103 - I’m Surrounded by My Own Pets!

Because if that informant knows detailed evolution information on the Extreme Cold Detonation, isn't there a possibility... That person might also know more or less about the information on my second mutation route!? --- --- Baiyue Continent, headquarters of the Beast-Taming Association, on the first day of the Academy Tournament. Several teams were fiercely battling on the event hall screens, and the audience's cheers were roaring, energetically high. However, at this moment, in the spectator area of Youlan Academy, a blonde girl was sleeping soundly—Lian Xing, known as the Moon Rabbit and fourth among the Ten Giants. A shimmering droplet of saliva gently slid down her mouth. If it weren't for being in the VIP box... If she dared to sleep so carelessly in broad daylight and in public, she would have long been swarmed by her fervent fans, who would have carried her off without a trace. In truth, there wasn't much to see during the group matches over the past few days. It was either high-stage contestants clashing like headless chickens or a few leading-stage contestants dominating the entire match, rendering it a waste of time. Thus, Lian Xing had secretly snuck into virtual battles during this time. [id: Strongest Moonlight Rabbit] [Battle Area: Qingyao Sea (Level 8)] [Number of Fans: 11,218,937] [Age: 15] [Beast Partners: Lunar Jade Mallet (High Stage), Red Hell Palace Master (High Stage), Stardust (High Stage)] Yes, Lian Xing currently had access to log into the Level 8 region of Qingyao Sea! More accurately, Baiyue Continent was actually a rather secluded corner of Qingyao Sea, existing as a part of it, in an upper-lower hierarchy. After switching battle zones, Lian Xing immediately opened challenge mode, rapidly scrolling down the list. As expected, after a quick glance around, she found that both the lairs and battle rankings had completely changed but... The Royal Stage dungeons still had only one—Beast Museum! And among players, there wasn’t anyone who owned a Royal Stage beast. The only difference was the number of leading-stage beast tamers... In the Level 8 region, the number of leading-stage beasts had reached a considerable scale, with as many as six publicly known beasts at the edge of the leading stage. Seeing this, Lian Xing couldn't help but sigh internally. “Hmm, leading-stage beasts are everywhere. Will the day when royal beasts are as common as dogs be far off?” “However, it's a bit surprising that there's not even one royal beast among the beast tamers in the Level 8 region!” “It seems there's no fundamental difference between the Level 8 and Level 10 regions. It’s just that the former encompasses numerous Level 10 and Level 9 regions, leading to this quantitative shift.” “If Tianquan were placed here, it might barely make it into the Ten Giants, although getting into the top three is uncertain...” After pondering a while, Lian Xing opened the League's historical battle records in the Level 8 Qingyao Sea. She planned to find a throwable feature suitable for her Lunar Jade Mallet from the throwable beasts in the Level 8 region. Lian Xing's requirements weren't high. Since there were no royal stage throwable beasts to mimic, even a rare throwable beast would do. It took Lian Xing several hours, from the highest-viewed matches scrolling down most of the day and traced back to the tournament records from seven years ago. Almost asleep in boredom, she finally found her first rare throwable beast. Throwing is really too niche...!!!!! In this world, if there were a top-tier expert specializing in throwing, throwable beasts wouldn't be so rare... Hence, Lian Xing could definitively confirm that the pseudo-fallen boss, Ringe, was absolutely not a throwable type. In other words, the opponent couldn't utilize the Sun Calamity feature!!! “What a waste...” Just imagining some unidentified minor creature squanderously using the Sun Calamity, causing substantial wear and tear, made Lian Xing feel a wrenching, heart-rending pain deep inside. It was akin to knowing her future wife would be spending this year's Valentine's Day with someone else without being able to stop it. She had to become strong quickly, and snatch the Sun Calamity from his hands...!!!! Resolute in her mind, Lian Xing thought. However, she was completely unaware the Sun Calamity had already gone missing, because that little fox hadn't disclosed this critical information. Rather than deliberately concealing it, it was more like... the little fox forgot about this insignificant news... So, in order to seize every moment to grow stronger and reclaim her destined treasure, Lian Xing immediately downloaded the battle video of the rare species. Then she labeled it as [Study Material], instructing the Moonlight Rabbit to watch it repeatedly. --- --- On the third day of the Academy Tournament in Baiyue Continent, the group stage reached an intense boiling point. At this stage, the difference in strength was becoming increasingly apparent. Firstly, Youhe Academy, formerly one of the Ten Giants, was engaging in a massacre against a group of elementary students, while the other two near-leaders in command stage kept winning matches, basking in glory. Secondly, right after the three leading stage academies in terms of power, the most popular participant was Ziwutong from Xingguang Academy. Ziwutong, the captain of the Xingguang Academy team, had her main battle beast, the Viral Void, eliminating opponents almost as swiftly as typical command stage beasts. It even faintly emanated a life aura beyond the high stage. After a streak of seven wins, Ziwutong left the battle room, sighing in slight exasperation. “With this record, advancing from the preliminary group stage is no longer in question, but why can't Viral Void evolve...?” "Could it be that the initial evolution conditions were violated, or did they become null at the moment of contract?" “If only I could become one of the Ten Giants...” “Just by entering the top ten, I could unconditionally investigate the evolution information of a beast!” Her gaze lifted towards the high-definition banner of the Ten Giants hanging in the venue, staring at the recently risen blond, starry-eyed girl. A strong yearning flickered in Ziwutong's eyes, only to quickly turn into resignation and disappointment. Unable to advance Viral Void to command stage, it was destined for her never to become a Ten Giant. But the very inability to become a Ten Giant meant she couldn't investigate Viral Void's evolution conditions, trapping her in a vicious cycle!? In this world of beast-taming where evolution paths are neither unified nor readily disclosed, most beast tamers can only nurture their beasts like Ziwutong, relying on guesses and intuition. After all, evolution conditions merely consist of factors like what quality of battle skills, what type of battle skills, whether attribute talents are correct, and having defeated opponents of what level. With more than one evolution path, they could only hope to guess the right one. As for factors like fur color, living habits, or preferences, normal individuals wouldn’t even think of considering those, making rare species scarce—abundant in numbers upon birth, but unable to evolve once obtained. “Strange, I feel like Viral Void is just one or two conditions short of evolving but still unable to fulfill them. What exactly is it? Is it related to diet and attire? Or... is the lineup unsuitable?” “Ah, if only someone could know the future evolution path of Viral Void~~~” Ziwutong lamented while exiting the battle room. The next match was between Youhe Academy and Ice Queen Academy. Having been defeated by Moon Rabbit Lian Xing, Youhe Academy was now like a furious lion. Under the full-force angry throws from Scarlet Phosphorus and Fiery Earth Red Poison, no team could survive more than ten seconds. Regardless of the mode or type of map. With a single throw from Fiery Earth Red Poison, the entire map would be leveled. Witnessing such a crushing display of violence, everyone was once again reminded of Lian Xing who could so easily defeat Scarlet Phosphorus, and what level and caliber of beast-tamer she truly was. However... At that instant— When Ziwutong, along with Xingguang Academy members, brushed past Ice Queen Academy, Ziwutong abruptly turned her head, her eyes filled with puzzlement as she looked at the five lifeless members of the Ice Queen Academy. Owing to the geographical conditions of their region, members of Ice Queen Academy were generally clad in thick down jackets, making it hard to discern their appearances and figures. Yet, it was freezing...!!! Despite encountering them briefly yesterday without any peculiarity, Today, the temperature they emitted chilled her blood nearly solid. Undoubtedly, this was due to one of their member’s beasts. What exactly had happened...? Meanwhile, as they entered a closed, camera-less battle room, amidst an atmosphere of deadly silence, all Ice Queen Academy members were casting fearful glances towards their captain. The next second, as the heavy down coat was slowly unzipped, beneath the captain's pallid face and body almost frozen stiff, an ice-blue elemental crystal surfaced from her mouth, gradually forming into an elemental ice crystal humanoid. “What a bunch of useless wretches. I've already suppressed my body temperature to the lowest, yet you still can't withstand it?” "Are you really ice-element beast tamers?" "I've told you before, what right do mere flesh-and-blood humans have to form contracts with beasts!?" "Oh, and don't forget what I said earlier—if the truth gets out, I'll slaughter every living thing in the headquarters of the Beast-Taming Association and Ice Queen Academy. Feel free to call for help if you dare~~~" "On the contrary, if you manage to keep my secret until the end, you'll be rewarded by becoming the top among these ants at no cost. Remember to thank me~~~~" "..." "…" As the elemental feminine figure's condescending words fell, she casually removed the captain's electronic chip from her hand and audaciously attached it to herself. Then, with piercing dissatisfaction, the Extreme Cold Detonation adopted her likeness through transformation. Under normal circumstances, beasts cannot use electronic devices, but... Royal stage beasts can!! Of course, this principle is unknown to the beast tamers of Baiyue Continent, and even royal stage beasts themselves do not understand why they can use human login devices, just like no one knows why dogs eat excrement. [Youhe Academy] [vs] [Ice Queen Academy] Meanwhile, as the battle began, the blonde girl seated in the Youlan Academy spectator section furrowed her brow sharply. In the next moment, she decisively logged out of her virtual account, slowly opening her golden eyes engraved with starry patterns, her expression filled with surprise as she glanced towards the direction of the battle room.