“Starting November 15th, the trial tasks will officially begin. Your wristbands will push task information, and you can choose to accept or decline based on your personal situation and your pets' condition. There are main tasks and side tasks; the higher your completion rate and evaluation, the more points you will earn.”
“After the trial concludes, the top ten contestants in the points ranking will receive rewards jointly provided by the Saint Candle Beast Tamer Association, the Blazing Lion tribe, and the Iron Fist Ape tribe.”
After speaking, she took a step back.
“Now, the trial begins. Good luck to everyone.”
The contestants dispersed.
Liu Yi opened the map function on her wristband.
The screen displayed a rough outline of the Secret Realm.
A basin surrounded by mountains, with “Core Area” marked in the center, and several sub-regions around it: Blazing Plains, Lava Corridor, Crimson Ridge Mountains, and Ashfall Valley.
Most areas on the map were grayed out, requiring physical presence to unlock.
...
Crimson Ridge Mountains.
Liu Yi chose this route.
The Crimson Ridge Mountains featured undulations, varying elevations, ridges, and valleys.
Liu Yi glanced down at the small golden lion at her feet.
Jinyao was trotting beside her, its four legs moving rapidly, tail held high. The golden-red gradient at its tail tip was particularly striking against the crimson ground.
It ran ahead of Liu Yi, then came back, ran ahead again, then came back, sweeping Ziyue’s nose with its tail every time it passed.
“Yanyan! Yanyan!”
Ziyue’s ears twitched from the sweep, but she didn’t dodge. She merely quickened her pace, moving to Liu Yi’s other side, a little further from Jinyao.
Jinyao immediately followed, its tail sweeping up again.
Ziyue sighed.
“Bingbing.”
Stop messing around.
Jinyao tilted its head, its eyes full of innocence.
“Yanyan?”
I’m not messing around?
Chiying descended from the air, gently coiling its tail around Jinyao’s body and lifting it away from Ziyue.
Suddenly suspended, Jinyao kicked its four legs twice in the air and turned its head to look at Chiying.
“Yanyan!”
What are you doing!
Chiying didn't answer, simply placing it on its back.
Jinyao lay on Chiying’s back, quiet for a moment, then began to scratch at Chiying’s scales with its paws.
Chiying’s tail flicked gently, but it remained silent.
That is, if one ignored how it then sped up and flew ahead of Liu Yi.
Liu Yi’s lips curved slightly upward, not exposing it.
Ziyue suddenly stopped, her ears perked up, her eyes fixed on the pile of rocks ahead.
Liu Yi raised a hand, and Chiying flew back from the front, hovering beside her.
Two people emerged from behind the rock pile.
A woman and a man, both wearing dark red school uniforms, with a roaring lion school emblem embroidered on their chests.
The woman was accompanied by a fluffy red monkey, a Flame Monkey.
The man was accompanied by an entirely crimson lizard, a Lava Lizard.
Their gazes first fell on Liu Yi, then shifted to Ziyue, then to Chiying, finally settling on Jinyao on Chiying’s back.
Jinyao, lying on Chiying’s back, was startled by their gazes. It poked its head out from Chiying’s back and tilted its head, observing the people opposite.
The two didn't move.
They stared at Jinyao for several seconds, then exchanged glances and simultaneously turned to Liu Yi.
“Are you the Beast Tamer of the Radiance Shift Blazing Lion?” The man’s tone carried a hint of uncertainty.
Liu Yi nodded.
The woman gazed at Jinyao again and again, murmuring, “It really is golden. I thought the news photos had been color-corrected.”
“Yanyan.”
Jinyao, lying on Chiying’s back, wagged its tail at the praise.
The man withdrew his gaze, his expression returning to normal. “Are you here for the trial?”
“Yes.”
“Then we’re competitors, I suppose.” The man’s lips curved slightly upward. “But the Secret Realm is so vast, and the first five days are for free training, so we won’t run into each other for now.”
After speaking, he turned and walked in another direction.
The Lava Lizard followed at his feet, its tail leaving a shallow scorch mark on the ground.
The woman gave Liu Yi a slight nod and followed suit.
After a few steps, her voice drifted back on the wind: “She looks younger than me, and she already has three pets.”
“She might be a third-year.”
“You’re right.”
Their voices gradually faded into the distance.
Liu Yi withdrew her gaze.
Jinyao, still on Chiying’s back, stared at the direction where the two had disappeared, tilting its head.
“Yanyan?”
They left?
“Mm.” Liu Yi rubbed Jinyao’s head. “Let’s go too.”
The terrain of the Crimson Ridge Mountains was indeed complex.
The ridges were narrow, flanked by steep slopes covered in dark red gravel, making it slippery to walk on.
The valleys were wide, but the ground temperature was significantly higher than on the ridges.
Liu Yi stood at the edge of the valley, opened her wristband’s map function, and confirmed her location.
“Ziyue, Frost Path, from the valley floor to the ridge.”
Ziyue sped up the valley floor on her ice path, carving a stable ice-blue trail on the steep slope.
She stopped at the edge of the ridge, looked back at Liu Yi, and gently swayed her tail.
“Bingbing.”
It’s ready.
Liu Yi nodded and walked up the ridge along the ice path.
“Yanyan?”
Did Ziyue make this?
“Mm.” Liu Yi nodded. “Ziyue’s Frost Path.”
Jinyao, on Chiying’s back, watched Ziyue’s nimble figure running on the ice path.
It jumped down from Chiying’s back and landed on the ice path.
The coolness of the ice surface spread through its paw pads. Jinyao retracted its paws slightly but didn’t move away.
It took two steps on the ice path, then two more.
Its paws slipped on the ice, and its entire body tumbled forward, belly pressed against the ice surface, sliding down the path for a short distance.
“Yanyan!”
Jinyao yelped in surprise, its small paws scrambling wildly on the ice.
Ziyue ran back from ahead, coiled her tail around Jinyao’s body, and scooped it off the ice path.
“Bingbing.”
Don’t run on the ice; it’s slippery.
“Yanyan......”
Got it......
Ziyue placed Jinyao back on Chiying’s back.
Chiying circled in place, only following once Liu Yi and Ziyue had gone some distance.
Over the next few days, Liu Yi conducted adaptive training with her three pets in different areas of the Crimson Ridge Mountains.
Ziyue practiced maintaining the stability of her Frost Path in high-temperature environments.
The ice path dissipated faster than usual in the hot environment, requiring more precise control over energy output.
From frequently reinforcing the ice at first, Ziyue eventually learned to adjust her energy output by feel, maintaining the path’s stability.
Chiying practiced flying in high temperatures and unstable air currents, using its perception of airflow to adjust its flight posture in advance, making every change in direction perfectly timed.
In the environment of the Saint Glow Secret Realm, Jinyao found practicing its skills much easier.
November 14th, the last day of free training.
Liu Yi stood on a rock at the highest point of the Crimson Ridge Mountains. Ziyue lay at her feet, resting with her eyes closed, Chiying hovered in the air on guard, and Jinyao conducted its final training session in the valley below.
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