Beast Taming: Starting From Zero

"Take the main entrance?" Liu Qijia froze, unable to wrap his mind around it for a moment.

The first thought that popped into his head was: What kind of skill could possibly allow someone to boldly walk right under the security guard's nose?!

He knew that the school gates were equipped with motion sensors, and any movement would trigger an alert in the security office.

Even if the guard was away, say, taking a bathroom break, anyone trying to leave through unconventional means would be spotted by the round-the-clock surveillance cameras.

These were lessons learned from the blood, sweat, and tears of countless freshmen!

Yet here was Qiao Da calmly suggesting just walk through the main entrance as if it were nothing!

No wonder they called her the legend who taught the Treasure-Seeking Demon to Brick-Breaking!

She was pulling off something that no other freshman could ever do, and with such ease!

Liu Qijia lay on the ground, looking up at Qiao Sang. At that moment, her figure seemed larger than life.

"No problem. I'm a day student." Qiao Sang replied.

Liu Qijia: ...

---

Hongjiang District, at the Libo Training Gym.

As a gym dedicated to training combat-type pets, it was full of combat-type creatures and their Beast Masters.

Combat-type pets were unique in that their trainers could train right alongside them.

In one room of the gym, a middle-aged man was doing a one-handed handstand, with a pet next to him mirroring the same move.

"Switch."

The man effortlessly shifted from his right hand to his left as he spoke.

"Yan Yan."

The pet beside him also switched to its left hand in sync.

In a corner, a pet with a sandy-yellow body, a pointed spike on its head, and bandages around its wrists and ankles, attempted to mimic the middle-aged man’s handstand.

It first placed both hands on the ground, pressing its head down slowly, attempting to do a handstand.

After it managed to get into the handstand position, it gingerly withdrew its left hand.

Immediately, a pained expression crossed its face.

A second later...

Bang!

It lost its balance and fell straight to the ground.

"Spikey..."

The pet, covered in bandages, looked dejected.

The noise drew the attention of the middle-aged man.

"Spike Warrior, why are you in here again? Didn't I tell you not to train right now and to rest for a couple of days?" The man said, still in a handstand, addressing the bandaged pet.

"Yan Yan." The pet doing the handstand nodded in agreement.

"Spike..."

Spike Warrior lowered its head, looking weighed down, with no spirit left.

Seeing this, the man ended his handstand, grabbed a water bottle from the nearby table, took a few sips, and said to Spike Warrior:

"Don't worry. Injuries are something every combat-type pet has to go through. You'll recover."

"Spike..."

Spike Warrior didn’t seem comforted. It hung its head and trudged out of the room.

"Yan Yan..."

The pet still doing a handstand looked worried.

"I know." The man sighed.

"It's not a physical issue. It’s an emotional one. Only its Beast Master can help it through this."

At that moment, a shrill phone ringtone broke the silence.

The man picked up his phone from the table, noticing that the caller ID read Old Fang.

He answered the call.

“Dad, it’s me!”

---

“This is where my dad works.” Liu Qijia pointed to a building with a Libo Training Gym sign.

“My dad is usually here training pets. At this time, he probably hasn't gone home yet.”

With that, he walked inside.

A Beast Master specializing in training combat-type pets… Qiao Sang recalled Zhang Shuzhou’s introduction of Liu Qijia’s dad as she followed behind.

Just then, Little Treasure perched on her head twitched his nose, as if smelling something enticing. He drifted off, looking enraptured.

Liu Qijia had only taken a few steps into the gym when a burly man approached and greeted him:

"Hey, isn’t this Old Liu's son? What brings you here? Don’t you have school?"

Liu Qijia replied without missing a beat, "No evening classes today. I'm just here with a friend to see my dad. Uncle Fang, where’s my dad?"

Instead of answering, Uncle Fang asked, "A friend? Where's your friend?"

Liu Qijia froze, glancing around, suddenly bewildered.

Where did Qiao the Great go?!

"Just call your dad." Uncle Fang finally answered.

"He’s around here somewhere, but I’m not sure which room he’s in."

---

Meanwhile, Qiao Sang, following Little Treasure, called out, "Where are you going?"

She was baffled. What was up with the Little Treasure?

Why did he suddenly drift away?

“Xun…”

Little Treasure sniffed the air, drifting in a certain direction.

After a while, he stopped in a corner.

"Xun xun!"

Little Treasure pointed excitedly at a pet practicing a handstand in the corner.

This guy smells amazing! I want to absorb it!

Qiao Sang was initially taken aback, then looked at the pet in the corner in shock.

Could it be that the Spike Warrior was close to death?!

Qiao Sang recognized the pet right away.

The Spike Warrior, a combat-type, beginner-level pet that spins like a top in battles. When it spins at high speeds, its head spike can drill straight into the ground.

It was incredibly resilient, able to survive in any environment.

Logically, a Spike Warrior should at least be able to evolve into an intermediate-level pet; it shouldn’t be on the verge of death so young, Qiao Sang thought.

But after hearing the Little Treasure, she instantly recalled the old woman and her Ghost Lamp from her first mission.

Back then, Little Treasure had also wanted to absorb.

What attracted him then had been death energy.

While Qiao Sang was lost in thought, the Spike Warrior attempted a one-handed handstand with its right hand but wobbled, failing to last two seconds.

Bang!

The Spike Warrior fell again.

In that moment, Qiao Sang’s guess was confirmed.

A combat-type pet like Spike Warrior, normally, a handstand should be no challenge. Failing to hold it for even two seconds was telling.

Qiao Sang looked at the Spike Warrior with a complicated expression.

This... it was still just a kid!

"Spike..." The Spike Warrior slumped in defeat, looking heartbroken.

At that moment, it heard a human voice.

"Lubao, hit it with a Healing Light."

"Lu."

Before the Spike Warrior could react, a bright blue light bathed it.

"Spike?"

The Spike Warrior froze, feeling a warm sensation flow through it.

It felt... somehow different.

When the blue light faded, the person who had spoken stood before it and said, "Don't worry, you’re not going to die."

Spike Warrior: ???