The Beast Medical Hall was located on the western side of the Azure Sky Beast Academy campus. It was a large, three-story building that always smelled of healing herbs and spiritual medicines. Students brought their injured beasts here for treatment, and it also served as a training ground for those interested in beast medicine.
Ethan pushed open the heavy wooden doors, Shadow limping beside him. Inside, the main hall was bustling with activity. Several students sat with their contracted beasts, waiting for treatment. A few instructors moved between examining tables, checking injuries and prescribing medicines.
A young woman in white medical robes looked up from her desk. "Can I help you?"
"My beast needs treatment," Ethan said. "She has a leg injury."
The woman's eyes fell on Shadow, and her professional demeanor shifted to one of interest. "A Three-Eyed Shadow Cat? Those are rare. Bring her to examination room three."
Ethan followed her to a smaller room with a padded table in the center. Shadow jumped up onto it with some difficulty, and the medical assistant began her examination.
"Deep gash, partially healed already. Did you use spiritual energy to treat this?"
"A little," Ethan admitted. "I'm only Beast Apprentice Rank 1, so I couldn't do much."
The woman nodded. "Well, you stopped the bleeding and prevented infection. That's good. This will need stitches and a healing salve. It'll take about two weeks to fully heal with standard treatment."
Two weeks. That was a long time for Shadow to be at partial strength. But Ethan had something better than standard treatment.
"Actually," he said, "Head Instructor Feng assigned me detention here. I'm supposed to start tonight, assisting with beast healing. Could I... could I treat my own beast? Under supervision, of course."
The medical assistant looked skeptical. "You just said you're only Rank 1. Beast medicine requires knowledge and skill, not just spiritual energy."
"I understand. But I'd like to try."
She studied him for a moment, then shrugged. "Fine. But I'll be watching. If you make it worse, I'm taking over immediately."
"Fair enough."
The assistant stepped back, giving Ethan space. He placed his hand gently on Shadow's injured leg, feeling through their bond the dull throb of pain. Shadow's three eyes watched him trustingly.
But Ethan wasn't planning to use his meager spiritual energy. He had something much better.
"System," he thought. "I want to use the Minor Healing Pill on Shadow."
[Confirmed]
[Minor Healing Pill can heal injuries up to Mortal Beast Rank 10]
[Current injury severity: Moderate]
[Administering pill will result in complete healing]
[Proceed?]
"Yes."
A small white pill materialized in Ethan's hand, appearing from his dimensional storage. The medical assistant's eyes widened slightly—spatial storage items weren't common among students—but she didn't comment.
Ethan held the pill up to Shadow's mouth. "Eat this, girl. It'll make you feel better."
Shadow sniffed it once, then swallowed the pill.
The effect was immediate.
A soft white light emanated from Shadow's body, concentrating around her injured leg. The gash began closing, flesh knitting back together at a visible rate. Within thirty seconds, the wound had completely vanished, leaving only healthy fur behind.
Shadow stood up on the table, tested her weight on the previously injured leg, and let out a pleased purr. Through their bond, Ethan felt her joy and relief. No more pain.
The medical assistant stared. "What... what kind of pill was that?"
"Just something my mother left me," Ethan said, which was technically true—the system had come from his transmigration, which had replaced Chen Xuan after his mother's death. Sort of.
"That was at least a Mortal-grade Medium Healing Pill. Those cost hundreds of gold coins!" The assistant looked at Ethan with new eyes. "Your family must really care about you to give you something so valuable."
Ethan didn't correct her misconception. Let her think the Chen family supported him. It was better than explaining the truth.
"Will there be any scarring?" he asked.
The assistant examined Shadow's leg carefully. "None. The healing was perfect. Your cat is in excellent condition now." She paused. "Though I still expect you here for detention. Just because your beast is healed doesn't mean you're exempt."
"Of course. When do I start?"
"Tomorrow evening, one hour after classes end. Don't be late."
---
Ethan returned to his shabby courtyard as the sun began to set. Shadow trotted beside him, fully healed and moving with the grace natural to her species. Several students stared as they passed—news of Chen Xuan's successful contract had apparently spread.
Once inside his room with the door closed, Ethan finally allowed himself to relax.
"Alright," he said to Shadow, who had jumped onto his bed and curled up. "Time to see what else the system gave us."
He pulled up the interface.
[Beast Evolution System - Level 1]
[Host: Ethan Cross]
[Cultivation: Beast Apprentice, Rank 1]
[Contracted Beasts: 1/4]
[Evolution Points: 100]
[New Features Unlocked:]
[- System Shop (Basic Tier)]
[- Beast Evolution Guide]
[- Cultivation Manual (Mortal Rank)]
Ethan focused on the System Shop first, and a new window opened.
[SYSTEM SHOP - BASIC TIER]
[Currency: Evolution Points]
[Current Balance: 100 EP]
[Categories:]
[- Cultivation Resources]
[- Beast Items]
[- Skills & Techniques]
[- Miscellaneous]
[Note: Shop upgrades at System Level 5, 10, 20, 50, 100]
Curious, Ethan browsed through each category.
**Cultivation Resources:**
- Low-Grade Spirit Stone (10 EP) - Increases cultivation speed for 1 hour
- Spirit Gathering Pill (25 EP) - Permanent +1% cultivation speed
- Beast Breakthrough Pill (50 EP) - Assists beast in breaking through to next rank
- Bloodline Awakening Drop (100 EP) - Increases bloodline purity by 0.1%
**Beast Items:**
- Basic Beast Armor (20 EP) - Reduces damage taken by 10%
- Minor Healing Pill (30 EP) - Heals injuries up to Rank 10
- Beast Food (Premium) (5 EP) - Increases beast satisfaction and loyalty
- Contract Slot Expansion (200 EP) - Permanently adds +1 contract slot
**Skills & Techniques:**
- Random Skill Book (50 EP) - Grants contracted beast a random skill
- Basic Combat Technique Manual (75 EP) - Improves fighting ability
- Elemental Affinity Stone (100 EP) - Grants beast minor elemental affinity
**Miscellaneous:**
- Information Scroll (10 EP) - Provides detailed information on a specific beast species
- Map Update (15 EP) - Expands system map range by 1 kilometer
- Lucky Draw Ticket (100 EP) - Random reward from Common to Epic rarity
Ethan's eyes widened as he read through the options. Every single item here would be considered valuable in the outside world, and he could buy them with Evolution Points earned through the system.
But what caught his attention most was the Bloodline Awakening Drop.
Shadow had 0.3% Shadow Dragon bloodline. If he could increase that...
[Bloodline Awakening Drop - 100 EP]
[Description: Increases beast bloodline purity by 0.1% per drop. Maximum 10 drops per bloodline rank. Effects become more pronounced with higher purity.]
[Warning: Using drops on low-purity bloodlines (below 1%) may have unpredictable results. Proceed with caution.]
Ethan had exactly 100 EP. He could buy one drop right now and boost Shadow's bloodline to 0.4%.
But something made him hesitate. The warning about unpredictable results. And more importantly, he didn't know how to earn more Evolution Points yet. Spending his only 100 EP without understanding the system fully seemed foolish.
"System, how do I earn Evolution Points?"
[Evolution Points can be earned through:]
[1. Beast Rank Advancement (+10 EP per rank)]
[2. Beast Evolution (+50 EP per evolution)]
[3. Completing Quests (Variable)]
[4. First-time Beast Species Contract (+20 EP)]
[5. Defeating enemies above Host's level (+1-100 EP depending on difference)]
So he'd get 10 EP when Shadow reached Rank 3, and 20 EP for contracting her in the first place since she was his first Three-Eyed Shadow Cat.
[Calculating...]
[First Contract Bonus: +20 EP]
[Total Evolution Points: 120 EP]
Oh, he'd already gotten the bonus. Good to know.
Ethan considered his options. He could save the points, or he could invest them now to make Shadow stronger faster. In cultivation stories, the strong got stronger while the weak got left behind. Hesitation often led to death.
But there was also such a thing as being too hasty.
He decided on a compromise.
"System, purchase one Low-Grade Spirit Stone."
[Purchase confirmed]
[Cost: 10 EP]
[Remaining Balance: 110 EP]
A small, translucent crystal appeared in his hand, about the size of a marble. It pulsed with gentle spiritual energy.
"This is for my cultivation," Ethan explained to Shadow, who was watching with interest. "If I get stronger, I can support you better."
He sat cross-legged on his bed and crushed the spirit stone in his palm. Immediately, spiritual energy flooded into his body, far more pure and concentrated than the ambient energy he normally absorbed.
Following the breathing technique from Chen Xuan's memories—and now supplemented by the Spiritual Energy Cultivation Manual the system had given him—Ethan guided the energy through his meridians and into his dantian.
The tiny spark of spiritual energy there began to grow.
One hour passed in what felt like minutes. When Ethan opened his eyes, he felt different. Stronger. More alive.
[Cultivation Progress: Beast Apprentice Rank 1 → 45% progress to Rank 2]
Incredible. Normally, it would take weeks of meditation to make that much progress. The spirit stone had accelerated his cultivation tremendously.
If he had more stones...
But no. He needed to be smart about this. Spirit stones were a short-term boost. What he needed was sustainable growth.
Ethan opened the Spiritual Energy Cultivation Manual the system had provided.
[Spiritual Energy Cultivation Manual - Mortal Rank]
[Foundation Breathing Technique (Current)]
[Iron Body Refinement (Requires Beast Apprentice Rank 3)]
[Spirit Meridian Expansion (Requires Beast Warrior Rank 1)]
[Note: This manual covers cultivation techniques up to Beast King realm. Higher techniques will be provided upon advancement.]
The Foundation Breathing Technique was more advanced than what Chen Xuan had learned at the academy. It included specific meditation postures, breathing rhythms, and energy circulation paths that optimized spiritual energy absorption.
Ethan spent the next two hours practicing, and by the time he finally stopped for the night, his dantian had grown noticeably larger.
[Cultivation Progress: 48% progress to Rank 2]
Three percent improvement just from better technique. Not bad.
As Ethan prepared for bed, he checked on Shadow through their bond. She was sleeping peacefully, her three eyes closed, her breathing steady and deep. But something felt different about her spiritual energy. It was... growing?
Ethan focused on her status screen.
[Name: Shadow]
[Species: Three-Eyed Shadow Cat]
[Rank: Mortal Beast Rank 2 (Progress: 15%)]
[Cultivation Speed: 100x (System Bonus)]
[Health: 100%]
[Bloodline: Dormant Draconic (Shadow Dragon - 0.3%)]
[Skills: Shadow Step (Level 1), Night Vision, Triple-Eye Perception]
[Time to Rank 3: 2 days, 20 hours]
Fifteen percent progress already? She'd only been contracted for about twelve hours!
Then it hit him. The 100x cultivation speed wasn't just active when Shadow was training. It was passive. Constant. Even while she slept, she was cultivating a hundred times faster than normal beasts.
A normal Rank 2 beast would take nearly a year to reach Rank 3. Shadow would do it in three days.
And when she did, he'd get 10 Evolution Points. Then when she eventually evolved from Three-Eyed Shadow Cat to whatever her next form would be, he'd get 50 more Evolution Points.
The system was a cycle. Beasts grew fast, giving him points. Points bought items that made beasts grow even faster or made him stronger. Stronger beasts meant he could take on harder challenges, earning more points.
It was a snowball effect. Exponential growth.
"This is insane," Ethan muttered. "I really am going to become overpowered."
Shadow cracked one eye open and sent feelings of smug satisfaction through their bond.
"Don't let it go to your head," Ethan told her. "We've got a long way to go."
But he was smiling as he said it.
Tomorrow, classes would resume. Tomorrow, he'd face the other students as someone who'd finally contracted a beast. Tomorrow, his real journey would begin.
But tonight, Ethan Cross fell asleep with hope in his heart for the first time since transmigrating.
The trash tamer was trash no more.
---
[System Notification]
[Daily Login Reward Available]
[Claim Reward?]
Ethan's eyes snapped open. It was the middle of the night, but the system notification glowed in his vision.
Daily login reward? The system had that feature?
"Claim," he thought.
[Daily Login Reward - Day 1]
[Reward: 5 Evolution Points]
[Current EP Balance: 115 EP]
[Note: Login rewards increase with consecutive days. Miss a day and counter resets.]
Five points just for existing? Ethan could work with that.
He went back to sleep with an even bigger smile on his face.