81: Sonic Mantis's Extraordinary Evolution

Scorching flames burned fiercely beneath the Three-legged Golden Tripod.

The body of the tripod soon became scalding hot and vibrated violently as surges of energy struck against it from within.

On the ground, as Xie Ning spilled his own blood, the Formation lit up, and energy from all directions flooded frantically into the Three-legged Golden Tripod.

The Formation he had spent quite a while painstakingly drawing took less than five seconds to exhaust its energy.

Occasional violent tremors shook the lid open slightly, splashing out liquids—blood-red, silver, and iron armor fragments mixed with residue from Materials... "Master, this evolution... how can it be like this?"

Mo Yu was stunned; she had never seen such a tragic and intense evolution.

Usually, evolution involved absorbing things from the outside into the body to trigger changes, but this evolution actually required stripping things away from the body.

Under the high heat of the flames and within the boiling liquid, the already battered body had to endure the agony of blood replacement and skinning. What a resolute evolution this must be!

Xie Ning did not answer her question. His eyes were fixed on the three-legged tripod, wishing he could see through its walls to the Supersonic Mantis.

Little Mantis had known him for over six years, coming to his side the year before his parents died in battle. Little Mantis was like a younger brother or sister to him; at first, he was the one protecting it, but after his parents died, it became the one protecting him.

During his most difficult times, it was always there accompanying Xie Ning.

It could be said that the one who understood Xie Ning best in this world wasn't any person, but Little Mantis.

Hang in there, Little Mantis... we still have a long time ahead of us... In this evolution, the hardest part is the initial reshaping process. Once that's endured, the rest of the evolution will follow naturally.

As the minutes and seconds ticked by, the vibrations inside the golden tripod grew more intense, and liquids of various colors stained the golden tripod into a multicolored, ugly mess.

Xie Ning didn't care about that; as time passed, he waited anxiously.

After an unknown amount of time, a white light began to glow inside the golden tripod. The light seeped through the gaps in the lid, illuminating the room and shattering Xie Ning's anxiety.

"It's a success! The evolution has begun!"

Xie Ning looked at the golden tripod, which was no longer shaking, his face filled with ecstasy. Beside him, the Poison Flame White Wolf stopped breathing fire and sat there with a face full of curiosity and anticipation.

The brilliance grew brighter, eventually passing right through the golden tripod and bathing the entire vessel in a beautiful white-gold light. Through the tripod's body, a curled figure could be vaguely seen slowly undergoing changes.

Finally, the brilliance dissipated. Xie Ning and Mo Yu watched with anticipation, waiting for the Supersonic Mantis to emerge.

1 second... 3 seconds... 10 seconds... The Supersonic Mantis still hadn't appeared. The two looked at each other, seeing confusion in each other's eyes.

"Little Mantis?" Xie Ning stepped forward, put on heat-resistant gloves, and opened the lid. He peered inside, his brow furrowing instantly. He reached in and felt around; the liquid inside the tripod had been completely absorbed, and the interior was parched dry by the flames.

Mo Yu quickly asked, "What's wrong?"

"Little Mantis isn't inside," Xie Ning said with a frown. "That shouldn't be..."

Hearing this, Mo Yu hurried over and stood on her tiptoes to look. Sure enough, there was no sign of the Supersonic Mantis.

"Could it be that..."

Xie Ning didn't respond. With a deep frown, he looked around and reached in again, refusing to believe it, but he felt nothing. His heart gradually sank.

He hadn't found it, and he hadn't heard the notification for a successful evolution.

Could it really be... Xie Ning started to panic. He opened his mouth to call out Little Mantis's name, but then he heard a sound like a clap of thunder.

Boom!

The sound came from inside the tripod. The golden tripod vibrated violently, shifting from its original position, and the intense noise caused cracks to appear on it.

Xie Ning and Mo Yu quickly backed away a few steps, watching the golden tripod as the vibrations grew louder.

The sound grew louder and clearer until it finally ended with a faint 'pop,' as crisp as a thin layer of frosted glass being shattered.

From within the crack-ridden golden tripod, a brand-new Little Mantis flew out. It flickered in and out of visibility; every time it reappeared after turning invisible, it was accompanied by the sound of shattering glass, but as it continued to adjust, the sound grew quieter and quieter.

[Ding! Evolution successful! Supersonic Mantis (Excellent High Grade) has mutated into Rift Blade War Mantis (Transcendent Top Grade)! Gained 50 evolution value points.]

Xie Ning let out a long breath as he watched Little Mantis slowly fly toward him.

Fortunately, what he feared hadn't happened.

"Master, this... this..." Mo Yu stared at the brand-new Rift Blade War Mantis with wide eyes, unable to speak clearly.

"Awoo?" The Poison Flame White Wolf tilted its head, looking at the strange fellow before it with a mix of alertness and confusion.

Who is this? A big shot? It seems different... In contrast, Xie Ning appeared much calmer. He had anticipated some unique changes in its form and had prepared himself mentally.

More importantly, compared to the worst-case scenario, as long as it was alive, it didn't matter what it looked like.

The Rift Blade War Mantis appearing before them looked more humanoid than before.

Its entire body was covered in silver-white armor with golden patterns flickering in and out of view. Two even longer blade-arms retracted and extended; when retracted, the sharp blades pressed against its elbows, revealing two four-fingered silver claws; when extended, they gleamed with a cold, unstoppable light. The wings on its back had disappeared, and on its triangular head, the broken golden horn was gone, replaced by three silver horns curving backward—two short and one long—making it look even more handsome.

Xie Ning smiled happily as he looked at his Demon Tamers Beast partner, which had changed its appearance and grown to 1.5 meters tall.

"Master..."

Little Mantis looked itself over, clenching its silver claws tightly. Its voice transmitted into Xie Ning's mind with a tone of wonder.

"Congratulations. You endured it and became stronger." As he spoke, Xie Ning brought up Little Mantis's attribute page.

[Yao Beast Name] Rift Blade War Mantis (Little Mantis)

[Yao Beast Grade] Transcendent Top Grade

[Yao Beast Rank] Bronze Rank 8

[Yao Beast Attributes] Space-type, Metal-type

[Yao Beast Weaknesses] None

[Yao Beast Status] Joyful

[Yao Beast Talent] Sound Kill (Burst of supersonic speed for a one-hit kill; heavy use increases physical burden), Void Rend (The pair of blade-arms can be supplemented with qiankun stone energy to achieve a space-tearing effect)

[Yao Beast Introduction] A Space-type Semi-mantis Form mutated from the Supersonic Mantis. It has inherited the Supersonic Mantis's abilities and absorbed the spatial elements of the qiankun stone. It possesses a certain insight into spatial fluctuations and has extremely high combat awareness.

[Evolution Paths] 17

At this time, Mo Yu also brought out a full-length mirror from the room. The Rift Blade War Mantis stood before the mirror, curiously examining itself.

"Awoo?" The Poison Flame White Wolf walked over and curiously patted the Rift Blade War Mantis on the head, only to be smacked by it, immediately becoming well-behaved.

It's definitely a big shot.

Xie Ning looked at the two beasts, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

"Little Mantis, can you still fly now?"

The Rift Blade War Mantis nodded. Then, four silver-white wings grew out of nowhere on its back. With a powerful flap, it instantly soared into the air, the massive force of the impact blowing Xie Ning and Mo Yu back several steps.

Crack... This burst of impact became the final straw that broke the Three-legged Golden Tripod. The already crack-ridden tripod shattered with a bang.

Xie Ning: "..."

Mo Yu: "..."

Rift Blade War Mantis: "..."

Poison Flame White Wolf: "Awoo?"