I Tame Beasts by Feeding

The most noticeable change was its Flame, which was shifting from its original fiery red to a dark crimson. Tendrils of Black Qi swirled from within it, exuding a sinister Evil Qi.

Faint, intricate black markings spread across its draconic body, shimmering in and out of sight.

"Red... Purgatory?"

Lost in thought, Yu Changsheng looked up at the euphoric Red Purgatory. He slowly held the pearl out in front of it.

"ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!!"

The excited Red Purgatory opened its massive jaws and swallowed the pearl in a single gulp.

[One Evil Source Pearl consumed. Successfully fed to Red Purgatory. 200,000 Essence Points acquired!]

’An Evil Source Pearl? And two hundred thousand Essence Points! To think it was something like this. What a treasure. That person from the Dark Stream was good for something, after all.’

Yu Changsheng was taken aback. Reading the notification, he let out a soft sigh and a smile touched his eyes. He then turned his full attention to the Red Purgatory.

"ROAR!"

Red Purgatory roared, its Dragon’s Roar echoing through the heavens. The Evil Source Pearl burst, and dense Evil Qi poured out in a ceaseless torrent. The Flame covering Red Purgatory’s body flared violently as it frantically absorbed the Evil Qi. The energy within the Evil Source Pearl was consumed, bit by bit.

Red Purgatory roared, making the very air tremble. Its draconic might rolled out in immense, unending waves. As the Evil Qi within the Evil Source Pearl completely erupted...

...within the Celestial Slaughter Secret Realm, all the Evil Qi for dozens of miles around seemed to be drawn toward it, surging madly towards Red Purgatory. A ferocious light entered the Dragon Beast’s eyes, and a hint of crimson brutality flashed within them.

A surging, blood-red light erupted from the center of its draconic body, forming a Heaven-Reaching pillar of crimson light that pierced the clouds. The world trembled. The clouds formed a ring, pushed outward in successive waves. Astonishing fluctuations of power continuously erupted from Red Purgatory.

"ROAR!!!"

Its Dragon’s Roar became a bestial howl, its graceful elegance replaced by brutal savagery. In that instant, Red Purgatory let out a low growl, its cavernous maw gaping to bare its fangs as violent Blood Evil Qi burst forth. Before their very eyes, the red Flame covering its body rapidly shifted to a blackish-red. Wisps of Black Qi coiled around it. At that moment, Red Purgatory was like a demonic dragon from the depths of Purgatory, unleashed upon the mortal world.

Ferocity, tyranny, Blood Evil...

All reason seemed to be suppressed. All that remained was a primal, Bloodthirsty ferocity!

"Red Purgatory!"

Yu Changsheng narrowed his eyes. Sensing Red Purgatory’s current Status, he called its name softly, his voice laced with concern.

"ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!!"

Red Purgatory’s body shuddered, the black markings across its skin flashing. It raised its head and let out a low growl as blackish-red Flame erupted from its forehead, sweeping out in all directions and transforming into a boundless, churning Sea of Fire.

This Flame was not just scorchingly hot, capable of burning flesh to ash; it also carried an astonishing Evil Qi that could assault a creature’s Divine Soul!

"Be careful! Get behind me!"

Yu Changsheng’s brow furrowed. Seeing the approaching flames, he roared at Zhang Tianwen and the others. With a wave of his sleeve, a curtain of fiery light materialized before him, blocking the raging, black Sea of Fire.

"Right!"

Zhang Tianwen and the others took a deep breath, exchanging looks of pure astonishment. This sudden turn of events had caught them completely off guard, but they did as Yu Changsheng instructed.

Yu Changsheng frowned. Through the Spirit Beast Contract, he could clearly feel Red Purgatory’s state. Waves of brutal intent crashed against his mind through their bond. Fortunately, his own Divine Soul was stable, so he had nothing to fear.

The same couldn’t be said for Red Purgatory, however. It seemed to have fallen into a truly berserk state.

"RUMBLE!"

The black Sea of Fire erupted, spreading for dozens of miles across the ground. It followed Red Purgatory into the air, burning fiercely against the sky. Within the inferno, Red Purgatory’s body rose and fell. Its draconic eyes flickered, staring intently at Yu Changsheng and the others on the ground below.

"Red Purgatory, snap out of it!"

Yu Changsheng shouted, sending wave after wave of Divine Sense Power through their Contract and into Red Purgatory’s mind, trying to soothe its violent emotions. But within the Dragon Beast’s mind, a sky-blotting torrent of red Blood Evil Qi crashed down, extinguishing its last shred of sanity.

"ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!!"

Its draconic tail whipped through the air, stirring wind and clouds, before slamming down hard on the ground—deliberately avoiding Yu Changsheng and the others. Rocks shattered instantly, and fissures spiderwebbed across the earth. Trees snapped as waves of boundless, terrifying force erupted from the point of impact.

"BOOM!"

The rumbling was incessant. Red Purgatory’s beastly eyes were now pure scarlet. Blackish-red Evil Qi enveloped its entire body, distorting the very air around it. Its form began to change. In a draconic fury, its whiskers flared and its claws clenched into fists. Each and every Dragon Scale stood on end as the sinews beneath bulged with power.

Astonishing waves of power radiated out, alarming everything in the vicinity. Red Purgatory shrieked, its claws madly tearing through the air and gouging the earth, creating unfathomably deep chasms.

Its tail thrashed about like the sharpest of blades. Each crack of its tail made the air explode and space itself tremble. Wherever it swept, mountains were sliced in two and rivers were stopped in their courses. Massive craters appeared one after another, sending soil and stone flying everywhere.

On top of that, black-red Evil Fire erupted without cause, surging in all directions. The temperature rose to astonishing heights, and monstrous heat waves ignited half the mountain forest.

Fortunately, it seemed Red Purgatory still possessed a shred of clarity. All of its rampaging attacks avoided Yu Changsheng and his companions. The aftershocks that did ripple out were easily neutralized by Yu Changsheng.

"Red Purgatory..."

Yu Changsheng gritted his teeth. He was frantically pouring his Power of Divine Soul into Red Purgatory to preserve that last sliver of clarity—the very reason it hadn’t attacked them yet.

He had never expected this kind of transformation after it swallowed the Evil Source Pearl. The only explanation was that the Origin of Evil Qi contained within the pearl was so terrifying that it had completely overwhelmed Red Purgatory’s mind with Blood Evil.

But if this stalemate dragged on... He had just come from a battle, and his Power of Divine Soul hadn’t even recovered yet. Now, he was forcefully suppressing Red Purgatory’s rampage. Feeling his own Power of Divine Soul about to run dry, Yu Changsheng gave a wry smile.

His Sea of Consciousness was running dry. Waves of weakness washed over his mind, and he could barely keep his eyelids from fluttering shut.

’I was too hasty...’

Yu Changsheng thought with a bitter smile.

’If this doesn’t work, my only choice is to recall Red Purgatory to my Inner Realm and forcibly stop the promotion. But if I do that, the backlash from the failed breakthrough... it could even damage its foundation.’

’It would become the biggest obstacle to its next breakthrough... The next promotion would be next to impossible.’

Yu Changsheng muttered to himself, his eyes filled with unwillingness. He didn’t want to give up on this chance.

He could feel that even though Red Purgatory’s condition was dire, a metamorphosis was taking place within its body under the constant barrage from the Evil Source Pearl. The bottleneck blocking its path to Tier Three was already beginning to crumble.

Zhang Tianwen and the others didn’t know the full story, but they could guess the gist of it. Seeing the rampaging Red Purgatory and the drowsy, utterly exhausted Yu Changsheng, their faces were etched with anxiety.

"He’s..."

Shen Xingchen’s expression was grave, her hesitation tinged with confusion.

"Changsheng’s Spirit Beast is breaking through, but... it doesn’t look like it’s going well,"

Zhang Tianwen said with a wry shake of his head. He gritted his teeth as he looked at the faltering Yu Changsheng, his heart filled with worry.

"If this breakthrough fails..."

At the thought, Zhang Tianwen let out a low sigh. He was utterly helpless.

Only the Beast Master themselves could interfere with their Spirit Beast’s breakthrough. There was nothing anyone else could do.

’Just a little longer...’

’If you can just get through this, you’ll reach Tier Three. I believe in you...’

Yu Changsheng muttered to himself. He bit his tongue, using the sharp pain to force a sliver of clarity back into his mind and stimulate his Sea of Consciousness. Taking another deep breath, he looked at Red Purgatory, his eyes bloodshot.