After Manager Ying took the Queen Ant’s Egg, Lu Ran gained new resources. It wasn’t that the forging materials had arrived quickly, but rather that Gu Qingyi had come to Green Sea, bringing the Nature Manipulation Trait Crystal needed for the Weather Sprite.
In Lu Ran’s courtyard, over a dozen thick, multicolored snakes huddled together, staring at him excitedly.
Hiss, hiss... (Big Brother, hungry! Food!)
Lu Ran silently stared back. Who in the world taught them this nonsense? He glanced at Dr. Gu, who stood nearby in a beige trench coat, her long legs wrapped in black stockings.
It’s you, isn’t it? It has to be you!
“What do you think? These are the ones with the most concentrated Dragon Bloodline I could find,” Gu Qingyi said, gently placing a pale hand on the head of a green snake.
“They seem quite spirited... I’ll contact the people from Lu Village to come to Green Sea soon,” Lu Ran replied.
He and Gu Qingyi had previously discussed forming a Flood Dragon Squad—an elite, Dragon-attribute beastmaster team exclusive to Xia, modeled after the Eagle Federation’s own powerhouse units. Gu Qingyi had immediately agreed, offering to supply both the young dragon-species familiars and Dragon Trait Crystals.
As Xia’s Dragon Master, she had been researching dragons long before Lu Ran had become a Dragon Chef, and her institute housed some of the best dragon-species familiars. Lu Ran saw no reason to refuse.
With Dr. Gu’s help, he could save himself a great deal of effort, and if the Flood Dragon Squad proved successful, sharing some of its benefits with her was a fair trade.
Now that the young dragon-species familiars had been tamed and delivered, all that remained was for the prospective squad members to form contracts. Once the contracts were signed, it would be Lu Ran’s turn—his Dragon Cuisine would shape them into true warriors.
A round of Dragon Cuisine combined with Dragon Trait Crystals would set them on the fast track to greatness. Lu Ran was confident that, before long, the Flood Dragon Squad would be ready to take on Legendary Secret Realms.
By then, each member would possess strength comparable to—or even surpassing—beastmasters like Pluto and Dog King.
A smile crept onto Lu Ran’s face as he imagined it. With a steady supply of rare resources from Legendary Secret Realms, his days of scrambling for materials would soon be over.
Though, truth be told, he was already feeling the pressure. The evolutionary resources for Captain Doofus and Dark Crow still paled in comparison to what Sudden Death King had received.
“Stop grinning like an idiot.” Gu Qingyi waved a hand in front of his face.
“The second Evolution Secret Realm opens in a week. Are you planning to evolve your familiars then?” she asked, thoughtfully rubbing her chin.
Regarding the Flood Dragon Squad, Gu Qingyi wasn’t too concerned with the details. She left its management to Lu Ran, while she handled dragon-related resources, traits, and young familiars.
As Lu Ran had mentioned, the squad wouldn’t yield results immediately—it could take an entire season before they matured. Unlike Bai Qi of the Netherworld Division, who had always been a powerhouse, the rookies from Lu Village had weak foundations. It would take time.
Gu Qingyi, however, was more interested in Lu Ran’s own progress.
“We’ll see when the time comes. I’m a little conflicted,” he admitted with a sigh.
“What do you mean?” Gu Qingyi mused. “Let me guess. Sudden Death King’s evolution was too dazzling, and now you’re worried Captain Doofus and Dark Crow won’t match up? You want better evolution resources but can’t find any?”
“Exactly.” Lu Ran shrugged. “The Dragon King Bloodline Crystal and Overlord Dragon Souls were too powerful. I doubt I’ll be able to get resources of the same level for Captain Doofus and Dark Crow. At best, I can push them to Superior King, but aiming for Overlord seems risky.”
Gu Qingyi sighed. “You should be grateful. Is Superior King not enough? Who else even has an Overlord familiar besides you?
“Besides, perfection isn’t always necessary. When you first fused traits for Captain Doofus, did you really think those were the best possible options?
“Even now, total perfection is unrealistic. Each familiar is unique. Look at the first generation—they’re the strongest force on Blue Planet, yet most of their main familiars are fused with common traits from Common Secret Realms. They’re nowhere near the level of your fourth-generation familiars.
“It’s safe to say most second-generation beastmasters’ familiars already surpass what we had back then. So compared to you, shouldn’t I be the one crying?”
“Go ahead, let’s see you cry,” Lu Ran joked.
Gu Qingyi blinked, caught off guard.
“...Sorry.” Lu Ran quickly surrendered. “I’ve been bickering with Manager Ying too much.”
Gu Qingyi narrowed her eyes.
This guy’s gotten cocky.
She could still remember when he was just a cautious newbie. Now, his wings had fully spread.
“Well, if you really want perfection, you can wait a little longer,” she suggested. “There are still three unopened Evolution Secret Realms. You could enter the last two.
“Plus, who knows? Limitless City might update with more Evolution Secret Realms. If conditions allow, you could postpone Dark Crow and Captain Doofus’s evolution.
“With more teams entering Legendary Secret Realms, you might find the exact resources you need.”
Lu Ran fell silent, considering her words.
It was definitely worth thinking about.
After easing Lu Ran’s worries, Gu Qingyi departed, leaving behind the twelve snakes. The moment Lu Ran whistled, Dark Crow, who had been practicing its Soul Curse with the Soul Scarecrow on the rooftop, immediately descended.
The Soul Scarecrow—an excellent artifact retrieved from the Necromancer Faction—could execute long-range curses using an enemy’s blood. Lu Ran had gifted it to Dark Crow, as it was the only familiar in his team whose abilities aligned with the scarecrow’s function.
“My King, what are your orders?” Dark Crow landed gracefully, spreading its wings in a salute.
“Help me out. Move these snakes to Emerald Mountains. This place is too small for them.”
After communicating with the snakes, Lu Ran had Dark Crow summon its army of crows to carry out the task.
“No problem, My King!”
Soon, the dozen talented snakes were relocated. Meanwhile, Lu Ran picked up his phone and called Lu Bing.
Currently, Icy Roads Ahead had officially become the exclusive secretary to the Lu Village Chief, serving as the liaison between Lu Ran and Lu Village to relay important instructions. After all, it wasn’t feasible for Lu Ran to stay in Lu Village all the time.
“Village Chief! Village Chief! Village Chief! Did the familiars arrive?” Lu Bing answered the call, his excitement palpable.
Ever since breaking through the ascension realms, Lu Bing and the others had been thrilled to learn that Lu Ran had become the new chief of Lu Village.
While the former chief, Lu Yan, wasn’t bad, having a beastmaster like Lu Ran as their leader was far more inspiring. It was a source of immense pride to say: Our village chief is the strongest fourth-generation beastmaster, the one who nurtures Overlord Dragons, the Pedestrian A who crushed an entire era.
“Yes, they’ve arrived,” Lu Ran replied with a smile. “You and the other nine can head over here now.”
“Great! I’ll notify them right away!” Lu Bing exclaimed, practically bouncing with excitement.
Currently, nine individuals from Lu Village had successfully broken through to level 1 beastmaster after completing the ascension realms. As per Lu Ran’s request, none of them had contracted a new familiar yet—they had all been waiting for this batch of dragon-species familiars.
To be precise, the team consisted of eight people from Lu Village... plus one pig farmer.
The pig farmer had joined Lu Village’s group during their Beginner Secret Realm adventures. Through sheer diligence and... undeniable charm, he had formed a close relationship with one of Lu Village’s women. Now, it seemed inevitable that he’d marry into the village.
Lu Ran was baffled. While he didn’t know the woman personally, he couldn’t shake the feeling that a pig was stealing one of the village’s prized cabbages.
It wouldn’t surprise him if, in the future, more talented beastmasters—both men and women—flocked to Lu Village as it grew stronger.
“I’ll have to find time to talk to the villagers about being cautious in relationships. Can’t have them getting scammed by shady people...” Lu Ran mused.
After ending the call with Lu Bing, he dialed Fang Lan.
At that moment, Fang Lan’s mood was the same as Bai Qi’s—utter exhaustion.
Her Poison Research Team had recently completed their analysis of the Duck-Billed Sea King Beast’s venom, successfully converting it into a resource for nurturing poison-type familiars.
As a material harvested from a level 60 Superior-Overlord-rank boss, it was undoubtedly a Treasure-grade poison resource. With the first generation’s successful raid of a level 5 Legendary Secret Realm, Fang Lan had seized the opportunity to enhance her own strength.
She had hoped to surprise Lu Ran with her progress, thinking she might finally catch up to him.
But then... Lu Ran went and evolved Sudden Death King into an Overlord-rank dragon.
Fang Lan nearly vomited blood.
She couldn’t comprehend how that tiny lizard—one she had almost accidentally killed—had transformed into such a terrifying powerhouse under Lu Ran’s care.
Her guilt toward Sudden Death King was immense. Thank goodness Lu Ran had taken it off her hands. Otherwise, she would have been the one to snuff out a lizard with Overlord-rank potential.
“What’s up?” Fang Lan answered weakly.
She didn’t even bother to mention her breakthrough with the poison resource. It suddenly felt meaningless.
“Lu Bing and the others will be coming to Green Sea City soon for training. Want to join them?”
“Oh? So the Flood Dragon Squad is finally getting started?” Fang Lan perked up slightly. “Make sure they visit plenty of poison-type secret realms to farm resources!”
“Got it. So, will you team up with them?” Lu Ran asked.
“Hmph, no need,” Fang Lan sulked. “I’ve already joined another team.”
“Huh?” Lu Ran was taken aback. “You mean Youxiong Anlin or Du Yuan? Didn’t they already clear the secret realms? Who else?
“Don’t tell me it’s Pluto, Dog King, and the others. They’re not very strong, so it’ll be dangerous. How about you just wait for Lu Bing and the rest?”
“Neither!” Fang Lan said. “It’s Lin Yin—the one who withdrew from the competition. Her condition seems to have improved recently. She contacted me... and Xia Ri, the one you kidnapped. I figured they were reliable, so I agreed. I plan to give it a try.”
When Fang Lan mentioned Xia Ri, she gritted her teeth in frustration.
Lu Ran had really outdone himself. Not only was he teaching a student, but he had even brought her to his home in Green Sea City.
“You and Xia Ri haven’t developed some... inappropriate teacher-student relationship, have you?”
“What kind of nonsense is that? I wasn’t at the university at the time, so bringing her to Green Sea City was just more convenient. Why are you so concerned about this?”
“I’m just reminding you that your status is no longer that of an ordinary person! As a man traveling alone, you need to protect yourself and not fall victim to unscrupulous women!” Fang Lan said sternly.
“Foreign spies might not be able to assassinate you, but they might very well succeed with honey traps! You’ve got this bad habit of casually bringing women into your home. Shouldn’t you change that? After all, you and Xia Ri weren’t even that close before!”
“Fine, fine... I get it...” Lu Ran covered his ears, wondering if Fang Lan was actually jealous.
He had innocently brought Xia Ri to Green Sea City to have someone cook for Dark Crow. She was nothing more than a tool for the job.
With a sigh, Lu Ran reflected on Fang Lan’s decision to change her plans and team up with Lin Yin and Xia Ri instead. He thought it was a decent choice as it was much more reliable than working with people like Pluto.
After all, Lin Yin was someone with special abilities and the older sister of Lin Nian, one of the first-generation beastmasters. With her leading the team, Xia Ri’s mastery of Spear Intent and impressive offensive power, and Fang Lan’s expertise in poisons, the three of them seemed like a well-rounded group.
Their efficiency in clearing secret realms likely wouldn’t be any worse than that of Youxiong Anlin’s team.
In fact, if nothing unexpected occurred, they would probably clear a Legendary Secret Realm even faster than the Flood Dragon Squad.