Chapter 540

Fang Xing stared at the humanoid shadow wreathed in gray mist, unable to decide whether to laugh or sigh.

"An Emperor-grade ghost shadow, its first skill is Deception—not concealment, but outright trickery… For example, Erha can only hide its own cultivation level, targeting itself; but 'Deception' targets others and external objects. If this bronze holy scripture is deceived, it won't just fail to detect the ghost shadow—even if I tell it to identify the Earthquake Bear as a Commander-grade or King-grade entity, it will accept it as truth and display it…"

This ability is the divine art of thieves and con artists!

And its second ability—Ghost Possession! The ghost shadow can possess the corpse of a heart beast it has slain, completing "soul usurpation" and absorbing the cultivation of that heart beast... The ghost shadow was originally just a heart manifestation, but by continuously absorbing Old One-Eye's cultivation, it finally became a heart beast...

"If I feed Old One-Eye to a Royal-grade or even Legendary-grade heart beast, could the ghost shadow seize control of that beast too?"

"No, there seems to be a limit—it can only be activated three times in a lifetime… Already used once on Old One-Eye, so only two chances remain…"

"And after each activation, there must be a 'dormant period'—if it dies during that time, it's truly dead?"

Fang Xing probed with his heart force and found the dormant period for the ghost shadow's 'Ghost Possession' skill had not yet ended.

But if he aided it with his heart force, he could likely accelerate the process.

"Still, Ghost Possession isn't omnipotent—it probably has cultivation limits, even quality restrictions…"

Fang Xing immediately realized: even now, the ghost shadow was merely a Soldier-grade entity.

It might succeed in possessing a General-grade or even Lord-grade heart beast.

But attempting to possess a King-grade heart beast now was pure fantasy.

"Besides the number of uses and cultivation limits… there might be other restrictions."

"In this world, there are no invincible heart beasts—only invincible Masters!"

He lifted his restrictions, letting the ghost shadow repossess Old One-Eye.

Old One-Eye let out an "Aowu!" and stood up.

Fang Xing, witnessing this, finally confirmed one thing: "Fang Leng truly died that night—what survived was only his Core Heart Beast, and now it's fallen into my hands… Ah, my blood brother, become my wings… sounds overly poetic. Better to say: thanks for the heart beast donation, old buddy?"

"This ghost shadow clearly belongs to the Death attribute—it should greatly aid in comprehending the Death Dao…"

…

Several months later.

Deep within Mount Qinglong.

"Thundercloud!"

Pei Ziyue summoned her Core Heart Beast—a dark cloud appeared, faint thunder rumbling within.

"Excellent. Your Core Heart Beast has reached the upper tier of Soldier-grade. It's time to capture your second heart beast."

An elderly man wearing a straw hat and rain cape stood beside Pei Ziyue.

"Master…"

Pei Ziyue's face immediately showed reverence.

For her master was none other than the Lord of Green Forest City—a powerful 'Earth Master'.

At this moment, the old lord held a seemingly ordinary wooden staff.

The staff appeared freshly broken from a tree, still covered in bark, with fresh branches sprouting green buds.

Thud!

The old lord planted his staff into the ground, and strange seedlings sprouted instantly.

Their leaves were black-green, shimmering with faint purple lightning.

Soon, the stalks bore heavy, ripened grains.

"Your Thundercloud heart beast thrives best on 'Thundercloud Rice'… Combined with the 'Thunder Crystal' you used during your initial formation, you've reached upper Soldier-grade in mere months…"

The old lord taught her a few feeding techniques, then continued: "But a Master's strength depends on the combination of heart beasts. Now is the time to capture your second. Given your Bronze-grade initial heart beast, your second must be at least Bronze-grade, or a juvenile Commander-grade…"

"Yes, Master."

Pei Ziyue felt excited.

She thought of her two classmates: although they competed with each other at school, their gap outside was already obvious.

"That Fang Xing supposedly ventured straight into Mount Qinglong—he's probably still at the periphery… His second heart beast is likely Iron-grade, wasting his potential…"

"But what can you do? Not everyone can have a Lord-grade master guiding them to hunt heart beasts at Soldier-grade…"

"I've dealt with several Commander-grade heart beasts on Mount Qinglong—I might find a suitable juvenile… If raised from infancy, even if it grows into a Lord, it won't turn against you…"

The old lord smiled and sent a white cloud flying from his hand.

The cloud drifted upward, expanding rapidly until it covered dozens, then hundreds of li.

Pei Ziyue gazed in awe.

To alter the weather over a hundred li with a mere gesture—that was true Lord-grade mastery!

"Your Thundercloud combines thunder and cloud—you needn't seek another 'Thunder Beast.' That leaves an opening. A combat-oriented path would suit you well."

The old lord smiled again, pulling out a Silver Holy Scripture and flipping to a page.

The illustration showed a misty rainy season, with sprites dancing in the rain.

Pitter-patter!

A fine rain descended, blanketing a hundred li in hazy mist.

"Ziyue, remember: Earth Masters either don't act—or when they do, they seize the heavens. Use mist to conceal, then deploy the 'Rain Sprite's' reconnaissance skill—nothing major within a hundred li escapes my notice."

The old lord spoke with quiet pride: "Now… let's go meet that 'Pterosaur'…"

Even among Commander-grade heart beasts, there are tiers.

The Pterosaur was unquestionably among the upper echelons of Commander-grade, and more importantly—it could fly!

Pei Ziyue's eyes lit up: "I'm getting a Pterosaur pup?"

Such a Commander-grade juvenile, if raised properly, would become a top-tier Lord-grade heart beast!

In truth, any heart beast with 'dragon' in its name was never weak—and the Pterosaur wasn't even a true dragon-type.

"Hm?"

Suddenly!

The old lord stared in a certain direction, his expression turning grave: "Two upper Lord-grade heart beasts are fighting… One is the seven-hundred-year-old Fierce Sabertooth Tiger!"

"Upper Lord-grade heart beasts fighting?"

Pei Ziyue gasped: "Is this normal?"

According to her textbooks, Lord-grade heart beasts had fixed territories and rarely fought unless necessary.

"This is abnormal. The other Lord-grade heart beast has at least nine hundred years of cultivation—it's an invasion, a hunt!"

The old lord's face grew solemn as his Silver Holy Scripture flipped rapidly.

A 'Wind Sprite' and a 'Thunder Beast' were released.

Wind, rain, thunder, cloud—these were the Earth Master's standard tools.

Though among these Lord-grade heart beasts, only her Core Heart Beast, 'Boundless Cloud,' and the 'Thunder Beast' reached upper Lord-grade, the rest were lower Lord-grade.

But combined, even a thousand-year Lord-grade heart beast could be entangled—or defeated!

But when combined, even a lord heart beast with a thousand years of cultivation could be entangled—and even defeated!

Even through the rain, Pei Ziyue heard the tiger's roars.

Gradually, the roars shifted from fierce to agonized, then fell silent.

Gradually, the tiger's roar shifted from shrill to agonized, then fell into complete silence.

From within the rain curtain emerged a wolf-like beast over six meters tall, its eyes emerald green.

In its mouth it dragged the Sabertooth Tiger's head; it glanced dismissively toward them, making even the Thunder Beast shudder.

Soon, the wolf beast retreated, vanishing swiftly into the rain.

Soon, the wolf heart beast retreated, vanishing swiftly into the rain curtain.

The old lord exhaled, but dared not recall his heart beasts.

Otherwise, if ambushed, he could rely on his protective aura—but Pei Ziyue would die instantly.

Otherwise, if caught by a sudden attack, he could withstand it with his protective spiritual light, but Pei Ziyue would surely die.

Only now did Pei Ziyue hear her own heavy breathing.

She was merely an ordinary Soldier-grade Master—facing a near-thousand-year Lord-grade predator was too much.

Yet, recalling the blurred figure she'd seen, she felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

"Wolf… dog… heart manifestation?"

"Was that a Blackfire Dog?"

Pei Ziyue blurted out—having been classmates with someone, she'd seen Fang Xing's heart manifestation before.

"No—it's a Commander-grade Blackfire Dog, possibly even a King-grade Blackfire King!"

The old lord shook his head: "A normal Blackfire Dog can't break the hundred-year barrier to become Lord-grade…"

The old city lord shook his head: "A common black fire dog cannot break through the hundred-year limit to ascend into a lord-level heart beast…"

Pei Ziyue nodded.

…

Somewhere a hundred li away.

Fang Xing, wearing a straw hat, stood atop a cliff, gazing at the distant rain clouds: "A Lord-grade Earth Master?"

There were many Earth Masters near Green Forest City, but only one Lord-grade.

"Why would that lord risk himself here?"

He thought about it briefly, then shrugged.

Soon, Erha arrived, dragging the Sabertooth Tiger's head, proudly presenting it to Fang Xing.

Not long after, Erha arrived before Fang Xing, dragging the head of the ferocious saber-toothed tiger to claim credit.

"Hmm, not bad..."

He nodded, satisfied with Erha's performance.

After spending several months helping Erha grow accustomed to General-level power, Fang Xing took it back into Mount Qinglong, chasing dogs and scaring chickens—always targeting the weak, burning countless insects, butterflies, and small beasts with the Fire of Destruction.

Erha quickly ascended to Lord rank, broke through a century of cultivation, its body swelled dramatically, and it awakened the skill "Domain of Destruction."

Typically, domain-type skills are only possessed by Sovereign-level heart beasts; for Erha to gain one at Lord rank proves its extraordinary talent.

"Now that my cultivation has risen, it's like a snowball rolling downhill... but I'll keep it at a thousand years for now—I still need to refine and hone it before attempting to break into Sovereign rank."

Fang Xing turned his gaze to his other heart beast, Old One-eye, standing gloomily to the side, showing little alarm despite Erha's presence.

"Ghost Shadow was clearly wasted before—it was merely a pre-Imperial quality heart beast. Now, with high-grade ingredients to nourish it, its progress is rapid... it will soon break into General rank."

"After that, perhaps I can try directly possessing a Lord-level heart beast?"

Fang Xing had always been too lazy to cultivate new heart beasts—not every one was like Erha, who could surge in cultivation simply by fighting and practicing the Path of Destruction.

"Ghost Shadow only has three possession chances—I used one on the One-eyed Wolf. What a waste."

"This time, I must capture at least a high-tier Lord—a heart beast with Sovereign potential—so it won't be wasted."

"Perfect—now that my own heart beast has ascended, I'm a Lord-level Master. Carrying a few Lord-level contracts is no issue at all..."

(End of Chapter)