"What do you think regression is?"

Back at the academy, Su Ping didn't rush back to Sang Sheng's dormitory.

With an hour left before dinner, he followed Ye Zhou to the campus cafe.

Unfortunately, Su Ping really didn't fancy the stuff, and he wasn't here for coffee anyway.

Facing Ye Zhou's question, Su Ping thought for a moment:

"In this world, where there's Death, there's rebirth. The opposition of Life and Death represents the positive and negative poles of everything, so naturally, where there's Evolution, there's regression. Regression is the diminution of one's own life form and Level.

Of course, it might also be due to adjustments in the living environment. In ecological development, certain aspects might influence a species' extinction, and thus, these aspects gradually disappear in the species' development.

In the era of Pet Beasts, it's the reduction of one's own Energy and Level. Also, if I must say, there might be another term that's quite fitting: atavism."

Ye Zhou nodded.

"The general consensus in Pet Beast history is that all Pet Beasts are constantly evolving. Under the rules of Evolution, this process can be slow or fast.

Through serendipity, as well as modern human assistance, Pet Beast Evolution can occur many times over decades or centuries. Most Evolutions, due to the accumulation of Energy resources, bring about a substantial increase in strength!

However, in ancient and prehistoric times, when human Beast Tamers had not yet fully dominated the land, or even before they appeared, this Evolution was built up over time!"

Su Ping's brows furrowed slightly.

"But, in that case, there are still some things that don't add up!"

Ye Zhou was slightly startled but quickly showed a smile of appreciation and nodded.

"Indeed. You're worthy of being the champion of this Cultivation Competition. Correct, there are some things here that don't add up. The most direct example is, if all modern Pet Beast forms are a result of Evolution, then why are there records of more powerful Pet Beasts frequently seen in Ancient Times?

Take, for example, the ancient Pet Beast 'Kunpeng,' which was mentioned in the Sky-Soaring Fish Hawk—a cultivation achievement from Minyue Province. No one has actually witnessed a Mythical Level Pet Beast, but the 'Kunpeng' that existed in Ancient Times, even if not a Mythical Level Pet Beast, was probably a creature of Legendary Level.

Yet, this type of creature was not passed down. Aside from the difficulty in reproduction, the main reason is very likely that even the subspecies carrying its bloodline completed the so-called 'Energy-unrequiring' Evolution over time!

Or, in other words, regression. Actual regression!"

Actual regression...

Su Ping's eyes narrowed slightly.

At this moment, Su Ping was beginning to grasp what Ye Zhou was trying to say.

The regression he had previously mentioned and imagined was fundamentally different from the regression Ye Zhou was now proposing.

The regression Su Ping had in mind was the form before Evolution.

But the 'Evolution' Su Ping was talking about might not necessarily be true 'Evolution.'

At this moment, Ye Zhou's eyes shone brightly.

"Exactly. In historical archaeology, much evidence strongly suggests that some powerful Pet Beasts existed in Ancient Times and vanished over time, perhaps because they were 'evolved.'

Take the Kunpeng, for example. Perhaps the reduction in its power caused its offspring—the subspecies—to be unable to maintain their Energy form, so they too evolved.

After Evolution, they became more adapted to this world, but the power they displayed was reduced. However, what if they reproduced more quickly, their size became more concealed, and they followed survival laws more suited to them?"

Su Ping's brows knitted tightly.

Ye Zhou's words presented a path completely opposite to what he had previously thought.

His previous thoughts were much simpler, similar to the relationship between the Forest Wolf, the Forest Wolf, and the Wood Wolf.

He merely wanted to use the 'Wood Wolf' form as a base to develop more Evolutionary Body forms in parallel.

But he hadn't expected Ye Zhou's thoughts to be much broader.

In fact, this could very well be an entirely new, special evolutionary path.

"Atavistic Evolution of ancient Pet Beasts?"

He subconsciously uttered these words.

Ye Zhou's eyes brightened even more.

"That's exactly it!"

"So, have you found a method?"

Upon hearing this, Ye Zhou's expression stiffened slightly.

Su Ping rolled his eyes. Clearly, the man was just in a phase of pure conceptualization.

He had merely proposed a concept.

"I can't really consider myself a true Breeder yet. On this matter, it's only because Time-Series Pet Beasts have a deeper sense of time's passage and a clearer sensitivity to ancient traces, so it's just an idea."

Su Ping nodded, quickly grasping the other's meaning. He then directly proposed a method to test this line of thinking:

"Your idea is quite interesting. However, in actual practice, it's much more difficult than the method I mentioned before: finding a new evolutionary path from a regressed form.

The first step is to find a corresponding Pet Beast with an ancient bloodline, ensuring that the ancient type can indeed grow stronger through atavistic regression of its bloodline.

Otherwise, if you use resources to make its bloodline regress, even if it regresses from Ordinary Level to Elite Level, yet its Skills don't increase—or worse, their number decreases and their intensity diminishes—then it's a complete failure."

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