"Isn't that Officer Ye?"
"Officer Ye, is this kid a relative of yours?"
"Officer Ye, I just saw your white fox. It was in second place! There were several that looked similar, but yours stood out, I recognized it right away."
"Officer Ye, have you found a partner yet?"
"Officer Ye, what's the name of that little red dog?"
Qitang Town was small, so small that you'd run into someone you knew with just a few steps.
While Qiao Sang, who spent most of her time in Hanggang, wasn't well-known, Ye Ranran was quickly recognized by the locals.
It was like when adults brought kids along and bumped into acquaintances.
Ye Ranran smiled and answered each person in turn, while Qiao Sang's attention was focused on the live broadcast.
On the big screen, an orange-red Lanturn was moving backward along the race track, using its water gun to propel itself several meters at a time.
Qiao Sang couldn't help but mentally comment that while this method did speed things up, moving backwards was risky, it could easily bump into other competing pets.
Soon, the screen switched, showing an underwater scene instead of the river's surface.
A blue Water Salamander was rapidly rotating its two tails, much like a spinning propeller, propelling itself forward at an incredible speed.
However, it soon tired, and its tail stopped spinning.
The live feed then switched again, showing a dark blue Spiky Seahorse.
Qiao Sang immediately understood. They were specifically showcasing pets with unique movement styles! Follow current novᴇls on novel⸺fire.net
It made sense, after all, a marathon was a long event. Watching pets simply run or swim for an extended period could get pretty boring.
In the footage, the Spiky Seahorse would pause after moving a short distance and take a deep breath through its long, straw-like nose.
Each time it inhaled, its coiled tail would uncurl, releasing a strong jet of gas that sent bubbles flying up from the water like it was boiling.
The force was so strong that the Spiky Seahorse would shoot forward more than ten meters!
Qiao Sang was dumbfounded.
What the heck? It was using flatulence to speed up!
Whose brilliant idea was this?
But she did feel bad for the pets behind it…
Though the method was a bit crude, it definitely required skill. After all, it wasn’t like you could pass gas on command, it had to be trained!
Qiao Sang couldn't help but feel a newfound respect for the Spiky Seahorse and its trainer.
The same bewilderment struck Little Treasure, who stared blankly at the screen, feeling like he had just been introduced to a whole new world.
After witnessing the Spiky Seahorse’s unique advancement technique, Qiao Sang found the rest of the broadcast rather dull.
Feeling bored, Qiao Sang thought of her third uncle's Roaring Swamp Crocodile.
Where was it? Why hadn't it appeared yet?
Three minutes later, the footage shifted to a black Scalefish.
Qiao Sang froze and squinted at the screen for a closer look.
Why did this Scalefish look so much like her third uncle's?
"Ranran-jie, doesn’t this Scalefish look just like third uncle’s?" Qiao Sang asked Ye Ranran uncertainly.
Ye Ranran, who had been chatting with an aunt nearby, turned her head at the question.
She stared at the Scalefish on the screen, which was propelling itself forward by releasing water waves from its wing-like side fins, and her heart sank. She jumped up in alarm.
"Ah-Sang, we’re in trouble!"
While her third uncle was gunning for an individual first-place win, this was still a team relay.
If the competing pet wasn't at the relay point to pass the band, the results wouldn’t count.
Qiao Sang had nothing to worry about since she was the last runner, but Ye Ranran scrambled frantically.
The starting point of the first leg of the race was also the handoff point for the third leg of the course.
After placing Little Treasure on the track, Qiao Sang held Yabao in her arms, waiting on the sidelines.
Many people around them pointed and laughed at Little Treasure.
Ordinary folks knew ghost-type pets existed, but they didn’t fully understand what they signified in the world of beast trainers.
Ignorance can bring fearlessness; not knowing, they didn’t feel afraid.
To them, Little Treasure was just a pet that could float a few meters above the ground but couldn't reach the Cloud Path, which hovered tens of meters in the air.
Little Treasure looked up at the pets racing high above on the Cloud Path, clenched his tiny fists, and his small grey face turned bright red.
Yabao pointed at Little Treasure and let out a puzzled sound.
"He’s probably trying to figure out how to move faster." Qiao Sang said uncertainly.
Though honestly, it looked more like he was straining to use the bathroom, she quickly dismissed that idea.
Ghost-type pets didn’t need to relieve themselves. Their bodies were like bottomless pits, some ghost-types could devour anything.
Emotions, life force, dreams, everything could be absorbed and converted into energy.
Experts had noted that the higher-level ghost-types were, the more sinister they became because their evolution was often based on devouring things, and not just energy.
After what seemed like forever, a blue-and-white pet sped in like a gust of wind.
The Wind Eagle, known for its incredible speed, was the sixth to reach the final handoff point.
With a swift motion, it handed the relay band to Little Treasure
Qiao Sang’s mission was successfully completed.
She pulled out her phone, ready to call Ye Ranran, when suddenly a commotion broke out among the crowd.
"Why did that ghost-type pet just teleport?"
"Isn’t that a flying-type move?"
"Am I hallucinating from heat stroke?"
"Maybe it went invisible and floated forward before reappearing?"
"If you can float that fast, show me! I’ll call you boss right now!"
"What’s wrong with you? If I could float like that, you’d be calling for help!"
Hearing the noise, Qiao Sang hesitated for a moment. A ghost-type pet?
As far as she knew, the only ghost-type pet in the entire marathon was her own Little Treasure.
She put down her phone and looked toward the track.
Little Treasure was no longer in his original spot.
Now, he stood several meters ahead, fists clenched, face still bright red like he was straining.
Then, in the next instant, Little Treasure suddenly vanished and reappeared three meters away.
Was that teleportation?!
Qiao Sang was completely thrown.
Could Little Treasure teleport?
No way! She had checked the beast codex last night and nothing had changed.
After absorbing the Dark Energy Essence, the only thing that increased was the stat points, with 40 added to his overall level and 60 points to his Cursed Body trait
Qiao Sang watched Little Treasure teleporting as he clenched his fists, and her mind was in a daze.
Had learning new skills become this easy?