King of Beasts

“I want to try, I want the epic.”

Dark Crow and Lu Ran were after the Divine Deer Pendant.

In the past, the Divine Deer Pendant was an exclusive training tool for General Ha and the Sudden Death King.

General Ha specialized in energy compression, and the Sudden Death King used the Red Lightning trait for thunder enhancement, both requiring the healing powers of the Divine Deer Pendant.

They maximized the effects of this epic item during their training.

Injury-free high-load training was also why General Ha and the Sudden Death King became so formidable in certain techniques and attributes.

Without the Divine Deer Pendant, even if Lu Ran had the same cultivation resources, General Ha and the Sudden Death King would not be as strong as they are today.

For Dark Crow, the time it could use the Divine Deer Pendant was essentially during overload scouting with the Evil God’s Eye.

Overload scouting combined with healing, repeated over and over, could also train the Evil God’s Eye, but unlike General Ha and the Sudden Death King, this training method provided very little enhancement to Dark Crow’s combat abilities.

Although the Evil God’s Eye could enhance dark and mental attributes, at its core, it was still a scouting type eye.

However, after being reminded by Lu Ran, Dark Crow suddenly realized a major problem!!!

The previous training method was wrong, and the improvement was too minor!

Since the eyes of the Darksea Octopus could be consumed and were of rare quality enhancement resources, then surely its own eyes could also be eaten, and the quality would definitely surpass those of any stinky fish or rotten shrimp.

This was the Evil God’s Eye!

Limited by its own level, the effect might not compare to exquisite resources, but it could be said that there were no resources more suitable for Dark Crow than the Evil God’s Eye, as it was a part of its own body, potentially unleashing 200% effectiveness.

Normally, it would be very difficult for supernatural beings to use this type of self-cultivation feeding method, as healing back such high-quality organs like the Evil God’s Eye, if damaged, would be extremely challenging.

However, such difficulty was trivial for Lu Ran, who possessed the divine deer antler. After all, the source of its power stemmed from the retainer of the life dragon, a legendary life. Even the true form of the Evil God’s Eye, if it appeared before the divine deer, would be nothing more than an ant.

With the power of the divine deer, Dark Crow felt that self-cultivation through consumption was entirely feasible!

By consuming a massive amount of the Evil God’s Eye, it aimed to transform its power qualitatively through quantitative change!

After devouring numerous Evil God’s Eyes, the enhancement effect would certainly rival that of exquisite resources; the main focus was compatibility!

“Big King, I want to try!!!”

Dark Crow was exhilarated, feeling even more excited than when consuming those exquisite resources.

Lu Ran: ??

“I see it now.”

Lu Ran’s mouth twitched, realizing that Dark Crow was somewhat perverse.

General Ha and Sudden Death King, although they trained using the divine deer pendant, essentially did not want to get hurt.

But Dark Crow was different; this creature seemed willing to do anything to become stronger.

Truly, it was the most ideologically sound pet beast in the team.

However, after careful consideration, Lu Ran thought it might indeed be worth a try. Although it sounded evil, Dark Crow was naturally a pet beast of the Evil God species. Moreover, animals consuming their own body parts was not unheard of in nature.

For instance, cats, as viviparous mammals, often eat their own placenta after giving birth because it is rich in nutrients and can quickly provide energy during the birthing process.

Lu Ran had even observed this himself.

Currently, the Evil God’s Eye was akin to that placenta. By consuming it, Dark Crow absorbed the nutrients, and then, the divine deer pendant would absorb external natural energy to regenerate new Evil God’s Eyes… Essentially, Dark Crow was using the divine deer pendant as an intermediary tool to more effectively absorb “general natural energy” to enhance its “own rare power.”

After further contemplation, Lu Ran felt it was feasible.

“Woo woo woo, Big King, I want.”

“Alright, alright, let’s give it a try,” Lu Ran said. “First, go eat that scarecrow. I’ll get ready, and we’ll enter a forest environment in the secret realm.”

“Healing your eyes consumed a lot of energy; thankfully, we have Infinite City. Otherwise, Green Sea City would certainly be desertified.”

“Big King is wise!!!” the Dark Crow exclaimed excitedly.

Hahahahaha.

It had been worried that, relying solely on the previous exquisite resources, it might not match up to the Thunder Dragon General.

After all, the Dragon King’s lineage is too strong.

But now, the Dark Crow felt much more secure.

…

“Manager Ying, I’m going to Infinite City for the final sprint of nurturing.”

“After that, I’ll head directly to the Public Infinite City in the Arctic Ocean tomorrow. Please take care of Cloud Baby.”

Before departing, Lu Ran informed Manager Ying, but all he got in return was a cold look.

“You, always rushing…”

“You seem unreliable, don’t forget the time.”

“You’re right, Manager Ying is wise!” Lu Ran said and then teleported away.

Manager Ying: ?

Super beast mimicry on Dark Crow, right!

In reality, Lu Ran often used his super beast mimicry more on General Ha.

Practicing swordsmanship with General Ha made it easier for Lu Ran to adapt.

Thinking of mimicking the Sudden Death King to gain its strong defense, he would also have to endure being hit himself. Although Lu Ran was capable of enduring hardship, mentally, he was still struggling to get through that barrier.

However, Lu Ran had made up his mind. After finishing the evolution of a few pet beasts and having some free time, he would also undergo thunder enhancement training with the Sudden Death King to surpass it.

Once he perfectly acquired the Sudden Death King’s defense, combined with General Ha’s sword intent, Lu Ran felt he could probably tear apart some supernatural, commander species level 30 ferocious beasts with his bare hands as if they were knives.

Hard Difficulty-Level 2 Secret Realm-Verdant Forest.

An ordinary secret realm, its unique aspect being that it contains the richest natural energy among novice secret realms.

As a result, a large number of grass-type creatures inhabit and grow inside.

However, Lu Ran’s visit this time was not for clearing the levels or monster hunting.

It was purely to make use of the natural energy of this place for a fee.

“Let’s begin!”

At Lu Ran’s command, the Dark Crow flew out, its gaze resolute. With a swift transformation of its wing into a hand, it gouged out one of its Evil God’s Eyes.

Whoosh!

Blood gushed forth.

The Dark Crow’s sunken eye socket resembled a dark abyss.

However, one cannot deny the endurance and determination of Lu Ran’s pet beasts, especially when injured-they are undoubtedly top-notch.

Whether it’s General Ha, the Sudden Death King, or the Dark Crow, no matter how severe their injuries, they never scream or roar in pain like other beastmasters’ creatures or wild bosses do.

“Ah!!! My power… it’s diminishing…”

As the Dark Crow removed one of its eyes, its condition began to deteriorate, growing weaker.

This injury was far more serious than General Ha losing teeth or the Sudden Death King shedding scales. After all, General Ha’s teeth and the Sudden Death King’s scales are common resources. Losing them doesn’t fundamentally harm General Ha or the Sudden Death King.

But the Evil God’s Eye was different. It was a core organ of the Dark Crow’s species, the source of most of its abilities. Without the Evil God’s Eye, its strength was practically reduced by ninety percent.

“Please, Deer God-” Lu Ran earnestly raised the Divine Deer Antler.

As the village chief of Lujia Village, it was his duty to play an active role and show respect to the divine deer.

Under a golden-green halo, the eye socket of the Dark Crow was covered with healing light.

The eye tissue quickly regenerated.

In less than a minute, its Evil God’s Eye was restored to its original state, although the power of the Divine Deer Antler seemed significantly depleted.

“Caw, caw, caw.”

The incessantly bleeding eye socket soon grew a new Evil God’s Eye. Without a second thought, the Dark Crow tossed the old eye and swallowed it with its beak.

Gulp.

In the next instant, Lu Ran watched eagerly.

Following the prior consumption of the Devouring Agate and now the power originally belonging to it, the Dark Crow quickly felt an incredible transformation in its body.

“The effect…”

Its mental strength was vibrant, its dark powers surged, emitting a black aura, and most importantly, its pupils now appeared even deeper and more profound.

“The effect… if I could get more of this, it seems no worse than the resources I consumed before.”

The Dark Crow’s eyes gleamed fervently at Lu Ran.

“Do it!” Lu Ran gritted his teeth, ready to take the risk. As long as it works.

With that resolved… let the secret realm feel the terror.

After a while…

…

“Ah!!”

After consuming many Evil God’s Eyes, the Dark Crow’s state finally underwent a significant transformation.

“This is…”

“This is…”

At this moment, the breath of the Dark Crow became even more terrifying. Although it is currently just an Upper Commander, it is now no less formidable than General Ha with a sword in his mouth. Its true combat power has certainly reached the mid-level of a Sovereign.

The huge Dark Crow stood on the ground. Lu Ran and his group had been in the Secret Realm for a long time, and no ferocious beasts dared approach this area, largely due to the ominous breath continuously emitted by the Dark Crow.

At this time, even Lu Ran felt a chilling sensation upon gazing at the Dark Crow.

The pair of dark eyes with red vertical pupils was terrifying enough, and now, to the shock of both Lu Ran and the Dark Crow, as more and more Evil God’s Eyes were consumed…

Apart from its own two eyes, a third eye emerged on the forehead of the Dark Crow as its feathers parted!

“Damn it,” Lu Ran exclaimed, feeling frightened inside.

“The power has become even stronger…” However, the Dark Crow, after its initial shock, was quite thrilled by this change. So cool!

“Big King, keep going, keep going!!” the Dark Crow urged. “The eyes must not stop!!”

Lu Ran swallowed hard, feeling as if things were developing in an unforeseen direction.

A day later.

The Dark Crow seemed to have reached a certain bottleneck.

It appeared that the power of the Devouring Agate had been completely exhausted, or perhaps this method of cultivation had reached the limit of the Dark Crow’s current level.

Through self-cultivation, it no longer felt any noticeable increase in strength.

Although there was no obvious change in strength, the appearance of the Dark Crow became increasingly bizarre.

While it still looked like a huge black Crow, when it spread its wings, its body and feathers were visibly marked with Evil God’s Eyes all over. Such a terrifying scene might even make the Evil God itself shiver; it’s said that necromancy is eerie, but it pales in comparison to the current state of the Dark Crow.

“Caw caw.” Fortunately, the Dark Crow could hide these extra Evil Eyes, or else Lu Ran would not dare to let it out, fearing it might frighten children on the street.

“It’s time.”

By now, the Dark Crow had become a powerful commander, capable of killing a Sovereign in a higher class, just like General Ha. Lu Ran checked the time and said, “That’s it then.”

“Damn, what a bizarre day. I want to see what you can evolve into…”