Chapter 8 – Origin Stele

Cases of discovering new evolution paths for pet beasts occur every year.

However, the vast majority are related to new species of pet beasts.

For a pet beast like Little Snowball, which has a taming history spanning over a century and has been thoroughly researched by humans, it stands to reason that no new evolution path should be possible.

Yet it happened anyway.

And the example was right there before their very eyes.

For a moment.

Guan Ning and the other two girls all felt a surreal sense of being in a dream.

It took them a while to snap back to reality, and they all broke into expressions of immense surprise and delight.

“Brother, this is a huge discovery!”

“Yeah, if others found out that Little Snowball actually has an evolution form, it would definitely cause a massive sensation!”

“Brother Lin is amazing!”

The three girls chattered away excitedly, venting the shock and joy in their hearts.

Especially Guan Ning, who felt genuinely happy for Lin Ze from the bottom of her heart.

The old Lin Ze only had a single Little Snowball, making it nearly impossible for him to become an Apprentice Beast Tamer.

Let alone getting into a Beast Tamer Academy.

But now it was different—the evolved Ice Crystal Soul was clearly extremely formidable.

Even if it couldn’t evolve again in the future, its strength after being raised to the Mature Stage would absolutely not be underestimated.

At the very least, it would be more than enough to pass the Apprentice Beast Tamer qualification assessment.

“No wonder Brother said he wanted to participate in the qualification assessment earlier—so he was hiding this ace up his sleeve.”

Guan Ning looked at Lin Ze with a playful, reproachful expression.

Zhang Xiaoyun and Liu Siyan exchanged glances, both feeling somewhat embarrassed.

They had just been silently mocking Lin Ze for wasting his effort.

But now, it was clear that he was fully confident.

After all, that was a second-tier pet beast—passing the Apprentice Assessment was practically a sure thing.

Even the Advanced Difficulty would be well within reach!

With that thought, the way the two of them looked at Lin Ze shifted subtly.

Previously, in their eyes, Lin Ze was just their friend’s older brother, and nothing more.

But now it was different.

A high school student with a second-tier pet beast—anyone would consider that worthy of the title “genius.”

A young genius with potential would always earn special regard, no matter the time.

Lin Ze didn’t notice the change in the girls’ gazes. Along the way, he took a moment to check his achievement list.

Just now, another new achievement had been completed.

[First Battle Triumph]: Win your first pet beast battle. Completing this achievement grants 100 Achievement Points and Soul Crystal X1 (Completed, reward pending claim).

Lin Ze immediately claimed it and used the Soul Crystal without delay.

Seeing his Soul Attribute on the panel change to 2.8, he nodded in satisfaction.

Then.

Lin Ze poured all 100 Achievement Points into Growth Rate.

In one go, he raised the Ice Crystal Soul’s Growth Rate to 44%.

Its Power Level also skyrocketed to Tier 2, Stage 6.

“This way, my chances of passing the Apprentice Assessment are even greater.”

A faint smile curled at the corner of Lin Ze’s mouth.

A dozen or so minutes later.

The group arrived at the Beast Tamer Association building.

It happened to be the semi-monthly Apprentice Beast Tamer qualification assessment.

The entrance was bustling with people coming and going.

The vast majority were young students like Lin Ze and the others.

Their expressions ranged from nervous and anxious to excited and thrilled.

Watching them, Zhang Xiaoyun and Liu Siyan also began to feel a sense of uncertainty.

After all, this was the final Apprentice qualification assessment before the College Entrance Exam.

If they failed, they wouldn’t be able to apply to Beast Tamer Academy.

That was a consequence they couldn’t accept.

“Don’t be nervous, relax. You’ll definitely pass.”

Guan Ning softly encouraged her two friends.

Going to the counter to queue up, registering, filling out forms, and getting a number… the whole process took nearly half an hour to complete.

After that, the group sat quietly in the waiting room for a while before their numbers were called.

A total of thirty people stood up and followed the staff member together to the second floor of the building.

Lin Ze looked around.

Of the thirty people, only a little over ten looked like students.

The rest were at least in their twenties, and there were even a few middle-aged men in their thirties or forties.

This wasn’t surprising.

Although Apprentice Beast Tamer was only the lowest rank of Beast Tamer titles, it wasn’t easy to obtain.

Plenty of people took fifteen or twenty attempts before passing the Apprentice Assessment.

Many even spent their entire lives without ever becoming an Apprentice Beast Tamer.

A moment later.

They were led into a spacious, bright room.

The room was as large as a standard basketball court, completely empty, with only a two-meter-tall stele standing in the very center.

Its surface was inscribed with intricate, complex patterns.

“The Origin Stele.”

Someone in the crowd couldn’t help but whisper.

Many people cast curious glances at the stele.

The Origin Stele was a product of the Era of the Great Cataclysm.

Hundreds of years ago, when Ferocious Beasts descended from Interdimensional Rifts, traces of Origin Steles also appeared all over the world.

No one knew where the Origin Steles came from.

All they knew was that the very first Beast Tamers obtained their ability to command Ferocious Beasts from the Origin Steles.

Since then, for Beast Tamers to advance, they had to pass the trials of the Origin Stele and complete the Baptism before they could succeed.

To this day.

The Origin Stele had become an extremely precious Wonder Item, highly valued and protected by the Federation and the Beast Tamer Association.

Ordinary Beast Tamers could only see the Origin Stele within the Beast Tamer Association when participating in qualification assessments.

“So that’s the Origin Stele? It doesn’t look all that special.”

Zhang Xiaoyun said in a low voice.

“Shh.”

Guan Ning signaled her to be quiet.

“Someone’s coming.”

Five or six people wearing Beast Tamer Association uniforms walked in from outside.

Leading them were two middle-aged men, each with a silver badge pinned to their chest.

That was the mark of a Silver Beast Tamer.

The Beast Tamer ranks, from low to high, were Apprentice, Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Legendary.

Above that were the legendary King Rank.

In Pinghai City, a third-tier small city, Silver Beast Tamers could already be considered big shots.

The gazes of the crowd toward them immediately grew more respectful and envious.

“Welcome, everyone, to today’s Apprentice Beast Tamer qualification assessment.”

One of the two, a tall, thin middle-aged man, announced in a clear voice:

“My name is He Zhenwen, Deacon of the Pinghai Branch of the Beast Tamer Association.”

The other middle-aged man spoke flatly: “Lu Peixin, also a Deacon of the same branch.”

As they spoke, the staff members behind them stepped forward and distributed items to the crowd.

Lin Ze quickly received a small copper token.

The front of the token was divided into four sections by three horizontal lines, each inscribed with the characters ‘Low’, ‘Medium’, ‘High’, and ‘Supreme’.

“What you now hold in your hands are the keys to entering the Stele Virtual Realm. The assessment will take place inside.”

He Zhenwen looked around, speaking in a calm, unhurried tone.

“Before that, you need to choose the difficulty level of the assessment you are about to challenge.”

“On the screen are the baptisms you can receive after passing each level of difficulty.”

As He Zhenwen spoke, a massive screen embedded in the right wall suddenly lit up.

Lines of text clearly appeared on it.

Basic Difficulty: Upon passing, you will be promoted to Apprentice Beast Tamer, Soul +1, designated Pet Beast Growth Rate +5%.

Intermediate Difficulty: Upon passing, you will be promoted to Apprentice Beast Tamer, Soul +2, Constitution +1, designated Pet Beast Growth Rate +10%.

Advanced Difficulty: Upon passing, you will be promoted to Apprentice Beast Tamer, Soul +3, Constitution +2, designated Pet Beast Growth Rate +20%, unlock second Pet Beast slot.

Ultra Difficulty: Upon passing, you will be promoted to Apprentice Beast Tamer, Soul +5, Constitution +3, designated Pet Beast Growth Rate +30%, unlock second Pet Beast slot.