Today, Zhu Changhe would take him to hunt for his first spirit ring. This trip would take at least seven days, so when he returned home, his parents were preparing dry rations and luggage.
"Yang Yang is back! Go eat. After breakfast, we can depart," Liang Ying instructed when she saw Zhu Ziyang return.
"Understood!" Zhu Ziyang nodded and went to eat.
At nine in the morning, Zhu Ziyang and his father, Zhu Changhe, set off under the expectant gaze of his mother, Liang Ying.
Their destination for this trip was Tianhui Canyon, west of Anyang City, a large canyon where Spirit Beasts gathered. Although it couldn't compare to the famous great forests and mountain ranges on the continent, it was still one of the top Spirit Beast gathering areas near Anyang City. Spirit Masters from cities surrounding Tianhui Canyon were willing to come here to hunt for spirit rings. The reason was simple: there were many Spirit Beasts in Tianhui Canyon, primarily century-old Spirit Beasts, supplemented by millennium-old Spirit Beasts. As for ten-thousand-year-old Spirit Beasts, there were almost none.
Furthermore, Tianhui Canyon contained various Spirit Beast populations with the Light Attribute, making it a very suitable location for Zhu Ziyang to obtain his spirit ring.
Tianhui Canyon was about two hundred kilometers from Anyang City. At the speed Zhu Ziyang and his father traveled, it would take an estimated three days.
The father and son traveled and conversed, time slowly flowed, and the distance to Tianhui Canyon gradually shortened.
"Yang Yang, have you decided which Spirit Beast's spirit ring you want?"
"My first choice is the Blazing Light Mantis. If there isn't a suitable one, then the Radiant Wolf, White Shadow Sparrow, and Blazing Armored Beast are also acceptable Spirit Beasts."
"Huh? Why choose these?" Zhu Changhe looked at Zhu Ziyang with some surprise.
"Of course, it's because these Spirit Beasts have the Light Attribute!" Zhu Ziyang said as a matter of course. "The spirit rings of these Spirit Beasts can strengthen the Light Attribute of the Radiant Scythe, so they are naturally the priority choice."
"That's true," Zhu Changhe thought for a moment. He wasn't clear about the essence of this approach, but he felt that Zhu Ziyang's reasoning was correct, so he agreed with him. At the same time, he felt a bit guilty and said, "It's a pity your dad's strength is limited; otherwise, I would definitely find those top-tier Light Attribute Spirit Beasts for your spirit ring."
"It's okay, Dad," Zhu Zi comforted. "These Spirit Beasts are also quite good."
What Zhu Ziyang said was from the heart.
A Spirit Master absorbing a spirit ring is essentially a process of absorbing and refining the Spirit Beast's bloodline contained within the spirit ring to strengthen one's own bloodline and promote bloodline evolution. However, this seemingly simple truth is known to only a small fraction of people in the entire Spirit Master's world.
This is knowledge monopoly.
If Zhu Ziyang didn't have the Super Library, he would probably also follow the path of a normal commoner Spirit Master, choosing spirit rings based on the Spirit Master's development direction, rather than based on the Spirit's evolution path.
At that time, Zhu Ziyang might realize he had taken the wrong path, which would likely waste his talent, ultimately leading to his Spirit becoming ordinary, and he himself would fade into obscurity.
He was very fortunate.
In the current Spirit Master's world, commoner Spirit Masters, limited by knowledge and strength, usually only consider the Spirit Master's development direction when choosing spirit rings. That is, attack system Spirit Masters will choose Spirit Beasts with great strength and high attack, agility-attack system Spirit Masters will choose Spirit Beasts with fast speed and light build, and defense system Spirit Masters will choose Spirit Beasts with strong physique and high defense.
This method of obtaining spirit rings might provide Spirit Masters with good Spirit Abilities, but the substantial improvement for the Spirit Master himself is very limited. The Spirit can only receive a weak strengthening, and the bloodline not only won't be enhanced but might even be damaged by absorbing too many mixed bloodlines. Even the most talented Spirit Master, if they continue this way, will be ruined.
Zhu Changhe's two spirit rings were chosen this way: the first spirit ring came from a Sickle Bone Demon, and the second from an Iron Thread Mantis. Neither had a Light Attribute Spirit, truly wasting the faint light element of the Obscure Scythe Spirit!
Conversely, Spirit Masters from aristocratic families, noble backgrounds, or major powers will prioritize the Spirit's evolution path when choosing spirit rings. They usually understand the characteristics of their own Spirit and bloodline very well, are more cautious in their choice of Spirit Beasts, and have a more accurate positioning.
For example, Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Spirit Masters, when choosing spirit rings, often focus on dragon-type Spirit Beasts and lightning-attribute Spirit Beasts, or either dragon-type Spirit Beasts, or lightning-attribute Spirit Beasts, or lightning-attribute dragon-type Spirit Beasts.
This method of spirit ring attachment is undoubtedly better. It can not only fully develop the Spirit's potential but also allow the Spirit to receive deeper strengthening, and the Spirit Master's bloodline can also be improved, ultimately leading to the Spirit evolving to a higher quality existence as the Spirit Master's strength grows.
The two methods of spirit ring selection yield vastly different results: the strong remain strong, and the weak remain weak. This is the terrifying aspect of knowledge monopoly!
Zhu Ziyang was truly fortunate.
—
The father and son arrived at Tianhui Canyon on the evening of the third day. They set up camp outside the canyon, preparing to enter the canyon and search for Spirit Beasts the next day.
That night, Zhu Changhe sat by the campfire on watch, while Zhu Ziyang rested in the tent.
Zhu Changhe's gaze was fixed on the campfire, while his mind repeatedly pondered the words his son had said on the way. As he thought, he couldn't help but smile with relief.
It was truly ancestral blessings; his son was not only talented but also intelligent and had his own opinions. He seemed to see a bright future for the old Zhu family.
In the latter half of the night, Zhu Ziyang walked out of the tent, went to Zhu Changhe's side, and told him to go rest in the tent, offering to take over the watch. Zhu Changhe hesitated for a moment, then was persuaded by Zhu Ziyang on the grounds that "he would need his strength tomorrow."
Zhu Ziyang sat in Zhu Changhe's previous spot, looked at the dying campfire, added some more wood, and then fell into deep thought.
He had actually planned his spirit ring choices long ago.
When did it start?
It probably began after he read the book "On the Impact of spirit ring Quality on Spirit Master Development." Zhu Ziyang was very interested in the conclusions in the book, after all, with both his parents having ordinary Spirits, he had a 90% chance of having an ordinary Spirit too. Having read so many books, he was very clear about the importance of Spirit quality to a Spirit Master; almost no historically famous strong individual had an ordinary Spirit.
How could he be content to live an ordinary life? But with a 95% chance of having an ordinary Spirit, he seemed destined to rely on mutation to determine his future!
However, having read so many books, he understood very well that an ordinary Spirit, the Sickle Lizard, could not instantly mutate into a top-tier Spirit like the Scythe of Death or the Frost Dragon.
Therefore, upon seeing this book about how ordinary Spirits could evolve into advanced or even top-tier Spirits, he naturally didn't want to miss it. So, after rereading it eight or nine times and consulting many related theoretical books, he began to plan his Spirit's evolution path.
He formulated two plans: one for the Obscure Scythe and one for the Snow Dragon Lizard.
According to various Spirit Master theories such as the theory of bloodline evolution and the theory of spirit ring quality, the essence of cultivation is the self-improvement and self-strengthening of a life form, a process of leaping from a lower-level life to a higher-level life.
Specifically, a Spirit Master cultivates their Spirit by absorbing spirit rings to strengthen the Spirit, and by refining spirit rings to evolve the bloodline, thereby achieving the goal of elevating their own life level.
Taking Zhu Ziyang's Radiant Scythe Spirit as an example, as long as he continuously absorbs Light Attribute spirit rings, strengthening the Radiant Scythe's Light Attribute through the elemental essence of light contained in the Light Attribute spirit rings, then his Radiant Scythe Spirit will evolve step by step, advancing to a top-tier Spirit and even a super Spirit!
Zhu Ziyang's gaze was firm!
A pure white long-handled scythe appeared in his hand. The handle was slender, the blade sharp, and its overall length exceeded one and a half meters, fitting perfectly in the six-year-old Zhu Ziyang's hand. This scythe was precisely his Spirit, the Radiant Scythe, emitting a light aura that felt quite warm in the cold night wind. However, within this comforting light, a faint gray aura subtly flowed. This gray aura was so ethereal, circling the Radiant Scythe once, then disappearing into the tip of the scythe, into the pale skull.
A flicker of thought crossed Zhu Ziyang's eyes. His Radiant Scythe Spirit not only possessed a more powerful light element than the Obscure Scythe but also awakened a faint Death Attribute.
A Spirit with both Light and Death?
Zhu Ziyang had never seen one before; at least, none of the books he had read mentioned such a Spirit.
He hoped this weak Death Attribute wouldn't cause him trouble.
Zhu Ziyang thought this, then put away his Spirit.
He was very excited, and also very nervous.