Talking a Thunder Raven into a Contract

After reading the inscription on the stone, Rein learned that the [World-Ending Divine Lightning] in the Thunder Pool glass jar was an elemental primordial substance. Even in the ancient times when Gods and Demons existed, this thing was considered a supreme elemental treasure.

The people of the Ancient Monkel Kingdom left it here for two reasons: first, to provide energy for the tomb, and second, to cultivate the [Immortal Thunder Raven].

The stone inscription states that the Thunder Raven was placed here not to guard anything, but as a "companion spirit beast" prepared for the strongest trial participant of the Pallas Family.

It is considered one of the final trial rewards.

It's said that once the contract is successfully signed, the Thunder Crow can assist the person in cultivating the [Thunder God Art]. The Thunder Crow grows by absorbing lightning, and the host's cultivation level also rises accordingly, even enhancing their physical body, and so on.

Beneath that stone carving was an intricate contract Magic Array.

Its dazzling matrix structure was more mysterious and complex than any Magic Contract that Rein had ever seen.

"If it's used to assist in cultivating battle qi, isn't it somewhat similar to the effect of the [Thunder Totem]?"

Rein turned his head and looked at the silly bird beside him, which was happily poking him with its beak, and frowned slightly.

No matter what, you can never have too many cheat codes for cultivation.

But can I really succeed in making the contract?

Now he understands. Although he doesn't know what level of Transcendent beings this trial ground was prepared for in ancient times, it was definitely not for someone like him who was Third Tier Extraordinary.

Otherwise, once he enters the fourth level of this tomb, this stupid bird will electrocute him.

Looking at the law of the contract carved in the stone, Rein was also greatly moved.

But it's unclear whether it's willing, since ordinary magical beasts wouldn't agree to form a contract with a human of a lower rank. This "divine bird" is probably incredibly arrogant.

It's a fifth-tier unit, so it probably looks down on Rein, a weakling at the Third Tier.

After thinking it over, Rein decided to try and communicate with this idiot, and asked, "Um... would you be willing to sign a contract with me?"

As he spoke, he pointed to the contract Magic Array on the stone carving.

But the silly bird seemed not to understand at all and continued pecking happily.

Rein tilted his head, thinking that perhaps he had asked the question in the wrong way. Maybe, for ancient birds, he should ask in an ancient language?

Then he switched to Monkel Ancient Language and repeated it.

At this moment, the silly bird seemed to realize that the guy in front of it was talking to it, and stopped. But Rein understood its blank, anthropomorphic little eyes; it still didn't understand.

Then, it happily started pecking again.

He now understands that this silly bird doesn't have any bad intentions; it's just been locked up for tens of thousands of years and is bored out of its mind.

"If only Wudo were here, she'd be fluent in the 'Language of Ten Thousand Beasts,' she could probably communicate with this bird."

Rein frowned slightly, having given up hope.

I tried it one last time, and this time I used the "Ancient Demon Language".

Unexpectedly, upon hearing this, Lei Ya suddenly straightened his neck, tilted his head, and looked at him.

Rein was overjoyed, immediately realizing: it understood!

The Ancient Demon Language has a level of "meaning." Even if you don't understand the syllables, if you can grasp a certain level of it, you can roughly feel and understand a part of the consciousness.

This divine bird seems to understand this "higher language," or at least part of it.

Before Rein could even feel happy, he saw that the silly bird's elemental face had transformed into a very irritating expression.

The disdain was palpable even without a word, as if to say, "You weakling? You think you can just sign me?"

Rein's face twitched, and he looked at the fool with a sinister gaze, saying again, "Have you thought this through? If you don't sign a contract with me, you'll probably be locked up for countless years and never get out."

That silly bird probably didn't understand everything I said.

But it still understood the meaning of "barrier" and "cannot get out".

There were restrictions here, preventing it from leaving. It had been imprisoned for countless years, and the sudden arrival of a human was quite intriguing. A thoughtful expression appeared on the crow's face.

Seeing that things were looking promising, Rein increased his bets.

He thought about the beast taming method that Wudo had once introduced to him, and started beeping.

When dealing with monsters that are not very intelligent, the only options are coercion and enticement.

Coercion was out of the question; Rein was powerless against this immortal Thunder Raven. But enticement was possible. The beasts' thinking was simple: either food or mating rights.

He said, "Let me tell you, if you sign a contract with me, you can come out with me. The outside world is huge. You can fly anywhere in the vast sky. There are also all kinds of lightning to eat. Aren't you tired of eating lightning? Do you want to try something different? I'll also tell you, there are all kinds of female and male birds outside."

I don't know if this mythical bird has a gender, or whether the one in front of me is male or female, but anyway, Rein just kept exaggerating and raving about it.

For such a naive and unsophisticated bird, we must use "sugar-coated bullets" to break down its rationality.

Surprisingly, this trick actually worked quite well.

Anyway, Rein kept babbling on for almost fifteen minutes, and the expression on Raine's face became more and more strained.

However, perhaps due to its proud lineage, the divine bird never considered submitting to a weakling. Just like an elephant, even a young one, would never serve as a follower of a weasel.

By this time, the system had captured enough data and determined the intelligence of this thunder crow: it was roughly equivalent to the level of a two- or three-year-old human, similar to a husky.

At this level, behavior is often driven by instinct rather than by any "wisdom".

After remaining unmoved for a while, Rein resorted to his ultimate tactic – "playing hard to get".

He said, "Hey, if you're not willing to make the contract, I'm leaving. This place is so small, and there's not a single playmate. I don't want to be locked up here for countless years. You can just stay here as a bird. If I leave, you won't even have anyone to peck at."

As he spoke, he made it seem as if he was about to walk towards the magic door.

Anyway, I figured that if I went out, I could come back in.

One step, two steps, three steps.

Rein looked back at the "wooden chicken" that was standing there dumbfounded, and finally he didn't see that smug, mocking expression on its face anymore.

The silly bird was caught in a dilemma: either sign a contract with a weak human or be locked up "for life".

It hadn't seen much of the world before, and didn't think there was anything wrong with the concept of "locking up," assuming that the world only consisted of the temple, which was only a few thousand square meters in size.

Now, after listening to Rein's rant, it has learned about the "glamorous world" outside and its worldview has been refreshed.

Putting aside other temptations, having a "living" thing to keep you company seems like a lot of fun.

If we choose based on instinct, the result is obvious.

Finally, just as Rein was about to reach the magic portal, a flash of lightning suddenly appeared, and the silly bird appeared beside him like a ghost.

Then, it held its noble head high, still refusing to bow its head.

But Rein understood perfectly. Its smug expression was saying: Weak human, this great bird agrees to sign a contract with you!

"."

Rein rolled his eyes.

But he didn't care about his image, so he just bowed his head. Signing the contract would be beneficial to him anyway.

Then he turned around and went back to the altar with the arrogant, silly bird.

The contract Magic Array was already in place on the stone carving; simply add some blood to fill the groove, and it would be activated successfully. Following the steps in the "instruction manual," the contract was complete.

Rein successfully became an equal companion to this [Immortal Thunder Raven].

The signing of the "companion contract" gave him a magical experience, as if his soul was somehow connected to something in the dark.

Now, when communicating with that silly bird, I don't need to look at its expression anymore; we can sense each other's thoughts as soon as they arise.

But I figured I couldn't just keep calling it "Silly Bird, Silly Bird" forever, so I had to give it a name.

"Do you have a name?" Rein asked.

Thunder Raven naturally understood, but it was clear that it had no name.

After thinking for a moment, considering that you could generate electricity and were somewhat like a husky, Rein asked, "How about I call you 'Pikachu'?"

"."

The silly bird, seemingly unconcerned, continued its playful pecking game with its beak. It was probably like a dog enjoying biting someone's trouser leg.

It seems that it finds it quite interesting to have a companion human.

Rein looked at its thunderous body, which had a wingspan of over ten meters, and asked, "Can you shrink a little?"

A companion spirit beast will naturally follow you wherever you go.

But it's so big, taking it out isn't so convenient, even if it looks cool.

Upon hearing this, the "pickup" did indeed appear to shrink.

It is an elemental being, without a physical form; its size changes are merely manifestations of its elements.

It's still very big.

"Could it be a little smaller?"

"It would be even better if it were a little smaller."

"."

Under Rein's subtle instructions, the thunder crow grew smaller and smaller until it became the size of a sparrow and landed on Rein's head.

The chicks peck at the rice, cluck cluck cluck.

However, this little chick, crackling with purple lightning, may look small, but it's still deadly. Those hundreds of millions of volts are a voltage that not everyone can withstand.

Rein then asked, "Pikachu, can you control your electrical discharge? Could you please not let it run all the time?"

He himself was fine, but if he went out like that, there probably wouldn't be enough room for anyone to stand within dozens of meters of him.

No, it should be that no grass or trees grow there.

This silly bird didn't seem to understand what "discharging electricity" meant, so Rein showed it how to release and contain its fighting spirit, and the bird understood immediately.

The system showed that the voltage fluctuating between 100 million and 1 billion on its surface had finally stopped, and was now only a few hundred to a few thousand volts.

Once it adapts to this ability, it should be able to go even lower.

This poses no fatal threat to other Transcendent.

Rein was quite satisfied.

Judging from its appearance alone, it looks somewhat like a low-level elemental magical beast called "Lightning Sparrow," so it doesn't attract much attention.

Before long, Rein had thoroughly searched the entire temple and found no more treasures, so he decided to leave.

Those stone carvings and sculptures seem to be fixed to the main hall, unable to be moved, so they can only remain here. It's also a way to leave some "opportunity" for future generations who might be destined to see them.

However, he then set his sights on the glass jar containing a wisp of [World-Ending Divine Lightning] in the Thunder Pool.

This is something that looks terrifying just from the description; you definitely won't miss it once you're here.

Although I don't understand what this thing is used for, at the very least, it can be used as an energy supply device, right? It would be excellent to use it in their Black Dragon City's Flying Mechanical City in the future.

Moreover, it seems that the jar is just a decorative item and can be taken away.

Rein didn't dare to move rashly, so he first asked the silly bird on his head, "Pika, you said we're all leaving, so it's okay if I take your 'snacks' with me, right?"

The silly little bird nodded its head, naturally agreeing, after all, that's what it grew up eating.

The man and the bird exchanged a few more words, and the silly bird said that the jar was not dangerous.

Then, Rein cautiously stepped into the Thunder Pool.

The closer he got, the more terrifying arcs of electricity, as thick as his forearm, seemed to "caress" his body like an octopus's outstretched hand, sending waves of tingling sensations through him.

However, thanks to the [Thunder Totem], he could withstand the electric shock.

Moreover, it also has a thunder-devouring Divine Beast on its head.

"Pikachu" would occasionally open its mouth and swallow a few pieces, as if it had swallowed a giant lightning worm, its expression timid.

Nothing unexpected happened. Rein walked over and easily picked up the jar.

The stone platform engraved with mysterious symbols was probably an electrical guiding device; after the glass jar was removed, the exaggerated electric arc in the Thunder Pool vanished instantly.

The blinding light in the entire temple dimmed instantly.

Holding the glass bottle felt like touching a red-hot iron; even through his Bodyguard Battle Qi, it burned his skin. Rein had to use healing magic to cleanse the burns before he could bear to drop it.

Upon closer inspection, the glass bottle was covered with layers of 3D-like runes, resembling some kind of high-level seal.

But it makes sense, considering that the [World-Ending Divine Lightning], which is said to have existed since the beginning of mythology and represents the most powerful element of destruction in the world, could not possibly be in the hands of a Third Tier Extraordinary being.

Rein felt like he was holding an "atomic bomb" in his hand, but since it had been stored in a jar for so many years, there was naturally nothing to worry about.

"Pikachu" jumped onto the glass jar, and with a stomp of its foot, an arc of electricity would spring out, which it would then skillfully swallow, somewhat like those little toys called "static ion balls" from my previous life.

Rein played with it for a while and enjoyed it immensely.

A short while later, Rein walked out of the magic door.

Guy and the others outside also breathed a sigh of relief.

They looked at the little purple bird on Rein's head with great curiosity.

Gannix casually asked, "Mr. Rein, why did you go in and bring a bird out?"

Upon hearing this, the bird, with its arrogant and disdainful look, raised its neck, and crackled with lightning.

It may be willing to deal with its contract master, Rein, but it might not be willing to deal with other "lower beings".

Feeling looked down upon by a bird, Gannix became even more curious. "Hey Mr. Rein, your bird can glare at people?"

Rein didn't know how to explain, and said with a wry smile, "It's a divine bird, but it's been kept in captivity for too long and doesn't quite know how to interact with people yet. You should stay away from it for now; it's dangerous."

Divine bird?

Catherine's expression changed slightly, but she didn't say anything.

Guy frowned, narrowed his eyes, and sensed a subtle threat.

Only Nareta seemed to recognize the bird's origin, and a serious expression appeared on the cat's face.

This girl probably won't be able to turn back into human form for the time being. That Book of the Dead is full of spells, but it doesn't mention the issue of bloodline beastification at all.

She thought that the only way to change back to normal was to find Bazel later and ask him about his experience with beast transformation.

Rein didn't intend to explain further, and called to everyone, "Let's go, this tomb is about to be sealed, we should get out of here."

More than a month later.

There are three days left until the auction for "Black Wind Territory".

In an ancient site on the edge of the Tehersen Desert.

The three people and the cat are resting.

Nareta, now a black cat, seemed to have developed the feline fondness for sunbathing. When the sun was shining brightly, she lay on the sand, lazily basking in its warmth. One black paw supported her chin, while the other occasionally flipped through a book, sometimes muttering incomprehensible spells.

Behind her, several Skeleton Monsters were fanning themselves with fans.

These are some of the most basic spells she learned from the Book of the Dead— "Control Undead".

However, since she is not even Transcendent being yet, she can only control the lowest level Skeleton Monster.

Because of her ability, the group did not encounter any more zombie attacks in the desert.

Not far away, Gannix had just finished practicing his shooting and humbly asked Guy, who was watching, "Senior Guy, what do you think of my shooting technique just now?"

"Not bad."

"Senior Guy, do you think I can comprehend 'Spear Intent'? When you first comprehended 'intent,' what exactly did it feel like?"

"That's a long story."

"Senior Guy, you..."

"."

Although the hunting trip was fraught with danger and he nearly lost his life several times, Gannix's gains were also immense.

Not only did he broaden his horizons, but he also gained profound insights into life and death, successfully consolidating his own "momentum" and advancing to the Third Tier of the Transcendent.

Catherine, hearing her son's incessant chatter, glared at him and said irritably, "Gannix! You've only just advanced to the [Demon Hunter] realm, your cultivation isn't even stable yet, and you're already thinking about the Fourth Tier of the Transcendent Realm? Can't you just focus on your cultivation? All you do is bother Mr. Guy all day long!"

"."

Gannix was speechless, but he pouted and said resentfully, "I just wanted to ask for your advice."

He had personally witnessed Guy's overwhelming victory back then, so naturally he wouldn't miss this rare opportunity to learn from him.

"It's alright."

At this moment, Guy, standing to the side, smiled and shook his head, adding, "Your talent and temperament are both excellent. Reaching the Third Tier the Transcendent Realm at this age is already remarkable. It's highly possible that you will comprehend 'Intent' and enter the realm of true top-tier masters in the future."

Thanks to the professional care of Dr. Rein and the multiple injections of nutritional supplements, his mental state is now quite good. His muscles have also recovered to about half their previous state.

Although he still looks very thin, he is much better than his previous skeletal appearance.

"You flatter me, senior."

Upon hearing this, Gannix was not pleased; instead, he became even more humble.

If it were in the past, he would have felt proud and complacent upon hearing this.

At his age, he advanced to the Third Tier Extraordinary, truly entering the realm of High-tier Extraordinary. Not only was he unparalleled among his peers, but even within the two great empires, few could rival him.

He deserves to be called a "genius".

But now, he feels he is still far from perfect.

Thinking of this, Gannix's gaze unconsciously fell on the figure meditating on the distant sand dunes.

Although both are at the Third Tier, that one is far more powerful than me.

There, the seven-colored poisonous mist swirled once more, and lightning surged once more.

Even just from meditation and practice, this strange phenomenon was extremely frightening.

Gannix sighed with considerable emotion, then murmured, "Mr. Rein's cultivation Cultivation Method is becoming increasingly dangerous. And this is just cultivation; even getting close is dangerous. If a real fight were to break out, how formidable would he be?"

Guy also looked over, his gaze deep, and slowly said, "His current cultivation path is indeed extraordinary. If he were to unleash his full power, not to mention Third Tier Extraordinary, even an ordinary Fourth Tier Transcendent would suffer greatly. And that thunderbird, we didn't realize how powerful it was before, but now that we see it, it's probably quite formidable."

Hearing this, even Catherine, who knew Rein's background, was shocked by Rein strength. This trip to the wilderness had brought her far too many surprises and unexpected delights from the lord of "Black Dragon City."

On the sand dunes.

After meditating for most of the day, Rein slowly exhaled a breath of stale air upon waking up.

He opened his eyes and looked at his left palm, which was radiating a seven-colored poisonous gas. A glint flashed in his eyes, and he muttered to himself, "This [Void Ten Thousand Poisons Hand] is truly a secret technique that takes a different approach."

He didn't know until he practiced it, and once he started, he realized how powerful the poisonous palm technique truly was, and how effective it was as a sneaky method.

The force can directly penetrate the Bodyguard Battle Qi outside the body, forcing the poison gas into the enemy's body.

This was originally a "fighter's" divine skill comparable to the "Secret Technique: Sky God Strike," but unfortunately, getting started with it is a big problem.

Even a regular "Poison Master" might not be able to master it, let alone a martial artist.

For fighters, insufficient toxin resistance prevents them from attempting potent poisons, rendering their training useless; for sorcerers, insufficient strength results in inadequate palm strikes and limited lethality.

But for Rein, it was just right.

His "Battle Doctor" Extraordinary Sequence combines extremely high poison resistance and strength.

This is practically a "professional skill" tailor-made for him.

Moreover, the power of this secret technique lies in its "growth potential." The more potent the poison, the stronger the poisonous palm strike, with significant room for future improvement.

Lost in thought, I was suddenly interrupted by a strange cry.

Rein snapped out of his daze and realized it was time to feed the little creature that had flown back and landed on his head.

The word "pickup" doesn't sound crisp at all; it's more like the crackling sound of a high-voltage wire touching a live wire.

Rein took out a glass jar containing divine lightning. The little creature skillfully stepped on a few bolts of lightning and swallowed them whole.

Watching the bird eat, he was filled with the joy of finding a treasure, and a smile curved his lips.

In retrospect, luring this silly bird out was extremely useful.

Not only can it improve the efficiency of battle qi cultivation like the [Thunder Totem], but more importantly, when the "Thunder God Art" is activated, the dark attribute lightning it releases can actually stimulate muscle growth!

This is the precise result obtained from the system's accurate monitoring over the past month.

Previous scientific studies have already confirmed that muscle growth can be promoted by external stimulation of the body's bioelectricity.

There are no such high-tech instruments in this world, but I never expected that this "pickup truck" would have this function.

The internal stimulation from Gang Line [Great Strength God Art] is combined with external stimulation, resulting in a rapid increase in Rein's power.

He achieved the "Divine Power Realm" mastery that was originally planned to take several months to reach, but he did so in just one month, resulting in a significant increase in his power.

Now, as he circulates his Cultivation Method, his skin has begun to radiate a faint golden glow, reaching a level where he can formally cultivate the twelve body-refining diagrams of the "Divine Steel Realm".

With the help of this divine bird, he might be able to reach the Great Perfection of the "Divine Steel Realm" without even reaching the Fifth-tier Extraordinary Realm!

The key point is that, although this guy is greedy, he can't even finish eating all the lightning overflowing from the glass jar, and he can occasionally hunt for food in the thunderclouds on his own.

They don't eat their own rice, so they're easy to raise.

On the sand dunes, Rein no longer immersed himself in his cultivation. He checked the time and thought to himself, "Judging by the time, Canossa and the others should be arriving soon."

As luck would have it, at that very moment, a cloud of dust rose from the sand dunes at the edge of the field of vision.

Look at the flags hanging in the procession, it's the "Black Gold Merchant Guild"!

Canossa's team arrived as scheduled.

The goal of this trip is precisely: the Black Wind Territory Auction.

Thank you so much 'qozm' for the generous donation!