Chapter 102 - The Advanced Fiery Scorpion

-But why is it different from when I looked at the Psychedelic Ghost-Patterned Butterfly’s Cultivating Directions back then?- Zhang Che grew even more confused. He used his ‘data eyes’ and looked at the Psychedelic Ghost-Patterned Butterfly by his side again. He discovered that it was the same as the first time he saw it; there was only one item under the ‘Cultivating Directions’ column, which required a series of weird-sounding herbs.

Zhang Che finally understood. It was likely that subdued beasts of different species had different methods to advance.

Thus, he looked at the attributes of his other subdued beasts. As expected, he discovered slight differences in each of them.

However, there was a similarity between all of his subdued beasts’ Cultivating Directions, and that was an advancement could be achieved via using different herbs to concoct a cultivating fluid and soaking the beast card in it.

So it seemed that beast card cultivators were onto the most reliable method. The decades worth of research were not in vain.

Natural treasures or whatnot were all up to chance. Most people would never come across a single one in their lives. Although the chances of this happening wasn’t as exaggerated as striking the lottery, it shouldn’t be far from it. Therefore, wanting to rely on such a method to strengthen their subdued beasts in the long run was not recommended.

As for letting their subdued beast consume the corpses of other similar beasts, that had many problems as well.

First, this method was not suitable for every subdued beast. No one could be sure of whether their subdued beast could advance via this method. Second, the exotic beast corpses could only be obtained on Mercury, and you might not find a suitable one. Finally, this was the most arduous method, and most subdued beasts that relied on such a method to advance themselves only managed to raise their levels, it was really difficult to raise their quality.

In conclusion, it wasn’t strange that no one held any importance to using such a method to advance their beasts.

“Though, I really want to try and see how many poison-type corpses the Fiery Scorpion needs to consume before advancing to two-star rank.”

Since Zhang Che had his ‘data eyes’, and that the frisky monkey could obtain corpses in the beast world, this wasn’t a problem at all.

Moreover, the most troubling problem he had to deal with right now was that his subdued beasts’ levels wouldn’t increase, which limited the strengths of his beasts to a large degree.

As for their quality?

Oh ho ho, this was the grave problem most people had to face, which happened to be a problem not on Zhang Che’s plate.

With the godly item that was the rainbow crystal, Zhang Che could raise all of his beasts to the limits of their potential. All he needed was time.

Now, with the chance to prove whether he could make up for his beasts’ shortcomings, why wouldn’t Zhang Che give it a try?

As for the matter about beast cards, it wasn’t important for now. He wasn’t lacking in funds, anyway. When he advanced to a Tier Four beastmaster and could employ the Scarlet Flame Drake, there would be tons of exotic beasts waiting for him to kill them.

The most important point was that Zhang Che could obtain soul force points even if the frisky monkey was the one who killed the exotic beasts. It wouldn’t hinder his journey to advancing his beastmaster Tier, so why not?

The best part about this was that despite the small amount of exotic beasts in the outskirts of this mountain range, it was filled with poison-type beasts. Wasn’t that right up the alley of the Fiery Scorpion?

If there was anything that made Zhang Che felt dissatisfied with, it would be that he brought too few arrows on this trip to the beast world. There were only a hundred and twenty M-type armor-piercing arrows, and even though he retrieved some of the used arrows, there were barely a hundred of them left.

“But, with this many arrows, it should be enough to hunt until the Fiery Scorpion levels up.”

What came afterwards was the Gluttony Monkey’s show time.

The defensive strength of poison-type exotic beasts weren’t high. Even insects which had carapaces, like scorpions or centipedes, weren’t without weaknesses. The frisky monkey’s arrows could penetrate areas that weren’t covered by the carapaces.

Just like that, with a spider here, a centipede there, the number of insects shot to death by the frisky monkey soon hit double digits. The Fiery Scorpion kept waving its large pincers in joy, stuffing itself.

There wasn’t any hint of joy on Zhang Che’s face, however.

The Fiery Scorpion ate over a dozen poisonous insects’ corpse or poison glands, and yet there was still no signs of it advancing. He realized that this method of advancement was indeed the most arduous one.

The Fiery Scorpion was the subdued beast that had been by Zhang Che’s side since the beginning. It was originally at level nine and had risen to level ten some time ago. All it needed right now was an opportunity at breakthrough, and yet it still proved to be so difficult. It really left one in despair.

After killing so many poison-type beasts, even if the drop rate was only twenty percent, Zhang Che would have gotten at least two beast cards. Although their quality was inferior to the Fiery Scorpion’s, their level was at least one star tier higher. The prices of their beast cards would be comparable to the Fiery Scorpion’s.

Simply put, the investment and its returns were totally off.

No, there wasn’t any freaking returns to speak of at all, for now at least!

If it wasn’t for the fact that the Fiery Scorpion held some meaning for Zhang Che, he wouldn’t have bothered spending any time on it right now. This beast’s strength was no longer keeping up with his development. It would be sidelined, even if he didn’t sell it.

– Forget it. If this fellow still doesn’t advance after eating a couple more exotic beasts, I can only take the loss and move on ,- Zhang Che thought, shaking his head in defeat.

In any case, when he appeared in his real identity, he definitely couldn’t let others know that he was already a Tier Three beastmaster. The Fiery Scorpion could still come in useful as his disguise. It wouldn’t be as bad as being banished into the Cold Palace.¹

Sometimes, things happen in such a way that they occur when you were about to give up, catching you by surprise.

The Gluttony Monkey shot another arrow, killing a strange worm with poisonous fur. The Fiery Scorpion rushed forward and ate that disgusting worm. Afterwards, its body suddenly froze on the spot.

“Is it happening!?” Zhang Che’s eyes lit up, staring at the stiffened Fiery Scorpion. He saw a faint hue of light being emitted by it, and a wave of crisp crackling sounds coming from the beast’s body.

Zhang Che suddenly noticed fissure patterns appearing on the Fiery Scorpion’s scarlet carapace through that layer of faint light, expanding quickly.

The light quickly faded from the cracked carapace, and it fell off like broken pottery.

After shedding its old shell, the Fiery Scorpion seemed to become slightly smaller in size. Its new shell initially had a slight milky-white color, but was quickly dyed red, looking even more radiant than before.

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[Fiery Scorpion]

Level: Two Star (Level 11)

Quality: Silver

Type: Original Combat Body

Characteristics: Poison Attribute Attacks, Strong Defense

Weakness: Vulnerable to Ice Elemental Attacks

Innate Attribute: Enhanced Fire Attribute Toxin, Able to Destroy Enemy’s Physical Body Faster

Potential: D Rank

Cultivating Directions: …

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Translator’s Note:

1 – Cold Palace refers to the place during the ancient Chinese period where members of the Chinese Emperor’s harem who fell out of favor were sent to live in.