Su Wen's eyes sparkled with delight.
Standing on the tree canopy, they looked down to see an injured Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear roaring at a giant black python. The bear crouched low, baring its fangs in warning.
"Injured?" Yan Shaozhe raised an eyebrow.
Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears were rare in Star Dou Forest. They'd only seen one ten-thousand-year bear so far, but even with Yan Shaozhe there, they didn't dare provoke it and stayed far away.
This bear's age seemed just right, about three or four thousand years by its size.
"No problem..." Su Wen smiled.
As long as he got it into the Pokéball, any injury, no matter how severe, would be instantly healed—the first time was always a reset. He'd already tested this with the Ice Emperor, so there was no rush.
In his vision:
[Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear]
[Potential: 8]
[Cultivation: 3,700 years]
[Comment: A soul beast with exceptionally high average potential; its combat and defense are among the most monstrous of all soul beast species. One of the best choices for a pet beast...]
He couldn't help but sigh.
As expected of a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear. The black python below was three or four dozen meters long, with sturdy scales on its back absorbing most of the sunlight as it coiled around a tree trunk, its pupils icy cold. If not for the bear, it would be almost impossible to spot.
But the python also had obvious wounds.
Looking at its stats, it was a Spirit Ink Snake with over thirty thousand years of cultivation—definitely not weak among soul beasts of its level...
Fighting opponents with seven or eight times its cultivation—like Xiao Yan in the soul beast world, crossing levels as if it were nothing.
"If you want it, you'd better act soon," Yan Shaozhe reminded him.
"Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bears are tough, but against a thirty-thousand-year Spirit Ink Snake, it'll be eaten sooner or later. Though the snake will pay a price too..."
"Roar!"
The bear roared again.
The wound on its belly was getting worse—a bloody hole, clearly bitten by the python. As time passed, the blood leaking from its belly became thick and ink-like, making its whole body gradually stiffen.
"The Spirit Ink Snake is sometimes considered a poison type. Its ability is to inject its own special blood into prey through a bite. That blood mixes with the target's, turning it into ink and slowly coagulating it..." Su Wen recalled from his studies.
Living in Sea God Pavilion all these years, Elder Mu had let him study in the library at will, so he'd learned about techniques, soul beasts, and tricky problems—now it was coming in handy.
"Go!"
Without hesitation, Su Wen flung the purple Pokéball in his hand toward the Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, using the wind for extra speed.
"Roar!"
Two surprised gazes looked up at the canopy.
The bear instinctively tried to run, but its injuries and nearly coagulated blood left its brain under-oxygenated—it collapsed to the ground, then was enveloped in a thick white light.
"Hissss..."
The Spirit Ink Snake's cold eyes flashed with anger.
It had spent half a month hunting this delicious bear, and now it was being snatched away. Of course it was unhappy...
But a terrifying aura rose from the small human's side.
The Spirit Ink Snake realized it couldn't afford to provoke them, so it slithered away quietly.
"Level 31!"
The purple Pokéball vanished from under the tree and reappeared in Su Wen's palm.
At the same time, a bottleneck broke in Su Wen's body.
[Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear]
[Level: 31] [Strength: 77.4 (5.0)]
[Speed: 12.4 (6.4)]
[Stamina: 65.4 (5.4)]
[Defense: 81.1 (10.1)]
[Skill: Dark Gold Dreadclaw (brown)]
[Attribute: Gold (ultimate)]
[Potential: 8 (superb)]
[Next Evolution: Behemoth Beast]
Damn...
Su Wen's pupils shrank.
At first glance, these stats looked like a seven- or eight-thousand-year-old beast. Strength and defense in the seventies and eighties—seven or eight times those of beasts at the same level!
But who would have thought this was just a millennium-old Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear.
Its skill, Dark Gold Dreadclaw, was brown quality—two tiers higher than the Ice Emperor's Ice Domain! Ultimate gold attribute—as expected. If it weren't, that would be the real surprise...
But after reaching level 30, the bear didn't evolve?
Was its second stage also a Dark Gold Dreadclaw Bear, or did capturing it at this critical point make it lose the ability to evolve?
But the bear's strength made Su Wen forget that question.
He checked the stats of Gale and Ice Emperor.
[Storm Baboon]
[Level: 31]
[Strength: 14.4 (5.0)]
[Speed: 48.4 (6.4)]
[Stamina: 16.4 (5.4)]
[Defense: 14.1 (10.1)]
[Skills: Gale Blade (blue), Wind of Recovery (blue)]
[Attribute: Gale (top)]
[Potential: 8 (superb)]
[Next Evolution: Tempest Demon Ape]
After evolving into a Storm Baboon, Gale's height shot up from 2.5 meters to about 3 meters. Its muscles became noticeably more defined, no longer skinny but full and strong. At the same time, a faint purple stripe ran from the edge of its eyes to its temples, and its fur became even cleaner and whiter.
"As expected, the attribute leveled up too!" Su Wen grinned.
While Gale wasn't quite an extreme attribute, it was close—like Wu Feng's fire attribute. Among all wind types, it was among the best, greatly boosting Gale's combat strength. From a long-time backup stuck in the Pokéball during battles, it suddenly became a main force.
Agility-attack soul masters had a future too.
The new skill, Wind of Recovery, could heal injuries and even restore soul power. Though not as good as a professional healer, it helped a lot in the early stages—a transitional skill.
Previously, Gale was sidelined because the Ice Emperor's Ice Domain affected friend and foe alike, negating most of Gale's speed advantage.
But now things were different.
[Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion]
[Level: 31]
[Strength: 41.4 (5.0)]
[Speed: 13.4 (6.4)]
[Stamina: 32.4 (5.4)]
[Defense: 59.1 (10.1)]
[Skills: Eternal Frozen Domain (blue), Ice Claw (blue)]
[Attribute: Ice (ultimate), Poison (normal)]
[Potential: 7 (peerless)]
[Next Evolution: Ice Emperor Scorpion]
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