King of Beasts

News, as they say, spreads the fastest.

Lu Ran had just seen Fang Lan’s message when the news that the Five Poisons Cult Holy Maiden had defeated the Princess of Light popped up on every beast taming app.

At this moment, Lu Ran was about to report to Dr. Gu and others about his plan to go to the other shore island when this unexpected news left him silent.

“How could it be her?” This unfortunate fellow, it seems he’ll have to strive hard to catch up with the progress of the other members of the Golden Generation… he has a long road ahead.

However, what does this have to do with Lu Ran?

Lu Ran chuckled and was about to continue his call to Dr. Gu when a cat pop-up appeared on the screen, surprising him.

Manager Ying!

“Aren’t you busy? How do you suddenly have time to call me?” Lu Ran answered the call with feigned surprise.

“Shall I leave then?”

“Hey, hey, hey, come on, what’s the good news?” Lu Ran laughed.

“I knew you must have brought some important intelligence.”

“Hmph.” On the other end, Manager Ying said, “Opening branches globally is to expand my intelligence network. Without my efforts, how could I find a suitable trait for you so quickly?”

“When I was negotiating with the international alliance, I found a trait suitable for your weather elf.”

“Really???”

Lu Ran’s eyes lit up. Don’t be fooled by cloud baby’s current level in the 20s; it had only fused one trait, leaving it pathetically weak, even unable to make it onto the Sovereign Divine Beast Leaderboard.

In real battles, it could even get pounded by Fang Lan’s little spider.

He desperately needed a strong trait.

“You previously asked me to find a weather trait suitable for it, and a speed type trait…”

“So, is it a weather type trait, or a speed type?” Lu Ran asked.

“Neither.”

Lu Ran: ???

“There are options, but they’re too mediocre. I don’t think much of them, let alone you,” Manager Ying said. “The trait I found for you is absolutely perfect, absolutely invincible, and can be considered the mightiest elemental trait.”

“It’s just that obtaining it may be a bit difficult.”

“What trait is it?” Lu Ran eagerly asked. Anything from Manager Ying must be top-notch. Whether it was the Evil God’s Eye trait or the Ultimate Perception Trait, Lu Ran was always satisfied.

“Trait name: Shapeshifter.”

Trait Crystal (Shapeshifter): The elemental lifeform that fuses with this trait can, with the help of specific materials, shape-shift into nearly any creature, gaining some of its abilities.

“Elemental lives are the easiest to shape among all species. The Shapeshifter trait is exclusive to elemental lifeforms. The effect is similar to your general ha’s King of Swords talent; both require external aid…”

“After fusion, if you have it cover general ha’s teeth, it can transform into a cloud sword dog. If you have it cover the scales of the sudden death king, it can transform into a cloud giant dragon. If you have it cover a divine deer antler, it can transform into a cloud divine deer. The key is that it can merge some of the transformed creature’s abilities with its own.”

“For instance, after transforming into a divine deer and performing rainmaking, the rainfall might have healing properties.”

“The reason I think this trait is impressive is because of its high versatility. By choosing the right high-species creature as the transformation target, it can enhance its control over corresponding weather. Transform into a thunder divine beast to wield endless thunder, or into a wind divine beast to control apocalyptic hurricanes…”

“Ahem, of course, you’ll have to figure out the shaping process on your own.”Nôv(el)B\\jnn

“Additionally, weren’t you looking for a pet beast with outstanding speed? If you help it develop a speed-focused transformation form, that problem would also be solved. It’s truly an all-around trait.”

“Yes, you’re going to turn it into a shapeshifting wonder!”

“Hmm…” Lu Ran responded, “It sounds great, but what do you mean by the difficulty being high?”

Manager Ying replied, “Because the holder of this trait doesn’t seem to plan on selling or trading it; it intends to use it for itself. Additionally, it seems you two have a grudge.”

“A reminder, the other party holds a pretty high status.”

Lu Ran: ???

“Wait a minute… an elemental type trait…”

Lu Ran paused and said, “You don’t mean to say that this trait is in the hands of a beastmaster named Princess of Light, do you???”

“Correct! You’re getting smarter!” Manager Ying chuckled mischievously.

“I only came across this intelligence by chance. The Princess of Light seems to be planning to use this trait for her elemental pet beast when the Evolution Secret Realm opens next time. If you want to trade for it, it probably won’t be easy.”

“Damn.” Lu Ran felt like his head was going to explode.

No wonder Manager Ying had such a gleeful tone.

Lu Ran couldn’t decide if the Princess of Light was unlucky or if he was.

This definitely wouldn’t be an easy trade…

“Do you have anything valuable for trade? You never know, she might be willing to exchange,” Manager Ying’s voice came through again. “In my years of experience, nothing is irreplaceable. If it’s not enough, just increase the offer.”

“The problem is, I don’t have much…” Lu Ran fell silent.

He had some valuable items, like a divine deer antler and a branch of ruins, but he couldn’t bear to part with them.

There were lesser items like the Leaf of Time, Time Acceleration Inheritance Crystal, and a lucky clover trait, but he was reluctant to give those up too.

On the lower end, he had meteorite fragments, the Vibrant Vitality skill, miracle seeds, a blood drop stone, and a lower sovereign plant pet seed with a 100% awakening success rate, but the other party might not be interested.

“No rush. She definitely wants to wait for the Evolution Secret Realm, so she won’t use this trait easily. There’s still time,” Manager Ying said. “I’ll go and negotiate first, see if she has any special needs.”

“Alright, but don’t mention that I’m the one interested,” Lu Ran readily agreed. After Manager Ying’s explanation, he found himself quite tempted by the Shapeshifter trait.

However, Lu Ran had a feeling that if the Princess of Light knew he was the one after it, the deal might fall through even if it was otherwise possible.

“Also, Her Royal Highness might be under the weather, so be careful when you approach her.”

“What?”

“Just take a look at the news. Fang Lan recently poisoned the princess in the arena. Even if Fang Lan went easy, I suspect the princess might have to be bedridden for at least a week or two…”

Manager Ying: ???

“Alright, alright, is that how you guys want to play it? This just makes my negotiations harder!”

…

“Who knew things would line up like this.” Hanging up Manager Ying’s call, Lu Ran let out a long sigh. It seems like he should perform more good deeds in the future.

Still, if he could acquire the Shapeshifter trait, the development direction for his weather elf would be clear: Shapeshifter support! But whether it would work out depended on Manager Ying’s negotiation skills.

“I wonder if the princess would be interested in artifact spirits…”

Lu Ran glanced at the three exquisite pieces of equipment in his backpack, then decided to call Dr. Gu.

“All done?” A surprised voice came from the other end.

“Yes, the relocation of the Death Forest went smoothly.”

“Do you need more botanists to help take care of it?” Gu Qingyi asked.

She had seen the Death Forest in the ruins space, filled with high-potential ferocious plants. If they could awaken Sapience, they would become top-tier plant pets.

“Ah, I’m fine with anything. You can discuss it with Fang Lan. I’ve planned to leave the forest under her care since her pet beast has that trait for controlling and modifying plants. I brought the forest over from the breakthrough secret realm precisely to serve as her arsenal.” Lu Ran replied.

Having already struggled to manage his Pet Beast Legion, he had no energy left to deal with these plants.

“You really dote on her,” Gu Qingyi chuckled.

“Well, I have no choice. She’s my only silly older sister; I have to look out for her more.”

“When are you going to dote on me?”

“Uh???” Lu Ran was taken aback, his heart suddenly racing.

“Just kidding. Your call came at the right time; I was about to reach out to you.”

“You must have other things to discuss, so do you want to go first, or should I?”

“Mine’s a small matter; you go first.” Lu Ran said helplessly.

“The Mermaid Princess from the Fishman Empire has come to Xia Country as an envoy to discuss further alliance details. To ensure close ties, either the Fishman Prince or the Mermaid Princess will need to enter a contract with a Xia Country beastmaster.”

“It seems the Mermaid Princess has taken a liking to you. Are you interested in forming a contract with her?”

“Her species level is as high as a lower overlord, which means she has quite significant potential.”

“I…” Lu Ran was initially interested, as this was effectively a top-tier ocean pet beast. But he suddenly remembered the Shapeshifter trait that Manager Ying had mentioned.

If his cloud baby could integrate the Shapeshifter trait and later replicate an ocean overlord’s form, he wouldn’t be as dependent on the Mermaid Princess.

It was a conflict of roles.

Considering the princess purely as a retainer was just a thought. He didn’t really believe that an overlord’s offspring would willingly become a retainer to a human pet beast.

“I’m not interested for now. Why don’t you negotiate and see if you can contract with the Mermaid Princess? Your vast sea azure dragon won’t be able to evolve in the short term, and contracting her could be a major boost to your strength.”

After Lu Ran finished, there was a brief pause on the other end, followed by a chuckle. “But she came here for you.”

“A contract is out of the question. I’m worried it might cause misunderstandings, and it’ll be hard to find a wife later… At most, she’d be a retainer to my pet beast, but considering her status, it probably won’t work.” Lu Ran shrugged.

“A retainer contract? I’ll negotiate that for you,” Dr. Gu offered.

“Better not; it might affect the alliance if it goes wrong. Xia Country might still hope to use the Fishman Empire to counterattack the Dragon Palace,” Lu Ran said.

“It’s no big deal. The Fishman Empire is seeking Xia Country’s help now,” Gu Qingyi replied. “By the way, what did you need?”

Lu Ran said, “I’m planning to go abroad to visit the necromancy secret realm. In the past few days, I’ve forged two pieces of equipment through Soul Forging. I want to see if I can nurture an artifact spirit and research necromancy weapons.”

“Are you going alone?” Gu Qingyi was startled.

“Don’t worry. With my current strength, I should be able to escape any danger. Besides, as long as I keep a low profile, there shouldn’t be that many threats waiting for me,” Lu Ran replied casually.

“Alright,” Gu Qingyi said. “Be sure to contact the person in charge over there in advance. Currently, Old Zhu is stationed at the other shore island, and he can assist you.”

“Got it,” Lu Ran readily agreed. Ah, Old Zhu. During the battle with the Black Dragon, Old Zhu helped a lot. To gather enough offerings for the dark crow’s curse, quite a few of his pigs had been bled…