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--- Chapter 503 ---
As Han Yuan summoned the White Baby Draglin to fight the charging herd of Black-Horned Rhinos, watching it bulldoze through the massive spirit beasts as if they were made of cotton, he could faintly feel the spiritual bond connecting his soul to the creature.
Sure enough, the Star Monsters summoned through the Gate of Stars were inherently linked to his own base status.
While they didn't possess everything in Han Yuan's absurdity, even a tiny fraction of his base stats was enough to make them absolute monsters compared to Spirit Beasts of the same age.
When Han Tianyi realized the mechanics behind this synchronization, he couldn't help but gaze at the adorable White Baby Draglin with a deeply solemn expression. This little creature technically possessed the combat power of a Spirit Elder, yet its innate cultivation realm was merely that of a ten-year-old Spirit Beast!
The implications were so terrifying that even Han Tianyi didn't dare to imagine what would happen if his grandson reached the realm of Title Douluo... or even achieved Godhood in the future.
'Will my grandson be capable of drowning the entire Douluo Continent in destruction by unleashing horde after horde of Star Monsters?' The sheer harrowing thought flashed through Han Tianyi's mind.
'No... I shouldn't think it so negatively. Xiao Yuan could also use his Star Monsters to fight against the Abyss Plane, making him an irreplaceable, strategic individual for the War God Temple and the Federation.'
'Should I start pulling strings to establish connections for him early...? No, let's wait. Let's wait until Xiao Yuan grows a bit older.' The Illusory Brain Douluo eventually let out a quiet sigh, shaking his head to clear his thoughts.
"Draw!" Han Yuan activated Star Monsters Summoning once again. Five multi-colored cards shot out from the swirling nebula inside the Gate of Stars. Combined with the two unplayed cards hovering beside him, he now possessed a hand of seven glowing Star Cards.
He observed the cards one by one, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. 'I see... so there are only Monster Cards after all.'
'No direct spell or trap cards.'
'Then again, the functional equivalent of spells and field traps are already integrated into my Second Spirit Skill: Thousand Stars Chart.'
'I'll need to experiment with Constellation Patterns to unlock every field effect.'
"Grandpa, let's look for stronger Spirit Beasts!" Han Yuan glanced back at Han Tianyi, who offered a helpless nod and followed his enthusiastic grandson deeper into the wild.
Finally, they walked further into the Ancient Forest of the Intermediate Platform. As they encountered older, more formidable Spirit Beasts, Han Yuan deployed his summoned Star Monsters to handle the frontline combat.
"D-D-Draw! Wait, Wrong World!"
Naturally, as he directed his summons, he continued testing his limits. He initiated several Subjugation Rituals to analyze the properties of Tamed Star Monsters.
Sure enough, taming Star Monsters deepened their soul-bond, yielding a significantly higher degree of stat synchronization.
He even tested the Polymerization—or rather, Star Monster Fusion. By combining multiple summons of compatible type and level, he could synthesize a far more powerful Star Monster.
Currently, standing before a ten-thousand-year-old Giant Earth Bear was the White Drake Warrior, a tall, white-armored humanoid dragon wielding twin radiant blades. It was the fused result of three White Baby Draglins and a White Snake Warrior.
While the Giant Earth Bear possessed crushing physical power, the White Drake Warrior operated on another level. To make matters worse for the bear, Han Yuan had deployed two support-type Star Monster Groups to draw a dual-array Star Chart across the battleground.
The constellation formation increased the White Drake Warrior's physical durability and attack power by fifty percent. Furthermore, the active field node granted a special status effect, Eternal Star Glory, rendering the dragon warrior completely immune to all crowd-control and movement-restricting abilities.
Within minutes, the White Drake Warrior cleaved through the Giant Earth Bear's defenses, dispersing the ten-thousand-year beast into pure, shimmering spiritual energy.
Rraaa!
The White Drake Warrior raised its twin blades and let out a victorious roar toward the artificial sky.
Han Yuan walked over with a bright smile, patting the armored dragon's leg. "Good job!"
The tall Star Monster bowed its head in a serious, respectful nod, acting like a loyal, dependable general fulfilling his lord's command.
Han Tianyi walked up beside Han Yuan, inspecting the majestic monster with a mix of marvel and exhaustion. "Sigh... The White Drake Warrior, huh?"
"Its aura is equivalent to a 1,000-year Spirit Beast at most, yet its combat performance easily outclasses a 10,00-year Spirit Beast."
He turned his gaze toward his grandson. "Tell me... Xiao Yuan. Do you think there is a possibility for Star Monsters to become Spirit Souls?"
Han Yuan fell into deep thought, his silver eyes flickering. "There might be a way... but strictly speaking, Star Monsters aren't Spirit Beasts."
"They originate from different laws of worlds altogether."
"Star Monsters actually don't even possess fixed physical forms in their native domain. It's only because of my Star Monsters Summoning that the higher-dimensional stellar energy condenses into forms that align with my imagination."
"Because of that mismatch, I can't maintain summons indefinitely. Though Tamed Star Monsters are an exception to that rule."
"However... if I study the secrets of Star Monsters further, I might actually be able to create artificial Star Spirit Souls."
In fact, an idea was taking root in Han Yuan's mind. He could transfer his Tamed Star Monsters into the small world inside his Sky Poison Pearl, allowing them to absorb energy, acclimate to the laws, and gradually evolve into permanent living entities.
"Alright, Grandpa understands," Han Tianyi smiled gently, patting Han Yuan's head. "Don't stress yourself over it too much right now."
"For now, just focus on your core cultivation. But Grandpa must advise you. Try not to summon massive hordes of Star Monsters in public."
"Disguise the true scope of your Spirit Skills appropriately."
"So... keeping it to two or three Star Monsters at a time?" Han Yuan tilted his head. "Can I still use Star Monster Fusion?"
"You can," Han Tianyi nodded approvingly. "Two or three summons are more than enough for you to dominate any peers in your generation. As for Star Monster Fusion, treat it as one of your hidden trump cards."
Han Yuan beamed brightly. "Mm! I understand, Grandpa!"
Han Tianyi ruffled his grandson's silver hair once more. "Before we get out of the Spirit Ascension Platform, absorb that External Spirit Bone first."
"Even though your strength is already high enough, having extra powers in battle is never a bad thing."
Nodding, Han Yuan retrieved the Dreadclaw Right Palm Bone dropped by the thousand-year Dark-Gold Dreadclaw Bear earlier. So, with Han Tianyi acting as his guardian, he refined and integrated the glowing bone into his right hand.
A short while later, the grandfather and grandson opened their eyes and stepped out of their respective simulation pods.
"Kid! Please join my Body Sect! We desperately need a monster like you! PLEASE!" Mu Ye bellowed the very second Han Yuan's pod opened, lunging forward with desperate, wide eyes.
Zhen Hua's mouth twitched heavily. "This guy is truly hopeless..."
Yet, the Divine Craftsman understood all too well why Mu Ye was acting so shamelessly. The Sect Master was desperate to restore the Body Sect to its glory.
If Han Yuan hadn't already been taking direct lessons under Zhen Hua, Zhen Hua himself would have tried every trick in the book to recruit the boy into the Blacksmith Association.
"Scram! You're giving him a headache!" Han Tianyi shoved Mu Ye's face away from the pod.
Turning back to his grandson, Han Tianyi's voice instantly softened. "Are you alright, Xiao Yuan? Any dizziness or mental fatigue? You absorbed a massive amount of Spiritual Energy inside."
"I'm completely fine, Grandpa! Actually, I feel very refreshed!" Han Yuan replied with a bright smile.
Honestly, he could have absorbed far more spiritual energy, but he had deliberately suppressed his capacity to avoid completely draining the Spirit Pagoda on his first visit.
"Good, good..." Han Tianyi let out a sigh of relief.
Zhen Hua stepped closer to the pod, inspecting Han Yuan with warm eyes. "Xiao Yuan... you almost gave me a heart attack earlier with those stunts. Don't be so reckless next time."
"I know, Grandpa Zhen. I was just a little too excited to test everything out," Han Yuan chuckled sheepishly.
Zhen Hua let out a helpless laugh, then turned his gaze toward Han Tianyi with a serious expression. "Brother Han, I assume you know what needs to be done regarding the records? Xiao Yuan's show inside was far too eye-catching."
Han Tianyi nodded calmly. "Don't worry. I've already deleted all the data logs and footage of my grandson. Nevertheless, headquarters will eventually notice data anomalies if I tamper with the system too frequently, so I can't do this indefinitely."
What Han Tianyi didn't realize, however, was that a certain individual, the Mechanical Demon, had intercepted and copied the raw data feed of Han Yuan decimating both the Elementary and Intermediate Spirit Ascension Platforms.
Somewhere far hidden from the eyes of the world, a pod opened, and Xu Deming stepped out, appearing no different than an ordinary six-year-old boy.
Gazing at the supposed deleted footage playing across his virtual screen, a faint, knowing smile touched his lips.
"Brother Han... I've finally found you."