Chapter 170: Stage 2 evolution requirements.

The beast pavilion was in sight, Zyra increased her speed, but Bianca caught her arm.

"What’s the rush? We are still talking." Bianca said slowly. "I am thinking of bringing aunt Denea here to live." She glanced at Zyra and added quickly, "I will make sure that nobody knows she is here and I will pay her rent. I will even bring a caretaker, so you don’t have to worry about taking care of her. I believe being here will be better for her than being locked up in an attic."

Zyra frowned. "Locked in attic!"

Bianca sighed. "High-born families don’t show off their less than worthy offspring. Aunt Denea could drop dead today and only three people in the world would care. Me, Achilles and Hunter. My parents would care too, but they are not that invested. Everyone is too busy trying to survive to care about the fool who babbles nonsense and talks to herself."

Zyra grimaced. "I will talk to Hunter first," she replied. "If he says it’s okay, then I allow it."

Bianca grinned. It was a yes.

They walked into the Beast Pavilion, the heavy doors swinging open to reveal a huge, bustling sanctuary. It was Bianca’s very first time seeing the place, and the moment her eyes took in the scene, she instantly understood why her beast had chosen to set up camp here.

Right in the center of a sunlit patch, the inferno lynx was lounging comfortably in a hanging swing chair. It had a small bowl tucked into its paws and was happily tossing quail eggs into its mouth, humming contentedly with every chew.

Bianca’s eyes lit up. "Oh, you look so cozy Zoro!" She rushed forward, leaning in to pet it. "Are you enjoying your snack?"

Before her hand could even touch its fur, the beast swung its thick tail around, swatting her hand away with surprising speed. It didn’t even turn around, keeping its eyes fixed on its egg bowl.

"Stay away from me. I am not sharing!"

Zyra couldn’t hold back a snort of laughter as she heard the creature’s grumpy voice echo in her mind. She patted a disappointed Bianca on the shoulder. "Don’t take it personally. Food comes first around here."

Leaving Bianca to admire the pampered beasts from a safe distance, Zyra went to check on Snowy. The white ant was curled up in its designated anthill, looking visibly exhausted. Its abdomen was slightly swollen. It still had a long, painful way to go before it could lay its eggs.

Around its abode, a cluster of strange, colorful mushrooms had sprouted from the soil.

[Ding!] Beauty’s voice popped up right inside Zyra’s head, complete with floating text in her vision, [Host, you and your fellow humans can actually enjoy these mushrooms! The pure white ones are rare medicine for infections and serve as a great energy source. The brown ones are delicious for both beasts and humans, whether cooked or raw. By the way, that skinny caretaker has been sneaking around here quite often, staring at them with drool on his chin.]

Zyra’s eyebrows knitted together. "The skinny caretaker? You mean Scotty?"

Suddenly, the screen inside Zyra’s mind flashed bright red. Beauty’s virtual avatar appeared in an elaborate silk dress which instantly morphed into a crisp, navy-blue police uniform with a tiny golden badge. With a deadpan expression, Beauty pulled up a holographic screen and pointed dramatically at Scotty’s funny, wide-eyed mugshot. [This is the culprit.]

Zyra let out a heavy sigh, rubbing her temples. "Of course it is__"

She paused, looking down at the fungi. "What about the dark ones? What else can these mushrooms do?"

[The black ones can be used to make poisons for humans, but certain beasts can eat them as snacks.]

Without wasting a second, Zyra dialed Scotty.

"Boss?" Scotty answered, his voice breathless.

"Scotty, get over to Snowy’s corner and harvest the mushrooms," Zyra commanded smoothly. "Eat the brown ones, save the white ones for medicine, and if you touch the black ones without heavy gloves, you die. Got it?"

"Yes, Boss! Right away, Boss!"

Hanging up, Zyra wandered further into the pavilion. She found Spice swinging happily from a set of colorful, custom-built monkey bars, looking completely carefree. Seeing how energetic Spice was, Zyra folded her arms and called out to her system.

"Hey, Beauty. When can we proceed to Stage 2 of Spice’s evolution?"

Beauty appeared in her mind, her police uniform vanishing back into her standard dazzling dress. She leaned against a floating pink cushion, tossing her hair. [I was just waiting for you to ask, Host! You are so slow.]

"Just please, go ahead."

[For Stage 2 evolution, the snake beast must consume: 1 Dew Fruit, 1 Hundred-Year-old Poison root, 1 Venomous mid-level python, and 1,000 Low-Rank venomous Snakes.]

Zyra’s jaw dropped slightly. She clicked her tongue in annoyance, kissing her teeth. "A thousand venomous snakes?! A poison root that is one hundred years! A mid-level python! Where am I supposed to find all of those specific items?"

Beauty crossed her arms, floating upside down with a smug grin.

[The Dew Fruit can be found in the lighter parts of the fruit Forest if you are lucky. As for the Poison roots, you can just visit any highly poisonous region__ usually, the plants growing there absorb toxins all day. Now, as for the locations of mid-level python and the thousand low-rank snakes__]

Beauty stopped talking, tapping her chin with a delicate finger.

"Well? Go on!" Zyra urged.

[The system will unlock those exact locations only if Host does something nice for the beasts in the pavilion first!]

Zyra pouted instantly, crossing her arms over her chest. "Are you kidding me?! I literally do everything they want! I feed them snacks! I am always spending my energy stones on them too!"

[Hmm__] Beauty placed a soft hand against her chin, tilting her head and pretending to think really hard. [Is that so? The system doesn’t remember__]

Zyra rolled her eyes so hard it almost hurt. "Alright, fine!"

By late evening, when the sky outside was turning a deep grey, Zyra was ready to get her mission over with so that she could get her evolution checklist cleared. She marched into the middle of the pavilion, threw her hands on her hips, and shouted to the room, "Alright, listen up, you lazy beasts! Is there any of you that wants me to do something for them, now is the chance."

The humans were stunned; they just watched as the beasts gathered around her.

"Are you serious?" One leopard asked.

Zyra nodded, "I will do anything__ anything at all."

Perhaps she should not have said that, because what followed was complete and total humiliation.