Chapter 161 - 142: Alliance Leader Qiao Is So Practiced
Summer nights were long, and even after dinner, the lingering light of the setting sun bathed the world in its glow.
The blue and white grounds of the Flying Shadow Alliance were washed in a layer of gold, giving them a unique charm.
In the cafeteria, Su Zhi sat by a window, talking to his parents. The soft sunlight spilled onto his plate, looking as if it were part of the meal itself.
"Don’t worry, I’m doing great here!"
When the conversation turned to food and lodging, Su Zhi held up his phone and showed Wang Sujuan and Su Mao the cafeteria’s surroundings.
"We’re both doing great. Yu Bao is doing great, too. He’s eating well and pooping well."
"Woof!" Yu Bao, who was eating, lifted his head and wagged his tail at the mom and dad on the screen.
"Good, good! As long as you’re both adjusting well!"
Seeing that both his treasures were in good spirits, Su Mao let out a long sigh of relief and smiled. "Are you getting along with your classmates? You haven’t gotten into any arguments or anything, have you?"
"No, no, the classmates are all very friendly. Someone even asked me for a friendly spar this afternoon."
Su Zhi glanced at Yu Bao, and they shared a knowing smile.
"Haha, alright. You guys get back to it. We’re hanging up!"
"Bye, Mom and Dad."
"Woof!"
Su Zhi reluctantly ended the video call. If he didn’t hang up, his parents wouldn’t take the initiative to, and the call would drag on for a long time.
’Yes, I should listen to my parents and be "kind" to my classmates.’
Finishing his dinner in one go, Su Zhi left the cafeteria with Yu Bao and headed for the dorms.
The dorms provided by the summer camp were high-class: single rooms with private bathrooms, cleaned daily by housekeeping-type Pet Beasts. They were even nicer than the accommodations Su Zhi had during the Huai City tournament.
There was a lecture on Advanced Introduction to Beast Taming tonight. It was still early, so he could just go back to his dorm to rest for a bit.
However, Su Zhi didn’t return to his dorm. Instead, he took Yu Bao to a small, open area behind the building.
HAFF! HAFF!
Yu Bao impatiently nudged Su Zhi.
"I know, I know, you’ll get your share." Su Zhi chuckled softly, wrapping his arms around Yu Bao’s head and starting to rub it—
[Pet Beast: Yu Bao (Yu Dian Dog)
Power: 1.30
Agility: 2.00
Intelligence: 2.00
Constitution: 1.42
Perception: 2.10 -> 2.25]
[Real-time Energy Value: 1735]
High-end Points only require the simplest form of cooking.
After discussing it with Yu Bao, Su Zhi decided to put all the Points into Perception this time, just to see if he could force a miracle.
"Woof!" Yu Bao’s eyes lit up as if his Ren and Du Meridians had been cleared.
He waved his paw, signaling for Su Zhi to back off—he was about to show off.
’He really does look like that emoji,’ Su Zhi thought, letting out an amused laugh as he took a few steps back. His expression then turned to one of pleasant surprise.
Under Yu Bao’s control, the pebbles and fine sand from the stone path rose one by one, levitating and gathering to form an arm about the same size as Su Zhi.
"HAFF!"
Yu Bao lifted his left paw, and the arm followed suit, giving Su Zhi a big thumbs-up.
"Is this Mimicry?"
Recalling the scene from Peng Kai and Liu Junpo’s Pet Beast Battle, Su Zhi was both shocked and delighted. "Your Earth Force Field is Tier Three!"
But Yu Bao shook his head.
It could only be called Quasi Tier Three, still a long way from the real thing. His Mimicry’s strength was still very limited, and it probably couldn’t be used in a real battle yet.
"It’s okay. You have to eat one bite at a time and walk one step at a time."
Seeing the little guy was neither arrogant nor impatient, Su Zhi smiled with relief. "At least you’ve taken a crucial first step!"
"Woof." Yu Bao nodded emphatically.
As for the point about eating, however, he disagreed. What was the fun of eating one bite at a time? It was much more satisfying to wolf down the whole bowl at once.
Su Zhi then asked, "Can you only mimic an arm? Can you mimic other things?"
"Haaff~" Yu Bao nodded, and the earth and stone around him changed shape, turning into several tentacles—creating an effect like a squid in the sea, even on dry land!
"HAFF!" Yu Bao changed it again. This time, the dust and rocks formed one long thing, plus two round things...
"Ahem! That’s enough."
Su Zhi hurried over and kicked the unmentionable object apart, then looked around to make sure no one was watching before breathing a sigh of relief.
Looking at the innocent-faced Yu Bao, Su Zhi gave a wry smile. ’I wonder which pervert corrupted the kid...’
’It definitely wasn’t me. I’m a perfect gentleman.’
"Let’s end the demonstration here!"
Su Zhi glanced at his watch and patted Yu Bao’s head. "It’s been a busy day, and you had two spars in a row. How about we get some rest?"
But Yu Bao shook his head.
No, he had finally gotten so many points at once and made such a clear breakthrough. He would feel uneasy if he didn’t seize the opportunity to practice!
No sooner said than done, Yu Bao began practicing the Mimicry function of his Tier Three Earth Force Field right on the spot.
Su Zhi smiled softly, indulging the little guy. He sat down on the ground and opened a few research papers he had downloaded earlier. ’After all, learning is learning, no matter where you do it, right?’
"Oh, right, Yu Bao, no mimicking any indescribable things!"
"Woof woof?"
"Poop and other gross things are also off-limits!"
·
Not far away, Selena strolled over with her hands in her pockets, her light purple eyes as cold and serene as ice.
Xu Jianzhi followed half a step behind her, his head slightly lowered.
He finally spoke up. "I was the one who wanted to use Su Zhi to make a name for myself, which is why I provoked him into a Pet Beast Battle with me..."
After the match, Xu Jianzhi had been called aside by Selena.
The Cold and Refined Beauty had him follow her without saying a word. After enduring half an hour of her silent, cold-shoulder treatment, Xu Jianzhi finally cracked under the pressure and admitted his mistake.
How could his petty schemes possibly escape the notice of a savvy veteran who was about to be promoted to Vice Alliance Leader?
Selena said coolly, "Lift your head."
Xu Jianzhi raised his head and followed her gaze to the open area behind the dorm building in the distance.
The evening breeze was like a tide, the chirping of insects was like a song, and fine motes of light danced in the night sky.
In the quiet, undisturbed spot, the young man and his Pet Beast were each absorbed in their own training.
Yu Bao was practicing various forms of Mimicry with his Earth Force Field—a clear sign that the skill was about to reach Tier Three.
Xu Jianzhi clenched his fists in shame.
Earth Force Field was a standard skill taught to Stone Armor Rhinoceroses for exams, yet his Black Wood had only trained it to Tier Two.
In an area where he should have excelled, a Yu Dian Dog was doing better.
What shocked him even more was their high training efficiency; there was a faint sense of Pet Skill Integration between them.
It was as if they weren’t engaged in tedious training, but in an exploration full of mystery.
"For people at your level, it’s common to work from dawn till dusk. But after you’re completely exhausted, can you still greet the next morning’s sun full of energy and spirit?"
Selena murmured softly, "The day after the Huai City tournament ended, at 6:05 in the morning, when I was out for a walk, Su Zhi was already training."
Xu Jianzhi was taken aback. "Right after the tournament ended?"
"Yes." Selena nodded.
Xu Jianzhi fell silent and lowered his head.
’Now I’ve completely lost, in every aspect.’
·
A little after 8 p.m., on the Flying Shadow Alliance’s internal forum, a set of photos posted by an anonymous netizen who wished to remain unnamed shot to the top of the trending list.
Everyone was very familiar with the person in the photos: their beloved Alliance Leader Chopper.
However, today’s Alliance Leader was a *liiiiittle* bit different—
In the photos, Chopper was sporting high-heeled leather shoes. His long legs, wrapped in lace garter stockings, looked slender. The ruffled maid outfit was just right, revealing a sliver of his "absolute territory," which was covered in thick leg hair.
Alliance Leader Chopper had on pretty eye makeup, his cheeks were slightly flushed, and his rosy lips were puckered in a slight pout. He looked both tsundere and aggrieved, as if he might curse "Pervert!" at any moment.
And because of his relatively androgynous features, he actually looked rather cute and charming...
Then, scrolling down, the photos got even weirder:
The beautifully dressed Alliance Leader Chopper was doing a handstand, straining to stick his feet into the sink, apparently trying something very... avant-garde.
The photographer was also quite skilled, always choosing the most immersive angles for the viewer, revealing just enough but not everything...
The Flying Shadow Alliance’s forum had already exploded.
[A21338: Forgive me, Master, for I have sinned!]
[C23313: The Alliance Leader is a mature boy now. He should put on a pretty dress and pretty makeup and go compete with the girls for men /smirk]
[Selena: You guys are giving me a headache. Can’t you be serious for one day...]
[Yu Bao’s Pooper Scooper: I don’t get it, but I’m deeply shocked.]
[IGotHard: Alliance Leader, why do you look so practiced?]
Even more heavyweights declared they were "launching by name."
Alliance Leader Chopper furiously posted in the comments telling everyone not to "fap," but the trolls just took his comment, paired it with the pictures of him in a shy-looking maid outfit, and made it into an "Alliance Leader’s Anti-Fap PSA" sticker pack, which was met with rave reviews.
Within minutes, the matter of Alliance Leader Chopper washing his feet in a handstand while cross-dressing had broken containment, even sparking heated discussions on the forums of allied alliances...
In the Flying Shadow Alliance Leader’s office, a white-haired old man gently knocked and opened the door.
The old man wore an orange-yellow Beastmaster robe over a light gray Alliance Member uniform. The insignia on his chest gleamed with a dark gold light:
Name: Jing Shouxi
Alliance Member ID: 00000009
Inside the office, Shang Duantie was pointing at Chopper and laughing mercilessly.
Chopper, still in his maid outfit, sat rigidly in his chair with his knees pressed together, a vacant expression on his face, the light gone from his eyes.
’Some people are alive, but they’re already dead.jpg’
"Chopper, you’re an Alliance Leader now. How can you post things like this? It has a very bad influence."
Jing Shouxi criticized him sternly, as if he hadn’t just screenshotted and saved the pictures himself. Seeing Shang Duantie snickering, he shot him a glare. "You stop laughing at him. You were bullying him again, weren’t you?"
Jing Shouxi was the Alliance Leader of the Boya Alliance, one of the most senior Alliance Leaders, and the founder of the exam-oriented cultivation system.
He was also Chopper and Shang Duantie’s teacher, having watched these two brats distinguish themselves and become widely admired Alliance Leaders.
"You can’t blame me for this one! He shot his mouth off and it backfired!"
Shang Duantie smiled innocently and recounted, in full detail, the story of the bet Chopper had lost that morning to his former teacher.
"Don’t make bets like this in the future," Jing Shouxi said, taking a light sip of his tea.
Chopper nodded with dead eyes.
"However, you said a high school student defeated a Vice Alliance Leader candidate’s third Pet Beast?"
Jing Shouxi refilled his cup with scalding tea, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.
"You have the video replay, right? Let me see it."
"You got it."
Shang Duantie activated the office’s 3D projector. Even though this was Flying Shadow Alliance territory, he visited so often he was as comfortable as if it were his own home.
And then...
Watching the battle between Yu Bao and Xue Ao, the inventor of exam-oriented cultivation was struck dumb, staring blankly into space for a long time.
Jing Shouxi: "???"
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