Chapter 57: Moon-Embracing Jade Hammer, Half-Step Commander!!
[First Round Qualifier Opponent]
[Youlan Academy First Team]
The moment they saw their opponent, the entire White Maple Academy training room fell silent. The second team captain’s face turned ashen.
After all, in the previous Academy League, both Youlan Academy’s first and second teams had been eliminated by White Maple Academy’s main team. So, the opponents wouldn’t hold back this time either, fighting for a spot in the main tournament.
Moreover, she had heard about Xiao Kui’s humiliating defeat at the hands of Strongest Moonlight Rabbit…and that was when the opponent’s pet beast was still Mid-Tier!!
Now that the opponent’s Golden Wheel had evolved, their main battle pet beast, the Moonlight Rabbit, must have also evolved to High-Tier, right?
Her own strength was ranked fourth among the White Maple Academy core members, about the same as Xiao Kui. There was no way she could defeat that island-splitting red ring-shaped Weapon Species…
Seeing everyone’s dejected expressions, Xiao Kui blinked thoughtfully, then chuckled nonchalantly.
“Uh, hey, don’t look so glum. Maybe something will happen to them tomorrow~~~”
“What could be more important than the league?” the second team captain asked, shaking her head helplessly.
“Lots of things! Pregnancy, diarrhea, sudden…illness…important things happen all the time…”
Before Xiao Kui could finish her nonsense, someone pressed a hand against her head. She turned around, ready to lash out, but seeing the person behind her, she immediately lowered her head, her voice meek.
“V-Vice-Captain…”
The woman behind her, whom Xiao Kui called “Vice-Captain,” had long, flowing black hair, a slender figure, and sharp, beautiful features, a classic beauty. She gently pressed down on Xiao Kui’s head, then turned to look at the silent chestnut-haired girl with braids.
“Captain, transfer me to the second team.”
“If it’s single pet deployment or instance speedrun, I have a 90% chance of winning!!”
“…”
“…”
“Think carefully. Each team only has one substitution.” After a moment of silence, Aurora, the Ten Greats, the girl with the rustic braids, said indifferently.
Each team was only allowed one substitution throughout the entire Academy League. This meant that even if the second team captain failed to qualify, the first team could directly transfer her to their team once the league started.
However, if the vice-captain insisted on switching teams before the lineup was finalized, and the second team lost, they could only substitute one member. The other would be permanently eliminated.
“What are your thoughts?” Instead of answering, the vice-captain turned to look at the second team captain.
“I…”
“I don’t want to give up either. Just because I have a substitution opportunity, should I abandon my teammates?”
“We’re a Ten Greats academy! It’s too embarrassing to be afraid of other teams before the battle even begins!!!”
Hearing the second team captain’s words, the vice-captain nodded approvingly. She was right. They were a top academy, one of the Ten Greats. How could they be afraid of other teams before even fighting?
“In my opinion, that Strongest Moonlight Rabbit’s weakness is likely single pet deployment. The Moonlight Rabbit can’t fight alone without the Golden Wheel, and the Golden Wheel, without a controller, can only use that straight-line attack, which might work against weaklings like Qingliu Academy but wouldn’t be effective against Beast Tamers of our level!!”
“As long as we get a single pet deployment mode tomorrow, I have over a 90% chance of winning…”
“Captain, please transfer me to the second team…”
Under everyone’s anxious gaze, Aurora, after a long silence, nodded with a look of approval. Seeing this, the team members’ expressions lit up. With a star player joining their ranks, the second team finally had a chance against Strongest Moonlight Rabbit.
They, White Maple Academy, were destined to make history in the Academy League. They wouldn’t be eliminated in the qualifiers!!!
The day of the qualifiers, three hours before the first round.
In the Youlan Academy dormitory, the golden-haired girl with starry eyes lay sprawled on her bed, her shimmering hair cascading down her waist, her smooth, white skin as delicate as cream, clad only in stockings. At this moment, Lian Xing was facing the most difficult decision of her life.
[Moon-Embracing Jade Hammer → Heaven-Gracing Curtain — Commander-Tier Evolution Requirements]
[1. Equip one Gold Quality throwing-type combat skill.]
[2. Consume a total of three Commander-Tier crystals.]
[3. Possess a highly compatible Weapon Species pet beast.]
[4. Awaken a throwing-type talent in the second talent tree.]
[5. All equipped combat skills must be throwing-type, at least 2 in number, and at least Purple Quality.]
[6. Defeat a total of ten Commander-Tier pet beasts.]
[7. Cannot be defeated more than three times during the High-Tier stage.]
[8. Defeat a peak Commander-Tier pet beast.]
[9. Attack a wild Royal-Tier pet beast, regardless of victory or defeat, but not a simulated AI projection.]
Unlike evolving to High-Tier, which was relatively straightforward, the evolution requirements and level restrictions for Commander-Tier often took years for ordinary Beast Tamers to fulfill. However, as a High-Tier pet beast approached Commander-Tier, even without fulfilling all the requirements, it would start showing signs of evolution, even gaining a fraction of its evolved abilities.
Just like the Golden Wheel, which had already mutated and gained new characteristics before even evolving after meeting the requirements.
After all, it was a product of mutated evolution, not to be compared to ordinary High-Tier pet beasts.
At this moment, the Moon-Embracing Jade Hammer had already fulfilled four of the Commander-Tier evolution requirements: 3, 5, 6, and 9—
Incidentally, the reason for fulfilling requirement 5 was a new combat skill Lian Xing had acquired from the virtual battle trading area, spending almost 10 High-Tier crystals.
[Sand Toss (Purple): Based on the pet beast’s Agility and Strength attributes, greatly increases the power of thrown Weapon Species; increases the bonus to 2.5x when throwing items or other objects]
From Blue to Purple, a significant upgrade.
Now, she only needed to fulfill one more requirement to reach over half of the total, triggering a qualitative change in the Moon-Embracing Jade Hammer.
Requirement 7 was the final condition and couldn’t be fulfilled in advance.
Requirements 1, 4, and 8 couldn’t be easily achieved in a short time, so the only one Lian Xing could focus on was number 2.
[2. Consume a total of three Commander-Tier crystals.]
For Lian Xing, who had just received three Commander-Tier crystals, this requirement seemed effortless. But in reality…
Lian Xing, her forehead covered in sweat, carefully fed the three Commander-Tier crystals to the Moonlight Rabbit.
In the next second, the Golden Leaf started rolling around on the bed, crying.
“Sob, sob, sob, sob, sob…”
The golden leaf rolled from the headboard to the corner, its golden light dimming, its level about to drop. Meanwhile, Star Sand, its alluring body wrapped in a blanket, huddled in the corner, its eyes dull, muttering strange words like an ancient god.
“I haven’t even had any…I haven’t even had any…”
Seeing this, Lian Xing sighed, her head pounding.
What to do? If she wanted to evolve the Moonlight Rabbit, wouldn’t she need nine Commander-Tier crystals at once?
Raising three main battle pet beasts simultaneously…even selling herself wouldn’t be enough…
“Darling, don’t cry. I’m not saying you can’t have any. How about I give you four next month?” Lian Xing coaxed the Golden Leaf gently, holding it in her hand.
One of the Amber Palace mutation’s evolution requirements was that it had to receive more resources than the main battle pet beast. This was a mandatory requirement, and violating it would result in level regression.
However…
This requirement didn’t mean it had to receive more resources all the time. Even if it fell behind occasionally, as long as it maintained a good mood and attitude, it wouldn’t regress immediately. She could just make up for it later. Violating the rule for ten days or half a month wouldn’t be a big problem~~~
However, the Golden Leaf simply rolled over, tears dripping from its leaves.
“Don’t cry, darling. Do you have any other wishes? Mommy will grant them. Mommy loves you the most, you know~~”
“Come on, Mommy will give you anything you want. Tell me, is there anything you like?”
After coaxing and comforting the Golden Leaf like a baby, it finally relented, waving its leaves in the air. Sensing the Golden Leaf’s meaning, Lian Xing’s expression turned strange.
Because its request was incredibly simple…
But…would this really work?
With a doubtful expression, Lian Xing tucked the Golden Leaf into her stocking-clad thigh. As expected, the Golden Leaf calmed down. It only had one request: to not be chewed on by the Moonlight Rabbit anymore.
After all, it wasn’t…chewing gum…
Having successfully appeased the Golden Leaf, Lian Xing crawled over to Star Sand, gently stroking its delicate, starlight-formed face.
“Darling, are you unhappy?”
“By the way, do you know why Mommy didn’t feed you first?”
“Because Mommy has already found you a companion. You have to maintain your figure now. What if they don’t like you if you get fat?”
“Companion? Where…?” Star Sand, initially determined not to believe any of Lian Xing’s lies, couldn’t help but ask, its eyes widening.
Lian Xing chuckled and took out her phone.
“Tian Quan, one of the Ten Greats of the Academy League. I heard she has a beautiful Rare Species called…Ice Rain. It’s also an Elemental Species. Have you heard of it?”
“I’ll show you a video, and you’ll see how beautiful she is. Hey, look at those curves, that perfect color and shine…ah, don’t snatch my phone~~~”
“Anyway, to meet a Ten Greats, I have to reach the final stages of the league. If I’m eliminated early, you’ll never see her…” To convince Star Sand, Lian Xing had specifically researched the lineups of the Ten Greats, choosing the highest quality and most visually stunning Elemental Species.
Ice Rain, a Commander-Tier Super Rare Species. Although not a Legend, its appearance was breathtakingly beautiful, more than enough to be a companion.
At this moment, looking at the dreamlike, ice-blue elemental figure on the screen, Star Sand was practically drooling.
So, unsurprisingly, Star Sand was convinced.
From now on, to meet Ice Rain, it would even become a demon if it had to!
And so, with a barrage of sweet words and empty promises, Lian Xing successfully fed all three Commander-Tier crystals to the Moonlight Rabbit.
Night fell, and the first round of qualifiers was about to begin.
Among the hundreds of teams competing simultaneously, the match between Youlan Academy’s first team and White Maple Academy’s second team was particularly noteworthy. Youlan Academy was originally an unknown team, but when it came to White Maple Academy, last year’s results couldn’t be ignored.
White Maple Academy had eliminated both Youlan Academy’s first and second teams, creating quite a spectacle! Most people only learned about Youlan Academy, which had been completely overshadowed, through the highlight reels of that match.
However, at this moment…
For some reason, the expressions of the second team members in the White Maple Academy training room were incredibly serious, as if they were facing a life-or-death battle. Some observant viewers even noticed the unusual lineup. The vice-captain of the first team had been transferred to the second team!?
Wait, what was going on?
Was White Maple Academy’s second team actually in danger of losing!?
Why was the atmosphere in their training room so tense?
Xiao Kui’s livestream audience was mostly casual viewers, a tiny fraction of the viewership during actual matches. Most people’s memories of Youlan Academy were still of their humiliating defeat at the hands of White Maple Academy last year.
At this moment, under everyone’s watchful eyes, the Youlan Academy team members arrived. Under the livestream camera’s lens and the incredulous gazes of the viewers, a golden-haired girl with buns and starry eyes casually sat down at her battle device. Despite facing the strong White Maple Academy second team, her relaxed and cheerful demeanor made it seem like she was on a picnic.
But there was something even more eye-catching than the Youlan Academy captain’s appearance…
A small, white, lop-eared Moonlight Rabbit sat on the golden-haired girl’s head, chewing on a golden leaf, looking adorable and carefree. And on its back was a snow-white fur cloak, adding a touch of absurd dignity to its appearance.
Moon-Embracing Jade Hammer, half-step Commander!!!
Leave a Reply to Anonymous Cancel reply