Chapter 537: 21st Floor Reached
Chapter 537: 21st Floor Reached
Year 6 Class.
The moment Qiao Sang entered the classroom, Yuna, who was sitting next to her, lit up.
"Qiao Sang, I heard you bonded with a Steel Sparrow?"
The news sure traveled fast... Qiao Sang turned her head to look at Hylis, who was sitting in the last row. He was the one she had met at the Climate Pavilion yesterday.
He was the first one in the class to know about her Steel Sparrow.
Hylis felt her gaze and looked up. Seeing it was Qiao Sang, his eyes sparkled, and he grinned.
Qiao Sang turned back and nodded.
"Was it the one that invaded your house?" Yuna asked in a low voice.
Creel, the butler, must have reported the incident to Yuna, so it wasn't surprising that she knew about Qiao Sang.
"It was", Qiao Sang replied.
"Truly worthy of a champion, daring to bond with a wild Steel Sparrow", Yuna said with genuine admiration.
Wild beast companions were known for their strong personalities and were difficult to manage, which is why few people were willing to bond with them. Wild Steel Sparrows were even more troublesome. Even if one appeared injured and unable to resist, passersby would often wonder if it was a ruse.
Despite this, Qiao Sang had managed to bond with one.
Qiao Sang was about to modestly respond when Tang Yi, with dark circles under his eyes and a wobbly gait, entered the classroom.
"What happened to you?" Qiao Sang asked.
Tang Yi looked at Qiao Sang, his face dejected. "I lost."
Qiao Sang gazed at him, gesturing for him to continue.
"It was the Beast Arena", Tang Yi said weakly. "Last night, I won six consecutive matches. Then a staff member called me over during a break, saying they saw potential in me and offered me a contract. If I could become the Champion of the Day, they would give me an additional twenty percent of the Bet Pool's earnings. I, of course, agreed and stayed there all night. I made it to the 22nd match, just one away from becoming the Champion of the Day, when I lost."
Qiao Sang's eyes suddenly filled with sympathy for Tang Yi.
If she hadn't participated in the Beast Arena yesterday, it wouldn't have mattered, but she had, and she knew how much the earnings from a single match could be. After twenty matches, the additional twenty percent of the Bet Pool's earnings would conservatively be in the millions.
It must have felt like reaching the final boss in a dungeon with a million-dollar prize, only to have the boss unleash a powerful move and wipe out all the progress.
Just as Qiao Sang was about to offer some words of comfort, Yuna chuckled.
"That's a common tactic in the Beast Arena. They do this to make promising contestants stay voluntarily. If the chosen contestant manages to win all the way to the final match, they arrange a strong opponent to end their streak."
"The chosen ones are usually very strong, always feeling they are just one step away from victory, so they keep coming back."
Tang Yi's face darkened upon hearing this.
So, he had been set up!
Yuna continued, "Despite this, many people still sign these contracts. After all, winning means an additional twenty percent of the Bet Pool's earnings, and losing doesn't cost them anything. It's a clear temptation."
Qiao Sang's first thought was: The chosen ones are all very strong? Why wasn't I chosen yesterday? Am I not good enough?!
Her second thought was: Forget it, it's not their fault for not recognizing my potential. After all, I only fought two matches yesterday...
"Are you going there tonight?" Qiao Sang asked.
Tang Yi clenched his teeth. "Yes!"
Unlike ordinary Year 6 students, he had won the National School Beastmaster League's runner-up. Even if he didn't study, he could still get into a top academy with a casual College Entrance Exam performance. Teachers would turn a blind eye to his lack of homework, and he had no exam pressure.
"I'll go with you", Qiao Sang said.
"Ah?" Tang Yi was taken aback, then instinctively asked, "Aren't you going to study?"
Qiao Sang smiled. "A little time won't make a difference."
Tang Yi was silent for a moment.
Who was the one who used to be glued to her books, impossible to drag away?
Then he thought of something and suddenly became excited.
If Qiao Sang went, wouldn't he have a chance to face her in battle?!
At that moment, Yuna said, "I'll go with you."
"Okay." Qiao Sang nodded.
She could vaguely sense that Yuna was a bit more enthusiastic than before.
...
After school, the three of them walked out together.
At the school gate, medium and large familiars were waiting.
Sai Nan High School did not require students to live on campus, so every day, someone would come to pick up these young masters and misses.
At the school gate, Qiao Sang saw the bird familiar that had taken her to Sforvo Manor last time.
This time, she didn't approach it; instead, she had Fangy grow larger and sat on its back.
Fangy's appearance immediately drew the attention of many passersby.
In the Beastmaster community, familiars were a symbol of status. The rarer the familiar, the more prestigious it was.
Fangy, a familiar that had never appeared on Supernest, instantly made Qiao Sang the most eye-catching figure at the school gate.
People couldn't help but speculate about Qiao Sang's identity or take photos of Fangy, hoping their families could arrange a similar familiar for them.
Qiao Sang faced the crowd's attention calmly.
"Not coming with us?" Yuna asked.
"No, I'll have Fangy check the road conditions for next time." Qiao Sang said.
"Ya?"
Fangy was initially surprised, then its expression turned serious.
So, it had this mission too!
...
Herkim Tower.
As soon as they entered the elevator, Qiao Sang pressed the button for the 21st floor, while Tang Yi pressed the 11th floor.
Tang Yi was taken aback. "You've been here before?"
"Yesterday", Qiao Sang replied.
Yuna glanced at the elevator floor and seemed to recall something. "Qiao Sang, are you already a D-Rank Beastmaster?"
The 21st floor was where D-Rank Beastmasters conducted their arena battles.
Qiao Sang nodded. "I just took the exam yesterday."
After saying that, she thought about the 11th floor Tang Yi had pressed and turned to ask, "You haven't taken the exam yet?"
Tang Yi replied with a helpless tone, "The requirement for D-Rank Beastmaster is to have bonded with three familiars. Although I've met the brain domain criteria, I haven't bonded with my third familiar yet."
"So, you must bond with a familiar from Supernest", Qiao Sang thought for a moment and said, "Otherwise, you won't have enough time to take the D-Rank Beastmaster Exam before the College Entrance Exam."
"Tell me about it", Tang Yi shrugged.
"Bonding with a familiar from here is a good choice. Qiao Sang bonded with a Steel Sparrow from here", Yuna smiled.
Tang Yi looked at Qiao Sang in shock.
"You bonded with a familiar? That was quick. What's a Steel Sparrow like?"
Yuna was taken aback. "You didn't know?"
Tang Yi was puzzled. "I didn't know!"
He suddenly felt a bit heartbroken.
After all, he and Qiao Sang had come from Blue Star together, and such an important event as bonding with a familiar, he found out later than the people at Supernest.
"I bonded with it yesterday", Qiao Sang said. "I happened to meet a classmate before bonding, so everyone found out. They probably didn't tell you. I can summon the Steel Sparrow for you to see."
Oh, so it wasn't that Qiao Sang had intentionally told them first. Tang Yi's mood improved instantly.
At that moment, the elevator reached the 11th floor.
The doors opened.
"Aren't you getting off?" Qiao Sang asked.
"No, I'll go with you", Tang Yi said.
The Beast Arena was very accommodating. High-level Beastmasters couldn't participate in the arena battles of lower-level Beastmasters, but lower-level Beastmasters could join the battles of higher-level Beastmasters.
As long as they weren't afraid of losing face.
"Ding."
The 21st floor arrived.
(End of Chapter)
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