Chapter 978: Coach Tao Admits Coming for Qiao Sang (Two-in-One)
Chapter 978: Coach Tao Admits Coming for Qiao Sang (Two-in-One)
6:00 PM.
Beastmaster Center.
Room 2603.
Yuan Tianlong, 37 years old, a B-Class Beastmaster, had his brain domain spontaneously awaken at the age of 10, and bonded with a Young Sound Dragon named Qiao Sang, who had hatched from an egg and stayed by his side ever since. Qiao Sang was lying on the bed, holding a mobile phone and looking at the information she had found.
Typically, Beastmasters can only visit Beastmaster bases or Beast Companion Nurseries to meet their desired Bonded Beast Companions after their brain domain first awakens.
However, some people are born with privileges.
When a Guardian is a B-Rank or higher Beastmaster, they can apply for a familiar or a Beast Egg to keep by their side or their child's side, allowing them to build a bond in advance. This way, when they are finally able to bond, the familiar will already be accustomed to them and can obey their commands immediately.
Yuan Tianlong was one of those privileged individuals.
Later, he bonded with every familiar being a Dragon-type.
In a past interview, he stated that his goal was to become a Dragon-type Champion.
Be careful of Yuan Tianlong... Qiao Sang recalled Chen Tianqin's words, falling into deep thought.
Could it be that he thinks I have a high chance of winning, and Yuan Tianlong is my biggest obstacle, so he warned me to be careful?
As she was pondering, Teacher Mikara's voice rang out:
"Do you want to go out for dinner tonight?"
Qiao Sang looked up and saw that Teacher Mikara had appeared in the room out of nowhere. She replied:
"No, I'll just order takeout."
As her ranking continued to rise, the people outside became increasingly frenzied. She dared not go out right after a victory.
"Takeout isn't necessary. What do you want to eat? I'll bring it back for you", Mikara said. "After we eat, we can go to training."
Qiao Sang didn't hesitate and named the dish:
"I want the braised meat and burnt buns we had last time."
"Xunxun!"
Treasure Seeker called out, indicating that it wanted some too.
Mikara, who had lived a long time, could guess what Treasure Seeker meant even if she didn't understand its words. She smiled and said:
"Your Ghost Ring King eats anything."
Most familiars only eat energy-rich food, but Qiao Sang's Ghost Ring King was different. It ate everything, and she had even seen it cracking sunflower seeds.
Qiao Sang smiled and replied:
"It likes to try new things."
Mikara chuckled and then vanished into thin air.
About ten minutes later, Mikara reappeared with the takeout.
On the coffee table, Treasure Seeker opened its mouth, using Psychic Control to guide the meat into its mouth.
Qiao Sang ate slowly, then thought of something and asked:
"Can the Co-Return Trait be controlled and activated at will?"
Mikara immediately understood: "You didn't find any information about the Illusionary Hate Fox having the Co-Return Trait?"
S-Rank Beastmasters are S-Rank Beastmasters, indeed impressive. They don't need much explanation... Qiao Sang nodded:
"During matches, when the Illusionary Hate Fox was attacked, its opponents never felt any pain."
Mikara didn't hesitate to answer:
"That's because this Trait is a Hidden Ability."
Hidden Ability? Qiao Sang was taken aback, remembering that Treasure Seeker's Cursed Body, Steel Treasure's Bond Strength, and Lulu's Snowfall Trait were all listed as Hidden Abilities in the Beastmaster Codex.
She had some understanding of Hidden Abilities.
Unlike the ordinary Traits that familiars are born with, Hidden Abilities can be trained through certain methods.
Of course, the prerequisite is that the familiar's genes must contain the potential for training.
For example, some familiars lack the means for Bond Evolution. No matter how good their relationship with their Beastmaster or how strong their Telepathy, they cannot gain Bond Strength, which is necessary for Evolution.
Migala continued:
"Most Traits are passive, but some are not. For example, the Ghost Ring King's Pierce and the Clear Hidden Sprite's Wind Transformation can be controlled. Hidden Abilities are originally passively triggered, but when the Level reaches a certain point, they can be controlled to determine whether they are activated."
"Do you know why familiars with Bond Strength often align with their Beastmaster's thoughts during battles? That's because Bond Strength remains active during battles, but in everyday life, it might be in an untriggered state."
Bond Strength can be in an untriggered state in everyday life? Qiao Sang's eyes lit up.
Does that mean Steel Treasure could control it to not hear his inner voice?
Steel Treasure, munching on Energy Pills, gave his Beastmaster a meaningful glance.
Migala took a sip of soup and added with a smile:
"However, this usually applies to Bond Strengths with lower Levels. Your Steel Sword Falcon has undergone Bond Evolution multiple times, so its Bond Strength is definitely high. Even in everyday life, it might still maintain a mental connection with you."
Qiao Sang and Steel Treasure exchanged a knowing look and sighed in unison.
"But it can be controlled, right?" Qiao Sang asked.
Migala nodded: "Exactly. The Co-Return Trait of the Illusionary Hate Fox either hadn't appeared before your match, or it was controlled due to a high Level. I lean towards the latter."
Qiao Sang reflected inwardly, feeling somewhat miffed that Chen Tianqin, who had entered the National Beastmaster Bureau, hadn't trained for the match and had chosen to reveal such a powerful card in their first encounter. It was quite flattering, in a way...
At that moment, Migala put down his chopsticks, drew a napkin, and elegantly wiped his mouth, saying:
"Almost forgot, there's another possibility."
"What is it?" Qiao Sang asked curiously.
"Information warfare", Migala explained. "Chen Tianqin is from the National Beastmaster Bureau, so some of his past information might have been erased. When you checked his information, you probably only saw his recent matches."
Qiao Sang nodded, a bit taken aback.
"Exactly."
When researching an opponent, one typically focuses on recent Battle Videos, as these best reflect their current strength.
Older matches are harder to find, and the Levels of the Beastmasters and their familiars were lower back then, making such information less useful.
Migala elaborated:
"Contestants in major matches, such as International Tournaments and interstellar competitions, consider information crucial. They usually have dedicated teams to gather information on their opponents and to erase some of their own information online, making it difficult for opponents to find or to spread misleading information."
"Your opponent today might have already triggered the Co-Return Trait of the Illusionary Hate Fox before its Evolution, but this information could have been erased."
"You know, people easily forget. Even those who have seen the Illusionary Hate Fox's Co-Return Trait might only remember the outcome, not the details."
So, this is what a major match entails... Qiao Sang thought to herself, feeling like she had learned something new.
After finishing their meal, Treasure Seeker’s eyes glowed with a blue light, and the two of them instantly vanished from the room along with their familiars.
...
Suburbs, villa.
Guardfur Tiger opened the door, and as soon as Qiao Sang stepped in, a flurry of confetti rained down.
“Congratulations on making it to the top 16!” Yu Ke and Yu Le exclaimed in unison.
“Fangy”
Fangy swiped his paw, brushing the confetti off his head.
“Xunxun~”
Treasure Seeker appeared, happily twirling around in the falling confetti.
A breeze blew, and Qingbao silently drifted away from the confetti.
Qiao Sang chuckled.
“Just the top 16, no need for such a grand celebration, right?”
“How can you say that!” Yu Le retorted excitedly. “You defeated Chen Tianqin, the one who was selected into the National Beastmaster Bureau!”
Migala coughed.
“You guys chat, I’ll wait for you at the outdoor arena.”
With that, he walked toward the outdoor arena.
“Now many people are saying that since you beat someone from the National Beastmaster Bureau, you’re bound to join it too,” Yu Ke said with a smile.
Qiao Sang remained unperturbed.
“I’m already in.”
Yu Ke: “!!!”
She stared at Qiao Sang in shock. Even when she saw the photo of Tao Yun Kai and Qiao Sang walking out of the Emperor Hotel together, she had only guessed that they might have had a conversation. She never imagined that Qiao Sang had already joined!
The National Beastmaster Bureau’s move was incredibly swift!
Compared to Yu Ke, Yu Le was much calmer. She paused for a moment before exclaiming,
“I knew Qiao Sang would make it into the National Beastmaster Bureau! That Rong Family guy kept boasting that he would get in, but even if he booked all the Beastmaster Arenas, he was still eliminated early.”
Qiao Sang’s heart skipped a beat.
“The Rong Family guy?”
“Rong Yuhua. He’s also participating in this Regional Tournament,” Yu Ke explained. “I saw him sitting next to you in a couple of matches, but you might not remember him.”
Of course I remember, how could I forget? I even have his contact information... It turns out he booked all the training grounds... Qiao Sang’s eyelids twitched, and she felt an urge to take out her phone and delete him.
She resisted the childish impulse and then thought of something. She took out her phone and checked the status of the Beastmaster Center and nearby training fields.
Soon, she discovered that all the rentable training grounds were still booked.
Qiao Sang sighed inwardly and put her phone away.
“What’s wrong?” Yu Ke asked.
“All the arenas are still booked,” Qiao Sang replied.
Yu Ke speculated,
“Rong Yuhua must have forgotten to cancel his bookings. It’s likely that some Beastmasters who came to watch the matches got excited and wanted to battle, so they headed to the training grounds.”
Yu Le added,
“Maybe Rong Yuhua just has too much money and forgot to cancel his previous bookings?”
Qiao Sang was no longer interested in the topic.
“Let’s not talk about it. I’m going to train.”
With that, she headed toward the open training ground.
Yu Le took out her phone, searched, and then put it down.
“All the arenas are booked until the end of the matches. It’s too much of a coincidence, so it must be Rong Yuhua who forgot to cancel.”
Yu Ke pondered for a few seconds.
“Don’t forget, besides Rong Yuhua, there are several other contestants capable of booking all the arenas.”
Yu Le thought about it and agreed.
...
It was eleven o’clock at night.
Qiao Sang returned to room 2603, freshened up, and lay down on the bed. She closed her eyes as usual and entered the Beastmaster Codex to check her progress.
“Xunxun?”
Treasure Seeker lowered his voice and pointed at the door with his short toe, looking at Qingbao and calling out to ask if they should go check outside.
“Qingqing.”
Qingbao glanced at their Beastmaster, who had just closed her eyes, and shook his head.
“Xunxun?”
Treasure Seeker looked puzzled.
Why?
He remembered that the Fifth One had gone out to play with him a few days ago, or rather, to find troublemakers.
Why not today?
As he was thinking, Qiao Sang opened her eyes and asked, “What are you going to check outside?”
“Xunxun…”
Treasure Seeker tensed up, his eyes darting around, and he called out hesitantly, looking guilty.
Nothing…
You know, you’re not very good at lying, Qiao Sang couldn’t help but think.
“Qingqing~”
At this moment, Qingbao called out sweetly, indicating that there had been a Villain monitoring their room recently, and Treasure Seeker wanted to check if there were any Villains nearby.
Treasure Seeker looked at Qingbao, bewildered.
What?
So this can be talked about?
Why did you keep it a secret last time?
“Ya Ya?!”
Fangy, who had been dozing off in bed, suddenly sat up, his eyes wide and serious.
What?! A Villain was monitoring our room? Where?
“Qingqing.”
Qingbao called out, indicating that the Villain had already been driven away.
“Fangy”
So they’re gone…
Fangy relaxed, but the drowsiness quickly returned, and he lay back down on the bed.
Qiao Sang recalled something and realized, “So the mysterious strong wind in the room the other day was your doing?”
“Xunxun…”
Treasure Seeker nodded.
“Qingqing…”
Just as Qiao Sang was about to speak, Qingbao lifted his head and looked at her with his pure eyes, calling out cautiously, wondering if what they did was too bad…
“How could it be!” Qiao Sang immediately countered. “They were wrong to come and spy on us.”
Then she remembered something and added, “If not for you, I wouldn’t have been able to sleep so soundly these past few days.”
“Qingqing~”
Qingbao’s eyes curved into a smile as he nuzzled against his Beastmaster.
Qiao Sang gently stroked Qingbao’s head.
“Xunxun…”
Treasure Seeker watched as the Fifth One nuzzled against their Beastmaster, feeling a bit played…
Steel Treasure, by the window, turned his gaze to Qingbao, looking thoughtful.
Lulu, in the water tank, continued to condense her Ice Armor, undisturbed.
…
The next day.
Eight in the morning.
Qiao Sang was woken by a series of vibrations. She fumbled for her mobile phone and saw a series of messages.
She glanced through a few, all asking when she had joined the National Beastmaster Bureau.
She had just joined a couple of days ago, and it was already out… Did Mom tell them? Qiao Sang remembered her mother’s persistent questioning after the match about why she hadn’t told her about joining the National Beastmaster Bureau, and her feigned annoyance. She then checked the trending topics, and the first one was:
[Coach Tao Confirms Coming for Qiao Sang]
The next one was:
[Qiao Sang Joins National Beastmaster Bureau]
Qiao Sang tapped on the first trending topic. It was a video of Coach Tao being interviewed.
The reporter asked, “Someone snapped a photo of you and Qiao Sang leaving the Emperor Hotel one after another. Were you dining together?”
“Yes,” Coach Tao nodded.
“Did you know each other before?” the reporter asked.
“No,” Coach Tao replied. “I invited her to discuss joining the National Beastmaster Bureau.”
(End of Chapter)
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