Chapter 29: Click, Click, Click

A few days after the conclusion of the school selection competition, the professional assessment for Beastmasters officially began in June.

This exam is a crucial milestone for most high school graduates. Once they pass the vocational assessment, they will be recognized as official Beastmasters by the Great Yan Beastmaster Association and will obtain a professional license.

After achieving the status of an official Beastmaster, there are further advancement assessments available, leading to titles like Beastmaster, Senior Beastmaster, Master Beastmaster, and ultimately, the legendary title of Beastmaster.

Additionally, there are alternative career paths available to official Beastmasters, such as breeding, training, and performing, making the role of an official Beastmaster foundational for any profession that involves working with beasts.

The vocational assessment consists of two parts: a written exam and a practical combat assessment. Students who are automatically promoted to the national ranking competition are exempt from the practical combat portion, but their written exam scores will still be refEllenced in the ranking competition.

Even ordinary students who have not awakened their abilities are required to take the written exam. Some subjects and fields that do not require contracted beasts will consider exceptionally high scores from unawakened students for admission. Therefore, the school mandates that all graduates participate in the unified vocational assessment written exam.

With her Beastmaster space upgraded, Mu Huiyue dedicated the time leading up to the exam to thorough revision. With her first-place memory from high school and the knowledge she had gained from the Bureau’s database over the past two months, she felt confident about the written exam. Scoring lower than she could would be a disservice to the top student, Mu Huiyue.

Soon, exam day arrived. The testing venues in Changning City were set up in several public facilities and schools affiliated with the Beastmaster Association, all spacious enough to accommodate thousands of students simultaneously.

To prevent cheating, candidates were prohibited from bringing their beasts into the examination rooms, and the use of any electronic devices was forbidden. Each venue was equipped with surveillance cameras to ensure a fair testing environment.

The invigilators stationed in the examination halls had contracted Thunder-type warrior beasts known as Floating Magnet Monsters, which are exceptionally sensitive to electronic signals and fluctuations in hidden energy. If a candidate attempted to summon a beast or use an electronic device during the exam, an alarm would be triggered immediately.

Mu Huiyue recalled both of her contracted beasts into her Beastmaster space, stepping into her battlefield with nothing but a pen in hand.

The foundational assessment didn’t focus much on practical combat; instead, it covered common knowledge related to daily life and societal progress.

This world still adhered to principles of mathematics, physics, and chemistry, but in the exploration of natural mysteries and truths, there were far more factors related to extraordinary creatures.

For instance, the discovery of magnetic fields and electricity stemmed from a Thunder-type extraordinary being known as Lili Magnet. Its evolved form, the Floating Magnet Monster, hovered above the examination hall, a testament to the unique interplay of nature and the extraordinary in their society.

The birth of the steam engine can be traced back to the fire-type extraordinary being known as the Coal Mine Worm. Similarly, airplanes and airships were inspired by the flight patterns of various wind-type extraordinary creatures. Many modern mechanical structures have drawn inspiration from the operational modes of these extraordinary beings.

The arrival and fusion of secret realms, along with the emergence of different types of extraordinary creatures, have injected a continuous vitality into the planet. Each year brings the discovery of new extraordinary species, fueling scientific exploration across various fields.

For instance, the recent buzz surrounding “artificial intelligence” in the digital realm led Mu Huiyue to believe it was merely a simulation of human thought through computer programming. To her surprise, it referred to a unique type of extraordinary being.

In the neighboring Nova region, scientists discovered a brand-new extraordinary creature capable of existing in a binary world. This creature can perform binary activities through special commands and has been named “01.”

Current explorations into artificial intelligence are based on the capabilities of “01.” Interestingly, it doesn’t fit into any of the thirteen known attributes but has been classified as a fourteenth attribute: “Wisdom.”

The life form of “01” is particularly unique. It cannot independently interact with the three-dimensional reality but can complete assembly tasks based on commands inputted by Beastmasters, forming entirely new, artificially created inorganic life.

For example, the auxiliary creature used for supervision during exams is the Floating Magnet Monster, known for its sensitivity to electronic signals and hidden energy. However, the actual monitoring duties are still performed by a Beastmaster.

In contrast, the wisdom-type creature Monitoring Eye, which is a fusion of “01” and electronic components, can autonomously record violations by candidates and upload monitoring data, completing examination supervision independently within a designated area.

The discovery of “01” presents fresh challenges and opportunities in the fields of machinery and artificial intelligence.

It’s said that in its homeland, the Nova region, technology has emerged that combines mechanical components with “01,” significantly enhancing various capabilities.

Recently, the Great Yan region has also introduced related technologies, and Mu Huiyue has encountered Beastmasters who have contracted wisdom-type creatures.

In the Changning City Beastmaster Association, the central brain responsible for registering information is a wisdom-type mid-tier monarch creature known as the Administrative Management System IV. Despite its name, the Administrative Management System IV indeed possesses independent consciousness and a core skill set.

After completing the relevant questions, Mu Huiyue set down her pen, her curiosity piqued.

If given the chance, she would love to delve deeper into the study of these fascinating artificial intelligence beings.

In the morning, the exam focused primarily on modern scientific topics, while the afternoon shifted its emphasis to history, particularly that of ancient and modern times.

As expected, Mu Huiyue encountered a familiar figure from her textbooks: Count Xinglong. Unfortunately, the secret realm of the Xinglong estate is still in its flashing phase, leaving her uncertain when it might manifest again.

The information she had gathered with Xiang Xun mainly served to corroborate past archaeological data, with no groundbreaking discoveries to speak of. Most of the exam questions pertained more to significant events that shaped the world rather than any startling new findings.

Among those questions, many were directly related to the Great Yan nation, where Mu Huiyue resided. The Great Yan is one of the planet’s few ancient kingdoms with a history stretching over a millennium and is one of the rare regions protected by multiple mythological races and ultimate extraordinary beings.

These mythological beings remain uninvolved in human conflicts. Despite enduring numerous dynastic changes, the Great Yan has never been caught in the calamities brought by secret realms and extraordinary creatures. This stability has allowed its legacy to persist for a thousand years.

The most famous guardian deity of the Great Yan, symbolizing its enduring heritage, is the light and fire dual-attribute mythological race known as the Sun God Phoenix. For a millennium, even before extraordinary beings forged contracts with humans, this guardian has protected the land from natural disasters.

The name “Yan” in Great Yan is derived from the indomitable flames of the Sun God Phoenix.

In ancient times, when human technology was still in its infancy, there were multiple recorded instances of the Sun God Phoenix assisting humanity in overcoming formidable beasts and quelling disasters from secret realms. However, in the past century, sightings of the Sun God Phoenix have become rare; it mostly resides within various S-grade secret realms in the Great Yan, which are in their manifestation phases.

The Sun God Phoenix is not only a symbol of the Great Yan but also the faith of many of its people. Closely tied to the Phoenix is the high-ranking fire-type royal race known as the Crimson Flame Bird, which has become one of the most popular high-tier pets in the Great Yan.

Mu Huiyue believed that the evolved form of her little cloud dog, the high-ranking royal race known as Solar Flame Wolf, had gathered significant popularity since its discovery, swiftly becoming a representative pet of the star continent. This is partly due to its dual light and fire attributes, similar to those of the Sun God Phoenix.

Beyond the Sun God Phoenix, the Great Yan is also protected by other guardian deities.

One well-known deity is the guardian of harvests, the mythological race and ultimate extraordinary being known as the Withering and Flourishing Spirit Deer, which has been bestowing “Blessings of Abundance” upon the Great Yan for centuries. This benevolence has helped the inhabitants of this land survive countless periods of famine.

Even today, the blessings of abundance remain a crucial support for food production within the Great Yan.

There’s also the guardian of the waters, a mythological race and ultimate extraordinary being with dual attributes of water and thunder…

“The Sea-Subduing Dragon.”

Centuries ago, the emergence of a water realm unleashed a catastrophic flood that nearly wiped out all terrestrial life on the planet. It was only through the protection of this sea god-like extraordinary being that the inhabitants of the Great Yan managed to survive and recover from the deluge.

In addition to this magnificent guardian, the Great Yan is home to many legendary fantasy races and ultimate extraordinary beings, each serving as a protector of their respective regions. These guardians have forged deep bonds of friendship with the local populace.

The protector of the Star Continent is known as the Ancient Tree of Shadows, a legendary fantasy race and ultimate extraordinary being also referred to as the Sea of Stars—which is how the continent got its name.

These figures are almost guaranteed to appear in the professional assessment, and Mu Huiyue had memorized every detail. She had even gleaned insights from past investigator reports about the current states of these guardians, allowing her to answer questions with remarkable ease.

When the exam time concluded, she was the first to submit her paper. Stepping out of the examination hall, she stretched her arms high overhead, feeling the pleasant release of tension.

Suddenly, the shadow on the tiled floor blurred at the edges, and Mu Huiyue smiled softly. It seemed that Ellen couldn’t wait any longer; he had darted back into her shadow the moment she stepped outside.

Closing her eyes, she checked on the status of her little cloud dog in the beast space.

The little cloud dog was practicing shadow balls in the training ground, using the same equipment as Ellen had when practicing with phosphorescent fire. Currently, its accuracy wasn’t quite there; it couldn’t hit every moving target yet, but the little dog was putting in the effort to improve.

Watching the aftershocks of the shadow balls explode, Mu Huiyue began to think about her upcoming breeding goals.

After the selection competition, the school announced the rankings and soon provided a list of available resources.

The subsequent content wouldn’t be publicly shared, as the competitors were now the elite trainees of Changning’s top Beast Master High School. How much they could improve in less than a month would become their trump cards in the ranking matches.

Among the resources, aside from the various attribute energy crystals that everyone possessed, the rarest was the Spatial Stone.

This extraordinary resource could rapidly enhance the strength of the beast space. If used correctly, it could allow several members of the school’s competition team to reach level 3 before the national ranking competition began.

Consequently, the Spatial Stone was the first resource to be claimed.

Mu Huiyue didn’t particularly need it, though. It was different from the spatial fruits she had used before; its meditation efficiency was considerably lower, making it a poor investment.

Moreover, having just advanced to level 3 herself, even if she were to draw another spatial fruit, moving up to level 4 wouldn’t be easy. For now, her focus should be on breeding her pets.

What intrigued her more on the resource list was another item—a special skill teaching opportunity.