On the endless reddish-brown land, two spirits flew with wings outstretched.
Huang Tianhu straddled the winged tiger's back, leaning low and holding firmly around its neck.
Su Hao had it worse.
Clutched in the gargoyle's arms, he gripped its neck—textured just like rock—tightly to keep from falling. Though they flew only at low altitude, even if he fell, the spirit guardian would save his life.
Probably...
Misty Dream Butterfly and Little Fire Crow, likewise braving the howling wind, clung desperately to the gargoyle's body.
No choice.
Their flight speed was far inferior to elite-level spirits.
Even so, Su Hao spent over half an hour in the sky before reaching the destination.
When he landed, his legs were so weak he nearly couldn't stand.
Compared to the gargoyle, back then, King Zhou's Tide Frog King was truly VIP treatment!
With this comparison, Su Hao realized the vast gap between monarch-level and elite-level spirits.
The distance back then was similar to now—tens of kilometers.
The gargoyle took over half an hour, while the Tide Frog King, carrying over a dozen people, took only a moment.
Monarch-level spirits, formidable indeed~!
They landed a few kilometers from the active volcano.
Looking into the distance,
Gray-white clouds shrouded the sky, and on the distant ground, some scorching lava still flowed, emitting puffs of white smoke wherever it passed.
The earth was gray-black, with translucent deep red hidden within.
The crater still smoked, volcanic ash filling the air, making it dangerous to approach.
Su Hao didn't plan to get too close either.
For just one evolution, being near the active volcano to absorb active fire-type spiritual energy was enough. Actually flying to the crater, let alone soaking in lava hot springs... Little Fire Crow couldn't do that now, and wouldn't be able to after evolution either.
But he had spent a large sum of Dragon Kingdom currency, deliberately choosing the evolution site near the New World volcano, for a reason.
"Using the evolution opportunity to absorb large amounts of volcanic energy and lava heat, fusing several of Little Fire Crow's current best moves together, to create a combat form most suited to Little Fire Crow..."
He considered that Little Fire Crow had gone off track—instead of spitting fire, it had become a close-combat assassin. Based on Little Fire Crow's fighting style, he kept thinking and brainstorming, and actually managed to come up with something.
It was acknowledged by the panel, unlocking a training plan. After another month of special training, he only awaited an evolution opportunity.
He looked over.
Little Fire Crow was high-spirited.
The energy of the Flame Feathers had been absorbed, and its black feathers now had a hint of dark red. The tuft of feathers on its forehead was even brighter and more vivid.
Like a flame burning.
Even Huang Tianhu, tasked with guarding, couldn't help but glance twice, then twice more.
Truly, both the spirited Little Fire Crow and the bright-eyed Misty Dream Butterfly were exceptionally well-trained.
Huang Tianhu, equally dedicated to raising spirits to perfection, felt deeply moved.
Su Hao took out the evolution materials prepared in advance.
Not as complicated as Silkworm Baby's evolution, but not cheap either.
Ten portions of fire-type essence.
Two jin of flame crystals.
Two pieces of fire-type spirit jade—spirit jade contained purer spiritual energy than jade powder.
And various other materials, which he placed in a basket and hung on Little Fire Crow's claw.
—Su Hao dared not get too close to the volcano, so he had to let it carry them itself.
No big deal anyway.
"Go, Little Fire Crow."
Little Fire Crow swallowed the ten portions of fire-type essence, and its whole body blazed with red light.
Spreading its black wings, it shot off faster than usual.
It landed at the foot of the active volcano, on a solidified lava rock.
Standing there.
The fire-type essence began to take effect, the red glow growing brighter, and crimson threads emerged from its body, wrapping around it layer by layer.
Similar to when Silkworm Baby evolved.
In an instant,
The crimson threads wove together into a huge cocoon of light, enveloping Little Fire Crow inside.
The cocoon continuously absorbed nutrients from the surroundings.
This was the New World, with a higher concentration of spiritual energy.
Su Hao could even see with his naked eye countless tiny red light particles gathering from all around.
The environment was better, and the spectacle was grander.
He stared intently, occasionally glancing around.
In the nearby area, Little Fire Crow wasn't the only spirit evolving.
A few kilometers to the left, Su Hao saw another red cocoon. Further back, on a higher mountainside, another spirit stood on lava that hadn't yet cooled, flames rolling in from all sides.
The spectacle was more than ten times grander than Little Fire Crow's evolution.
"That must be some fire-type spirit evolving to its final form."
Both of these were owned spirits.
Wild spirits would likely choose more hidden spots for evolution.
Time ticked by.
To the left, a Fire Pattern Dog evolved into a Two-Headed Dog, breaking out of its cocoon and leaving shortly after.
On the mountainside,
The huge cocoon hidden beneath the flames also shattered, revealing a massive creature as tall as a two-story building.
—Lava Dragon Turtle.
It roared to the sky, spitting flames that turned into a rain of fire, crashing down noisily.
The Lava Dragon Turtle was enormous in size, its weight so heavy that every step seemed to shake the earth.
But it was still far from Little Fire Crow, and as an owned spirit, it understood the alliance rule of not interfering with other spirits' evolution.
It took a slight detour, moving slowly down the mountain.
Su Hao saw a spirit master leap up onto the turtle's back, and the Lava Dragon Turtle carried its master away step by step.
Perhaps intimidated by the Lava Dragon Turtle's presence,
No reckless wild spirits disturbed the evolution.
Making Su Hao a bit regretful about the money spent hiring the guard.
Finally,
The cocoon absorbed enough nutrients. When the red glow reached its brightest, it rapidly faded, and cracks appeared on the cocoon with a cracking sound.
It shattered with a bang.
"Ding! Your spirit Little Fire Crow has completed evolution, becoming a new form: Fire Velvet Crow."
"Ding! Your spirit Fire Velvet Crow's data is updating..."
A black-feathered crow, as if wearing a fiery red scarf, spread its wings and flew.
Its size was a bit larger than Little Fire Crow's, but it was still a small-type spirit.
Not rideable.
It circled, wings wide open. Though the evolution was complete, its black feathers burst with dazzling red light.
Translucent flame feathers, arranged in neat rows, covered Fire Velvet Crow's body.
As if draped in a fiery feather cloak.
Majestic and extraordinary.
It cawed, its voice echoing far.
Coincidentally, the active volcano behind it erupted again with a boom. Amid the black-gray smoke clouds, countless flaming rock fragments fell, like a grand meteor shower.
The rock fragments struck Fire Velvet Crow, shattering with a bang.
The falling fire rain and surrounding flames were absorbed by it, the fiery cloak growing brighter, its patterns clearly visible.
Bathed in flames, its red glow was dazzling.
Like a blazing sun.