The moment Scrappy's voice echoed inside Lin Z's mind, everything changed.
"Don't let them take me back."
The second orbital beam was still charging above the city.
The colossal eye hanging beyond the atmosphere rotated slowly, focusing entirely on Scrappy.
Citizens fled in panic.
Buildings shook.
The sky itself seemed unstable.
But this time, Lin Z noticed something strange.
His System wasn't crashing.
Instead, new notifications appeared.
SYSTEM NOTICE:
Emergency Synchronization Activated.
Host and Beast Bonding: 100%
New Feature Unlocked:
Shared Evolution Protocol
Lin Z blinked.
"What?"
More messages appeared.
SYSTEM NOTICE:
Analyzing Threat...
Dragon Council Observer Node Detected.
Threat Assessment Complete.
Recommended Response:
ADAPT.
A surge of energy rushed through Lin Z's body.
For the first time since arriving in this world, he felt connected to Scrappy completely.
Not as a tamer.
Not as an owner.
As a partner.
He could feel Scrappy's fear.
His exhaustion.
His determination.
And deep beneath it all...
Something ancient.
Something powerful.
"Scrappy," Lin Z whispered.
The tiny dragon looked at him.
"We fight together."
Scrappy nodded.
The beam above fired.
A pillar of white-gold energy descended from the heavens.
The entire city seemed to stop breathing.
Then Lin Z activated his new ability.
SYSTEM SKILL:
Shared Evolution Protocol
Activation Successful.
Temporary Form Synchronization Initiated.
Golden light exploded around both of them.
The crowd watched in shock.
Scrappy's tiny body became surrounded by swirling runes.
His dull gray scales darkened.
His broken wing repaired itself.
His size doubled.
Then tripled.
Not a giant dragon.
Not yet.
But no longer a hatchling.
His eyes now glowed like molten gold.
Evolution Complete.
Scrappy
Level 5 to Level 10
Evolution Stage:
Chaos Drake
New Skills Acquired:
Chaos Breath
Dragon Scale Armor
Instinctive Flight
The beam struck.
"Chaos Breath!"
Scrappy opened his mouth.
A spiral of black-and-gold fire erupted upward.
BOOOOOOM!
The attacks collided.
The explosion shattered clouds across the entire sky.
Shockwaves rippled for miles.
People stared upward in disbelief.
A Level 10 dragon had blocked an attack from orbit.
Veyl Kharon narrowed his eyes.
"No..."
Then he saw the System notifications.
His expression changed.
"That's impossible."
Lin Z turned.
"What is?"
Veyl remained silent.
Because the System wasn't helping Scrappy.
The System was evolving because of Scrappy.
Above them, the massive eye rotated again.
A new voice echoed across reality.
"Deviation increasing."
"Correction required."
The rings accelerated.
A third attack began charging.
Much larger than before.
Lin Z gritted his teeth.
"We can't block that."
Scrappy growled.
Then another notification appeared.
SYSTEM NOTICE:
New Feature Unlocked.
Beast Archive.
Scanning Nearby Creatures...
Scan Complete.
Nearby Beasts Found:
Fire Hawk
Stone Rhino
Shadow Wolf
Copy Temporary Traits?
Lin Z's eyes widened.
"We can borrow abilities?"
SYSTEM RESPONSE:
Bonded creatures may temporarily adapt traits from surrounding beasts.
Adaptation Duration: 5 Minutes.
Lin Z smiled.
For the first time.
A real smile.
"Now we're talking."
"Scrappy!"
The dragon looked at him.
"Take the Fire Hawk's flight speed."
"Take the Stone Rhino's defense."
"Take the Shadow Wolf's stealth."
Adaptation Successful.
Chaos Drake Traits Updated.
Suddenly Scrappy vanished.
The giant eye paused.
For the first time...
It lost track of him.
Veyl Kharon's eyes widened.
"Adaptive evolution..."
The charging beam hesitated.
One second.
Two seconds.
That was all Lin Z needed.
"NOW!"
Scrappy reappeared directly above the Observer Beam.
Chaos Breath.
Dragon Scale Armor.
Fire Hawk Speed.
Shadow Wolf Stealth.
Everything activated at once.
A black-gold tornado erupted into the sky.
The unfinished beam detonated before firing.
BOOOOOOOOOOM!
The heavens shook.
One of the rotating outer rings cracked.
The giant eye flickered.
Across the city, millions watched in stunned silence.
An F-Rank tamer had damaged a Council Observer.
The voice from orbit spoke again.
But this time there was something new in it.
Not authority.
Not confidence.
Confusion.
"Unknown variable detected."
"Reassessment required."
Then the eye slowly closed.
The rings stopped rotating.
One by one, the structures vanished into deep space.
The pressure over the city disappeared instantly.
Silence returned.
The crisis was over.
For now.
Scrappy landed beside Lin Z.
Exhausted.
Breathing heavily.
His evolved form flickered.
Then shrank back into his small dragon body.
Plop.
Right onto Lin Z's shoulder.
"Sneez"
A tiny flame popped from his nose.
Lin Z laughed.
"You save reality and you're still doing that."
Scrappy looked proud.
SYSTEM NOTICE:
Major Event Completed.
Rewards:
+5,000 XP
+1 Evolution Crystal
+New System Function Unlocked
+Council Threat Level Increased
Current Reputation:
The Weakest Beast Tamer
Status:
Globally Known
New Quest Available:
Journey to the Forgotten Dragon Ruins.
Objective:
Discover the truth behind the Lost Sovereign Fragment.
Reward:
???
Hidden Reward:
???
Lin Z stared at the final message.
Then at Scrappy.
Then toward the distant horizon.
The Dragon Council wasn't finished.
The giant eye would return.
And somewhere out there...
Someone knew exactly what Scrappy really was.
Lin Z smiled.
"Looks like we're going on a trip."
Scrappy sneezed happily.
Far beyond the stars...
Something ancient opened its eyes.
And smiled.