Lin Chuan finally succeeded in extracting 'gold coins' from his old man.
Two hours after having lunch with his old man.
Lin Chuan smiled brightly when he saw the bank transfer notification on his phone, showing 1.5 million star rock coin had arrived.
Tomorrow and tomorrow and tomorrow, what an abundance of tomorrows.
Since the funds had arrived, there was no need to wait for tomorrow; formal cultivation would begin today!
What is the first step in formal training!
Of course, it's to eat and drink your fill. Where would the strength for special training come from if you're not full?
However, the food can't be the same as for the Flower Leaf Leaves on the farm.
The Flower Leaf Leaves on the farm are cultivated for production, to yield more, better, more delicious, and more nutritious fruits.
Guoguo Sakura, on the other hand, needs to undergo battle pet-oriented cultivation. They don't need to produce tasty fruits, or rather, fruit production is secondary. Well, it's still a resource after all. When Guoguo Sakura develops and grows in the future, and their level and strength increase, the fruits they produce will be a valuable resource that can sell for a good amount of star rock coin. As for now, the main focus must be on various basic battle attributes.
Constitution, endurance, agility, energy intensity, skill learning and practice, and so on.
A towering building starts from the ground up; to ascend and become stronger, the foundation must be solid!
So, Lin Chuan waved his hand.
Through a special supplier channel of the farm, at a 'broken-bone' price of 10,000 star rock coin per jin, he ordered nutritious soil made from wood ash burned from the shed branches of a fifth-tier Wood Attribute Spiritual Beast, combined with other precious rare minerals. He bought 30 jin at once!
10,000 star rock coin per jin is very expensive?
This was almost the internal cost price. It was fortunate that his old man not only ran a farm but was also a low-level researcher, giving him quite a few connections to get goods directly from the origin. If he were to buy it at an official Beast Master shop, after several middlemen, the price would at least be raised to 15,000 star rock coin per jin.
However, even so, such expenditure made Lin Chuan's teeth ache and his flesh hurt.
Indeed, cultivating Spiritual Pets truly burns money like burning paper.
But! To lay a better, more solid foundation, to stand out from the many new Beast Masters and not be lost among the crowd, and to get into the Eight Great Academies, this money, no matter how much it hurts, must be spent! Nothing ventured, nothing gained!
Lin Chuan gritted his teeth and dialed the supplier's number.
Soon, 300,000 of the 1.5 million star rock coin that had just arrived flew away with wings.
He had the soil, now he needed to buy water!
Lin Chuan endured the toothache and flesh pain and dialed another water supplier's number, buying 100 jin of special water.
This nutritious water was primarily made from the bodily fluids of a certain fifth-tier Water Attribute Spiritual Beast, combined with ancient spring water from deep mountains in the wild monster areas outside human territory, and finally blended. It cost 2,000 star rock coin per jin. Thus, another 200,000 star rock coin flew away with wings.
Just like that, the star rock coin Lin Chuan had just 'extracted' from his old man, which hadn't even warmed up in his hands, his entire salary for the next three months, was burned away in just 3 minutes and two phone calls.
Perhaps some might think that resources from a fifth-tier Wood Attribute Spiritual Beast and a fifth-tier Water Attribute Spiritual Beast should be considered high-tier Spiritual Beast resources, and thus the price isn't expensive? Anyone with such a thought is undoubtedly a poor student.
Spiritual Beast resources, even if they come from high-tier Spiritual Beasts, depend on the specific situation.
For example, in the human body, scraps like hair and nails are clearly incomparable to vital organs like the heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys.
If it were a vital organ from a fifth-tier Spiritual Beast, it would certainly be a high-tier resource, and such resources would be priceless and unavailable for purchase before one becomes a Professional Beastmaster.
However, shed branches are like fallen hair; they carry the name of a high-tier resource, but in reality, they're just that.
And as for the bodily fluids of a fifth-tier Water Attribute Spiritual Beast... well, pee is also bodily fluid.
So, cultivating Spiritual Beasts truly burns money, but earning money from it is also truly profitable.
For genuinely high-level, high-tier bloodline, rare species of Spiritual Beasts, a few strands of hair dropped casually are worth a fortune.
Clenched fist!
Lin Chuan declared, 'Don't bully a young man for being poor!' One day, he would be like that, cultivating his Spiritual Beasts to the highest level. Then, he would casually sell some bathwater and earn back the money he spent today, doubled, no! Ten times over!
Back to the main topic.
The supplier's efficiency was very high. Although it was a 'broken-bone' price, buying in bulk made it a significant order.
Just one hour after Lin Chuan placed the order, a specialized Beast Master courier, riding a flying Spiritual Pet named Iron-Feathered Eagle, descended from the sky and delivered both the nutritious soil and nutritious water to the farm.
Inspecting the goods.
The nutritious soil, unlike the ordinary black soil on the farm, was dark silver. When rubbed, it had a silky smooth feel. When poured out of the urea bag, it looked like a cascading silver river, dreamlike and illusory.
Putting everything else aside, just for this appearance, the money was well spent! Lin Chuan thought.
Nutritious water... well, no need to inspect it! If the effect isn't good, he'll complain!
...
The excellent tradition of the Lin family: treating everyone equally.
Lin Chuan divided the nutritious soil into two flower pots, 15 jin in each, and then poured 1 jin of nutritious water into each. He would need to replenish the water as needed later. Then, Lin Chuan planted Guoguo Sakura in the two flower pots and placed them on the rooftop terrace of the small villa to bask in the sun.
Why place them on the rooftop terrace? Why not the previous field area?
Firstly, to avoid affecting other Flower Leaf Leaves. After all, Guoguo Sakura were eating too well, and other Flower Leaf Leaves would inevitably be jealous. This was like comparing a royal feast of delicacies to a common family's daily three dishes and one soup.
Secondly, the terrace had already been fitted with light-gathering mirrors that could reflect and concentrate sunlight. This would greatly increase the efficiency of Photosynthesis, improving Guoguo Sakura's absorption of the nutritious soil and water.
Of course, if Guoguo Sakura's Photosynthesis skill proficiency wasn't high enough, and they couldn't decompose sunlight and convert energy quickly enough, they could potentially get sunburned.
Skill proficiency can be divided into six stages: Beginner, Normal, Proficient, Expert, Master, and Grandmaster.
Naturally, skills with higher proficiency are more powerful than those with lower proficiency. The idiom 'practice makes perfect' holds significant value.
Guoguo Sakura's Photosynthesis skill proficiency was Normal, which was inferior to many Flower Leaf Leaves on the farm. This was normal; Guoguo Sakura had just passed their infancy and entered their Growth period. They were barely half a year old, while most other Flower Leaf Leaves were in their adult stage, being one or two years old, or even over ten. Having basked in the sun for so many more years, their Photosynthesis proficiency was naturally higher than Guoguo Sakura's.
Normal-level Photosynthesis might not be able to withstand the intense afternoon sun of summer, amplified by the light-gathering mirrors.
However, Lin Chuan was well prepared!
That was his Beast Master talent, Spiritual Wood Heart, and Reincarnation of Inheritance.
Spiritual Wood Heart can improve the cultivation and Growth efficiency of Wood Attribute and Illusion Attribute Spiritual Beasts. To put it in layman's terms, it's like the double or even multi-experience cards in some online games.
Reincarnation of Inheritance can rapidly acquire skills and increase skill proficiency through Spiritual Beast remains and other materials! It's roughly equivalent to skill books in some games, where you learn it instantly and master it instantly. Well, the effect isn't as crude as a skill book, but it's much easier than other Spiritual Beasts learning and training skills.
First, use Spiritual Wood Heart; if it's not enough, then use Reincarnation of Inheritance.
This was also Lin Chuan's first attempt at using his Beast Master talent.
When Beast Masters use their Beast Master talent, they consume either stamina or spirit, depending on the specific ability.
Spiritual Wood Heart consumes stamina, while Reincarnation consumes spirit.
First was Guoguo.
Lin Chuan placed his hand on Guoguo's small head and, following what Liu Xiaopang taught in class, guided and activated it with his mental power, sending the energy of his Beast Master talent into the Spiritual Beast's body.
A faint green light emerged from Lin Chuan's heart, and the next second, it traveled along his arm and was sent into Guoguo's small body.
Guoguo's small body trembled slightly, the flower on its head bloomed even more brilliantly, and its entire body glowed with an ethereal green light, dreamlike and illusory.
Spiritual Wood Heart is second-tier, while Guoguo is first-tier, or rather, zero-tier.
Officially, there is no zero-tier energy level in academia; zero-tier is a private designation by Folk Beast Tamer and usually refers to Spiritual Beasts in their infancy or in their Growth period that haven't yet formed a spiritual core and essentially have no combat power.
Using a second-tier talent to assist a zero-tier should theoretically be very easy.
And indeed, it was easy!
Lin Chuan's current feeling was roughly the exhaustion of running 1000 meters in one go. For him, a peerless tough man who grew up on a farm, often doing heavy labor, and having an eight-pack, it was easy with a smile!
Just after catching his breath, Lin Chuan immediately applied the cultivation acceleration buff called Spiritual Wood Heart to Sakura as well.
The effect of Spiritual Wood Heart was very good, after all, it was a second-tier assisting a zero-tier.
Lin Chuan observed for a while.
Visibly, the dark silver soil in the flower pots gradually turned black, indicating that the nutrients were being rapidly absorbed. In this situation, it seemed unnecessary to use Reincarnation of Inheritance.
"Just like this, absorb as much as possible of the substances in the nutritious soil until your body's energy is saturated and you feel a swollen sensation."
"Of course, don't overdo it! If you feel pain from swelling, stop immediately! Don't force it! Understood?"
"Okay, then, continue Photosynthesis with full effort until sunset."
After explaining the training content, Lin Chuan glanced at the time.
It was 2:30 PM, about 4 hours until sunset. During this time, Lin Chuan could take a small break and relax. Just kidding! Guoguo Sakura were working so hard, so why should he relax? Sharing hardships with Spiritual Beasts is the most basic requirement of a qualified Beast Master.
Lin Chuan moved a small table and chair and sat in the shadow of the wall, outside the concentrated light area of the light-gathering mirrors.
Well, although he had to share hardships, as a human, there were limits! After all, he had just become a Beast Master, a newly registered account, still in the novice stage, and hadn't yet received feedback from the Spiritual Beasts' Growth, transformation, and evolution. Currently, he was only level 1.
Lin Chuan also brought a laptop.
He had already briefly explained the cultivation plan for Guoguo Sakura when he explained it to Lin Xuédòng.
Extreme survival style, tank-healer attrition style—this was the path Lin Chuan decided to temporarily take.
For the promotion assessment three months later!
The promotion assessment was equivalent to the college entrance examination in his previous world, Blue Star. It was the most direct and effective way to cross social classes, the best path for commoners to rise up.
With the general direction clear, it was time to fill in the details.
Since it was a tank-healer style, healing skills and defensive skills were essential!
Status buff skills should also be considered, depending on the situation.
Offensive or DOT (damage over time) skills also needed to be configured. Even if it was just 'scratching,' it was better than having no offensive means at all, otherwise, it wouldn't be called tank-healer attrition but a living target.
Lin Chuan opened his laptop, logged into the Beastmaster Association's official website, clicked on the Spiritual Beast Compendium page, and began researching information about Flower Leaf Leaf and related skills.
Wood Attribute, healing skills and defensive skills that Flower Leaf Leaf could learn:
Healing included Photosynthesis, Rooting, Aromatic Therapy, and Sweet Fruit.
Photosynthesis and Rooting were innate, instinctive skills of Flower Leaf Leaf, while the latter two required additional cultivation and training to acquire.
Defense included Vine Armor Guard, Thorn Shield, and Wood Spirit Shield.
Status buffs: Flower Leaf Dance, Paralysis Powder, Sleep Powder, Grass Flute.
Attack or DOT: Bomb Fruit, Poison Powder.
...
Three hours later, as the sun set in the west, Lin Chuan rubbed his temples and let out a long sigh, relieving his mental fatigue.
After this period of careful thought and research, he had initially completed his skill builds.
A total of two skill builds, as both Guoguo and Sakura needed them.
First, Photosynthesis, Rooting, Growth, Aromatic Therapy, Poison Powder, Paralysis Powder, Sleep Powder, Vine Armor Guard...
Second, Photosynthesis, Rooting, Growth, Sweet Fruit, Flower Leaf Dance, Grass Flute, Bomb Fruit, Wood Spirit Shield...
Lin Chuan's builds were still physical and energy-based, or in other words, physical and magical. The former was physical, the latter was magical.
Of course, the above were the ideal skill builds, and only preliminary ones; they would be supplemented later.
Due to time and high-tier resource material limitations, Lin Chuan predicted that even with Reincarnation of Inheritance, he probably wouldn't be able to complete this ideal build by the time of the promotion assessment three months later. At most, he could achieve a simplified version, but that would already be enough. For other new Beast Masters, training two skills would probably be the absolute limit. Even wealthy and powerful scions would definitely not be able to compare to him. Well, Beast Master families were a different story; centuries of accumulation by aristocratic families couldn't be caught up to by him, who had only been 'cheating' for a couple of days.
Lin Chuan stood up and stretched.
At this moment, he heard soft chirping sounds from nearby.
Lin Chuan looked over and saw Guoguo Sakura had already pulled themselves out of the flower pots and jumped down to the ground.
The sun had already set. Even the light-gathering mirrors couldn't gather much sunlight, so there were no conditions for Photosynthesis. Although they could continue to absorb nutrients if left in the pots, it wasn't necessary. No matter how urgent, one shouldn't rush things. Besides, they had been doing super-high-intensity Photosynthesis under the concentrated scorching sun for an entire afternoon. It was time to rest. Work-life balance was the hard truth.
Hmm?
Lin Chuan's eyes narrowed; he noticed something important.
He hadn't paid attention before, but now that Guoguo Sakura were waddling towards him on their short legs, he looked closely and noticed that Guoguo Sakura had gotten fatter!
They used to be like large potatoes, but now they were like small cantaloupes! Their size was already comparable to adult Flower Leaf Leaves on the farm.
Guoguo Sakura leaped up and, as usual, plopped into Lin Chuan's arms.
Before this, Lin Chuan could always steadily catch Guoguo Sakura, but this time, his body sank, swaying twice, and he had to quickly adjust his center of gravity to stand firm.
Good heavens! Their weight had increased by at least 3 jin!