Sitting under the shade of the tree, Lin Chuan stared at the two Flower Leaf Leaves hanging from the street lamp.
Most wood-element spirit beasts are born with the Photosynthesis skill, and Flower Leaf Leaf is no exception.
The Photosynthesis skill allows a spirit beast to quickly recover stamina and energy when exposed to light.
However, there's a detail about Photosynthesis that many academic underachievers, and even Beast Masters with average knowledge, don't know: it requires an environment with trace elements (generally soil) and sufficient water to be sustained for a long time.
Otherwise, once separated from soil and water, Photosynthesis will consume the trace elements and water stored within the spirit beast. It can still restore stamina and energy for a short period, but over a slightly longer duration, the significant depletion of trace elements and water will cause the spirit beast to rapidly fall into a weakened state. If it continues for even longer, it can even cause the spirit beast to suffer fundamental damage that cannot be easily healed.
Such was the current situation: the two Flower Leaf Leaves were hanging from the street lamp, unable to absorb trace elements and water from the soil, and enduring the scorching sun of a summer noon. They were already weak… Well, to be precise, they were still far from truly weak, but seeing the two Flower Leaf Leaves no longer kicking and struggling, looking listless and out of energy, Lin Chuan’s heart immediately softened.
Originally, he had planned to punish these two leading Flower Leaf Leaves by hanging them from the street lamp for two hours, but now, in less than half an hour, Lin Chuan took them down.
“Dare to do it again next time?!”
Holding a cute cartoon little yellow duck watering can, Lin Chuan watered the two Flower Leaf Leaves, who had planted themselves in the field, while putting on an angry expression and questioning them in a fierce tone.
“Yi ya, yi ya ah!”
“Ying, yi ying,”
One of their voices was slightly sharp and loud, while the other's voice was softer.
Although he couldn't understand their words, from their current obedient, head-down, upright sitting posture, Lin Chuan could still feel their sincere and good attitude of admitting their mistakes.
“Then, apologize to each other, shake hands, and make peace. You are all good friends, a family that grew up together in the same field!”
Like a kindergarten teacher coaxing children, Lin Chuan continued to persuade them to be harmonious.
However, the two little ones, who had been so well-behaved and apologetic just moments ago, didn't give Lin Chuan face this time.
The two Flower Leaf Leaves looked at each other.
“Yi ya!”
“Ying!”
Each letting out an angry cry, the two Flower Leaf Leaves simultaneously turned their heads, facing away from each other.
The Flower Leaf Leaf with the softer, 'ying ying' voice even wrapped its body with its leaves, curling into a potato ball, as if to say, 'I'm not listening, I'm not listening.'
Lin Chuan’s forehead was full of black lines, feeling exhausted… Raising children is truly not easy!
“So, can you tell me why you're not getting along, and why you fought?”
Ignoring the field environment, Lin Chuan sat down between the two Flower Leaf Leaves and asked softly and kindly.
“Yi.”
“Ying.”
Both Flower Leaf Leaves simply replied with a sound and offered no further response, adopting an attitude of not wanting to speak.
This uncooperative situation gave Lin Chuan an even bigger headache.
Alright, he could only investigate himself.
...
Lin's Farm not only housed Lin Chuan’s family but also many employees and managers. However, these employees were hired to look after ordinary crops and the orchard that covered half the mountain.
As for cultivating Flower Leaf Leaves, the Lin family had always done it personally. This was considered the core technical secret of Lin's Farm. Lin Chuan’s father, Lin Xuédòng, led the research and cultivation direction. His mother, Su Xiaoxia, was a tutor at Qingjiang Agricultural Imperial Beast University in the neighboring city and usually didn't come home, so the daily feeding and maintenance tasks fell on the shoulders of Lin Chuan’s three siblings. However, with his eldest brother, Lin Linyi, venturing out as a Beast Master to start a business, and his sister, Lin Ling'er, running off to become an Imperial Beast idol, Lin Chuan had been handling the daily cultivation of Flower Leaf Leaves for the past few years.
After greeting a few busy farm employees, he returned to the small villa at the center of the farm, which served as both the Lin Chuan family's residence and the office for cultivating Flower Leaf Leaves, where much data and information were stored.
After resting for a while, drinking some water, and eating a melon, Lin Chuan began his investigation.
First, Lin Chuan checked the situation of the fertilizers and other daily cultivation supplies provided to the Flower Leaf Leaves within the past two weeks. He spent half an hour and found no problems.
Then, Lin Chuan began to retrieve surveillance footage to check the daily routines and living conditions of the Flower Leaf Leaves, focusing on when the noticeable conflicts began.
This time, Lin Chuan gained something, but not much. He only knew that the two Flower Leaf Leaves clearly started having conflicts three days ago in the morning. As for the reason, he couldn't figure it out at all; it wasn't a fight over cultivation nutrients, nor were there any other triggers for conflict like “What are you looking at?” or “What’s your problem?”
Time slowly passed as Lin Chuan meticulously investigated.
Evening, 6:30 PM
A middle-aged uncle, wearing glasses, a blue worker's vest, gray trousers with the cuffs rolled up to reveal two hairy calves, and short hair damp and messy with sweat, pushed the door open.
Upon entering, the middle-aged uncle self-importantly opened an unopened bucket of water, picked it up directly, and chugged it down, gulping until he had consumed about a quarter of the bucket and his belly was slightly distended before he stopped.
With a satisfying sigh, the uncle put the bucket down.
This middle-aged uncle was Lin Chuan’s father, Lin Xuédòng, the owner of Lin's Farm.
At the same time, he was also a spirit beast researcher and breeder. His ranking wasn't high; he was only a low-level researcher and low-level breeder, strictly speaking, a self-taught independent researcher—the kind that large research institutions look down upon, and who are unwilling to be assistants or be constrained by various rules in small companies. Thus, this was his situation.
Although he was only a low-level researcher, because Lin Xuédòng specialized and dedicated all his energy to researching the Flower Leaf Leaf spirit beast, he could completely be called a master when it came to cultivating this particular spirit beast.
Lin Xuédòng had gone to an exchange meeting held by the private Beast Master Guild in town today—a gathering of independent scholars, researchers, breeders, and some well-known Professional Beastmasters. He exchanged or purchased some valuable materials for researching and cultivating Flower Leaf Leaves, as well as other items needed for the farm.
“Third son, haven’t eaten dinner yet? Didn’t I tell you not to wait for me?”
With his wife and daughter not home, and no other outsiders, Lin Xuédòng directly took off his blue worker's vest and tossed it onto the back of a nearby wooden chair. He patted his recently water-filled belly, walked over, saw the unopened, untouched takeout fast food still on the table, and asked simultaneously.
“Hmm, I’ll eat later,” Lin Chuan replied without turning his head.
Lin Xuédòng raised an eyebrow. He knew his third son. Normally, at this time, Lin Chuan should be in his room playing on his phone. But now, he was meticulously and seriously examining surveillance footage and other daily records of the Flower Leaf Leaves. This was clearly problematic!
Moving closer, Lin Xuédòng's gaze fell on the surveillance footage that Lin Chuan had retrieved and was fast-forwarding, as well as the daily feeding and watering records of the Flower Leaf Leaves from the past two weeks placed on the table nearby.
“What are you looking at? What happened?” Lin Xuédòng asked directly.
Without hiding anything, Lin Chuan explained the situation truthfully.
“This? A group fight?”
Even Lin Xuédòng was a bit surprised to hear Lin Chuan’s explanation. Then his eyes lit up. As a dedicated researcher of Flower Leaf Leaves, how could such a special event not excite Lin Xuédòng and spark his desire for research? He had been very tired after attending the exchange meeting today, but at this moment, Lin Xuédòng’s spirit instantly completely revived. He casually picked up the materials Lin Chuan had found and began to read them seriously.
“Young man, you are still young, you can’t handle this yet. You go eat first. Come on, move over, let your dad have a good look.”
Saying this, Lin Xuédòng sat directly next to Lin Chuan, then, with a butt bump, squeezed Lin Chuan off the chair and quickly began to examine the surveillance footage.
Lin Chuan was speechless at Lin Xuédòng's behavior, but he had to admit that his Lin Lao Deng was truly an expert in researching Flower Leaf Leaf.
Sitting down beside him, Lin Chuan ate his takeout fast food while observing the situation.
Lin Lao Deng quietly watched the surveillance and data, stroking his stubbled chin. After a while, as if he had thought of something, Lin Lao Deng retrieved some surveillance footage unrelated to Flower Leaf Leaf's daily life. It was the surveillance video around the Lin family's small villa during this period. Gradually, Lin Lao Deng's eyes brightened as he discovered something. Finally, he pushed up his black-rimmed glasses.
"Hmm, I know the reason!"
Lin Lao Deng mused.
"What's the reason?"
Lin Chuan, who hadn't finished his dinner, quickly put down his chopsticks and asked curiously.
Just as he was about to answer, Lin Lao Deng stopped, stared at Lin Chuan, pretended to ponder deeply for a moment, and then smiled mysteriously.
"Kid, I won't tell you the answer directly. Consider it a small test for you, to see if you are qualified to inherit your old man's legacy, to inherit this farm, the empire your old man founded!"
Lin Lao Deng's face was full of pride, looking as if he was about to puff out his chest and put his hands on his hips.
Hearing this, Lin Chuan curled his lips.
"Oh, come on, Lin Lao Deng, I don't care about your legacy."
"After the Awakening Ceremony next week, I'll contract my own Spirit Beast, get into Imperial Beast University, and then I'll go out and make my own way! I'll create my own future with my own hands!"
"You, you! Unfilial son!"
Lin Xuédòng's face turned red, and he gritted his teeth, pointing at Lin Chuan, unable to speak.
His first plan failed, his second plan failed, and now this third plan was also going to fail?
"You, one by one, are all so capable! Your older brother is like this, and your older sister is like this too!"
"The family fortune I've built isn't small, is it? While not a tycoon, it's enough for financial freedom, and you don't want it!?"
"Or are you saying that specially cultivating Flower Leaf Leaf is an insult to you?"
"Isn't Flower Leaf Leaf cute? Isn't it well-behaved?"
"Don't you know, don't you know, Flower Leaf Leaf is heaven, Flower Leaf Leaf is earth, Flower Leaf Leaf is the universe's invincible, eternal, number one Spirit Beast!"
Listening to Lin Lao Deng's outrageous statements, Lin Chuan was speechless. Flower Leaf Leaf was indeed very cute and well-behaved, but calling it heaven, earth, and the eternal number one was going too far.
However, Lin Chuan didn't argue with his Lin Lao Deng. Lin Lao Deng, when he entered his fanatical, brainless Flower Leaf Leaf obsession mode, was impossible to communicate with. It was best to just leave him alone.
After being ignored, Lin Xuédòng came back to his senses after about half a minute, exiting his fanatical, brainless Flower Leaf Leaf obsession mode.
At this point, Lin Chuan finally spoke, shrugging his shoulders.
"It's not that I don't want to inherit it. I just want to go to university first, and then go out and see the world. Maybe I can become a Professional Beastmaster? Or even a Sealed Title Heavenly King? If not, I'll come back and inherit the family business."
If it were before, Lin Chuan would never have said the latter half of the sentence. He had always looked up to his older brother and sister as role models, feeling that inheriting the family business was a shameful thing. A true man should create his own world with his own hands. However, after awakening fragments of his past life's memories, the resentment towards internal competition and overtime that surged from the depths of his heart, as well as the dream of a comfortable, laid-back, lazy life, subtly changed Lin Chuan, making him say the latter half of the sentence about being willing to inherit the family business.
The bloodline class and quality of a Spirit Beast can only indicate its potential and the upper limit of its future strength.
For the actual combat power of a Spirit Beast, it is usually judged by the energy within the Spirit Beast's body, from two aspects: quality and quantity.
Quality represents the energy level intensity, while quantity is the literal meaning of how much.
Based on this, the specific strength of a Spirit Beast is evaluated.
Officially and in the field of Spirit Beast research, a system of ranks and levels is used for specific strength evaluation. For example, if a certain Spirit Beast's internal energy level intensity is three, and its energy quantity is also three standard units, it is rated as Rank Three, Level Three.
However, among Beast Masters in private, they usually use a less precise but more intuitive digital level system, similar to online games. Rank Three, Level Three, would be referred to as Level 33.
So, where is the digital level system inaccurate?
To give a simple example, some powerful Spirit Beasts have an incredibly vast amount of internal energy that far exceeds ordinary Spirit Beasts. Thus, situations like Rank Three, Level Ten, or even Level Eighteen, might occur, which cannot be accurately described with a digital level system.
The same applies to Beast Masters, though they are different, the principle is similar.
Beast Masters continuously cultivate their Spirit Pets, gaining growth feedback through their contracts, thereby improving the quality of the energy within their bodies, ultimately achieving a life transformation, basic life extension, perpetual youth, and additionally gaining other abilities, such as improved memory until they can remember everything at a glance.
Heavenly King refers to a Rank Seven Beast Master, which is a Beast Master at Level 70 or above.
Sealed Title Heavenly King specifically refers to a Beast Master who has reached the peak of Heavenly King strength, which is a Level 79 Beast Master, and has made significant contributions to the Star Rock Federation. Such a Beast Master will be granted an exclusive honorary title by the Federation based on their Beast and achievements.
As for those at Rank Eight and above, they are legendary existences, bestowed with the title of 'Emperor'.
Getting back to the topic, upon hearing Lin Chuan's words, Lin Lao Deng beamed with joy, almost laughing out loud.
A Professional Beastmaster was somewhat possible, but a Sealed Title Heavenly King? The young man was dreaming!
He thought and scoffed in his heart, but Lin Lao Deng didn't say it out loud.
"Oh, by the way, I forgot to tell you, Lin Lao Deng, I naturally awakened today!"
With a slight smirk, Lin Chuan said with a triumphant and slightly playful tone.
Lin Xuédòng's eyes widened immediately, and he was so startled that he choked, his glasses askew on his nose.
"Cough, cough, cough, naturally awakened? You, kid?"
Lin Chuan nodded.
Lin Lao Deng kept his eyes wide open, even forgetting to straighten his glasses.
He didn't ask Lin Chuan about the specific signs of his natural awakening. This was an unwritten understanding in Beast Master civilization to this day. Even between father and son, it was the same. Unless the person himself was willing to speak, or it was observed from the side, it was very impolite to inquire without permission.
Lin Xuédòng stared intently at Lin Chuan. After a long while, he came back to his senses and exhaled.
His expression became incredibly serious and solemn. Lin Xuédòng patted Lin Chuan's shoulder, his gaze filled with deep relief and support.
A moment later, Lin Xuédòng finally spoke.
"Since you've naturally awakened, with your ability, becoming a Professional Beastmaster shouldn't be too much of a problem. But as for a Sealed Title Heavenly King, you, kid, should just go to bed and stop dreaming. If you, kid, can become a Sealed Title Heavenly King, I'll eat all the grass on the entire farm raw!"
He said the thoughts he had just scoffed at in a teasing manner. Without waiting for Lin Chuan's reply, Lin Xuédòng's smile faded.
"Let's not talk about these for now. Wait until you undergo the ritual awakening in a week to understand the specific effects of your Beast Master talent, and then decide on your initial Spirit Beast."
"Now, let's continue with the Flower Leaf Leaf problem from before, regarding the reason for Flower Leaf Leaf's fighting."
"Here's a hint for you: think back to when you were little, around four or five years old. How did you try to get your mom's attention back then?"
"Also, consider Flower Leaf Leaf's racial instinct: it will give the first fruit it bears after reaching adulthood to the person it is closest to and loves the most."
At this point, Lin Xuédòng showed a proud and self-satisfied expression again.
"Speaking of which, I, your old man, have harvested 237 of Flower Leaf Leaf's true love fruits! My life is truly full of sin!"
Saying this, Lin Xuédòng sighed with great emotion.
"Alright, I've given you enough hints. I'm going to research Flower Leaf Leaf."
He already knew the reason for Flower Leaf Leaf's fighting, but that was just the reason. Other things revealed by this behavior, such as changes in state and psychological changes, and the resulting other changes, were all worth in-depth study.
Finally, patting Lin Chuan's shoulder, Lin Lao Deng picked up the remaining takeout fast food and rushed off to Flower Leaf Leaf's field, declaring that he would sleep in the fields for the next few days, eating, drinking, and living with the Flower Leaf Leaves.
Life continues, research never stops!