After leaving the association, Mrs. Chu handed over the fifty thousand yuan cultivation subsidy she had just received to Chu Chen.
Father Chu also stated that he could help purchase cultivation resources from the association in the future, which would save a significant amount of money.
The recent purchase of the Thunder Ape had emptied out their savings, and Chu Chen would have to rely on himself for future cultivation.
To celebrate her son's becoming a Beast Master, Mrs. Chu decided to showcase her cooking skills. She went to the market to buy two First and Second Rank Servant Level Water Spirit Fish and an unevolved hen.
The Water Spirit Fish is a domesticated Star Beast with a strong reproduction ability, and its price is several times that of ordinary fish. Besides having delicious meat, it contains a considerable amount of Star Power, which aids in the cultivation of a Beast Master.
As Chu Chen stared at the Water Spirit Fish in Father Chu's hand, an idea suddenly popped into his mind.
"Mom, let me help you kill the fish and butcher the chicken later."
Hearing this, Mrs. Chu looked at her son with some confusion.
Seeing this, Chu Chen smiled and explained, "I want to train the Thunder Ape a bit. From our recent contact, I feel its irritability stems more from fear. Maybe some battles can improve its temperament."
Mrs. Chu didn't think much of it. Although Chu Chen's reason seemed somewhat far-fetched, she would wholeheartedly support anything beneficial to her son.
Chu Chen had this idea to test whether the acquisition of Slaughter Value was related to killing Star Beasts or if killing ordinary animals would suffice.
Upon returning home, Chu Chen couldn't resist rushing into the kitchen with the Water Spirit Fish in hand.
He channeled his Soul Power and summoned the Thunder Ape.
The Thunder Ape sat on the ground, somewhat dazed, surveying its surroundings.
Seeing this, Chu Chen said with a smile, "Little guy, don't be afraid. This will be your home from now on."
Hearing this, the Thunder Ape instinctively nodded, the word "home" echoing in its mind. Finally, it had a home once again.
Looking at Chu Chen, the Thunder Ape's gaze softened, and a subtle glint of tears appeared in its eyes.
Chu Chen patted the Thunder Ape's head and said with a smile, "I haven't named you yet. Let me think about it."
The Thunder Ape tilted its head, looking at Chu Chen with anticipation in its eyes.
After a moment, under the Thunder Ape's expectant gaze, Chu Chen finally thought of a good name.
"I'll call you Lei Yao from now on. I hope you can be as dazzling as thunder, letting the light of thunder illuminate your dark past and embrace a bright future," Chu Chen said with a smile.
Through the power of the contract, the Thunder Ape understood Chu Chen's meaning. It nodded solemnly, as if feeling something.
Seeing this, Chu Chen revealed a joyful expression and tried calling Lei Yao several times to help it deepen the impression.
The man and the ape played happily, momentarily forgetting the task at hand.
"Son, if you can't do it, let me handle it," Father Chu said with some concern.
"Ah! No need, leave it to me."
Chu Chen took out a Second Rank Servant Level Water Spirit Fish and pointed at it, saying gently, "Lei Yao, kill the fish. Be mindful of your strength, or there won't be any fish to eat tonight."
Lei Yao nodded and raised its fist, aiming for the Water Spirit Fish's head.
The Water Spirit Fish sensed danger, slapped its tail against the ground, and darted sideways.
"Bang" Lei Yao's fist struck the ground, missing the target. Fortunately, the force wasn't too strong, so it wasn't injured, but the faint pain in its fist instantly ignited Lei Yao's fury.
Its eyes turned blood-red, as if about to enter a frenzy.
Seeing this, Chu Chen gently grabbed Lei Yao's fist and comforted, "Lei Yao, take a deep breath. I'm here..."
Under Chu Chen's soothing words, the bloodlust in Lei Yao's eyes gradually faded.
Seeing this, Chu Chen breathed a sigh of relief. Lei Yao's current condition couldn't be solved in the short term, but he was confident of helping it fully recover.
After calming down, Lei Yao seemed to realize its mistake. It lowered its head and peeked at Chu Chen, much like a child who had done something wrong.
Seeing this, Chu Chen patted its head softly and reassured, "It's okay, things will get better. Let's try again." With that, he firmly pinned the Water Spirit Fish to the ground.
Looking at Chu Chen's actions and the constrained Water Spirit Fish, Lei Yao felt a warmth in its heart.
It raised its fist and struck the Water Spirit Fish again.
"Bang" – the fist accurately hit the Water Spirit Fish's head, and after a few vigorous struggles, it went still.
Seeing this, Chu Chen eagerly checked the changes in his Slaughter Atlas.
To his surprise, a number "two" appeared behind the Slaughter Value.
Suppressing his excitement, Chu Chen continued to browse the Slaughter Atlas to see if there were any other changes.
A few seconds later, Chu Chen suddenly opened his eyes, full of delight.
Indeed, the Slaughter Atlas had changed. With the Slaughter Value at two, Lei Yao's attribute panel showed several plus signs, first appearing after the Berserk talent, then the Lightning Fist, and finally the Thunderbolt Fist.
This meant that Lei Yao's talents and skills could be enhanced by consuming Slaughter Value, allowing Lei Yao's strength to improve rapidly if Chu Chen acquired enough Slaughter Value.
Of course, the changes in the Slaughter Atlas didn't end there.
Chu Chen also saw the term "talent extraction" on the Water Spirit Fish's illustration.
The Water Spirit Fish's talent was Water Element Affinity, useless to Lei Yao. But for the sake of experimentation, Chu Chen chose to extract it, though the atlas indicated insufficient Slaughter Value once again.
Extraction implies endowment, but whether this was for Lei Yao or himself was unclear, and whether it was infinitely repeatable or had some limitations, he would have to figure it out gradually.
With this in mind, another idea surfaced in Chu Chen's mind. If Lei Yao's attribute panel had changed, could his personal attribute panel change as well?
His heart racing at the thought, he immediately checked his own attribute panel.
Name: Chu Chen
Age: Eighteen
Realm: Fourth Rank of Soul Pupil Realm
Talent: Heaven Rewards Diligence, F-level (+)
Cultivation Talent: Yellow Rank Upper Grade
Guardian Beast: Thunder Ape
As expected, his attribute panel also changed, with a plus sign appearing next to the talent section, indicating that his talent could also be upgraded.
Upon this realization, Chu Chen was overjoyed. Heaven Rewards Diligence could enhance cultivation speed by ten percent, and if upgraded to E-level or even S-level, his cultivation speed would become incredibly swift. Moreover, his Guardian Beast could benefit from this bonus. Additionally, the Slaughter Value could improve the proficiency of the Guardian Beast's skills, ensuring no discrepancy between realm and strength.
"Squeak, squeak"
Concerned, Lei Yao called out a few times as it watched Chu Chen sometimes lost in thought and sometimes grinning stupidly.
Hearing Lei Yao, Chu Chen returned to his senses. All these thoughts were mere fantasies unless he secured a sufficient Slaughter Value. Currently, he should clarify how to obtain it.
Chu Chen took out a kitchen knife and sent off the First Rank Servant Level Water Spirit Fish.
Upon revisiting the atlas, he found the Slaughter Value had become "three," indicating that killing Star Beasts also increased Slaughter Value, and the amount gained was related to the Star Beast's strength.
After summarizing, Chu Chen's gaze fell on the hen.
At Chu Chen's signal, Lei Yao sent the hen on its final journey.
However, the Slaughter Value remained unchanged. Clearly, acquiring Slaughter Value was only possible through killing Star Beasts, as ordinary animals did not yield any Slaughter Value.
After tidying up the area, Chu Chen left the kitchen with Lei Yao.