Underworld, spaceship cabin, control room.
"Reporting to True Monarch, Qin Shou has already been slain by your subordinate. The Heavenly Eye Divine Race is no longer at risk." The Black-armored General knelt and reported.
The gigantic eyeball let out a satisfied laugh: "Haha, well done. Since that man is dead, there’s no need for us to hurry relocating the spaceship."
Beast Cultivation Main City, Earth’s Core Energy Pool, Room 9527.
For an entire month, Qin Shou stayed holed up in his room, barely stepping out to eat or drink.
After a month of confinement, his cultivation progress was remarkable. He was already halfway through the physical transformation for Vajra Realm Four Star.
After checking out of the room, Qin Shou exited the registration desk. His first action was to summon Leng Wanbai.
"Xiao Bai, not long ago, the headmaster led an operation. What was the outcome?"
Leng Wanbai smiled and replied, "The headmaster’s mission went very well. The Heavenly Eye Divine Race was completely wiped out, and they even rooted out a few rats within the Federation." The source of this content ɪs novel•fire.net
"Just some rats?" Qin Shou frowned.
Leng Wanbai nodded, "That’s right. They were merely rats. The Heavenly Eye Divine Race is a minor player; the real big shots don’t even care about them."
Qin Shou thought for a while, "True, but these rats seem endless. I really offended them this time."
"Haha, Master, you’re now a student of the Beast Cultivation Main City. Barring any accidents, you’ll surely reach the Unbreakable Realm within ten years. There’s nothing to fear."
"Am I scared? Not at all."
Qin Shou smirked and then asked, "Has the First Squad departed yet?"
"No, that senior hasn’t... Wait, now he has." Leng Wanbai suddenly pointed behind Qin Shou.
Qin Shou turned around and saw a rather unremarkable young man walking out of the registration desk.
Even as a Vajra Realm Ninth Star cultivator, this man didn’t flaunt his Star Power, nor did he oppress weaker cultivators with his gaze.
So, unless he made a move, it was impossible to gauge his strength.
"That’s the sixth-year number one of Beast Cultivation Main City, Li Jing. His beast is the Thunder Giant Dragon," Leng Wanbai explained.
Qin Shou nodded without speaking, standing still and waiting for the rest of the First Squad.
The "big boss" had emerged, and naturally, his underlings would arrive to welcome him.
As expected, within seconds, a group of people riding their beasts descended from the sky.
"Brother Jing, you’re finally out."
"Congratulations, Brother Jing! You’re one step closer to the Unbreakable Realm."
The group greeted him warmly, smiling all around.
Qin Shou turned and looked at Leng Wanbai with a displeased expression.
"Where’s Xiao Sheng and the others? Not even welcoming me when I came out. Look at how lively it is over there. This is embarrassing."
They’re busy doing missions to earn Energy Pool time. How could they spare time to greet you?
At that moment, someone in the crowd subconsciously noticed Qin Shou and immediately waved enthusiastically, calling out, "Lao Qin, over here! Come over quickly!"
Qin Shou turned to look and easily recognized the person.
This guy had gotten along splendidly with the monkey when it was impersonating him. He was also the fourth-year number one, a Vajra Realm Seven Star Beast Tamer.
Laughing, he waved back and walked over.
The sharp-featured young man pulled Qin Shou into a bear hug, saying warmly, "Lao Qin, when did you come out? Didn’t even let your brother know."
Qin Shou looked at the guy’s monkey-like face and twitched his mouth.
No wonder the monkey liked hanging out with you—you even look the part.
Before Qin Shou could reply, Du added, "Let me introduce you—this is our First Squad’s leader, Brother Jing."
Qin Shou smiled faintly and said, "Greetings, Brother Jing."
Li Jing, exuding no arrogance, gave Qin Shou an appraising look and smiled. "So this is the first-year number one? Very impressive."
Du patted Qin Shou on the shoulder and puffed his chest. "Of course, Brother Jing! Lao Qin is this year’s Dragon Island Champion. His beast-taming talent is outstanding!"
Qin Shou merely smiled, neither confirming nor denying it.
After some brief introductions, Li Jing checked the time and said, "Now that everyone’s here, let’s get moving. The Beast God Main City came here to provoke us. If we don’t respond, people might think we’re pushovers."
"Got it, Brother Jing..."
"It’s time to give those Beast God Masters a good lesson..."
The group mounted their beasts and set off in grand fashion toward the Transmission Square.
Following behind Du, Qin Shou remained uncharacteristically quiet, prompting Du to ask, "Lao Qin, why are you so quiet today?"
"Oh, sore throat these past few days."
The Beast God Main City had only recently been completed, and this was the first use of its Transmission Array leading there.
As the transmission light faded, the group disappeared from the Transmission Room.
In the next moment, their vision shifted. They walked out of the array chamber, greeted by the shimmering blue light of water rippling through a barrier, casting gentle hues over their bodies.
The barrier separated the seawater, allowing them to see myriad vividly colored fish swimming beyond.
"Wow, Beast God Main City is built underwater. The environment looks pretty awesome."
"Awesome? There’s nothing great about a few damn fish. Compared to our Beast Cultivation Main City, it’s worlds apart."
"Not just worlds apart—this place isn’t even on land. It’s underwater!"
Laughing, the group passed through an underwater tunnel and emerged into an open seabed plaza.
There, hundreds of Beast God Masters were already waiting for them.
Meanwhile, students from both the Mechanical Main City and Beast Power Main City had also gathered on this spot.
"Brother Jing, why are they here?" Du asked, puzzled.
Li Jing remained calm and said, "They must have been provoked by the Beast God Main City as well. By arriving on the same day as us, they not only want to embarrass the Beast God Main City but also seek to overshadow us, the Beast Cultivation Main City."
"Tsk, overshadow us? They’ve hit the wrong target."
Du sneered and turned, wanting to banter with Qin Shou, only to find him missing.
"Huh? Where did Lao Qin go?"
At the edge of the plaza.
Qin Shou stood with arms crossed, sizing up Fang Bao and Lin Xiaomei before him.
"You guys are first in your grades too?" he asked skeptically.
Indignant, Fang Bao put her hands on her hips. "Qin Shou, who do you think you’re looking down on?"
"How did you get first place?"
"Who said I was first? I just came here to watch the excitement." Fang Bao shook her head.
He turned to Lin Xiaomei, who honestly admitted, "Don’t look at me. I’m just here for the fun too."
Lin Xiaomei pouted. "Look over there. Be cautious of Sister Hu. Don’t end up with an upset surprise."
Qin Shou turned his head and saw Hu Yiyi in the Beast Power Main City camp glaring at him with obvious ill intent.
"Uh... Didn’t we reconcile last time? Is she planning to eat me alive?" Qin Shou muttered helplessly.
Elsewhere, the Liu siblings also took notice of Qin Shou.
This time, it was time to settle both new and old scores!
After exchanging a few casual words, the three returned to their respective camps.
Meanwhile, the leaders of the Four Main Cities had gathered to discuss the specifics of the upcoming wager.
Li Jing returned to his group and called forward Qin Shou and the other grade-level firsts.
"We’ve just finalized the terms. This challenge carries significant risks. We’ll be heading to the Merfolk Sea Region to hunt merfolk. If any of you wish to back out, now’s your chance," Li Jing said with a serious expression.
Hearing this, the group’s faces turned grim.
"We’re going that far? Hunting merfolk in the Merfolk Sea Region? People could die!"
"Exactly. Those Beast God Masters are insane. Do they even know how dangerous the Merfolk Sea Region is?"
"They must know. This is just to scare us into retreating."
Qin Shou rubbed his chin, staying silent.
Last time, the merfolk he hunted was male, so he hadn’t used its corpse to enhance Zhi Yin.
If he accidentally turned Zhi Yin into a male mermaid, he’d probably cry his eyes out.
This trip to the Merfolk Sea Region presented a perfect opportunity to acquire female merfolk to strengthen Zhi Yin.
After some deliberation, the group collectively decided to take on the wager and head to the Merfolk Sea Region.
The stakes? Each of the four teams would wager three years’ worth of Earth’s Core Energy Pool time. The team that hunted the most merfolk would take all.
If Beast Cultivation Main City won, Qin Shou would earn a year and a half of Energy Pool usage time.
Compared to painstaking part-time labor, this was like hitting the jackpot overnight.
As for the three-year wager, it would be fronted by Li Jing and the others anyway—Qin Shou, being penniless, was just along for the ride.
A classic case of getting everything for nothing.
After signing the wager agreement, the 24 students stepped into the Transmission Array heading to Merfolk Island.