NOVPUB
Chapter 737: As Expected, They''re Coming For Me
Qiao Sang was tempted.
To be honest, she felt like she had encountered the greatest temptation of her life.
A purebred Thundercrack Dragon Egg, even beast-taming newbies knew the value of such a pet egg.
Before she got the unlimited card, she might’ve thought that a purebred Thundercrack Dragonn egg was outrageously expensive. But at least, if you had the money, you could get it.
But now, she understood, pet eggs like this couldn’t be obtained with money alone.
Qiao Sang fell silent for a moment.
Dean Annmaria smiled lightly and said: “What are you still hesitating about?”
A purebred Thundercrack Dragon egg, even S-rank Beast Tamers would be tempted by it.
Qiao Sang suddenly said, “I’m thinking about something…”
Dean Anmaria responded gently, “What is it?”
Qiao Sang said, “My brain domain hasn’t reached the level needed to contract a fifth pet yet. If I keep this egg and someone snatches it, what then?”
Dean Annmaria was confident now and smiled: “If you’re worried, I can keep the Thundercrack Dragon egg here for now. Once your brain domain reaches 50%, I’ll give it to you.”
Qiao Sang added, “I have another question.”
“What is it?” Dean Annmaria remained gentle.
“I only have one semester here as an exchange student, and by the end of this term, my brain domain definitely won’t reach 50%.” Qiao Sang said.
“If I accept your offer, I’ll need to make a decision and complete all formalities this semester. If everything’s finalized and you go back on your word, I won’t be able to change my enrollment or major anymore.”
Dean Annmaria wasn’t displeased by her doubts, her smile actually grew brighter.
In her eyes, if Qiao Sang was concerned about this, then she must really want the purebred Thundercrack Dragon egg.
“I can bring in a Vow Dada to make an oath with you.”
“Vow Dada?” Qiao Sang asked with a curious tone.
“It’s a pet from our Chaosu Star.” Dean Annmaria explained.
“Any vow made in its presence, if broken, will bring misfortune upon the one who made it.”
Bring misfortune? That pet didn’t sound simple at all… Qiao Sang’s mind stirred, but she didn’t ask further. Instead, she said: “I need some time to think about it.” ṜΆNỖ𝖇Ёṣ
In truth, she wasn’t actually worried about either of those two things.
As the Dean of the Pet Items Department at Yulianton University, someone of that level often cared more about their reputation than scarce resources. Otherwise, she wouldn’t be trying to poach her for something that wasn’t even certain yet.
She said all that just to buy herself more time to think, and to steady the other side, showing she was indeed tempted.
“Of course.” Dean Annmaria said with a smile.
“If you’ve made up your mind, feel free to contact me anytime.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Qiao Sang felt everything in front of her twist again.
When the scene calmed down, she was already back in the familiar stepped lecture hall.
“Yap!”
“Xun xun!”
At that moment, the voices of Yabao and Little Treasure rang out.
Qiao Sang looked down to find Yabao staring at her with worry, and she was still holding him in her arms.
Little Treasure also appeared, looking at her with teary eyes, while his paw held a pet, its body mostly covered in cotton, bound up with a 3D-modeled Shadow Bind skill.
Did that skill transfer her consciousness elsewhere while leaving her body in place? But if it was just her consciousness, how did Dean Annmaria see her? Qiao Sang set her doubts aside and said: “I’m fine. Let them go.”
“Xun xun…”
Little Treasure withdrew the Shadow Bind.
“Popo.”
The pet covered mostly in cotton dropped onto the desk with a calm expression, as if it hadn’t just been tied up.
It reached a paw behind its cotton-covered back, rummaged around, and pulled out a business card, handing it to her.
Qiao Sang took it and glanced at it, it clearly bore the name Dean Annmaria Green and her contact information.
“Popo.”
The cotton-covered pet let out a soft sound, then jumped off the desk and walked away.
Before leaving, it gave a glance in Little Treasure's direction.
So it was a pet sent by Dean Annmaria… Watching the pet’s disappearing figure, Qiao Sang fell into thought.
The fact that so many deans had contacted her over the past couple of days must mean they were all trying to recruit her because of what Yulianton University’s president had said…
To be honest, even without comparing the rankings of the two top universities, she was from Blue Star. Her mother lived there, of course she was more inclined toward the Imperial Beast University.
But that purebred Thundercrack Dragon egg was such a heavy temptation… Qiao Sang reined in her scattered thoughts, suddenly remembering something. She pulled out her phone to check the time, then turned to Little Treasure: “Let’s go straight to the training ground.”
“Xun xun~”
Little Treasure's eyes lit up with a blue glow at the sound.
The next second, Qiao Sang's vision went black.
When she opened her eyes again, she found herself already in the training grounds exclusive to the Beast Taming Department.
Most of her classmates had already arrived.
Dorothy walked over.
“Why are you only arriving now? I thought you'd be here earlier.”
“Something came up.” Qiao Sang said, not elaborating.
Dorothy didn’t mind and instead asked, “Have you decided which pet beast to send up for the combo skill demonstration?”
Qiao Sang nodded. “Yes, I’m sending Gangbao up.”
Gangbao? Dorothy was momentarily stunned before realization struck. She confirmed, “You mean the Steel Guardian Falcon?”
“No.” Qiao Sang replied.
“The Steel-Slash Giant Falcon.”
Steel-Slash Giant Falcon? Before Dorothy could react, the male skill instructor walked into the training ground.
At the same time, the class bell rang.
“Is everyone ready?” After taking attendance as per procedure, the thin-faced instructor scanned the group.
“We’re ready!” The students replied.
Combining different basic skills into a combo skill is considered the true entry point into becoming a professional beast tamer.
For freshmen at other schools, making two skills work together successfully is no easy feat, it typically requires a period of training.
But for students at Yulianton, it’s not that difficult.
Although the high-tier skills their pet beasts have may not be fully mastered yet, the basic low- to mid-tier skills were already proficient.
Some had even already considered combo skills before.
The skill instructor smiled with satisfaction.
“Since everyone’s ready, who would like to be the first to demonstrate?”
Many hands shot up.
The instructor glanced at Qiao Sang, who hadn’t raised her hand, and casually picked someone else.
“Valery, you go.”
A blonde boy stepped into the center of the field.
Beside him was a yellow-furred feline beast, covered in purple and yellow spikes around its neck and body.
Lei-Charge Meow. A high-level electric-type pet beast. It absorbs negative ions from the air, and the gaps in its fur can also generate a large number of negative ions, which often produce crackling sounds. When its mood becomes excited, it starts storing electricity… Qiao Sang instantly recognized the beast and unconsciously recalled related information.
She suddenly remembered the unfamiliar pet beast earlier, the one that transferred her consciousness, and the ones that Dean Annmaria mentioned, Vow Dada and Thundercrack Dragon.
Qiao Sang reflected inwardly.
She knew quite a lot about pet beasts available in the market, but when it came to rare ones, her knowledge was still too limited. She needed to make time to go to the library and read books specifically about rare pet beasts.
After all, her ultimate goal was the Interstellar Cup, and anyone qualified to participate at that level wouldn’t have simple beasts.
In the center of the field-
After Valery took his place, he nodded at Lei-Charge Meow.
“Lei.”
Lei-Charge Meow stepped forward, then slowly grew in size until it reached about three meters tall.
“Thunder Baseball!” Valery suddenly shouted.
Thunder Baseball? Is that even a real skill name? Qiao Sang blinked, confused.
“Lei!”
At that moment, Lei-Charge Meow let out a loud cry and opened its mouth.
A yellow thunderball filled with violent energy rapidly formed.
Then, its tail took on a metallic sheen. With a twist of its body, it fiercely struck the thunderball with its Iron Tail.
Whoosh!
The thunderball shot diagonally through the air.
Just when it became a yellow dot in the distance, it exploded.
At that moment, Qiao Sang understood why it was called “Thunder Baseball”...
The combination caused quite a bit of discussion among the students.
The skill instructor smiled and said, “Tell us about your combo skill.”
Valery explained: “My combo skill is Thunderball plus Iron Tail. The force of Iron Tail allows the thunderball to be launched farther.”
“But more importantly, skills fired from a beast’s mouth have predictable trajectories, which makes them easier for opponents to dodge.”
“By adding Iron Tail, the swing's angle, power, and direction vary, making the trajectory harder to predict and thus harder to avoid.”
“Very clever idea.” The instructor said approvingly.
“You may step down.”
Then he scanned the crowd again.
“Anyone else want to go?”
One by one, more students went up to demonstrate.
Qiao Sang noticed that while most people weren’t using especially powerful skills, their ideas were smart, creating effects where the whole was greater than the sum of its parts.
After more than ten people had demonstrated, Qiao Sang finally raised her hand.
She finally raised her hand… The instructor saw and immediately called out, “Qiao Sang, your turn.”
As soon as he said that, the entire class perked up and turned their eyes to the black-haired girl with a ponytail.
If they were most curious about anyone’s demo, it was undoubtedly Qiao the Prodigy.
Qiao Sang walked calmly to the center. Yabao jumped down from her arms.
Just when everyone thought the beast she’d demonstrate would be Fire Qilu, Qiao Sang formed a seal with both hands.
An orange-yellow star array lit up.
Soon, a massive figure nearly eight meters tall began to emerge.
Wait...this size seems… off… Everyone straightened up and stared.
“Gang slice.”
As Gangbao’s full form appeared, the scene exploded into noise.
“What the heck? Qiao Sang has this beast? When did that happen?!”
“Oh my god! That size! Is that a king-level beast?!”
“No, no, calm down! It doesn’t have the aura of a king-level beast!”
“Why does this beast seem familiar…”
“I remember now! On assessment day, Steel Guardian Falcon temporarily evolved and looked just like this!”
“Yes! It’s Steel Guardian Falcon’s evolved form! But it seems bigger than expected!”
“Did Qiao Sang’s Steel Guardian Falcon accumulate enough energy to evolve fully?”
“That was fast!”
Among the front row, Dorothy suddenly recalled what Qiao Sang told her earlier and murmured, “Steel-Slash Giant Falcon…”
Qiao Sang remained calm, seemingly unaware of the commotion she’d caused.
She didn’t ask her beast to demonstrate directly like the others. Instead, she said, “I need an opponent to demonstrate this more clearly.”
The crowd quieted down. Everyone exchanged looks, clearly reluctant.
Though Steel Guardian Falcon had just evolved, with a body larger than even general-level beasts, and with Prodigy Qiao as its tamer, this felt more like a one-sided beatdown than a demonstration.
“I’ll do it.” The instructor, seasoned and experienced, was only briefly surprised by the evolution. He stepped forward.
“Any requirements for the opposing beast?”
Qiao Sang thought for a moment.
“I want one that’s fast and has high reaction speed.”
“Understood.” The instructor formed a seal.
A massive purple star array lit up.
A white horse-like beast about one meter tall appeared, with a blazing mane running from its head to its tail.
High-level pet beast, Blazing Swift Horse… Qiao Sang immediately recalled its data.
“How do you want to demonstrate, battle or coordination?” The instructor asked.
“Treat it as an attack target. I want to see if it can dodge my combo skill.” Qiao Sang said.
The instructor glanced subtly at the evolved Steel Guardian Falcon.
Generally, larger beasts are less agile.
Especially those that just evolved, their movement often lags until they adjust to their new bodies.
If it were against another beast, it might be okay. But against Blazing Swift Horse… her demonstration might fail.
The instructor wasn’t the only one with this concern, some students felt the same.
“If I’d known it was just about dodging a combo skill, I would’ve volunteered.”
“Yeah, I thought it was an actual battle.”
“Same here…”
While the crowd murmured, Gangbao flew into the air, and Blazing Swift Horse took its place on the other side.
“Begin.” Qiao Sang said mentally.
Without a word, Gangbao folded her wings and shot toward the target like a white flash.
A burst of electricity, no commands were issued by the instructor.
It was only a dodge test, after all.
With beasts of equal level, he was confident in Swift Horse’s reflexes, as confident as he was in his own A-rank Beast Tamer credentials.
Gangbao moved with terrifying speed, like a white lightning beast.
Blazing Swift Horse remained calm, unfazed.
As Gangbao charged, Swift Horse split into over a dozen identical afterimages, all running in random patterns.
The phantom images blurred with speed, just finding the real one seemed impossible, let alone landing a hit… The crowd sighed, but the next second, their eyes widened in shock.
The white flash was still six meters from the ground when all the afterimages vanished.
Only the real Swift Horse remained, looking pained, mouth agape, seemingly gasping for air, frozen in place.
Then -bang- the white flash struck it dead-on.
“Gang Slice.”
Gangbao landed, her expression calm.
What just happened…? The entire class was stunned.
When others used combo skills, their combinations and logic were clear.
But with Qiao Sang’s evolved Steel Guardian Falcon, aside from the Quick Attack, no one could even tell what the combo was!
And yet, it successfully hit Swift Horse!
That was the instructor’s own beast. Too incredible… At that moment, Qiao Sang’s legendary aura grew even stronger.
Air Absorption… The instructor was the first to figure it out.
No wonder she needed an opponent…
“My combo skill is Air Absorption combined with Quick Attack…” Amid the silence, Qiao Sang began explaining her combo and the logic behind it.
As those words were spoken, everyone revealed expressions of sudden realization, admiration, and reverence, as expected of you.
---
When class ended, some people couldn’t wait to pull out their phones and post about the full evolution of the Steel Guardian Falcon in group chats or on forums.
Qiao Sang looked at Little Treasure, just about to tell him to use spatial teleportation.
At that moment, a somewhat familiar voice called out: “Qiao Sang, the Rune Club’s event has been finalized, it’s tomorrow at noon, 12 o’clock.”
Qiao Sang looked toward the source of the voice. It was the female classmate who had been inviting her these past few days.
She paused for two seconds before replying, “That’s a shame. I actually wanted to go, but I’m only free after school tomorrow afternoon.”
The girl’s smile instantly became a bit strained: “Wait here for me…”
She turned and left after speaking. Two minutes later, she came back looking excited: “It’s actually at 5:30 in the afternoon, I misread the notice just now.”
Qiao Sang thought to herself, As expected, she changed it just for me…
