Chapter 3 Evolutionary Route

He held back the words that came to his lips, but his heart was in turmoil.

The talent 'Insight' was supposed to reveal only basic information about pet beasts, not their evolutionary paths. This was clearly stated in textbooks, and as a top student, Li Qingzhou knew this very well.

Evolutionary routes are among the greatest secrets in the beast-controlling world and the hardest to unlock. Generally, a pet beast can only reach a level determined by its innate qualifications unless it evolves, which requires either specific cultivation methods or rare natural mutations. Natural mutations take a long time and often fail, while crafting a stable evolutionary route requires substantial financial resources, energy, and countless experiments.

No one would openly share the evolution routes they painstakingly researched. In fact, many large families and powerful organizations maintain their dominance by mastering specific evolution routes for particular beasts. While some routes are publicly available through schools or the internet, these are typically lower-tier paths with limited potential.

Li Qingzhou never imagined his F-level talent, 'Insight,' would allow him to see the evolutionary paths of pet beasts. This was supposed to be impossible. Could it be that his F-level talent wasn't as weak as everyone thought?

If his 'Insight' truly had the ability to reveal evolution paths, it was easily worth an S-level rating. It might even be a hidden or unknown beast-controlling talent, one that hadn't been discovered before!

With this ability, Li Qingzhou could choose the best evolutionary path for his pet beast and gather the necessary resources ahead of time, ensuring that his beast could evolve quickly and efficiently. This would save an incredible amount of time and money while giving him a significant advantage.

Suppressing his excitement, Li Qingzhou focused his consciousness on the option labeled [Evolutionary Route].

**[Evolution Route 1: Iron Bamboo]**

*Description: As tough as steel.*

*Evolution Material: Crazy Iron.*

**[Evolution Route 2: Windward Bamboo]**

*Description: Highly flexible, difficult to break.*

*Evolution Material: Wind Core.*

The bamboo plant had a Black Iron qualification, the lowest tier in the beast-controlling world. Qualifications are ranked as follows, from lowest to highest: Black Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Extraordinary, King, and Myth, with each stage further subdivided into nine levels.

Looking at the evolutionary routes, Li Qingzhou realized that the bamboo's evolution required only basic materials, all of which were quite common. However, the bamboo itself had little value as a combat pet and was typically of interest only to ornamental plant researchers.

Interestingly, the text for the evolutionary routes was displayed in gray, which puzzled Li Qingzhou. The rest of the information was written in black. He wondered what the gray font could mean.

Before he could think further, it was his turn to enter the breeding base.

The base allowed students to enter in groups of five. Led by their teacher, Zhou Ling, Li Qingzhou and four other students entered the base.

The base had three levels: the first was for hatching eggs, the second for already cultivated pet beasts, and the third housed the research labs focused on evolutionary routes.

Zhou Ling brought them to the first level, where rows of hatching eggs were carefully stored in glass containers, each accompanied by a description of the pet it would become.

"Who wants to contract a hatching egg?" Zhou Ling asked.

Hatching eggs were easier to contract since the beasts were unborn and had weaker resistance. However, newly hatched pet beasts were usually weak, requiring extra time and effort to raise.

Zhou Ling glanced at Li Qingzhou and another classmate, both of whom had F-level talents.

"I'd like to take a look at the eggs first," Li Qingzhou said in a neutral tone.

Zhou Ling showed a mix of relief and regret. The fall of such a talented student was tragic, but it was good to see that Li Qingzhou seemed to accept his situation rather than crumble under the weight of it. Many students never recovered from such a setback.

But Li Qingzhou wasn't concerned with Zhou Ling's thoughts. He wanted to use his 'Insight' to examine more samples.

He approached the first egg and immediately activated his talent, revealing its information:

**[Name: Hyla Frog]**

*Attributes: Grass, Poison*

*Level: Black Iron Level 1*

*Qualification: Black Iron*

*Skill: Lush*

*Weaknesses: Fire, Ice*

*Evolution Routes: 3*

*Description: A frog with seeds on its back that thrives under sunlight. When it rains, the seeds bloom, releasing a gas. Often used in rituals to summon rain, this pet beast also has a weather forecasting ability.*

Li Qingzhou checked the frog's three evolutionary routes: Giant Rain Baby, Hyla Flower, and Hyla Grass. All three paths were fairly ordinary, and once again, the text for the evolutionary routes was in gray. His attempts to interact with the information yielded no response.

Undeterred, he continued inspecting eggs for the next hour. Most of them had mediocre qualifications, primarily at the Black Iron level, with only a few at Bronze. None of the eggs held any Silver-level qualifications or above, as those higher-quality eggs were reserved for specialized cultivation programs.

Eventually, two students selected hatching eggs. It was a practical choice, especially for those with E or F-level talents. They were young and had time to nurture their pet beasts.

Meanwhile, Li Qingzhou and two other students moved to the second floor to select already cultivated pet beasts. Zhou Ling was curious why Li Qingzhou hadn't picked a hatching egg but chose to stay silent. It was, after all, up to each student to choose their path.

"You really didn't pick an egg?" came a mocking voice. Zhang Huai, one of Wang Li's friends, sneered as he followed Li Qingzhou. He still resented the way Li Qingzhou had intimidated him in the classroom earlier.

Zhang Huai's D-level talent was higher than Li Qingzhou's F-level, and he was itching to challenge him once they had contracted their pet beasts.

"None of your business," Li Qingzhou replied coldly, heading for the second floor.

"You'll regret this!" Zhang Huai muttered through gritted teeth.

Li Qingzhou, however, had no interest in Zhang Huai's taunts. His focus was entirely on testing his theory about the gray text in the evolutionary routes. He needed to see if he could discover anything new on the second floor.