Beast Taming: My System is Bugged

Chapter 170 - 168: Ah Kun’s Evolution

Gu Ming hadn’t signed a Pet Beast Contract with Ah Kun.

As a result, he couldn’t inspect the condition of Ah Kun’s body. If it weren’t for a notification from his system, he wouldn’t have known that its Dantian had begun to revive.

So, while Gu Ming was giving his lecture on the Dao, he also activated the Old Deng’s Health Array in his mind, generating Spiritual Waves and spreading them into Ah Kun’s body to check on its condition.

This was the first time in a long while that he had checked on the Dantian inside Ah Kun’s body.

The Dantian he had seen before was a desolate wasteland, like parched soil, with almost no Life Breath.

But now, he saw the winter-shrouded Dantian glowing with spiritual light. It held the "green" promise of spring, as if it were finally emerging from winter.

If before it was a land where no seeds could be planted, now it was fertile enough for seeds of life to take root and sprout. This was truly a joyous occasion.

Meanwhile, Ma Tianba, who was also present, sensed the sudden fluctuations Gu Ming released, which were similar to Divine Sense, and thought something special was happening.

It immediately followed the direction of Gu Ming’s Divine Sense and glanced over, seeing the Dantian inside Ah Kun’s body brimming with life potential under the nourishment of the Holy Water.

It made a sound of surprise.

It had checked this old Grouper Fish’s lifespan before. It was a Pet Beast on the verge of death, with absolutely no potential for Evolution.

’Could the Holy Water really have helped it this much?’

It was skeptical. Racking its brain, it still couldn’t figure it out and could only attribute it to a miracle of nature.

Ma Tianba withdrew its Divine Sense, not lingering on Ah Kun for too long. It was still in the middle of Foundation Establishment, gradually forming the complete outer shape of the tripod’s body.

Logically, its Foundation Establishment should have been modeled after a Bronze Tripod of the Angel Race, but reality wasn’t so convenient. Just being able to establish a foundation was already incredibly lucky, so it didn’t push its luck.

Besides, the artistic conception of the Dragon Clan Daoist Skill wasn’t bad in its opinion. Perhaps it could even bring some inspiration and take its own Daoist Skills to the next level.

It was at this moment that the incomparably powerful Magic Power Inner Cores inside Ma Tianba were drawn to the nearly complete Foundation Establishment Platform, circling above the center of the tripod.

Those six powerful Magic Power Inner Cores were like six shining stars, glittering brilliantly within its Dantian Realm.

Bathed in their light, the Dragon Pattern Tripod below let out waves of draconic roars.

A phantom of an Ancient Dragon bathed in the Holy Light, unexpectedly taking on the majesty of a "Holy Dragon," which made Ma Tianba sigh in amazement again and again.

’You really do see something new every day!’

Only when it got serious and went all out could its Magic Power Inner Cores burst forth with such a dazzling radiance.

But now, under the mysterious pull of the Foundation Establishment Platform, all six Magic Power Inner Cores shone in unison. It could feel its own combat power rise by half a step.

It was certain that once its Foundation Establishment was complete, its combat power would double.

That was terrifying.

At its level, any increase in combat power, no matter how small, was a significant leap.

If its combat power were to double from its original level... ’Could this be the method to evolve to Seven-star?’

It had originally planned to use the Frozen Pill Method to evolve its Mana, but the Foundation Establishment Method had given it an unexpected, pleasant surprise.

Thinking of this, it couldn’t help but snort softly.

’If only this little guy Gu Ming had met me a few years earlier.’

It subconsciously glanced at Gu Ming. Unfortunately, his Sea of Consciousness Cultivation was still too weak.

However, the thought merely flashed through its mind and was gone.

’Becoming someone else’s Pet Beast? That’s absolutely impossible.’

After so many years, it had long since grown accustomed to a free and unrestrained life and was not used to living with a human Beastmaster.

’But if it were Elder Gu... It might not be out of the question,’ Ma Tianba thought.

’No, no, forget it.’

Ma Tianba shook its head, clearing the thoughts from its mind.

...

Gu Ming walked over to Ah Kun and stroked it.

After many days of careful feeding and care, it now had the potential to evolve.

’Why not take this opportunity to have Ma Tianba help? It can infuse Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi and temper Ah Kun with the Frozen Pill Method.’

Gu Ming was a man of action. During a break after a segment of his lecture, he directly made his request to Ma Tianba.

"Ma Tianba, can you help it with the tempering for the Frozen Pill Method?" Gu Ming asked.

Ma Tianba looked over again, carefully inspecting Ah Kun and scanning it inside and out several times.

Don’t be fooled by the old Grouper Fish’s nearly-shed scales, murky eyes, and aged fins.

The condition of its body wasn’t nearly as bad as its appearance suggested. At its age, it was actually still growing flesh! Many parts of its body were showing signs of reverse aging. In terms of total Life Force, it was hardly inferior to the Sunflower Seed-eating Hamster.

One had to remember that the Sunflower Seed-eating Hamster was already a One-star Beast post-Evolution, and its Life Force had already undergone a major leap in level.

This showed that Ah Kun had also reached the minimum standard for Evolution. The only problem was that the condition of its Dantian was still far from satisfactory.

Under the probing of Ma Tianba’s Divine Sense, that Dantian still couldn’t withstand any violent tempering.

If Ma Tianba were to use the Frozen Pill Method, the pressure from the tempering alone would likely cause the Dantian to rupture after just a few strikes.

Therefore, among everyone present, aside from Ma Tianba, no other person or beast could act as Ah Kun’s protector during the process.

The requirements for the Frozen Pill Method weren’t particularly high, but for an elderly pet, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it was a death sentence.

Gu Ming requested this sincerely, and Ah Kun also flapped its fins, pleading for Ma Tianba’s help as tears squeezed from its murky old eyes.

Ma Tianba snorted, raising its head. "I can."

It had no reason to refuse Gu Ming.

Besides, it still needed something from Gu Ming—to listen to his lectures on the Foundation Establishment Method.

Even though Gu Ming lectured on it repeatedly, Ma Tianba could always find new meaning in his words, making it feel that the Foundation Establishment Method was increasingly profound and unfathomable.

Gu Ming’s face lit up with joy. The Gu Family Parents looked at each other; they weren’t surprised that Gu Ming was still thinking about Ah Kun, but they hadn’t expected him to have Ah Kun evolve at this particular juncture. After all, its body was very old.

Suddenly, Teacher Zhang placed a hand on the old couple and shook his head.

He then gestured with his eyes toward the Fish Tank, and his Divine Sense naturally extended to probe Ah Kun.

The two understood and simultaneously extended their own Divine Sense to explore the state of the Dantian inside Ah Kun.

Ah Kun was speechless. Its body was being examined by several waves of people and beasts in turn, leaving it with no privacy whatsoever.

Still, seeing their expressions of surprise, which were just like Ma Tianba’s, it felt a secret thrill of satisfaction.

’Heh heh, didn’t expect that, did you? The Kunpeng Devouring Secret Technique my master taught me can actually make my body age in reverse!’

Gu Ming’s parents were so surprised their jaws dropped.

They remembered that when Gu Ming had first brought Ah Kun home, they had secretly used their Divine Sense to check its condition and knew its time was almost up.

But looking at its condition now, there was no sign of impending death. This was clearly a Pet Beast in its Adult Stage, just entering middle age. Its body was on a decline, but it wasn’t so bad that it couldn’t be strengthened through training.

This meant Gu Ming’s decision was correct. Ah Kun really did have a chance to evolve, and now was the perfect time.

If they missed this chance with Ma Tianba, it might not be able to evolve even if another opportunity arose in the future.

「A moment later.」

Ma Tianba infused Holy Light, covering Ah Kun’s fragile Dantian and forming a soft protective membrane. At the same time, it twisted Spiritual Qi into the shape of a hammer.

"Ah Kun, use the Green Treasure Breathing Technique to absorb Spiritual Qi and the Devouring Secret Technique to convert it into Mana," Gu Ming instructed.

Ah Kun nodded and activated the Breathing Technique, taking huge gulps of the dense Water Attribute Spiritual Qi within the Fish Tank.

In an instant, countless streams of Water Spiritual Qi were drawn into its mouth from the small Fish Tank.

Soon, the Water Spiritual Qi in the Fish Tank was completely absorbed, and the remaining Holy Water grew dim. A vortex then formed on the water’s surface, pulling in Water Spiritual Qi from outside the tank and channeling it through the whirlpool into its mouth.

Ah Kun focused its mind on the incantation of the Kunpeng Devouring Secret Technique. Its body naturally began to digest at an incredible speed, storing some energy in its Big Fish Stomach as a reserve while the rest was funneled into its Dantian.

It was only then that everyone realized how high Ah Kun’s Skill Level with the Breathing Technique was. With nearly every breath, it could draw in Spiritual Qi from dozens of meters away.

This Fish Pet, Ah Kun, which had looked half-dead, had silently trained its Breathing Technique to such a high Skill Level.

By all accounts, it had already reached the Master Level of proficiency, second only to Cyan Treasure.

The most baffling part was that its rhythm of absorbing Spiritual Qi was continuous, as if its fish belly could hold a boundless amount of it.

Ma Tianba, however, could perceive that the Spiritual Qi inside Ah Kun’s body was converting into Mana at an absolutely terrifying speed.

The Big Fish Stomach, in particular, was storing an astonishing reserve of Mana.

Soon, the Mana in its body built up to its absolute limit. Ma Tianba seized the opportunity to help by applying pressure; the six Inner Core-stars in its own body released an invisible force, causing the pressure in Ah Kun’s Dantian Realm to skyrocket.

In less than a minute, the rudimentary form of a blue Pill began to take shape inside its body.