In previous editions of the National Campus Beast Mastering League, you only showed up for matches against Litan Beastmaster High. Even when our school made it to the top ten in the province, you didn’t bother to come… Sun Boyi inwardly grumbled but kept his face neutral.
He pointed to a spot in front and said,
Following the direction of Sun Boyi’s finger, Wang Weidou immediately spotted Qiao Sang among a group of similarly dressed students.
His eyes lit up with delight, and the longer he looked, the more pleased he became.
And all at intermediate level!
What a gem! And she’s from our school!
If Liu Yao hadn’t personally confirmed it, someone he knew wouldn’t joke about such matters, he wouldn’t have believed it even if his wife told him.
While Principal Wang had high hopes for Qiao Sang initially, he hadn’t expected this level of excellence.
Those guys from Litan? If they knew about this, they wouldn’t dare boast about Ding Yanjing in front of me anymore!
At the thought, Wang Weidou’s gaze grew even more fiery.
“Why do I feel like someone’s staring at me?” Qiao Sang hesitated and glanced around.
“Is it them?” Xu Yixuan subtly nodded toward a group of people nearby.
Qiao Sang looked in the indicated direction and saw a group from Fiqi Beastmaster High School.
Among them, a boy at the front noticed her gaze and flashed a toothy grin.
“That guy’s Li Kun.” Xu Yixuan warned.
“Don’t let his friendly demeanor fool you, he’s as cunning as they come.”
“How so?” Qiao Sang asked, intrigued.
“He likes to cozy up to opponents before matches to gather intel.” Xu Yixuan explained.
Qiao Sang shrugged. “Collecting intel seems pretty standard to me.”
After all, this was the National Campus Beast Mastering League, not some casual game.
The winners would earn qualification for elite academies’ assessments. To Qiao Sang, gleaning information from opponents was perfectly normal.
“It’s not just that." Xu Yixuan whispered.
“He pretends to be weak before matches, making his opponents hesitate to go all out. Then, when the time is right, he’ll have his beast unleash a devastating attack. Most people fall for it.” She gritted her teeth as she recalled.
Qiao Sang got the gist.
“So, he acts like a frail Lin Daiyu before transforming into a fierce warrior like Cheng Yaojin during the match?”
She turned to Xu Yixuan with a knowing smile. “You fell for it too, didn’t you?”
Xu Yixuan awkwardly chuckled. “I may have held back a tiny bit early on, but I still won…”
Before she could finish, Xu Yixuan tugged on Qiao Sang’s sleeve and signaled with her eyes.
“He’s coming over. Probably to probe you for information.”
Sure enough, Li Kun walked up to them.
“You’re the famous Qiao Sang everyone’s been talking about, right?” He greeted with a warm smile.
“I’m Li Kun from Fiqi Beastmaster High.”
“Hi.” Qiao Sang returned his smile.
“Are you really a first-year?” Li Kun asked, feigning disbelief.
“Yep.” Qiao Sang replied cheerfully.
“Do I not look like one?”
The two chatted casually, like old friends catching up. Their easygoing conversation left Xu Yixuan puzzled.
Didn’t I just warn her that this guy’s fishing for intel? Why is she so chummy with him?!
As the conversation wound down, Li Kun nonchalantly asked, “So, which beast are you planning to send out first?”
Qiao Sang pretended to ponder before replying, “Probably my Treasure-Seeking Demon.”
“Qiao Sang!” Xu Yixuan exclaimed in alarm.
“How could you just tell him?”
“It’s fine.” Qiao Sang said confidently.
“I’m not going to lose anyway.”
Xu Yixuan blinked in surprise. “True, I guess…”
The preliminary matches for all grade levels were underway simultaneously.
In the first phase, individuals in the battle group had to face three members from opposing school teams in turn.
After each round, professional medics would heal the beasts, ensuring they were ready for the next fight.
As the high school seniors’ matches continued, the first-years had already wrapped up their rounds, given that most of their beasts were still at the beginner level.
“A2 Group, Shengshui High’s Qiao Sang versus Fiqi Beastmaster High’s Zhao Weiwei.” The announcement rang out across Zone C.
In the waiting area, a girl with a headband asked, “Do you think she’ll really send out the Treasure-Seeking Demon first?”
“Of course.” Li Kun replied with a grin.
“These top school kids are all the same. Either they keep quiet or overshare everything. It’s because they’re too confident in their strength and don’t take us seriously.”
Li Kun wasn’t expecting to win every match, but with his intel, at least one of his team members should be able to counter Qiao Sang’s beast and secure some points.
That way, even if they didn’t dominate Shengshui High, they wouldn’t leave empty-handed.
But just as Li Kun grew confident in his strategy, the arena lit up with a gray and green summoning array.
A black beast and a red-and-white one appeared on the field.
Li Kun froze, his mind blank.
Wait, what?! She sent out the Flame Hound?! Where’s the Treasure-Seeking Demon?!
“You said you’d send the Treasure-Seeking Demon!” Zhao Weiwei cried out from the field, furious at the misinformation.
“Come on.” Qiao Sang said innocently.
“We’re opponents. Did you really believe me?”
Zhao Weiwei felt a pang of regret.
Why did we fall for that?
On the observation deck, a male reporter excitedly asked, “Principal Wang, I didn’t realize the Flame Hound belonged to one of your students! What are your thoughts on the match?”
“Don’t ask me.” Wang Weidou replied, his eyes glued to the arena.
“Just watch. If you blink, you might miss everything.”
The reporter was puzzled. “Miss everything? The match hasn’t even started yet—”
Before he could finish, the referee’s mechanical beast blew the starting whistle.
The Flame Hound vanished in an instant, reappearing behind the Double-Headed Black Crow.
With a roar, searing flames engulfed the crow, which fell to the ground with a wail.
The fire dissipated, leaving the Double-Headed Black Crow unconscious. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ novel✦fire.net
The match had lasted all of three seconds.