Starting with the Broken-Winged Frost Butterfly: Beast Taming

Chapter 92 Guardian Evolution!

Deep within the crevice, the light of day had long since vanished, and a damp, cold wind swept through the ravines, the surrounding silence chilling to the bone.

In a tunnel, the three kings of beasts gathered.

One of them resembles the leg of a giant elephant.

Secondly, it has an antique bronze jar body.

Thirdly, there is the Emerald Magic Wand.

The immense power collided violently in the air.

The earth element's heaviness, the water element's vastness, and the wood element's vibrant life force counteract each other, twisting into a turbulent vortex of energy.

"The Elephant Cudgel, the River-Sealing Jar, the Scepter of Life —"

"Every single one of them is a top-tier weapon/beast—"

"The Azure Elephant Cudgel can split mountains and cleave the earth, the River Sealing Jar is good at sealing, but the most difficult to deal with is the Scepter of Life, which is almost impossible to kill with its endless vitality."

"Indeed, any one of them could dominate a region if released. If they joined forces, how dare the other kings of beasts treat them with disrespect?"

Crocodile Sister crossed her arms, A Dou rested his head on his pillow, and Ma Ye had his hands in his pockets, chatting idly.

"—Little Life, you're not even good at fighting, how could you possibly become a guardian spirit?"

When the Scepter of Life spoke again, everyone was stunned.

For a full ten seconds, everyone's face was tense, and they dared not utter a sound.

"It just said—the spirit of the boundary?"

"That can't be right. The legend of the Guardian Spirit has never been proven. I've always taken it as a story. Could it be that it's not true?"

My preconceived notions began to waver.

Zhu Ran remained silent, his brows furrowed, his gaze fixed on the Scepter of Life, struggling to process this sudden and bombshell news.

Guardian Spirit!

Legend has it that there exists an extremely special way of evolution in the world: when an extraordinary being deeply assimilates to the fundamental laws of a region, it can use the power of that region to complete its transformation and become the guardian spirit of that place.

This is "Guardian Evolution"!

It requires paying a heavy price, such as being deeply bound to the fate of the land, remaining there forever, never leaving.

But it can elevate one's bloodline to its highest level!

"A mature A-rank weapon beast, once it becomes a guardian spirit and resides in the ancient kingdom of weapons, is equivalent to an S-rank beast —"

"S-rank signifies reaching the pinnacle of maturity; its true combat strength can rival that of a fully-fledged C-rank!"

"The guardian beast of the south gate of Zhongdu University, that 'Wilderness Spine Dragon,' is only at the fully evolved C-rank —"

"Here, the kings of beasts, if either one seizes the opportunity, are considered equals?!"

A Dou's eyes shone brightly, his fists were clenched tightly, and his knuckles cracked slightly.

"If it's true, I understand why these kings of beasts are so eager to get their hands on it. If it were me, I'd go crazy too—"

"We can't let them succeed! What if they create a guardian spirit that harbors great hostility towards humanity? What will happen to the surviving students?" Ma Ye said worriedly.

"We must stop them!" Crocodile Sister's eyes were resolute, her murderous aura chilling.

"But—" Tang Jiamu was lost in thought, his fingertips unconsciously stroking his chin, "Have you ever considered why the secret realm closed its gates?"

"If the guardian spirits are truly bound to the fate of the earth."

"This extraordinary opportunity has been created, yet no weapon or beast has been inherited."

"If the order of this world is never restored, will we never be able to go back?"

"Professor Tang, you mean—" Sister Crocodile murmured, "The closure of the passage was an accident, and our intrusion just happened to disrupt the beasts' revelry?"

"I tend to agree with this conclusion," Tang Jiamu nodded.

"This is really tricky." A Dou scratched his head. "Stopping them doesn't work; we're stuck in the middle. What should we do?"

"Is it possible for the Guardian Spirit to be inherited by a Beast Bound by a Fate Contract?" Zhu Ran suddenly asked.

Tang Jiamu glanced at Zhu Ran with some surprise, then lowered his head to ponder, "Ordinary ones definitely won't do; it must be a weapon beast, preferably one born in this secret realm—"

Ma Ye's eyes lit up. "That's it! We capture a king of beasts, have someone sign a contract with it, and then help it snatch a spot—wouldn't the opportunity fall into our own hands?"

"But there's still a problem with that."

Zhu Ran said solemnly, "Becoming a guardian spirit means bearing the corresponding karma. If one cannot leave the secret realm, will the beast tamer be trapped in this place for the rest of their life?"

"this----"

Ma Ye was taken aback. Putting himself in the shoes of the person in question, his voice suddenly lowered: "Being trapped in this godforsaken place for the rest of my life, what's the difference between that and being in prison? —"

"Then, what about dissolving the life contract?"

Qin Taozhi, who had been listening attentively, suddenly interjected, "Sealing cards are difficult to use to capture beasts, let alone A-level beasts."

"If I use the life contract to capture the King of Beasts, help it take that position, and then use some method to break the life contract afterward, wouldn't that be a win-win situation?"

Sister Crocodile couldn't help but say, "Breaking the life contract through a means other than death is no different from being worse than dead. What kind of happy ending is this?!"

"If it can save three hundred people from escaping, the sacrifice of one person is insignificant," Qin Tao said calmly.

"You have S-level potential; you'll easily advance to the third life level in the future."

Ma Ye hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Is it really appropriate to have this kind of awareness?"

Qin Tao shook her head. "If someone has to bear the burden, then the descendants of the Qin family will not shirk their responsibility."

Everyone was filled with awe and respect.

After finishing his toast, Zhu Ranqi coughed lightly and said with a strange expression, "Actually, it's not like I can't live without you—"

Seeing the six people shift their gaze and all turn to look at him, Zhu Ran forced a smile and said, "I have already contracted a beast, and I was once the king of beasts—"

"once?"

"also?"

A Dou and Ma Ye were both puzzled.

"It's run into a few problems now, and its strength is not what it used to be, but with some effort, it's not entirely hopeless," Zhu Ran said with a laugh.

Among the missing reversal materials, an A-grade mature non-soldier beast life essence is required. This thing can only be borrowed from teammates, hoping to capture it in the secret realm—give up on that idea as soon as possible.

Therefore, Zhu Ran made this request in order to give a preventative measure.

Otherwise, everyone would be talking about the King of Beasts, and his sudden summoning of an ancient magic mirror covered in bloodline cracks would be too dramatic.

"Although I don't understand your plan, do you mean you're willing to sacrifice yourself for the benefit of others?"

Zhu Ran nodded slightly: "You can include me as an option, giving you more choices and more options."

A Dou chuckled, "Good lad, you've got guts! Once we escape this ordeal, I'll treat you to a drink!"

Ma Ye laughed and said, "If you were imprisoned in the secret realm, you might be able to take over from Sister Crocodile and become a leader, ding-dong!"

Crocodile Sister was about to speak.

Not far away, the rock strata trembled, and a chilling wind howled. Another king of beasts approached, and a bone-chilling cold spread. A hoarse mental wave echoed in the tunnel: "I smell" the scent of humans. Cangxiang, Fenghe, Xiaoming, how could you be so foolish? You were being monitored and listened to without realizing it, and you're even leaking my clan's secrets?"