Chapter 12 - Attribute Test
"It’s a real shame. Attribute-Awakening Fruits used to be much cheaper since we had saved up a sizable stockpile of them over the years. Lately, though, they’ve become scarce due to the large influx of beastmasters in Limitless City and the major forces’ monopoly over them.
"Still, although familiars can awaken their attributes to get stronger, it’s better to wait things out. Once things settle, the market should return to normal. You should be able to save up enough crystal coins to buy one then.
"Or, you know, you could just join the alliance and get a free awakening as one of the perks."
"They give out free Attribute-Awakening Fruits?!" Lu Ran piped up, having finally heard something that caught his attention.
"In your dreams! They use a different method."
"Which one is more beneficial for the familiar?"
"The expensive fruit, obviously," White Dragon answered, slightly annoyed.
It’s free. What else could you ask for?
"Okay," Lu Ran replied dejectedly.
In that case, he would definitely choose the better awakening method for his familiar. It wasn’t like he couldn't afford an Attribute-Awakening Fruit anyway, especially if it would help Captain Doofus lay a solid foundation!
"Well, that should’ve been a pretty decent introduction. My beastmaster ID is 7386. Let's add each other as friends first. Let me know if you change your mind."
White Dragon believed that Lu Ran was a fast learner, especially since he was still young and able to adapt quickly. The fact that Lu Ran kept his guard up around him and didn’t immediately trust him was a good thing too. People like that tended to survive longer in secret realms.
"Thank you," Lu Ran said.
"You're welcome.” Glancing at the time, White Dragon’s expression filled with surprise. "It’s already this late? My shift is over, but I’ll at least see this through. Come, I'll take you to the nearest testing stone. We can stop for a bite along the way. There are some great restaurants in Limitless City that you should definitely try out sometime! They’re pretty expensive, though."
White Dragon straightened his clothes and got up to leave. "C’mon little buddy.”
Lu Ran hesitated but decided to follow.
***
"Considering the size of Limitless City, the beastmasters inhabiting it are still relatively few. We rarely see combat beastmasters since most of them are focused on growing stronger. The civilian beastmasters are most often the liveliest bunch, but we’re not downtown yet, so it’s not very crowded.”
Lu Ran listened quietly. Just as he was about to ask about the differences between combat and civilian beastmasters, he noticed two figures at the edge of the deserted street. They were standing under a sturdy old tree dozens of meters tall, facing a two-meter-tall boulder.
He had finally come across more people!
One of them was in professional attire and seemed to be around twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old like White Dragon, while the other was a young man around Lu Ran’s age. Judging from his rough tan skin and simple clothes, White Dragon guessed that he was from a rural area.
The wild boar beside the young man only further confirmed White Dragon’s assumptions. The familiar was about half a person tall, had long fangs, and was covered in brown fur! People wouldn’t normally find such an animal in cities.
White Dragon was taken aback. He wasn’t sure if it was a domesticated pig that had its ancestral genes awakened by the contract or if it had always been a wild boar.
Domesticated animals commonly reverted to an ancestral form after the contract. For instance, pigs often turned into boars, and dogs into wolves. Wild boars were obviously much stronger than cats and dogs raised in the city, giving this kid a great start. Passing the beginner trial had to have been a breeze.
"Big Sister Hua, is that a newcomer?" White Dragon greeted the female beastmaster. The moment he saw her with the young man, he immediately realized that they were here for the same thing—to help newcomers figure out their attribute
"White Dragon!" the lady called with a smile. "Today’s my lucky day! I came across a powerful newcomer who scored a C. I’m accompanying him right now to check his familiar's attribute."
"C?!"
White Dragon's face twitched. How lucky! He would get a hefty bonus if he pulled a newcomer with such potential into the organization.
Too bad Lu Ran hesitated when asked about his score earlier. Taking his age and personality into consideration too, White Dragon figured that meant Lu Ran didn’t do too well. Although Lu Ran was pretty haggard now, he still had the looks of a rich kid from some big city. He was already quite lucky to have been able to hold on for a day.
"You’re not so unlucky yourself. You found a newcomer too.”
"Haha, yeah," White Dragon answered, then introduced them to each other. "This is Gifted Writer Hua, my colleague. Gifted Writer Hua, this is Pedestrian A."
Only when he met Gifted Writer Hua did Lu Ran finally confirm White Dragon's identity as a government staff member. It seemed that the government had sent many employees to wait for and guide newcomers in hopes of uncovering talented individuals.
"Pedestrian A..."
Stunned, Gifted Writer Hua and the young man with the wild boar could only nod.
"This is Pig Farmer. Well, he changed the name on his ID to Pig Farmer."
Gifted Writer Hua found young people nowadays too weird. They all seemed to lack class, too.
"Well, it fits well with his familiar.” White Dragon looked at the petrified testing stone, and then at the grunting wild boar. “So, it’s a Rock type? Not bad. With proper training, it could become pretty strong."
White Dragon then nodded at Lu Ran and pointed at the boulder. "Let’s check yours."
The grayish testing stone had a layer of rocky lumps sticking out of it in some parts, which was likely due to the petrification effect.
"The testing stone is made of a special material. Once a familiar attacks it, it will react based on its potential attributes. If it shows signs of petrification, then the familiar is a Rock type. If it freezes, then they’re an Ice type. Red hot means Fire, and dampness means Water.
“Some of the basic attributes are Wind, Rock, Thunder, Grass, Water, Fire, and Ice. There are also rarer ones, like Light and Dark, but those can only be obtained through luck. Anyway, you can choose which attribute to awaken based on the testing stone’s reaction. Did you get all that?"
Lu Ran nodded. It all sounded very simple.
"Quick, try it out," Gifted Writer Hua urged. She and Pig Farmer had decided to stay and watch Lu Ran.
Lu Ran couldn't wait to discover Captain Doofus' attributes either. Hence, he stretched out his hand and summoned the black contract card.
"Summon familiar!" Lu Ran shouted.
A summoning circle appeared on the ground and unleashed a brilliant light. Along with a howl, a huge dog appeared.
"A husky?"
The group was not too surprised when they saw the husky. Most beastmasters from the city had pet cats and dogs as their first familiars. Compared to wild boars, it was a lot more difficult to pass the beginner trial with such domesticated animals. Based on the species of his familiar, Gifted Writer Hua and White Dragon concluded that Lu Ran's trial score wasn’t that high.
"Hit that stone," Lu Ran commanded.
"Woof!"
Captain Doofus turned to the huge testing stone and gathered its strength. The moment it dimly glowed white, it pounced on the testing stone.
Gifted Writer Hua’s and White Dragon’s eyes widened in surprise.
"It’s talented."
Considering the dog knew how to circulate the energy inside it, the two realized that Pedestrian A didn’t survive through sheer luck. Rather, he probably fought several times in the beginner secret realm.
Pig Farmer and the boar also keenly glanced at Captain Doofus.
Bang!
With a flash of white light, Captain Doofus headbutted the testing stone. A heart-wrenching scream immediately followed.
"Aaaaaaaaawooo!"
Captain Doofus was in so much pain that it couldn’t even remember its own name. It had a hard head, but the stone was obviously harder.
"Son of a…" Lu Ran’s head began to ache.
Why did you hit it so hard?! I didn't ask you to fight it to the death! You could have just landed a normal hit! Do you have a grudge against it or something?
Ignoring the others’ surprised expressions, Lu Ran tried to keep a straight face and pretended not to know the husky. He could tell that the three didn’t think his familiar was very smart.
Soon, though, the testing stone attracted everyone's attention. It absorbed the elemental energy and changed almost immediately, revealing a dozen white scratches on the area that Captain Doofus had struck!
"Scratches… Is it a Wind type?" White Dragon muttered.
"Generally speaking, huskies are a boreal breed, so they tend to be Ice types. Wind-type huskies are rare, but they’re definitely better."
"Wind attribute? How does the attribute rank?" Lu Ran asked.
Gifted replied, "It’s not bad. Wind attributes are famous for their high speed. Some say that with enough Wind proficiency, even flightless creatures can gain the ability to fly."
A flying husky...
Lu Ran looked at Captain Doofus, who was still holding its head. He then shook his head and smiled. His dog wasn’t stupid. It was just insane[1], which wasn’t really all that surprising.
1. the character 疯 (crazy/mad) sounds the same as 风 (wind) in Mandarin. It both uses "feng" in pinyin, so the author is trying to make a word pun. ☜
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