Celestial Beast Taming
Chapter 99 - 82: A Magnificent Reversal
Wen Tao was standing right beside Lin Zhuo.
Hearing Lin Zhuo’s words, Wen Tao was happy for her, but he couldn’t help a wry smile.
Ever since they became Celestial Destiny Seekers together, Lin Zhuo had always wanted to spar with him to see who was stronger.
And every time, he had to not only win but also make it look like an incredibly difficult victory.
’It was a real test of my acting skills!’
It wasn’t that Lin Zhuo was weak; it was because the Rule wielded by Wen Tao’s Order Beast happened to counter hers.
His Beastmaster Talent also countered hers.
Even if they were on equal footing in terms of power, and setting aside their Beastmaster Talents, the fact that his Order Beast’s Rule countered hers meant she had absolutely no chance of winning.
But Lin Zhuo was right about one thing: her Soul Base had been empowered by this Fire Attribute Secret Realm Heart.
Lin Zhuo truly had become much stronger than before!
Using her Order Beast’s Rule Authority had also become much easier for her.
"Sister Zhuo, congratulations on becoming stronger!"
"If I manage to get another Fire Attribute Secret Realm Heart in the future, and if it can still boost your strength, I’ll give it to you."
Zhong Yi wasn’t just saying that to be polite; he never had a habit of making empty pleasantries.
Previously, Zhong Yi had planned to increase his strength as quickly as possible. He was going to wait until Hong Ji reached the Extraordinary Tier before exploring Second Level Secret Realms.
But ever since he learned that completing a Secret Realm exploration with one hundred percent clearance awarded Divine Origin Value, Zhong Yi had decided to grind First Level Secret Realms for a while.
He wanted to acquire as much Divine Origin Value as possible to unlock the Divine Origin Store first.
Achieving one hundred percent clearance in a Second Level Secret Realm was far more difficult than in a First Level Secret Realm.
Hong Ji had absorbed so many Demon Materials that, with her current power, she could essentially sweep through any First Level Secret Realm.
Besides himself, Zhong Yi also wanted to bring Shen Xuan and Zhong Ling along.
Helping them get Divine Origin Value to unlock their Divine Origin Stores would also benefit him greatly.
Divine Origin Value was bound to the person who earned it and couldn’t be shared, but items from the Divine Origin Store could very well be used to help each other.
Lin Zhuo was stunned for a moment when she heard Zhong Yi’s words, and then her expression softened, clearly moved.
For Lin Zhuo’s Order Beast, Crown of the Sun, to use its full power, the Energy consumption was immense.
Implanting a Heart of the Secret Realm of the same attribute into the Soul Base was an effective way to boost Crown of the Sun’s Energy recovery rate within the Soul Base.
This was crucial for Lin Zhuo.
Granted, the boost to an Order Beast’s Energy recovery rate was most significant the very first time a Heart of the Secret Realm of the same attribute was implanted into the Soul Base.
However, implanting more of them later still had a significant effect.
Lin Zhuo did indeed need more Fire Attribute Secret Realm Hearts, but she didn’t just take him up on his offer.
"Xiaoyi, if you get more Hearts of the Secret Realm, you should prioritize using them on yourself or on developing the other Guardian Beast Masters in your squad."
"I’ve never approved of Wen Tao using the Soul Contracting Gu Mother to control those around him, but if you’re going to give Hearts of the Secret Realm to your squad members, you must have a binding method to ensure their loyalty."
"If you have any spare Fire Attribute Secret Realm Hearts later, I can trade you for them with resources of equal value."
Lin Zhuo’s tone was extremely serious as she said this.
Lin Zhuo was Zhong Yi’s Guardian, though she had never told him.
Regardless, she would never take advantage of Zhong Yi.
Lin Zhuo was confident that Zhong Yi would obtain many more Hearts of the Secret Realm in the future.
After all, not even Star Emperor or Frost Day had managed such a feat on their first exploration of a First Level Secret Realm.
Lin Zhuo had confirmed with Su Ya multiple times that Zhong Ling’s combat abilities were of no real use in the Horned Demon Secret Realm.
Achieving one hundred percent clearance in the Horned Demon Secret Realm right after awakening his Soul Base could be considered a miracle Zhong Yi had accomplished all by himself.
"Xiaoyi, I heard from Elder Chen that Elder Zheng has gone to your place to ensure your safety."
"Ah Tao and I have also arranged for people to patrol the area around your Guardian Beast Shop on South Cross Street."
"For your own safety, I still recommend you move to the Central District as soon as possible."
"South Cross Street is right next to the Lower City District. If trouble really breaks out, it will take time for either the Ghost Suppression Bureau or the Starlight Army to provide backup."
Zhong Yi’s heart warmed to hear that both Lin Zhuo and Wen Tao had arranged for people to protect him near his Evolution Shop.
"Sister Zhuo, I’ll be moving over completely in the next few days."
"Sister Zhuo, I actually called you about something serious."
Hearing that Zhong Yi had something serious to discuss, Lin Zhuo’s expression immediately turned solemn.
The last time Zhong Yi had said he had serious business, it was when he discovered that Mythical Tier Bizarre.
"What is it? Tell me. Do you need Ah Tao and me to come over?"
Zhong Yi glanced at Shen Xuan, who was currently occupied with the Substitute Puppet, and said with a smile.
"Sister Zhuo, one of you and Brother Tao will actually need to come over in a bit."
"Starlight City now has a true fourth Celestial Destiny Seeker among its younger generation!"
Zhong Yi’s words struck Lin Zhuo’s ears like a clap of thunder.
At first, Lin Zhuo even wondered if she had misheard.
Lin Zhuo asked subconsciously.
"Xiaoyi, are you saying that Starlight City has produced another Celestial Destiny Seeker since you? Is that right?"
Lin Zhuo’s words also startled Wen Tao, who was standing beside her. A look of disbelief appeared on his usually calm and carefree face.
"That’s right. Brother Zhao personally helped him awaken his Soul Base last night."
"Sister Zhuo, he’s a Combat-type Celestial Destiny Seeker. I know Combat types are more common, so the standard for a high potential rating is higher than for Defense, Control, or Support types."
"However, if I’m not mistaken, his potential rating has a shot at SS Level."
The news of another Celestial Destiny Seeker had already stunned Lin Zhuo and Wen Tao.
But for this new Celestial Destiny Seeker’s potential rating to actually be capable of reaching for SS Level...!
Besides Zhong Yi, the Healing-type, was Starlight City about to get an SS-Level Combat-type Celestial Destiny Seeker as well!?
Lin Zhuo decided not to ask too many questions over the phone and said immediately.
"Ah Tao and I are on our way now!"
"Xiaoyi, if what you’re saying is true, Starlight City is about to make a huge name for itself in the Xin Xia Federation."
"Reporting a total of five Celestial Destiny Seekers in the past decade would absolutely put us in the top five among all the Heroic Cities."
"And with your Triple S potential rating, we could even secure a spot in the top three."
As she said this, Lin Zhuo was both thrilled and a little wistful.
Just a week ago, Starlight City had only produced two Celestial Destiny Seekers in the last decade. Back then, we were at the very bottom of the Xin Xia Federation’s twenty-nine Heroic Cities.
In just one short week, Starlight City had made a magnificent comeback.
From last place to a top contender!
The number of Celestial Destiny Seekers determined a city’s future development. If a city had a scarcity of new Celestial Destiny Seekers for several decades...
...it meant that the Heroic City was destined for decades of stagnation, or even regression.
The Xin Xia Federation’s twenty-nine Heroic Cities, plus the Royal Capital, had many different rankings.
But the one most valued was the potential ranking for new Celestial Destiny Seekers.
Although Celestial Destiny Seekers had extremely long lifespans, and the older generation was more than enough to support a Heroic City even without new ones for decades...
...the allocation of resources within the Xin Xia Federation was determined by the new generation of Celestial Destiny Seekers through various competitions.
If a Heroic City had few new Celestial Destiny Seekers, the official resources allocated to it by the Xin Xia Federation would decrease over the following decades.
The authority of some official organizations within the city, and even the staffing levels of the Ghost Suppression Bureau, would be reduced.
A reduction in the Ghost Suppression Bureau’s staffing would inevitably lead to a decline in the city’s public safety.
The resulting chain reaction would drastically reduce a Heroic City’s potential for growth.
This was precisely one of the reasons why every Heroic City placed so much importance on new Celestial Destiny Seekers.