Free Web NovelChapter 70: Chapter 70: The Genius Who Faded into the Crowd
「The next day.」
"Xiaoshu, are you going out to train with your senior again?"
"Yeah... Some of Yu Bao’s Skills aren’t suitable for practicing in the neighborhood anymore."
"Oh, I see. Totally understand~♡"
"Dad, don’t talk with a heart at the end. It’s so gross..."
"Don’t go! Wait a second!"
Su Mao, wearing a small pink apron, trotted into the kitchen and trotted back out a moment later, holding a pink insulated lunch box.
"Here, take this. Dad made buns with beef and pickled bamboo shoot filling."
"Uh... I should be back by noon, though?"
"It’s just in case. What if you can’t make it back by noon? Eating out is so unsanitary," Wang Sujuan chimed in, backing him up.
Su Mao put on a pitiful expression. "You could also share them with your senior..."
Facing this combined assault from his parents, Su Zhi could only smile helplessly and accept the small pink lunch box.
"Well, thanks, Dad. We’re off."
"WOOF!"
·
The moment Su Zhi was out the door, the couple dropped their harmless expressions, their gazes turning subtle.
"How’s it going on your end?"
"Those readers from the Common Defense Alliance said they’ve already gotten involved in the investigation. Once they’re done collecting evidence, they can make the official arrest!"
"But his son has an important competition coming up, probably the city league tournament. As a rule, they have to wait until the competition is over before they can arrest him."
"That’s reasonable. It has nothing to do with his son. By the way, to make such a big move... you didn’t have to spend a fortune or anything, did you?"
Su Mao sighed. "No... but I did promise them sixty extra Chapters..."
"Nicely done."
"..."
·
[Shao Ya]: I’m already in class! Are you up yet?
[Su Zhi]: We just finished breakfast.
[Shao Ya]: Are you going to Fengyun Arena again today?
[Su Zhi]: Yup. We’re heading out around eight to take care of a little something with two seniors I just met, then we’ll do our regular training. I should be back before noon.
[Shao Ya]: Hahaha, you don’t have to give me all the details. You’re making me sound like your mom.
[Shao Ya]: Well, go get ’em! And stay safe!
[Su Zhi]: Yeah, I will.
After updating Shao Ya on his plans, Su Zhi saw Yu Bao thoughtfully fiddling with his Earth Force Field again.
Small pebbles and dust levitated under its control, arranging themselves in some sort of pattern, sometimes spinning, sometimes pumping like pistons.
’Hmm... Yu Bao is just a Dog, he shouldn’t have any ulterior motives...’ Su Zhi guessed he was probably just studying his Skill Level.
The jump from Tier Two to Tier Three was a massive qualitative leap.
Wanzi only had Tier Three Hardening, yet it was enough to completely neutralize Yu Bao and his arsenal of Skills. freewёbn૦νeɭ.com
However, after a Skill reached Tier Two, raising it to Tier Three was extremely difficult. Both arduous effort and a significant investment of time were indispensable.
Su Zhi petted Yu Bao. "You can’t rush Skill Level. Let’s not worry about Tier Three for now. Just getting our main Skills to Tier Two will be good enough."
Yu Bao ignored him, still lost in deep thought.
Su Zhi: "..."
’Fine, whatever makes you happy.’
Su Zhi scanned the distance and happened to spot a red Chevrolet driving toward them...
·
"I didn’t know you had a car, senior!"
"I’m a grad student now. You’d think I can at least afford a car, right?"
Liu Junpo smiled faintly and parked the car at the main entrance of Fengyun Arena.
On the surface, this place was a bar, but it actually had a secret door that led to Fengyun Arena. This was the exit they had used yesterday.
As they got out of the car, Peng Kai, his long red hair unbound, was just walking out of the bar.
"Yo! You made it. Bring the application form?"
"Yeah, I brought it."
"Alright, go on in and find Hall Master Yan. He’s waiting for you at the entrance."
Peng Kai said, but his eyes were fixed on Liu Junpo.
Su Zhi looked at Liu Junpo.
"You go on ahead. I... have some things to discuss."
Su Zhi nodded. Without asking any questions, he quickly led Yu Bao through the secret passage to the arena.
Only Peng Kai and Liu Junpo were left at the entrance to the bar.
Wanzi floated beside Liu Junpo, somewhat at a loss, sensing that the atmosphere was wrong.
Liu Junpo gave a slight nod. "Senior."
"Why didn’t you say hi yesterday? Come on, don’t just stand there. Let’s talk inside."
Peng Kai walked over to the bar, mixed a drink, and pushed it toward Liu Junpo.
"Do you regret it?"
Peng Kai asked.
Liu Junpo didn’t answer. He picked up the ice-blue drink and downed it in one go.
Peng Kai said slowly,
"Liu Junpiao, hailed as a Genius by Teacher Zhou Shengfa and painstakingly nurtured despite pressure from the school administration. In his senior year of high school, he successfully evolved his Main Pet, a Cyan Feathered Falcon, into a Thunderbolt War Falcon, shattering the record for the fastest Pet Beast evolution and stunning the world."
"And yet, on the eve of contracting his second Pet Beast, this same Liu Junpiao couldn’t bear to watch a critically injured and abandoned Cyan Cloud Group die in Fengyun Arena. He chose to form a contract with it, allowing it to enter his Beast Taming Space to heal..."
Wanzi lowered its head. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
Peng Kai continued,
"Because of this major blunder in his team composition, and because Liu Junpo refused to form a new contract, his overall strength fell further and further behind. He barely scraped his way into a provincial key university and then faded into obscurity..."
"Senior, I’ve told you before, I don’t regret it."
CLANG!
Liu Junpo slammed the empty glass down on the table. His expression was one of nonchalance, but his gaze was harder than Wanzi’s Hardening.
"Everything you said is true. This is the path I chose. I’m aware of the cost and the burden, and I won’t regret it."
So said an Advanced Tier Beast Tamer to a Master Level Beast Tamer.
Peng Kai didn’t respond. He clasped his hands behind his back and walked through the secret passage toward Fengyun Arena.
"It’s been years. Let’s have a match, just for old times’ sake."
"Fine."
Liu Junpo followed.
·
"THUNK—THUNK—THUNK—"
Blinding white lights switched on in sequence, illuminating the main arena of Fengyun Arena.
The arena was suspended high above the underground plaza; if you didn’t look closely, you might mistake it for a decorative chandelier.
The ring was a standard Master Level arena, twenty meters in diameter. All its materials were certified by the Common Defense Alliance, and it was equipped with a containment Energy Shield to prevent damage from Pet Beast battles from spilling over.
The specifications of this arena were on par with those used in international super-cups and tournament series.
Every Fengyun Arena had a main stage like this. It was normally inactive, reserved only for high-stakes matches.
The two men took their positions and summoned their Pet Beasts—
From a deep blue Light Array flew a giant, cyan bird with a wingspan of over six meters. Its feathers crackled with electricity, and every flap of its wings carried a sharp force that seemed to tear through the air.
[Pet Beast: Fei Yu (Thunderbolt War Falcon)
Attribute: Wind, Electric
Race: High Level Elite Race
Real-time Energy Value: 8759]
"Not bad. Almost a Quasi-Three-star," Peng Kai commented, raising an eyebrow.
A pale purple Light Array, even larger than the last, appeared. A giant, rock-colored rhinoceros nearly three meters tall and over six meters long emerged slowly, snorting hot breath. The entire arena seemed to tremble with its every step.
[Pet Beast: Lie Gang (Blast Rock Rhinoceros)
Attribute: Earth
Race: High Level Elite Race
Real-time Energy Value: 10132]
Fei Yu blinked its crackling electric eyes. "CAW?"
’Senior Lie Gang?’
Lie Gang twitched its small ears. "HRUMPH."
’Long time no see, Xiaoyu.’
Back when Liu Junpo had first contracted Fei Yu, Peng Kai had just completed the contract for his second Pet Beast, Lie Gang.
Back then, they were a Cyan Feathered Falcon and a Stone Armor Rhinoceros.
"A Real-time Energy Value over ten thousand..."
Liu Junpo stared at the data on his phone in disbelief. "Lie Gang is already a Three-star?"
"He’s just barely a Three-star. To be honest, Ares is still a Three-star, too, and a long way from Four-star. You know the difficulty of going from Three-star to Four-star is greater than going from zero to Three-star combined."
Peng Kai yawned, but his gaze instantly sharpened with focus.
"Now then, junior, you’d better be ready."
"Let. The. Match. Begin."
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