Deep in the dense forest, after a series of violent explosions, everything eventually fell silent again.
Everywhere the eye could see was filled with craters. These uneven pits were unusually large, each one would be considered a deep pit to an ordinary person.
In the largest pit of them all, the Steel Armor Emperor Beast lay motionless with eyes closed.
At the edge of the crater, staring down at the unmoving figure of the Steel Armor Emperor Beast, Rushumar wasted no time. He turned to Voidthorn and ordered, âScan.â
âKong kong.â
Voidthorn closed its eyes, and a formless ripple immediately spread out from its body in all directions.
Taking advantage of the moment, Pirite said, âYou go find Adinishi. Iâll meet up with Qiao Sang first.â
Bringing a troublesome student to a dangerous place like the 30th District during school hours obviously meant taking full responsibility for her safety.
Rushumar wasnât surprised by this decision and nodded.
âAlright.â
Perfect. Everything is going according to plan...
Piriteâs heart eased a little.
Suddenly, he felt his phone vibrating several times in his pocket.
Areas with wild pet beasts usually had poor reception due to the difficulty in constructing signal towers, but the Imperial Beast University had specially developed portable signal devices that ensured signal availability wherever you went.
Pirite instinctively took out his phone to check.
But the moment he saw the messages, his heart sank. Keeping a calm face, he turned to Nyudikaka and said, âLetâs go.â
Just then, a voice rang out from the sky: âTeacher! Stop him!â
Nyudikakaâs eyes flashed blue.
âStop him.â Rushumar said quickly as the realization hit him.
No sooner had he spoken than Nyudikaka vanished with Pirite.
âKong kong.â
At the same time, Voidthorn opened its eyes, which glowed with a blue light.
The surroundings immediately shimmered with wave-like distortions that floated in the air.
Soon, Pirite and Nyudikakaâs figures reappeared from one of the distortions, right back at their original location.
A careful observer would notice the ripple had formed exactly where they had disappeared.
Everything was restored to calm once more.
Spatial Correction, a high-level psychic skill. It can immediately correct and restore any spatial changes occurring within its range. If a pet beast tries to use teleportation or any spatial skill requiring coordinate locking, it will be forcibly returned to its original position...
Pirite looked at Voidthorn with a grim face, realizing how troublesome things had become.
A giant yellow bird-like pet beast descended to the ground.
Ogav jumped off and got straight to the point: âAdinishi is with Qiao Sang.â
Rushumarâs expression darkened.
âThen why arenât you following her? What are you doing here?â
âHer Ghost Ring King can teleport.â Ogav explained.
âAnd my Light Fang was defeated by the Famu Moth. Without Light Fang, I couldnât keep up with her.â
Idiot. You actually let a C-rank Beastmaster escapeâŠ
Rushumar glared at Ogav, then turned to Pirite and said coldly: âLooks like weâll have to go find Qiao Sang together.â
At this point, it was obvious to him that Adinishiâs sudden disappearance was Piriteâs doing!
âAdinishi is with Qiao Sang?â Pirite feigned ignorance and looked at Ogav.
Keep pretendingâŠ
Ogav ignored him and continued speaking to Rushumar: âAdinishi entered the Ghost Ring Kingâs ring. Iâve studied that ring before, without the Ghost Ring King, it canât be opened. I think Qiao Sang is likely heading straight to the 1st District, since thatâs the safest place for her.â
Since there was no worry about Adinishi escaping and he had already revealed her location, if he were Qiao Sang, his first instinct would also be to immediately leave the 30th District and return to her own territory.
Though she was originally from Blue Star, she now studied in Yulianton and had saved several terminally ill people within their circle. The 1st District was the safest place for her.
âSend word, book out all the flights heading to the 1st District immediately.â Rushumar ordered on the spot.
Then he frowned.
âNo, book every transportation heading to any district!â
âUnderstood.â Ogav pulled out his phone.
At that moment, Pirite sighed: âYou really treat me like I donât exist, huh, Kaka.â
âNyu.â
Nyudikaka gave a soft cry, eyes flashing blue as it looked at Ogavâs phone.
The next second, Ogavâs phone crumpled like a piece of paper and became scrap metal.
---
At the airport.
âHello, Iâd like a ticket for the next flight to the 1st District.â said Qiao Sang.
The staff member checked the system and looked up apologetically.
âIâm sorry, all flights to the 1st District are sold out.â
Qiao Sang didnât even think before saying, âThen give me any flight to the 1st District for today. Any airline.â
The staff member still wore the same apologetic look.
âIâm sorry, but all flights to the 1st District for today are sold out.â
Qiao Sang fell silent for a moment.
âThen get me a ticket to any of the upper ten districts.â
âAlright, please wait a moment.â The staff member looked back at the screen.
Half a minute later, she looked up again with a somewhat complicated expression.
âAll flights to the upper ten districts are sold out as well.â
Qiao Sang: âŠâŠ
âWhat about the middle ten districts?â She asked, still refusing to give up.
After a pause, she added, âOr any of the lower ten districts.â
The staff looked again, but the answer remained the same: âNone.â
âHow could there not be a single ticket left?â Qiao Sang found it hard to believe.
It seemed the staff was encountering this for the first time too. She spoke more than usual: âToday really is unusual. Just earlier, when I was processing a passengerâs ticket to the 18th District, there were still lots of open seatsâŠâ
As she spoke, she realized her slip-up and quickly softened her tone, putting on a professional smile: âPerhaps thereâs a system delay. Would you like me to check tomorrowâs flights for you?â
Qiao Sang paused to think.
âAlright. Book me the earliest flight to the 1st District tomorrow.â
This time, the booking went through without a hitch.
3:30 AM. She decided to just wait at the airport until thenâŠ
Qiao Sang took the ticket, checked the time, and headed toward the boarding gate. (T/n: Babe what??? You're being followed, don't stop one place!!! You making me nervous.)
---
Back in the forest.
Ogav tossed aside his now-useless phone, looked at Pirite, and chuckled: âDone pretending?â
Pirite also smiled.
âWhat, you think I canât stop you from going after my student?â
âWeâre not after anyone.â Ogav said with a dismissive wave.
âWeâre just looking for Adinishi. As long as you hand her over, we can still work together.â
âWhy waste time talking?â Rushumar said impatiently.
âContact the others already.â
âNo need to be angry, teacher.â
Ogav explained to Rushumar: âActually, I already arranged everything before I got here. She absolutely wonât get out of the 1st District today. Iâve stationed people at every transport point. If Qiao Sang shows up at the airport or elsewhere, someone will report it immediately. Even if they canât reach me, theyâll stop her on the spot.â
Hearing this, Rushumarâs face eased up.
Piriteâs expression, however, darkened completely.
---
At the airport.
Qiao Sang bought a cup of coffee and four pet-beast drinks, then found a seat.
On Chaosu Star, the airport didnât restrict beast masters from summoning their pets.
Little Treasure and the others happily held their drinks and sipped away.
Qiao Sang pulled out her phone and noticed that Teacher Pirite still hadnât contacted her, which made her a little uneasy.
Just as she was about to call him, a deep, magnetic voice came from ahead: âHello.â
Qiao Sang looked up and saw a young man with brown hair, dressed in a black windbreaker.
His face lit up with surprise.
âExcuse me, are you Miss Qiao Sang, the one who participated in the recent Beast Master Star Tournament?â
Didnât expect someone in the 30th District to recognize me too...
Qiao Sang nodded.
âThatâs me.â
âGreat! I never expected to see you here.â The young man, acting familiar, sat down beside her.
âI watched every one of your matches.â
Qiao Sang smiled.
âWant an autograph?â
The young man paused for a second, then his face lit up with excitement again.
âThat would be amazing!â
He quickly patted down all the pockets on his clothes, but then lowered his hands, disappointed.
âBut I didnât bring a pen or paper.â
Suddenly, he looked at the Little Treasure sipping a drink beside them with hopeful eyes.
âI heard that the Ghost Ring Kingâs ring is actually a spatial storage. It can hold anything. I wonder if thereâs a pen and some paper in there I could borrow.â
âXun~ Xun!â
Upon hearing that, Little Treasure immediately put down his drink, removed his ring, and was about to search for the requested items.
Just then, he heard his beast master speak: âI didnât bring a pen or paper either.â
âXun xunâŠâ
Little Treasure quietly slipped the ring back onto himself.
Gangbao turned to observe the young man after hearing her beast masterâs words.
âThatâs a real pity.â The young man said disappointedly.
âWhere are you headed?â Qiao Sang took a sip of her coffee and asked casually.
â1st District.â The young man looked at her.
âAnd you?â
â1st District as well.â
âWhat a coincidence! What time is your flight?â The young manâs eyes lit up.
Qiao Sang didnât answer. Instead, she asked, âWhereâs your luggage?â
The young man paused, then said, âIâm here on a mission. The client covers meals and lodging, so I didnât bring anything.â
Qiao Sang gave him a look.
âNot even clothes?â
The young man scratched his head, looking embarrassed.
âI can go a whole week without showering.â
Qiao Sang: âŠ
Youâre something else.
In truth, she had initially been a little suspicious of this guyâs approach. After all, she had once had a large fanbase back on Blue Star and understood that when fans met their favorite beast masters and were offered a photo or autograph, theyâd immediately show excitement, not pause awkwardly like he did.
But now, she was starting to wonder if she was being too sensitive.
At that moment, another young man with blond hair and a baseball cap walked over. He subtly glanced at Qiao Sang, then shook his head at the brown-haired youth.
âNo contact.â
The young man turned to Qiao Sang and apologized, âIâm going to step out to make a quick call.â
Still very suspiciousâŠ
Qiao Sang kept up her friendly smile and nodded politely.
The two young men stood up and walked toward the menâs restroom.
Once they were gone, Qiao Sang picked up her phone and called Teacher Pirite.
âWeâre sorry, the number you are dialing is temporarily unavailable. Please try again laterâŠâ A soft female voice echoed from the speaker.
Canât get throughâŠ
Qiao Sangâs expression grew serious as she set the phone down.
Logically, it had been long enough that Teacher Pirite shouldâve made it out of the dense forest by now. Why couldnât she reach him?
Could something have happened�
âGang Slice.â
Just as the thought crossed her mind, Gangbao is made a noise beside her, indicating that something seemed off about that man earlier.
If Gangbao is says somethingâs wrong, then something is wrongâŠ
Qiao Sangâs ears perked up immediately, trying to pick up any sounds from the restroom.
But there was nothing. Not a single sound. Not even the noise of someone using the toilet.
Qiao Sangâs alertness spiked.
Definitely not right.
With her current level of hearing, she shouldâve been able to hear sounds from inside the restroom, even the sound of someone pulling down pants. But she heard nothing.
And that was the most suspicious thing of all.
âYabao, listen in on that restroom.â Qiao Sang said, motioning in that direction.
âYap.â
Yabao, still sipping his drink, twitched his ears.
âYapâŠâ
Three seconds later, he shook his head, nothing heard.
Even Yabao couldnât hear anythingâŠ
Qiao Sangâs heart sank.
She immediately turned to Little Treasure.
âLittle Treasure, go invisible and-â
But she suddenly stopped short, her heart tightening.
Adinishi was inside Little Treasure's ring. Right now, that ring was a high-priority item. She couldnât let him leave her sight.
âXun xun?â
Little Treasure looked confused when his beast master didnât finish the sentence.
Qiao Sang changed the subject.
âItâs nothing. Keep drinking.â
---
Inside the menâs restroom.
At the top of the innermost stall, a small box-like pet beast covered its nose, eyes glowing blue, wearing a deadpan expression like it had lost the will to live.
An invisible barrier enveloped the stall, completely isolating all sound.
âHow come we canât get through?â The brown-haired youth frowned.
âMaybe something happened.â The blond youth guessed.
After a pause, he asked, âSo what now?â
The brown-haired youth pondered for a moment, then asked: âDid you find out what time Qiao Sangâs flight is?â
The blond nodded.
â3:30 AM.â
The brown-haired one checked his watch.
âA few more hours. The airportâs too crowded to act now. Itâs best to wait until we contact Ogav and have him come over.â
âWhat if Qiao Sang boards the plane and we still havenât reached him?â The blond asked.
âThen weâll have to handle it ourselves.â The young man said grimly.
âHer Ice Aipalu has super-tier skills like Ice Field Domain and Healing Light, and her Fire Qilu has Lava Purgatory and the ultimate-level skill Meteor Rain. Weâre probably not a match.â The blond said frankly.
The brown-haired one fell silent.
He had to admit, that was a real problem.
After a few seconds, he spoke: âThe key is the Ghost Ring Kingâs ring. As long as we can get that ring, or the beast itself, itâll be enough.â
âIf we havenât secured the Ghost Ring King and the ring before she boards, and we still havenât reached OgavâŠâ
His gaze turned razor-sharp.
âThen weâll just have to sabotage the plane.â
Half a minute later, the two exited the stall.
At that exact moment, a middle-aged man wearing black-rimmed glasses walked toward them.
He glanced at the two who came out of the same stall, then looked up at the little pet beast holding its nose above the stall, recognizing the skill it was using.
He immediately gave them a look that clearly said:
You two are kinky as hell.
Brown-haired youth: âŠ
Blond youth: âŠ