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Qiao Sang had considered many things, but she hadn't expected to run into an issue at the very first step of registration.
"Youâre a D-rank Beastmaster. This is the E-rank Beastmaster arena. You canât participate." The staff member glanced at her Beast master badge without even checking the detailed information and directly rejected her.
Qiao Sang was momentarily stunned.
"I was still an E-rank Beastmaster before ten this morning..."
"But youâre not now." The staff member shot her a sidelong glance.
"If youâre not an E-rank Beastmaster, you donât qualify to sign up. If you want to compete, go to the 21st floor where the D-rank Beast master battles are held."
A burly black man, at least 1.9 meters tall, standing behind her in line, chimed in, "Yeah, youâre a D-rank Beast master. Coming here is just bullying us!"
Qiao Sang turned to look at him and fell silent.
The man looked at the petite girl who barely reached his chest, her face still youthful and innocent. He suddenly felt a bit embarrassed and muttered under his breath, "Well, I wasnât wrong."
At that moment, a manager who had been paying attention to the situation walked over.
"Whatâs going on here?"
The staff respectfully explained the situation.
The manager was a black-haired, black-eyed woman. She studied the girl and the unfamiliar beast in her arms before saying, "Register her."
The staff hesitated.
"But thatâs against the rules."
The woman smiled.
"Rules arenât set in stone."
Then she turned to Qiao Sang.
"You can participate, but youâll have to follow the E-rank Beast master rules and only send out two beasts."
"No problem!" Qiao Sang immediately agreed.
Hearing this, the contestants who had been unhappy about the situation finally relaxed.
After the woman returned to her post, someone approached her and whispered, "Is that girl special?"
"Sheâs probably from some prestigious family." The woman smiled.
"I donât know how special she is yet, but Iâve never seen that beast sheâs holding before. A new beast like that will definitely make things more exciting."
---
While waiting for her match, Qiao Sang finally realized why the audience here was so invested in the battles.
Spectators could place bets on the fights.
Basically, this place was full of gamblers.
When personal stakes were involved, it was no surprise the crowd got so riled up.
"I want to place a bet." Qiao Sang walked up to the betting counter and coolly pulled out her black gold card.
If there was ever a time to flex a black gold card, this was it!
The staff member took the card and stared at it for several seconds before respectfully handing it back.
"We donât accept credit cards for bets."
Qiao Sang: ...
First the Beast master registration, and now this? Why did it feel like she was rich but couldn't spend her money?
She pulled out two 100-yuan bills and handed them over.
"Iâm betting on Qiao Sang to win 2-0."
After seeing the black gold card earlier, the staff didnât react much to the mere 200 yuan. He accepted it respectfully.
"Please show your Beast master badge."
Qiao Sang handed it over.
Three seconds later, the staff returned it with an apologetic look.
"Sorry, contestants canât bet on their own matches."
Qiao Sang: ...
---
Back in the waiting area, she discovered something else.
There was a high-level beast in the competition!
Qiao Sang suddenly understood.
D-rank Beast masters had at least 20% brain development, but many Beast masters never reached that level. Some remained stuck at less than 15%, or even 10%, their whole lives.
E-rank Beast masters hadnât met the brain development requirement for D-rank, but that didnât mean their beasts would always stay at the mid-level stage.
Some beasts evolved into high-level beasts, but their masters didnât meet the standards to advance.
Naturally, these Beast masters remained at the E-rank.
Realizing this, Qiao Sang became excited.
Up until now, her opponents were either her peers or people only a few years older. But here, she might face competitors decades older than her.
Older meant more experience.
This E-rank tournament might be way more interesting than she expected!
---
Forty minutes later, Qiao Sang stepped onto the command platform as the announcer introduced her.
Since E-rank tournaments featured contestants of all ages daily, the crowd was used to seeing young competitors. But that didnât mean they were indifferent.
"Sheâs way too young! She looks like a high schooler!"
"Bet on Kash! Free money! This match is basically giving it away!"
"Damn! The betting closed ten minutes before the match! Otherwise, Iâd have put everything on this!"
"Calm down! Remember that kid a while ago who looked like a high schooler too? He had a high-level beast and made us all lose big!"
"How many geniuses like that exist? This girl looks even younger than him! Look at that little Steel Falcon. Itâs just a beginner-level beast, and that red-and-white one next to her is probably mid-level at best. And just look at it, it doesnât have any combat potential!"
A middle-aged man hesitated.
"Why do I feel like the bracelet on that red-and-white beastâs paw looks like a lightweight miniaturization bracelet?"
The person next to him gave him a disdainful look.
"Get your eyes checked, man."
---
In the arena, Gangbao flew from the command platform to its position.
Kash was a bald, 36-year-old man. He glanced at the small falcon, then at the obviously school-aged girl across from him, and grinned. He looked like he thought this match was already in the bag.
He formed a hand seal, and a gray star formation lit up beneath his feet.
A one-meter-tall beast appeared, gray eyes, two small horns, and bandages wrapped around its hands and neck.
The crowd erupted in cheers.
"Itâs Palm Strike Kid! Kashâs Palm Strike Kid is here! This is its 32nd match in this arena!"
The commentator spoke into the mic.
"It looks like Kash isnât planning to hold back against Qiao Sang at all, heâs sending out his ace right away! Facing an opponent one rank higher, how will Qiao Sang respond?"
"Match countdown: 3, 2, 1!"
As soon as the mechanical voice finished-
Palm Strike Kid blurred forward with lightning speed, appearing right in front of Gangbao almost instantly.
Gangbao remained calm, flapping its wings as Palm Strike Kidâs fist, glowing with white energy, hurtled toward it.
A gust of wind roared through the arena as the punch landed where Gangbao had just been.