The regional competition is, as the name suggests, the largest event at the district level.
In the Yuhua region alone, there are eleven provinces. Hanggang City, where they currently reside, is just one of the twelve prefecture-level cities in Zhehai Province.
There are two conditions to participate in the regional competition.
First, one must be under 40 years of age and have achieved at least the C-level Beast Master’s rank certified by the alliance. This does not mean that all participants are C-level Beast Masters under 40; rather, it sets a minimum age and rank requirement. While an age limit exists, the rank qualification serves as the lower boundary.
Second, one must obtain the qualification certification from the Beastmaster Center in their provincial capital. This process can be quite troublesome since it requires passing the qualification assessments in all prefecture-level cities within a year.
Take Zhehai Province, for example; each of its twelve prefecture-level cities has a dedicated department within the local Beastmaster Center for assessing qualifications. The evaluation criteria vary, and each judge has their unique standards. If one is lucky, they might encounter a lenient examiner who lets them pass for merely catching a small thief. But if they are unlucky, the evaluator might have them attempt to steal an egg from a dragon-type extraordinary creature.
Zhehai Province is relatively manageable with only twelve cities, allowing about a month to complete the assessment in each city. In contrast, the neighboring Yongwu Province boasts eighteen prefecture-level cities, leaving only twenty days to wrap up evaluations in each, which is hardly something an ordinary Beast Master could manage.
In short, those who can complete the assessments in all prefecture-level cities within a year are certainly not ordinary individuals.
Sha Duo, a competitor who recently participated in the Yuhua regional competition and achieved a respectable ranking, was boldly stating before so many people that she looked forward to competing against Qiao Sang in future regional competitions. This was a clear sign of high recognition for her.
The live stream’s comment section erupted.
"Is Sha Duo serious?"
"Am I about to witness the rise of a new star?"
"To be fair, she’s exceptionally strong."
"Even if she can join the regional competition, won't Sha Duo be over 40 by then?"
"Wow, that was a low blow, but I like it."
"Tomorrow’s news is set!"
At the guest seats...
"Although Qiao Sang is young, her battle experience seems quite mature."
"That retreat was truly splendid; she didn’t even issue any commands during the match, clearly having a plan set in advance."
"And that Fire Tooth Dog! You wouldn’t guess they’ve only just formed a contract."
"What do you all think about inviting her for a live stream?" a young female guest who had been quiet spoke up.
"Live stream? For what? Sure, there’s some buzz around her now, but once the next round of matches starts, she’ll be forgotten if she loses."
"What do you think about the Fire Tooth Dog wearing sunglasses?" the young female guest asked.
"Looks pretty cool." Another guest complimented.
"I just opened an online store selling sunglasses. If I invite her to do a live stream at this moment—specifically the Fire Tooth Dog—what do you think?" The young female guest continued.
Everyone turned to look at the Fire Tooth Dog wearing purple triangular sunglasses on the field.
"It sounds… actually pretty good," the nearby guest hesitantly replied.
...
Qiao Sang had just returned to the audience seats, carrying her Fire Tooth Dog, when Bai Yunyao pulled out a pen and a sheet of pink flower-edged A4 paper from her bag, excitedly saying, "Qiao genius, please help me with an autograph!"
"How come you have everything in this bag?" Qiao Sang couldn't help but tease.
"Hehe, actually, I brought the pen and paper for Sha Duo, but I didn’t get the chance to use them," Bai Yunyao admitted sheepishly.
Qiao Sang said, "… Don't tell me your excuse for coming here is that your parents are arguing?"
"How did you guess so quickly? That’s why they call you Qiao genius!" Bai Yunyao’s cheeks turned red. "I’ve recently become a fan of Sha Duo and heard she was a guest for the Baixin competition, so I came."
Qiao Sang sighed, "… So you participated in the competition just for someone else..."
"Anyway, enough of that. Qiao genius, just sign for me! Since Sha Duo has already mentioned you, your autograph will definitely be worth something once you participate in the regional competition. I have to get it now!" Bai Yunyao thrust the pen and paper toward her.
Qiao Sang, not wanting to seem overly formal, accepted them and was about to write when she suddenly thought of something and looked up to ask, "How many sheets do you have? If I sign and then meet Sha Duo later, will you have paper left?"
Bai Yunyao froze for a moment, retracting the pen and paper with a forced laugh, "Haha, I forgot! I only brought this one."
Qiao Sang merely sighed.
...
After watching a day’s worth of matches, Qiao Sang returned home to review the footage. Dragon-type beast companions are indeed formidable; if she hadn’t gained an advantage at the start with the Little Horned Dragon’s attack and defense, it would have been a tough battle.
In today’s match, she had underestimated the Little Horned Dragon’s defense, thinking she could wrap it up with the Fire Tooth’s bite. If only the Little Horned Dragon hadn’t slammed its head into the ground but had instead used its hardened head to push the Fire Tooth Dog away and create some distance, it might’ve had a chance to keep fighting.
To put it simply, the Fire Tooth Dog’s attack power still wasn’t enough. The remaining competitors boasted intermediate-level beast companions, leaving her at a disadvantage no matter whom she faced, relying only on tactics to make up for it.
Three Beast Masters with two intermediate-level beast companions each, whom she had studied yesterday, had already successfully qualified. If she encountered them, relying on tactics alone would be challenging. Sometimes, sheer strength is something tactics can’t compensate for.
If luck is on her side and she doesn't encounter one of those three tomorrow, she might still have a chance to aim for a higher rank; otherwise...
A sudden nudge on her calf drew Qiao Sang back to reality.
Looking down, she saw that her Fire Tooth Dog was nudging her with a phone in its mouth. The phone's screen lit up, vibrating, making the dog’s fur tremble.
It turned out someone was calling.
Holding back her amusement, she picked up the phone to see an unfamiliar number. She swiped right to hang up the call.
But the screen lit up again just a second later. The same number was calling again.
Without hesitation, Qiao Sang hung up once more. She had gotten used to ignoring unfamiliar calls.
Yet, just as she hung up, the screen lit up once more.
Frowning, she pressed the call button.
“Is this Miss Qiao Sang?” came a young woman’s voice from the other end.
“Yes, who are you?” Qiao Sang replied.
“I’m someone who believes in you. Are you interested in discussing a deal worth over a hundred thousand?” The voice on the line continued.
Qiao Sang pulled the phone away from her ear, swiftly hanging up and adding the number to her blacklist.
Just as expected, a scam call.
They really picked the wrong person to try and fool. Considering her past, there was no way she would fall for such a simple trick.
Meanwhile, at the 37th floor of Yijian Building, a young woman stood gazing at the phone that had been disconnected, looking lost in thought.
What had gone wrong at that stage…
Wishing everyone a happy Children’s Day ~
(End of Chapter)