Chapter 278: Blackie’s Growth

According to information gathered from the official forums, pets had a chance to trigger a special event known as Pet Growth upon reaching Levels 30, 50, or 80. When it occurred, the pet’s base attributes would increase dramatically, and its abilities would undergo noticeable enhancement.

The opportunity, however, was extremely rare.

At Level 30, the base probability was only ten percent. The chance rose slightly to fifteen percent at Level 50, increased again to thirty percent at Level 80, and finally capped at forty percent once a pet reached Level 100.

In other words, experiencing Pet Growth at early stages like Level 30 or 50 was considered extraordinary luck, the equivalent of receiving a massive blessing from the system itself.

Several factors influenced whether growth would occur.

The number of times a pet had died mattered. Feeding it rare or high-grade treasures improved the odds. The owner’s Luck attribute played a role, and even the pet’s emotional state at the moment of leveling could affect the outcome. Most importantly, a pet’s tier determined its overall growth potential. Higher-tier creatures naturally possessed better chances.

Mythic and Divine beasts were guaranteed to experience growth at least once during their development.

Pet Growth was fundamentally different from Pet Evolution.

Evolution represented a leap in existence itself, a rise in rank. If Goldie evolved, for example, it could advance from a Level 9 creature into Level 10 status or even ascend into a Mythic Beast. Such transformations were vastly more difficult and far rarer.

Since Goldie was already a Level 9 Shadow-Stained Gryphon King, combined with Marcus’s unusually high Luck stat, triggering growth at Level 30 was surprising, but not entirely unexpected.

“Screee!”

Just as Marcus finished explaining all this to Anya and Chloe, Goldie released a piercing cry.

Dark energy surged outward like a storm breaking loose. Golden wings spread wide as if reborn from fire, and swirling shadows wrapped around the gryphon’s body. With a powerful beat of its wings, the black mist exploded outward, revealing a visibly larger and more imposing form.

The growth had begun.

System notifications rang out one after another.

Ding!

[Congratulations, Stonehaven. Your pet Shadow-Stained Gryphon King “Goldie” has reached Level 30 and successfully triggered Pet Growth. Health +500, Mana +500, Attack +500, Defense +500. All skills have increased by one level. “Small Storm” has evolved into “Dark Storm.” “Dark Thunder Flash” has evolved into “Dark Sky Thunder.” New skill learned: Wind Evasion.]

—

Dark Storm: Active AoE Skill Level 2.

Creates a massive black vortex infused with Wind and Dark elements, sweeping a ten-meter radius and dealing 300 Wind damage and 300 Dark damage.

Dark Sky Thunder: Active Single-Target Skill Level 2.

Summons dark lightning from the sky, dealing 350 Dark damage and 350 Lightning damage with a 30 percent chance to inflict Paralysis and a 30 percent chance to inflict Blindness.

Wind Evasion: Active Skill Level 1.

Manipulates surrounding wind currents to form a defensive barrier, increasing Evasion by 10 percent and reducing incoming damage by 10 percent.

—

Marcus stared at the results.

’Powerful.’

Pet Growth truly rivaled evolution in impact. No wonder the system restricted it with such low odds. Even experiencing it once could dramatically elevate a pet’s combat effectiveness.

The attribute bonuses alone were impressive, but the universal skill upgrades were even more valuable. Marcus could not help feeling that his luck today bordered on absurd.

He immediately checked Goldie’s updated status.

—

Shadow-Stained Gryphon King. Level 9 High-Tier Dark Pet.

Level: 30

Health: 4000

Mana: 4000

Attack: 3200

Defense: 3200

Ability: Resurrection Level 2. Usable twice daily. Revives with full status and grants a 30 percent attribute increase for ten minutes after revival.

Skills: Great Wingspan, Dark Absorption, Storm Absorption, Dark Storm, Dark Sky Thunder, Wind Evasion.

Rideable after Level 40.

—

“Attack!”

Goldie answered the command instantly.

A massive black vortex descended upon the Black Ants, shredding through them while damage numbers exceeding one thousand appeared repeatedly. The former pale storm had transformed into a terrifying dark cyclone that dominated the battlefield.

“Stonehaven, look at that storm!” Anya exclaimed, unable to hide her amazement.

Marcus grinned openly. Goldie looked magnificent now, larger, fiercer, and undeniably impressive. He already imagined the day he reached Level 40 and could finally ride the gryphon through the sky.

—

They continued hunting Black Ants for another half hour, hoping a Black Ant King might spawn, but fortune did not favor them this time.

As evening approached, Anya and Chloe decided to log off.

Even though high-end VR pods allowed uninterrupted immersion, neither of them treated the game as a full-time profession. Maintaining real-world routines still mattered.

Soon, Marcus found himself alone again, surrounded only by his pets.

He was in no rush to enter Blue Ant Valley itself to gather Crystal-Tear Berries. The ant population here was dense, their respawn rate fast, and the experience rewards excellent.

More importantly, this was the perfect opportunity to focus on Blackie.

Since obtaining the Nightmare Dragon Steed, Marcus had been constantly occupied with the Mist Veil Palace expedition and Alana’s rescue. Blackie’s leveling had been largely neglected.

At Level 30, Blackie would unlock Dragon-Steed Leap, gaining the ability to run through the air and fly freely.

After witnessing Goldie’s growth, Marcus felt genuine anticipation.

A Super Divine Mount like Blackie should produce something extraordinary.

Given Blackie’s tier and Marcus’s Luck stat, he felt almost certain growth would trigger.

He checked the experience bar: Level 29, forty-eight percent.

’Very close.’

Without hesitation, Marcus led his pets back into combat against the Level 40 Black Ants.

“Neigh!”

Perhaps influenced by Goldie’s transformation, or perhaps sensing its master’s excitement, Blackie suddenly became unusually energetic.

Dark flames erupted as it unleashed Dark Flame Waves again and again, black energy tearing violently through the ant formations.

Marcus blinked in surprise. Blackie was attacking voluntarily.

Normally, mounts behaved differently from combat pets. Even powerful mounts preferred conserving energy, focusing on mobility and transportation rather than direct combat. Blackie, despite its overwhelming strength, had always been somewhat lazy, attacking only occasionally and rarely at full power.

Today was different.

Blackie fought aggressively, almost enthusiastically.

Marcus began to suspect he was finally witnessing the mount’s true strength. The comparison was shocking.

Goldie’s newly evolved Dark Storm dealt around one thousand damage, roughly equal to Marcus’s own output.

Blackie’s Dark Flame Wave? Each strike inflicted over three thousand damage across a wide radius.

Nearly triple.

“Damn… you’ve been hiding this from me,” Marcus muttered.

The difference in tier explained everything. Goldie was a Level 9 pet, while Blackie was a Super Divine Mount born from the union of the Nightmare King and the Five-Element White Dragon. The gap between them was enormous.

If Blackie had already unlocked its higher-tier abilities, even Lyanna or Camillo might struggle to match its raw destructive power.

Marcus patted Blackie’s neck.

“So you were secretly a monster all along.”

He silently decided to push this supposedly lazy mount much harder in the future.

At the same time, a mischievous thought crossed his mind. Keeping Blackie’s true strength hidden could become a powerful trump card when it mattered most.

“Hehe…”

A system notification interrupted his thoughts.

Ding!

[Congratulations, Stonehaven. Your Super Divine Mount Nightmare Dragon Steed “Blackie” has leveled up. Level 30 achieved.]

Marcus held his breath.

Ding!

[Skill unlocked: Dragon-Steed Leap. Blackie can now fly freely through the sky.]

Marcus waited.

No growth notification appeared.

“…Where’s the growth?”

Before he could finish the thought, Blackie’s body began to change.

Dark fur rippled like flowing water. The seven-colored horn ignited with prismatic brilliance as the energies of the five elements intertwined with light and darkness, enveloping the mount in overwhelming majesty. Hellfire surged beneath its hooves, burning brighter than ever.

The surrounding Black Ants scattered in terror. Marcus watched silently, his heart pounding.

“Neigh!”

The radiance lasted nearly a full minute before exploding outward in a burst of light.

When it faded, Blackie stood transformed, larger, more majestic, and radiating an overwhelming aura of dominance.

Growth had succeeded.

Ding!

[Congratulations, Stonehaven. Your Super Divine Mount Nightmare Dragon Steed “Blackie” has triggered Pet Growth. Health +1000, Mana +1000, Attack +1000, Defense +1000, Movement Speed +5. All skills increased by one level. “Dark Flame Wave” evolved into “Black Dragon Flame Wave.” New skills learned: Intermediate Multi-Elemental Magic, Shadow Piercer, Nightmare Mirage, Nightmare Pulse.]

Marcus exhaled sharply. It exceeded expectations.

A thousand points added to every attribute completely dwarfed Goldie’s gains. The difference between a high-tier pet and a Super Divine Mount was unmistakable.

He quickly reviewed the new abilities.

—

Black Dragon Flame Wave: Level 2 AoE Skill.

Unleashes dark dragonfire across a ten-meter area, dealing 500 Dark damage and 500 Fire damage.

Intermediate Multi-Elemental Magic: Inherited bloodline ability from the Five-Element White Dragon.

Shadow Piercer: Ultimate Charge Skill.

Blackie lowers its prismatic horn, triples movement speed, and charges forward, striking all enemies in a straight line. Damage scales with both mount and rider strength. Minimum damage equals five times the rider’s attack power. Includes high critical chance and multiple status effects. Skill activates independently and cannot be manually triggered by the rider.

—

Marcus stared at the description.

Five times his attack power at minimum. It could likely eliminate any Golden-tier boss under Level 50 in a single strike.

“But I can’t activate it myself?” he muttered in disbelief. Knowing Blackie’s personality, he suspected the mount might only use the skill when it felt like it.

—

Nightmare Mirage: Creates three illusionary copies to confuse enemies for one minute.

Nightmare Pulse: Releases dark energy reducing enemy Attack and Accuracy by ten percent, with a chance to inflict Fear.

—

“Blackie… you’re making your master look weak,” Marcus said helplessly, half laughing.

The hybrid bloodline of Nightmare King and White Dragon truly possessed limitless potential.

He opened Blackie’s final status panel.

—

Nightmare Dragon Steed. Super Divine Mount.

Level: 30

Health: 8000

Mana: 8000

Attack: 5000

Defense: 8000

Movement Speed: 28

Abilities: Prismatic Horn, Dragon-Steed Leap, Dragon’s Ascension, Roar of the Dragon-Steed.

Skills: Black Dragon Flame Wave, Shadow Piercer, Nightmare Mirage, Nightmare Pulse, Intermediate Multi-Elemental Magic, Dragon-Roar Critical Strike.

Dual-rider capable from Level 10.

—

“Blackie, let’s go!”

“Neigh!”

At Marcus’s command, Blackie surged forward.

Its flaming hooves stepped onto empty air as though it were solid ground, and in the next instant they rose effortlessly into the sky.

Wind rushed past them.

The sensation was exhilarating.

Blackie flew as smoothly as running across open plains, swift and stable, free as a soaring bird. The world stretched beneath them while clouds drifted past at eye level.

Sitting upon Shadow’s broad back, feeling the cool air against his face and watching the landscape blur into distant colors, Marcus felt pure, unrestrained joy.

This was exactly the freedom he had been waiting for.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep