Beast Taming: I Can Add Points

Shao Ya smiled. "Because if we don’t go to the battlefield, this place will become the battlefield."

Su Zhi nodded, the corners of his mouth turning up slightly.

He’d heard it. She had said "we."

Peng Kai waved his hand, interrupting them. "No need to get lost in reminiscence. Those dark times are history now. Everything we’re doing in the present is to prevent history from repeating itself. Nowadays, the path for military families to join the Alliance is kept mostly as a symbolic gesture.

"Even though you don’t need to become an Alliance Youth Team Member beforehand, joining the Alliance as a military family member has stricter review standards and a shorter observation period, which actually makes it harder than the regular route. Prepare well!"

"You can do it. I believe in you," Su Zhi whispered, his voice low enough for only her to hear.

"Mhm."

The girl winked her right eye. "Su Baby, you do your best too~!"

’This damn vixen, pulling that move again. I have no resistance at all...’ Su Zhi turned his head away, only to see Peng Kai staring at him with a burning gaze, and his butthole clenched tight.

"Since you’re already here, come on! Let’s have a Pet Beast Battle!"

"Fuck! How did I trigger the sparring side quest again? Not now, Fellow Daoist Peng, I have morning reading!"

Peng Kai looked a little disappointed. "Is that so..."

Su Zhi sighed in relief.

Zhou Shengfa put his hands in his pockets. "He doesn’t study during it anyway, so it makes no difference if he goes or not."

Su Zhi’s face tightened.

Light returned to Peng Kai’s eyes. "See? Teacher Zhou has spoken! Let’s go! To the Battle Hall with me!"

"Crap..."

And so, glaring at Zhou Shengfa with a look of someone dying with regrets, Su Zhi was half-dragged, half-carried out of the office by Peng Kai.

"I’m going to watch! Skipping morning reading for once!" Shao Ya followed them out.

Zhou Shengfa and Yan Shouzheng exchanged a quick glance.

’Watch the drama unfold?’

’Let’s go!’

·

It was currently morning reading period, so the Battle Hall was mostly empty. For once, Su Zhi had the chance to use the main ring in the center, the one with the best lighting.

The two summoned their Pet Beasts—

[Pet Beast: Diya (Purple Flame Demon Spirit)

Attribute: Fire, Telekinesis Element

Race: Low Level Commander

Real-time Energy Value: 4709]

"Woof?"

On the battle ring, Yu Bao curiously sized up the thing that had appeared from the Beast Taming Light Array opposite him—

A large, purplish-red mass of flame floated in midair, vaguely encircled by rectangular, flaming runes. A few wisps of fire hovered further out, giving off a fluffy-looking, déjà-vu-like impression that made one want to reach out and pet it.

Yu Bao reached out a paw and gave it a poke. The wisp of flame immediately transformed into a small, short claw, reminding Yu Bao of Lilith’s claws.

"Sa!" The large mass of flame sprouted emoticon-like facial features.

’My man, long time no see!’

"Woof woof!" Yu Bao wagged his tail, looking Diya up and down.

’Long time no see! But man, what the hell happened to you? You look so... abstract...’

"?" Diya’s face fell into a frown.

’What would a mere Yu Dian Earth Dog know about the noble aesthetics of a Nether Flame Spirit?’

’Cut the crap! Did you bring the spicy sticks?’

"Woof." Yu Bao shook his head.

’He hadn’t known he was going to trigger a Pet Beast Battle side quest either! He didn’t even know he’d run into Peng Kai today...’

"Sa!" Diya’s expression turned resolute.

’In that case, don’t blame me for not holding back later!’

’No, wait... Even if you had given me spicy sticks, I wouldn’t have held back! As a proud Nether Flame Spirit, I must face every battle with all my might!’

"⌓‿⌓" Yu Bao flashed his signature bright and sunny smile.

’Okay, okay, okay.’

Not far away, Zhou Shengfa and Yan Shouzheng each found a seat in the spectator stands.

This battle was significant in a number of ways: Peng Kai was Yan Shouzheng’s student, and Su Zhi was Zhou Shengfa’s student...

And both were rebellious troublemakers that gave their Old Ban a headache... but they were also both so strong that their teachers felt helpless.

Zhou Shengfa tilted his head and asked, "Who do you want to win?"

Yan Shouzheng rolled his eyes. "Neither of them."

He paused, then added, "But I would like to see Peng Kai lose. When I was his teacher, I couldn’t do a single thing with him. So infuriating."

Zhou Shengfa: "..."

Yan Shouzheng: "...So you want to see Su Zhi lose?"

Zhou Shengfa nodded, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. The homeroom teachers of the two rebels had reached a strange consensus.

"Ahem, setting aside my personal bias against him, I’m actually favoring Su Zhi. This is a rare matchup where Su Zhi has the advantage, both in terms of Attribute and Energy Value."

Zhou Shengfa commented, then frowned. "But his opponent is Peng Kai, so it’s hard for me to be completely confident in Su Zhi... When they used to spar, Su Zhi lost more often than he won. Peng Kai’s tactics and awareness are still a cut above Su Zhi’s."

Yan Shouzheng’s face was impassive. "I wouldn’t be so sure. ’After a three-day separation, one should be seen in a new light.’ And it’s been more than a few days since they last fought. Besides, Su Zhi is no slouch either. Who knows what kind of Skills Yu Bao will pull out?"

"That’s true..."

Zhou Shengfa pursed his lips.

"But you’ve forgotten, the Purple Flame Demon Spirit’s Skill System is, on the whole, a Strong Attack Type focused on assaults. If Yu Bao had gone with a traditional balance of offense and defense, it’d be fine. But he chose a Non-Contact Skill System, which, to some extent, is countered by the Purple Flame Demon Spirit’s high speed."

"Unless Yu Bao can cast skills with no cooldown, Diya will always have a chance to exploit an opening. Overall, Diya still has a greater chance of winning this battle. It’s a tactical counter."

"Your analysis is quite reasonable. You live up to your title as a Gold Medal homeroom teacher." Yan Shouzheng nodded, a look of regret in his eyes.

"What a shame. I really wanted to see that little prick lose for once... By the way, Xiaoya, who are you rooting for?"

"Me?" The girl in the second row blinked. "I’m betting on Su Zhi, of course."

The two teachers looked at each other and smiled, both wearing knowing expressions.

But after smiling, they felt a pang of pain.

’Dammit, getting force-fed this PDA at our age... It’d be better if Su Zhi lost!’

On the ring, as all the facilities finished activating, the Pet Beast Battle between fellow daoists officially began.

"Fellow Daoist Su, I won’t be holding back!"

Peng Kai instantly got into the zone, his eyes radiating excitement, just like his title, "Beast King," would suggest.

In stark contrast to him, however, the moment he spoke, Diya burst into countless tiny sparks, covering the entire ring.

There was nothing sharp or menacing about it; it was almost like a gentle, beautiful landscape.

"It’s the Purple Flame Demon Spirit’s Racial Skill, Star Fire!"

Su Zhi quickly identified the opponent’s skill. "Yu Bao, be careful! Don’t let those flames get close to you! It’s also a Positional Skill, theoretically the same as your Desert Concealment!"

Star Fire, a Low Level Commander Skill of the Fire and Telekinesis Elements, possessed functions for both positioning and concealment.

Unlike Desert Concealment, which was for directional movement, Star Fire could persist in a designated area for a long time and could also move slowly in a specific direction.

Every spark was an anchor point for the Purple Flame Demon Spirit. It could serve as a coordinate to gather the other sparks and reform its main body.

In a natural environment, this was a skill the Purple Flame Demon Spirit used to evade predators. After all, dealing with so many scattered sparks was clearly not worth the effort, and most Exotic Beasts would eventually give up and leave.

But on the battle ring, the sparks blanketing the entire area became a powerful offensive deterrent instead.

As long as Diya wished, he could teleport to any spark as an anchor point. Yu Bao, on the other hand, had to be on guard in every direction—a full 360 degrees of trouble, so to speak.

This was different from the clones of a Sand Shadow Guard. Every single flame was Diya’s true body!

"Sa~"

All the sparks laughed in unison, and Diya’s triumphant voice surrounded the ring from every conceivable angle.

After evolving into a Purple Flame Demon Spirit, this was the first move he practiced.

As a Racial Skill of the Low Level Commander Level, Star Fire was very powerful, but also very difficult to master.

But after days and nights of arduous training, Diya had now mastered this Divine Skill and raised its Skill Level to Tier Two—drastically increasing its duration and shortening the time needed for repositioning!

’This time, the advantage is mine.’

Yu Bao didn’t have a high-density AoE like a Hao Waterfowl. What could it possibly use to fight back? Blast the area with a Sandstorm?

Just then, Yu Bao made its move. Sand and dust slowly began to gather around it—the prelude to casting Sandstorm.

’Is it really going to use Sandstorm? Does Yu Bao have sand for brains...?’

But just as Diya was feeling a mix of scorn and bewilderment, Yu Bao’s next action made its eyes go wide.

·

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