Chapter 159 - The Great Slumber Bear
Lin Mu could not begin to even imagine such a being. The strongest beast he had seen up until now was the Alpha steel back wolf, of course not including senior Xukong. But even then, looking at that bear beast it did not seem as if it was that strong.
Now that Lin Mu thought about it, the aura that he could feel coming off of it was weak. It almost seemed as if it was injured.
"But still senior, why would the ward activate, if it's weak now?" Lin Mu questioned.
"That is because of that beast's bloodline. That bear beast you saw there is something unique. Even for me, I have only seen a few of its kind before, and they are certainly not residents of a world such as this. A world like this cannot even handle the cultivation of one such as it, a juvenile." Xukong answered.
Lin Mu felt even more astonished as the situation was just getting more and more strange to him.
"A juvenile? Does that mean…" Lin Mu spoke and trailed off as he realized it.
"Yes, that bear beast… its a child," Xukong spoke, confirming his doubts.
"But… but… if it's a child then is its cultivation really above the Immortal ascension realm?" Lin Mu questioned again.
"Yes, even a child of its species can be above the immortal Ascension realm when its born. Though this one has been weakened too much." Xukong spoke in a slightly reminiscent tone.
"What is the name of the beast?" Lin Mu finally asked, realizing that he still did not know about the beast's name.
"That beast is called as the 'Great Slumber Bear'. It is a beast that can only be found in higher worlds and is immensely strong. So strong that even though this one does not have a high cultivation base, just its bloodline aura is enough to activate the ward I placed on you.
And let me tell you, if the ward had activated back then, while it would have scared the beast away, it would have also depleted more than half of the ward's energy." Xukong answered.
Lin Mu felt a little terrified at this aspect. He had already heard from Senior Xukong that the ward was not permanent and would deplete its energy every time it was used. But senior Xukong had told him not to worry about it at that time and had told him that it would still last a long time.
But now that he heard there was something that could deplete more than half its energy, it just made him realize what a big waste that could be. Lin Mu then thought to the bloodline of the Great slumber bear. If just its bloodline was so strong, then what kind of bloodline ability did it have.
But Xukong seemed to have read Lin Mu's thoughts as he started explaining more about it before he even asked.
"The Great Slumber bears are unique beast mostly due to their Bloodline ability. The bloodline ability is called as the 'Well of Slumber'. This ability allows them to increase their cultivation base just by sleeping. Similar to how the more water you pull out from a well, the more water you will obtain; the more the beast sleeps, the more its cultivation will increase." Xukong explained.
Lin Mu felt a bit dumbstruck at this bloodline ability. If anything, it felt a bit unfair to him.
"It is indeed a beast that has been blessed by the heavens." Lin Mu muttered to himself.
"It is not all good as you think, though. This ability also has a side effect, they cannot totally control when they sleep. It takes them many years to learn how to control the ability and only the adults of its species can fully understand it." Xukong said.
Upon hearing Senior Xukong's words, more thoughts went through Lin Mu's mind until a different thought came. Lin Mu wondered if there was anyone that had been able to acquire and assimilate the bloodline ability of a Great slumber bear.
"Senior, if its bloodline ability is this strong, then shouldn't there be other cultivators stronger than it that obtained it?" Lin Mu questioned with a strange glint in his eyes.
Xukong had seen the strange glint that Lin Mu had right now in his eyes before and was now feeling a bit uneasy.
"Yes, a lot of people have, but all of them died. That bloodline ability is not something that can be controlled by people easily. Even peerless cultivator and people who could have been said to have been blessed by heavens have perished." Xukong answered.
"Why is it so? What's so dangerous about the ability, it seems rather straightforward to me." Lin Mu questioned further.
"The reality is that the bloodline ability of beasts are not always compatible with humans and often present in ways that are harmful. Some abilities just take a long time to get used to and the side effects that its owner has in that period end up harming or killing them."
"In case of the Great Slumber bear, the side effect is the uncontrollable sleep. Once a cultivator assimilates the bloodline, it will immediately show its effects. The sleep that is induced is long… very long. So much so that the cultivator in question will die from starvation." Xukong answered.
Lin Mu once again felt perplexed at this. While he had heard that even immortals could starve from the legacy of the lost immortal. He couldn't tell how it would happen in this case, since they would instead be increasing their cultivation.
"Starvation? But how? Won't they increase their cultivation instead?" Lin Mu inquired.
"Nothing comes free and everything has a price. Although the Well of slumber ability allows one to increase their cultivation as they sleep, it also consumes their vital energy. Though it may not be immediate. First, the ability will consume the normal nutrients from their body, but after they are depleted, it will start using the vital energy of the body itself." Xukong answered.