As the light of evolution gradually faded, one brand-new figure after another appeared.
They looked like tiny fairies straight out of a fairy tale. They possessed humanoid appearances, wore long dresses woven from layered golden flower petals, and had white antennae curving above their golden hair to form silver crowns. Behind them hung transparent bee wings that draped down like capes.
The moment these golden fairies appeared, they immediately raised their hands without hesitation, golden light blooming from their palms.
That light contained incredibly powerful healing energy.
Almost instantly, it suppressed the "corrosive power" afflicting the heavily injured Pet Beasts, causing it to rapidly weaken and recede.
The Pet Beasts' breathing gradually stabilized as well, and their conditions visibly improved.
Seeing this, all the golden fairies—as well as the unevolved Honey Attendants—revealed joyful expressions.
"Yiyi!"
"Sisi!"
They had finally succeeded!
But amid that joy, the Honey Attendants—especially Xiao Xian—also felt a strange sense of loss rise in their hearts.
When they had taken the evolution items earlier, they had not chosen the golden flowers, but the pink flowers instead.
Yet just now, those pink flowers had failed to respond to their hearts. No resonance had appeared at all.
Was there something wrong with the flowers themselves...
Or was it because they lacked some kind of power, and simply did not possess the potential to evolve?
"Don't give up!"
Jiang Xing's voice rang out once more, still as firm and unwavering as ever.
He looked at the Honey Attendants and spoke seriously.
"These pink flowers contain a certain special, mysterious, and incredibly powerful force!"
"This power requires you to pour even more effort, even more time into awakening it... and once it awakens, it will be enough to change the entire world!"
"You all—"
The Honey Attendants were still listening to Jiang Xing speak.
In the next instant, a massive fireball suddenly flew in from the side and slammed directly into Jiang Xing, blasting him away on the spot!
In Xiao Xian's eyes, it was as though his figure still lingered there.
"Sisi!!" (Jiang Xing!!)
Xiao Xian panicked and instinctively rushed forward, wanting to save him.
But another fireball crashed down immediately afterward, landing directly in front of it and erupting into raging flames that blocked its path forward.
Xiao Xian turned its head.
Not far away stood a black-clothed figure wrapped in black aura from head to toe, their true appearance and even gender completely impossible to discern. A sinister laugh rang out from them.
"You think evolution can stop us? I'll send all of you to your deaths right now!"
"Sii!" (You!!)
Anger. Fury. Even killing intent.
For the very first time, such intense negative emotions surged within Xiao Xian.
Yet before it could be consumed by rage, Jiang Xing's voice came again from the distance.
"Cough... cough... Xiao Xian..."
Within the flames, Jiang Xing was gravely injured. Blood spilled from his mouth, and his aura had become incredibly weak.
But he still shakily raised a finger and pointed toward the pink flower in its hands.
"Believe in its power... and it will respond to you..."
"Shut up!"
The black-clothed figure shouted furiously. The ferocious beast beside them roared and spewed blazing flames.
The overwhelming sea of fire descended toward Jiang Xing, the heavily wounded Pet Beasts, and even the newly evolved golden fairies!
At that instant—
It was as though thought itself had accelerated, or perhaps time itself had slowed.
Everything in the world slowed down.
The flames. The blood spilling from mouths. The cries of agony.
Scene after scene reflected within Xiao Xian's eyes. It clenched the pink flower tightly in its hands as intense emotional fluctuations erupted from its body, transforming into strands of white light that drew out the flower's pink power.
"Sisi!!" (Stop hurting them anymore!!)
Amid the intense waves of evolution, two different lights intertwined together, merging into a brilliant white radiance that burst forth from Xiao Xian—and from even more Honey Attendants around it.
As the white light gradually faded, yet another series of brand-new figures appeared where they stood.
They looked incredibly similar to the golden fairies from before, except their flower petals and hair had turned a soft pink color, while the antenna-like crowns atop their heads had become gold instead.
They looked like alternate-color versions of the golden fairies, but in reality, they possessed completely different powers.
After completing its evolution and transforming into a pink fairy, Xiao Xian's body erupted with dazzling light fueled by its anger—
Yet the moment it clearly saw the scene before it, it froze in place.
The light it had gathered gradually dissipated.
"…Yii?"
The flames, the ashes, the black-clothed figure... everything from before had completely disappeared.
What lay before its eyes was the same peaceful forest clearing in front of the research institute as always.
The forest was perfectly intact, without the slightest sign of being burned. Wild Pet Beasts chased and played happily through the woods alongside the Clouddown Birds.
Nearby, the Rainbow Dragon Hatchling, Mysticfeather Peacock, and the others were lazily sprawled across the ground, while several Honey Attendants that had not evolved yet anxiously stayed beside them, releasing healing power and giving them massages.
Jiang Xing, Su Muli, the little dragon hatchling, the little qilin, the Abyssal Water Phoenix Fledgling, the Giant Magnet Entity...
A whole crowd of people and Pet Beasts surrounded Xiao Xian, smiling brightly and clapping happily.
"Congratulations!"
"Muu~"
"Ari~"
"Liit!"
"Pazii!"
"Sii!"
"???"
Xiao Xian's mind completely stopped functioning. Only after a long while did it finally realize what had happened.
Dark energy-like wisps seemed to rise from its body as strange imitation light began flashing around it...
"Yii!!"
Magic Shine!
Jiang Xing instantly dodged the flash of light that exploded where he had just been standing. While sprinting away at full speed, he shouted loudly: "Wait, Xiao Xian! I didn't tell you beforehand because it was necessary for the evolution effect—it was all for your own good!!"
"Inky! Giant Magnet Entity! Hurry up and save me!"
"Little Dragon Hatchling, don't come over! I'm afraid you'll get hurt—"
In the blink of an eye, the entire scene descended into chaos. The newly evolved pink Xiao Xian puffed out its cheeks and angrily chased Jiang Xing around while repeatedly firing off moves. The Abyssal Water Phoenix Fledgling and Giant Magnet Entity followed behind, trying to calm things down, only to get blocked off by the other little fairy maidens...
Watching the utterly chaotic scene unfold, Su Muli smiled.
She was not worried about her junior's safety at all—
Although Xiao Xian looked extremely angry, the moves it released were not actually locked onto Jiang Xing. It was merely venting its dissatisfaction this way, releasing the fear and anxiety it had just experienced.
Jiang Xing understood that perfectly well too. The Beast Tamer outfit he wore could practically ignore Commander-Level attacks entirely. Even if he stood still, he would not get hurt.
They were simply fooling around.
Their bond really was wonderful.
Come to think of it...
No wonder Margarita, despite being a princess of the Roman Kingdom and also a King-Class Beast Tamer, still worked part-time as an actress and occasionally participated in filming one or two movies.
Su Muli had never understood it before, but after just now playing both the "senior sister" and the "black-clothed villain," she suddenly started to understand the appeal. It actually felt pretty fun.
Maybe she was secretly a genius actress too. Perhaps she could try filming a movie sometime?
While Su Muli was lost in thought, the Storm Sea Lizard beside her kept watching Xiao Xian. As it observed the fairy continuously releasing magical light, its gaze gradually sharpened.
Compared to it, Xiao Xian was unbelievably weak...
Yet from Xiao Xian's moves, it could sense a terrifying, dreadful power.
"Sii." (Must have been an illusion.)
…
Note: Half a month later, Su Muli attended a movie audition and was eliminated in the very first round, shattering her dreams of entering show business.
Note 2: The Storm Sea Lizard got selected instead.
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