King of Beasts

That day, Lu Ran returned to Jinling.

After clarifying General Ha’s background, Lu Ran breathed a sigh of relief.

The main reason for investigating General Ha’s origins was to understand the causes of its frenzied state.

Now, with the help of Dr. Gu, General Ha no longer loses its rationality arbitrarily.

The enhancement of combat power brought about by the frenzied state has been integrated into its normal state, a transformation that could be described as a rebirth.

“Now, it really feels like I’m clinging to Dr. Gu’s coattails…”

“Will Fang Lan say… after all, she knew Dr. Gu first?”

When Lu Ran returned to the Rainbow Heaven Dojo, the Sudden Death King was still sleeping.

It had been asleep when they teleported, and Lu Ran hadn’t woken it; now, it was still slumbering.

Lu Ran didn’t know much about Dr. Gu, but since the latter was a renowned figure in the beast taming realm of Xia Country, some basic information was often seen on various forums.

Dr. Gu is a very famous evolutionary scholar in the field of pet beast evolution, especially known for evolving a sovereign species Loong-type pet beast.

This achievement is unique in the modern world.

Currently, Gu Qingyi’s Loong pet is the only known true Loong-type in the world.

This refers to a purebred Loong-type, the kind that truly embodies the Loong as an attribute. Other beastmasters might have pet beasts that are somewhat close to Loong, termed sub-Dragons.

When Gu Qingyi evolved an Eastern Loong, it deeply stimulated the Western beast taming world, which hoped to evolve a giant dragon to compete with the Donghuang Alliance.

But so far, it seems they haven’t succeeded.

Thus, Dr. Gu also holds the title of Loong Tamer internationally.

“Traits related to ‘Loongs’ are not few in number.”

“But infusing a pet beast with related traits doesn’t guarantee that the pet beast will perfectly match and evolve into a Loong.”

“It’s very likely that Gu Qingyi could evolve a Loong-type sovereign because she possesses a pet beast that is 100% compatible with loong traits…”

“Can this guy… possibly match with dragon traits in the future?” Lu Ran glanced at the still-sleeping Sudden Death King.

Deep down, he indeed hoped to cultivate the Sudden Death King towards becoming a giant dragon.

The more Lu Ran learned, the more he realized the difficulty of the task.

For three years, the entire Western world has been trying, and yet, they have not successfully evolved a genuine giant dragon.

Even more, in their search for creatures with a high compatibility with dragon traits, they have started to study the resurrection of dinosaurs.

This clearly shows the Western world’s deep longing for Dragon-type creatures.

Next time, Lu Ran planned to have Dr. Gu evaluate the potential of the Sudden Death King.

“Being close to the source makes it easier to benefit,” Lu Ran thought. “Once I get to know Dr. Gu better, I can consult with her about Dragon-type related matters. If I can evolve a giant dragon before the Western world does, that would be fantastic…”

Thinking this, Lu Ran smiled. Both Eastern Loong and Western dragon species were in Xia Country, which would surely frustrate foreigners.

However, Lu Ran wasn’t overly optimistic. He suspected that Dr. Gu’s success might involve some unique encounters that couldn’t be replicated. After all, if it were replicable, Xia Country would not only have more than one loong species.

Perhaps she possessed an artifact similar to the divine deer pendant!

After returning, Lu Ran didn’t stay outside for long and teleported back to Infinite City.

Upon entering Infinite City, he eagerly opened the secret realm panel and started searching for Blizzard Mountain.

Name: Blizzard Mountain

Secret Realm Level: Novice Level

Difficulty: Ordinary Level

Challenge Crystal Coins: “Should I go in and have a look?” Lu Ran pondered for a moment. Since he was free, he finally decided to check it out.

From what he had learned from Gu Qingyi, Blizzard Mountain was difficult to conquer, but the death rate was low, so he felt safe to give it a try. If he couldn’t withstand it, he could always leave.

Since there were no enemies, only the struggle against nature itself, even if buried by snow, activating the teleport function at the moment of being buried would still offer a high chance of survival.

Would you like to spend 500 crystal coins to challenge the Blizzard Mountain secret realm?

Yes.

Lu Ran thought to himself.

At the same time, he summoned General Ha from the black card.

Teleport countdown 10…9…

…

Ten seconds later, Lu Ran and General Ha hadn’t fully acclimated when a biting cold wind enveloped them.

Despite the cold, both Lu Ran and General Ha found it bearable.

General Ha, being a snowfield dog, was naturally suited for icy environments. Lu Ran, thanks to his super beast mimicry, had a constitution several times stronger than an ordinary person, which made handling the snow and wind quite manageable.

“Wait a second,” Lu Ran thought. “General Ha, as a sled dog, returns to the snowy environment, and I’m entering it too. If we navigate this together, could it also enhance the compatibility of my super beast mimicry and give me better resistance to the cold?”

Lu Ran pondered this briefly but decided to first check the secret realm information.

Teleportation complete.

Current location: Blizzard Mountain (Novice Secret Realm)

Difficulty: Ordinary

Challenge mission: Navigate through the blizzard zone.

Secret realm introduction: Located in the northernmost part of the Empire, the area was once home to the ice wolf species. To expand its territory, the Empire’s Beast Taming Legion was mobilized to subdue the ferocious beasts of the snowy mountains and secure safe routes to other continents. It is said that after the extinction of the ice wolf species, their resentment and hatred transformed into endless blizzards, blocking the path of all who wish to advance.

Prompt 1: The maximum stay in the novice secret realm is 8 hours. During this period, challengers can choose to return at any time, with teleportation taking 10 seconds.

Prompt 2: …

“This is interesting…”

After reading the secret realm introduction, Lu Ran looked at General Ha, who was visibly excited.

It turned out that Blizzard Mountain was originally General Ha’s turf.

In addition to this, terms like the Empire, Beast Taming Legion, and other continents caught Lu Ran’s attention once more.

The beast tide in the Forest of the Demon Cat 20 years ago also seemed to have been dealt with by the Empire’s Beast Taming Legion, and the backstory of Blizzard Mountain mentioned the Empire again.

The presence of this Beast Taming Empire was indeed quite strong.

“I’m really looking forward to breaking through to level 10 and entering the breakthrough secret realms,” Lu Ran exhaled a breath of warm air. The current secret realms were mostly outdoor environments, but breaking through would offer the chance to encounter projections of humans from another world.

Lu Ran was increasingly curious about otherworldly or super-ancient human civilizations.

“Woof, woof, woof!” At that moment, General Ha looked at Lu Ran with eager eyes, asking when they would start.

“Now…”

Lu Ran looked at General Ha and was slightly taken aback, feeling a significant change in its eyes.

There was a new liveliness in them, not the kind of wisdom but a genuine spark of intelligence.

It seemed that the icy environment really did make snowfield dogs smarter!

After all, it was said that the brains of snowfield dogs were made of ice, which melted in hot environments, causing their brains to “flood.” Now, their true intelligence was on display!

“Let’s get going,” Lu Ran said. “We’ll check out the area first.”

He looked ahead. The area where he and General Ha were currently was relatively calm, but looking further, he could see nothing but a blur of grey and the constant howling of wind, suggesting a much colder challenge awaited them.

…

Soon, Lu Ran and General Ha set off, planning to trek through the blizzard.

Although buying some warm clothing might have been better, Lu Ran felt it unnecessary.

Saving some crystal coins, he considered it a form of training.

Owing Dr. Gu a large sum of money, he needed to be more frugal from now on!

“Damn it.” They had just entered the blizzard zone, and not many steps in, a strange gust of cold wind slashed Lu Ran’s hand, causing a wound.

The blood had no time to flow before it was frozen by the blizzard, turning from blue to purple.

Seeing this scene on the snowy ground, Lu Ran gained a new understanding of the destructive power of the cold wind. No wonder there were no monsters; if a pack of ice wolves were added, the difficulty might as well be upgraded straight to difficult or even abyss level.

“Divine Deer Pendant.”

Lu Ran quickly took out the divine deer pendant and put it on, allowing the power of the divine deer antler to heal his wound.

“Scraping my hand is fine, just not my face!”

“Woof, woof.” Unlike Lu Ran, General Ha was thriving in the snow, looking encouragingly at Lu Ran as if urging him to keep going.

Lu Ran: ?

Has this dog gotten too cocky?

“Do you feel like you’re in great shape right now?” Lu Ran asked.

General Ha nodded vigorously.

“Since your intelligence has returned, it would be reasonable to comprehend a few powerful skills while we’re here, right?” Lu Ran challenged.

Hearing this, General Ha straightened up, looking respectful. That made sense.

The next moment, it stopped in its tracks, slightly closing its eyes as if to meditate in the midst of the blizzard…

Lu Ran: ?

“Damn!” Lu Ran was about to snap General Ha out of its trance when suddenly, a chunk of hail wrapped in the blizzard flew straight toward his face. Reacting quickly, Lu Ran drew his Wind Cutter Sword and swung it forward!

Bang.

The sword’s light flashed, splitting the hail in two, sending it to fall on either side of him.

“Listen, stop trying to comprehend for now. Let’s keep moving—we need at least four hours to get through this area. You can comprehend after we’ve passed,” Lu Ran said. In response, General Ha suddenly opened its eyes.

In its mouth… was a Sword of Wind it had shaped!

Holding its own Sword of Wind, General Ha looked fierce.

“Woof!”

Beside it, Lu Ran was slightly taken aback. What are you trying to do?

Then, something even more astonishing happened.

The swirling wind around General Ha began to rapidly converge towards the Sword of Wind held in its mouth.

Merging into the Sword of Wind.

A tremendous energy was being compressed to the extreme at the mouth of General Ha.

Buzzing.

The Sword of Wind trembled like a storm.

At that moment, Lu Ran realized that General Ha was attempting the technique of energy compression!

General Ha had tried it a few times before, but since it wasn’t a primary training task and it lacked experience, it had never been successful.

But now, Lu Ran felt that General Ha’s energy compression process was much more stable than before.

“No way.” Lu Ran watched quietly. Finally, the tremendous force of wind was compressed into the Sword of Wind, seemingly reaching some kind of limit.

The originally white Sword of Wind now turned sky blue, like a Sword of the Sky!

“Awooo~~~” General Ha, struggling with the Sword of the Sky in its mouth, flung it forward!!

Compression, shaping, release…

Three techniques combined into one!

Storm Slash!

Boom!

A terrifyingly powerful sword qi was released by General Ha.

The sword qi, sky blue in color and seven to eight meters in diameter, formed a huge arc that surpassed any attack General Ha had released before.

More importantly, not only was the attack range larger, but the energy contained within each unit length of the sword qi was also more substantial.

The roaring of the sword qi, at that moment, seemed to overpower the howling wind and snow.

At this moment, in Lu Ran’s eyes, there was only this sword qi.

With a thunderous roar, the sword qi cut through the blizzard, splitting the storm as if it was cleaving the very snowstorm in two.

A single strike disperses the snowstorm!

Lu Ran took a deep breath.

Of course, it was just an illusion. The moment the snow was split, the surrounding snow quickly filled back in. Battling against the forces of nature was still a formidable task.

Still, Lu Ran was stunned. Good dog, you really grasped it.

Such power—it must be considered an advanced skill, right?

However…

“Whimper…” Lu Ran looked at General Ha turning its head towards him, its tears frozen and its mouth full of blood—blood that had turned into icy fragments. This sight plunged Lu Ran into deep thought.

Healing! Healing! General Ha urged.

The technique of energy compression… the backlash was too severe.

The burst of power had shattered all of General Ha’s teeth, causing a lot of fresh blood to flow. Without a means to heal, such powers shouldn’t be recklessly used…

“It seems the intelligence recovery is limited.”

“Or is it that you’re already eager to shed your teeth to forge the Canine Sword?” “Whimper…”