Chapter 298 - Strong Online, Even Stronger Offline

The Legion Form of Dark Crow was not as massive as some of the ancient beasts that had awakened from slumber. However, within Lu Ran’s team, its sheer size was already overwhelming.

Even Captain Doofus and Sudden Death King, who were already considered quite large among their kind, would seem like prey that could be grasped in one talon when standing beneath this giant black bird.

The Crow Legion had wisps of spiritual energy swirling around it. The whole group seemed capable of shifting like a liquid or gas at any moment.

After the transformation, individual crows were no longer visible, proving that this form wasn’t merely stitched together. It was a perfect fusion achieved through Dark Crow’s innate talent. It had truly merged with its entire flock.

Even the many Evil God’s Eyes that Dark Crow once had disappeared. However, Lu Ran could still sense them. They hadn’t vanished. He raised his head, staring at the massive red eyes that were larger than his own body. He understood that the countless Evil God’s Eyes had merged into one, amplifying its power significantly.

What stood out the most was Dark Crow now had three pairs of enormous black mist wings, which slowly fluttered, granting it the power of wind. It was likely due to over 90% of the flock having the Wind attribute.

[Species: Twin Crows (Legion Form)]

[Attribute: Dark, Spirit, Undead (Wind)]

[Species Rank: Low Overlord]

[Level: 45]

“Level 45...”

Lu Ran was impressed with Dark Crow’s current level. The Legion Transformation had temporarily boosted its level by five. A five-level increase beyond level 40 was no small feat as the difficulty of leveling up at this stage was on a completely different scale. For reference, even after several months, Dr. Gu hadn’t been able to raise a familiar by a single level past level 60.

Yet now, simply by merging a flock of common transcendent crows, it had elevated Dark Crow by five whole levels.

If I invest a significant amount of resources into this flock and expand its numbers, can I push Dark Crow over level 50?

After all, this flock hadn’t even undergone intense cultivation yet. Legion Form wasn’t suited for wreaking havoc in Limitless City’s various ascension realms. However, here on Blue Planet, its combat power was already close to perfection.

“My king!” Dark Crow’s massive pupil fixated on him, and its voice pierced directly into his soul, making Lu Ran slightly uncomfortable.

“Not bad. Raise your level a bit more, and you might be able to challenge weaker ancient creatures.”

“Are you talking about Manager Ying?

Caw, caw!

” the Crow Legion asked.

“Don’t talk nonsense. Manager Ying hides its strength well. Alright, deactivate the form. Let the crows go about their business, or you can train yourself in the secret realm to get used to this form. Plus, now isn’t the time to fight in this state,” Lu Ran instructed.

With a resonating cry, Dark Crow complied. Meanwhile, Lu Ran summoned Captain Doofus.

“

Woof!

”

As soon as Captain Doofus appeared, it was startled by Dark Crow’s enormous body. However, before it could react, Lu Ran patted its leg. At his current height, he couldn’t reach Captain Doofus’ head without jumping.

“Dark Crow has already fused with the Legion Domination Trait Crystal. Next, I’ll use my Kinship Beastmaster Skill to help you contract a kin.”

Captain Doofus’ eyes lit up and instantly turned its gaze toward the Sword Spirit, which was floating alongside Baby Cloud.

Lu Ran chuckled. Then, he called out to Corpse Dog and it immediately flew over. Currently, the Weather Sprite was level 20, and Corpse Dog was level 23. Both had already entered the level 20 threshold.

Lu Ran stood still and activated his kinship power. At that moment, his eyes flickered with a mysterious energy. Then, a combination of spirit and soul energy appeared around Captain Doofus. It lifted its paw, showing a surprised expression as it sensed the energy flowing through its body. Then, it turned toward the approaching Sword Spirit.

“

Woof~!

”

The Sword Spirit hovered around Captain Doofus, circling it. Then, Captain Doofus slowly placed its paw on the spirit’s body. The moment they made contact, Captain Doofus remained unaffected, but the Sword Spirit trembled violently as if receiving an infusion of power. For the first time, it let out a resonating cry. The sword intent surrounding it erupted like a storm. It was sharp and domineering, seemingly capable of piercing through the secret realm itself.

“

Awoo!

” Captain Doofus was startled.

As the contract bond solidified, it could feel the Sword Spirit’s aura aligning more closely with its own.

[Species: Winter Sword Spirit]

[Attribute: Undead, Ice, Space]

[Species Rank: Intermediate King]

[Level: 23]

[Skills: Soul-Slaying Sword Intent, Blizzard Sword Intent, Void-Slashing Sword Intent]

As the contract completed, Corpse Dog’s sword intent grew even stronger. The final surge of power was so intense that Captain Doofus felt a stinging sensation, its face full of surprise.

Even Lu Ran was astonished. By becoming Captain Doofus’ kin and receiving part of its talent feedback, Corpse Dog had instantly comprehended three major sword intents. The Soul-Slaying and Blizzard sword intents were expected, but the Void-Slashing Sword Intent wasn’t.

[Void-Slashing Sword Intent: When mastered at a high level, this sword intent can effortlessly tear through space.]

“

Woof!

” Captain Doofus’ eyes lit up again.

It grabbed the Sword Spirit and urged it to possess its body as it was eager to test out the Void-Slashing Sword Intent.

“

Woof, woof.

”

However, Corpse Dog clearly disliked being held while fighting. After struggling for a moment, it begrudgingly possessed Captain Doofus. Instantly, Captain Doofus’ entire body was enveloped in an ethereal blue flame, looking majestic.

“What a shame.”

Seeing how powerful the Kinship Skill was, Lu Ran immediately wanted to develop it further, perhaps even gain a second kin slot. But for now, there was still one more thing to do. He turned toward the Weather Sprite.

“

Drip drip...

”

Once it felt Lu Ran’s attention on it, it gave him a pitiful look. Honestly, at this point, even Superior King familiars were within Lu Ran’s reach. However, looking at the Weather Sprite’s pitiful expression, he couldn’t help but smile.

He picked it up and said, “Okay, okay. Let’s contract you now.”

Lu Ran took out the contract card he had obtained from the ascension realm. Under Baby Cloud’s expectant gaze, he inserted the card into the cloud. The contact card emitted a dazzling light, and a radiant glow enveloped the baby cloud. Without any resistance, it was absorbed into the card.

At that moment, a peculiar thought surfaced in Lu Ran’s mind.

If I use Super Beast Mimicry on Baby Cloud, what will I even do? Join the meteorological bureau and control artificial rain or snowfall? Or fly into the sky with Flame Spirit and casually summon clear weather? And then? Even if I perfectly mimic the Weather Sprite, what kind of power will I gain from it? Whatever. I’ll just test it out later.

With the contract complete, Lu Ran took a deep breath and summoned Baby Cloud again. There was still one more thing left to do. The Nature Manipulation Trait Crystal needed to be fused with it. Among the many unique traits available, none were more fitting for a Weather Sprite than this one.

Throughout the fusion process, Baby Cloud remained fascinated. The Nature Manipulation trait didn’t significantly alter its form. Instead, it only made its cloud body denser and fuller. However, the species talent it awakened was anything but weak.

[Species Talent: Adaptive Transformation (For each new nature attribute acquired, it gains a corresponding unique cloud form, enhancing control over related natural weather conditions!)]

***

𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮

Lu Ran returned from the ascension realm, significantly strengthening all his familiars. However, not every beastmaster who returned from the ascension realm was victorious, nor did they all have the resources to enhance their familiars.

Somewhere in the Stellar Moon Federation, Yu Rui and his two companions also returned to their homeland. Without even adding friends to their contact lists, the three quickly logged out of Limitless City and rushed to find their mentors or family to report on their experiences in the ascension realm.

Upon exiting Limitless City, Yu Rui reappeared in his own room. He pushed open the door about to leave when he suddenly froze. He was met with his father sitting in the living room, eyes closed in meditation. His father was a Legendary plantmaster renowned throughout the Stellar Moon Federation.

“Dad, why are you home today?” he asked in surprise.

His father was usually a busy man, rarely seen at home.

“Judging by the time, you should have been returning from the ascension realm soon,” his father said, opening his eyes and ending his meditation.

He looked at Yu Rui but then frowned in confusion. “Why are you still level 2?”

“I... I...” Yu Rui hesitated before saying, “Father, that’s not important! I have something far more important to tell you! I... I encountered an alternate-world beastmaster! During this ascension realm, I was matched against an alternate-world beastmaster!”

“Oh.” His father’s response was indifferent.

Yu Rui was taken aback.

“For the past two months, many ascension realm participants have been matched against alternate-world beastmasters. You’re not the only one.”

“So it’s true? Then you should understand why I’m still level 2, right? Dad, what do we do? Those alternate-world beastmasters are complete monsters!”

After a moment of silence, he said, “What are you even talking about? You’re not seriously telling me you failed your ascension mission just because you encountered an alternate-world beastmaster, are you?

“According to reports from returning beastmasters, the ones from Blue Planet are ridiculously weak. Almost everyone who faced them completed their missions with ease.”

“Huh? Wait... that... that can’t be right?” Yu Rui’s eyes widened in disbelief, his brain struggling to process the information.