Chapter 964: The Fourth Round

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

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The next day.

Yukong Beast Arena.

Even though there was still about half an hour before the official start of the match, the stands were already a dense sea of heads.

People and pets alike were excitedly discussing their supported contestants.

"Do you think Huang Hailu will field his ace today?"

"Ke-ke!"

"I think so too! This is the match to enter the Top 27 after all. There's a high probability of B-rank Beast Masters facing off against each other."

"Ke-ke!"

As a pet, roughly twenty centimeters tall, ball-shaped, and mostly white, kept speaking, the spectators sitting nearby began to feel drowsy.

One spectator with stronger willpower turned around and said irritably, "Can you make your Drowsy Ball stop talking?"

The Drowsy Ball, a Primary-stage Psychic-type pet, carries a tone of voice that naturally makes people sleepy.

"Sorry, sorry." The Drowsy Ball's Beast Master manually muted him.

Drowsy Ball: ...

On the other side.

"Do you think Qiao Sang will field the Qinyin Fairy again today?"

"Unlikely, since we're heading into the Top 27."

"Sigh, besides the Qinyin Fairy, I really want to see Qiao Sang send out the Steel Sword Falcon. I've never seen such a cool bird-type pet before."

"You can actually look forward to that, at least he's a General-level pet." The man speaking remembered something and suddenly laughed. 

"Speaking of the Steel Sword Falcon, I can't help but laugh thinking about how he ended that match with only one feather left."

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly felt a chill on his head. He instinctively reached up to feel it, only to touch something slimy.

A bad feeling rose in the man's heart. He yanked his hand away and looked down.

It was full of hair.

"Who! Who was it!" The man turned around and roared.

In the row behind him, a Fruit-Hair Freak turned his head to the side, pretending to whistle as if it had nothing to do with him.

The Beast Master holding the Fruit-Hair Freak looked at the man's head and silently tried to block the pet with his hand. He knew the Fruit-Hair Freak's current idol was Qiao Sang's Steel Sword Falcon, the probability of the pet doing this was almost 100%.

However, the man's sharp eyes had already spotted them. This Fruit-Hair Freak was the only thing nearby with liquid that could cause instant hair loss. Who else could it be?

The man immediately stood up to pick a fight. People nearby tried to pull them apart, and security guards arrived quickly.

Incidents like this were common in the stands. Many people liked to bring their pets to watch matches, and the pets' characteristics and temperaments always managed to cause some chaos. Everyone was used to it.

The disorder in various sections of the audience did not affect the field. The host, standing on a bird-type pet, passionately introduced the heavyweight guests who had come to watch. The guests waved one by one.

"Today, Coach Tao from the National Beast Bureau has also come to the scene!" The host shouted.

At her words, a middle-aged woman in the first row with jet-black hair and fine lines at the corners of her eyes stood up, smiled, and waved to the crowd before sitting back down.

The National Beast Bureau, the National General Administration of Beasts, gathered the highest-level Beast Masters in the Dragon Kingdom. Contestants participating in international competitions every year also came from here. Retired professional Beast Masters from the Bureau could, at the very least, hold key positions in regional Beast Bureaus.

The audience began to buzz with discussion: "Why is she here?"

"Didn't they say Chen Tianqin has already been selected for the national team's development program? Maybe she's here for him."

"Could she be Chen Tianqin's coach?"

"Likely."

"I think she might just be here to scout talent. Haven't there been a few years where the champions were selected for the national team?"

"That's true, but they don't necessarily have to pick the champion. They surely look at age and other comprehensive factors... Do you think Qiao Sang might be scouted for the national team?"

"Definitely. Even the National Bureau can't find such a young B-rank Beast Master."

"Not necessarily. I heard Qiao Sang is a student at the Imperial Beast Academy. At her age, he still has to study."

During the discussion, the host finished introducing the guests and moved to the next step: "The contestants who have made it to this round have all fought their way through many challenges to get here. Next, let's look at the screen to see who the dawn of victory will shine upon in this round's groupings."

"Please welcome the referee from the Beast Notary Office!"

A giant virtual screen emerged in the center of the field. A woman in formal attire stood up and waved to the audience. Beside her, a Base-Divider Unit split into two, his heads floated toward the giant virtual screen. The screen rippled, and the heads disappeared.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the screen. The photos on the screen began to shuffle and cross wildly before finally settling into pairs. The Base-Divider Unit's heads floated back out without changing color.

Qiao Sang scrolled quickly and saw her photo in the second-to-last slot of the final row:

[Zeng Feitian VS Qiao Sang]

Zeng Feitian, 38 years old, B-rank Beast Master. Two King-level pets, one General-level, one High-level, and one Mid-level. One of his King-level pets was fielded in the third round, it’s a Dragon-type, but they say that isn't his ace yet... Great, either the opponent is C-rank, or I get a B-ranker who’s considered a handful...

 When Qiao Sang saw her opponent's photo and name, she couldn't help but complain inwardly.

Then she thought of something else and felt a bit exhausted. Looking at the grouping order, she would likely appear on the last day of the fourth round. The fifth round would start the very next day.

If I'm scheduled for the first day of the fifth round, that would be brutal... Qiao Sang hadn't even realized that she wasn't considering the possibility of losing.

Meanwhile, in the contestant area, a man with a black micro-fringe haircut stared at Qiao Sang's photo for a moment before getting up and leaving.

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7:00 PM.

Beast Center.

Qiao Sang was browsing the official forum for the Regional Championships. Since finishing her morning observations, she had spent the entire afternoon searching for information on Zeng Feitian.

Although Zeng Feitian was one of the few B-rank Beast Masters in the competition, he had only participated in the Regional Championships nine years ago when he was still a C-ranker. 

Since then, he hadn't really participated in large public matches, making data hard to find. She could only watch his previous battle videos and try to find threads about him on the official forum.

The top of the forum was mostly discussing today's contestants. Qiao Sang scrolled down until she saw a relevant thread:

# Qiao Sang VS Zeng Feitian, who has the higher win rate? #

She clicked on it, and there were already many comments: [While emotionally I want Qiao Sang to win, rational analysis says Zeng Feitian has the advantage. Hasn't it been leaked online? Qiao Sang only recently became a B-rank Beast Master. How can she compare to those veteran B-rankers?]

[I've watched both their matches. For now, I feel Qiao God has the advantage. Zeng Feitian can't handle the Ice Emperor Ram's Ice Field Domain alone. PS: I'm not a Qiao God fan.]

[I think it depends on luck. If Zeng Feitian is lucky enough to predict which match Qiao Sang fields the Ice Emperor Ram, he could send a General-level pet to wear her down first so she can't use Ice Field Domain when facing his King-level pet. Then he could win.]

[Zeng Feitian should win, right? Doesn't he have two King-level pets?]

[For Qiao Sang to become a B-rank Professional Beast Master, she must have two King-level pets. I tried the B-rank exam, it’s impossible to pass with only one.]

[Please don't compare Qiao Sang to us mere mortals. She's only 17 and has contracted the Qinyin Fairy. Why is it impossible for her to become a B-ranker with one King-level pet?]

[If Qiao Sang really only has one King-level pet, then Zeng Feitian will definitely win. Even if his Iron Battle Dragon can't beat the Ice Emperor Ram, he can drain her energy. He’ll still have another King-level pet, the Flying Radium King, left. How do you fight that?]

Flying Radium King... Qiao Sang's eyes locked onto those four words for a few seconds. She exited the forum and started searching.

The page jumped, and relevant information quickly appeared: [Flying Radium King, King-level Flying-type pet. Possesses the "Mark" characteristic. It is said that once prey is targeted by it, they will be marked and can be tracked no matter where they flee.]

With this characteristic, neither Little Treasure's invisibility nor Lubao's Melting Water will have any hiding effect... Qiao Sang instinctively thought.

"Yap yap..."

Yabao, who was watching the match on the sofa, suddenly sensed something. He turned his head toward the sky outside the window. However, there was nothing there.

An illusion? Yabao looked hesitant.

Just then, a loud boom sounded from the live match on TV, and the entire field sank.

"Yap yap!"

"Yap yap!"

Yabao turned and saw this scene, barking twice in excitement. He instantly forgot the feeling of being watched by some kind of gaze.

Meanwhile.

In the high sky thousands of meters away from the Beast Center, a giant silver-white bird-type pet was flapping its wings. The man with the black micro-fringe sitting on it looked at the data displayed on his pet identifier:

[Blazing Divine Lion, King-level Fire and Psychic dual-attribute pet from the Yuhua region. As it is a brand-new form, there is no detailed data available.]

Fire and Psychic dual-attribute King-level pet... a brand-new form... Zeng Feitian pondered for a few seconds before putting away the pet identifier.

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Over the next few days, Qiao Sang continued her routine between the Beast Center and the villa.

She thought that because she knew who her opponent was in advance and wasn't scheduled to fight on the first day, her sleep might be disturbed. However, that didn't happen. She slept very well these past few days, waking up only when the sun was high.

Soon, the final day of the fourth round arrived.

10:00 PM.

Yukong Beast Arena was brightly lit.

White beams of light swept across the audience. It was a dense sea of heads; not a single seat was empty. In the front-row guest area, Coach Tao, who had appeared once at the start of the fourth round, showed up again on this final night.

A match had just finished on the field, leaving it heavily damaged. As the contestants exited, the entire field sank and was replaced by a brand-new one.

On the commentary platform, Tian Yiwan saw the list and his eyes lit up. He spoke with a tone of suppressed excitement:

"Next up are contestant Qiao Sang and contestant Zeng Feitian! One is the youngest and strongest dark horse of this year, and the other is a powerhouse who has been undefeated since the start of the competition, having only fielded two pets so far. In this fierce battle between two B-rank Beast Masters, what kind of match will they bring us!"

As the commentary ended, two blue bird-type pets darted from the sides of the field, flying into the air and stabilizing themselves. Standing on each was a figure: Qiao Sang and Zeng Feitian.

The cheers exploded completely.

"Qiao Sang! Qiao Sang!"

"Zeng Feitian! Zeng Feitian!"

"Qiao God! Qiao God! Destined to be Godlike!"

"Feitian! Feitian! Soaring to the heavens!"

"Qinyin Fairy! Qinyin Fairy!"

Even though it was already past bedtime, everyone's spirit was even higher than in the previous match. This was the effect of high-popularity contestants.

In the family area.

Ye Xiangting, Liu Yao, and Mikayla were already sitting together. Since the competition entered the Top 54, the number of contestants had decreased significantly, leaving many empty seats in the family area. The official allowance for family members had been increased from two to three.

Ye Xiangting looked at the field, her expression tense. This was her first time watching her daughter fight a B-rank Professional Beast Master. B-rank Beast Masters were top-tier existences in any regional championship. In reality, the only B-ranker she knew was Qiao Sang.

"Don't be nervous." Mikayla turned to see her expression and comforted her. 

"I let her participate in the competition primarily for training. Whether she wins or loses, the goal will be achieved."

Ye Xiangting: ...

Why am I even more nervous now...

The essence of nervousness was wanting to win. Before, she didn't know Lubao could use a Super-rank skill like Ice Field Domain. Now she knew, and she also knew Qiao Sang wasn't behind other B-rankers, as they both had two King-level pets. It was hard for her not to want her daughter to win.

On the field.

The light and shadow of "10" appeared out of nowhere. The mechanical voice sounded simultaneously: "9, 8, 7... 3, 2, 1."

The light vanished. Qiao Sang and Zeng Feitian formed hand seals at the same time.

Two massive crimson star arrays lit up almost simultaneously. Following that, two exceptionally large figures appeared within the arrays.

The air on the field suddenly turned cold, and large snowflakes began to fall. The official livestream boiled instantly, the entire screen was flooded with exclamation marks and Ice Emperor Ram.

Iron Battle Dragon, Steel and Dragon dual-attribute King-level pet. Not fast, but extremely high defense. Violent temperament. Specializes in long-range attacks. Hates rain because it causes rust... 

Qiao Sang looked at the pet about thirteen meters tall in the distance. Its body had a luster like polished metal, standing on two legs with curved lines across its body. Relevant data flashed through her mind.

Lubao looked at the opponent in the distance, matching its image to a pet her Beast Master had described a few days ago. Without a word, she raised her head, and the gem on her forehead glowed with blue light.

At the same time, a magnificent white beam of light abruptly erupted from the Iron Battle Dragon's mouth, shooting directly toward Lubao.

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