Chapter 755: Challenging a Higher Level

The competition proceeded in an orderly fashion.

After an unknown amount of time, a staff member with a familiar face walked over, lowered her head, and said respectfully: "Young Lady Qiao, please follow me to the backstage area to prepare."

Qiao Sang stood up and followed her to the backstage corridor, where she stopped.

Tao Jun, also with two General-level pet beasts: one Evil and Water dual-attribute General-level pet beast, the Evil Water Toad, and one Water and Flying dual-attribute General-level pet beast, the White Light Goose.

The former has a venom sac in its throat; if you get close, when it croaks, the breath it exhales could poison its opponent.

The latter is a rare pet beast that can move both in water and in the air. It is said to like starting to dance at dusk, and many artists draw inspiration from it. It is called a "vase pet beast" by many people.

As for Spirit Patterns, the effects are temporarily uncertain, because Tao Jun carves multiple Spirit Patterns, and the Spirit Patterns on her pet beasts in each match are never the same as the day before. She is a competitor who likes to re-carve them before the effects of the previous Spirit Patterns on her pet beasts have worn off… Qiao Sang recalled the general information about her opponent and unconsciously began thinking it over.

Looking at her experience, she should be a professional Spirit Pattern Master who has long focused on researching Spirit Patterns and doesn't pay much attention to pet beast training.

She still had Steel Treasure who hadn't been in battle yet, and the competitors who came to participate in the Beast Tamer Star Match all had at least two General-level pet beasts.

They naturally also had Advanced pet beasts or even Low-level pet beasts, but this is an annual competition, livestreamed across the entire network, with even dedicated channels following up with reports. It's a prime opportunity to gain popularity and attract fans, so they were unlikely to summon their relatively powerful pet beasts to fight others.

It would be overtaken—Steel Treasure's speed is slower than it… Spirit Pattern made a decisive judgment and issued a command outside her mind:

"Little Steel Falcon!" Qiao Sang shouted.

The spectator seats fell silent for a brief moment before erupting into noise again.

On the field.

Steel Treasure suddenly stopped in mid-air, facing upward without vigorously flapping its wings.

"Cheng Guiqiong broke through the gale and charged to the rear of the Steel Slash Giant Falcon!" the commentator promptly described the current situation.

Hundreds of purple-glowing wing feathers, like purple blades, rained down in a small-area pursuit attack on Cheng Guiqiong!

Few people…

"The Giant Steel Falcon has no newest Low-level form? How have you never heard of it?"

Qiao Sang: "!!!"

Steel Treasure flapped its wings and flew downward, barely dodging the concentrated attack of the water pillars.

Its head was half-bald, the feathers under its neck and on its front back were almost gone, and the few remaining white feathers were all covered in scars…

Steel Treasure crashed diagonally to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Little Steel Falcon! Yes!!!" Qiao Sang let out a sharp cry.

The gale stirred up nearly half the arena until it was a mess, with dust flying everywhere.

It stared fixedly at that purple figure and, without a trace of fear, charged into the purple blade rain!

This time, Steel Treasure did not answer.

"Bai Guang!!!"

"Wing Blade!"

"Ah, my attention was all on the Giant Steel Falcon just now, I didn't even notice…"

Could the power of anger really be this tremendous!

It understood.

Following its cry, seven water ripples suddenly appeared on the ground, bursting up violently and transforming into seven fierce water pillars that instantly converged to attack Steel Treasure.

But the Giant Steel Falcon could no longer hear any words, its eyes fixed only on the culprit who had made it bald.

So it was an Advanced pet beast, you scared me to death…

Steel Treasure cried out, white light flared across its body, and it suddenly shot up into the sky, tearing through the air, instantly pulling several hundred meters away from the seven water pillars at a terrifying speed.

……

The Giant Steel Falcon suddenly thought of something, stiffly lowered its head to look, and then saw its own half-bald self.

The Giant Steel Falcon was blinded by rage and let out a roar.

Cheers and shouts rose up at once; among them, not a few people were calling out Spirit Pattern's name, and it even faintly overshadowed Qiao Sang's presence.

Although she really didn't want to admit it, in terms of combat power, her opponent was indeed much stronger than her. Especially Bing Ai Pa Lu's move, the Ice Heaven Domain—if her opponent used it, she would basically be done for.

She had thought that in terms of hand speed for forming seals, she could gain an advantage, but she hadn't expected that in just one day, her opponent's hand speed had become so much faster…

The audience present at the venue, apart from some people invited by the organizers in the back rows, were mostly die-hard fans of a certain star competitor, who had come specifically to cheer and hold up signs to support them. They were still somewhat different from those fans who only talked big online and switched idols at any time.

The Giant Steel Falcon gave a light flap of its wings and proactively charged into the gale.

The Giant Steel Falcon staggered to its feet.

Seven water pillars closed in from the air, relentlessly pursuing that purple figure.

"Oh my goodness! What kind of pet beast is that now?!"

"What a thrilling clash…" the commentator took a deep breath, then grew impassioned: "The Giant Steel Falcon pushed through the dense Wing Blade attacks to reach the Steel Slash Giant Falcon, but it clearly suffered heavy damage as well! Both pet beasts have fallen to the ground! Who will stand up first!"

"Hiss…I suddenly thought of a question. The Steel Guard Falcon was only announced a few months ago, so does that mean this is an Advanced pet beast that has only existed for a short time?"

Amid the calm discussions of the crowd, Qiao Sang on the field let out a light breath.

The commentator had clearly done thorough homework.

White feathers carrying Tao Jun fluttered.

Qiao Sang: "!!!"

After all, the purpose of her coming here to compete was for training, so as to make better progress, not like the National Campus Beast Tamer League, where she only had to consider how to win with the best choices…

Calm down, calm down, the Steel Slash Giant Falcon is only an Advanced pet beast… as long as it can be hit once by the Giant Steel Falcon's big move, it'll be fine… fortunately, one of the Spirit Patterns she drew this time automatically accelerates the energy in the brain when injured, allowing it to quickly recover… thinking this, Qiao Sang felt a little relieved.

"Good chance, take it now!"

Being able to communicate directly outside the mind is really great… Spirit Pattern thought.

Just as Qiao Sang was brimming with confidence, she saw something incomprehensible in the sky. Her expression froze, and then her pupils suddenly contracted.

"It's not General-level? That body size feels much larger than a General-level pet beast!"

The Giant Steel Falcon looked at the small purple figure below, just about to launch another attack.

But the water pillar's attack didn't stop — it churned up into the low sky at dozens of meters and surged toward Gang Bao once more.

"Holy crap! Is he trying to tell you that's Commander-rank?!"

The next scene caught everyone completely off guard; for a moment, no one could find a single word to comment.

"Little Steel Falcon has fallen! Has the match begun?!" the commentator's voice rang out.

Not me, not me… Pitte picked up his water cup and pretended to take a sip.

"I found it! That pet beast shows up in the Pet Beast Identifier! It's the low-rank pet beast Steel Slash Giant Falcon!" a spectator holding a Pet Beast Identifier aimed at the purple figure on the field shouted excitedly.

"Gang Bao, is he okay?" Ling Wen asked with slight worry through the mind sea.

On the field, the mechanical-system pet beast acting as referee tried to fly off the arena.

"Bang!"

"You were wondering why the Steel Slash Giant Falcon had its beak open without launching an attack — turns out it was using Air Absorption."

When Little Steel Falcon was less than a meter from the Steel Slash Giant Falcon, it suddenly opened its beak wide, showing an extremely delighted expression, and the white light gathering under its wings abruptly dissipated.

In just a few short days, from being completely ignored and questioned at the start to now having fans who managed to get tickets to come watch in person — that was truly rare even in star-match circles that drew celebrities from all walks of life.

Qiao Sang nearly cried with joy.

Her current state had been seen by so many people…

The brutality of the scene on the field left the commentator stalling for two full seconds before finishing the call:

The people around fell silent for a moment at those words.

"Steel Slash…"

"Steel Slash!"

"Bai Zhong!!!"

Of course, it still depended on Sui Feng's level and the power of the gale.

"Did he foresee from the start that Little Steel Falcon could get close?!"

The mechanical-system pet beast referee came beside Little Steel Falcon, looked it over, then blew the whistle to start the match.

And beneath it, pinned down, was Gang Bao with an intense expression.

"Ah! You remembered! Didn't you say not long ago that Little Steel Falcon had a new form — the Steel Guard Falcon? Through the bond evolution one. Isn't the Steel Slash Giant Falcon evolved from the Steel Guard Falcon?"

At the same time, the previously somewhat quiet spectator stands fell silent in an instant, and then the scene erupted.

Competitor area.

"Bai Zhong…"

"Bang!!!"

"Let's welcome competitor Cheng Gui and competitor Ling Wen to the field!"

"Here it comes." Cheng Gui said through the mind sea.

Come to think of it, it really did seem that way… everyone thought in unison.

"Let's congratulate competitor Ling Wen on successfully challenging above her rank! She wins the first match!"

At that moment, Little Steel Falcon likewise transformed into a streak of white light and shot straight up into the sky.

If it were any other pet beast, I might not be so sure, but if it's only a low-rank pet beast through the bond evolution, this match is in the bag!

Little Steel Falcon heard its beast master's voice, endured the pain and opened its eyes, then saw the massive figure pressing down on it, several flashes of purple light, and something white…

So many people…

"Go!" The instant Little Steel Falcon let out a roar, Ling Wen issued the command through the mind sea.

"Impossible!"

Ling Wen rapidly raised her hand to form a seal.

"Steel Slash."

Little Steel Falcon… but what's the function of the blue patterns on its body… never mind, it's getting destroyed anyway… Ling Wen looked at the bird-type pet beast in the distance — body largely white, covered in many blue Tao Jun patterns, long beak blue in color, slender neck, the blue feathers on its chest far tougher than those elsewhere — and quickly communicated with Gang Bao through the mind sea:

Of course, the acrobatics weren't just acrobatics — they were a combo technique of acrobatics plus wing attacks.

Then it raised its wings; the blade-like feathers glowed purple, and with a series of "Crack crack crack…" it slashed downward continuously.

"Little Steel Falcon's newest high-rank form — our Super Su Xing's very first Steel Slash Giant Falcon!"

Just as she was thinking, the commentator's voice reached her ears:

Little Steel Falcon instinctively looked up in the direction it pointed, and then saw the giant virtual screen that was syncing the scene on the field to the live audience.

"Just charge straight through!" Qiao Sang said loudly.

……

At that moment, someone said: "Think about it — the one who contracted it is Ling Wen. Doesn't it all make sense now?"

"Bai Zhong…"

The next second, the Steel Slash Giant Falcon, which had been slightly higher up, dropped down and landed heavily on top of Cheng Gui Qiong.

Amid Qiao Sang's frustration, a massive purple figure nearly 8 meters tall appeared in the opponent's star array.

"Huff…"

As his words fell, the commentator's excited voice rang out across the field:

"I saw that news too!"

Cheng Gui Qiong plummeted in a straight line and slammed straight into the ground.

……

Since the opponents she'd face in the future would all summon General-rank pet beasts, she might as well send Gang Bao out now — it would have to fight General-rank pet beasts sooner or later anyway.

I didn't expect Little Steel Falcon to be able to stand back up this fast after such an attack — its endurance is completely different from before!

In a flash of thought, Gang Bao had already spread its enormous wings, kicking up a chaotic gust of wind as it soared straight up into the high sky.

That is, it?

Below the arena.

Lingwen and Qiao Sang walked to the two sides of the field and stood in position.

"Bai Guang!"

Below, Hanhu saw what it currently looked like.

After the matches of the past two days, you could completely treat the person before your eyes as a sixteen-year-old child.

"Steel-Slashing Giant Falcon used Steel Wing to chop off nearly half of the feathers beneath Little Steel Falcon's body — is it preparing to deliver a devastating attack on the mind…"

Little Steel Falcon's mind went blank.

You had a way. Nearly half of Little Steel Falcon's feathers were gone, Tao Jun's effect had also vanished, so it could only shout purely.

"Bai Guang…"

"Mountain Press!" The commentator burst into the mic: "Steel-Slashing Giant Falcon used Mountain Press! Little Steel Falcon, which had been retreating in attack, suddenly seemed as if it caught its breath, and stopped! Combined with Steel-Slashing Giant Falcon's earlier action of opening its beak, without a doubt, it should have used Air Absorption!"

Seeing it was about to be caught up, Lingwen said in its mind: "Flash of Lightning!"

"That combination of two skills is rather clever. Steel-Slashing Giant Falcon truly deserves to be the advanced form of Big Steel Falcon — feels like its IQ is still this high."

Obviously, the entry-level Gale that Gang Bao had cast was not taken seriously at all.

The speed of forming hand seals was faster than yesterday… Qiao Sang looked at the orange-yellow star array lighting up nearby, and her heart chilled.

"Dodge quickly!" Qiao Sang's heart tightened, and she said loudly.

An advanced pet beast fighting a general-level pet beast — not only was it not crushed, but for the moment the advanced pet beast actually held the advantage. Put that on an advanced pet beast that had only evolved not long ago, even against a Big Steel Falcon known as a "vase," and it was still hard to accept.

It hurts so much… Lingwen had a "WTF" just surging up to her throat, then remembered this was being livestreamed to the whole network, and forcibly swallowed it back.

"Everyone calm down! The aura on that pet beast is clearly not a king-level pet beast, and there's still some gap compared to a general-level pet beast."

Cheng Gui had registered at the Beast Center before Gang Bao fully evolved, so all the data on Steel-Slashing Giant Falcon could be looked up.

As expected, it took the initiative to charge in… Lingwen's expression was calm, as if she had long foreseen such a scene.

"Contestant Lingwen has summoned Steel-Slashing Giant Falcon! I believe many people are still very unfamiliar with this pet beast! Unlike Contestant Lingwen's previous three pet beasts, this one belongs to your Super Su Xing!"

"Bai Guang."

The sudden change on the field caused the audience seats to buzz with discussion.

General-level pet beast? No! King-level pet beast?! Looking at the pet beast nearby that he had never seen before, and whose size was much larger than a general-level pet beast, Cheng Gui's eyes widened in disbelief, and his breathing suddenly quickened.

But just then, a wave of pain struck, Big Steel Falcon's form became unsteady, and it likewise fell to the ground.

……

It gave a hard flap of its wings, and a terrifying gust of wind instantly swept toward that elegant white figure.

"Bai Guang!!!"

"Find a way to knock off a few of the feathers it drew on Tao Jun."

Little Steel Falcon's pupils suddenly contracted, its expression froze, and it immediately let out a heart-wrenching scream.

Little Steel Falcon moved through it as if encountering no obstruction at all, swiftly shifting in a diagonal line left and right, then folded its wings down, and like transforming into a streak of white light, burst out of the gale's range! In an instant, it shot straight toward Gang Bao, which was looking down at it from high in the sky!

"General-level pet beast? All seven of Lingwen's pet beasts are general-level?! Oh my god! What kind of monster are you exactly?!"

The seven water pillars finally ran out of strength, sank down, and returned to the water's surface, leaving no trace.

"Crazy! Crazy! This world has gone crazy!"

"So the mysterious person who caused Big Steel Falcon's bond evolution was Lingwen?!"

You were confident Little Steel Falcon could hit consecutively, and even more confident that with this combo, Steel-Slashing Giant Falcon would be directly defeated — who told it to still be only an advanced pet beast.

"Bai Guang…"

"Steel-Slash." Gang Bao replied, indicating it understood.

At the same time, Lingwen's voice rang out in Gang Bao's mind:

Gang Bao struggled to stand, looked at its opponent who was clearly covered in wounds all over yet still staring at it deathly, and suddenly raised its right wing to point upward.

The mechanical voice quickly sounded: "3, 2, 1, match over!"

The entire ground caved in, a deep pit appeared, and nearly half of Cheng Guiqiong's body sank into the ground!

The two contestants' star arrays lit up almost simultaneously.

"Little Steel Falcon! Air Blade!" At that moment, the voice of her own beastmaster rang out.

It saw the audience seats behind its own beastmaster.

It's just that Qiao Sang didn't state the combo so directly, but as long as Little Steel Falcon could understand, that was fine.

However, the next second, both pet beasts on the field struggled to stand, so it stopped its action.

Little Steel Falcon's trait, Riding the Wind, could move according to the wind's direction, ensuring it would not be harmed by the wind — even encountering a gale, it feared nothing.

The next second, Gang Bao's voice rang out in its mind:

Cheng Guiqiong's expression turned dazed as she looked toward her own beastmaster's direction.

"Acrobatics!" Qiao Sang said loudly.

Cheng Gui: "!!!"

Immediately after, its pupils suddenly contracted.

Wing blades carved wound after wound across Little Steel Falcon's body, but its speed did not slow in the slightest — instead it爆发ed an even more terrifying speed, and bearing the incoming purple blade rain head-on, it violently slammed into Gang Bao!

Acrobatics, a low-tier skill of the Flying system, could attack the opponent up close with agility and inflict relatively high damage. Against a pet beast with a huge body and inflexible movement speed, it was the most suitable!

Cheng Guiqiong's eyes rolled back, and she completely fainted.