Chapter 36: Click

The benefits brought by Ellen’s evolution, aside from his own abilities and feedback to the Beast Master, also allowed Mu Huiyue to complete a phase of her pet cultivation tasks, accumulating enough for a new ten-draw summon.

In the Beast Master space, Mu Huiyue stood in front of the system panel, feeling a bit nervous as she opened the card-drawing interface for the “Spirit Spring Temple.”

Both of her contracted pets were by her side, watching their Beast Master in a flurry of indecision until she finally nudged Ellen forward.

“…This time, let Ellen give it a try! It’s perfect timing since you just evolved; let’s test your luck.”

“Click.” Ellen nodded.

After so many draws, Ellen finally understood that his Beast Master seemed quite anxious about activities involving luck testing.

But that was okay; he was willing to help out with whatever troubled Huiyue.

The skeleton extended its long finger bones and gently tapped the button icon for the ten-draw summon.

As he made his move, ten sparkling droplets of water flew out of the interface, all of which disappeared into the Spirit Spring Temple. The tranquil bottom of the fountain began to ripple, the speed increasing, as shimmering lights began to gather…

Beep!

The card-drawing screen was swallowed by dazzling light, and Mu Huiyue held her breath in nervous anticipation, her eyes widening slightly at the sudden burst of color.

Rainbow light!

After more than two months, she finally saw the seven-colored rainbow light again in the Spirit Spring Temple, a symbol of an SSR-tier ultra-rare item!

“No doubt about it, that’s my Ellen, woo woo…” Mu Huiyue hugged Ellen tightly.

Thinking back, the only two times she had seen the rainbow light were both thanks to Ellen’s draws. This household truly couldn’t do without him.

“Click…”

Ellen had already tightened his sharp ribcage carefully before she hugged him, wrapping his arms around the excited Beast Master and gently patting her.

“Woof?”

It was the first time White Tooth had seen the rainbow light, and out of curiosity, he stepped forward to sniff at it, tilting his head in confusion.

Mu Huiyue scooped up the white-haired puppy into her arms, petting its fluffy head, “Let’s see what we’ve gained this time.”

There were 6 white N-tier cards.

The most numerous were still various types of physical fruit, along with a fire attribute fruit.

These fruits had become the favorite little snacks of Ellen and White Tooth, so Mu Huiyue distributed the physical fruits to the two of them, leaving the fire attribute fruit, which they didn’t particularly like, in the Beast Master space.

Later, she thought that they might encounter situations like the Smoke Scroll Pages, and the fire attribute fruit could help her quickly befriend fire-type extraordinary beings, allowing them to let down their guard in communication, it might play a significant role in the wild or in secret realms.

There were 2 blue R-tier cards this time. Unlike previous draws, there were no skill scrolls; both were experience fruits that helped increase the tiers of the pets.

There was 1 golden SR-tier card, which featured an icon she hadn’t seen before.

【Enhanced Experience Fruit】

【Attribute: Dark】

【Description: A fruit rich in dark energy; using it can enhance the potential for combat tier and skill level.】

【Status: Usable】

An Enhanced Experience Fruit?

Mu Huiyue examined the item description closely. Compared to the R-tier experience fruits, the main difference was the added attribute and the potential for improving skill levels alongside tier enhancements.

She wondered what the effect of increasing skill potential would be. Later, she could have White Tooth try it. Since his Shadow Ball had undergone training from the Smoke Scroll Pages, combined with this Enhanced Experience Fruit, it was possible that he could indeed learn the B-level skill, 【Moon Burst】, before the ranking competition.

The last card, a rainbow-colored SSR-tier card, was no surprise; it was still the 【Holy Spirit Crystal】 used for upgrading farm facilities.

Mu Huiyue gave the two R-tier experience fruits to Ellen, the SR-tier Enhanced Experience Fruit with skill potential to White Tooth, and finally held the Holy Spirit Crystal, feeling a bit troubled.

The next facility she planned to unlock had several options, but none of them would provide immediate benefits.

The 【Farmland】 required planting time, and she didn’t have many crystal seeds on hand. The 【Mine】 needed more than two Holy Spirit Crystals, and the 【Pond】 didn’t hold much significance for her, as she didn’t have any water-type contracted pets…

After pondering for a while, she decided to temporarily put away the 【Holy Spirit Crystal】. The format for this year’s ranking competition would soon be announced.

At that time, she could consider which facility to unlock based on the requirements of the competition.

Training time flew by quickly.

Classes at the school had already ended, and Mu Huiyue returned to the dojo to let White Tooth continue his specialized training with the Red Flame Fighting Wolf, Pali. Ellen spent more time in the 【Training Grounds】 of the Beast Space.

The two pets occasionally sparred with each other in the 【Training Grounds】 and sometimes fought against apprentices and coaches in the dojo, accumulating considerable combat experience.

Two weeks later, the competition format for this year’s national ranking competition was communicated to every participant who had been given a recommendation through the school’s contacts.

Unlike the elimination-type battles of previous years, this year’s competition would place the most exciting top-eight ranking battles at the end. Before that, a selection process would be held using a free-for-all format within the secret realm, the top 8 participants would be selected from the 200 candidates who received recommendations nationwide.

After all, very few high school students have reached Level 3 Beastmasters, and most of their contracted pets are still in the growth stage, limiting them to formal 1v1 battles.

Even among the top contenders nationwide, the intensity of high school student battles does not match that of the national competition held concurrently.

As an extension of the professional Beastmaster assessment, the national ranking competition held every July has long ceased to be just a simple exam.

This competition has been crafted by the Beastmaster Association into one of the hottest national events, where many star Beastmasters have made impressive appearances. Leaders from various industries also keep a watchful eye on it.

Given the nature of this competition as an assessment, it’s understandable that the assessment format would be altered for the sake of viewership.

This year, the Beastmaster Association invested heavily in a large-scale secret realm that had already stabilized and fused as the preliminary examination venue. The 200 participants would be placed together in this fused secret realm for a five-day outdoor combat survival competition, with the top 8 based on points advancing to the next round of ranking battles.

The secret realm will contain a large number of wild extraordinary creatures in their juvenile and growth stages, as well as the realm lord from the monarch species.

Defeating these wild extraordinary creatures and obtaining their tokens will earn points.

Additionally, defeating other participants in outdoor battles will also grant points.

The specific competition rules will be released after arriving at the secret realm, and information and maps of the secret realm will not be disclosed to the participants.

This means that the geographical environment within the secret realm and the types of extraordinary creatures encountered will be a mystery for the participants.

How to effectively apply the knowledge of Beastmastery to handle various events encountered during the competition is also an important part of this assessment.

Participants are allowed to bring various resources for outdoor survival during the assessment phase in the secret realm. This is one of the reasons for announcing the competition format in advance, giving participants from various regions time to prepare for their five-day journey in the secret realm.

After reviewing the competition format, Mu Huiyue pondered seriously.

In the unfamiliar secret realm during the stable fusion phase, the investigator’s wristband and encyclopedia are her advantages.

Since the extraordinary creatures within the secret realm have been filtered by the Beastmaster Association, at least she doesn’t have to worry about encountering completely unfamiliar and unmanageable wild extraordinary creatures.

The outdoor battle survival competition lasts for five days, which is neither long nor short. Maintaining an advantage in a free-for-all among 200 people also depends on the endurance of the pets.

Once in such an environment, exhausting oneself in advance makes it very difficult to recover combat strength.

She also needs to consider that there will be allied participants, and it is certain that situations of one against many will arise when necessary.

Mu Huiyue closed her eyes and sank her consciousness into her Beastmaster space.

She had already decided which ranch facility to activate next.

[Rest Hut]

[lv.1]

A facility that consumes World Tree leaves to help contracted pets quickly recover stamina and relieve abnormal statuses. Pets residing here can enhance their physical potential and intimacy.

[Confirm to activate the Rest Hut?]

[Yes/No]

Mu Huiyue consumed a Sacred Spirit Crystal to activate the facility called Rest Hut.

As the Sacred Spirit Crystal emitted a faint glow and shattered, a beam of light descended from the sky, embedding itself next to the World Tree.

Before long, a charming little tree-vine house appeared in its place, adorned with clusters of flowers at the eaves, looking warm and lovely.

Ellen and Baiya both felt the change in the Beast Master space and ran over from the training ground.

“Woof!”

The white-haired puppy dashed into the tree-vine house and happily rolled around.

Then it gathered the flowers and soft dried grass inside the tree house to make a cozy little nest. It also somehow found the N-grade items, a “Damaged Frisbee” and “A Whole Bone,” that it had drawn from the previous card pool, and tucked them away in the new nest, looking very pleased with this spot.

Mu Huiyue couldn’t help but smile and turned to the tall Ellen beside her, asking, “How does it feel?”

The handsome skeleton shrugged. He could sense the restorative power of this place, but for him, there was nowhere more comfortable than the shadow of his Beast Master.

“I still prefer the room in the shadow.”
“Room…?” Mu Huiyue seemed to hear a word that shouldn’t be here.

Ellen’s entire skeleton stiffened slightly, quickly changing the subject.

“Clack…” (It’s nothing. When I need to recover, I’ll come here…)

Mu Huiyue nodded. It was fine that Ellen preferred the shadow; she had opened the “Resting Hut” mainly for situations where they would be outdoors or in a secret realm for a long time.

The resting hut acted like a healing center built into the Beast Master space. As long as she consumed the leaves of the World Tree, it could quickly restore the contracted beasts’ condition, making it much more convenient than Mu Yixia’s healing talent.

Mu Huiyue carefully sensed the situation. Given Ellen’s and Baiya’s levels, as well as the state of the World Tree representing her spirit and physique, she could maintain the restorative effects of the “Resting Hut” about ten times.

This would undoubtedly greatly enhance the two beasts’ endurance in the wild.

As long as Mu Huiyue, as their Beast Master, wasn’t completely exhausted, Ellen and Baiya could quickly recover after battles and face the next fight in their best condition.

Even if they encountered multiple opponents in a wheel battle, Ellen and Baiya would have the strength to cope.

As for her own stamina…

Mu Huiyue opened her eyes, pulling her consciousness out of the Beast Master space.

She opened the shopping app on her phone and selected the most expensive and highest-rated item in the “Beast Master Outdoor Survival Energy Foods” category, opting for home delivery.