104 - I’m Surrounded by My Own Pets!

"What the heck...?" "Is that a Royal-tier actually participating here!?" "..." "..." After a moment of shock, Lian Xing muttered incredulously to herself. Even Baoyu Shuitianliang, the little fox who served as the White Moon Province's protector—and was lauded by fans as the strongest beastmaster in its history—failed to detect anything unusual. Yet, Lian Xing had just sensed, in that fleeting moment, an extraordinary fluctuation from the Red Hell Palace Master's body. This sort of resonance only occurs when one perceives the approach of its kind. Rare species resonate with each other this way, as do ancient breeds among themselves. However... Just by faintly sensing the degree of Red Hell Palace Master's trembling, Lian Xing's face turned a mute shade of iron-gray, looking deeply troubled. What on earth could have alarmed the Red Hell Palace Master so much, with its formidable red combat skills? How could the opponent possibly be in a severely injured, dying state!? The opponent must be in pristine condition!!! After wrestling with herself for over ten seconds, Lian Xing snapped out of her hesitation, masking her face with an expression betraying nothing out of place. Well... Even if the little fox and little mermaid joined forces, they stood no chance against this. In that case, she'd pretend not to know a thing, acting like nothing ever happened... Chapter 78: The Moonlight Rabbit's Royal-tier Talent, Celestial Ruler Activation, Transcending the Bounds of Space!!! [Youhe Academy] [vs] [Icy Palace Academy] [Random Mode: Team Melee (Unlimited)] [Random Map: Core Furnace] The preliminary group matches followed the same rules as the qualifiers, disallowing either side from choosing the mode or map—everything was random. At this moment, as soon as the map was revealed, fans and participants from Icy Palace Academy began grumbling incessantly. It was challenging enough for high-tier to fight a leader-tier foe; couldn't they have gotten a map more favorable to their academy...? This luck was just too abysmal!!! Their power disparity was already immense, and now even the map environment favored the fiery earth poison of top ten powerhouse Akalin. In this oppressive heat, the Icy Palace Academy team couldn't unleash their true potential, especially with their captain's proud ice-element monsters’ power reduced by two-thirds. Their only hope for victory lay in this small map hindering the performance of projectile-type main battle pets... Yet... Throughout, Akalin paid no attention to the map or mode, staring blankly into space with an expression of brooding resentment. Ultimately, this preliminary didn't matter; their sole goal was to break through with an undefeated record, reclaiming their top ten ranking from the hands of Moon Rabbit Lian Xing!!! Following a humiliating defeat to Lian Xing, the headmaster of Youhe Academy put all effort into securing a golden combat skill card of a breakthrough nature for Akalin. Now, facing Youlan Academy again, the outcome was uncertain... [Loading data…] [Generating map…] Soon after, ten figures from both sides appeared atop a searing iron platform amidst boiling magma. The terrifying heat in the surrounding environment left the Icy Palace Academy team in their heavy down coats feeling extremely anxious, looking directionlessly toward their captain. Witnessing this scene, the live stream chat erupted in discussion. "What a pity, Icy Palace Academy was once a legendary institution, but they've struggled to produce any leader-tier beastmasters recently. They really don’t stand a chance against Akalin~~~" "By the way, Akalin has been in an explosive mood these past few days, not even paying attention to rivals, merely staring blankly at high-definition posters of Moon Rabbit Lian Xing." "Still, no matter what happens, Icy Palace Academy will advance, right? They'll just take a hit to their confidence from this match…" "..." "..." While commentators voiced their critiques, Baoyu Shuitianliang anxiously monitored the battle from the resting room. Naturally, she couldn't forget how, a decade prior, she and the former top ten ranker of Icy Palace Academy, Ice Sparrow, had been peers. However, rumor had it that Ice Sparrow had since settled into married life... Not only Ice Sparrow but all the once-promising female prodigies from those days had failed to reach the royal realm. Having endlessly hovered beneath it, they abandoned the path of beast evolution in search of personal happiness. "Icy Palace Academy has declined indeed..." "But the path of evolution is inherently solitary; as a beastmaster from the Illusory Sea Academy, one isn’t truly on the same starting line as other beastmasters..." "No matter how powerful the adversary or arduous the challenge, in retrospect, all beneath the royal are ants..." "Boom!!!" Mid-sentence, an abrupt change occurred. A deafening roar echoed throughout the tournament venue. In the next split second, under Baoyu Shuitianliang's incredulous gaze, the entire virtual map's space and environment were enveloped in a layer of extreme frost, freezing both her four teammates and the five adversaries as ice sculptures. Zooming out revealed a... Towering ice mountain piercing through the map's ceiling, crashing into the highest air barrier!!!! Even the leader-tier fiery earth poison was frozen within the ice mountain's depths, gradually losing its vitality in the extreme cold. The venue was pin-drop silent, not a sound to be heard. In that moment, Rain Ji from the top ten of Xi Yu Academy stood up, disbelief written all over her face as she stared at the ice-covered scene on the screen. The Akalin that defeated her so easily last season had, at the beginning of this one, already lost consecutively to both Moon Rabbit Lian Xing and Icy Palace Academy's captain...!? It wasn't just Rain Ji—nearly half of the top ten were utterly stunned, especially those ranked lower. This marked Akalin's second defeat... And nobody even caught a glimpse of Icy Palace Academy captain's attack method!!! Seconds later, snapping out of shock, the entire tournament venue erupted into frenzy. "What on earth, Akalin lost again, did anyone see that attack!?" "What ice-element creature did that, defeating Akalin without even revealing its true form...?" "This season's tournament is absurd, two major upsets already, both at Akalin's expense—I almost feel bad for her..." "Even if Youhe Academy advances later, they must be facing significant inner turmoil!" "Icy Palace Academy too—they played it close to the chest for days, only to suddenly reveal a leader-tier, shocking everyone..." "……" "……" Meanwhile, in stark contrast to the uproar around her, Lian Xing—seated on Youlan Academy’s spectator stand—curled a slender, silken leg, thoughtfully observing the majestic icy scene on the projection screen, picking at her foot absently. Internally, she wrestled with a dilemma. If Xingsha awoke in time, could she, with her current strength, face off against this Royal-tier entity? Extreme Cold Blast • Ice King... From that single strike, she deduced that the opponent hadn't yet grasped the true characteristics of Royal-tier power. Thus, it was only an unusually evolved mini-boss with exceptional offensive and defensive stats. Despite its overwhelming attributes, it remained within the realm of ordinary beasts' understanding. Xingsha, Moonlit Hammer, along with the Red Hell Palace Master... The six-ear form of the Moonlit Hammer, the Red Hell Palace Master’s red combat skills, and the second awakened form of the legendary Xingsha—if she unleashed the full power of her ensemble... Could they take down this intruder in the chaotic kindergarten brawl!? —— —— Academy Tournament, Day Four. After three intense days of grueling matches, the top 30 teams were finally determined. Unquestionably, Icy Palace Academy advanced from the first group with an undefeated record. Youhe Academy, in a slump, took second place with one loss. Even with shaky form and morale, Akalin, a top ten powerhouse, was insurmountable for these high-tier students. Following that, the Starlight Academy in the second group also had one loss. While they fell to another leader-tier-wielding Yunhua Academy, Zhi Wutong’s flawless dominance against peers drew considerable attention and admiration. Regrettably, Youlan Academy's second team missed the cut with a slight point deficit, finishing just one win shy of the top 30—an unfortunate departure. However... Now, setting aside the second team's disappointment and regrets, all of Youlan Academy's hopes were pinned solely on Lian Xing from the first team. Regardless of whether Moon Rabbit Lian Xing wins or loses next, her popularity and performance have already elevated Youlan Academy to unprecedented heights. However... Just as the headmaster of Youlan Academy quietly popped open a bottle of champagne, celebrating their progress... When Youlan Academy's opponent for the first round of the top 30 was announced, the entire faculty and student body fell into despair. The champagne bottle slipped from the headmaster's grasp, shattering on the ground, his expression freezing in disbelief. [First Round of Group Knockout: Youlan Academy vs. Yinji Academy] Yinji Academy, a powerhouse school that has consistently placed in the top three for the past five years, boasts a formidable captain, Yaoxian, who holds the second seat in the top ten giants. Last season, she crushed Akalin with overwhelming strength in the semifinals.