“Gulp…”
The orange tabby swallowed hard, its eyes fixed on the massive A Yan.
It gently pawed at Bai Qiu’s leg, looking as though it were asking for praise.
Naturally, Bai Qiu was more than happy to indulge its vanity.
“Well done, A Yan. Here’s a little snack as your reward!”
With that, he took out a piece of Star Gold and a piece of Origin Rock Crystal Ore, holding them up to A Yan’s mouth.
A Yan happily crunched them down.
Having received praise and encouragement, A Yan’s fighting spirit soared.
It immediately climbed back onto the defender’s platform, where twenty Monarch-class arenas were available for challengers to choose from.
Naturally, there was no need for it to occupy an empty arena and wait for challengers.
It could simply hijack one that another beast had spent hours defending.
“[Th-They’re really your companions?]”
The orange tabby widened its round amber eyes in disbelief.
Bai Qiu replied casually, “[What? Did you think I was bluffing?]”
The orange tabby shuffled its little paws uneasily.
It suddenly realized that the boss it had chosen to freeload off of might actually be the real deal.
After its growth, A Yan had completely shed its formerly laid-back temperament.
It had become arrogant and ferocious.
Bai Qiu also noticed that both its rounded shell and the crystalline armor covering its body had undergone subtle changes.
The scutes on its carapace had become more raised, with numerous serrated protrusions emerging from them.
Cracks had also spread across the crystalline armor enveloping its body.
It no longer resembled a giant tortoise.
Instead, it looked more like a snapping turtle.
Its size had also increased by an entire tier.
Yet despite becoming larger, its movement speed hadn’t slowed down in the slightest.
On the contrary, it had skyrocketed from a sluggish D+ Rank to C Rank.
The improvement was simply astonishing.
Even Bai Qiu was surprised by A Yan’s transformation.
He was certain these changes hadn’t been caused by consuming the Origin Rock Crystal Ore.
Rather, they had begun after its previous battle.
A Yan had formed external hooked claws over both its forelegs and hindlegs.
Using these hooks—similar to the sharp claws of a red-eared slider—it greatly increased its traction against the arena floor, allowing it to charge across the battlefield at incredible speed and batter its opponents until they cried out in misery.
Its enemies couldn’t outrun it.
They couldn’t hurt it.
And on top of that, it came with its own version of “thorns” damage.
More often than not, beasts that rammed into A Yan failed to injure it at all.
Instead, they were sliced open by the jagged plates covering its body.
Trying to fight it head-on usually ended one way—
Being beaten straight off the arena.
As for trying to kite it…
A Yan would simply manipulate earth-element mana to conjure stone spears.
By that point, it meant A Yan had truly lost its temper and intended to kill.
Seeing the situation turning bad, most beasts wisely admitted defeat and left the arena voluntarily.
…
Time passed quickly.
Bai Qiu skillfully used up the last bottle of potion he had intended to sell.
Looking at the long line of beasts still waiting, he announced, “[That’s all for today, everyone. I’m out of potions.]”
He wasn’t actually out.
He simply needed to reserve the remaining potions for himself and his contracted beasts.
So, to the beasts still waiting in line for treatment, he could only offer his apologies.
None of the injured beasts had expected Bai Qiu’s potions to run out.
Complaints immediately erupted throughout the crowd.
But Bai Qiu paid them no attention.
Instead, he walked straight toward the minotaur, Kandar.
By now, it was already the second dawn-and-dusk cycle since he’d arrived at the Bloodmoon Beast Arena.
He had already bought everything worth buying.
It was time to purchase an exit ticket and spend the rest of his Blood Crystals.
In another two hours, the entrance to the Bloodmoon Beast Arena’s secret realm would close.
If he failed to leave before then, he would have to wait another twelve hours for the next opportunity.
Between A Yan’s constant arena defenses, A Yuan’s endless challenges, and Bai Qiu’s own work treating injured beasts, they had earned more than 1.7 million Blood Crystals in just two days.
It was an astonishing amount.
Even after Bai Qiu repeatedly swept through the marketplace and bought every useful resource he could find, he still had 1.2 million Blood Crystals remaining.
As he passed by the Lord-class arenas, however, two figures standing among the spectators caught his attention.
“…Humans?”
Bai Qiu exclaimed in surprise.
He hadn’t expected that there were now more than one other human players capable of keeping pace with his progress, reaching the center of the Boundless Plains and making their way into this place.
The two people Bai Qiu had noticed were both girls.
One looked to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, while the other appeared to be around his age, in her early twenties.
The younger girl had short-to-medium black hair tied back, with her bangs tucked behind her ears.
Her wheat-colored skin gave her a healthy complexion, and her delicate features made her quite attractive.
At the moment, however, she was frowning.
Her large eyes were fixed intently on the arena, and her hands were clenched into fists against her chest, making it obvious how nervous she was.
Following her gaze, Bai Qiu saw a horse circling the edge of the arena, locked in battle against a charging elephant.
Without a doubt, that horse was the mount she had tamed.
Both it and the elephant were Lord-class beasts.
Although they were at the same rank, the horse was clearly at a disadvantage in raw Strength because of the enormous difference in size.
The other girl, who looked about Bai Qiu’s age, was a mature beauty with long lavender hair.
She wore a fitted black dress that accentuated her graceful figure, while her silky lavender hair flowed all the way down to her calves.
She stood with her arms folded across her chest, pushing up her ample curves.
Her exquisitely beautiful face remained calm and expressionless as she silently watched the arena.
Her beast companion was a giant eagle.
Taking advantage of its ability to fly and launch ranged attacks, it completely dominated its opponent, forcing the unfortunate beast to flee in panic.
The outcome of the match was already beyond doubt.
Bai Qiu became interested.
He quietly observed both battles while mentally estimating their stats.
Both beasts had reached C+ Agility, placing them among the fastest Lord-class creatures.
Compared to the mature woman’s giant eagle, however, the younger girl’s warhorse was clearly not built for combat.
Even so, relying on its superb technique and remarkable endurance, it managed to shove the elephant off the arena at the very last moment.
The two girls each achieved ten consecutive victories on their respective arenas.
They cheered excitedly, celebrating their hard-earned wins.
“A Rider-class build? Or are they like me, just raising them for fun?”
Bai Qiu stroked his chin and muttered to himself.
The short-haired girl immediately turned her head and looked in his direction.
Hmm?
She noticed me?
Bai Qiu was taken aback.
Hidden beneath his Concealment Cloak and surrounded by towering beasts, he shouldn’t have been easy to spot.
“Wow! What an adorable kitty!”
The girl ran straight over and immediately reached out to pet the plump orange tabby.
Bai Qiu fell silent.
So it was the orange tabby that had given away his position.
Come to think of it, it had been sitting on his shoulder for quite a while, and his shoulder was starting to get sore from carrying the little fatty.
“Um… I’m sorry, sir. I didn’t mean to bother you. Your cat is just so adorable that I couldn’t help myself…” the girl said apologetically.
Now that she’d noticed the orange tabby, it was impossible not to notice Bai Qiu as well.
“It’s fine.”
Bai Qiu waved a hand dismissively.
The orange tabby possessed the Blink skill.
If it truly didn’t want to be touched, there was no way this girl could have laid a finger on it.
Since the cat itself didn’t mind, Bai Qiu saw no reason to interfere.
— The end of the Chapter–
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