team have exceeded the scope of a mature A-level. It would be a pity to kill it."

Zhu Ran hesitated.

Qin Tao's expertise lies in the way of plants; she has no use for the ability to beat the drum with blood.

But on his side, Xuexi also "couldn't get going." The blood drumming couldn't affect the Broken-Winged Frost Butterfly, so how could it be considered an enhancement?

"Burning Flame—"

Wei Dan hesitated several times, the words welling up on his lips, but he couldn't bring himself to say them.

The two fought side by side and made a good impression on each other. As a pet trainer, he greatly changed his opinion of this non-pet trainer.

However, their relationship was still too superficial.

Blood-stained drums are so precious, how could it be his turn to make a contract? He couldn't even bear to pay half the price upfront!

Qin Tao casually replied, "Hand it over to the garrison in the secret realm and let them send it to the army. You won't be disappointed with the price."

Zhu Ran felt a slight stirring in his heart.

This is indeed the best solution.

Ordinary battle pet masters would be wasting their talents, but in the army, the blood and gore of battle pets can play a real role. In the end, the country and the common people will benefit, and with generous rewards, it can be called a win-win-win situation.

However, the transportation process must be handled with care. The guards stationed at the secret realm for the handover must also be mature A-level beings. Otherwise, if Xuexi is not present and Blood Drum breaks free prematurely, it could be disastrous.

"Where do you think that beast-head chain is hiding now?"

Meng Baixuan, standing behind the protective shield, said indignantly, "Honestly, I suspect they're in cahoots."

"The beast-head chain deliberately lured us here, and the Myriad Souls Banner of Profound Yin locked us up again—if it weren't for Zhu Ran and Hua Ji, many more of us would have perished!"

Upon hearing this, Gui Zizhi's face darkened: "I support this view. The beast-head chain has clearly gained sentience. It was the very first link in the trapping plan. Without it, we could not have broken into this valley."

"Find it!"

Yuwen Qingtian shouted, "Brother Wei, forget about the contract! It's best to kill this scoundrel. I won't feel at ease until I get my revenge!"

"good!"

Wei Dan rubbed his hands together, eager to get started.

Their team repeatedly encountered danger with the three beast brothers, and one teammate was even forced to leave the game. This score needs to be settled properly; it can't just be left like this.