5: Peeping Tom
"Bud~"
"Use Ram and Leaf Blade."
"Swish~" The crack on the tree, as thick as a thigh, didn't just stop at the bark; a cleaver-like mark appeared directly on its side.
This was somewhat inconsistent with Li Wen's estimation. According to his calculations, the tree should have been directly cut in half at the waist. It seemed he hadn't fully utilized the potential energy of Ram.
Fortunately, the panel's recognition came through:
[Contracted Beast: Sprout Beast]
...[Skill ①: Ram (Proficient)]
...[Skill ②: Leaf Blade (Proficient +2)]
...[Skill ③: Leaf Slash (Beginner)]
Charges forward quickly and performs a charged slash, dealing damage to the path and both sides.
The proficiency of a Beast's Skill continuously increases from Beginner, Proficient, Mastered, Expert, to Grandmaster. From nothing to Beginner is one, from Beginner to Proficient is four, to Mastered is sixteen, and so on.
Even within each level, the difficulty doubles, but because the proficiency becomes too difficult to raise later on, this serves as a progress bar.
For most people, the Expert level is a lifelong goal.
Achieving such results was indeed a worthy reward for the morning's hard work.
Ultimately, the Golden Finger also played a role, but even now, Li Wen hadn't fully understood its principles.
If he had to guess, what he knew now was that it would collect and analyze all knowledge about Beasts. What was even more outrageous was that agricultural information in Li Wen's mind could also be utilized.
And now there were also so-called knowledge points, which should be the currency type of the panel.
"Panel, how many knowledge points do I have left?"
"Based on the expenses for the previous pseudo-evolution ritual plan and Skill cultivation plan, as well as knowledge points gained from online learning and the Master's own ideas, which have offset each other, your current knowledge point balance is: 15"
In this world, due to Beasts, technological concepts were behind those of his original world.
Under the pressure of survival, all Skill trees had been allocated to combat. Only Beastmaster research and daily life Skills were considered advanced.
The mainstream directions of Beastmaster research were roughly two: evolution and breeding.
Regarding evolution, most discovered Beasts had one or several evolution paths that were mastered, but these paths were all under national control, with a small portion also held by individual researchers.
For example, several major universities each had complete mastery of Monarch paths.
As for Overlord-level species, very few people throughout history had been able to possess them before graduation.
The only paths Li Wen could currently directly access were those for Agile to Elite-level Beasts. If Li Wen wanted to access more advanced knowledge, there were only two ways.
One was to become a higher-level Beastmaster, unlocking a higher account level. The other was to become a Breeder, which would not only grant knowledge points but also raise the account level.
Becoming a Beastmaster was a must, but in the shorter term, becoming a Breeder was more cost-effective.
Speaking of Beastmasters, Li Wen couldn't even be considered a qualified Apprentice Beastmaster right now.
Although he was automatically registered as an Apprentice Beastmaster after completing the contract in the park, Li Wen had not yet completed a full meditation session.
That's why he had always left Sprout Beast outside to rest, instead of putting it into the Beast Space for recuperation, which greatly reduced cultivation efficiency.
The Beast Space would generally form the most suitable energy type for a Beast's physical recovery and growth, based on its level. This was also the reason Beasts initially agreed to form contracts with humans.
Thinking of this, Li Wen decided to complete a meditation session here, letting Sprout Beast play around after it finished resting.
Closing his eyes, he sat cross-legged... Two hours later, Li Wen let out a long sigh of relief.
Just as he was sighing, the panel suddenly popped up, interrupting his thoughts.
[Congratulations, Master, for activating the Beast Space!]
[Some functions have been updated. Please explore them yourself!]
"New functions?"
"Can they solve my debt problem?!"
He said with some anticipation, then actively opened the panel.
[Contracted Beast: Sprout Beast] (+)
...[Skill ①: Leaf Blade]
...[Skill ②: Ram]
...[Skill ③: Leaf Slash]
...(+)
Not much had changed; a few plus signs had simply appeared after Sprout Beast and its Skills.
Clicking the plus sign after Sprout Beast's name brought up a new panel.
[Evolution Path ① 5 Knowledge Points] Sprout Beast — Flower Bud Dancer — Flower Skirt Queen
[Evolution Path ② 20 Knowledge Points] Sprout Beast — ??? — ??? (1 Knowledge Point to unlock Second-Stage Evolution Type)
[Evolution Path [Exclusive] 15 Knowledge Points] Sprout Beast (Aberrant Type) — ??? (5 Knowledge Points to unlock Second Stage)
Note: Evolution Path [Exclusive] is a plan tailored specifically for the Master's Beast and will be continuously updated based on the Master's knowledge and the Beast's condition.
"Tailored exclusively! And continuously updated."
"Holy moly! I knew this Golden Finger was amazing!"
Panel: ?? You didn't have this attitude before.
But thinking about it carefully, wasn't this forcing him to take the extreme cultivation route? Cultivating the Beast to its limit at each stage before evolving, otherwise, it would be a bit of a waste of potential.
However, growth wasn't just his own business; the Beasts' wishes also had to be respected.
Just as he was about to continue exploring the new functions after the Skills, he heard some sounds from the forest to his left.
Li Wen stopped what he was doing and looked at the still-sleeping Sprout Beast. He then took it into the Beast Space, preparing to go see what was happening.
Upon entering the forest, the sunlight noticeably diminished, which was a welcome relief for Li Wen, who had been sitting in the sun for a long time.
He remembered that this direction should lead to a small spring. Before long, he passed through the short forest path.
As he emerged from the forest, the sunlight seemed glaring, and Li Wen couldn't open his eyes for a moment. He only vaguely saw someone in the spring water.
After he recovered, he clearly saw the figure in the water.
Li Wen froze completely, his expression blank, and he murmured, "Such graceful curves, a moving posture, perfect skin."