Chapter 982: Top 16 (two in one)

Lu Bao’s cold aura spread.

Sweet Poison King maintained the posture of holding its hand in its mouth, instantly transforming back into an Ice sculpture.

Inside the Ice shell, the green light in its eyes flickered.

The frozen purple flower secreted a large amount of white powder from within.

Immediately after, the powder exploded.

With a loud “bang,” the Ice shell that had frozen the purple flower completely shattered.

For a moment, large chunks of Ice shards splattered everywhere.

A commotion erupted in the stands.

“Sweet Poison King’s purple flower broke through the Ice Heaven Domain’s Ice seal!” Tian Yiwan exclaimed.

The eyes of some contestants in the contestant area lit up.

Since Ice Emperor Ram displayed the Ice Heaven Domain, this was the first time a frozen Pet had broken through the freezing effect on its own, even if it was only a companion item that was broken.

This gave them some hope that Super-level skills were not completely uncrackable.

“The Ice layer that froze the purple flower had previously been corroded by the strong poison and thinned out a lot,” Tang Xueran analyzed.

“Sweet Poison King is now in a flourishing state, and the increased power of its Grass-type skills makes its Magic Powder even more powerful, successfully breaking through the Ice seal in one go.

It seems that Ice Emperor Ram only refroze Sweet Poison King just now, and did not strengthen the freezing effect of the entire domain.”

As the two explained, the giant purple flower suddenly spun at high speed, its petals scattering.

The petals fell to the ground, glowing green.

Then, purple flowers evolved from the petals, growing wildly upwards.

Each one quickly grew to a height of over ten meters.

Purple Flower, Sweet Poison King’s companion item, can be controlled in size by Sweet Poison King’s will.

When its proficiency reaches a certain level, it can also split, growing multiple purple flowers.

Each purple flower contains strong poison and can also unleash Magic Powder from within… The opponent either wants to directly release a large amount of venom, or unleash a large-scale Magic Powder to dissolve or blow up the surrounding Ice… Qiao Sang watched the scene before her, her expression calm.

Under Teacher Mi Jiala’s guidance and her own further excavation, Lu Bao’s method of deploying Ice Heaven Domain was no longer what it used to be.

Whether the opponent wanted to use venom or Magic Powder, she could have defeated them directly before.

After all, just eleven Mega Ice Cones of normal size directly forced Sweet Poison King into its flourishing characteristic, which was enough to show that its own defense was not strong.

“Maximize.” Qiao Sang said.

The sapphire blue light on Lu Bao’s forehead flickered.

Almost the very next second the gem flickered, a Mega Ice Cone covering the entire field, like a real iceberg, suddenly appeared in mid-air.

In an instant, the entire field was plunged into shadow.

This, this big… Everyone’s faces were frozen in shock, bewilderment, and disbelief.

Tian Yiwan was dumbfounded, then suddenly stood up from his chair, excitedly saying:

“Iceberg Descent?!”

After he finished speaking, he realized he must be wrong.

Iceberg Descent, an Ice-type Super-level skill, can condense a real iceberg into existence, which can be used to change terrain or for attack.

If it was truly Iceberg Descent, this iceberg seemed a bit too small.

But he immediately thought of Qiao Sang, Ice Emperor Ram’s Yu Beast Master, and couldn’t help but waver again.

In fact, as long as the proficiency of Iceberg Descent is high enough, the size can be changed at will.

Iceberg Descent is one of the more difficult to learn and top-tier Super-level skills because the iceberg can truly exist and will not disappear when the Pet that uses this skill leaves.

Instead, it will remain like a real iceberg, unless the Pet that used the skill dispels it, or it gradually disappears due to weather and terrain.

If it were another Yu Beast Master’s Pet, he wouldn’t consider a King-level Pet having high proficiency in Iceberg Descent.

But Qiao Sang was different; everything about her couldn’t be understood with ordinary thinking.

One must know that her Steel Sword Falcon, a General-level Pet, could unleash the Super-level skill Holy Sword, so it wasn’t impossible for Ice Emperor Ram to have high proficiency in Iceberg Descent…

As thoughts flickered, Tang Xueran next to him said:

“It’s Mega Ice Cone.”

Mega Ice Cone? Such a huge Mega Ice Cone?!

Everyone looked at the “iceberg” in the sky, their minds a bit blank for a moment.

In their impression, even a Mega Ice Cone at the peak of Profound Meaning proficiency shouldn’t be this large.

Chen Tianqin felt the shadow in the air, looked up, and when he saw the giant iceberg in mid-air, his pupils constricted, and only two words flashed through his mind: Holy crap!

After being stunned for 0.01 seconds, he reacted and shouted at the top of his lungs:

“Explode! All of you, explode!”

Clusters of purple flowers over ten meters tall scattered a large amount of white Magic Powder, which quickly spread to every corner of the field.

“Bang bang bang!!!”

On the field, explosions followed one after another, the impact like a tidal wave.

Cracks appeared on the ground and on Sweet Poison King’s Ice shell.

Lu Bao had already condensed a thick Ice Armor around her when the purple flowers split and grew.

Magic Powder also continuously exploded around her.

The Ice Armor around Lu Bao cracked, but it quickly recovered to its original state the very next second it cracked.

This repeated.

Before Sweet Poison King’s Ice shell completely shattered and more powder exploded, like an iceberg descending from the sky, an iceberg that seemed to pierce through from another world, fell vertically!

The continuous explosions of Magic Powder caused large chunks of Ice shards to fall from the bottom of the “iceberg,” but they didn’t have any real effect on the “iceberg.”

“Bang!!!”

The “iceberg” completely fell onto the field, and the entire ground was instantly pulverized, sinking several feet downwards.

When they saw Sweet Poison King crushed under the “iceberg,” seemingly without even letting out a cry, everyone couldn’t help but gulp.

Could it have been flattened…

“The super-enlarged Mega Ice Cone successfully smashed onto Sweet Poison King! The wide-range Magic Powder did not hinder Ice Emperor Ram’s attack in the slightest!” Tian Yiwan said, “Is Sweet Poison King incapacitated? Is the match about to end?”

A mechanical Pet appeared next to the “iceberg,” looking troubled.

It couldn’t see the fallen Pet’s figure.

At this moment, Qiao Sang spoke:

“Lu Bao.”

“Ice Emperor.”

Lu Bao called out, and then the “iceberg” covering the entire field turned into Ice crystals and disappeared.

Looking at Sweet Poison King again, it was deeply embedded in the ground, eyes closed, appearing unconscious.

The mechanical Pet observed for a moment, then picked up the green flag and waved it towards Lu Bao and Qiao Sang’s direction.

“Ice Emperor…”

Lu Bao’s Ice Armor dissipated.

The audience was briefly silent for two seconds, then erupted into a sky-high clamor:

“Ahhh! Qiao Sang! Qiao Sang!”

“Ice Emperor Ram! Ice Emperor Ram!”

“No, was that move really Mega Ice Cone? How could there be such a big Mega Ice Cone! Could the commentator have made a mistake?”

“How could the commentator make a mistake? They’re professionals.”

“It must be the enhancement of the Ice Heaven Domain. I heard that using Ice-type skills within the Ice Heaven Domain allows for instant condensation and casting, and can also change size with the enhancement of Ice-type energy.

Did you see how Ice Emperor Ram’s Ice Armor instantly repaired itself under the explosion of Magic Powder later? If it weren’t for the Ice Heaven Domain, it would definitely be impossible.”

“Why didn’t Qiao Sang use such a Mega Ice Cone when she fought Zeng Feitian earlier, in the match where Ice Emperor Ram fought Iron War Dragon?”

“Well, she must have been holding back, right? Professional Beast Tamers all like to hide their trump cards or something.”

“But it felt like Ice Emperor Ram really tried its best in that match.”

“That’s why you can’t be a Professional Beast Tamer. Tell me, if she hadn’t hidden such a move, how could she have used such a Mega Ice Cone in today’s match?”

The person next to them added:

“There’s also a possibility that her Ice Emperor Ram broke through the proficiency of Ice Heaven Domain in these past few days.”

“Is Ice Heaven Domain really that awesome…?”

“What did you think? This is a Super-level skill.”

“By the way, has Chen Tianqin lost three matches in a row?”

“I thought Chen Tianqin would lose, but I never thought he would lose so badly…”

“In the first match, I even thought his tactics were quite impressive, knowing how to use a small gain for a big one, but I didn’t expect three losses in three games.”

“You can’t say he’s not impressive, it just feels like the pace of the battle was with Qiao Sang, and he lost without much chance to perform.”

“Qiao Sang’s main point is that each round’s strength cannot be used as a reference for the previous round. Also, Ice Heaven Domain is truly unsolvable. It feels like unless a Pet’s energy is significantly higher than Ice Emperor Ram’s, even if it manages to break through like Sweet Poison King, it will still be instantly frozen.

After all, in the Ice Heaven Domain, it’s just a matter of a thought.”

“Why didn’t Qiao Sang let Ice Emperor Ram freeze those purple flowers later?”

“…Perhaps she wanted to gather the maximum energy to condense the largest Mega Ice Cone to end the battle directly. The last command she gave seemed to be ‘Maximize’.”

Family area.

“Qiao Sang! Qiao Sang! Lu Bao! Lu Bao!” Ye Xiangting stood up excitedly, waving her cheering stick.

Then she thought of something, took out her phone, took a picture of the field, and posted it on her Moments with the caption:

【Congratulations, daughter! Entering the top sixteen!】

At the same time.

Official live stream.

The bullet comments went completely wild, the screen full of “Ahhh” and Ice Emperor Ram plus exclamation marks.

After several seconds of scrolling, other content finally appeared in the bullet comments.

【Qiao Shen! I knew you could do it!】

【Ice Emperor Ram is simply too perfect! Every battle brings me a surprise!】

【If you ask me, Ice Emperor Ram didn’t even show half of its strength! It didn’t even use Healing Light!】

【Ahhh! Is the Water Luyana Species Research and Protection Center really not going to send a few Water Luyana to Qiao Sang for cultivation?!】

【Some people are 17 years old and have defeated people from the Guo Yu Bureau, while others are 37 and still worried about their Pet’s food expenses.】

【People from the Guo Yu Bureau? Has the official admitted it?】

【Even if you lose, I’ll still support Chen Tianqin! You worked hard! You just met a pervert! See you at the next competition!】

…

Competition venue.

A giant virtual screen appeared in the center of the field.

It displayed photos of Qiao Sang and Chen Tianqin, as well as the Pets they sent out in this round of the competition.

Chen Tianqin’s photo then disappeared, leaving only Qiao Sang’s photo enlarged on the screen.

Light and shadow fireworks bloomed in a small area on the photo.

“Let us congratulate contestant Qiao Sang for winning this match with a record of 3:0! Successfully advancing to the top sixteen!” Tian Yiwan shouted excitedly.

Compared to Chen Tianqin winning the match, Qiao Sang, who was only 17 years old and had contracted Qingyin Fairy, was clearly more capable of sparking discussion and pushing the competition to a climax.

Chen Tianqin took a deep look at the slender figure in the distance, then waved his hand, recalling Sweet Poison King into his yu beast codex.

…

Backstage.

Qiao Sang carried Ya Bao, who was drinking energy recovery fluid, to her storage area, opened the cabinet door, and took out the backpack inside.

Lu Bao, holding the energy recovery fluid, leaped into the backpack, then skillfully extended her claws and pulled the zipper halfway up.

“Xiao Xunbao!”

“Xiao Xunbao!”

Xiao Xunbao kept excitedly calling out from the side, asking what was the skill that guy in the first match used that directly triggered Ya Bao Big Brother’s Raging Flames?

Ya Bao stopped drinking the energy recovery fluid and also looked over.

“It’s the Mutual Demise characteristic,” Qiao Sang explained.

“This characteristic allows the target that attacks it to suffer the same injuries and status as it.”

“Ya Ya…”

Ya Bao fell into contemplation, trying hard to digest and understand.

“Xiao Xunbao!”

Xiao Xunbao had already understood, its eyes lit up, and it let out an excited cry.

Can it also awaken this characteristic?

Qiao Sang looked at it and smiled, “This is a Dark-type characteristic, I’m afraid you can’t.”

“Xiao Xunbao…” Xiao Xunbao showed a disappointed expression.

At this moment, a voice sounded from the side:

“Why are you unwilling to join the National Beast Appraiser Combat Team for training?”

Qiao Sang looked in the direction of the voice.

She found that Chen Tianqin had arrived beside her at some point.

So that’s why he was hostile towards me… Qiao Sang instantly understood the reason for his previous hostility and said:

“I’m still a student, I still need to study.”

Chen Tianqin was silent for a moment:

“Joining the National Beast Appraiser Combat Team earlier allows you to participate in large international competitions sooner. With your strength and talent, you should be selected into the main team very quickly.”

Qiao Sang repeated, “I’m still a student, I still need to study.”

Chen Tianqin: “…”

Suddenly, a thought flashed through his mind:

That’s right, although Qiao Sang is exceptionally talented, she is still just a 17-year-old minor. Children of this age, although rebellious, are actually very obedient to their parents and teachers in important matters.

She was admitted to the Imperial Beast Academy, and her elders must be reluctant for her to train so hard in the national team.

It must be her parents’ idea for her to join the Guo Yu Bureau but not participate in training or competitions!

Thinking of this, all traces of hostility in Chen Tianqin’s eyes disappeared.

He sighed, then smiled and said:

“You study hard. I hope to see you in the Guo Yu Bureau soon.”

He knew that the premise for Qiao Sang to return to the Guo Yu Bureau to participate in competitions was either to become an A-grade Beastmaster or for the twenty-year period to expire.

Twenty years, that’s too late.

By then, he didn’t even know if he would have been eliminated from the Guo Yu Bureau.

After speaking, Chen Tianqin turned to leave.

However, just as his right foot stepped out, he thought of something else and said:

“Be careful of Yuan Tianlong.”

Chen Tianqin took another step, once again preparing to leave.

Yuan Tianlong? That super-rich guy with an all-Dragon-type lineup? Qiao Sang was stunned for a moment, then realized the hostility in his eyes had disappeared, and couldn’t help but ask:

“Can I ask you a question?”

“What?” Chen Tianqin stopped and turned his head.

Qiao Sang asked, “I’ve watched some of your previous matches, and I’ve also watched Phantom Fury Fox’s matches.

Why has it never displayed the Mutual Demise characteristic?”

Although Phantom Fury Fox had never lost in the matches that could still be found, the Mutual Demise characteristic meant that if one was hurt, the other was also hurt.

She remembered Phantom Fury Fox being attacked in matches, but the opponent never showed the same pain.

So you also have things you don’t understand… Chen Tianqin felt a little secretly pleased and replied with a smile:

“Ask your teacher.”

With that, he turned and waved, walking away freely.

Qiao Sang: “…”

Thanks to Boss Fa Cai Gu for the reward!