King of Beasts

How is this possible?

Seeing the transformation of the pendant, Lu Ran’s mind was clouded with confusion.

My family’s heirloom? I hadn’t noticed it since I came in… Was it also brought here?

But its transformation at this moment was too astonishing.

Originally, with the emergence of superpowers and the black card, Lu Ran felt that this world was strange enough, that there must be some unknown elements to it.

And now, discovering that even his family’s heirloom had an extraordinary origin only added to his amazement.

His expression was one of puzzlement.

He focused inward on the black contract card floating in his mindscape.

His thoughts were still muddled.

So, these supernatural forces were not modern, not only recently in existence!

They have been around since ancient times, for who knows how many years!

His family’s heirloom was surely tied to this series of supernatural forces as well.

“There’s too much I don’t understand.”

“Or rather, did an ancestor of mine also get chosen by the black card, becoming a beastmaster? And this antler, was it something they brought back from a secret realm?”

“However, if the black card has existed since ancient times, then why has there been no information about it until now…”

“If it weren’t for that poster, if the black card hadn’t appeared in my hands…”

“Anyway, just how many people have been chosen by this accursed place to become beastmasters?”

“Ow, ow!” While Lu Ran was lost in thought, General Ha, who had been stunned while looking at the pendant, came back to his senses and began to feel the pain of his wound again, crying out in agony.

Ouch, ouch, ouch…

His cries woke Lu Ran from his reverie, snapping him back to reality, as he said:

“I’ll use this to heal you.” The healing power from the divine deer, of epic and rare level, had to be stronger than those common hemostatic mushrooms found everywhere, right?

The pendant must have been in a sealed state before, having lost its original strength, which is why it hadn’t been detected initially.

And now, having come to this place and absorbed a certain amount of ‘supernatural energy’, it had awakened, that must be it.

“Healing power.”

Holding the hemostatic mushroom, Lu Ran looked at General Ha and pulled off the pendant.

In that instant, holding the contract card, that familiar sensation returned to Lu Ran.

He took a deep breath.

Focusing his intention on healing General Ha, he locked it onto the pendant.

The next moment, the divine deer pendant emitted a sparkling golden light!

Then, the golden light enveloped General Ha’s wounds, and under Lu Ran’s watchful eye, an incredible scene unfolded.

The torn wounds on General Ha’s body began to heal rapidly.

In just a few seconds, the bloody injuries had completely healed, without even a scar left behind.

Except for a few bald patches where the fur was missing, it was a near-perfect recovery!

Even General Ha felt a warm sensation throughout his body, as if nourished by the essence of plants.

“Oh!” In just a moment, General Ha was again stunned, not understanding what had just happened.

Lu Ran, however, had an expression of great joy.

He quickly patted the healed area on General Ha and said, “You’ve gone bald, but you’ve also become stronger

1

, and your skin has toughened up quite a bit!”

“Woof!” General Ha was taken aback, looking down at his body with heartache, but then he turned his excited gaze back to the antler in Lu Ran’s hand.

“Although I don’t know what’s going on, it seems we’ve become invincible,” Lu Ran said with a smile.

Forget it, the questions about the heirloom can wait until we return.

“Woof Woof!!” General Ha’s eyes sparkled like flashlights, nodding frantically, feeling that with this pendant, not just five cats, he could take on fifty!

This item was simply too powerful. With it, as long as one wasn’t instantly killed, what injuries couldn’t be healed?

“Don’t get carried away,” Lu Ran said. “We can’t place all our hopes on the protection of our ancestors, but this surprise… it changes the plan a bit.”

He gripped the pendant tightly, took a deep breath, and recalled the face of his mother.

Although Lu Ran didn’t know the specifics about the divine deer pendant, he understood that this item was their greatest reliance at the moment, their security in this trial secret realm… The feasibility of levelling up in their plan had significantly increased once again.

…

Having obtained an epic item, Lu Ran felt that to continue playing it safe would be an injustice to the heirloom left by his ancestors.

After slaying two demon cats, General Ha progressed from level 1 to level 2. So, what about from level 2 to level 3?

Lu Ran wanted General Ha to level up as much as possible here, gaining stronger combat capabilities.

Being slow by one step can mean lagging at every step, and this truth applies everywhere. Given the opportunity, Lu Ran wasn’t planning to miss any chance to harvest resources.

If there were ever a crisis in the future, having enough strength would mean not only better self-preservation but also the ability to protect those he cherished.

Why couldn’t he be the “tall one”?

Someone had to stand at the pinnacle of the world.

If he could reign supreme in bug fighting, why not in beast taming?

“With this continued increase in strength, even if that dream becomes a reality, I should be able to stop those monsters from destroying the city under my feet.”

Thinking of that dream, Lu Ran felt even more motivated.

Four hours later.

Deep in the thick forest.

“Idiot, didn’t I tell you? Although we have an item that can heal wounds, we should still try our best to avoid getting hurt!”

After recovering, Lu Ran and General Ha, fueled by greater ambition, started to proactively hunt for prey.

During this time, they encountered some new supernatural beings.

Most were between level 1 and level 3.

Their species level was mostly lower supernatural.

Take the tooth-eared rabbit, for instance – an extremely aggressive type of rabbit, seeking its own doom!

Or the giant rat beast, which looked bigger than a duck and was rather well-formed.

It was a pity that without the proper tools – and since they were phantoms – Lu Ran couldn’t dissect and study these unseen creatures, which was something he would have been inclined to do.

These creatures, without exception, stood no chance against General Ha, even if they were 1 or 2 levels higher.

In comparison, those demon cats were actually a bit harder to deal with. After all, it’s called the Forest of the Demon Cat; these creatures were probably just the demon cats’ prey.

This made Lu Ran feel that facing these guys was the kind of difficulty one should expect in a novice secret realm.

However, aside from these, there were also some tough customers, like the middle supernatural species level 3 green snake that General Ha had just taken care of.

Of course, General Ha himself also suffered quite a bit of damage.

Perhaps it was the cumulative effect of the healing power of the divine deer pendant, General Ha felt a sense of security that led it to adopt a more brutal fighting style. For victory, it now resorted to trading blow for blow, a savage tactic.

Such methods are quite extreme in nature, where most battles are survival-driven or for food. Incurring injuries means straying from life, but General Ha was indifferent to this. Quickly, it developed a new fighting style that even Lu Ran had to admit was a testament to the dog’s innate talent.

But this recklessness was prone to accidents!

Take the snake, for instance—it was venomous! Thankfully, they had collected antidote herb along the way.

“Woof.” Pinning down the large snake, General Ha wore an innocent expression.

By now, its level had reached level 3.

This had both General Ha and Lu Ran in a state of extreme excitement.

If they could keep leveling up at this pace, then within just 24 hours, they could ensure that they would be able to fight in high spirits the whole time. After all, getting stronger is truly exhilarating.

However, despite the thrill of leveling up, they decided to pause their journey for a moment.

Lu Ran discovered traces of human activity.

It was a tattered tent.

The big snake they had just dealt with had been guarding near this tent.

Approaching the tent with caution, they encountered no further incidents.

Inside the tent, besides a yellowing travel journal, there was nothing else.

Lu Ran picked up the travel journal, excitedly flipping through it. He couldn’t understand the text, but perhaps because of the Eye of Data, he was able to grasp its meaning.

This is the first stop on my journey, the once serene deep forest, now the Forest of the Demon Cat.

I came here full of confidence to investigate the true cause of the forest anomaly from years ago, but I was wrong.

Father was right; I shouldn’t have come here…

The travel journal ended abruptly.

“That’s it?” Lu Ran was taken aback.

“Riddle man, get out of the secret realm!” Lu Ran was frustrated by the scant information recorded in the travel journal.

He had hoped that, aside from the trial mission, he might unlock some hidden quest.

Even without the travel journal, he knew that “forest anomaly” was a key phrase for this secret realm.

“Woof.” Nearby, General Ha urged Boss Lu to stay calm.

Let’s go level up.

“Right, we only have one day.” Lu Ran sighed, mainly because there was too little information about the Forest of the Demon Cat, and given their weak strength, even if the secret realm held other secrets, exploring them would likely be troublesome.

But this travel journal, after careful analysis by Lu Ran, did reveal some information…

Seeking the true cause of the anomaly… Perhaps it suggests that the commonly known black rainstorm, which triggers mutations in creatures, is only a superficial reason.

The father of the person who left the travel journal didn’t want him to come here, which could mean that his father knew some inside information, indicating that the journal owner likely came from a notable background.

Lu Ran remembered these details, and then, it was time to focus on leveling up, as remembering these details was of no use at the moment.

Gradually, Lu Ran and General Ha became engrossed in leveling up, continuously traversing the Forest of the Demon Cat.

Along the way, they did not encounter enemies that were too difficult to handle. The toughest situation was facing a group of demon cats at once.

In such cases, getting injured was inevitable. If it were a normal Beast Taming duo, even if they could win, their injuries would likely prevent them from going on.

But for Lu Ran, who had the divine deer antler, injuries were the least of their concerns.

“Level 4!”

“This is too hard.”

Time passed by, and Lu Ran, who could see the mission countdown, was constantly watching the “one-day limit.”

At this moment, they had been on the move for nearly 24 hours, either searching for monsters or fighting. If not for the fruit that replenished their energy, both he and General Ha would have been exhausted long ago.

Even a sled dog couldn’t withstand such an ordeal.

The growth from level 3 to level 4 was relatively quick for General Ha, but the process from level 3 to level 4 took nearly a full day for Lu Ran and General Ha, and they still hadn’t completed it.

There was no progress bar for the growth level, so Lu Ran and his companion could only fight as much as possible, after all, it was the only way they knew to level up.

Fortunately, hard work pays off. With just 1 minute left on the mission countdown, General Ha finally managed to defeat one last demon cat and raised its growth level to 4.

And then, an even more exhilarating event occurred for Lu Ran!

Congratulations on completing the novice trial.

Rating: S-level!

Prompt: Trial ratings are divided into nine levels: SSS, SS, S, A, B, C, D, E, F.

Congratulations on obtaining an identity card.

Congratulations on acquiring 10,000 crystal coins.

Congratulations on obtaining advanced resources, meteorite mine.

Congratulations on obtaining advanced resources, attribute awakening fruit (grass).

Congratulations on acquiring the beast taming skill: super beast mimicry.

Congratulations on acquiring the Eye of Data (primary).

Please choose your return location, 1: Initial teleport point, 2: Infinite City!

Prompt: Infinite City is a large, safe area active with beastmasters who have passed the novice trial. It contains various special facilities serving beastmasters.

“It’s over…” A series of prompts appeared, and Lu Ran felt a great weight lifted off his shoulders. Then, unexpectedly, his attention was drawn to the prompt about the return location.

Footnote:

1. You’ve gone bald, but you’ve also become stronger(你变秃了，也变强了):

   This quote originates from the Japanese anime “One Punch Man,” where the protagonist Saitama has a famous line: “I’ve become bald, and I’ve also become stronger.”