Chapter 343 - Choices Matter More Than Effort

Stellar Moon Continent, Imperial Beast City.

As the capital of the Beastmaster Empire, Imperial Beast City was teeming with powerful individuals, making it the most concentrated hub of human combat strength on the Stellar Moon Continent. Although the Beastmaster Empire was currently besieged by the Four Great Beast Empires, leaving countless provinces in misery, the capital remained a scene of prosperity.

As Lu Ran walked along the bustling streets, he listened to the vendors’ shouts.

“The year is 996 of the Beastmaster Era. Master hasn’t even been born yet. The only identity I can leverage is the lineage of Emperor Yan Sizhen.”

This time, Limitless City had assigned Lu Ran the identity of a talented individual who had answered the empire’s national conscription call, coming from the common folk to seek fortune and glory in Imperial Beast City.

To counter the Four Great Beast Empires, the empire had not only launched a nationwide conscription but also promised powerful beastmasters official titles and ranks. As a result, many hidden experts had recently flocked to the imperial capital in pursuit of opportunities.

Lu Ran guessed that the other participants likely had similar identities. However, the task was to capture and contract a top-tier familiar, not to secure an official position through personal strength. In theory, distributing participants across the entire nation wouldn’t affect the mission. Yet, Limitless City had still gathered them in Imperial Beast City, making its intentions clear.

Stellar Moon Continent was too big, and finding a top-tier familiar was no easy feat. Even with three years, let alone 30 days, it wouldn’t be easy for a few level 3 beastmasters to find one.

What participants needed most was information on the locations and acquisition methods of top-tier familiars. As for where to obtain such intelligence, the major Legendary familiess or the military in Imperial Beast City were the best sources.

This place was not only the political center of the Beastmaster Empire but also the intelligence hub of the entire empire. Thus, in Lu Ran’s view, this was likely a preliminary task.

He quickly analyzed his next steps. As he had just thought, the fastest way was to latch onto a powerful faction and leverage their intelligence network to find a top-tier familiar.

“So my path is clear. Through the identity tied to the Flame Spirit lineage, I’ll see if I can gain access to the royal family... Though the current royal family doesn’t seem to be of Yan Sizhen’s lineage anymore...”

The imperial succession system of the Beastmaster Empire resembled a merit-based selection process. This tradition had been kept since the empire’s founding.

When the empire was first established, the first emperor had declared that its purpose was not to perpetuate the rule of any single tribe or clan but to elect the most capable beastmasters to lead humanity’s survival on this continent.

Thus, the Hunter God did not pass the throne to his descendants but to Yan Sizhen, who pioneered the paths of culinary arts and forging. The Hunter God believed Yan Sizhen was far more capable than his own heirs. History proved him right as the empire flourished under Yan Sizhen’s leadership.

To honor the first emperor’s will, Yan Sizhen, after much deliberation, also refrained from passing the throne to his descendants, instead selecting another exceptional individual to lead the empire forward.

For the first millennium of the empire, this system remained stable. A significant reason was the presence of the familiars left behind by previous emperors, who served as guardian beasts. Under their watch, new emperors dared not act recklessly. This system was undoubtedly well-intentioned.

However, over time, it began to falter. Even the most stable systems had lifespans. Later emperors either cleared obstacles for their descendants or were overthrown after committing absurd acts, plunging the empire into chaos. This eventually led to the internal strife Lu Ran had witnessed in his level 1 ascension realm.

But in the year 996 of the Beastmaster Era, based on Lu Ran’s textbook knowledge, such chaos had yet to emerge. At this time, even if an emperor abdicated, their family still rivaled the royal family. They were known as the imperial family.

The current emperor’s family was called the royal family, while the previous emperor’s family was called the imperial family. Both factions far surpassed Legendary families, forming the empire’s true core leadership. Thus, Lu Ran’s target was clear—the imperial family that descended from Yan Sizhen’s lineage.

Lu Ran had brushed up on his history. In this era, Yan Sizhen’s Flame Spirit, though not yet lost, had degraded and was no longer the core inheritance of the Yan imperial family. The current Yan imperial family commanded the empire’s Dragon Legion, maintaining its lofty status through the foundation of dragon familiars left by Yan Sizhen.

Therefore, Lu Ran was confident that when a beastmaster like him, one who had mastered Flame Spirit, appeared before the Yan imperial family, they would be ecstatic and eager to recruit him.

The reason was simple. The Yan imperial family did not abandon the Flame Spirit because they no longer valued it, but rather because mastering beastmaster skills required innate talent.

Unlike the beastmasters of Blue Planet, who could learn skills by slapping a card to their foreheads, the Flame Spirit was a unique skill developed by Emperor Yan Sizhen based on his own aptitude. Thus, descendants whose bloodline and talents resembled his could master it more easily. As the bloodline diluted, the Flame Spirit’s decline was inevitable.

Now, if someone like Lu Ran appeared, the Yan imperial family’s quickest and easiest method to restore their glory would be to use him to breed the next generation. This would ensure the birth of many infants capable of mastering Flame Spirit. Thus, Lu Ran’s arrival would make him a highly sought-after commodity.

With luck, leveraging the family’s influence to contract a new Overlord familiar as a dowry would be effortless. For even better familiars, alternative methods might be necessary.

In short, securing a reliable intelligence channel would be far more efficient than blindly searching the wilderness for powerful familiars.

“Next, I just need to head to the Yan imperial estate.”

After walking for a long time, he hadn’t encountered any other participants, suggesting they were widely dispersed. He had no idea how many participants there were or their skill levels.

With only two promotion slots, Lu Ran had to ensure the familiar he contracted was at least a high-ranking Overlord. Anything less risked failure, and he couldn’t afford to waste a month’s time.

***

As one of the five imperial families of the Beastmaster Empire, the Yan imperial family held immense influence.

After much searching, Lu Ran finally arrived at the Yan imperial estate. The sprawling complex, built with fiery-red bricks, was grander than some towns, with over a dozen gates on all sides. Unsure which entrance to use, Lu Ran chose one at random.

At the gate, there were two young guards clad in crimson flame-patterned robes, holding spears.

Before Lu Ran could announce himself, one frowned and stepped forward, scrutinizing him. “Who are you?”

Lu Ran said warmly, “Brother, I’m here to visit family.”

The guard was taken aback.

Assuming Lu Ran was a relative of a servant or steward, he waved him off. “Family? Hurry and leave. If you’re looking for family, go to—”

Before he could finish, the gate swung open, and two women who were dressed elegantly walked out, chatting amiably.

Noticing the commotion, one of them paused and asked the guard, “What’s going on?”

“Third Lady, this person claims to be visiting family but came to the wrong gate. I was directing him elsewhere,” the guard replied.

The red-haired young woman nodded, then turned to Lu Ran with curiosity. “Which family member are you looking for? What position do they hold in the Yan Family estate?”

Third Lady?

Lu Ran glanced at her and the other noblewoman beside her, realizing he’d stumbled upon high-status individuals. This was far more efficient than going through the proper channels.

“I’m not sure. Before my master passed away, he told me to come to the Yan Family estate in Imperial Beast City, saying everyone here is my family,” Lu Ran said.

“What do you mean by that?” The red-haired young woman frowned.

Lu Ran continued, “My master said I’m a descendant of Emperor Yan Sizhen, lost to the common folk. He told me to prove it with this.”

With that, he extended his palm. A miniature fire dragon, vividly crafted from flames, materialized above it, spewing tiny fireballs into the air. Although it was small, the dragon’s aura was palpable and distorted the surrounding space.

At the sight of the fire dragon, the young woman’s expression changed, and the white-robed noblewoman beside her gasped.

The young woman stared at the miniature fire dragon in disbelief. “Flame Spirit? And one that absorbed unique flames to transform into a unique fire type? How is this possible? After all this time, how could anyone still master Flame Spirit to this level? What did you say earlier? Your master claimed that you’re a descendant of Emperor Yan Sizhen, lost to the common folk?”

“Uh... yeah. He said if I ever had nowhere to go, I could come here,” Lu Ran said, feigning uncertainty.

The young woman exhaled, stunned by the bombshell. She felt fortunate she’d asked. The two guards, meanwhile, stood gaping, their minds struggling to process the revelation.

The white-robed noblewoman turned to the young woman and smiled gently. “Sister Gong... You handle your family matters first. I’ll take my leave.”

The young woman nodded, her bright eyes gleaming with excitement. She felt she’d just stumbled upon a monumental opportunity.