Chapter 59
Chapter 59: I’m Only Telling You This, So Don’t…
“Classmates, settle down!”
Not far away, the beast-taming teacher lifted a hand, signaling the overexcited students to quiet down. He raised his voice, warning them, “This blazing hound may look calm, but that doesn’t mean you can treat it like an ordinary dog. Remember this: magic beasts are vicious and brutal. Even if it shows friendliness for a moment, it could be an act.”
“Also, the blazing hound’s belly is its weak spot. When you’re trying to interact with them, do not touch their bellies. A student broke that rule before, and his entire right leg got bitten off…”
He kept lecturing with a grim face—until the students erupted into another wave of noise, cutting him off mid-sentence.
“Holy shit, look!”
“What is big shot Qian Qi doing?”
“Didn’t he just say you can’t touch a blazing hound’s belly?”
Their frantic chatter confused the teacher. He turned—
And saw the “vicious, brutal” blazing hound he’d been talking about lying on the ground like a regular dog. Its mouth hung open, fangs on full display, tongue lolling out like wet laundry. Its massive body had gone completely limp, like it had melted into the dirt.
Only its tail moved, thumping the ground in a steady beat along with its excited awoos.
The teacher: ?
?
?
What the hell?
In full view of everyone, Qian Qi had dropped to one knee beside the blazing hound. Her small fists pumped forward one after the other like she was working a punching bag.
“Hup!”
“Whoosh!”
“Bam!”
“Thump!”
Each hit landed square on the blazing hound’s belly.
And every time she struck, its tail kicked up and slapped down even harder, like it was cheering her on.
The beast-taming teacher had seen plenty in his life, but he still couldn’t stop his jaw from dropping.
This was absurd.
Why was the blazing hound not going berserk under Qian Qi’s “attack”…
But looking like it was enjoying every second of it?
That wasn’t possible.
“Teacher! What’s going on?!”
“Didn’t you say we can’t touch its belly?”
“Why can big shot Qian Qi do it? Is she a beast tamer? Is this her contracted dog?”
“But isn’t she from the magic plant department…?”
The teacher was curious too. He glanced toward the other classes and saw their blazing hounds baring teeth, snarling, acting exactly like savage magic beasts were supposed to.
“Hold on.”
He motioned for the students to calm down and walked over, staring at Qian Qi and the blissed-out beast on the ground. “Classmate… is this your contracted dog?”
Qian Qi paused and looked up at him, genuinely puzzled. “No. Why?”
“Then why is it—” He stopped himself, then tried again, choosing his words. “You’re not from the Beast-Taming Department or the Magic Beast Department, so you may not know this. The blazing hound’s weak point is its belly. If you attack its belly, it will go berserk.”
Yet here it was, getting belly-punched like it had paid for the privilege.
“Oh. You mean that.”
Qian Qi brightened like she’d finally understood. She clicked her tongue, glanced left and right, then lifted a hand to cover her mouth like she was sharing state secrets. “I’ll only tell you this, Teacher, but you can’t tell anyone.”
The teacher instantly bent down, ear tilted toward her.
“Actually…” Qian Qi whispered, voice dripping with mystery, “this blazing hound is a masochist.”
The teacher: …
The teacher: ???
What kind of nonsense was that?
“Our A Tu has some special hobbies,” Qian Qi continued, dead serious. “Don’t discriminate against him.”
She bent down, lifted A Tu’s right hind leg, and planted her flip-flop right on the joint. With a sharp crack—
Crack!
A Tu let out an ecstatic, full-body “AWOO!”
The teacher: …
It really was into it.
He wiped a hand down his face and turned to the sea of eager, staring students. For once in his life, he had no idea how to answer.
He couldn’t exactly say, This dog likes it.
Seeing his struggle, Qian Qi took pity on him. “I’ll explain for you.”
She called over Uncle Li to hold A Tu’s leash, then strolled toward the other class and leaned in to whisper to each student in turn, “Our A Tu has some special hobbies. Don’t tell anyone. And don’t discriminate against him…”
The teacher: …
That was your solution?
I thought I was the only one who got to know!
…
After the blazing hound briefing, a group of students led their blazing hounds in through the north gate of Beast-Taming Plaza.
They were all E-rank beast tamers who’d successfully contracted blazing hounds, invited over to share tips and “contract experience” with the students who still hadn’t managed it.
“There’s no real trick,” a senior student said. “Start by feeding from a distance. Once it gets used to your scent and stops seeing you as an enemy, use your beast-taming talent and send a contract request.”
He paused, then added bluntly, “But with that method, you’re looking at at least a ninety-nine percent failure rate.”
“Unless you’re rich enough to buy Fire Qilin Fruit,” he continued. “Then your contract success rate might go up by… maybe twenty percent.”
Qian Qi’s brows pinched together. She dragged the System out, face twisted with suspicion. “Why do I feel like I got scammed?”
If Fire Qilin Fruit could boost the odds, then with her magic plant cultivation skills, couldn’t she just mass-produce it and brute-force the whole thing?
The System chimed in sweetly, in a voice that was far too familiar: “Wuli Qian Qian, don’t listen to their nonsense. There are lots of bad classmates out there. They’ll only trick you, okay? Only I truly care about you.”
Qian Qi: ???
Are you seriously copying my tone now?
The System vanished the instant it finished talking, sprinting away like a rabbit.
Qian Qi stared at the empty air. “…Thanks. Trust level: minus one.”
She was still grinding her teeth when she felt the leash in her hand lift. She looked up—
A Tu was farting at the blazing hounds that had already been contracted.
Contracted by tiny humans.
Ptooey.
Shame of dog world.
Qian Qi yanked the leash. “What are you so smug about? One day you’ll still get contracted by me.”
Blazing hounds were ridiculously sensitive about the word “contract.” They might not understand human speech, but if they heard something enough times, they caught on to the vibe.
A Tu stretched his long, oddly flexible body, then performed a pose so smooth and dramatic no normal dog should be physically capable of it.
His eyes practically screamed: Even if I get contracted, I’ll still be a level above you as a contracted beast!
Because I evolved!
Come look, come look—see how flexible I am? You don’t have that, do you?
Hmph.
I do.
The other blazing hounds stared at him blankly for a long beat.
Then, like they’d all woken from a nightmare at once, they tore away from their contract masters and sprinted straight toward A Tu.
What was going on?
What was going on?!
Why did you evolve?
Why, why?
Waiting online!
So damn urgent!