Chapter 56: Mighty Pig

Note: From now on, Beastmaster and beast trainer are the same. (Kinda the same meaning, anyway.)

Qiao Sang didn't want the outside comments to affect Fire fang Dog's mood.

As long as Fire fang Dog was happy, that was enough.

Qiao Sang turned her gaze back to the television.

On the screen, two massive battle pets were fiercely clashing.

The score was already 5-4, it was match point.

Tonight's Interstellar Cup match was tied to her financial situation, so Qiao Sang had been watching attentively, right up to this moment.

Chen Mo was the one who had reached match point first.

Seeing Pasol's pet, the Phantomfire Dragon, pressing down on Chen Mo's Double-Headed Gear Dragon, Qiao Sang couldn't help but feel nervous.

She quickly grabbed Fire fang Dog, who was busy rewatching its own performance on her phone.

"Quick, cheer for that Phantomfire Dragon."

"Yap?"

Fire fang Dog tilted its head.

"The pet of that Beast Tamer you picked yesterday." Qiao Sang explained.

"Yap!"

Fire fang Dog understood and raised its paw.

"Yap! Yap! Yap!"

Twenty minutes later, Qiao Sang was satisfied as she watched the Double-Headed Gear Dragon make a comeback and win the match.

The next day.

At the usual spot in Area C, Qiao Sang noticed Bai Yunmiao, who had returned to her usual attire.

"Don't tell me you came all this way just to watch my match." Qiao Sang teased as she walked over with Fire fang Dog in her arms and sat down next to Bai Yunmiao.

"Haha, I really did come just to watch you." Bai Yunmiao replied with a smile.

Qiao Sang was momentarily stunned.

The Bai Xin Competition was being held at Shouke Park in the suburbs. Although it was close to the city, it still took a lot of time to travel there.

Most people who lost their matches wouldn't bother coming back and wasting time here.

That's what Fang Sisi did before.

But she never expected that Bai Yunmiao, whom she hadn't known for long, would actually take the time to come and watch her match...

Qiao Sang felt touched and was just about to say something.

Bai Yunmiao said, "Actually, my parents had a fight, and I didn't want to stay at home, so I came here."

Qiao Sang: ...The touching moment was gone...

"What happened with your parents?" Qiao Sang asked.

"They were chatting this morning, and the conversation shifted to my future." Bai Yunmiao explained.

"My mom wants me to pursue being a Coordinator, while my dad wants me to become a professional Beast Tamer. That's how the argument started."

"That should depend on your own wishes, right?" Qiao Sang commented.

Bai Yunmiao replied with a bitter expression, "I haven't decided yet. I'm just about to start my third year of high school, there's still a year before university. I haven't even started thinking about it."

Feeling lost about future plans is something most high school students face.

In her previous life, high school students only needed to focus on their grades and then choose their major based on their exam scores after the entrance exams.

But in this Beast Taming society, planning had to be done in advance.

"Is your Golden Vine about to evolve?" Qiao Sang asked.

"Yeah." Bai Yunmiao sighed.

Qiao Sang understood.

No wonder her parents were arguing over this.

Golden Vine has two evolution paths.

One is the Withered Vine, known for its strong combat power, and it might even learn an ability that deals damage to the target while also healing itself.

However, its body is covered in warty, toad-like skin.

If you wanted to use Withered Vine to become a Coordinator and participate in coordination competitions, it would almost certainly get eliminated in the first round.

After all, Coordinators are judged primarily on their pet's appearance and the elegance of their abilities.

The Withered Vine's appearance obviously doesn't make the cut.

Its other evolution path, the Sweetbinding Vine, can emit a scent that bewilders others, with pink leaves that look like a grass skirt around it, making it quite endearing.

But it's extremely weak in attack power, and expecting it to pass the Alliance's assessment to become a higher-level Beast Tamer is unrealistic.

You would have to contract a second, more powerful battle pet and train it into a mid-tier pet to pass the assessment.

That delay would put you far behind others in becoming an E-rank Beast Tamer.

F-rank Beast Tamers generally spend most of their time and energy on their first contracted pet, there's no doubt about that.

"If you can't decide, maybe you could ask Golden Vine for its opinion." Qiao Sang suggested.

She had a feeling that Golden Vine might lean towards evolving into Sweetbinding Vine.

After all, yesterday it was wearing a pink bow, clearly showing its love for beauty.

Bai Yunmiao was taken aback for a moment, then realized, "You're right."

After several days of competition, only 32 contestants remained.

The audience was thinning out.

But to keep up the excitement, the organizers had invited more guests and media.

In the guest seats:

"Are there any standout contestants in this competition?" One of the newly invited guests asked.

"There's a 17-year-old named Hou Xiangyu, with two mid-tier battle pets—a Baboosh Butterfly and a Weight-Control Doll."

"Seventeen years old, with ice-type and psychic-type pets, from Litan Beast Taming High School, right?"

"Besides Litan, which other school has a 17-year-old that strong?"

"There's also one named Lu You from Shengshui High School, contracted with a Small Dragon." Another guest suddenly spoke up.

The guest seats fell silent.

None of them had ever contracted a dragon-type battle pet...

Qiao Sang's opponent today wasn't on her watchlist.

But any Beast Tamer who could make it this far with a low-tier battle pet had some level of skill.

"Could you... maybe go a little easy on me?" The girl in a cap asked, blushing.

Qiao Sang was slightly surprised.

This was the first time she had encountered someone so shy during a match.

"Okay." Qiao Sang agreed.

The girl smiled gratefully and then summoned her pet.

A pure white pet with well-developed biceps and an upturned nose appeared on the ground.

"Oink!"

The snow-white pet flexed its arms, showing off its impressive muscles on both sides.

Qiao Sang: ... It's a Mighty Pig...

This doesn't match the image of its Beast Tamer at all!

Qiao Sang didn't realize that Fire fang Dog, who was wearing sunglasses and baring its teeth in a provocative grin at the Mughty Pig, also didn't match its image.

The two Beast Tamers stood quietly.

Meanwhile, the two pets locked eyes, engaging in an intense stare-down.

When the referee signaled the start of the match, the girl in the cap and Qiao Sang simultaneously gave the order to charge.

Fire fang Dog and Mighty Pig had already exchanged countless mental blows, and they were on the verge of clashing.

At their Beast Tamers' command, they simultaneously charged at each other.

The momentum on both sides was strong.

The two pets collided without holding back, neither side retreating.

The next second, Mighty Pig was sent flying.

Fire fang Dog stood firm, coldly adjusting its triangular sunglasses with its paw.

"Mighty Pig is unable to battle. Qiao Sang wins." The referee announced.

"Piggy!" The girl in the cap ran towards Mighty Pig, her voice quivering with tears.

Qiao Sang suddenly felt a little guilty.

She did promise to go easy...

But who knew the Mughty Pig would be so fragile...

Fire fang Dog's ramming experience was extensive.

It wore weighted rings every day and practiced ramming into a tree.

So knocking out a low-tier pet with one hit was normal.

But the other side was supposed to be a fighting-type pet known for its strength.

This felt a bit unusual...