After dinner, Li Qian returned to his room and began poring over the materials Gao Yaxin had given him.
The materials contained numerous videos of Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragons that had been discovered in the wild or within Dimensional Rifts.
The videos showed these Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragons eating, fighting, resting... the list went on.
The Breeders who filmed so many of these wild Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragons were likely trying to find clues about their evolution by observing their behavior and natural habitats.
When they couldn't find a breakthrough with the Koi Carp, shifting their focus to the Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon seemed like a promising alternative.
As he watched, Li Qian began to notice a few commonalities.
Of course, strictly speaking, it wasn't a discovery so much as a guess, one formed by connecting what he was seeing to the myths and legends of his past life.
Fish Leaping the Dragon Gate!
'That's right! Fish Leaping the Dragon Gate!'
In his past life, all the stories—and even the TV shows—said the same thing: a carp could only become a dragon by leaping over the Dragon Gate.
And as it happened, the Koi Carp had one Skill, and one Skill only: Fish Jump.
He couldn't help but make the connection.
[Inspiration Value +5]
The instant the thought formed in his mind, his Golden Finger gave him feedback.
"Good. My guess wasn't wrong," Li Qian murmured, thrilled to receive the feedback from his Golden Finger.
'But the Dragon Gate doesn't actually exist in the real world!'
'So what does it represent?'
Watching the videos of the Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragons, Li Qian spotted a common element... a waterfall!
'That's right, a waterfall!'
Many of the Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragons in the videos lived in habitats that included waterfalls.
At this thought, a ripple stirred in Li Qian's Heart Lake.
This, in turn, led to another connection.
Climbing Waterfall!
The Climbing Waterfall Skill!
'To achieve the real-world equivalent of "Leaping the Dragon Gate," you don't just need a Breakthrough Level Fish Leaping Skill. You also need a High Level Climbing Waterfall Skill, or even a Breakthrough Level one.'
[Inspiration Value +10]
[Current Task Progress: 95%]
'What else am I missing?'
'A potion to stimulate the Koi Carp's evolution?'
Li Qian had a very strong feeling that once he found a potion capable of awakening the flood dragon bloodline, his research would be complete.
...
The more Li Qian thought about it, the more excited he became, losing any desire to sleep.
He read through the data, his mind racing with possibilities, and before he knew it, the night had grown late.
"Qian, the materials Master Gao gave you are important, but you can't learn everything at once. You have to take it step by step. It's getting late, so get some rest," his mother, Han Yuqing, said as she knocked and entered his room.
His mother's reminder snapped Li Qian back to reality. He nodded. "Okay, Mom. I know. I'll go to bed now."
It wasn't that Li Qian meant to make his parents worry; he had simply been so absorbed in the research and lost in thought that he'd forgotten the time.
「The next day.」
Once his parents had left for work, Li Qian immediately went to the fish tank. "Ah Fu, Ah Fu," he said. "You've been with our family for so many years, treated as nothing more than an ornamental fish. You haven't changed at all. I know you can't be content with that."
He continued, "You may only be a Koi Carp, but even a Koi Carp can defy its fate."
Inside the tank, Ah Fu blew a stream of bubbles, showing no reaction.
Normally, any Pet Beast should have some degree of intelligence—how else could you command it in battle? But when it came to a Koi Carp, Li Qian really wasn't sure.
After all, he'd never heard of a Beast Master actually using one for combat.
Li Qian planned to use Ah Fu as his research subject.
To do that, he needed to spark its ambition.
If the fish was content to be lazy, there was nothing he could do. Li Qian couldn't force it to evolve if it didn't want to.
But Li Qian wasn't just relying on a verbal assault.
He brought a tablet to the front of the tank and played an evolution video on a loop.
It showed the entire process of a Koi Carp beginning to glow with the Light of Evolution and ultimately transforming into a magnificent and powerful Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon.
The first time it played, there was no effect. After the second time, Ah Fu's gaze was finally drawn to the screen.
"It's working," Li Qian said, pleased.
Seeing that he had Ah Fu's attention, Li Qian let the video keep playing, with no intention of stopping.
'Now that I have your attention, there's no way you won't be swept up by this thrilling evolution process.'
Gradually, as the video looped over and over, Ah Fu's placid demeanor finally broke. Its mood began to change.
It stared intently at the video on the tablet, its tail swishing back and forth nonstop as it occasionally let out a bubble.
Deciding the time was right, Li Qian suddenly turned off the video.
Koi Ah Fu's eyes swiveled to stare intently at Li Qian, wondering what purpose its young master had for showing it that video.
It was a Pet Beast, after all, and having been raised by the Li Family for nearly twenty years, it trusted Li Qian and possessed a degree of intelligence.
"Do you want to become that mighty and fearsome Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon from the video? Incredibly powerful, able to soar through the heavens and move through the earth?" Li Qian coaxed.
At that moment, he felt just like a creepy old man trying to lure a child with a lollipop.
Except he wasn't luring a child, but a fish.
"If you want to evolve into a Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon, do a little spin," Li Qian continued.
Koi Ah Fu glanced at Li Qian again, then slowly sank to the bottom of the tank without any reaction.
Seeing Ah Fu's reaction, Li Qian couldn't tell if it hadn't understood, or if it had understood but simply wasn't interested.
At times like this, he really wished he had a Telepathy Beast Taming Talent. Then he wouldn't be stuck making blind guesses.
"You really don't want to evolve into a Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon? Are you content to be a lazy fish your whole life?" Li Qian began to taunt it.
Finally, noticing the Koi Carp's index-finger-long barbels, he thought he understood. He said, "Ah Fu, if you're not willing, then forget it. But... I just remembered, it's been twenty years since Grandpa bought you, hasn't it?"
"Do you know why I want you to evolve?" Li Qian asked, his voice low. "Look at your barbels. You're getting old. If I remember correctly, the average lifespan of a Koi Carp is about twenty years."
"If you don't evolve, I'm afraid you don't have much time left. When you're gone... well, we'll just have to get a new Koi Carp for this tank and this food." With that, Li Qian sighed and turned to leave.
Just as he turned to walk away, Koi Ah Fu began to dart around the tank frantically.
THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!
It even started ramming into the glass walls of the tank.
Li Qian stopped in his tracks, a faint smile touching his lips.
'Just as I thought. Whether human or Pet Beast, everything is afraid of death.'
'Faced with the temptation of a longer life, even a simple Koi Carp like Ah Fu couldn't resist.'
With that thought, he turned back, looked at Ah Fu, and said, "Ah Fu, have you changed your mind? You want to evolve now?"
"If you're sure you want to evolve, I can help you. Just give me a sign. Spin in a circle right where you are."
This time, the moment Li Qian finished speaking, Ah Fu immediately began to swim, tracing a perfect circle at the bottom of the tank.
It was truly tempted.