Chapter 686: The First Temporary Demon King-level Demon Pet (First Update, seeking votes)

Li Zhangsheng hurriedly channeled his Mental Power to temporarily reinforce the strength of the Breath Concealment Restriction.

The Breath Concealment Restriction trembled violently a few times, but stabilized in the blink of an eye.

In the blink of an eye, the light on the surface of most Leader-level Demon Pets dissipated, signifying their failure to advance.

As a price, these Demon Pets appeared listless and had clearly suffered significant negative effects, requiring a period of recuperation.

Within a few breaths, a total of three Leader-level Demon Pets successfully broke through; amidst the white light of advancement, their momentum surged, and they became Lord-level Demon Pets.

Among these three advancing Demon Pets, one belonged to He Yan, which also allowed He Yan to satisfy all the conditions for advancing to the Sixth Rank and attempt to break through as a Sixth-tier Beastmaster.

It is believed that before long, the Li Family will have a second Sixth-Rank Expert.

In this way, the Li Family possesses one Pseudo-King and two Sixth-Rank Experts, ranking them among the upper echelons even among the many Famous Clans of the Langya Kingdom.

If there were a ranking of powers, even if the Li Family could not enter the top ten, it would likely not be far off; this is already a very strong force, and even if the Li Family lacks a deep foundation due to expanding too quickly, they can still command a certain degree of influence within the Langya Kingdom.

As for the Lord-level Demon Pets currently attempting to break through to the Demon King level, they each kept their eyes tightly shut, controlling their consciousness to strike at the threshold of the Profound Mystery; the breakthrough is not only cumbersome but also requires a certain amount of time.

Not long after, the first batch of Lord 9th Rank Demon Pets that failed to break through opened their eyes in disappointment; these Demon Pets were basically only of Superior Quality, and their consciousness struggled to persist deep within the Consciousness Sea for long, often returning to their bodies after striking the Profound Mystery threshold just a few times.

Unless one is extremely lucky and finds a weak point in the Profound Mystery threshold, it is basically impossible to break through it and become a Demon King-level Demon Pet.

This batch of Lord-level Demon Pets included Ning Bizhen's Seven-Eyed Marten, while the rest were almost all Demon Pets belonging to the six giants of the Yuanling Academy.

Not long after, the second batch of Lord-level Demon Pets that failed to break through appeared; this batch consisted of Top-tier Exotic Beasts, including Li Zhangsheng's Ancestral Leopard-Lin Beast and Spirit-Devouring Mouse, Ning Bizhen's Xun Wind Speed Cat, and Li Haoqiong's Dragon Python.

According to books, after an Top-tier Exotic Beast fails its first breakthrough, the probability of it advancing to the Demon King level will drop to less than 8% the next time it attempts to break through.

Apart from them, Li Zhangsheng's Black Dragon and Qian Yuanfei's Unicorn did not wake up and remained immersed in the atmosphere of the breakthrough; wisps of Profound Mystery Energy swirled around them, and their momentum grew rapidly, clearly having already broken through the Profound Mystery threshold.

Only by breaking through the Profound Mystery threshold can their consciousness undergo a certain transformation and maintain itself deep within the Consciousness Sea for a longer period.

Li Zhangsheng looked at the Black Dragon in surprise, then revealed a wild, joyful smile; he never expected that the Black Dragon would give him such a surprise.

As for whether they can become Demon King-level, it will still take some time. Taking a step back, even if they can only become Pseudo-Demon Kings, that is still a surprise.

It was also at this moment that Datou opened its eyes, its gaze filled with disappointment; despite Datou giving its all, it still fell short at the final hurdle.

Datou looked enviously at the Black Dragon, whose momentum was growing ever stronger, and stood beside Li Zhangsheng in low spirits.

"Datou, if it doesn't work this time, there will be a next time!"

Li Zhangsheng comforted it, though he was not disappointed; unlike the Ancestral Leopard-Lin Beast and the Spirit-Devouring Mouse, Datou possesses Half-Step Epic Quality, so even if the breakthrough fails, it will not affect the probability of the next breakthrough.

With this, only the Black Dragon and the Unicorn remained on the scene.

At this time, the Black Dragon's body size continued to soar, already exceeding forty meters, while the Unicorn's body size did not change much, only its momentum became more vigorous.

Neigh—

Not long after, the Unicorn was the first to open its eyes; it subconsciously wanted to let out a long whinny, but upon discovering that the Black Dragon was still breaking through, it hurriedly closed its mouth to avoid affecting the Black Dragon.

Judging from the Unicorn's momentum, it had successfully advanced to the Demon King level.

With the Unicorn's advancement to the Demon King level, it also meant that Qian Yuanfei had officially become a Pseudo-King.

In this way, the number of Pseudo-Kings in the Yuanling Academy will reach five, and their influence will inevitably increase greatly.

Roar—

A few seconds later, the Black Dragon opened its massive Longyan, and upon discovering that no other Demon Pets had broken through, it looked up to the sky and let out a resounding Dragon Roar, its mood at its peak.

At this moment, the Black Dragon's body length was already close to fifty meters, but because the Black Dragon's build was relatively lean, its weight was not as much as Adai or Roundy, though it was about the same as Aixi.

Due to the Strengthened Breath-Concealing Restriction, apart from Li Wenbo, who was presiding over the ceremony, no one else discovered the anomaly inside.

At the first opportunity, Li Zhangsheng began to check the Black Dragon's data.

【Spirit Beast Name】: Black Dragon (Growth Stage, Top-tier Exotic Beast, comprehends Profound Mystery, significantly enhances skill power; Profound Mystery Guard: exempts partial damage, mainly depending on the opponent's realm.)

【Spirit Beast Realm】: Demon King 1st Rank

【Spirit Beast Race】: Medium Monarch

【Spirit Beast Quality】: Top-tier

【Spirit Beast Bloodline】: Ancestral Black Dragon (Rich)

【Spirit Beast Attribute】: Water

【Spirit Beast Status】: Healthy

【Spirit Beast Weakness】: Earth

After the Black Dragon successfully broke through to the Demon King level, it became the first temporary Demon King-level Demon Pet in Li Zhangsheng's hands.

Because the Black Dragon is not a main Demon Pet, it did not provide Li Zhangsheng with Profound Mystery feedback.

Even so, Li Zhangsheng was quite satisfied; after all, this time he had increased his count by three Half-Demon King-level Demon Pets.

In addition, Ning Bizhen also gained two Demon King-level Demon Pets; both of them could be said to be very happy, as this clearly exceeded their expectations.

As long as Ning Bizhen adds one more Demon King-level Demon Pet, she can satisfy the most important condition for advancing to a King, but like Li Zhangsheng, her Mental Power is not only far from reaching perfection, but there is still a long way to go.

According to Ning Bizhen's estimation, it will conservatively take another year.

Although Ning Bizhen has been a Pseudo-King for over a year, Li Zhangsheng possesses the Seven-Rank Star Palace Lotus Platform, coupled with more excellent Demon Pets, which makes Ning Bizhen's Mental Power growth rate far inferior to Li Zhangsheng's; I am afraid that before long, Li Zhangsheng will catch up to her Mental Power progress.

Li Zhangsheng and Ning Bizhen recalled their Demon Pets, only then revoking the Strengthened Breath-Concealing Restriction.

In this Emperor Flowing Plasma event, the Li Family can be said to have benefited greatly; many clansmen have improved their strength, and soon there will be one more person at the Fifth and Sixth Ranks, while the number of Beastmasters at other ranks has increased even more.

Not long after, amidst the thanks of the clansmen, Li Zhangsheng and Ning Bizhen took more than a dozen of the six giants' Demon Pets and returned to the Yuanling Academy through the Teleportation Array.

When they emerged from the Teleportation Array, the six giants of the Yuanling Academy were already gathered here; among them, Qian Yuanfei could not hide his wild joy, and his gaze toward Li Zhangsheng was filled with gratitude.

The moment the Unicorn advanced to the Demon King level, Qian Yuanfei received Profound Mystery feedback from the Unicorn and became a noble Pseudo-King.

According to the rules of the Yuanling Academy, Qian Yuanfei's position will rise by half a step to become a Vice Principal, not to mention the benefits.

A few months ago, Qian Yuanfei successfully advanced to the Sixth Rank by relying on Li Zhangsheng's Bloodline Potion, and now Li Zhangsheng has made him a Pseudo-King; in his eyes, Li Zhangsheng is simply his lucky star, and it was worth the help he provided when Li Zhangsheng was still weak.

Xu Wenhua and Zhang Kaishuo were also all smiles, happy for the prosperity of the Yuanling Academy.

As for Ning Wei, Lu Qian, and Xu Fanghua, they were also happy for Qian Yuanfei, but while happy, they were also filled with envy, jealousy, and hatred.

There was no helping it; Qian Yuanfei advanced to the Sixth Rank later than them, yet he ended up becoming a Pseudo-King a step ahead of them.

Among them, Dean Ning Wei's mood was the most complex, for she had been a Sixth-Rank Expert for many years and had yet to become a Pseudo-King.

Looking at Li Zhangsheng before her, Dean Ning Wei seemed to have made a certain resolution in her heart.

Not long after, Li Zhangsheng and Ning Bizhen returned to Number One Courtyard.

The next morning, Dean Ning Wei took the initiative to visit Li Zhangsheng.

"Dean, please!"

Li Zhangsheng felt quite surprised, but on the surface, he still welcomed Dean Ning Wei into the reception hall with a beaming smile.

Ning Bizhen stood by Li Zhangsheng's side, receiving Dean Ning Wei together with him.

In the reception hall, both parties sat down as host and guest; Li Zhangsheng did not know the purpose of Dean Ning Wei's visit, but seeing her look conflicted and unable to speak, he had no choice but to patiently chat with her about everything under the sun.

Ning Bizhen occasionally chimed in a few words, so as not to let the atmosphere turn cold.

Soon, Dean Ning Wei returned to her normal state and finally got to the point.

"The two of you, I discovered some Ruins not long ago, but I am troubled by the lack of a token and cannot enter. I originally wanted to force my way in, but I was limited by insufficient strength and unable to break the Forbidden Array. Coming here this time, I mainly want to ask for your help."

Upon hearing about the Ruins, Li Zhangsheng could not help but show an interested expression; Dean Ning Wei was a veteran Sixth-Rank Expert, and if even she could not break the Forbidden Array of the Ruins, these Ruins likely contained immense value.

According to Li Zhangsheng's guess, an ordinary Pseudo-King would likely not be able to set up such a powerful Array Prohibition, and it was more likely to be a King.

If these were the Ruins of a King, they might contain astonishing value, and it was even possible they contained the opportunity for one to become a King in a short period of time.

Before that, Li Zhangsheng still asked: "Dean, have you looked for anyone else?"

In terms of relationships, Dean Ning Wei had worked with Xu Wenhua and Zhang Kaishuo for decades, so their relationships should have been better; it was strange that she came to find him and Ning Bizhen instead.

Dean Ning Wei seemed to have guessed that Li Zhangsheng would say this, and said: "The Ruins are close to the center of the Silent Forest; your strength is greater, so this will be safer."

The Silent Forest possesses many Demon King-level Spirit Beasts, and there is no lack of Demon Saint-level Spirit Beasts among them; if one were to forcibly bombard the Forbidden Array there, it might attract their attention.

Additionally, the interior of the Ruins does not mean there is no danger, especially since Dean Ning Wei does not have a token in her hand.

Today's goal: three, pigs, proof!

(End of this chapter)