Beast Taming: I Can Add Points

"Well that’s strange, then. If you have that kind of reaction, it basically confirms the Fire Attribute is your Primordial Attribute... But I heard you also have the Gold Attribute? How about you show me your Hardening skill?"

Yu Bao licked his lips.

’This is asking a bit much of a dog.’

However, controlling a solid object with his Gold Attribute was simple enough. Yu Bao performed his Flying with a Spoon skill, which made Lala’s eyes go wide with amazement at how terrifyingly impressive it was.

’Is Huai City some kind of super Secret Realm? How did a common mutt evolve a Gold Attribute?’

Su Zhi chimed in sheepishly, "So, what’s the conclusion?"

"It was just one dish, what conclusion could I possibly draw from that..." Shen Chuqing shrugged, then looked at Su Zhi. "But I have a basic idea. Luo Sen told you about his theory that the Yu Dian Dog had many different prehistoric Evolutionary Types, right?"

Su Zhi nodded. "Yeah, he told me."

"And you think Yu Bao might be able to awaken a Gold and Earth Dual Attribute Evolutionary Type?"

Su Zhi was about to agree, but he suddenly paused, having just realized a detail.

If the multiple Evolutionary Type theory was true, then the fact that only the Earth and Fire Dual Element type remained was a result of natural selection. Humanity couldn’t be blamed for that.

Evolutionary Types that were proven unsuitable for the environment by nature should have been weeded out.

But Luo Sen had also said that he had, to some extent, altered the Yu Dian Dog’s natural aptitudes, giving Yu Bao the potential to awaken other Evolutionary Types, or even become a Yu Dian Emperor Dog...

According to Luo Sen, those extinct Evolutionary Types were branches that, like Yu Bao, had exceptional Perception.

Even among the currently existing Earth and Fire Dual Element Yu Dian Dogs, Yu Bao’s talent for Energy Perception and control made him stand out.

But if this branch represented a more "superior" path, why would it have vanished over the long course of history?

Unless... it wasn’t the result of natural selection.

At this thought, a chill ran down Su Zhi’s spine.

"So you’re saying, the disappearance of the other Yu Dian Dog Evolutionary Types... might have been deliberately caused by certain entities?"

"It’s just a theory of Luo Sen’s; there’s no concrete evidence. After all, this happened in prehistoric times, and current archaeological findings are extremely limited."

Shen Chuqing sighed and added, "But Luo Sen’s theories are rarely wrong. I’d rather he was just joking with me."

"Let’s hope so... He does love to joke around..." Su Zhi pursed his lips.

A spicy aroma wafted past his nose as the spicy shrimp and Kung Pao chicken were served.

Shen Chuqing’s eyes lit up, the solemnity from their serious discussion vanishing in an instant. She quickly snatched up her chopsticks.

"Let’s eat first! I’ll tell you the details at the museum later!"

"Holy crap! Slow down!" By the time Su Zhi scrambled to grab his chopsticks, nearly half the plate of Kung Pao chicken was already gone.

’And she said no one would fight me for it. Yeah, right!’

·

As the saying goes, a full stomach and warm clothes lead the mind to... serious business.

After a delicious and satisfying meal, Su Zhi followed Shen Chuqing to the museum.

"La?"

"A-woof."

Lala clutched a bag of spicy strips, eating them with Yu Bao as they walked. The friendship between two King Bis was just that simple; once you’ve flexed together, you’re the best of buds.

Lala listened, utterly captivated, as Yu Bao recounted his adventures, from the turmoil of the city league to his brave foray into the lands of the Fish Dragon Race.

And the flexing techniques Yu Bao mentioned, like playing the weakling to beat the strong, or exploiting information gaps... Lala was shocked to find it had thought of the exact same things every time!

Yu Bao also thought this little Round Pepper was pretty cool.

Especially when he learned that Lala, like him, loved to show off in front of its little sister, he felt an even greater sense of camaraderie, thinking, ’So you have a sister complex, too!’

In just one morning, the two habitual show-offs had developed a deep mutual respect.

It was a pity Lala would always be loyal to Shen Chuqing, otherwise it would have even considered forming a contract with Su Zhi.

’With him and Yu Bao working in concert, a legendary duo of geniuses, was there any stunt in the world they couldn’t pull off?’

"A-woof!" Hearing Lala’s thoughts, Yu Bao solemnly introduced Wu Bao.

This one was a true heavyweight!

"Wu!" Snapping out of the story he was concocting in his head, Wu Bao quickly struck a cool pose.

"La?" Lala circled Wu Bao, sizing him up, then looked curiously at Yu Bao.

’Who’s this guy? Why don’t I recognize him at all?’

"..." The light in Wu Bao’s eyes died.

"Woof-wu~" A mocking look appeared in Yu Bao’s eyes as he told Lala this was an un-contracted Pet Beast that Su Zhi was currently "sponsoring."

"Laa~" And so, Lala also let out a jeering sound, identical to Yu Bao’s.

Wu Bao was so furious his eyes went wide, wanting to smash these two show-offs with a single punch...

The little critters were having a "sweet" chat. Su Zhi followed Shen Chuqing through the museum, his mouth hanging open, his tongue still numb.

’I’m so stupid. I really am.’

’I knew the Sliced Pork in Chili Broth would be spicy, but I had no idea the Kung Pao chicken was also made with free-range chicken from Snow Ridge Slope. Seeing how heartily Shen Chuqing was eating, I didn’t think much of it and scarfed down several pieces at once. The result... let’s just say it’s a sob story.’

Su Zhi forced himself to focus on his surroundings to distract himself.

He had to admit, Shen Chuqing’s decision to bring him here after lunch was a wise one. It was now noon, and the museum was practically empty, much quieter than Su Zhi had anticipated.

He could even get very close to observe and photograph some of the smaller artifacts.

Compared to the Flying Shadow Alliance’s Alliance History Hall, the Common Defense Alliance museum in Hundred Rivers had a more regional flavor. Aside from Beast Taming-related skeletons or documents, most of the artifacts here were connected to the various Hundred Rivers Earthquakes.

Su Zhi also saw fossils of the prehistoric Yu Dian Farm Dog. Hundred Rivers was one of the birthplaces of the Yu Dian Farm Dog, and nearly a hundred fossils of this Pet Beast were on display.

"A-woof!" Yu Bao wagged his tail excitedly, circling one of the fossil displays.

"It’s really here..." Su Zhi also noticed the skull display that Yu Bao had zeroed in on.

Upon closer inspection, there was an extremely faint, light-gold marking between the eyebrows of the skull. In Beast Taming biology, this was called a "Radiant Gold Pattern." It was a trace left behind when a Pet Beast used Gold Element Skills or was attacked by them.

And judging by the skull’s integrity, this Yu Dian Farm Dog’s Radiant Gold Pattern likely wasn’t caused by an attack from a Gold Element Skill, unless it was a pathetic Gold Element Skill like Shan Bao’s...

In other words, this could possibly be a naturally occurring Dual Attribute Yu Dian Dog.

Unfortunately, this was the only Yu Dian Dog fossil in the entire museum with a Radiant Gold Pattern. From an academic perspective, such isolated evidence was not considered conclusive.

As for branches with the Water Attribute or Wood Attribute, there was no sign of them at all. In fact, even the Gold Attribute trace on this fossil was barely discernible. If Yu Bao hadn’t been so sharp-eyed, Su Zhi wasn’t sure he would have noticed it at all...

That was all there was to find among the fossils, so Su Zhi followed Shen Chuqing to the document room.

Not only was there a large-screen reader with a direct connection to the Divine Strategy Alliance Headquarters, but there were also some ancient documents that had not yet been digitized due to formatting issues. Of course, the originals couldn’t be touched; visitors were only allowed to look through the handwritten copies placed outside.

Su Zhi picked up a few volumes to look through, but he didn’t see any records about the Yu Dian Farm Dog, and his initial anticipation began to wane.

Shen Chuqing was also flipping through materials when she suddenly said:

"You’ve heard of the first Alliance Leader of the Flying Shadow Alliance, Shao Jiguang, the one who successfully evolved a Yu Dian Emperor Dog, right?"

Su Zhi immediately nodded. "I know about him!"

The Flying Shadow Alliance’s Alliance History Hall had detailed records on this legendary first Alliance Leader, so detailed, in fact, that they even went into detail on things that didn’t need it.

For example, Su Zhi had once looked it up by chance and discovered that Shao Ya might be his direct descendant...

"The records say: in the Ninth Year of Hongqi, Shao Jiguang was ambushed by Abyssal Exotic Beasts while on a mission and ultimately died a hero’s death, hopelessly outnumbered. It’s not written in detail, though, just mentioned in passing. Besides that, the rest isn’t very clear. It might be because my access level isn’t high enough to view the internal Alliance history..."

Su Zhi shook his head, then asked curiously, "Could there be something strange about that?"

Shen Chuqing nodded.

𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"That’s exactly where the strangeness in the records lies. As the second-strongest combatant in the Common Defense Alliance at the time, second only to the Grand Alliance Leader, Shao Jiguang should have been incredibly famous.

"What’s more, he possessed the one and only Yu Dian Emperor Dog on all of Blue Star. It was an unprecedented achievement, and no one has managed it since.

"The history books did indeed write at length about Shao Jiguang’s legendary feats as a youth and a young man. Every one of his Pet Beasts was described in great detail and with effusive praise, which is rare in Yu Dian historical texts, known for their rigorous wording.

"But after the first Hundred Rivers Earthquake, the records about Shao Jiguang suddenly become obscure and restrained. Even something as major as his death in the line of duty is just glossed over.

"And here’s a bit of a coincidence: although Hundred Rivers is located in an earthquake zone, earthquakes weren’t very frequent up until the Eleventh Year of Hongqi. But shortly after his death, they became unprecedentedly frequent..."

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