Actually, it wasn't just Eliana.
Even Levi, who had already formed a somewhat shallow but not deeply rooted understanding of Asher's strength, was deeply shocked at this moment by the power Asher displayed.
"Professor Asher, you are truly amazing!", Among the three new members of the research institute, only Pierce clapped madly for Asher at the side.
His gaze towards Asher was filled with undisguised admiration and reverence.
And also, a sense of inevitability.
Noticing this, Eliana: "..."
Eliana's gaze swept over Chase and his wife, then at the others.
Aside from her and Levi, everyone else wore expressions of nonchalance, as if this was the most natural thing in the world.
Including the Beast Tamer who was holding Asher's hands excitedly. He was still muttering: "I've long heard of your great name, Professor Asher. Being lucky enough to grab the opportunity to become your volunteer this time feels like hitting the jackpot."
"It's truly a blessing for NY City to have a Pet Beast Professor like you."
NY City was just a small city.
But with Asher's growing fame, both Pet Beast Professors and Beast Tamers in NY City had started receiving better resources and hidden benefits than before.
For example, more well-known, skilled but somewhat unlucky Pet Beast Professors or Beast Tamers were now willing to temporarily settle in NY City.
Their arrival didn't negatively impact the city's existing Beast Tamer circle.
On the contrary, it served as a positive boost, raising the overall strength and quality.
And the source of all these changes? Anyone with a brain knew.
It was all thanks to the person in front of them—Asher.
The Beast Tamer of the Blazing Flame Hound tightly gripped Asher's hands, his eyes welling up with tears, looking at him as if he were his savior.
Asher exerted quite some effort before finally rescuing his hands from the man's grasp.
"Although I played a part in this, the fact that you and your Blazing Flame Hound evolved so quickly is also inseparable from your hard work," Asher patted the Beast Tamer's shoulder and turned to look at the evolved form of the Blazing Flame Hound.
From a skinny dog to a towering beast larger than a human, its thick fur surprisingly still carrying an elegant flowing texture—the Cloud Chasing Hound. Asher's expression showed a hint of astonishment.
Asher had a reason for researching a new evolution path for the Blazing Flame Hound.
When he first considered suitable fire-type pet beasts to exploit, he had thought about the Blazing Flame Hound. But at that time, he happened to encounter June's Little Fire Fox.
Then came the research by Henry and Marie on the evolution paths of the Little Fire Fox and the Blazing Flame Hound.
The Little Fire Fox's evolution path was determined.
As for the Blazing Flame Hound's evolution path… The two researchers always seemed close to success, but in the end, they were stuck at 80%-90% progress, unable to cross the final hurdle.
This time, with some free time and while still in NY City, Asher thought of the Blazing Flame Hound and casually picked up the research again.
And once he looked into it, he was shocked.
How to put it…
"Henry and Marie were really lucky to have researched the Blazing Flame Hound alongside the Little Fire Fox," Asher sighed sincerely after reviewing the evolution path and requirements of the Blazing Flame Hound.
Lucky.
They were incredibly lucky.
Otherwise, such a coincidence wouldn't have happened.
At first glance—
The Blazing Flame Hound and the Little Fire Fox shared way too many similarities.
Same elemental attribute, overlapping characteristics; theoretically, their evolution paths should be partially interchangeable.
For over a year, Henry and Marie had followed Asher's research on the Little Fire Fox and applied the same approach to the Blazing Flame Hound.
And then… nothing happened.
Until Asher returned.
'The evolution paths of both the Blazing Flame Hound and the Little Fire Fox… How should I put it? They are both incredibly standard yet unprecedentedly unique,' Asher sighed.
He lit a metaphorical candle for Henry and Marie.
Where was the issue?
The key to the Little Fire Fox's evolution was affinity.
Everything else was secondary.
The Blazing Flame Hound was the same.
But while the Little Fire Fox's evolution depended on affinity, the Blazing Flame Hound's depended on the power of the heart.
That's right.
The key to both new evolution paths lay in a method of evolution that had never been discovered before.
Affinity.
Power of the heart.
Oh.
The latter name was coined by Asher himself.
"Professor Asher, you're being too humble," the Beast Tamer of the Blazing Flame Hound sighed, looking at Asher as if he were some kind of saint, "Without you, who knows how many years it would have taken for my dog to evolve. I really…"
Asher raised a hand, palm facing downward, signaling him to stop.
The Beast Tamer instantly shut up.
Quiet and obedient. Nothing like the rebellious Beast Tamers Eliana had seen before.
"I'm not being humble; I mean it," Asher looked at the Beast Tamer of the evolved Cloud Chasing Hound seriously.
"You saw it too. There were three participants in this research alongside you," As he spoke, Asher pointed to the two people behind him.
The two Beast Tamers, who still had unevolved Blazing Flame Hounds, lowered their heads in shame.
Asher continued, "Why were you the fastest among the three?"
"Do you have any thoughts on that?"
"Uh… Maybe because…", The Cloud Chasing Hound's Beast Tamer scratched his head awkwardly and muttered hesitantly, "I don't think too much? I just focused on evolving, evolving, and evolving?"
The other two Beast Tamers: "…"
'As if we weren't the same!'
They had all been selected for this study. Who didn't want their Blazing Flame Hound to evolve as soon as possible?
It wasn't about wanting or not wanting.
It was about whether they could do it or not.
"No," Just as they were thinking this, Asher's gaze swept over them before retracting, This is exactly about wanting or not wanting."
The two Beast Tamers: "?"
Tiny eyes, big confusion.
"The key to the Blazing Flame Hound's new evolution path is… the trust between Beast Tamer and Blazing Flame Hound. Trust in themselves and each other's power. If, from the bottom of your heart, you believe, 'I can do it, I will succeed,' then you really will succeed." [T/N: Power of Friendship and Will/Anime Power]
"But if there's even a sliver of doubt, fear, or distrust in either the Beast Tamer or the Blazing Flame Hound, evolution will be impossible."
Now, not just those two Beast Tamers—
Everyone in the lab had dumbfounded expressions.
'No way?'
'Is this real?'
'Isn't this too idealistic?'
'Is the world going crazy?'
Asher nodded gravely, "That's right. It's that idealistic."
Who could've imagined?
It was already the year 4202.
Yet the world was still spiraling into madness.
In short—Materialism had turned into Idealism.
I think, therefore I am. I see, therefore I exist. I want to evolve, so I evolve. I believe I'm strong, so I'm super strong.
Absurd.
A bit ridiculous.
But that's exactly how it is.
After discovering the key point in the evolution of the Blazing Flame Hound, Asher also showed a rather complicated expression.
To sum it up in one phrase—it's hard to judge.
The Beast Tamer of the Cloud Chasing Hound blinked, looked at his hands, then at his Cloud Chasing Hound beside him, and muttered, "Oh my God… could it be that I'm the legendary Chosen One?"
"This world revolves around me?"
Otherwise, how could he evolve just because he wanted to.
Asher: "..."
Asher couldn't help it and instinctively flicked the forehead of the young man in front of him, who was actually several years older than him.
"Calm down, don't overthink it. It's just that the Blazing Flame Hound's evolution path is a little… off," Yes, after thinking for a moment, Asher decided to use this word to describe it.
"The power of the mind, the power of belief, and the power of idealism are indeed important. But in other situations, in other aspects, it's better not to be too overconfident," Asher said earnestly.
'Young man.'
'Be careful, or society will teach you a harsh lesson!'
Hearing this, the Beast Tamer of the Cloud Chasing Hound grinned. He rubbed the spot on his forehead where he was flicked, his features scrunched up as he sucked in a breath, "I understand what you mean! Professor Asher, you don't have to worry."
"Besides…"
The Beast Tamer of the Cloud Chasing Hound thought for a moment, his hand unconsciously reaching for the back of his head again, "It's not just that I believe the Blazing Flame Hound can successfully evolve. Every single one of my pet beasts is super strong—they're my precious darlings."
"I think they can all become really powerful!"
Asher smiled and gave him a thumbs-up, "Great mindset, keep it up."
Hearing the conversation between Asher and the Cloud Chasing Hound's Beast Tamer, the other two Beast Tamers, whose Blazing Flame Hounds had yet to evolve, showed troubled expressions.
'Ah… this…'
'One hundred percent trust?'
It's not that they didn't have it.
Okay, they really didn't.
Although…
Their humble nature made them habitually leave room for doubt in everything.
Probably can evolve.
The chances of evolution are high.
With Professor Asher here, the probability has increased from 50% to 90%.
One hundred percent?
Not quite there yet.
Taking a deep breath, the two Beast Tamers of the Blazing Flame Hounds realized the problem.
They exchanged glances and saw the same thought in each other's eyes.
'Alright, alright.'
'Let's work hard together.'
'Isn't it just about having one hundred percent belief, turning from materialistic warriors into idealistic warriors?'
'For the Blazing Flame Hound's handsome new form, we can do it!'
Off to the side, Eliana: *Eye-twitching*
She was deeply shocked once again.
A new evolution method.
A new key to evolution.
All of this happened within just three or four days.
How on earth did Asher do it?
She couldn't even say that Asher was just lucky.
Because if it was purely luck that led to a Blazing Flame Hound's successful evolution… Asher wouldn't have been able to analyze so much afterward. This could only mean that from the very beginning, Asher knew exactly what was happening and understood the situation completely.
Eliana looked at Asher, her gaze filled with deep, complicated, and indescribable emotions.
But at this moment, she was finally certain.
This trip back was worth it—absolutely worth it.
———
[Star City]
[Beast Tamer Alliance Headquarters]
"Coffee, the money-burning, guilt-ridden proof of the working class's suffering," Charlotte chugged down an iced Americano while frantically typing away on her keyboard.
Because she had nearly ended up in the emergency room from overusing her Dream Eating Cat to fight off fatigue and drowsiness, Charlotte was banned from seeing her Dream-eating Cat for six months.
In these grueling, practically 24/7 workdays, Charlotte had no choice but to rely on coffee to survive, barely managing to get at least five hours of sleep per day.
"Busy before the New Year, busy after the New Year," Charlotte grumbled, "That promise of a holiday is just hanging there. Whether I can actually take it… ha."
The office was empty except for Charlotte. She worked hard while muttering complaints.
It wasn't even a question of whether the salary was enough.
If you asked, the answer was simple—workers' resentment is greater than that of ghosts. Isn't that normal?
And with the recent issues in Red Soil City, Charlotte hadn't had a day off in almost a month. Her vacation days kept piling up… waiting for the moment she e could finally take them all at once.
This was what it meant to lead by example as a mid-level manager.
Just as Charlotte was about to continue complaining, the office door suddenly knocked.
KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK—
Three knocks, like the call of a demon, made Charlotte shut up instantly.
"Come in," Charlotte cleared her throat and returned to a normal tone.
The door opened, and her subordinate stepped in, "Team Leader, meeting."
Charlotte raised an eyebrow and was about to refuse.
'A meeting.'
'What meeting?'
Their Beast Tamer Alliance didn't bother with these bureaucratic formalities, okay?
Since when did they have so many meetings.
Before Charlotte could say a word, her subordinate added, "Elder Cavendish is hosting it."
Charlotte shut her mouth.
Charlotte stood up, pulled the pen out of her bun hairstyle, tidied her hair and clothes, and adjusted her posture to look more presentable.
"Alright, I'm on my way."
Her movements were smooth and fluid, agreeing without hesitation.
Her subordinate, who had worked with him for years and knew exactly what she was thinking: "…"
Changing faces.
It's an art.
Charlotte didn't care what others thought. She went straight to the top floor of the building.
Here, the view was the widest in all of Star City, with enormous windows letting in natural light.
The entire conference room was bright, making it impossible to pull off the classic cool smirk-in-the-dark entrance.
Looking at the half-full conference room, Charlotte cautiously found her designated seat. Somewhere in the middle-back.
Half an hour passed.
People arrived one after another, taking their seats as military and government officials trickled in.
The atmosphere wasn't overly tense, but it was far from relaxed.
Until Elder Cavendish walked in, and everyone turned to him with varying degrees of smiles.
"The journey was a bit long, so I arrived late," Elder Cavendish apologized first. As the group responded with "It's fine," he took the main seat and continued: "The date for the International Beast Biological Technology Exchange Conference has been confirmed."
"Let's discuss what technology we should showcase this year."
"To be honest, we have quite a lot. It's hard to choose."
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