Stormshell's Evolution!
Zuriel focused on Stormshell's rank and made known his intent.
In an instant, another status emerged.
[ Rank: Bronze (Tier Five)
To evolve to the next tier- Tier five––>Tier six.
Cost: 350 EP ]
'So a minor evolution cost to tier six about 350 EP,' Zuriel mused. He decided to see how much an evolution to the next rank would cost.
[ To evolve to the next stage - Bronze rank (Tier five)–>Black Iron rank (Tier one.)
Cost: 2,850 EP
Note: The cost will lessen if the host possesses the necessary ingredients for evolution]
'So if I can secure the necessary ingredients that Stormhell needs to evolve to the next rank, then I would spend fewer editor points,' Zuriel thought.
Zuriel realised it made sense since each significant evolution was one step closer to the magical beast reaching their complete evolution. So, the right ingredients were needed for proper evolution.
Because of this, formidable beastmasters are also widely recognised as wealthy individuals who can afford to evolve their tamed beasts to a subsequent rank.
Zuriel pondered briefly before accepting the transaction. Since he had enough points, he decided to evolve Stormshell to the Black Iron rank.
He watched as his editor points were swiftly deducted.
As Stormshell watched Zuriel curiously, a sudden mana surge erupted within his veins. He was enveloped by a water bubble crackling with blue lightning streaks.
Zuriel continued observing, pondering how long it would take to complete the evolution.
.....
The evolution lasted for an hour.
The bubble exploded with a "Pop,' and Stormshell emerged from within and landed on the bed.
He looked around in confusion before focusing on Zuriel. Then he rushed towards him with his eyes widened in excitement. He leapt upon Zuriel's legs and snuggled his body against him.
Suddenly, Zuriel felt an overwhelming wave of mana flooding his veins, strengthening every fibre of his being. The sensation felt almost surreal and allowed him to sense the drastic transformative changes transpiring within his body.
After several seconds, the overwhelming sensation subsided. Zuriel exhaled a thick, visible white mist, a sign that the transformation was complete. A wave of relief washed over him as he realised the evolution had been successful.
"I feel stronger... way stronger than before. The benefits of a magical beast evolving to the next rank are way more than I had initially expected,' Zuriel thought, clenching his fists tightly.
A sharper aura emanated from Zuriel. Without hesitation, he summoned his status sheet.
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[ Zuriel Zahara ]
Bloodline: [ Human ]
Age: [ 19 years old ]
Rank: Novice Beastmaster
Mana numerical value: 203.5
Beast space: Blue Spring Oasis (8-star)
Talent: Transfer (C-rank), Beastmaster Editor System (***)
Tamed beast: (1/2) Can only tame two beasts. Click to see more.
Equipment: Storage bracelet (Common rank(Grade 4))
Beastmaster Editor Points: 152,050 EP.
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After seeing his status sheet, Zuriel was satisfied. His mana numerical value has surged from 53.5 to an astonishing 203.5mnv! That was an outstanding 280 per cent increase!
Zuriel picked Stormhell up and saw that his body had become slightly more radiant. Small streaks of blue lightning coated his outer shell, signifying his evolution to a Black iron rank magical beast.
The blue lightning didn't hurt Zuriel as he touched it. He only felt a slight tingle on his fingers, showcasing that its lethality could be controlled.
Zuriel remembered that Malik's main character's cheat was called 'The Beast Codex,' a panel that allowed him to copy skills from any magical beasts regardless of status or rank and transfer them to his tamed beast.
This was one of the primary reasons Malik had pulled numerous impossible feats while remaining under the radar. It was a perfect cheat ability for a cunning main character like himself!
This was why the previous Zuriel suffered countless defeats, as it was impossible to predict the skills Malik's beast would use in their subsequent attack. Anybody who didn't know about his ability would surely suffer defeat. The former Zuriel was not weak, as he had always managed to escape and plan for their next battle.
He needed to find a way to stop Malik from copying his magical beast skills to defeat Malik. Of course, this was still under the judgment that Malik had the same hidden cheat ability he knew in the novel.
But if he didn't... then he was royally cooked.
Zuriel scrutinised Stormshell's status sheet with a contemplating expression. He planned to edit Stormshell's Thunder Wave Barrier skill to block anyone from touching him without authorisation.
Zuriel focused on Stormshell's status sheet and arranged what he wanted within his mind. The system notification alert emerged before his eyes a minute later.
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Edit Common Skill: Thunder Wave Barrier (Yellow) (Intermediate)
Effects: Generates a passive protective barrier of electrified water around the beast that blocks anyone from touching it without the beastmaster's authorization. The barrier absorbs 240 per cent of the power from enemy attacks.
When the barrier absorbs an attack, it can retaliate with either a focused electric shock or a devastating area-of-effect electric discharge, dealing 170 per cent of the absorbed damage to all attackers within an 8.5-meter radius. In addition to the electric damage, it inflicts a 'Stun Effect' on enemies for 0.5 seconds. This skill intensifies by 25% every 5 seconds, reaching full effect in 20 seconds.
Cost: 5,800 EP
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After reading the skill's description, Zuriel nodded in approval. If he hadn't been worried about the cost of his skill, he would have gone overboard by adding more features. After all, his life was in danger, and he needed all the best skills possible to survive.
With just a few tweaks, he created a hybrid skill. He was only worried about how much it would take to evolve such a skill.
Zuriel confirmed the purchase.
[ Beastmaster Editor Points: 146,250]
Zuriel focused on evolving the newly edited common skill.
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Evolve Common Skill: Thunder Wave Barrier (Yellow) (Intermediate)––>Thunder Wave Barrier (Green) (Novice)
Cost: 40,250 EP
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Zuriel frowned when he saw the cost of the skill. If his calculations were correct, each evolution would cost 5,750 EP, and an evolution to the Green grade novice level would cost double that.
He made a wise decision for his own safety and confirmed the transaction, evolving the skill to the Green grade.
[ Beastmaster Editor Points: 106,000 EP]
Zuriel chose to evolve the skill again to the Green grade perfection level.
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Evolve Common Skill: Thunder Wave Barrier (Green) (novice)––>Thunder Wave Barrier (Green) (Perfection)
Cost: 69,000 EP
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Zuriel frowned as he looked at the cost of evolving the skill from white-grade perfection to Yellow-grade Perfection level. This was a 100 per cent increase!
Zuriel clenched his teeth together and confirmed the transaction. He observed as his editor points decreased and when the system's notification alert sprung up.
[ Beastmaster Editor Points: 37,000 EP. ]
He sighed in defeat, seeing what remained of his hard-earned points. He had expected them to be reduced to such a level in such a short time.
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Thunder Wave Barrier (Green) (Novice)
Effects: Generates a passive protective barrier of electrified water around the beast that blocks anyone from touching it without the beastmaster's authorization. The barrier absorbs 420 per cent of the power from enemy attacks.
When the barrier absorbs an attack, it can retaliate with either a focused electric shock or a devastating area-of-effect electric discharge, dealing 300 per cent of the absorbed damage to all attackers within a 15-meter radius. In addition to the electric damage, it inflicts a 'Stun Effect' on enemies for 5 seconds, significantly lowering their resistance to all electric-based attacks. This skill intensifies over time by 40 per cent every 5 seconds, reaching full effect in 12 seconds.
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Looking at the skill's effect, Zuriel was relieved. Despite the cost of skill evolution, it was still worth it. Even if he didn't have enough editor points, he was prepared to return to the brig to collect them from Malik.
He didn't plan on stopping until he was sure to protect his tamed beast from Malik's hidden ability. However, this was enough for their current stage.
Although Zuriel was tempted to create a new skill, he held himself back, too broke to evolve it on a higher grade. He needed to evolve Stormshell's Coral Shock Trap skill to ensure his survival before the Salt Rock Shelter leader and the other Beastmasters arrived.
"How do you feel?" Zuriel asked, looking at Stormshell, who appeared lost in thought.
Stormshell focused on Zuriel and released an audible, wanting to know if Zuriel was responsible for the enigmatic evolution of his common skill.
Sensing his thoughts, Zuriel puffed his chest outwards and nodded confidently, "You are correct. I was the one that did it. It's amazing, isn't it?"
Stormshell stood upright with the support of Zuriel's abdomen and rubbed his small head against Zuriel's right cheek.
[ Your bond strength with your tamed beast has increased: Strong bond—> Powerful bond (+30% contribution of the beast mana numerical value) ]
[Your mana numerical value has increased 203.5 ––> 260]
Zuriel smiled, stretching to the sides of his face, as he saw his bond level with Stormshell had evolved again.
After sensing its power, Stormshell was intrigued and excited about how he had evolved his skill to a level without needing to train it.