Chapter 916: Groundlord and Iron-Sphere Ant

Read at: https://blogspot-translatedstories.blogspot.com/?m=1 

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The Groundlord, a dual-type Grass and Earth general-level pet beast, was enormous. As its internal energy grew, even without evolving, its body size continued to expand. Considering that most general-tier beasts averaged six meters, this one had to be in the late general stage at least.

After analyzing the situation, Qiao Sang spoke calmly: “Fusion.”

“Yap!”

Yabao opened his mouth, spewing a vortex of spiraling fire.

In moments, the crimson flame began to distort, as if the temperature suddenly spiked. Then, a beam of red mixed with gold pierced through the center of the fiery vortex.

The three energies merged.

A terrifying burst of flame power surged severalfold in intensity, striking the Groundlord squarely!

“GROOOOOUND!”

With a deafening explosion, the Groundlord let out a gut-wrenching scream.

So it’s a late general-level indeed. One strike isn’t enough… Qiao Sang noted. Seeing it still struggling and wailing in agony, she immediately followed up: “Hyper Beam!”

Yabao opened his mouth. A destructive white energy began condensing rapidly.

“GROOOOUND!”

Despite its pain, the Groundlord glared up furiously at the figures in the air and roared, calling for something.

Then, it opened its mouth,mcondensing the same terrifying white energy!

It knows Hyper Beam too?

Was it planning to counterattack, waiting for Yabao’s Hyper Beam to finish, knowing there’d be a momentary paralysis afterward?

Clever. But too bad this isn’t a fair duel.

Qiao Sang remained composed: “Deflect it.”

“Xun~”

Little Treasure appeared, his eyes glowing blue as he looked downward.

At that moment, Yabao’s Hyper Beam erupted first, an ear-splitting shriek tore through the air as the white beam shot toward the Groundlord.

The Groundlord’s own beam was about to fire but its left foreleg suddenly bent forward under some unseen force, forcing it to kneel.

BOOM!

Yabao’s beam struck first, detonating with a deafening roar. The Groundlord’s blast veered off course, grazing Yabao’s claw harmlessly.

When the explosion finally subsided, the Groundlord lay motionless, eyes shut, knocked out cold.

Guo Ruiqi stood frozen, eyes wide.

“Th-this… this is the power of a B-rank Beast Master…?”

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With the danger resolved, Qiao Sang finally had time to check their location. She pulled out her phone, opening the purchased map and comparing it to their surroundings.

Below was a vast mountain range, trees stretched nearly a hundred meters high, the soil was reddish, and a general-level Groundlord had appeared here… yet, none of these matched anything marked on her map.

“What are you looking at?” Asked Mikayla, seeing Qiao Sang frowning at her phone.

“The map. I’m trying to figure out where we are.”

“You can’t find the spot?”

Qiao Sang put the phone away, expression serious.

“We might have entered an unexplored region.”

That meant, unknown and dangerous territory.

Guo Ruiqi’s face turned pale.

“Then… what do we do now?”

Before Qiao Sang could answer, Mijiala asked: “Where did you get that map?”

“From a forum.” Qiao Sang replied truthfully.

Mijiala hesitated, then said cautiously: “Could it be… a fake map?”

“???”

Fake? What nonsense...

Mijiala kept her tone calm, pretending to be a local: “I know many who’ve entered Secret Realm No. 53. The entry point is random, yes, but it always leads to charted areas. I’ve never heard of anyone appearing in a completely undeveloped zone.”

Qiao Sang froze. Don’t tell me… I bought a fake map?

Guo Ruiqi, who had just been awed by her strength, couldn’t bear hearing that and quickly defended her: “But it’s not impossible! I heard that last month, someone in Secret Realm No. 9 was also teleported into an uncharted area, and sold that data for a fortune!”

A fortune? Qiao Sang’s eyes brightened slightly.

Mikayla nodded thoughtfully.

“Possible, but rare. I’m only saying, don’t rely too much on random maps from the internet.”

Realizing her own slip (she wasn’t supposed to sound like a mentor), she fell silent.

It’s not some random map… Qiao Sang reassured herself.

The forum post had hundreds of verified comments, many from explorers who’d actually been in Secret Realm No. 53. Everything had checked out. She’d cross-checked every thread for days, everything matched.

Now calmer, she decided: “Let’s assume this is an unknown region for now. We’ll move carefully. Head southwest.”

Yabao spread his wings, descending swiftly.

They reached the ground. The air was unnervingly still.

Qiao Sang pulled out a tool to determine direction.

“Southwest. Let’s go.”

No objections.

They pushed through the forest, crossing streams and valleys. Every few minutes, Qiao Sang would stop and let Guo Ruiqi sense for Lele Seed’s location.

They were attacked a few times by wild beasts, but nothing too strong, Yabao and the others quickly dispatched them.

After roughly ten kilometers, Guo Ruiqi collapsed against a tree, panting: “Can we… take a break?”

Right. F-tier Beast Masters had weak stamina.

Qiao Sang surveyed the area, then nodded:

“Alright. Rest.”

Guo Ruiqi sighed in relief, flopping down.

“Xun xun~”

Little Treasure, ever efficient, immediately pulled out an outdoor mat and food from his storage ring, levitating them neatly into place.

Guo Ruiqi, now less intimidated, asked curiously: “I’ve been meaning to ask, what’s this pet’s name? It can store so much stuff. It’s so convenient.”

“Xun~”

Little Treasure smirked proudly. Finally, someone appreciates me.

“It’s called the Ghost Ring King.” Qiao Sang explained, taking a bite of her sandwich.

“Native to the Yuhua region.”

“You’re from Yuhua, Old Qiao?” Guo Ruiqi asked.

Mijiala nearly laughed out loud at him calling a teenager Old Qiao.

Qiao Sang smiled.

“Just call me Qiao Sang.”

“How could I! That’s disrespectful!”

Mikayla, feigning aloof superiority, added, “He’s right. It’s rude for a junior to call you by name.”

Qiao Sang sighed internally. He’s literally my peer…

“Then call me Senior Qiao. But not ‘Old.’ I’m not old yet.”

Guo Ruiqi nodded seriously.

“Yes, Senior Qiao!”

Qiao Sang chuckled and continued, “Yes, I’m from Yuhua.”

“I knew it.” Guo Ruiqi said. 

“None of your pets look like Central Region breeds.”

At that moment, Qiao Sang glanced upward.

“Qingbao.”

“Qing qing~”

A breeze gathered and formed into Qingbao’s shape.

Guo Ruiqi froze, his sandwich fell from his hands. His mind went blank.

That pet… looked just like the legendary Qingqing Ni!

Mikayla, remembering her cover identity, widened her eyes in feigned shock: “Qingqing Ni?!”

“Qing qing~”

Qingbao smiled sweetly in greeting.

“This one’s from the Central Region.” Qiao Sang said casually.

Guo Ruiqi gaped, mind spinning.

“You… you’re the Beast Master who contracted Qingqing Ni?!”

“Yes.” Qiao Sang admitted simply.

His jaw dropped. It all made sense now, this was the rumored B-rank tamer who bonded with a legendary pet!

He stared at Qingbao dreamily.

I’m breathing the same air as Qingqing Ni…

Even Mikayla, keeping her act, let a flicker of envy cross her eyes.

“Didn’t expect the one who contracted Qingqing Ni to be you.”

Before Qiao Sang could respond, something crawled up, a small black ant-like pet beast, only about twenty centimeters tall.

“Iron-iron.”

It pointed to the black ore in Gangbao's bowl and drooled.

Gangbao hesitated, then silently handed it a piece.

The ant took it eagerly and began munching.

“Iron-iron!”

Its eyes brightened with joy after the first bite.

Mikayla immediately recognized it and murmured softly: “Iron-Sphere Ant… a steel-type beginner beast. They feed on ore and live in colonies. If you see one, there are usually ten thousand more underground.”

At once, Qiao Sang’s expression hardened. She focused and sensed the ground beneath them tremble.

A rumbling came from below. Countless vibrations. Something massive, many somethings, were coming up.

Her pupils shrank.

“Up! Everyone, to the sky!”

“Xun xun…”

Little Treasure, cheeks still stuffed with food, activated teleportation.

In an instant, everyone and the mat, and their gear, vanished and reappeared hundreds of meters up.

“Iron-iron! Iron-iron!”

Then came a chorus of shrill cries.

Tens of thousands of Iron-Sphere Ants burst from the ground, swarming, piling over one another until the land below turned pitch-black!

Guo Ruiqi’s scalp went numb, all thoughts of Qingqing Ni forgotten.

“T-there’s so many!”

Up in the air, the lone Iron-Sphere Ant they’d brought along excitedly shouted downward.

The swarm below responded in unison, frenzied, climbing atop one another to form a rising tower that reached tens of meters high.

“Gang Zhan…”

Gangbao looked at her black ore bowl, then at the ants, and suddenly tipped all the remaining ore overboard.

The ants went berserk, diving after the falling stones, collapsing their tower in the process.

“Sleep Gust!”

The Sleepbird flared its wings, ready to attack but Qiao Sang raised a hand.

“Leave it to me. Yabao!”

“Yap!”

Yabao beat his wings hard, sending a torrent of scorching crimson wind downward.

The fiery storm swept across the earth. Ants screeched and fell one after another.

But many still climbed, furious now.

“Fusion Wind!” Qiao Sang commanded.

“Gang Zhan.”

Gangbao understood. She spread her wings, stirring a mighty gale.

“Qing qing!”

Qingbao realized she  was part of this fusion, excitement flashing in her eyes, she turned into wind itself, merging into the storm.

The gale seemed to gain life, swirling violently both vertically and horizontally, sweeping through the ant horde.

Ants screamed as they were lifted high, flung, and crushed.

Moments later, the ground returned to silence. The Iron-Sphere Ant pillars were gone. Most lay unconscious, the rest scattered back underground.

“Qing qing…”

Qingbao reappeared, breathing heavily but proud.

Finally… all done.

No, there was still one left.

Qiao Sang turned her gaze toward the lone Iron-Sphere Ant that had started all this.

Sensing her stare, the tiny ant froze, then clenched its jaw, squeezed its eyes shut, and jumped off the carpet.

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T/n: I... Once again appeared! I'm kind of free🥹✊ Remember that cough I mentioned? It turned to a full blown fever + coughing fit. Thought I was gonna die from feeling too cold. Don't worry, I recovered now. But it got replaced with a damn continuous cough and sore throat😓 Oh well, that's fine. I finally updated🥹 Are y'all surprised?

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