Chapter 506: Chapter 285: Newborn Baptism_2
For a moment, Xu Ran felt as if he had stepped into a nursery.
Fortunately, the swift return of the Ground Raccoon Clan Leader soon resolved the encirclement around Xu Ran.
With the appearance of the Ground Raccoon Clan Leader, all the little critters scattered in a “whoosh,” especially a few small ground raccoons that had been extraordinarily lively just now, had now become as docile as quails.
It was apparent that the Ground Raccoon Clan Leader’s consistent image in the Beast Swarm was one of dignity and seriousness.
“Loo~”
The Ground Raccoon Clan Leader looked at the little ones, pondered for a moment, and then took out a handful of human snacks that he had just bought from Monster Wooden City when he had met Xu Ran.
At this, the little ones immediately let out cries of delight and gathered around once more.
Indicating for them to divide it on their own, the Ground Raccoon Clan Leader turned his head to Xu Ran.
“Loo~”
“Is it about to begin?” Xu Ran nodded in understanding, then glanced at the little beasts scrambling for the sweets, “They are the main characters today, huh?”
He had already noticed that the abilities of these Transcendent Beings were basically at the Transcendent Stage, and they were among the weaker ones within this stage.
Such power most likely meant they had just been born recently.
“Loo~”
The Ground Raccoon Clan Leader nodded, then shook his head.
“Only a part of them?” Xu Ran guessed its meaning once more, nodded in understanding, and shook the small box in his hand, “I’m ready.”
“Loo~”
The Ground Raccoon Clan Leader expressed a few words of gratitude and quickly led Xu Ran and three little ones onto the high platform.
Below the high platform, the Transcendent Beings who had previously been chatting in small groups or playing with each other quieted down upon noticing the commotion above.
On the high platform stood one of the clan leaders with the oldest qualifications among the various groups, rumored to have experienced the dawn of the Monster Wooden Domain.
Not only the Ground Raccoon Tribe but also members of many other groups nearby held the Ground Raccoon Clan Leader in reverence, casting watchful eyes at this moment, waiting for the Clan Leader to announce the details of the celebration.
“Loo loo loo~”
The Ground Raccoon emitted several short sounds, then extended a paw to point at Xu Ran standing beside it, and began to introduce Xu Ran’s identity and what Xu Ran was about to do.
As its voice fell, the gazes of the various group members shifted towards Xu Ran, followed by a slight commotion of chattering in the field.
The members of the Ground Raccoon and Earth Rock Rat tribes, along with a few members of other tribes who had been to Monster Wooden City, were naturally familiar with Xu Ran, but many other Transcendent Beings were meeting Xu Ran for the first time.
Hearing that Xu Ran was going to help their group’s new members with Washing and Protection, and that the effects were only slightly less than that of Mystical Wood Dew, the Extraordinary Creatures got excited.
“Doom—”
A deep knock brought silence to the field again.
Also ascending the high platform, the Withered Wood Elder Clan Leader, acting as the host of today’s celebration, looked calmly at everyone, and then gestured for the Ground Raccoon Clan Leader to continue.
“Loo loo~ Loo!”
With a tone bearing a touch of solemnity, the Ground Raccoon Clan Leader finally raised his arm in a cry, announcing the official start of the ceremony.
The first part of the celebration was for each group’s new members to make their first public appearance.
Among a hullabaloo of cheers and shouts, an Earth Lustrous the size of a fist, resembling a brownish-yellow Night Pearl, slowly rolled onto the high platform, presenting itself in front of the Beast Swarm.
This was a newly born member of the Earth Lustrous tribe.
Elemental Transcendent Beings didn’t have the concept of reproduction; every member of their group was born randomly, and because of this, it was much more difficult for them to produce new members compared to other Extraordinary Creature Groups.
In similar past events, the Earth Lustrous tribe did not participate, as seeing other groups celebrate new members while having none themselves was indeed depressing.
Fortunately, this time the Earth Lustrous tribe also had their new member.
The Clan Leader, who had stayed motionless in the earth for several years, uncharacteristically rolled over with a young clan member to attend the celebration.
And this Earth Lustrous also proved its mettle by skillfully demonstrating each of its skills on the stage to the applause of the audience below, showing no signs of laziness and appearing rather spirited.
Soon, the Earth Lustrous on stage finished its demonstration.
From those slightly glowing eyes hidden within its body, one could see that it was equally satisfied with its performance.
“Gusu~”
With a hint of a smile in his eyes, the Withered Wood Elder gestured for the Earth Lustrous to head over to where Xu Ran was to receive its cleansing.
The gaze of the Beast Swarm, too, followed the Earth Lustrous’s movements and finally rested on Xu Ran.
The beasts were equally curious to see what Human Washing and Protection looked like.
“Hello,” Xu Ran said softly, crouching down slightly to pick up the rolling Earth Lustrous, “Don’t be nervous, I will give you a wash now.”
The preparations needed for the Washing and Protection of the Earth Lustrous had been completed by Xu Ran while it was showcasing its skills.
Next, the Washing and Protection could proceed directly.
The next moment, Xu Ran placed the Earth Lustrous into a small basin filled with warm bath solution.
“Muyi~”
The hard shell of the Earth Lustrous trembled slightly the moment it touched the bath solution.
As the warm bath solution enveloped it, the Earth Lustrous could distinctly feel its body being nourished by a strange and yet comforting power.
This wondrous sensation felt like drinking a cup of ice water during the dog days of summer, thoroughly refreshing.
The eyes within its spherical body couldn’t help but squint a little.
As the Earth Lustrous relaxed its expression, Xu Ran placed a finger on its body to sense its condition.
Only when the Earth Lustrous’s crystal-clear yet hard exterior gradually softened under the special bath solution to the consistency of jelly, easily indented with a gentle poke, did Xu Ran slowly lift it out of the solution.
The Earth Lustrous was now in the ideal state for Washing and Protection.
With Xu Ran’s skilled techniques, the softened body of the Earth Lustrous was squeezed into different shapes, almost as if it were being molded into clay.
This step in the Washing and Protection process made the curious watching Beast Swarm reveal anxious expressions.
Wouldn’t the Earth Lustrous suffer pain from such Washing and Protection?
But the next moment, as the sounds of contentment emanated from the Earth Lustrous, countless Extraordinary Creatures in the swarm quickly relaxed.
It seemed it wouldn’t be a problem.
With Xu Ran’s smooth and flowing Washing and Protection routine, the wash of the Earth Lustrous was finally completed.
Its body became hard again, but the appearance was visibly altered compared to before.
Its body became cleaner, resembling an untainted glaze from within, and its earthy yellow color turned even more lustrous, with a faint, captivating halo.
Even those eyes hidden within its body now sparkled with more animation, clear and vivid.
The effects of the Washing and Protection were visibly evident before and after.
The Earth Lustrous Clan Leader in the audience was visibly surprised and pleased.
It had come to expose new members of the tribe to the world and to share the good news of new members with old friends, yet it had encountered a human so adept at Washing and Protection!
As a Pet Beast of the elemental class, it was more susceptible to the impact of its own state.
The interruption of Mystical Wood Dew was a significant inconvenience for the Earth Lustrous Clan Leader and other members of its group.
Now, it appeared they could