The Auspicious Beast, Phantom Sea Spirit Kun

"Teacher, I do not want a compromised spirit soul." An Lan continued to shake his head, ignoring the earnest, painstaking advice of his two mentors.

What a joke.

Since he knew there was a better choice, how could he not challenge himself to reach for it?

Seeing their disciple lay his cards on the table with such firm resolve, Leng Qingning and Le Lingzhao could only compromise, choosing to respect his wishes.

Le Lingzhao sighed wistfully, "Qingning, bring it out. Since little An Lan has such ambition, we as his masters cannot hold him back."

She and Leng Qingning shared the same sentiment: only a fledgling eagle needs the tempering of wind and rain, but An Lan was a young dragon. A dragon hidden in the abyss is destined to soar into the heavens from birth; there was no need for him to take unnecessary risks.

Yet, seeing that her beloved disciple remained unswayed by arrogance or complacency despite his talent and background, still harboring an unyielding heart that pursued the ultimate, she could not suppress the gratification on her face.

"If that is the case, then so be it."

Leng Qingning said no more. With a wave of her jade hand, she withdrew the many rare spirit souls that had failed to catch An Lan's eye and sealed them back into her storage space.

Then, she produced a new spirit soul capsule.

The capsule opened, and the light dissipated.

A spirit soul with a round body and scales shimmering with a faint blue divine glow floated silently before An Lan.

Unlike other spirit souls, it appeared to be in a state of deep slumber.

"This is... a fish?"

An Lan widened his eyes, his face full of disbelief.

"Ten-thousand-year spiritual essence, Phantom Sea Spirit Kun." Leng Qingning's red lips parted slightly, her cold, clear voice diffusing into the air.

"Ten thousand years?"

A trace of confusion surfaced in An Lan's eyes. He looked up at the stunning master beside him, waiting for her to clear his doubts.

Leng Qingning was perceptive; she saw the questions in her beloved disciple's heart at a glance and said in a calm tone, "The ten-thousand-year spiritual essence does not refer to it possessing ten thousand years of cultivation, but rather expresses wonder that it is favored by the heavens and born in response to the times."

"Born in response to the times..." An Lan murmured, a flash of insight sparking in his eyes. "Could it be... a Beast of Auspice?"

Across the entire Douluo Continent, if anyone could be said to be favored by the heavens and born in response to the times, it was undoubtedly the Emperor Beast of Auspice, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, who had sacrificed itself for Huo Yuhao ten thousand years ago.

A look of undisguised appreciation flashed in Leng Qingning's eyes as she looked at An Lan.

Regarding the education of this precious disciple, she had always felt that Le Lingzhao was a hindrance, spoiling the child too much and risking the development of an arrogant, dissolute nature.

Fortunately, with her as a strict master, An Lan was able to settle his temperament and study diligently without pause.

Receiving his mentor's affirmation, An Lan subconsciously turned his gaze toward the Phantom Sea Spirit Kun.

Although it was in a deep sleep, the mere unconscious flick of its tail caused surging waves to manifest around it.

It came with its own special effects; it was truly extraordinary.

Leng Qingning gazed at the Spirit Kun, her tone gradually deepening with a sigh for history: "Spirit masters hunt spirit beasts to seize spirit rings, and spirit beasts gather in tides to bathe human cities in blood. To this day, the grievances and entanglements between humans and spirit beasts, the rights and wrongs, can no longer be easily summarized by who was right or who was wrong."

"Thousands of years ago, the spirit beast faction represented by the Beast God Di Tian was driven out of the Spirit Pagoda. That day was a milestone in the history of humans and spirit beasts."

"Di Tian realized the imbalance of power between humans and spirit beasts. Perhaps he knew it in his heart all along, but only when he reached the point of no return did he finally show the resolve a Beast God should have, exhausting the power of all spirit beasts on the continent to launch a tide, attempting one final struggle."

"A deathbed struggle, nothing more." An Lan shook his head, his tone calm and filled with unquestionable certainty. "From the moment humanity decided to show their hand, the spirit beasts were already beyond saving."

It was precisely because they had the power to crush everything that they chose to show their hand.

Spirit tool technology was changing with each passing day, especially with the perfection of mecha and battle armor technology. The emergence of four-word Battle Armor Masters left the spirit beasts with no room for a comeback.

Unless...

Never mind, the world-shaking wisdom of the Silver Dragon King was not worth discussing.

"Indeed," Leng Qingning sighed. "Star Dou Great Forest, Evil Demon Forest, Far North... the spirit beast factions were unprecedentedly united at that time. Yet, even so, those terrifying beast tides that made people tremble in historical records no longer posed a threat to humanity."

"Spirit tool legions lined up like mountains, and fixed-load spirit tool shells poured down like rain; the beast tides were shattered before they could even approach the human defense lines. Even the Beast God Di Tian, recognized as the strongest on the continent, was defeated under the siege of several four-word Battle Armor Masters."

Le Lingzhao added from the side, "The prestige of the Beast God Di Tian was no exaggeration. Even under those circumstances, humans were unwilling to fight him to the death. In the end, both sides reached an agreement: humans would retain the core area of the Star Dou Great Forest, and in exchange, the fierce beasts swore never to step half a step out of the core area for eternity."

An Lan nodded, understanding in his heart.

The famous "Star Dou Zoo," a unique spectacle in the entire Douluo Continent; if the Spirit Pagoda were willing to open it, the annual ticket revenue would be no small sum.

Leng Qingning concluded, "In 'Spirit Beast History,' human scholars attribute the core of the spirit beast clan's decline to the progress of spirit tool technology, especially the appearance of four-word battle armor, which rendered the absolute military deterrence of the fierce beasts, especially Di Tian, obsolete."

"However, among the major clans and top factions of the Federation, there is another secret theory that circulates."

"That is—luck."

Seeing An Lan listening intently, Le Lingzhao couldn't help but interject, "This matter is also recorded in my family's archives."

An Lan was very supportive; he turned his gaze and said respectfully, "Please, Second Master, enlighten me."

Having successfully attracted the full attention of her beloved disciple, Le Lingzhao was satisfied and began to speak slowly: "The root of the spirit beasts' decline actually traces back much earlier. Everything is attributed to the founder of the Spirit Pagoda, the Spirit Ice Douluo Huo Yuhao."

"Ten thousand years ago, the Emperor Beast of Auspice, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, sacrificed itself to him, causing the luck of the spirit beasts to be devoured by the luck of humanity. From then on, humanity has been smooth sailing and unstoppable, until they completely ended the ten-thousand-year-old feud with the spirit beasts and came to dominate the entire Douluo Planet."

An Lan looked at the sleeping Phantom Sea Spirit Kun again, lost in thought.

With his two masters saying so much and specifically mentioning the Three-Eyed Golden Lion, could it be... that this Spirit Kun was also a Beast of Auspice?

But there could only be one Beast of Auspice in the world; it was impossible for there to be a second one.

No!

A flash of inspiration suddenly exploded in An Lan's mind!

The only one of its kind in heaven and earth is the Emperor Auspicious Beast, the Three-Eyed Golden Lion. Ten thousand years ago, in the Star Dou Great Forest, there still existed another type of auspicious beast: the Golden Hawksbill.

Presumably, this Phantom Sea Spirit Kun is an auspicious beast similar to the Golden Hawksbill.

With this thought, everything suddenly became clear to him.

Leng Qingning took in his expression and immediately chuckled, "Figured it out?"

"Yes." An Lan nodded heavily. "Presumably, this Phantom Sea Spirit Kun is an auspicious beast similar to the Golden Hawksbill, rather than the one-and-only Emperor Auspicious Beast of heaven and earth."