The Rank 2 beast appraisers were startled by Tan Xun’s statement. It seemed like he now had a conclusion.
Then, Tan Xun produced several needles and skillfully pierced them into the monitor lizard’s body. It was a given that he chose the area around its belly as the rest of its body was covered in tough scales that these needles would never penetrate.
And yet, less than a second after inserting these needles, before he could proceed to the next step, the needles were pushed out by a force within its body and all of them fell to the floor.
“It’s dragon energy!” Tan Xun’s expression darkened.
The Rank 2 beast appraisers looked confused. Before they could ask, Tan Xun inquired instead, “Are you very sure that this is all you’ve fed the monitor lizard?”
He was pointing to the evaluation report as he spoke.
“We’re more than certain. We’d never dare to hide anything from you, sir,” replied one of the Rank 2 beast appraisers.
Tan Xun sighed. “This will be troublesome.”
“Elder Tan, just what is going on?”
“Which… which part of it is troublesome?”
It was at this point that the Rank 2 beast appraisers noticed that something was off.
Tan Xun explained sternly, “Based on my diagnosis, as weak as the monitor lizard looks, it is by no means ill. Quite the contrary in fact, as it’s brimming with dragon energy. It must have consumed some sort of precious supplement before this that it couldn’t digest, thus giving rise to its current state.”
“Ah!” The Rank 2 beast appraisers were shocked.
They failed to identify this issue as it was impossible to do so given the symptoms they had discovered earlier. They merely assumed that the monitor lizard’s blood circulation was lacking so they fed it the necessary supplements.
More importantly, the people from Prince Yu’s Manor never mentioned something like this at all.
Assuming that Tan Xun’s deduction was true, feeding extra supplements to this monitor lizard who was already suffering from an overdose of energy would be akin to splashing fuel on a raging fire.
“It’s no wonder the monitor lizard can’t move. What should we do now?” One of the Rank 2 beast appraisers asked with a frightened look.
After all, they were the ones who failed to make the correct diagnosis. The monitor lizard, which was initially able to support itself could barely move at this point due to their mistake.
If anyone were to be held accountable, it was these guys that would face the music. If something terrible did happen to the monitor lizard, their rights as beast appraisers might just be revoked.
Immediately, color was drained from their faces.
“Elder Tan, is there any way to remedy the situation?”
“Yeah. If this monitor lizard dies, we’d be in huge trouble.”
Tan Xun looked just as solemn. Clearly, this situation was a tough nut to crack. He pondered for a moment before saying, “If only you fed it laxatives prior to this, we might have been able to do something. Now that it has consumed so many supplements, any further medication would only exacerbate its condition. We’ve fanned the flames a bit too strongly that it’s almost impossible to contain at this point. The most troublesome thing is how it can’t even budge anymore. Any possibility of it secreting excess dragon energy within its body is now gone.”
The Rank 2 beast appraisers were panicking as they dived into their thoughts, trying to come up with something.
Some suggested letting it bleed as a treatment plan.
Some opined that it should be fed energy dissolving pills at once.
Admittedly, these Rank 2 beast appraisers were very knowledgeable and the treatment methods they suggested arose from rational deductions. Even Tan Xun nodded in approval of these propositions.
To him, these were the best options they had right now.
Of course, this process may take time to produce results and there was even a risk that the monitor lizard may be harmed in the process. However, this was the best they could do now or the monitor lizard might ‘explode’ from the overdose of supplements.
Lin Jin had been watching the entire time and he too, agreed with the treatment methods the others proposed. Based on his current knowledge and experience, the solutions they proposed were conventional and shouldn’t bring about any problems.
But he was curious too so Lin Jin walked over to touch the monitor lizard.
Tan Xun immediately noticed what he was doing. Knowing that Lin Jin was profoundly skilled in beast appraising, he didn’t stop him, but the other Rank 2 beast appraisers were mildly stunned.
“Elder Tan, this is…”
It was then that Tan Xun realized how he had forgotten to introduce Lin Jin to these beast appraisers when he entered the room hastily to check the monitor lizard.
“This is Appraiser Lin from Maple City’s Beast Appraisal Association and a good friend of mine.” Tan Xun had clearly elevated Lin Jin’s status by referring to him as his ‘good friend’. This surprised the other beast appraisers.
“Appraiser Lin!”
“What a promising-looking young man.”
“‘Tis an honor to meet you!”
The others greeted him courteously and Lin Jin returned the favor. Lin Jin soon came to learn of their names after a round of introduction by Tan Xun.
“I saw Appraiser Lin examining the monitor lizard earlier as well, have you perhaps made a new discovery?” one of the beast appraisers asked. He certainly wasn’t trying to find faults but just wanted to test Lin Jin out.
After all, Lin Jin was a Rank 2 beast appraiser, just like them. In such situations, it was always beneficial to share opinions and learn from each other.
Of course, this question was also raised out of common courtesy. He expected Lin Jin to repeat Elder Tan’s words. so this was just a polite gesture.
Who knew that Lin Jin took his question seriously.
Upon making physical contact with the monitor lizard, the results shown in the museum were mostly similar to what he had deduced, with minor discrepancies here and there.
However, this wasn’t considered a critical situation.
In fact, this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the monitor lizard. Lin Jin could even tell from the museum’s evaluation results just what kind of precious medicine the creature had consumed.
Indeed, that medicine was very valuable, as Tan Xun had noted in his deduction and Lin Jin was curious as to where the item was obtained from.
While the monitor lizard seemed listless and on the verge of taking its last breath, it was actually in a unique state. This was a crucial moment for the monitor lizard. If it could make it through this ordeal, it would reap incredible benefits and even start showing signs of evolution.
Hence, Lin Jin decided to tell the truth.
“My fellow beast appraisers, Elder Tan, I do agree that this monitor lizard looks weak as if it’s on the brink of death. Fear not, as it is in fact, not in any kind of danger. What it needs now is some time to rest, and in one day at most, it should be able to get up on its own. There is no need to worry about it, but we must be careful not to disturb it. We mustn’t feed it anything nor let it bleed, simply because there is no need to.”
This statement baffled even Tan Xun.
The Rank 2 beast appraisers’ initial reaction was under the assumption that Lin Jin was spouting nonsense.
They had already appraised the monitor lizard several times and their results could even be said to be foolproof. How could they possibly fail to tell that the creature wasn’t in any sort of danger?
It was clearly dying.
The faces of these Rank 2 beast appraisers now looked darker than ever. Not only was it because Lin Jin was running his mouth but his reckless diagnosis was about to kill the beast, as well as their careers.
For a beast appraiser, such mistakes can never be pardoned.
Tan Xun was mildly skeptical as well but he was well aware of Lin Jin’s capabilities. Based on the man’s evaluation reports, Tan Xun could tell that Lin Jin’s abilities might even be on par with his own so how could a person like him be wrong?
Hence, Tan Xun said nothing but hurried over to re-examine the creature again.
This time, having appraised it thoroughly, and once he was done, Tan Xun’s expression changed. He turned to Lin Jin and said, “Appraiser Lin, yet again, I’m impressed. I guess even I make mistakes from time to time.”
His statement confirmed and validated Lin Jin’s deduction.
