Beast Taming: The Beginning of Hatching an Ancient Dragon

Chapter 1: The Birth of the Ancient Dragon

In the residential area of the Ecological Research Institute in Red Rock City, Z Province, Eastern Glory Country, Blue Star Alliance, a black-haired, brown-eyed boy sat on his bed, staring intently at a small red kitten with a serious expression.

Beside the bed stood a one-meter-tall incubator, its upper half round and scattered with large pieces of red and black eggshells.

The boy, named Li Chang’an, was a transmigrator from the Heavenly Dynasty… no, a reincarnated individual from the Heavenly Dynasty.

The small kitten before him was not a cat but an Ancient Dragon, known as the Infernal Flame Dragon.

And now, this seemingly cute but terrifying little kitten had attached itself to him.

This is how the story unfolded, beginning just a day ago.

Li Chang’an’s memories from his past life had not yet awakened; he was just an ordinary high school student in Eastern Glory Country, Blue Star.

Although his family was wealthy and his father held significant power, he was still a novice.

Well… to be precise, he was a novice in the field of beast taming.

In Eastern Glory Country, young people who wished to register as official beast tamers with the Beast Taming Association needed excellent academic performance.

The high school final exams were of utmost importance.

As the final exams approached, he couldn’t resist the urge to contract a beast, so he ventured into an unofficial second-hand market.

At a gambling egg shop, he spent all his savings of 1.2 million, accumulated over more than a decade, on a giant egg of unknown origin.

The vendor boasted that it might hatch a dragon species, and the foolishly naive young Chang’an believed him.

After buying the egg, he rushed home excitedly and tested it with an instrument from his father’s study.

Lo and behold, it was a dead egg!

Having never experienced the harshness of society, young Chang’an was immediately enraged, and his intense emotions triggered the awakening of his innate talent.

The talent that was supposed to awaken through a unified ritual after the second-year final exams went out of control.

Unable to control the energy of his runaway talent, his consciousness was shattered by this power.

Then, the memories of Li Chang’an’s past life awakened, and the personality and consciousness of his over thirty years of previous life absorbed and merged with the fragmented memories of young Chang’an.

Thus, the current Li Chang’an came into being, along with the Ancient Dragon kitten that appeared by his side upon waking.

After suddenly recalling a bit of young Chang’an’s memories, Li Chang’an was devastated, not only by the unfortunate impression of his previous death but also by the cute creature before him.

In his past life, Li Chang’an had a six-figure income, a sister, a house, and both parents. He died during a company vacation from a blue-ringed octopus mixed into a grilled octopus dish.

And the first thing he saw upon waking was what could be called a doomsday calamity.

This left Li Chang’an’s mind in a daze.

Young Chang’an’s memories flooded in like a tide.

The world he was in now was called Blue Star, similar to the name of the protagonist in an action game he played in his previous life.

Blue Star was originally a planet with a development history similar to Earth.

Until 570 years ago, humans around the world almost simultaneously discovered similar ancient ruins.

But with it came the opening of void passages worldwide, leading to various ancient and terrifying creatures.

Thus, the Great Cataclysm of Blue Star began.

At first, the technological weapons of Blue Star’s humans could not harm these ancient creatures, until humans discovered the method of contracting in the ruins.

By combining technology with the power of tamed beasts, humans gained the ability to fight back.

The era of the Great Cataclysm officially began.

After 200 years of bloody struggle, humans finally managed to defend their homeland, even though it was now unrecognizable.

Due to humanity’s initial victory, the worlds on the other side of the passages briefly fell, and these worlds merged into Blue Star, causing the planet to expand hundreds of times its original size.

At this point, the danger level of Blue Star was countless times more terrifying than during the Great Cataclysm.

As the worlds from other dimensions continued to merge, humans realized that with their current strength and population, they could no longer hold such vast territories.

The contraction of living spaces was inevitable.

After the Great Migration was completed, many previously inhabited areas became forbidden zones, with unstable order, inconvenient transportation, and chaos seemingly imminent.

Soon, the alliances of Blue Star’s nations established the Hunter Guild and the Blue Star Council, and more and more beast tamers became hunters, venturing out to reclaim new homelands for humanity.

At this moment, the era of the Great Cataclysm ended, and the era of hunters began.

After 300 years of continuous hunting and expansion, humans once again gained a firm foothold on this new mother planet.

With the improvement of social conditions, the population needed replenishment, and humans seemed no longer in need of frequent reclamation; they needed time to rest.

Thus, fewer hunters were needed.

After a long period of social stability, the era of hunters gradually ended, and a new era of beast taming emerged.

The Beast Taming Association, established 50 years ago, replaced many functions of the Hunter Guild and became a symbol of the new era.

But the Hunter Guild did not disappear; it still existed because there were many places in this world where human footsteps had yet to tread.

As mentioned before, they also needed rest; humans needed to digest these living areas that had expanded dozens of times.

Once they caught their breath, human expansion would begin anew, as recorded in history.

Thirty years after the establishment of the Beast Taming Association, Eastern Glory Country completed the initial popularization of beast taming education.

Now, 50 years after the establishment of the Beast Taming Association, after 20 years of filling in the gaps, beast tamers have become a common profession in Eastern Glory Country.

Almost every Eastern Glory citizen contracts a tamed beast, and the older generation also keeps a weak tamed beast as a pet through a beast-binding ring.

Nowadays, the simplest way for young people in Eastern Glory Country to become registered official beast tamers is through education.

Passing the final exams of three years of high school and meeting the strength requirements of the tamed beast allows one to register as an official beast tamer with the Beast Taming Association.

The first-year exams cover basic beast taming knowledge and beast nurturing, with internships during the summer to determine the second-year curriculum.

The second-year exams include Chinese, mathematics, three beast languages, geography, and comprehensive biology, with a practical exam of preparing a basic beast food.

Upon passing the exams, the school issues a probationary beast tamer qualification.

Regardless of wealth, everyone heads to the Ecological Research Institute, where Li Chang’an’s father works, at the start of the summer to receive their initial tamed beast.

Those who do not wish to participate must apply three days in advance.

Born into a wealthy beast taming family but unable to get a head start, what torment!

This is why young Chang’an couldn’t resist buying an egg before the second-year final exams.

Along with the memories of the world’s background came the identity of the small kitten before him.

The Infernal Flame Dragon, the creator of Red Rock City’s name, a member of the Ancient Dragon clan.

The so-called Ancient Dragons are actually a commonly accepted term for a species of ancient beasts; they are not dragons.

It’s just that many Ancient Dragons have dragon horns, dragon scales, and other features, hence they are called “dragons.”

Ancient Dragons are beings that surpass the ecological niche of high-level pure-blood dragons, wielding the authority of nature, incarnating as natural disasters, sweeping across the land.

Thus, they are also known as calamity beasts.

The elite of the Ancient Dragon lineage can easily alter the natural environment of a large country within a month.

These beings truly deserve the name of natural disasters.

For example, the predecessor of the Infernal Flame Dragon before him, a calamity beast known as the “Flame King.”

Eastern Glory Country sacrificed a saint, three guardians, and numerous legendary beast tamers to finally bring down this Flame King.

The city built on the site of the Flame King’s fall is Red Rock City, where Li Chang’an resides.

The blood of the Ancient Dragon stained the earth red, and the soil of Red Rock City is different from other places, bright as blood but very fertile.

This place is rich in fire-attribute tamed beasts, and outside Red Rock City lies a range of volcanic mountains.

“Meow?”

The red kitten tilted its head, looking at Li Chang’an with a pitiful expression, as if asking why he was ignoring it!

For some reason, Li Chang’an could sense the kitten’s emotions.

Suddenly, a bold idea emerged in his mind.

Perhaps…