Chapter 4 – Evolving Ice Crystal Soul

“Welcome! How can I help you?”

The moment he pushed through the door, a smiling young woman in professional attire greeted him.

Lin Ze cut straight to the point.

“I’d like to purchase some Low-rank Ice Element Essence and a Soul Jade.”

“Certainly, right this way.”

The professional-attired young woman led Lin Ze to a transparent glass counter.

It was packed with Pet Beast Materials.

Each item had a brief description and a price tag beside it.

Lin Ze quickly found what he was looking for.

The Low-rank Ice Element Essence looked like a small, compact block of ice that never melted.

Wisps of visible cold mist emanated from its surface.

Each one was priced at 3,000 Credit Points.

The Soul Jade, on the other hand, was thumb-sized, pitch black all over, like a crystal of obsidian.

Each one cost 20,000 Credit Points.

Lin Ze couldn’t help but grumble inwardly.

These two materials were at best low-tier.

Even so, their prices were steep.

Twenty Low-rank Ice Element Essences and one Soul Jade added up to 80,000 Credit Points.

That was nearly half a year’s salary for an average office worker.

The Beast Tamer profession’s reputation as a “bottomless money pit” was well deserved.

Grumble aside, he still had to buy them.

Without hesitation, Lin Ze quickly picked out his items and paid by card.

While checking him out at the counter, the professional-attired young woman couldn’t help stealing a few glances at him.

There was a hint of surprise in her eyes.

Having worked in this business for a long time, her knowledge of Pet Beast Materials far surpassed that of some Apprentice Beast Tamers.

The Low-rank Ice Element Essence was nothing special—fairly common, and many Beast Tamers fed it to their Ice-attribute Pet Beasts on a regular basis.

But the Soul Jade was different.

That thing was mostly used for Pet Beast evolution.

Yet the young man before her looked very young—probably a student from a nearby high school.

People like that had usually just contracted their Pet Beasts not long ago, so logically, they shouldn’t have reached the evolution point for their Pet Beast this quickly.

“Could he be some ace prodigy from a high school?”

The professional-attired young woman’s mind began to race.

Being this young and already on the verge of Pet Beast evolution—such a Beast Tamer was undoubtedly outstanding.

His future was surely bright.

“Too bad he’s too young, or I’d make a move.”

“I wonder if he’d mind an older woman?”

Lin Ze had no idea that in that brief moment, a flood of thoughts had already passed through the young woman’s mind.

He only vaguely felt that her gaze made him a bit uncomfortable.

After paying, he quickly left the Pet Shop under her reluctant gaze.

“Less than 40,000 Credit Points left in my card.”

“I need to find a way to earn some money, or I won’t even be able to afford Pet Beast food in the future.”

Lin Ze muttered to himself.

Actually, if he really needed money, he could borrow from Guan Chongshan and his wife.

They definitely wouldn’t refuse.

Back when Lin Ze had first planned to buy a Pet Beast, Guan Chongshan had offered to help pay.

It was just that Lin Ze’s Soul Strength was too low to support a powerful Pet Beast, so he could only contract a weak one like Little Snowball.

The funds needed weren’t much, and he could afford it himself, so there was no need for help.

Of course.

Unless it was absolutely necessary, Lin Ze didn’t plan to do that.

Back home.

Lin Ze summoned Little Snowball immediately.

“Come here, little one. Eat these, and you’ll be able to evolve.”

Lin Ze took out the Low-rank Ice Element Essence and Soul Jade, and fed them to his pet beast.

Little Snowball was still dazed and confused, but obediently opened its mouth and ate the food docilely.

Lin Ze watched quietly, a faint smile curling at the corners of his mouth.

After reaching the evolution node, specific materials needed to be fed as supplements to allow the pet beast to evolve smoothly.

Different evolution directions required different types and quantities of materials.

Even the slightest discrepancy could cause the evolution to fail.

At best, the pet beast would be injured; at worst, its power would plummet drastically, sending it back to square one overnight.

Therefore, Beast Tamers strictly followed the proven evolution formulas when evolving their pet beasts, pairing materials with supplementary food.

No one dared to improvise.

Those who dared to improvise had almost all reaped bitter consequences.

The lucky few who stumbled upon new evolution paths by accident were, in the end, extremely rare.

But Lin Ze was different.

With the Achievement System in hand, he could clearly see the hidden evolution paths of all his pet beasts.

He could freely choose paths with enormous potential to evolve his pet beasts.

This single advantage alone meant his future development potential far surpassed that of other Beast Tamers.

Lin Ze was confident that he would one day reach the pinnacle of power in this world!

A moment later.

Little Snowball finished devouring all the materials.

Its body suddenly burst forth with dazzling azure light.

Its size expanded rapidly.

In the blink of an eye, it grew from the size of a basketball to half a meter tall.

The entire process lasted only four or five seconds.

By the time the light faded, a translucent azure figure resembling a seven or eight-year-old little girl now stood in the center of the living room.

【Name】: Ice Crystal Soul

【Attribute Type】: Ice

【Level】: Tier 2 Stage 2

【Growth Rate】: 0%

【Skills】: Ice Spike, Frost Breath

【Empress Path, next Evolution Form 【Snow Maiden】, requirements: Growth Rate 100%, Low-rank Ice Element Essence X20, Ice Snow Heart X1】

“It actually jumped an entire major realm!”

A look of ecstasy appeared on Lin Ze’s face.

The power boost brought by the evolution was even greater than he had anticipated.

It had skyrocketed directly from Tier 1 Stage 2 to Tier 2 Stage 2!

After all, the pet beasts of senior students at Pinghai No. 1 High School were generally between Tier 1 Stage 3 and Tier 1 Stage 5.

The pet beasts of elite students could reach Tier 1 Stage 7 or 8.

Even ace students like Guan Ning only had pet beasts at Tier 1 Stage 9.

Lin Ze’s current strength had already far surpassed them by a wide margin.

Just then, a mechanical, monotonous voice suddenly sounded in his mind.

“【First Evolution】Achievement Unlocked. Obtained 100 Achievement Points, Body-Strengthening Crystal X1.”

Lin Ze was momentarily stunned, then immediately felt delighted.

He hadn’t expected to unlock an achievement all of a sudden.

This was truly a pleasant surprise.

“It seems that aside from the achievements listed, there should be many other hidden achievements that only appear once their conditions are met.”

Lin Ze pondered silently.

There were still many aspects of this Achievement System waiting to be explored.

Snapping back to reality, Lin Ze looked at the Body-Strengthening Crystal in his palm.

【Body-Strengthening Crystal: A peculiar crystal imbued with the power of life. Upon fusion, it comprehensively enhances physical qualities, with the degree of enhancement depending on the user’s current Constitution.】

Without hesitation, Lin Ze used it immediately.

As the Body-Strengthening Crystal fused into his body, he clearly felt a surging vitality erupt from his abdomen, instantly flooding through his limbs and bones.

His muscles, bones, and skin all became denser and tougher.

A few seconds later.

The sensation faded.

Lin Ze gestured around on the spot and was pleasantly surprised to find that his strength, speed, and reaction time had all noticeably improved.

“Not bad at all!”

Looking at the panel showing his Constitution had increased by 1 point, Lin Ze broke into a delighted smile.

While Beast Tamers didn’t need to fight personally, having a stronger body was always a good thing.

If danger ever arose, his chances of survival would be greatly improved.

“Awu.”

The Ice Crystal Soul had drifted over to Lin Ze’s side at some point, nuzzling affectionately against his shoulder.

Its demeanor radiated admiration and closeness toward its master.

After evolving, the Ice Crystal Soul looked somewhat like the legendary Ice Sprite.

Its form was petite and delicate.

Setting aside the fact that its body was a translucent azure blue, it looked little different from an adorable human girl.

“Well done.”

Lin Ze patted the Ice Crystal Soul on the head, then turned his gaze to the panel.

Earlier, raising Little Snowball’s Growth Rate had cost 77 Achievement Points.

He now had 123 Achievement Points remaining in total.

Attempting to raise the Growth Rate again, Lin Ze was surprised to discover that increasing the Ice Crystal Soul’s Growth Rate by 1% now cost 5 Achievement Points instead of 1.

“So after strength increases, the cost of improvement goes up too, huh.”

Lin Ze clicked his tongue and simply poured all his Achievement Points into it.

In an instant.

The Ice Crystal Soul’s Growth Rate skyrocketed to 24%.

Its Level also rose to Tier 2, Stage 4.

Its power surged once again!

“Next, I just wait for tomorrow to head to the Beast Tamer Association for the apprentice qualification assessment.”

Lin Ze looked out the window, his eyes deep and thoughtful.