Celestial Beast Taming

Chapter 326: Chapter 196: The Thorny Sparrow Hunter’s Superb Synergy

On their way over, the two Thorny Sparrow Hunters had each grabbed a piece of turf.

Then, they skillfully used their talons to grip the soil-covered side of the turf.

When they landed on Zhong Yi’s palm, the grassy side was pressed against his hand, keeping his palm from getting the slightest bit dirty.

The Thorny Sparrow Hunter couple had clearly done this out of fear that their sharp talons would scratch Zhong Yi’s palm.

Zhong Yi had already inspected the Skills and Exclusive Traits the Thorny Sparrow Hunters gained after their Tier and Quality were promoted.

This was why Zhong Yi refrained from touching the mirror-like plumes that had grown on the Thorny Sparrow Hunters’ heads.

These diamond-shaped plumes were related to Light Beam, the Skill the Thorny Sparrow Hunters had acquired upon advancing to the Fantasy Tier.

Light Beam was a very typical offensive Skill.

The Thorny Sparrow Hunter used the diamond-shaped, mirror-like plume on its head to converge the fire and light Elements, continuously firing a beam at a target.

Once a target was hit by the beam, its body temperature would continuously rise.

Under this constant heating, the target’s blood would boil and its flesh would burn.

It would take some time to inflict such damage on an opponent of the same Tier.

However, the Thorny Sparrow Hunter was a combat unit that excelled at group coordination. Multiple Thorny Sparrow Hunters could use Light Beam in concert.

With several beams stacked together, they could quickly ignite a target from the inside out.

Light Beam could obviously be paired with the Exclusive Trait, Fire Feather Life-Burning.

It could heat the target with the beam while simultaneously lodging Parasitic Feathers into the enemy’s body, using the feathers to continuously burn the target’s Life Force.

Combined with Support Feather Blade Strike, which continuously amplified the damage a target received, the synergy between these three abilities could allow even a slow, damage-over-time effect to erupt with considerable power.

’What makes the Light Beam Skill so valuable,’ Zhong Yi thought, ’is that it locks onto a target once it hits.’

Unless the target could find cover and physically block the beam, it was inescapable.

Using elemental means to resist, such as a Guardian Beast of the Wind Element summoning a wind wall, would be completely ineffective at blocking the beam’s searing heat.

Ever since this Thorny Sparrow Hunter couple had formed a symbiotic relationship with the Sun Splendor Thorn, the Skills and Exclusive Traits they gained from advancing their Tier and Quality were all exceptional, Combat Type abilities meant to ensure the thorn’s safety.

’In my mind, they now qualify as a template.’

Zhong Yi was rather looking forward to the future offspring of this Thorny Sparrow Hunter couple.

The Exclusive Trait they both obtained upon advancing to Gold Quality was called Homogeneous Fusion.

After Life-Sacrifice Burst, Homogeneous Fusion was another Exclusive Trait that gave the Thorny Sparrow Hunter the ability to engage in Tier Jumping combat.

This Thorny Sparrow Hunter couple was a mated pair, but their bloodlines were not homogeneous.

Even though they both possessed the Homogeneous Fusion Exclusive Trait, the two of them couldn’t fuse with each other in battle.

But once this Thorny Sparrow Hunter couple laid eggs and those eggs hatched...

...these Thorny Sparrow Hunter chicks would immediately see their Tier and Quality increase after they formed a symbiotic relationship with the Sun Splendor Thorn.

The offspring they produced together would be homogeneous with one another.

Furthermore, all of these offspring could use the Homogeneous Fusion Exclusive Trait to temporarily fuse with the Thorny Sparrow Hunter couple in battle, unleashing combat power that far exceeded their current Tier.

This wasn’t limited to the offspring of this particular couple; the Thorny Sparrow Hunter species had always formed new families by pairing up individuals from within the same flock.

A leading pair, the patriarch and matriarch, would guide several generations of their descendants to jointly protect the thorn with which they shared a symbiotic relationship.

Only when the thorn became overburdened and unable to form a Contract with any more Thorny Sparrow Hunters, or when the surrounding environment lacked the resources to support the flock, would the leading Thorny Sparrow Hunter couple expel some members from the group.

However, in the wild, thorn-type Guardian Beasts were inherently weak.

The Thorny Sparrow Hunters, whose strength depended entirely on the thorn they had a Contract with, usually ended up as food for snake-type or feline-type Guardian Beasts.

It was very difficult for their flocks to grow!

Otherwise, this pair of Thorny Sparrow Hunters wouldn’t have been sold for a mere six hundred Potential Points in the Celestial Destiny Association’s Treasure Vault.

If it weren’t for the fact that Thorny Sparrow Hunters could continuously pair up and breed within their own flock, Zhong Yi would have already started searching for more of them for the Sun Splendor Thorn to form a Contract with.

All these descendants, with their intertwined bloodlines, would be able to fuse with one another through the Homogeneous Fusion Exclusive Trait.

’If I form a combat squad of Hidden Guards who use Thorny Sparrow Hunters in the future,’ Zhong Yi mused, ’those Hidden Guards won’t even need to form Contracts with the sparrows.’

’As long as the Thorny Sparrow Hunters have a symbiotic relationship with the Sun Splendor Thorn, I can command them directly.’

’At the Fantasy Tier, a Thorny Sparrow Hunter’s intelligence is equivalent to that of a seven or eight-year-old child.’

’Upon reaching the Mythical Tier, their intelligence would be on par with a teenager.’

’Even without a Contractual Relationship, the Hidden Guards could still command the Thorny Sparrow Hunters effectively.’

’The Hidden Guards will primarily rely on the Thorny Sparrow Hunters for combat. The chosen candidates, whether they are Guardian Beast Masters or Bizarres, should ideally possess abilities to either support or heal the sparrows.’

’Although Thorny Sparrow Hunters breed easily and don’t require resources to raise...’

’...they certainly can’t be sent on missions only to be sacrificed needlessly.’

’Compared to Guardian Beast Masters of the Support Element, those of the Healing Element would be more suitable candidates for the Hidden Guard.’