What does it mean when a pet evolves incorrectly?

"I understand."

As old classmates, Lin Chen chatted with Zhao Siwen for a while, and then the latter's eyes lit up and he suddenly spoke up.

Lin Chen was taken aback.

What do you know?

Zhao Siwen's eyes lit up, as if he had solved a puzzle: "I understand why you didn't participate in the Young Eagle Cup."

In Zhao Siwen's view, it was strange that Lin Chen's Flame Claw Beast, which was clearly stronger than all the pets participating in the Young Eagle Cup, did not choose to participate.

Why didn't he participate?

Lin Chen suddenly realized, and he once again explained the real reason why he did not participate in the Young Eagle Cup: "I have to work."

Zhao Siwen seemed not to hear him, his eyes shining brightly as he muttered to himself, "So you're just like me."

"Lin Chen, I understand you."

Ever since Zhao Siwen displayed his superhuman physical strength, he has been extremely cautious in his interpersonal relationships, fearing that his small mistakes might cause irreversible and enormous harm to his classmates.

Therefore, he has never participated in any competitive activities.

He knew that there were objective differences between people, and that his punch would cause serious psychological trauma and physical injury to every student.

This student, Lin Chen, clearly shared the same thoughts as me.

His Flameclaw Beast was too powerful, so he had to suppress its ferocity and strength as much as possible.

If he were to actually participate in the Young Eagle Cup, it would definitely cause serious psychological trauma to the other players.

Like himself, Lin Chen was afraid that others would get hurt, so he simply didn't participate.

Looking at Zhao Siwen, whose eyes were growing brighter and brighter, Lin Chen frowned deeply.

No, what do you even know?

As night fell completely over the Duanshan Mountains, Zhang Zhi contacted Li Haotian.

"Commander Li, the wild pet that attacked Luoxia Village has been brought under control. There were no casualties among the villagers, and the evacuation is currently being organized."

Li Haotian's voice quickly rang out: "Received. It's good that everyone is safe. The evacuation must be swift, and the villagers' emotions must be calmed down."

He paused for a moment, then continued, "The command center has sent word that there's a new development."

Zhang Zhi's heart skipped a beat, and he instinctively straightened his back: "Please speak."

Li Haotian quickened his pace: "About half an hour ago, a strong magnetic field disorder of unknown cause began to appear on the southern slope of the Duanshan Mountains."

"Therefore, the signal in the edge of the Duanshan Mountains is severely interfered with or even interrupted, and most means of communication have become ineffective."

Zhang Zhi's expression changed drastically.

Li Haotian continued, "Based on feedback from various parties and previous registration records, it has been confirmed that over a hundred Beastmasters who were conducting wilderness training, exploration, or missions in the area have lost contact. Among them..."

He paused, his tone becoming more serious: "Including the Far Mountain Club where we completed our mountain entry procedures this morning."

"Su Qingyuan, Zhou Ming, and several others are all top players in this year's Young Eagle Cup. They are promising new stars in the city, especially Su Qingyuan, who is the champion."

Li Haotian's voice was low, but every word carried immense weight: "The higher-ups have given clear instructions to do everything possible to search and rescue them in the mountains and to ensure their safety."

"Currently, the municipal bureau and border patrol team have urgently dispatched multiple rescue teams to conduct search and rescue operations in the mountains from different directions."

"And the Yuanshan Club starts from Luoxia Village..."

"We happen to be in Luoxia Village, which is closest to their entrance into the mountains," Zhang Zhi immediately understood.

"That's right." Li Haotian changed the subject, his tone becoming serious. "We are rushing to Luoxia Village. You and Xiaochen should not act rashly. Wait for us to meet up before we go into the mountains together."

"Understood!" Zhang Zhi replied in a deep voice.

After hanging up the call, Zhang Zhi's expression appeared unusually grim in the dim light.

He walked quickly back to the village entrance and found the village chief, who was comforting the villagers.

"Village chief, did a group of young people come into the mountains from your area today?" Zhang Zhi asked bluntly.

Before the village chief could speak, a voice chimed in, "It's Su Qingyuan and the others."

Zhao Siwen said, "They arrived at the village around noon, replenished their supplies there, and then entered through the small path behind the village."

Zhang Zhi looked up and gazed towards the back of the village.

There, the outline of the Broken Mountain Range stretched out like a giant beast.

Under the cover of night, the shadows of the mountains and forests were so thick they seemed impossible to dispel.

I entered the mountains at 12:30 pm, and it's almost 8 pm now, more than seven hours have passed.

Seven hours is enough time for a lot to happen, especially when you've lost contact.

Even though the Far Mountain Club has a high-level beast tamer leading the team, the changes in the Broken Mountain Range mean that a single high-level beast tamer cannot guarantee the safety of Su Qingyuan and the others.

Zhang Zhi's heart sank lower and lower.

The mountains and forests at night are already fraught with danger, with obstructed visibility, complex terrain, and nocturnal predators. Now, to make matters worse, there's the unexplained magnetic field disturbance and the possibility of unforeseen events...

Conducting a large-scale search and rescue operation at night will increase the difficulty and risk exponentially.

"What happened?" Zhao Siwen asked, noticing Zhang Zhi's pale face.

Zhang Zhi glanced at him, pondered for a moment, and briefly explained the potential dangers that the Yuanshan Club might face due to the strange changes in the mountains and forests.

After listening, Zhao Siwen's expression turned solemn.

Then, he looked at the mountain range shrouded in night:

"Officer Zhang, please take me with you. I know this area well; I can be of help!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Zhi's first reaction was to shake his head: "No, it's too dangerous. Your mission is to evacuate safely as quickly as possible. Search and rescue is our responsibility; there are professional teams involved..."

"They are my alumni."

Zhao Siwen interrupted, his eyes gleaming beneath his black-rimmed glasses: "Although I'm not familiar with them, I know they're in danger, and I can't pretend I don't see it. Besides—"

He pushed up his glasses, his gaze behind the lenses unusually stubborn:

"When it comes to this mountain, and finding your way through this complex terrain, the rescue team you brought in might not know it as well as I do. Having someone more familiar with the terrain increases our chances of finding them, doesn't it?"

The village chief, who had been listening to their conversation, also came over and sighed, "Officer Zhang, the child is right."

"He's been like a little mountain monkey since he was a kid. Even the old hunters don't know this area as well as he does. Let him go with us; he's a good guide."

Lin Chen nodded silently.

Zhao Siwen's ability to single-handedly subdue and take away a ferocious thick-rock bear demonstrates his undeniable wilderness survival skills and personal strength.

Zhang Zhi pursed his lips slightly, then gritted his teeth and made a decision: "Alright, you'll come with us. But you must obey orders, not act on your own, and retreat immediately if you encounter danger, understand?"

Lin Chen's lips twitched slightly.

This guy is practically a humanoid pet; if he were to encounter real danger, he'd probably have a better survival rate than any of us.

The waiting time seemed exceptionally long. Zhang Zhi got bored and got up to go to Lin Chen's side.

"By the way, Ah Chen, do you know the specific strength classifications after a pet beast breaks through to the second tier?"

Lin Chen was taken aback.

Seeing Lin Chen's reaction, Zhang Zhi revealed an expression that said, "I knew it."

"It's normal that you don't know. Most of the common knowledge taught in schools and circulating in the market is actually outdated."

He paused briefly, then organized his thoughts: "Simply put, when a pet beast breaks through to the second tier and its internal energy core becomes initially stable, it can be considered to have truly left the novice stage."

"However, there are differences even among those at the same level, some of which can be described as vastly different. These differences are difficult to describe accurately using vague terms such as 'newcomer to the second level,' 'experienced second level,' and 'peak second level,' and are also not conducive to tactical planning and strength assessment."

"Especially for beast tamers like us in combat positions, not knowing the exact strength of our opponents is extremely fatal."

"so."

He stared at Lin Chen and continued, "That's how the division into sections came about."

"Within the same level, pets are divided into nine segments from low to high to further subdivide their specific strength levels."

At this point, he raised his right wrist, revealing a standard, exquisitely crafted bracelet that he aimed at the Flameclaw Beast.

The next moment, the bracelet flashed faintly and a sound rang out:

Race name: Flameclaw Beast.

Attribute: Fire.

"Racial Rank: Intermediate Transcendent".

"Strength Level: Tier 2, Stage 1"

Meeting Lin Chen's questioning gaze, Zhang Zhi explained, "This is an energy detection bracelet, which can roughly detect the basic information of pets."

Lin Chen's eyes lit up.

There's such a wonderful thing!

If he also has one...

But the next moment, Zhang Zhi's voice made Lin Chen's expression freeze: "This thing, even though it's just the basic model, still costs a full 100,000 yuan, which took away half a year's worth of my savings!"

Lin Chen looked away.

【Ding! 】

[New world information detected. System database synchronization begins...]

[Parsing local rules to adapt to the system panel...]

[Completed simultaneously.]

The data panel has been updated.

A series of system notification sounds rang in Lin Chen's mind at lightning speed.

He was taken aback at first, then summoned the Flameclaw Beast's data panel. All other information remained unchanged, but the level column had undergone a significant alteration:

Race Name: Flameclaw Beast

[Level: Tier 2, Stage 1 (12/36)]

Lin Chen was certain; this was indeed an intelligent system that would continuously upgrade and evolve.