Chapter 715: The Golden Turtle

Moon swallowed, and activated Eye of Truth on the newborn turtle in his hands.

The information flashed across his retina.

[Golden Turtle]

[Details: A unique descendant of the ancient Jade Turtle bloodline, one of the great races of the world. This specimen is the first of its kind, its bloodline elevated during incubation by the bloodline of other supreme creatures. It commands the crystal element. Traces of true elf bloodline have refined its spiritual foundation and granted it heightened intelligence.]

Moon read through it twice, a massive smile on his face. Moon remembered the mother of the golden turtle, the jade turtle, and she was incredibly powerful. Her speed and durability was something that had put Moon in trouble, but even it didn’t control the crystal element like the Golden Turtle.

First of its kind...

The Golden Turtle was something new. Something that had never existed before, born from the various bloodlines he had exposed it to. Whether it was the Three-Tailed Illusion Fox, or the Golden Fish.

The Jade Turtle bloodline it descended from was already legendary, and this one had been elevated past it into something the world had never seen.

A creature that could generate and shape crystal at will. Combined with the absolute defense of the shell, as well as the speed it had likely inherited from its mother, made this turtle a running fortress.

Moon had no doubt whatsoever that the turtle before him would reach the monstrous height of Supreme-Rank someday. With a bloodline like that, its potential was frightening to consider.

"How strong are you right now?" he asked. "Can you show me a feat of strength? I want to see where you’re starting from."

There was real nuance to the question. The Jade Turtle that this creature descended from had been a First Order Supreme creature. But this Golden Turtle was different. Moon had fed it Second Order treasures and Second Order bloodlines during its hatching, and it had been born here in the Second Sanctuary, in an environment saturated with far denser mana than the First Sanctuary.

All of that could push its base strength well beyond what its ancestor had started with.

The Golden Turtle understood him perfectly. It swung its head around, scanning the King’s Chamber for a target, but the warded room was empty of anything to strike.

Moon understood its thoughts immediately.

"Right, you have nothing to hit...Talan and the brute will also be upset if we break their precious build. Okay, give me a second."

He summoned the southern commander.

The Lesser Elf Beast Soul materialized in a shimmer of pale light, both blades in hand, and Moon addressed it directly.

"Defend against its attack. Use your arms to block, don’t dodge, and don’t use your weapons. I don’t want my turtle getting hurt. Understood?"

The Beast Soul dipped its head, sheathed nothing but simply crossed its arms into a guarding posture, bracing to receive the blow rather than counter it.

Moon turned to the Golden Turtle.

"Attack it once, show me what you’ve got."

The turtle moved.

It launched forward at a speed that startled Moon, closing the distance to the Beast Soul in a blink. Its jaws opened, and it clamped down on the Surpasser’s crossed forearms with a bite that carried shocking force.

The Beast Soul held his stance, its arms absorbing the strike.

It has just hatched and it’s already hitting at Three-Star Evolver strength.

The turtle hadn’t even touched its crystal element yet. That had been raw physical power, and speed.

"Wait," Moon said, leaning forward, his curiosity fully piqued. "That was without your element. Do it again, but use the crystal this time. I’ve never seen the crystal element before. Show me."

He’d never encountered a crystal-element wielding beast or human. This was the first, and he was intensely curious how it manifested and how much power it added.

The Golden Turtle obliged.

It reared back, and this time, as it lunged, its jaws and the leading edge of its shell erupted with jagged crystals that formed in an instant, sharpening its bite and reinforcing its charge.

It slammed into the Beast Soul’s guard a second time, and the crystal-augmented strike hit with more force, the Surpasser’s arms driven back further, cracks of pressure rippling out from the point of impact.

Moon watched the crystal element in action for the first time, and he was impressed.

With the crystal element active, it’s approaching Four-Star Evolver prowess, although it’s not quite there yet.

The Golden Turtle’s crystals began receding back into its shell, and it looked to Moon expectantly, as if waiting for his approval and praise.

Moon recalled the Beast Soul with a grateful nod and turned his full attention to the turtle, a wide grin spreading across his face.

"You," he said, reaching out to rest a hand on its radiant golden shell, "are going to be an absolute beast when you grow up. I can already tell."

The turtle nestled its head against Moon’s hand, pressing into the touch with obvious contentment, its eyes softening.

Moon turned to Mirage, who had watched the entire display from the side-lines and gestured between the two.

"Mirage, meet the newest member of the family. Golden Turtle, this is Mirage. He’s been with me the longest. You’ll be seeing a lot of each other."

To Moon’s mild surprise, the two clicked almost instantly. Mirage stepped forward, lowered his head to sniff at the newborn, and the Golden Turtle regarded the steed with those knowing eyes before letting out a low, pleased rumble. They accepted each other, and just like that, they were friends.

Moon smiled, watching them, a warm feeling entering his heart.

His communication device suddenly crackled, "Boss, the cries of the beasts are getting closer, and, wait, something’s wrong, they’re—" Talan’s voice cut off abruptly, mid-sentence, replaced by dead silence.

Moon’s face darkened instantly. "Talan? Talan, report. What’s happening out there?" He was already moving toward the doors. "I’m coming, hold your—"

The device crackled again, and this time it was the brute, his voice filled with panic and something close to horror.

"Boss, come quick! Get out here now, Talan just die—"

The channel went dead.