The situation in the match took a sudden turn, and the live comments in the stream started scrolling rapidly:

[Jade Balance 001: Looks like Yu Bao is about to lose...]

[Day after Day: That’s to be expected, I guess. His opponent is the number three seed in the tournament, after all...]

[Viewer 38128: Sigh, I’m really gonna lose it all this time.]

[Frost Shadow Qtm: No matter what, thanks God Su for being here. I’ll still be watching God Su in the Huai City League next year.]

"Wait, Yu Bao has used Quicksand Shield! But he’s not rushing to defend and counter-attack. He’s just temporarily blocking the assault!"

Lu Dongjie stared at the situation on the field and commented rapidly:

"But the Quicksand Shield isn’t a long-term solution. Trying to win a battle of attrition is a guaranteed loss."

"Now Yu Bao is looking at Su Zhi, seemingly discussing their next move..."

"Su Zhi nodded!"

Su Zhi nodded.

Yu Bao said he had a way to win, and Su Zhi agreed without hesitation.

Right now, as a Beast Tamer, he couldn’t see any hope of breaking the stalemate.

Since Yu Bao said he had a plan, he would trust him this one time!

On the other side of the arena, Cao Mingyu suddenly realized something was off.

Although the Defensive Flow used by Cotton was indeed despair-inducing, Yu Bao’s cowering behind the Quicksand Shield without coming out seemed a little too cowardly.

’Is it a trick?’

As he was thinking, the Quicksand Shield suddenly flew forward.

The double protection of the Pure Water Shield and the Gravity Water Prison effortlessly neutralized the Quicksand Shield’s counter-attack.

But when he saw the scene behind the shield, Cao Mingyu’s jaw dropped—

Two rows of Yellow Earth Walls extended vertically, with another Yellow Earth Wall covering the top, forming a massive, hollow tube.

The gaping, dark muzzle of the tube was aimed right at Cotton.

Yu Bao was then seen conjuring a massive Furious Sand Blade and loading it into the hollow tube from behind.

With a CLICK, another Yellow Earth Wall extended from behind, sealing the back of the tube.

Yu Bao propped its hind feet on the tube and raised its left forepaw toward Cotton.

Although its toes were very short, you could vaguely make out the gesture of a thumbs-up.

Cao Mingyu was full of questions.

Then, he suddenly recalled a joke:

When someone gives you a thumbs-up, it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re praising you. It could also mean they’re aiming a cannon at you...

’Holy shit?!’

"Cotton, dodge!"

Cotton looked completely bewildered. It was currently trapped in the Gravity Water Prison and couldn’t dodge.

Behind the large earthen cannon, Yu Bao, in a pose like someone pressing a nuclear button, slammed its paw down hard on the barrel.

Sandstorm, inject!

"BOOM!"

The entire cannon barrel trembled.

Constricted by the Tier Two Yellow Earth Wall, the power of the Sandstorm erupted within the narrow tube, transforming into a tremendous force that launched the Furious Sand Blade.

At the instant it reached maximum velocity, the Furious Sand Blade’s own acceleration effect stacked and activated. The re-accelerated Furious Sand Blade became a swift, sandy shadow, hurtling violently toward Cotton!

Mystic Art: 500mm Sand King Cannon!

"SWOOSH!"

The Furious Sand Blade cleanly broke through the Pure Water Shield and bored into the Gravity Water Prison.

Its blade-like sharpness was greatly diminished after being weakened by the water prison.

But its heavy, cannonball-like momentum remained completely undiminished!

"BANG!"

The Furious Sand Blade, now worn into an oval shape, struck Cotton.

In the blink of an eye, Cotton was sent flying backward out of the Gravity Water Prison, tracing a beautiful parabolic arc before landing in the adjacent arena.

"SPLAT."

Cotton hit the ground, struggled twice, and could not get back up.

This wasn’t the only match happening at the same time, but at this moment, the entire venue fell silent for a second.

Immediately after, Lu Dongjie’s excited voice rang out:

"Out of bounds! It’s out of bounds! Cotton has landed out of bounds!

"With the decisive blow from the 500mm Sand King Cannon, Yu Bao has won the match!"

[A Scum White Hair: Congrats to Su Zhi for advancing to the top four~]

[Jade Balance 001: URA!!!]

[Day after Day: Only a meme strategy can defeat a meme strategy...]

[Annihilation: Caliber is justice! The cannon is truth!]

[Viewer 38128: Hnngh aaaaaaaah!]

[Viewer 98237: Fuck me! I bet everything on Cao Mingyu!!!]

The livestream chat was filled with all sorts of vibes...

Amidst a tide of applause, the Sand King Cannon sank into a pale yellow Light Array and vanished.

Yu Bao calmly turned around, adjusted the toad-style sunglasses on its face, and wore the signature smile of a boss.

’A true man never looks back at the explosion.’

...

...

「Evening.」

"It all happened so fast! Faced with my defensive strategy, my dear friend Su Zhi and Yu Bao conferred and decided to use a tactical sand strike!"

"And so, through a combination of Yu Bao’s Skills, that big, beautiful, giant cannon..."

"Please stop, you’ve already said that three times."

At the dinner table, Cao Mingyu was rambling on endlessly, while Su Zhi, sitting opposite him, covered his ears with a look of utter despair.

’I’m the one who won, but Cao Mingyu is even more excited than I am...’

"My dear friend Su Zhi, you don’t understand!"

Cao Mingyu’s breathing grew heavy.

"That cannon illuminated my heart and blasted open the shackles on my soul! With your range and caliber, you have once again taught me to follow my heart!"

"..." Su Zhi once again felt that not throwing the match and losing was a huge mistake.

"Alright, now. All this delicious food can’t even shut you two up."

Shao Ya made a "zip it" gesture, then looked at Liu Yuhang.

"Academic rep, you’re up against Fang Yuan next?"

"Yeah."

Liu Yuhang nodded seriously.

"Honestly, I’m not very confident. But Old Zhou said there’s no use overthinking it, you just gotta do it!"

"Quack!" Xue Li, who was eating dried fish, flapped its wings and chimed in accordingly.

"Alright, everyone’s worked hard."

Shao Ya tossed her head, flinging her brilliant white hair over her shoulder, and raised her glass high.

Of course, the glass was filled with juice.

"A toast to our entire class for making it to the top four!"

"CLINK CLINK CLINK—" The four glasses clinked together.

Then, Shao Ya, Su Zhi, and Liu Yuhang all looked at Cao Mingyu in unison.

"You’re not from Class Ten, are you?"

"And didn’t you lose to Brother Shu?"

"What’s wrong with losing?"

Cao Mingyu laughed and raised his glass.

"Who says you can only celebrate winning? You can celebrate losing, too! A toast to me, for losing to Su Zhi!"

"Great spirit!" Shao Ya also raised her glass. "Then here’s to all of Class Ten for advancing to the top four, and to Cao Mingyu for losing to Su Zhi!"

"Ura!" Liu Yuhang didn’t understand, but he knew it was time to toast!

"..." Unable to understand the three of them, Su Zhi could only clink glasses with them.

Afterward, Cao Mingyu offered his glass to Su Zhi again.

"Let’s have a toast, just the two of us."

Cao Mingyu looked quite serious at this moment.

"Congratulations on breaking through another barrier and getting closer to your goal. I don’t know what your specific goal is, but I can sense your resolve."

"Whatever it is, please be sure to follow your heart and keep walking your path!"

Su Zhi, a little unused to this, was stunned for a moment, then the corners of his mouth curled up slightly as he clinked glasses with him.

"Yeah, thanks."

After the toast, the next item on the agenda was naturally to eat.

As the highest-level annual competition in Huai City, the City League’s dining hall was sincerely well-stocked.

Here, all grades and types of food were available, and there were even specialty foods and breeding feeds for Pet Beasts. Even the best revolving buffet restaurant in Huai City would have a hard time competing with the City League’s dining hall.

Just as he took a spoonful of yogurt, Su Zhi saw two figures approaching in the distance, and his eyes lit up. "Senior Peng Kai! Hall Master Yan!"

"Haha, Xiaosu, have you been well?"

"Fellow Daoist Su, you’re being too formal again. It’s Fellow Daoist Peng Kai!"

Peng Kai laughed and patted Su Zhi’s shoulder. The competition schedule had been tight the past few days, and as chairmen of the organizing committee, they had been extremely busy. Only today did they have time to come see Su Zhi.

"Ah!"

Liu Yuhang let out a sound like someone who’d never seen the world.

"You’re! Peng Peng Peng..."

Peng Kai, not in the least bit humble, tossed his loose red hair. "Beast King Peng Kai."

Liu Yuhang’s face was flushed with excitement. "Master Peng Kai! I, I’m your fan! Could you give me an autograph?"

"No problem~"

Peng Kai took Liu Yuhang’s pen and school uniform and, with fluid motions, wrote a line in wild cursive.

"I watched all the quarter-final matches. You and Xue Li fought quite well." Then, he sized Liu Yuhang up with an appreciative gaze.

"Has anyone ever told you something like your ceiling is destined to be low?"

Liu Yuhang froze.

Then, he looked at Su Zhi and smiled with relief. "They have. But even if my talent isn’t high, I still choose to keep moving forward."

"What I mean is, don’t listen to them. It’s pure bullshit."

Liu Yuhang: "???"

Seeing Liu Yuhang’s surprised expression, Peng Kai’s lips curled into a smile. "It’s not that your talent is low, it’s just that your opportunity hasn’t arrived yet. Walk your path steadily, and you will have your breakthrough."

Liu Yuhang took a deep breath and nodded heavily.

"I understand. Thank you, Senior!"

"Mm."

Peng Kai then turned his gaze to Su Zhi. "As for you, you’re on a completely different path."

"You must never follow the rules and conventions. You must never become a ’steady’ person in the eyes of the world. Whether you are truly steady or not is something only you can know."

"Don’t forget the rebellious blood in your veins. Only by keeping it boiling can you climb to the peak of the Path of Beast Taming."

"Mm, please rest assured, Fellow Daoist."

Su Zhi smiled and lifted his chin, raising his hands in the style of a certain country’s president. "Nobody knows more about being rebellious than me."

For a moment, the dinner table was filled with a joyful atmosphere.

The two of them exchanged a few more pleasantries, but there wasn’t much to say, as Peng Kai had already watched all of Su Zhi’s matches from the past few days.

"Alright, we won’t disturb you any longer. Rest well and prepare seriously for your next match."

Peng Kai waved his hand and left with Yan Dingyi in tow.

"When you are lost, I will appear again!"

"?" Su Zhi was full of questions.

’Why does he sound like some kind of charlatan...’

"Oh, today’s match rebroadcast is up!" Shao Ya suddenly mentioned.

They all tacitly opened up the video of Fang Yuan’s match.

In the quarter-finals, White Flame Battle Spirit 004 had overturned the opposing Azure Wave Claw with the speed of a thunderclap that leaves no time to cover one’s ears.

Even though it was at an Attribute disadvantage, 004 didn’t fall behind in the slightest, taking out its opponent with a sudden storm-like assault.

Su Zhi frowned deeply.

He had felt things getting progressively harder as he fought his way from the group stage to the top eight.

Although all his opponents were within the realm of what he could defeat, they still required him to be serious and careful.

This was the top eight.

Facing a top-eight opponent, 004 was still able to... cut them down like vegetables.

Even just knowing that he might have to face such an opponent next was enough to feel the pressure bearing down on him.

"Woof?"

Yu Bao saw that Su Zhi’s expression was off and nudged him with its nose.

"It’s nothing."

Su Zhi forced a smile and passed a small piece of steak to Yu Bao.

"You worked hard today. Go on, eat."

"Woof~"

As Yu Bao began to eat, Su Zhi thought of that Skill and frowned once more.

.

.