Unable to Cultivate, I Can Only Raise Soul Pets Chapter 5

Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios

Following Professor Yan, the group proceeded to the sales area, attentively absorbing his explanations about the diverse soul beast eggs presented.

As they moved along, each student selected the egg that most appealed to them.

Professor Yan spoke in a genial manner, lacking the typical professorial stiffness.

Leading the expedition, he delved into the histories of various soul beasts, the future growth trajectories of different soul pet eggs, effective training methods for Contract Soul Masters, and strategies for enhancing the bond between master and pet. His knowledge was extensive.

Despite his lengthy and remarkably detailed discourse, the professor's presentation style was so engaging that it elicited laughter from everyone present.

Soon enough, all the students had made their choices.

Suddenly, Wang Che posed a direct question, "Professor Yan, I'm genuinely curious, do you believe the green caterpillar possesses any potential?"

Professor Yan responded with a smile, "In theory, no."

Those three words appeared to negate the very purpose and existence of the creature.

Upon hearing this, the green caterpillar nestled on Wang Che's chest stirred, looking towards Professor Yan with evident unease.

Only when Wang Che gently stroked its head did the little soul pet settle down, its large eyes fixed upon the professor.

Professor Yan regarded the green caterpillar with surprise, observing it with keen interest. "It appears its intelligence is quite high. This suggests your soul power might be slightly stronger than average.

"However, the inherent potential of the green caterpillar species is exceedingly low. The concept of species potential is the culmination of decades of research by countless scholars into the evolutionary pathways of soul beasts. Consequently, significant anomalies are rare, particularly with common soul pets like the green caterpillar.

"During high school, you would have learned the fundamental theories of soul beast evolution. A green caterpillar typically transforms into a Green Nether Butterfly once its cultivation base reaches approximately ten years.

"The Green Nether Butterfly represents its final evolutionary form, yet its potential remains modest, hovering around 200 points. Even with specialized nurturing, this value rarely deviates by more than ten points; substantial variations are essentially nonexistent."

Professor Yan then paused thoughtfully. "However, I can share some information that even many university students might be unaware of. Green caterpillars are capable of mutation and evolving. A notable instance occurred in the Clear Capital War Zone relatively recently. It's reported that a Contract Soul Master, whose martial soul was the Linguistic Spirit Tree, formed a contract with a wild green caterpillar possessing a three-thousand-year cultivation base as their second soul pet.

"Over time, the unique properties of the Linguistic Spirit Tree martial soul began to merge with the wild green caterpillar, triggering a mutation that resulted in its evolution into the Linguistic Spirit Insect King. This new form not only retained its original bug attributes but also gained the psychic type, becoming a dual-attribute soul pet."

The students were astonished by this revelation.

Psychic-type soul pets.

Even among the vast array of soul pets, those of the psychic type were recognized for their exceptional power.

This held true even when considering other formidable soul pets.

"This novel soul pet variant is currently under intensive study by the Clear Capital War Zone. Its species potential is an impressive 420 points, a figure that surpasses the average, even when compared to other rare soul pets."

Professor Yan lightly shook his head and continued, "Upon learning of this development, other war zones attempted to replicate the outcome by dispatching Contract Soul Masters with the Linguistic Spirit Tree martial soul to form contracts with three-thousand-year wild green caterpillars. Unfortunately, these attempts yielded no similar results… To this day, the precise reason for the initial mutation remains elusive.

"Furthermore, encountering a three-thousand-year-old wild green caterpillar is exceptionally rare, and awakening the Linguistic Spirit Tree martial soul is nearly impossible. This particular martial soul originates from the Clear Capital War Zone itself, and even there, only a handful of individuals possess it..."

The professor's narrative captivated the entire group.

This was highly classified information, naturally not something the school would have previously disclosed.

Professor Yan elaborated, "Beyond the essential requirement of possessing the Linguistic Spirit Tree martial soul, it's plausible that the initial Contract Soul Master employed other, unknown methods. Our leading hypothesis points towards dietary factors. After all, the evolution of soul pets remains a subject of intense scientific inquiry in our current world."

Wang Che found the professor's insights profoundly interesting.

Unable to contain himself, Xu Haifeng asked, “So there’s really no possibility?”

Professor Yan laughed and posed a question back, “What is the most fundamental principle in contemporary soul pet studies?”

“Evolution is the sole method for a soul pet to transcend its inherent biological constraints.”

The professor nodded approvingly at Xu Haifeng’s response. “Precisely. Now, what are the two paramount elements influencing soul pet evolution?”

Another student answered without hesitation, “Martial soul and cultivation base.”

This was common knowledge taught in high school soul pet classes.

Professor Yan continued with a sigh, “Indeed, martial soul and cultivation base. Every evolutionary trajectory hinges on these two factors. I assume all of you have some grasp of conventional cultivation-based evolution.”

“A green caterpillar evolves into a Green Nether Butterfly after ten years of cultivation; a Cuckoo Bird transforms into a Loud Cuckoo Bird following thirty years of cultivation; it becomes a Wind Cuckoo after sixty years; the Hundred Flower Beast evolves into a Thousand-faced Flower after seventy years, eventually becoming a Flower Fairy after one hundred and forty years; a Young Feather Eagle matures into a Steel Wing Eagle over two hundred years…

“Evolution and mutation are intrinsically linked to the martial soul. In antiquity, soul beasts could only evolve through this specific mechanism. However, the efficacy of acquiring martial souls for evolution by slaughtering humans was regrettably quite low.”

He then turned his attention to Wang Che. “The green caterpillar’s cultivation evolution potential is extremely limited. As for mutation evolution, you currently lack the appropriate elemental affinities.”

Professor Yan ceased speaking at this point.

The students grasped his implicit meaning.

Wang Che pondered for a moment before inquiring again, “What if a green caterpillar were cultivated to an even more advanced cultivation level?”

“How advanced?” Professor Yan asked, a smile playing on his lips.

Wang Che stated the most significant number he could recall from his eighteen years of existence, “A million years.”

A profound silence fell over the group.

Even the professor appeared taken aback.

He likely hadn't anticipated such a response.

Professor Yan remained silent for a period before replying, “Do you comprehend why we currently utilize age to denote the cultivation base of our soul pets?”

This was a rather sophisticated query, one that stumped the majority of students.

Wang Che, however, responded with an instinctive reply. “Because in ancient times, the cultivation bases of most soul beasts directly correlated with their lifespans. Consequently, their maximum lifespan also dictated the ceiling of their cultivation.”

“Precisely,” Professor Yan remarked, clearly pleased with the answer. “Soul beasts from ancient eras required extended periods to develop intelligence comparable to humans. This was due to their sole method of sustenance: passively absorbing the soul power from the natural world. They lacked the capacity to awaken their martial souls and cultivate soul power as humans do.

“Hence, their soul power became directly proportional to their lifespan; the longer they lived, the more potent they became.”

“A million years represented the ultimate limit, even for soul beasts of that ancient epoch. Now, consider those that couldn't reach a million years, but rather hundreds of thousands. How many soul beasts fitting this description do you imagine existed in ancient times?”

Wang Che shook his head. He genuinely had no idea.

The school’s curriculum had touched upon the concept of a million-year-old soul beast at some juncture, offering a few examples, but specific details were scarce.

Professor Yan spread both his hands, displaying the number ten with his fingers.

“We are aware of approximately ten such individuals.”

Professor Yan preempted any speculation by continuing swiftly, “Only about ten descendants of those ancient soul beasts managed to survive the cataclysm three millennia ago. In essence, setting aside the life contract, theoretically speaking, only these ten soul beasts possessed the innate capability to cultivate for a million years. To address your question directly, the probability is less than one in a billion.”