Summoner’s Shop.

Theropods.

He hesitated for only a moment before opening it.

A flood of images filled the screen. Teeth, claws, massive skulls, lean hunters frozen mid-stride. Lin Fang scrolled slowly, eyes sharp, no longer dazzled by size alone.

“Alright,” he said under his breath. “Let’s be practical this time.”

He stopped at Velociraptor.

Cost: 100 coins.

Cheap.

Too cheap, at first glance.

He tapped the details and leaned closer, reading carefully.

“Pack-based existence,” he read aloud softly. “No lone units.”

That made him pause.

“So you’re telling me,” Lin Fang said, glancing toward the ceiling as if the system could hear his sarcasm, “one is useless, but more makes them stronger?”

The description scrolled on, outlining the mechanics. Each additional Velociraptor provided a temporary level boost to the entire pack. The buff stacked, but only up to a hard limit determined by the spirit core used at creation.

He frowned slightly, doing the math in his head.

“So if I give you a level thirty-four core… even with numbers, you cap at thirty-nine.”

Alpha’s voice stirred faintly in his mind. “They are not still strong monsters, kiddo.”

Lin Fang nodded slowly. “That’s fine. I can have disposable ones that you can sacrifice if I die.”

Alpha thought about it and then hummed in agreement.

His gaze returned to the Velociraptor icon, finger hovering just above the purchase button.

But just before that, he saw a plus sign in the description. He clicked on it, and new lines of text unfolded beneath the Velociraptor description.

He leaned forward, elbows on his knees, reading slowly.

“So… that’s how it works,” he muttered.

Theropods created with spirit cores could be soul-bound. Not only bound to the system, not only bound as pets, but bound directly to him. The wording was precise, almost cold. If he chose that route, the creature wouldn’t just follow commands. Its existence would be tethered to his own soul.

Lin Fang clicked his tongue softly. “That’s a little extreme.”

Alpha’s voice surfaced, calm but sharp. Power always demands proximity. This is no different.

The description continued. A theropod born from a spirit core could inherit the level and skills of that core immediately. No infancy. No fifteen-year growth cycle. It would emerge fully formed, an adult hunter, the moment it opened its eyes.

Lin Fang’s fingers tightened slightly.

“That’s… efficient,” he admitted.

But the next line dimmed the glow of excitement.

No further leveling. No growth beyond the borrowed peak.

“And if I sever the bond,” Lin Fang read aloud, slower now, “the monster disappears. Permanently. Core included.”

He leaned back against the headboard, exhaling through his nose. “So no releasing them. No selling, huh… I guess they are perfect to be used as weapons…”

Xuan Hei shifted again on the bed, letting out a small sound in her sleep. Lin Fang glanced at her and felt the contrast sting a little.

“Yeah,” he said quietly. “You’re different.”

He stayed silent for a while after that, letting the information settle. The city outside buzzed faintly through the glass, but inside the room, only the hum of the system filled the air.

Eventually, Lin Fang straightened. “Alright… let’s buy some then…”

He opened his inventory and selected the remaining Epic-grade spirit cores. Six pulsed softly before him, each one radiating a different element. He separated three and placed them aside, leaving the others untouched.

He returned to the Velociraptor purchase screen and tapped Buy.

The system responded instantly.

*Ding!

[ Do you wish to summon a normal Velociraptor, or use a spirit core to create an elemental Velociraptor?

Lin Fang didn’t hesitate. “Elemental.”

Another window opened, a glowing circle with a plus icon at its center.

“Alright,” he murmured, reaching out.

He picked up a red spirit core, its surface warm to the touch, faint heat bleeding into his palm. Fire-aligned. Aggressive. Reliable.

“This should do.”

The moment the core touched the holographic circle, it dissolved into red motes and vanished.

The system paused.

Then chimed.

*Ding!

[ Level-43 Epic-grade monster core detected.]

[ Warning: Velociraptor cannot handle Epic-grade core.]

Lin Fang blinked. “What?”

The next line appeared before he could complain.

[ Do you wish to disintegrate the core into ten Level-43 Rare-grade cores?]

[ Note: System-created cores cannot be sold, traded, or used on non-system monsters.]

Lin Fang stared at the message, then slowly leaned back. “You could’ve said that earlier.”

Alpha sounded amused. “This is not a loss, though. You don’t have to spend more cores on this.”

Lin Fang rubbed his chin, eyes narrowing in thought. “Ten of them, huh…” Lin Fang murmured, eyes fixed on the neat row of newly formed cores floating on the screen. His lips curved slightly, not quite a smile, but close. “That’s actually not bad.”

He leaned back against the headboard, fingers tapping lightly against his knee as he calculated in his head.

“One Epic becomes ten Rare,” he continued aloud, half thinking, half reassuring himself. “That means I can save cores, experiment freely, and still keep the high-grade ones for later.” He shook his head with a faint chuckle.

Without hesitation, he tapped Yes.

A soft chime echoed in the room.

*Ding!

[ Level-43 Epic-grade monster core has been disintegrated into 10 Level-43 Rare-grade monster cores.]

*Ding!

[ You have triggered a quest.]

[ Quest: Disintegrate 10 Epic-grade cores into Rare-grade cores]

[ Reward: Synthesize]

Lin Fang’s brows lifted slightly. “Synthesize?”

The word lingered in his mind, unfamiliar yet promising.

Alpha responded almost immediately, his voice carrying a rare note of approval. “This is a valuable function. With Synthesize, you can merge multiple monster cores of the same grade and element to create a higher-quality core.”

Lin Fang straightened. “Higher quality… as in?”

“As for better purity, stronger affinity, and potentially higher grade,” Alpha explained. “In theory, given enough quantity and the correct conditions, you could create a Mythical-grade spirit core without ever hunting such a monster.”

For a moment, Lin Fang didn’t speak.

Then his eyes lit up.

“That’s insane,” he said quietly.

His fingers curled into fists, excitement leaking through despite his attempt to stay calm. “So instead of gambling my life hunting Mythical beasts, I can brute-force my way there with numbers?”

Alpha didn’t deny it. “It will still require immense resources. But yes. This path exists.”

Lin Fang exhaled slowly, a sharp grin tugging at his lips. “Then I guess I know what I’ll be doing for a while.”

Hunting.

Not for glory. Not for fame.

But for materials.

He shook his head, forcing himself to refocus before his thoughts ran too far ahead. “Later. One step at a time.”

The system window shifted again, pulling his attention back.

A new prompt surfaced.

[ Choose an option:]

[ Option 1: Create a Flaming Velociraptor Egg (Level 1)]

[ Option 2: Pay 1000 coins to purchase a Level-30 Maxed Flaming Velociraptor]

Lin Fang blinked. “Huh.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep