Chapter 699: Unexpected Rank 7 - Part Three
After using water energy to nourish the core, Lin Jin even tossed the Purple Thunder Needle inside to assist Xiao Huo in bringing the situation under control. Finally, after two hours, the core started to stabilize.
During this time, Lin Jin's robes were drenched in sweat. If he didn't have the blood ghost to fortify his strength, Lin Jin's mortal body would have crumbled a long time ago.
He had done what he needed to do. As Lin Jin had played all the cards in his hand, he now had zero control over Xiao Huo's evolution. The rest was up to fate.
After taking a deep breath, Lin Jin plopped down onto the clouds to rest.
Time gradually trickled away. At one point, the core stopped pulsating.
Lin Jin looked up with a smile on his face.
Success!
Boom!
As the fire clouds dispersed, red and white clouds started separating.
Red clouds rose upward while white clouds dispersed into Lin Jin's surroundings.
The white clouds were the Storm Beast Cave, while the red fire clouds were Xiao Huo.
As the fire clouds rose, they took on the shape of a massive fire wolf. Then, they slowly consolidated into Xiao Huo's original form.
Xiao Huo no longer had a coat of flaming fur, nor were his eyes crimson and translucent. Now, he looked the same as when Lin Jin first met him as a Rank 1 fire wolf.
What was this phenomenon called?
Regaining one's natural state.
This realm was so profound that only powerful creatures were able to achieve it.
For humans, it would mean becoming a Zhenren, a profound immortal. For beasts, it would be achieving Rank 7.
Finally, they succeeded.
Lin Jin let out a long sigh of relief. This encounter was miraculous, but it was also a fleeting one. Had Lin Jin hesitated or if he did not have enough fire attribute materials, Xiao Huo would never have been able to evolve.
Thankfully, Lin Jin managed to seize the opportunity.
"Rank 7! Xiao Huo, you probably never dreamed of this in the past, have you?" Lin Jin beckoned and Xiao Huo obediently trotted toward him. His master bent down and patted his head affectionately.
In response, Xiao Huo let out a growl. It sounded like he was able to understand Lin Jin's words, and was expressing his agreement.
It was true, Lin Jin had never imagined that this was achievable. To think that an average Rank 1 fire wolf would one day advance to Rank 7.
A single Rank 7 was probably what it took to dominate the mainlands. Lin Jin could do whatever he wanted. Back when Patriarch Xue Pao was in his prime, he was probably only at the beginning stage of Rank 7.
If Xiao Huo belonged to a villain, hell would ensue if they returned to the mainlands.
Xiao Huo provided absolute power and strength.
What's more, Xiao Huo wouldn't be threatened by the Rank 9 immortal devouring beast, which made it all the more formidable.
Even in the extraterritorial land, a Rank 7 beast was strong enough to roam alone. After all, there weren't many profound immortals around to pose a sufficient threat.
Aside from Xiao Huo, Lin Jin still had the blood ghost who had merged with the spirit devouring ghost worms. These ghost worms were horrifying because they were even more lethal than a Rank 7 Xiao Huo.
It could be said that Lin Jin had now patched up his shortcomings. Should he come across Yan Shenjun again, he would be able to go on the offensive. What a pity that Yan Shenjun probably died in the hands of the heaven weaving spider. Otherwise, Lin Jin would have been able to try out Xiao Huo's abilities on the battlefield.
Lin Jin took a deep breath to regain his composure.
If Lin Jin woke up one day with a Rank 7 beast under his possession without knowing what was going on in the world, he would probably wake up with a smile every day. Then, he would live the rest of his life in relaxation, since he no longer had anything to fear.
Who cared about country ranks? Would premium countries be that mindless as to resist a Rank 7 beast?
They would just be courting death.
Of course, Lin Jin wasn't that ignorant. Quite the contrary, since he knew too much about the world.
Although Lin Jin would embark on the same journey toward immortality as Daojun, the Rank 9 immortal devouring beast still felt like a massive blade dangling above his head.
There were no guarantees that it wouldn't attack Xiao Huo or him one day.
In any case, now wasn't the time for Lin Jin to kick back and relax. The extraterritorial land had too many strong characters. This fact reminded Lin Jin that Xiao Huo's rank wasn't something to act all cocky over.
After all, there was still Rank 8 and finally Rank 9.
To ensure they could live comfortably without worry, Xiao Huo had to advance to Rank 9.
The blood ghost couldn't do it and neither could the spirit devouring ghost worms. These two creatures have now merged together, and while they were somewhere between Rank 6 and 7, they had a combat strength that exceeded Rank 7 creatures.
While Lin Jin managed to avoid the ghost worms' shortcomings and side effects, it came at the price of being unable to evolve his second and third blood contract beasts.
This made Xiao Huo his last hope.
Of course, being an intelligent man, Lin Jin had prepared a plan B – Dopey Bear.
Dopey Bear was also Rank 7, and frankly speaking, it had a higher evolutionary potential compared to Xiao Huo thanks to its advanced starting point.
If Xiao Huo could not advance to Rank 9, Lin Jin might try everything he could to promote Dopey Bear. When the time comes, he would also devise ways to control Dopey Bear or he would never feel at ease.
Of course, that was just a hypothetical scenario. Lin Jin would still maintain his focus on Xiao Huo. He could only be in control if Xiao Huo advanced instead.
He patted Xiao Huo on the head, which prompted him to turn into a puff of fire clouds and dive back into Lin Jin's arm.
"What a powerful enhancement!"
Lin Jin shuddered out of excitement. A blood pact allowed the owner to enhance himself through the strength of their pet beast. Xiao Huo's strength increased tenfold following his evolution, so Lin Jin was able to feel a sharp rise in his own power.
Although he was only a mortal, Lin Jin had a feeling that he could defeat a half immortal on his own.
It was a smart shortcut designed for mortals, but it was a completely different path from immortal cultivation.
Perhaps even the founding expert of the blood pact cultivation never imagined that one day, blood contract beasts could achieve Rank 7, the level of a profound immortal.
With this, even a ten percent power transfer via blood contract would be mean a huge increase in strength for the owner.
After retrieving Xiao Huo, Lin Jin got up and patted the cloud remnants off him. Then, he took the evaluation report he had written and left the cloud sea.
The Storm Beast Cave was fine. It just needed to rest. Lin Jin would advise Xuan Yue Zhenren and Piao Yun not to make the Storm Beast Cave produce any more tiny storm beasts, since that was a form of self-destruction.
Even without producing tiny storm beasts, the Storm Beast Cave offered the strength of a profound immortal if the sect was attacked. That should be what mattered most to the Immortal Cloud Sect.
The Mystery Dao Sect had a Qirin beast and newly-gained a Rank 7 beast, Dopey Bear. This made them incredibly powerful.
If the Immortal Cloud Sect relied on the Storm Beast Cave, they weren't that much weaker. For now, they had two profound immortal level fighters in their sect.
Given enough time, when the Storm Beast Cave makes a complete recovery, it might ebe stronger than even some Rank 8 beasts.