Chapter 204 - Strict Investigation Into Lu Ran

Aih.

In his private room, Lu Ran stood still and sighed.

He felt as though Limitless City was deliberately choking him. His cult leader master must have known more than he let on. Yet, his master had only returned on the final day, leaving little time for meaningful communication.

Right now, Lu Ran wanted to confirm whether his soul amplification had succeeded. He felt that his soul had grown much stronger, but whether it allowed for soul revival remained uncertain.

“Whatever. Even if I have the ability to survive as a soul, I won’t go seeking death on purpose. If I die one day, I’ll just treat resurrection as a pleasant surprise.”

Lu Ran sighed again.

His cult leader master had clearly put in significant effort on his behalf. Unfortunately, everything they experienced had only been an illusion. Lu Ran would have truly wished for such a good master in reality.

Not that Master Jiang Dou was bad, of course—it was just that one could never have too many good masters.

“At least according to the history unearthed by Blue Planet’s beastmasters, the Stellar Moon Continent has yet to produce a legendary beastmaster.

“The Cult of Death likely never succeeded... They couldn’t suppress the legendary domain using the undead attribute. Looks like it’s incredibly difficult. Still, having gained so many benefits, I should uphold my promise to the cult leader master.”

Lu Ran held his new contract card with a serious expression.

Firstly, I need to develop the undead attribute and clear its name. Secondly, I should challenge the legendary domain and help humanity break through the legendary limits.

The first goal was something Lu Ran was certain he wanted to pursue, starting with Blue Planet.

For the second goal, Lu Ran didn’t know if humanity on Blue Planet faced specific limitations in becoming legends. But he knew that if breaking through required matching the gods with a mortal body, he wouldn’t back down like a coward.

“In the beastmaster domain, apprentice marks the starting phase. Levels 1 through 6 are stages of cumulative evolution. Reaching level 7, one can be considered a legend. Reaching level 8 means becoming a top legend—a figure who leaves a mark in history, not just in their era.

“Currently, the strongest beastmasters on Blue Planet are only at level 5. Who knows how long it will take to produce a quasi-legendary figure.”

Lu Ran shook his head and glanced at his storage. Challenging legendary-level entities with a level 8 beastmaster’s strength would undoubtedly be difficult. He decided to take things step by step, steadily growing stronger.

Crystal Coin Balance: 3.079 million

Equipment: Divine Deer Pendant (Epic), Spirit-Converting Pot (Treasure), Longleaf Swordgrass (Treasure), Soul-Restraining Bottle (Treasure), Soul Scarecrow (Rare), Holy Spirit Robe (Rare), Inscription Stone (Rare), Comprehensive Culinary Tools (Rare)

Resources: Contract Card (Bound), Millennium Soul Bone (Treasure), Diamond Dragon Heart (Treasure), Ethereal Flower (Treasure), Trait Crystals (Dragon King Bloodline, Eye of the Evil God, Undead Clone), Beastmaster Skill Cards (Undead Resurrection, Damage Transfer), Upgrade Cards x16, Various Rare Ingredients and Minerals

Special: Soul Forging Technique, Bone Sword of a Thousand Blades Blueprint, Soul Meditation Technique, Mind Cleansing Meditation Technique, Basic Necromancy, Advanced Necromancy, Possession Evolution Method, Soul Sealing Technique, Sacrificial Technique

This time, Lu Ran’s gains in the secret realm far exceeded his first ascension realm breakthrough. Among his rewards were numerous souls of Rare species, most of which he had fed to Captain Doofus and Sudden Death King while still in the realm.

After all, Lu Ran planned for their evolution soon, and strengthening their soul power was a priority. The results were excellent.

Combined with Lu Ran’s soul amplification, Sudden Death King’s soul successfully underwent draconic transformation, and Captain Doofus developed a sword soul, further enhancing its sword-based skills as though it had gained a unique constitution.

Aside from unique souls, Lu Ran had also acquired an abundance of forging materials. In the realm, he forged a complete set of culinary tools, including Ice Soul-Cutting Blade and Flame Spirit Soul-Cutting Blade.

He also brought back large quantities of Soul Calming Stones, which would be useful for future spiritual talent detection.

Among the items were the soul curse tool, Soul Scarecrow, and the specially made Holy Spirit Robe, which provided resistance against all-attribute damage and had self-repairing capabilities. These two items were quasi-Treasure grade in quality.

Of course, the rarest items Lu Ran had obtained were undoubtedly the numerous undead-type techniques. However, most required a beastmaster space to practice or support a familiar’s usage, which greatly frustrated Lu Ran.

For example, even Undead Clone, an advanced necromancy skill meant for nurturing familiars, required specialized beastmaster skills to create clones. It was far less convenient than using trait crystals like the Undead Clone crystal.

Despite his annoyance, Lu Ran took everything he could. They might be useless now, but if Blue Planet’s beastmasters one day developed beastmaster spaces, these techniques could prove invaluable. If not for his own use, he could sell them to the government or share them with researchers.

Of all the techniques, the Soul Forging Technique seemed the most likely for Lu Ran to master. It only required the blacksmith to possess soul flames, which Lu Ran could cultivate with his Flame Spirit ability.

“

Aih.

I have so many necromancy skills yet can’t train in a single one. Forget it.”

Lu Ran left his private room. First, he would contract Dark Crow and focus on nurturing it. After that, he would wait for the Evolution Secret Realm to open.

Currently, Sudden Death King had reached level 30, and Captain Doofus was at level 29. By the time the Evolution Secret Realm opened, both familiars would likely be ready to evolve.

For Sudden Death King’s evolution, Lu Ran had already prepared the Dragon King Trait Crystal, along with the Diamond Dragon Heart, which would ensure maximum nutrient absorption prior to evolution.

As for Captain Doofus, the Absolute Comprehension Trait Crystal had likely been secured through Manager Ying, who had traded for it. If all went well, Captain Doofus could evolve alongside Sudden Death King.

Lu Ran believed the potential of these two familiars would not fall short of the new familiars nurtured by the first, second, and third-generation beastmasters.

After all, not only did these familiars have top-tier trait crystals and premium food, but they were also benefiting from unparalleled soul-nurturing techniques. Lu Ran was confident they would secure two of the ten available evolution slots.

As for Dark Crow, Lu Ran could only wait and see. Its short nurturing period meant its soul had barely been enhanced.

Lu Ran’s plan was to hunt a few fierce beasts and feed Dark Crow soul cuisine for some time before merging it with the Undead Clone Trait Crystal to trigger its evolution.

If it missed this round of evolution opportunities, it could join the next Evolution Secret Realm opening. However, the thought of the Treasure-grade Pig Bone he had yet to use for broth gave him hope.

If combined with this Rare resource, Dark Crow might still have a chance to evolve alongside Sudden Death King and Captain Doofus. However, evolving all three at once might draw too much attention...

“You’re finally back!”

In Green Sea City, as soon as Lu Ran returned, Manager Ying spotted him immediately.

“Yo, Manager Ying. Long time no see!”

Lu Ran greeted it while casually fiddling with his Holy Spirit Robe—a black undead robe. Wearing it out in public would make him look evil.

Hmm... I’ll save this for when I’m soloing a legendary secret realm.

“What’s that in your hand?” Manager Ying’s eyes landed on the Holy Spirit Robe. “A prize from the secret realm? The material looks decent. But that's not the point! I’ve been taking care of Lu Village and your familiar egg for a whole month. It’s time you take them back!” Manager Ying huffed, clearly fed up.

“You’ve worked hard...” Lu Ran chuckled sheepishly.

“Here, your Absolute Comprehension Trait Crystal. In the end, I had to trade for it with that corporate heiress.”

“Got it.” Lu Ran accepted the crystal.

“By the way, how did your secret realm go this time?” Manager Ying asked, curiosity piqued.

Lu Ran’s first ascension realm attempt had earned an overwhelmingly high score, and Manager Ying wondered how his second attempt had fared.

Based on his preparations before entering, the rewards this time shouldn’t be small, right?

“It was a faction-based mission.”

“Oh?”

“The background was set in the final days of the empire, during the early development of necromancy on the Stellar Moon Continent. One faction was the Empire Faction, and the other was the Undead Faction.”

“You chose the Undead Faction, didn’t you?” Manager Ying smirked. “Seems like the more interesting choice. You, a high-ranking figure in The Other Shore, wouldn’t possibly pick the empire’s easy mode, right?”

“Exactly.” Lu Ran grinned.

“I joined the Undead Faction. Interestingly, the other nine participants all chose the Empire Faction.

“Oh, and England’s Knights of Light—the four from the Golden Generation—were also there... It’s only been a week since the secret realm opened, and I’ve already taken out all nine of them. There shouldn’t be any diplomatic issues, right?”

Manager Ying was speechless.

Damn. You really went all out, huh?

“Brace yourself for trending news. Anything involving you, the Undead Faction, and the Golden Generation is bound to make headlines. Someone from the nine participants will leak this to the media for a fortune. Aside from taking them out, you didn’t do anything else outrageous, right?”

Lu Ran hesitated.

“What’s with that expression?” Manager Ying’s ears perked up in suspicion as it pulled out its phone to check. Just then, a notification popped up.

Ding—!

A news article read: [Lu Ran! Holy Son of the Undead Cult! Urgent Call for Investigation by the International Beastmaster Alliance!]

Manager Ying was flabbergasted.

"Meow, meow, meow?"

The cat was in utter shock.

***

The news originated from a video posted by one of the participants, who had rushed to upload the clip, seeking attention and views.

The video appeared on the International Beastmaster Forum and immediately caused an uproar, garnering over a million shares in just ten minutes.

The poster, an American youth, had been killed by the aftereffects of Sudden Death King’s skill during the realm mission. In the video, he recounted his experience in a tone full of grief and indignation.

"Guys, you won’t believe who I ran into when I entered a level 1 ascension realm! It was none other than the top fourth-generation beastmaster, Lu Ran! Oh, and also the Golden Generation’s Knights of Light!"

"The realm mission was faction-based—Empire Faction versus Undead Faction. There were ten of us participants. Nine, including myself and the Knights of Light, chose the Empire Faction. Because who in their right mind would pick the Undead Faction, right?"

"The thing is... Xia’s Dragon Chef, Lu Ran, did! Lu Ran did! At first, I thought he was just curious. But then we infiltrated the Undead City and saw him barbecuing souls with the undead NPCs! Barbecuing souls! Even The Other Shore’s necromancers aren’t this outrageous!"

"The kicker? When we led the imperial army to clash with the Undead Faction, the necromancers addressed Lu Ran as ‘Holy Son’!"

"My god... What is even happening? He entered a faction mission and climbed to the rank of heir? But isn’t this the Undead Cult? How did he, a normal beastmaster, climb the ranks? Uhh, after that, I don’t know what happened because I got killed off by Lu Ran."

"Guys, this is terrifying. He single-handedly held off hundreds of imperial soldiers and the Knights of Light, whose power was completely ineffective against him."

“Also, his doofus transformed into some kind of Undead Bone Hound, and it was unstoppable! I suggest the International Beastmaster Alliance thoroughly investigate this top fourth-generation figure—the Holy Son. He doesn’t look like he’s acting...

“Of course, I’m just kidding. I’m sure Brother Lu is a good person... haha. But everything I said in this video is 100% true!”

After the video was uploaded, it was impossible for it not to go viral. Once Manager Ying had watched it in its entirety, it fell into a long silence as it stared at Lu Ran, its gaze intense and contemplative.

“Was everything he said true? You’re the Holy Son of the Undead Cult?”

Lu Ran, dumbfounded, replied, “Do you honestly believe that a bunch of ordinary necromancers and one missionary have the authority to decide who becomes a Holy Son? It’s just that I’m so charismatic, they were calling me that as a joke.”

“Fair enough...” Manager Ying nodded.

“At that time, I was merely a fake Holy Son—just someone with the potential to be one. It wasn’t until I reached the headquarters of the Cult of Death and was formally accepted as a disciple by their legendary necromancer cult leader that I truly earned the title of Holy Son.

“Of course, the others never found out, since they were all dead by then.” Lu Ran sighed. “By the way, I’ve got some intel to sell you later.”

“What?” Manager Ying’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Huh?”

***

As soon as the video was uploaded, it shot to the top of international trending topics.

Lu Ran had been out of the public eye for a month, and only now were people realizing he had been exploring a secret realm during that time. Online forums exploded with speculation:

[Wait, Lu Ran and the Knights of Light entered the same ascension realm?]

[Did the knights get completely wiped out? Holy Son of the Undead Cult facing hundreds alone? Fuck, this is villain boss material!]

[If Lu Ran were our enemy, I’d let my soldiers retreat without hesitation!]

[Why hasn’t the Knights of Light said anything? Could it be they were utterly humiliated?]

In England, the Princess of Light sat on her bed scrolling through the news, feeling as if she were going to faint from anger.

The flood of online inquiries demanding clarification was overwhelming. In frustration, she shut off her phone and chose to remain silent, neither confirming nor denying the allegations. Deep down, though, she wanted to cry out

Investigate Lu Ran!

but she knew the truth: the likelihood of Lu Ran genuinely being involved in anything problematic was slim.

Even if there were an issue, Xia would undoubtedly protect such a prodigious talent. They would give him a legitimate identity that no one could question.

***

“Huh?”

News spread continuously. The Principal of Beastmaster University, Shi Zhen; the dragon master, Gu Qingyi; and the Five Poisons Saintess, Fang Lan—all who saw the video wore confused expressions. The first generation of Xia felt their vision darken.

No, what on earth did this idiot do in the secret realm?

Seeing the countless “Strictly Investigate the Holy Son” comments, they all felt a stomach ache coming.