Chapter 44: Teaching A Lesson

Gu Mengzhong had a long chat with Lin Jin. He also told the latter that he would be staying at Maple City for a little longer before leaving Lin Jin’s consultation hall. He had kept a low-profile during his journey here to avoid anyone recognizing him, except Lu Yunhe.

However, Lu Yunhe didn’t seem the type to spread news like this around, and he was quite respectful toward Lin Jin now. After all, he was still hoping that Lin Jin would help appraise his pet beast.

Perhaps it was because his mood had gotten better, and since the man was connected to Lu Xiaoyun, Lin Jin told Lu Yunhe to bring his pet beast over.

This male lion named ‘Lu Ba’ was indeed fearsome. It was also a rare beast at Rank 2 with an average potential rating.

With an extended arm, Lin Jin gathered every bit of information he required.

“Since you’re one of us, I won’t charge you anything. Ask whatever you want,” Lin Jin declared. He was in a great mood. Before Gu Mengzhong left, he had drawn him a new painting, so with this art piece worth thousands in hand, how could Lin Jin stay moody?

Lu Yunhe quickly inquired, “Is there a way to help it evolve?”

There was a world of difference between a Rank 2 and Rank 3 pet beast. As a pet beast friar, it was Lu Yunhe’s dream to promote his pet beast to Rank 3.

If that were to happen, from the blood contract realm he had cultivated, Lu Yunhe could gain enough strength to stop a Rank 2 pet beast on his own without relying on Lu Ba at all.

This was only one factor out of a list of reasons why he wanted to get Lu Ba promoted. The biggest advantage was that he would definitely rise up through the ranks of the Friar Association.

The Friar Association was filled with talents and competition was fierce. Things like cultivation resources and positions had to be fought over. Lu Yunhe too was under immense pressure to outperform his peers, but if he had a Rank 3 pet beast, such issues would cease to even exist.

Because his mentor’s pet beast was only at Rank 3 as well.

Hearing her brother ask so directly, Lu Xiaoyun quickly urged him to change his mind, “Brother, it’s not easy to promote a Rank 2 to Rank 3. Even in the entire Maple City, there are only a handful of Rank 3 pet beasts around. With this being such a difficult task, I don’t think Appraiser Lin would…”

“There is!” Lin Jin suddenly announced. At this, Lu Xiaoyun stopped speaking.

Had it been before, she would never have believed it. As an apprentice beast appraiser, she knew full well how tough it was to promote a pet beast. Most of the pet beasts could never evolve in their lifetime. A few could get to Rank 2 and that was the ceiling in most cases. As for achieving Rank 3, most people wouldn’t even dream of it.

And it wasn’t because they couldn’t afford it. It was because doing so was literally impossible.

If you wanted to climb up the hill but there was no path, how do you get up there?

The same thing applied here as well. As far as Lu Xiaoyun knew, it was impossible for Lu Ba to evolve to Rank 3. For now, at least.

However, if Appraiser Lin said there was a way, then things might be different.

Because there really might be a way.

At this thought, Lu Xiaoyun became excited as well. Firstly, she was happy for her brother. Apart from that, she also wanted to study closely how Appraiser Lin could help this pet beast evolve, considering how ranking-up was said to be impossible in less than ten years.

Even if it was just a lecture on the methodology, that would be enough for her to learn some skills that would benefit her for life.

“Appraiser Lin, do you really have a way?” The solution came so abruptly that Lu Yunhe found it to be surreal.

Without another word, Lin Jin grabbed a brush and parchment. He dabbed the tip of the brush into ink before he began writing away.

There were some things that couldn’t be clearly explained by talking. It was better to just write it down for better understanding.

From the Museum of Deadly Beasts, there were quite a few methods to help Lu Yunhe’s pet beast evolve. Among them included a ‘perfect evolution’ that was chosen in the past for Xiao Huo.

However, Lu Yunhe’s pet beast was a rare breed that was already at Rank 2, if they chose ‘perfect evolution’ for him, the process would definitely be really difficult to pull off. Putting all else aside, just that ‘wind quartz’ was impossible to obtain, never mind having to refine a pellet like the ‘nine spirit wind stabilizing pill’. The medicine ingredient list made Lin Jin shook his head. Not only were they not sold in Maple City, even if they were, Lu Yunhe probably won’t be able to afford it.

Halfway through his writing, Lin Jin suddenly recalled something and looked up at Zhao Ying and Lu Xiaoyun.

The girls were hovered around him, carefully reading Lin Jin’s writing. Their heads almost smashed into each other when Lin Jin lifted his head without warning. Startled, they quickly recoiled backward. Zhao Ying was blushing while Lu Xiaoyun stuck her tongue out mischievously.

“I almost forgot. You’re both now studying under me but I haven’t officially taught you anything yet. Why don’t I teach you a lesson today?” Lin Jin said sheepishly.

Strictly speaking, his abilities in beast appraisal and basic knowledge were no better than the girls. If he were to teach them the basics, there wouldn’t be much to say, nor could he say anything because his inexperience would be revealed the moment he opened his mouth.

However, if he were to talk about the contents of the museum, things would be different. He believed that it would be beneficial for Zhao Ying and Lu Xiaoyun as well.

At this, Zhao Ying and Lu Xiaoyun immediately snapped to attention, looking excited.

Finally!

Appraiser Lin was finally giving them a lecture as he conducted a beast appraisal. This was a rare opportunity they had been waiting for.

For the last two days, they had seen Lin Jin appraise beasts but scratched their heads at how he did it. Even as they judged him according to the rules of beast evaluation, everything Appraiser Lin did was mind-blowing. The man didn’t require any auxiliary instruments or spells when he performed his evaluations. That only meant one thing–his level of mastery was far above theirs.

Both girls even specifically searched through books, trying to research Appraiser Lin’s methods, and to their surprise, they found only one clue.

According to legends, there had once existed a beast-touching and observation method. No instruments were needed in the appraisal process. The only catch was the fact that this appraisal method was extremely difficult and the knowledge, experience, and deduction ability required from the beast appraiser was harsh. Hence, only a handful of exceptional individuals could master it.

Both of them were sure that Appraiser Lin must have mastered the ‘beast observation’ appraisal method.

Lin Jin, on the other hand, was oblivious to their thoughts. Since he was to conduct a lecture, he stopped writing the evaluation report but instead pointed to Lu Ba and said, “You girls shall be evaluating it first. Just use whichever method you’re good at and tell me your conclusion.”

The two girls took a deep breath before beginning their appraisals.

Zhao Ying had a steadfast personality and her methods were very traditional. She used various beast talismans to test its attribute and deduce its bloodline. She performed seals and utilized her own spirit energy to search for and understand the pet beast’s health condition. Everything was done meticulously and in order, clearly showing how solid Zhao Ying’s mastery over the basic skills were.

Lu Xiaoyun was different. Her appraisal method relied mainly on viewing through her spiritual eye. With her spiritual eye, she could observe in detail the condition of the pet beast’s coat, eyes, and current status. It could even see through into the pet beast’s organs and bone structure. Of course, her basic knowledge of this method was just as solid. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to form conclusions just by observing.

Lu Ba was observed and touched all around his body. A blood sample was taken here, a tuft of fur taken there. He was staring at Lu Yunhe, extremely aggrieved. The latter could only coax him by saying, “Oh, Lu Ba, this is all for your sake. If you want to evolve, you have to suffer a little. Without standing in the rain, how could you see the rainbow at the end?”

Both girls reported their findings to Lin Jin. They could evaluate some of the basic information, but when a deeper level of knowledge was needed, like evolution methods, both girls were unable to utter a single word.

Lin Jin smiled and said to Zhao Ying, “I know that you have a solid foundation. Have courage and tell me what you’ve figured out, it’s okay even if it’s just an assumption.”

Having received words of encouragement, Zhao Ying replied, “Appraiser Lin, Lu Ba’s bloodline might belong to a tempest lion. It is a wind attribute and currently at Rank 2. Its health is in good condition. If he were to evolve, he would need to strengthen his veins, bones, intima, and blood. Also, he needs to be constantly fed with spirit stones in order to enlarge the acupoints in his body. In due time, there’s a chance that it might evolve successfully.”

Zhao Ying stopped when she reached this point. She appeared a little apprehensive. However, Lin Jin nodded and said, “This is the conventional method. Lu Xiaoyun, please tell us your opinion.”

Lu Xiaoyun immediately raised her eyebrows and said, “My appraisal results are basically the same as Zhao Ying’s. But about the evolution method, I feel that we can go bigger. Not only can we increase the dosage of spirit stones, but we can also use spirit needles to perform acupuncture. It’s to promote the flow from the outside. That way, we can reduce at least half the time needed for the evolution process. In three years, he should be able to evolve.”