Chapter 28: Opportunity
Upon hearing Director Sun’s remarks, Wang Bing, who knew some inside information, suddenly wore a subtle expression.
Both he and Zheng Weixin’s families were in business, and they lived in the same neighborhood. Being the same age and with their families’ businesses having some minor connections, they had become friends over time.
Yesterday, Zheng Weixin revealed that his family had arranged for him to transfer schools and mentioned that he might see Wang Bing at the Jincheng High School competition, should the opportunity arise.
Wang Bing could easily hear the bragging between the lines—this year, his school had produced an exceptional Beast Tamer rumored to rank within the top thousand in history. The principal took a great interest in this, leaving Wang Bing no chance to compete for a place.
And yet, Zheng Weixin’s family had promptly used their connections to transfer him out. They were quite decisive.
However…
Thinking of the news he had just heard, Wang Bing couldn’t help but think, “That’s a total waste of a transfer!”
Who could have expected the principal to be so tough, securing three spots from the education department?
Could those rumors be true? It was said that the principal once won a second-place municipal prize for an essay he wrote as a student—”My Mentor and Father.”
Wang Bing couldn’t help but observe a minute’s silence for Zheng Weixin, who initially wouldn’t have needed to transfer to obtain a placement—educational resources at his school were certainly better than those at Xintian Middle School.
This was true in terms of teaching staff, support from higher authorities, and the overall strength of the school team.
Was the placement really that important?
He had asked Zheng Weixin, who didn’t reveal much. His parents also weren’t clear on the details but vaguely understood it was a good thing.
After the selection ended, Lu Junxiang called Chen Xing over and introduced him to Kuang Shiyi, “This is Coach Kuang Shiyi from the school team. Coach Kuang is a retired military service member and an experienced Beast Tamer. In addition to your regular classes, you will also have to undergo training with the school team. If there’s ever a scheduling conflict, prioritize the school team.”
The other two were also brought by their respective instructors to get acquainted with Kuang Shiyi.
Kuang Shiyi, with his sharply defined features, squeezed out a hint of a friendly smile, “My name is Kuang Shiyi, don’t listen to your teacher’s nonsense. I’m just an ordinary Beast Tamer. The seniors in the team all like to call me Old Kuang. You can call me that too if you like.”
“Old Kuang,” Zhou Hao called out, mustering some courage.
Chen Xing and Wang Bing respectfully greeted, “Coach Kuang.”
Zhou Hao turned his head toward the two in confusion: “????”
“All right, follow me to the school’s team base at the back. You can come here after school or during the weekends if you’re free.”
Wang Bing asked, “Coach Kuang, can we come train even if we’re just reserves?”
Kuang Shiyi said indifferently, “I don’t have distinctions like ‘reserves’ and ‘active members’ here. Once you’re here, you are my student.”
“Aren’t you curious why we suddenly had to select candidates this time?” Kuang Shiyi suddenly said.
The teachers standing nearby exchanged glances and, in tacit agreement, walked away.
Honestly, Chen Xing was quite curious as to why the school suddenly chose to include freshmen in the team. The High School Cup didn’t differentiate between specific grades within the high school and college divisions, just as high school math competitions didn’t classify competitors by grade.
“It’s simple. A location was discovered in the newly appeared Nightmare Swamp Secret Realm,” Kuang Shiyi announced without significantly lowering his voice since it wasn’t exactly top secret information.
For now, the news was only circulating within certain circles. Many didn’t spread it widely to maintain their advantage, but the information would eventually get out—it wouldn’t take long.
Kuang Shiyi explained, “You all know about the origins of secret realms, right? The Nightmare Swamp Secret Realm falls under the jurisdiction of Dream City in the Exotic Region and is part of the Nightmare Swamp.”
Chen Xing nodded; he understood Mr. Kuang’s point.
If the Exotic Region was likened to a large, complete jigsaw puzzle, then when the Exotic Region collided with their world, some pieces of that complete puzzle were knocked loose. These fragments appeared to travel through the river of time, intermittently appearing in various corners of the world. No matter how much time passed, the time within them remained frozen, resuming its flow only upon their full arrival in the present world.
These puzzle fragments were once part of the Exotic Region’s territory. It was said that some contained cities established by intelligent species of the Exotic Region—like Ze City Secret Realm. Rumor had it that in Great Xia’s imperial city, Dragon City, a giant library was even found within a secret realm.
Upon hearing Kuang Shiyi’s words, the three youngsters could hardly contain their quickened breaths. Had something valuable really been found within the secret realm?
“We discovered a Legacy Tower within the Nightmare Swamp Secret Realm 03. This tower is related to Dream City and was used to train their subordinates in the past. However, this Legacy Tower has an age limit—Beast Tamers must be no older than 16. None of you are 17 yet, right?”
“Next, I will provide you with targeted training. The main branches of beast taming in Dream City are the Illusion Element, Water Element, Wood Element, and Poison Element. You need to learn how to deal with these four types of beasts as quickly as possible, which will help you in challenging the tower,” he continued.
Chen Xing understood—a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush!
This secret realm appeared near Jincheng. Local forces in Jincheng, both official and private, tacitly chose to collaborate and take the first bite at the cake. Presumably, the same principle would apply to secret realms discovered elsewhere.
The prizes within the Legacy Tower were finite, having already fallen into their world. Naturally, no one from Dream City would come to “restock” the prizes inside, so the rewards were non-renewable resources.
The quantity of good prizes was limited; it was first come, first served.
Chen Xing guessed that as the largest local force, Jincheng’s officials were undoubtedly the main force divvying up the cake. But was the reason this opportunity ultimately fell into the school’s lap because of the age restriction of the secret realm?
Beast Tamers had to be at least sixteen years old to sign contracts with beasts, and this was true both here and in the Exotic Region; therefore, the Legacy Tower must have been intended specifically for training newcomers.
Suddenly, Chen Xing wondered about his sister—who appeared to be in the Nightmare Swamp Secret Realm. She didn’t meet the age requirement; he wondered how she felt about that. She must be quite disappointed.
“Damn it! That’s too much!” Inside the Nightmare Swamp Secret Realm, Wan Ning kicked a tall, dark tower in frustration, “Why can’t people over sixteen enter! What, they look down on me? My psychological age is forever sixteen!”
“Lingya, let’s not take this lying down. Later, I’ll take you to the Underground Palace Legacy Tower in the original secret realm of Dongning. This damn tower even has an age limit, which is just absurdly unfair!”
“It’s fine. I’ve already obtained my second Beast Taming,” Chen Lingya said nonchalantly, gently stroking her new Beast Taming—a snow-white snail the size of a lid, leisurely chewing on a leaf.
My brother does meet the age criteria. If he knew about this, he’d surely pester me to come, but I’ll see how he behaves. If he can make his sister happy, I’ll grudgingly bring him here for a visit.
Thinking this, Lingya’s slender neck arched slightly, an unintentional smile spilling from the corners of her mouth.