Beast Taming: I Can Add Points

Shen Chuqing: "..."

’If I remember correctly, Lala wasn’t even hurt. Don’t tell me he’s doing this because it looks cooler... Okay, he probably is thinking that.’

Su Zhi couldn’t quite bear to interrupt them, but he still raised his hand and whispered, "Maybe we should call it a..."

"La!" Lala cut Su Zhi off, looking at its master with a determined gaze.

"Alright, alright. You can use it."

Shen Chuqing rolled her eyes and tapped the space between her brows. The next moment, golden eyeshadow edged in crimson extended from the corners of her eyes.

At the same time, a light woven from gold and crimson began to glow on Lala’s body.

Yu Bao’s eyes flew open, and he immediately hurled the Furious Sand Blade over.

’Trying to pull a reversal right under my, King Bi’s, nose? As if! You can forget about showing off!’

Logically speaking, a Beast Taming Talent usually required half a second to a full second to "warm up." Talents that could activate instantly were practically nonexistent.

The window was short, but it was long enough for Yu Bao to take Lala out.

However, Lala didn’t opt for the more stylish "stand your ground" approach this time. Instead, it rolled, prudently dodging Yu Bao’s Furious Sand Blade.

The attack missed. Yu Bao controlled the Furious Sand Blade, adjusted its direction, and sent it flying back for another strike.

This time, Lala’s "warm-up" was complete. The crimson and gold light on its body suddenly became incomparably brilliant, like a sun rising on the spot.

The Furious Sand Blade abruptly disintegrated. Brimming with swagger, Lala opened its eyes.

"La!"

·

「Huai City, Municipal Battle Hall.」

The sky was clear and cloudless. The sun hung high, baking the concrete ground into a pale, shimmering white.

Fang Yuan stood in the swaying shade of a tree, gazing toward the end of the road. His eyes scanned each bus as it appeared, only to move away again and again.

Lilith had her claws wrapped around Fang Yuan’s neck, her body pressed against his back. She had adjusted her own body temperature to ten degrees Celsius to help him cool down in the summer heat.

’It takes a lot of Energy for a Fire Element Pet Beast to maintain such a low body temperature...’ Fang Yuan wanted to remind her, but he held his tongue. ’If she likes it, I’ll just let her be.’

Fang Yuan felt that while it was hot today, he didn’t need help cooling down; he could handle it. Still, he had to admit that having Lilith pressed against him was more comfortable.

"Chirp!" Lilith shook his shoulder.

Fang Yuan turned to see Yan Dingyi walking toward him with a cheerful smile.

"Uncle Yan."

"Morning, Xiaoyuan. Here to train again?" Yan Dingyi asked, curious. "I remember you usually train in the afternoon and evening. Why the morning session today?"

"Just felt like training this morning," Fang Yuan said, looking down.

"That’s great." Yan Dingyi smiled, a look of gratified nostalgia on his face.

The ancestors were right: the youth are like the sun at eight or nine in the morning, full of life and vigor.

However, this era of peace had lasted for too long, and more and more young people were growing decadent. They were no longer willing to dedicate their time to arduous self-improvement, instead becoming slaves to their beds, wasting their days sleeping in.

Having been one of those slaves to his bed during his own student days, Yan Dingyi sympathized deeply.

And as the current Hall Master of the Battle Hall, he and the hall had witnessed a great deal.

His greatest regret was seeing the Battle Hall completely empty every morning. The sun would be shining, marking the perfect start to a productive day, yet no one was there.

Of course, what the old man found even harder to accept were certain Beast Tamers who came to the hall in pairs.

Aside from that couple, Su Zhi and Shao Ya, most of these pairs weren’t very serious.

They claimed to be there to have their Pet Beasts spar, but in reality, the Pet Beasts rarely did any sparring. The two Beast Tamers, on the other hand, did plenty of "sparring" of their own. Many of them, still not satisfied, would even go to a different "hall" to continue "sparring" afterward.

And that "hall" probably wasn’t a Battle Hall... It was more likely some other kind of establishment...

What a waste of time! A waste of the Common Defense Alliance’s trust and expectations! A waste of the Battle Hall’s precious resources!

As someone who had been there, Yan Dingyi sincerely hoped that the world could have more pure-hearted youths like Fang Yuan, who entered the Battle Hall without any distracting thoughts. ’Now that’s what a Beast Tamer of the new generation should be like.’

The sparring partner had arrived in Yan Dingyi’s car. While Yan Dingyi was chatting with Fang Yuan, he had already opened the doors to the Battle Hall.

Seeing Fang Yuan still standing under the tree, the sparring partner asked, "Aren’t you going in? All the equipment inside is already on."

Fang Yuan shoved his hands in his pockets, his fingers brushing against the two tickets inside. The corner of his mouth twitched.

According to his original plan, he was indeed going to go inside and start training with Lilith. Su Zhi had already embarked on the next leg of his journey, and as someone chasing after him, he couldn’t afford to fall behind.

However, Fang Yuan had just discovered that Xu Ruo’s ticket was also on him...

’Did she really not remember it at all before we parted ways yesterday? What a ditz...’

Yan Dingyi asked curiously, "Waiting for someone, Xiaoyuan?"

"Chirp!" Lilith answered for her master, nodding excitedly.

Fang Yuan had no choice but to nod as well, adding, "My classmate. We’re training together."

Yan Dingyi’s expression grew even more gratified. "Willing to wake up this early? He must be a hardworking kid too! By the way, when is he getting here? You can wait for him inside."

’A classmate who’s earned Fang Yuan’s approval must be an outstanding boy like Su Zhi, right? I didn’t expect Second High to produce a character like that. Huai City is really full of talented people these days!’

Fang Yuan opened his mouth, as if about to say something.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and the corner of his mouth curled up slightly.

Yan Dingyi noticed this slightly mischievous gaze and smile. His gratified expression faltered slightly as he followed Fang Yuan’s line of sight—

The Route 806 bus appeared at the end of the road. The moment it stopped at the station, a girl with her hair in a bun jumped off.

The girl looked left and right, confirmed the traffic was clear, and scampered across the road, braking to a sudden halt in front of Fang Yuan.

"I-I’m sorry! I’m late!"

Xu Ruo bowed deeply, her voice extra loud.

Fang Yuan forced the smile from his lips and nodded with a blank expression. "It’s fine."

The sparring partner slapped his right palm with his left hand. "Hey, I’ve seen you before! Aren’t you the girl who was waiting at the door to buy a ticket from me early yesterday?"

"Mmm... mm-hmm..." Xu Ruo lowered her head, nodding tremulously.

The sparring partner froze for a second. He looked at Xu Ruo, then at Fang Yuan, and his expression grew more and more amused.

"Did you two book the same arena?"

The two of them nodded in unison.

The sparring partner’s eyes crinkled as he gave them a knowing, fond smile.

Fang Yuan facepalmed. "So... can you let us in now...?"

"Yes~! Of course, you can~!" The sparring partner ran off to open the door for them.

Fang Yuan was about to leave when he heard a sob from beside him. He turned his head to see Xu Ruo’s eyes were red. She was biting her lip, looking utterly wronged.

Fang Yuan had seen a lot of intense situations, but this was one he truly hadn’t encountered before. He was at a bit of a loss. "What’s wrong?"

Xu Ruo burst into tears with a WAIL.

"I-I can’t find the tickets! I can’t find either of them!"

Fang Yuan: "..."

"I searched all over my house, and then I ran back to school to look, but I still couldn’t find them... I’m sorry! Waaaah, I’m an idiot, you can yell at me..."

The girl’s tears streamed down her face, and she didn’t dare open her eyes, afraid to see the disappointment on his.

"Oof!" A sudden flick hit her on the forehead.

Xu Ruo’s eyes opened in a daze. She saw the two dark green tickets in his hand and Fang Yuan’s slightly exasperated expression.

"The tickets are right here."

"Huh?"

"What do you mean, ’huh’?" Fang Yuan said, expressionless. "If you couldn’t find them, why didn’t you just ask me?"

Xu Ruo looked aggrieved. "But I don’t have you added as a contact..."

"Then you could have just added me."

"But..." Xu Ruo’s voice grew quieter and quieter. "If the tickets were really lost, it would have been useless to contact you, and you would have been disappointed, right? I don’t want to disappoint you..."

’I would feel like you’re a ditz...’ Fang Yuan subconsciously wanted to say, but he swallowed the words before they came out.

Looking at the girl wiping away her tears in front of him, Fang Yuan felt a little helpless, but he also wanted to laugh.

He was the one who had accidentally taken her ticket, so why did it seem like she was acting as if her very existence was a mistake?

"Ahem. Anyway, the tickets aren’t lost, so stop overthinking it."

Fang Yuan walked ahead. "Come on, let’s do a simple warm-up first, then we’ll do some specialized training for your Pet Beast."

"Mhm! Okay!"

Xu Ruo quickly wiped her tears dry and hurried to keep up with Fang Yuan.

"Um, why were Hall Master Yan and the staff member looking at us like that?"

"They probably misunderstood a few things."

"Oh! Should we go explain it to them?"

"No need. The facts will speak for themselves. Focus on training."

"Mhm! Right!"

Their discussion faded into the distance. Yan Dingyi just stood there, watching the two of them step into the Battle Hall, the initial gratification on his face withering away.

It felt as if something inside him had taken a critical hit, shattering with a CRACK.

·

·