After repeatedly checking the information about Xue Henqing three times, Lin Su was baffled.
If there hadn't been detailed illustrations in the document, Lin Su would have even doubted that what he saw was Xue Henqing rather than a pet beast with the same name.
Before this, Lin Su had a doubt.
Why did his predecessor buy so many adorable low-rank pet beasts for the garden, including the lower-ranking Lightning Fox, yet miss out on the adorable Xue Henqing?
Now he understood the reason.
It was because his predecessor could not afford Xue Henqing with his meager allowance.
Xue Henqing indeed had an evolutionary path, which exceeded Lin Su's expectations.
[Species Name: Frost Flower Dream Shadow
Species Rank: Lower Monarch Rank
Attributes: Ice-type, Spirit-type
Description: Armed with the core skill Frost Silence Storm capable of freezing thoughts and the innate skill Cold Frost Dream Domain that traps enemies in a dreamscape eternally, Frost Flower Dream Shadow is the world's most unexpected hunter.]
Evolution from an elite rank directly to a monarch rank, and moreover, possessing a relatively rare attribute like Spirit, such evolutionary potential was terrifying.
Although Xue Henqing's species was merely a high elite rank, it had its price multiplied many times over by its powerful evolved form.
Lin Su was not sure about this world, but he could confirm that on Lan Xing, there was no evolution path that could span a major species rank, evolving directly from elite to monarch rank; even if one eventually reached the monarch rank, it was first through evolving to the leader rank, then evolving several more times to finally become a monarch rank.
A scholar had once summarized the rules of evolution, asserting that such cross-tier evolution was impossible.
Clearly, that scholar's conclusion was too absolute.
Lin Su actually did not hold much hope for Xue Henqing's evolutionary path; he would have been satisfied if Xue Henqing could just move up a sub-rank from high elite to low leader rank.
That way, Qiuqiu would have the hope of breaking through to the monarch rank.
Now, the evolutionary path in this world had given him a huge surprise.
Qiuqiu, having evolved to a lower monarch rank, possessed the potential to reach the emperor rank.
And an emperor rank pet beast corresponds to an epic Beast Tamer; this level of Beast Tamer was already the pinnacle of fighting power among Beast Tamers on Lan Xing.
No more talking, go back and make a pact with Qiuqiu.
Suppressing the ecstasy in his heart and his eagerness to instantly return to Lan Xing, Lin Su patiently reviewed the evolution method for Xue Henqing.
Being able to evolve meant that Qiuqiu's future was promising.
But the future was not the present, and first, he had to solve the evolution problem.
Evolution is the way for pet beasts to break their shackles and transition into new life phases; on Lan Xing, countless researchers had used scientific methods to continually experiment and ultimately discern the patterns of evolution, while in the world of divine martial arts, Beast Tamers under the protection of Martial Artists gradually developed and also finally understood the secrets of evolution on their own.
The evolution of pet beasts in these two worlds had no difference, and they still required two key elements: Evolution Skill and Evolution Resource.
Evolution Skill is a type of Pet Beast Skill.
Each pet beast can master different skills, each having various uses. If categorized by the source of the skills, they can be classified into Taught Skills and Innate Skills.
So-called Taught Skills are skills imparted to pet beasts through conventional teaching methods, while Innate Skills are either congenitally acquired or comprehended by the pet beasts themselves during evolution and advancement.
In addition, Pet Beast Skills can be further divided based on the upper limits of the skills themselves into Core Skills, Non-core Skills, and Evolution Skills.
Each pet beast has only one Core Skill, which must be an Innate Skill—the skill naturally mastered by the beast—and its proficiency levels are divided into: Tier I, Tier II, Tier III, Tier IV, and Tier V, each tier signifying a qualitative leap.
However, a pet beast can possess many Non-core Skills, which can be either Taught or Innate Skills, differing from Core Skills in that Non-core Skills cannot reach Tier V and have only the first four tiers.
In addition to these, pet beasts can also master Evolution Skills—a special type of skill. Evolution Skills do not have proficiency levels and serve only as auxiliary skills for evolution, varying according to different evolutionary directions, and such skills exist mainly as Innate Skills on a few pet beasts, with the majority being Taught Skills.
Evolution Resource, then, is a specific resource closely related to the evolutionary path; different pet beasts require completely different Evolution Resources during their evolution.
The Evolution Resources needed by Xue Henqing are not exaggerated, the most precious being only a sixth-tier resource on par with the monarch rank.
Its evolved form is a monarch rank, so using a sixth-tier resource for evolution is proper.
These resources are currently beyond Lin Su's reach.
Fortunately, the evolution of a pet beast is not an overnight matter, and acquiring Evolution Resources need not be rushed; as his own strength grows stronger, natural methods will emerge.
As for using the Lin Family's money to buy them, Lin Su had never even considered it.
A sixth-tier supernatural resource corresponding to a monarch rank or leader rank monarch species, such a resource is far more expensive than the young of a monarch rank exotic beast.
Even if the Lin Family were to purchase it, it would likely be a huge blow.
Being a newcomer and newly assuming the role of a son, Lin Su could not do such a thing.
So, he must rely on himself.
The issue with Evolution Resources was not significant, but the issue with Evolution Skill was somewhat grave.