14: I want to be a salted fish

Being stared at by Bai Yuhan, Song Yu's heart was in chaos. The jubilant emotions she had just felt were instantly silenced, and her inner turmoil was as quiet as a chicken.

Her expression was slightly stiff, carefully observing Bai Yuhan's face.

Song Yu's eyes rolled in confusion, silently pondering.

"It shouldn't be like this. I clearly remember from the novel that Bai Yuhan didn't like the original host..."

"Since there was no love, where does the hatred come from?"

In the original plot, the male lead, Bai Yuhan, was born into one of the world's top four prestigious families—the Qin family.

The term "world's top four prestigious families" referred to the four most powerful families that rose to prominence after the global disaster erupted a thousand years ago, and spatial rifts leading to the Beast realm suddenly appeared.

Some of these families were ancient martial arts families, agile and capable of extraordinary feats.

Some families were naturally endowed with divine power, able to lift two hundred kilograms of boulders with their bare hands...

In the past, these abilities were only slightly stronger than those of ordinary people. After the Blue Star catastrophe, they evolved into superpowers, aiding them in rapidly becoming stronger in battles against both humans and Beasts.

Qin's family was one such case.

It was said that in every generation of the Qin family, there would be someone who awakened the "Eye of the Rules," capable of assessing the potential and innate skills of all Beast cubs. They could also use the information provided by the Eye of the Rules to better nurture and guide the growth of contracted beasts.

This ability was considered exceptionally powerful. A hundred years ago, the other three families joined forces to besiege the Qin family, intending to raise members of the Qin family as livestock.

However, the Qin family members chose death over submission. Those captured as prisoners would commit suicide, and those who escaped would go into hiding.

Bai Yuhan was the last surviving child protected by his parents at all costs.

When Bai Yuhan was a child, he wandered with his parents, finding a place to stay was always challenging, and they were often discovered.

During that time, they even lived for a period in the wilderness, mingling with ferocious Beasts.

Every day, young Yuhan worried that he might be carried away by the wild Beasts.

So, at that time, Bai Yuhan had an idea: he wanted the Qin family bloodline to end with his generation.

No wife, no children—there would be no other Qin child like him, wandering with uncertainty every day.

However, when he was seven years old, his parents saved an injured old man in the wilderness, and the two families got along well. In the end, he even got engaged to the old man's granddaughter.

Song Yu blinked: "..."

So, in the original novel plot, Bai Yuhan had disgust, relief, and various emotions toward the cancellation of the engagement.

However, there was one thing he didn't have: regret or hatred.

Thinking about this, Song Yu's shoulders relaxed, and she let out a long breath. It seemed like he didn't want revenge.

"But why does he keep looking at me...?"

Song Yu scratched her head. Actually, she was quite curious about Bai Yuhan, the core male lead of the entire world.

This was somewhat like suddenly seeing a historical figure, such as Emperor Qin Shi Huang or Emperor Han Wu, appearing in front of her.

This classic scene of watching a great figure rise step by step...

Hmm, it's so exciting!

"What are you looking at?" Zhao Xingrong said, noticing that Song Yu had stopped talking. She subconsciously looked down, following Song Yu's gaze to the crowd nearby...

However, all she saw were people, people, and more people—crowds on the playground.

The crowded scene made Zhao Xingrong dizzy. She was worried that the Beast she had set her eyes on would be snatched away by others.

"Song Yu, there are too many people today. We have to hurry and contract Beasts..."

Clearing her throat, Zhao Xingrong blushed a bit. "Now that the previous misunderstanding has been resolved, I also wish you can quickly find the Beast you desire. As for the Blood-Toothed Pig that I'm interested in, I plan to go and contract it now."

When she took out the Qingyu Leaf earlier, Zhao Xingrong paid special attention to the reactions of these three Wood-element Beasts.

Two of them showed some interest, but only lifted their heads slightly. However, the Blood-Toothed Pig cub obviously moved its nose and took several steps toward her.

How could Zhao Xingrong not be happy about this?

Different from ordinary animals, Beasts were a group of extraterrestrial species with high intelligence and powerful strength.

Although humans didn't understand the origin of the Beast realm and why it intersected with the Blue Star, contracting a Beast required treating it like a future spouse. It involved buying it delicious food, using financial power, and opening up one's Tamer Space for interaction.

The more sincere the heart, the more powerful the financial ability, and the higher the Tamer Space level, the easier it was to impress the Beast.

Song Yu patted Zhao Xingrong on the shoulder, genuinely wishing her success. "Zhao Xingrong, go for it...!"

But she also felt a bit sympathetic for what Zhao would face in the wilderness next.

In this world without space storage technology, even if a Tamer had a high level, without contracted Beast Space, they could only carry large and small bags and honestly survive in the wilderness within the realm.

With mosquitoes as companions, surrounded by Beasts.

"Busy yourself. I'll go over there first." Interrupted in her interest of checking high-potential value Beasts, and with the male lead staring at her nearby, Song Yu blinked with the intention of slipping away.

This kind of high-potential value Beast area was a bit too dangerous. It was like visiting a zoo, looking at all sorts of furry cubs she had never seen before. Why bother to trouble herself?

Song Yu had made up her mind to slip away, but as soon as she took half a step, someone next to her interrupted her again.

"Yo, who do we have here? Turns out it's you two..."

The female voice carried mockery, immediately drawing the attention of both Song Yu and Zhao Xingrong.

Wearing a black long skirt and carrying a heavy shoulder bag, she had long hair cascading down her shoulders. Her gaze lightly swept over Song Yu and Zhao Xingrong, finally stopping on the Blood-Toothed Pig cub. She casually laughed, "A Tamer with an F-grade trash talent knows her limitations, but a Tamer with a C-grade talent dares to dream of a Blood-Toothed Pig cub? I remember, a C-grade Tamer Space can only accelerate the training speed by about five times. And a Blood-Toothed Pig cub, even if it's a sixth-rank low-level one, dares to contract without an A-grade Tamer Space?"

The girl grinned, "Are you planning to raise a Beast with 6th-rank potential to only 2nd or 3rd rank?"

The higher the potential value of Beast cubs, the easier their early breakthroughs and learning.

However, sometimes, if the Tamer's talent is too poor, with a low training efficiency in the Tamer Space, it can also slow down the growth speed of Beast cubs.

This is why, even though many Beast cubs may be tempted and hungry for the precious treasures students have, they still restrain themselves and refuse to contract with students. They suffer the humiliation of their talents.

Zhao Xingrong blushed, swung her backpack, and scolded, "Huang Jiayan, you just awakened a B-grade Tamer Space, right? What's so great about it? You still can't reach the A-grade you're talking about! You're not qualified for the Blood-Toothed Pig cub either!"

Huang Jiayan sneered, tossing her hair, "Sorry, although I don't know who said on the forum that I awakened a B-grade Tamer Space, I actually awakened an A-grade space half a year ago. This Blood-Toothed Pig cub just happens to be a good match for me."

Her space level wasn't low, but her lush forest was only suitable for Wood-type Beasts. Among the three high-scoring Wood-type Beasts, the Blood-Toothed Pig cub was the one with the strongest combat power.

So, Huang Jiayan was determined to get it!

Shocked by the news of an A-grade Tamer Space, Zhao Xingrong was briefly stunned for three seconds, then got angry. "A-grade talent is nothing special! Are you just trying to snatch someone else's lover as a third party? Even though Beasts are animals, they can still understand human speech. Who would choose a third party as a companion?"

Huang Jiayan also got angry, "Watch your mouth! Zhou Wenchang only got together with me after breaking up with Song Yu. Call me a third party again, and I'll sue you for defamation!"

Happy to see the other person getting angry, Zhao Xingrong, seizing the opportunity and knowing the other person wouldn't dare to hit her, continued her attack, "Oh, not a third party? Then is it that your mind is messed up, and you insist on being a scumbag taking over someone else's territory? A scumbag who breaks up as soon as he sees his ex-girlfriend in a low point. Even if you add a layer of gold on the outside and give it to me, I won't want it."

Huang Jiayan clenched her fists, gritting her teeth, "Don't think I don't know. Some people call someone 'brother' every day, non-stop. I don't know if it's a real brother or a lover."

"?! Damn! Who are you calling a third party?! If you dare to insult me as a third party again, I'll make you unrecognizable!"

 

*****

 

"......?" Song Yu stood aside, mouth agape, completely stunned.

She didn't expect that the troublemaker who suddenly appeared would actually be the new girlfriend who took over her ex-boyfriend's body.

And from the sound of it, it seemed like the two of them had gotten together last year?!

Even more unexpectedly, as the two argued, it seemed like they were heading towards a physical altercation.

Didn't they plan to take the college entrance exam in the next ten years?

Half an hour ago, she thought the words from the education bureau staff were a joke, thinking how could people fight over contracted Beasts and lose face in public? Moreover, in the final stage, the Beasts would choose their desired companions themselves, so no matter how much they fought, it wouldn't matter.

But now...

She believed.

Song Yu swallowed her saliva, subconsciously stepping back with the people around her.

The crowded front row suddenly cleared out.

"Bang!—" It wasn't clear who started it first, but Huang Jiayan and Zhao Xingrong quickly turned into a rolling ball, cursing and fighting.

Insulting and hitting each other.

Song Yu's eyelids twitched, instinctively closing her eyes, unable to watch.

It's over, they are really done for this time!

Song Yu sighed.

Lifetime ban on raising Beasts for a high-potential value cub, and not allowed to participate in the college entrance exam for ten years. I wonder if the two of them will be sobbing on their beds when they go home.

But when she thought about it, Song Yu regretted it.

Not participating in the college entrance exam would be better!

If she had known the two would fight, she shouldn't have stepped back just now. Instead, she should have joined the battle.

In an instant, realizing she missed a gold mine, Song Yu, eager to go forward, had her sleeve grabbed by someone.

Song Yu: "......?"

"Song Yu, surnamed Song, what's wrong with you? Where's your backpack?"

Finally entering the inner circle of the playground after the teacher spoke some good words, Song Qi found Song Yu as soon as possible.

Song Qi tugged at her sleeve, his face stretched out long, "What's so interesting about people fighting? Isn't there always someone every year who fights heatedly for contracted Beasts?... I'm telling you, I don't want those things you said about third-grade advanced energy fruits and hundred-flower spirit honey. Look, I've already found someone from your class to bring them over for you."

Song Yu: "......"

Ah, ah! You two, don't come over!

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