Five days passed in a blur of brutal training, classes, and cultivation.
Every morning, Ethan woke before dawn to cultivate using his improved breathing technique. The two Spirit Gathering Pills had increased his cultivation speed permanently, and the effects were noticeable. What used to take hours of meditation now took slightly less time, and the spiritual energy he absorbed was purer.
After morning cultivation came breakfast, then regular academy classes. Beast Taming Theory with Instructor Li, Spiritual Energy Fundamentals, Beast Evolution Studies, and Combat Tactics. Ethan threw himself into the coursework with renewed focus. He wasn't just the trash student anymore—he actually had a chance to succeed, and he wasn't going to waste it.
Afternoons were special training with Instructor Wang. Two hours of physical conditioning that left him drenched in sweat and gasping for air, followed by spiritual energy control exercises and coordinated combat drills with Shadow.
Zhao Lin and Wu Feng, the senior students training alongside him, had initially been skeptical. But as the days passed, they began to respect Ethan's determination. He couldn't match their physical strength or cultivation level, but he never complained, never quit, and learned faster than anyone expected.
"You're improving," Wu Feng commented on the third day of training as they rested between exercises. "Your spiritual energy circulation is much smoother than when we started."
"Thanks," Ethan panted, still wearing the double-weight seals on his wrists and ankles. "Though I feel like I'm dying most of the time."
Zhao Lin grinned. "That's how you know it's working. Pain means growth."
Evenings were detention at the Beast Medical Hall, where Ethan continued learning beast medicine from the medical assistant. His Basic Beast Medicine skill had leveled up to Level 2, making him 20% more effective at healing his contracted beasts.
And every night before bed, Ethan checked his progress.
[Daily Login Reward - Day 8]
[Reward: 5 Evolution Points]
[Current EP Balance: 75 EP]
[Consecutive Days: 8]
[Host Status:]
[Cultivation: Beast Apprentice Rank 1 (Progress: 91%)]
[Physical Conditioning: +5%]
[Beast Status - Shadow:]
[Rank: Mortal Beast Rank 3 (Progress: 67%)]
[Time to Rank 4: 1 day, 4 hours]
Eight days since contracting Shadow. In that time, Ethan had gone from 48% progress to 91%—an increase of 43%. The combination of improved breathing technique, Spirit Gathering Pills, occasional Low-Grade Spirit Stones from the shop, and intensive training had accelerated his growth tremendously.
Shadow's progress was even more dramatic. She was already 67% of the way to Rank 4, and her strength had increased noticeably. In sparring sessions, she could now hold her own against Rank 20 beasts through pure skill and tactics.
The academy had noticed. Students who'd once mocked Chen Xuan now gave him respectful nods in the hallways. A few had even asked him for advice on coordinating with their beasts.
But not everyone was happy about his rise.
---
On the morning of the ninth day, Ethan was meditating in his courtyard when he heard voices outside his door.
"Chen Xuan! We know you're in there!"
Ethan opened his eyes and sighed. He recognized that voice—Chen Wei, one of his cousins from the main family. And from the sound of it, he'd brought friends.
Shadow's ears perked up, her three eyes focusing on the door with obvious displeasure. Through their bond, Ethan felt her readiness for violence.
"Easy," he told her. "Let's see what they want first."
He opened the door to find three young men in expensive robes, all bearing the Chen family crest. Chen Wei stood at the front, flanked by two others Ethan recognized vaguely—distant cousins who'd never paid him any attention before.
"Can I help you?" Ethan asked calmly.
Chen Wei's expression was a mixture of jealousy and anger. "The family elders are talking about you. They heard you defeated Zhang Hao in a spar and contracted a beast with draconic bloodline. They're considering... reconsidering your position in the family."
Ethan raised an eyebrow. "And you're upset about this because...?"
"Because you don't deserve it!" Chen Wei snapped. "You were trash for three years! One lucky contract doesn't change that. The elders shouldn't waste family resources on someone who'll probably fail again."
Ah. So this was about resources. If Ethan was brought back into the family's good graces, he'd receive better cultivation pills, access to the family library, maybe even a decent allowance. Resources that would otherwise go to people like Chen Wei.
"I haven't asked the family for anything," Ethan said. "If the elders want to reconsider my position, that's their decision. Not mine. Not yours."
"Listen, trash—"
Shadow hissed, the sound low and threatening. Her three eyes began to glow with purple light.
Chen Wei took a step back instinctively. Even at Rank 3, Shadow radiated an aura of danger that made people's instincts scream warnings.
"I'd be careful with your next words," Ethan said quietly. "Shadow doesn't like it when people insult her master."
Chen Wei's face reddened, but he wasn't stupid enough to push further. "This isn't over," he muttered, then turned and left with his companions.
Ethan closed the door and shook his head. Family politics. He'd forgotten about that aspect of cultivation worlds. The moment you showed promise, relatives came crawling out of the woodwork—some to support you, others to drag you back down.
"Let them scheme," Ethan told Shadow. "We'll keep getting stronger. That's the only thing that matters."
Through their bond, Shadow sent agreement and fierce loyalty.
---
That afternoon's training session was particularly brutal.
"Combat assessment today," Instructor Wang announced. "You three will face my Thunder Wolf in a coordinated attack. Work together, use your beasts effectively, and try to land a hit. You have ten minutes."
His Thunder Wolf—a Mortal Beast Rank 28, roughly equivalent to a Beast Master Rank 5 or 6—regarded them with calm superiority.
Ethan, Zhao Lin, and Wu Feng exchanged glances.
"This is impossible," Zhao Lin muttered. "That's a Rank 28 beast. Our highest is my Iron-Back Bear at Rank 19."
"Instructor Wang wouldn't give us an impossible task," Wu Feng said. "There has to be a way."
Ethan studied the Thunder Wolf, his mind racing. Rank 28 meant overwhelming power and speed. A direct confrontation would be suicide. But the exercise wasn't about winning—it was about landing a single hit.
"We need a strategy," Ethan said. "Wu Feng, your Wind Hawk is the fastest. Zhao Lin, your bear is the toughest. Shadow has the best utility skills. If we coordinate properly..."
They huddled together, forming a plan.
"Begin!" Instructor Wang called.
Wu Feng's Wind Hawk took to the air immediately, circling overhead. Zhao Lin's Iron-Back Bear charged from the front, roaring to draw attention. And Shadow melted into shadows, disappearing from sight.
The Thunder Wolf moved like lightning, dodging the bear's charge and swiping with electrically charged claws. The bear barely managed to raise its defenses in time, the impact sending it sliding backward.
But that was the opening they needed.
The Wind Hawk dove from above, talons extended. The Thunder Wolf glanced up and dodged—exactly as they'd planned. It moved right into Shadow's path.
Shadow erupted from the wolf's own shadow, her Shadow Claw technique fully charged. The strike hit the Thunder Wolf's hind leg—not enough to hurt it, but enough to make contact.
The Thunder Wolf immediately retaliated, electricity crackling, but Shadow had already used Shadow Step to escape.
Instructor Wang called out, "Stop!"
The Thunder Wolf relaxed, and Shadow reappeared beside Ethan, panting but unharmed.
"Seven seconds," Instructor Wang said, checking a timepiece. "Not bad. You identified the objective, formed a strategy, and executed it without hesitation. That's the kind of thinking that keeps you alive in real combat."
He looked at each of them in turn. "Individual strength matters, but coordination matters more. Remember that."
As they caught their breath, Ethan felt something shift inside him. The intense training, the constant spiritual energy circulation, the pressure of coordinated combat—it had all been building up, and now...
[Warning: Spiritual Energy reaching saturation point]
[Breakthrough imminent]
[Recommended: Find quiet location immediately]
Ethan's eyes widened. His breakthrough to Rank 2 was happening now?
"Instructor," he said quickly. "I need to—"
Instructor Wang took one look at him and nodded. "Go. Your cultivation is about to break through. Don't fight it
Find somewhere safe and let it happen naturally."
Ethan ran.
---
He made it back to his courtyard just in time.
The spiritual energy in his dantian was swirling like a cyclone, expanding and compressing, pushing against the boundaries of his current rank. Ethan sat cross-legged on his bed and guided the energy according to the breathing technique, not fighting the breakthrough but directing it, shaping it.
Shadow sat beside him, watching with her three eyes glowing softly. Through their bond, she sent calming feelings, supporting him through the process.
The energy built higher and higher until Ethan felt like his body might burst. Then, with a sensation like a dam breaking, it flooded through his meridians in a rush of power.
His dantian expanded, the tiny spark of spiritual energy becoming a small flame. His muscles strengthened, his senses sharpened, and the ambient spiritual energy of the world became easier to perceive and absorb.
[Breakthrough Successful!]
[Cultivation: Beast Apprentice Rank 2]
[All physical attributes increased by 15%]
[Spiritual energy capacity increased by 30%]
[New technique unlocked: Beast Link Enhancement - Can temporarily boost contracted beast's power using own spiritual energy]
Ethan opened his eyes, and the world looked different. Colors were more vivid. He could hear sounds from further away. Even the flow of spiritual energy in the air was more visible to his senses.
He clenched his fist and felt the difference immediately. He was stronger, faster, more resilient. This was just Rank 2, the second step on the long ladder of cultivation, but compared to Rank 1 it felt like night and day.
"System, show me my current status."
[Host: Ethan Cross]
[Cultivation: Beast Apprentice Rank 2 (Progress: 0%)]
[Contracted Beasts: 1/4]
[Evolution Points: 75 EP]
[Physical Conditioning: +5%]
[Skills: Basic Beast Medicine (Level 2), Beast Link Enhancement (New)]
[Daily Login Streak: 9 days]
Beast Apprentice Rank 2. In nine days, he'd gone from the bottom of Rank 1 to Rank 2. Most students took months to make that kind of progress.
And he wasn't done yet.
Ethan pulled up the System Shop. With 75 EP, he had options.
He could save for a Contract Slot Expansion (200 EP), but that was still far away. He could buy more cultivation resources for himself. Or he could invest in Shadow.
The Bloodline Awakening Drop caught his eye again. 100 EP for 0.1% bloodline increase. Shadow currently had 0.3% Shadow Dragon bloodline. If he could get her to 1%, the effects might be significant.
But he only had 75 EP. He needed 25 more.
Wait—Shadow would reach Rank 4 tomorrow. That would give him 10 EP. And his daily login reward would give him 5 EP tonight and 5 EP tomorrow morning. That was 20 EP total.
Not quite enough.
Unless...
Ethan checked the System Shop's miscellaneous section and found what he was looking for.
[Lucky Draw Ticket - 100 EP]
[Random reward from Common to Epic rarity]
[Possible rewards: Evolution Points, Items, Skills, Beast Eggs, etc.]
It was a gamble. He could spend 75 EP on guaranteed items, or he could wait one more day, accumulate 95 EP total, and save 5 EP for emergencies while gambling on a lucky draw.
Actually, that didn't make sense. Better to save up 100 EP and buy the Bloodline Awakening Drop for Shadow. That was guaranteed value.
Ethan closed the shop. Patience. He'd learned that lesson. Rushing to spend resources led to waste.
Tomorrow, Shadow would break through to Rank 4. He'd earn 10 EP. Add the daily login rewards, and he'd have 90 EP. The day after, he'd hit 95 EP. Three more days and he'd have 110 EP—enough for a Bloodline Awakening Drop with 10 EP left over.
It was decided. He'd save up for Shadow's bloodline improvement.
A knock at the door interrupted his planning.
"Chen Xuan? It's me, Liu Yue."
Ethan opened the door to find Liu Yue standing there with an excited expression.
"I heard you just broke through to Rank 2!" she said. "Congratulations!"
"News travels fast," Ethan said with a smile.
"The whole academy is talking about it. Nine days from probation to Rank 2? That's incredible." She paused. "Actually, that's not the only reason I'm here. Instructor Li announced something in class today. There's going to be a secret realm expedition in two weeks."
Ethan's interest immediately piqued. Secret realms were locations where spiritual energy was particularly dense, often containing rare beasts, valuable resources, and ancient inheritances. They were also extremely dangerous.
"The academy is taking students?" he asked.
"Not just any students. Only those at Beast Warrior rank and above... or those with special permission from an instructor." Liu Yue grinned. "Instructor Wang has been singing your praises to the other instructors. I heard he's recommending you for the expedition despite being only Rank 2."
A secret realm. That could mean opportunities to find rare beasts for his remaining three contract slots. It could mean valuable resources. It could mean Evolution Points from defeating strong enemies.
But it also meant danger. Secret realms were unpredictable, and students died in them regularly.
Then again, Ethan had the System. His growth speed was already abnormal. By the time the expedition happened in two weeks, Shadow would probably be Rank 7 or 8. He might even reach Beast Apprentice Rank 4 or 5 himself.
"When do we get more details?" Ethan asked.
"Tomorrow morning. Instructor Li is holding an information session for potential participants." Liu Yue's expression became more serious. "Chen Xuan, are you really going to go? Secret realms are no joke. Last year, three students died in one."
"I'll think about it," Ethan said. But he'd already made his decision.
Fortune favored the bold. And he had a system that rewarded exactly this kind of risk-taking.
After Liu Yue left, Ethan sat on his bed with Shadow curled beside him.
"Two weeks," he told her. "We've got two weeks to get as strong as possible. Think you can make it to Rank 10 by then?"
Shadow's three eyes gleamed with determination. Through their bond, Ethan felt her absolute confidence.
Rank 10. The threshold for Shadow's first evolution into a Void Shadow Panther. With the 100x cultivation speed, it wasn't impossible.
"Alright then," Ethan said, pulling up his cultivation manual. "Let's get to work."
Nine days down. Two weeks to prepare for a secret realm expedition.
The real adventure was about to begin.