Chapter 188: Battle of the Dummies – Pond King

After stepping into the arena, Lian Mu released the restriction on Green Bean. The creature stretched its limbs and looked around curiously.

This round’s opponent wasn’t particularly strong—ranked over a hundred places below Lian Mu. The gap was massive. Clearly, the challenger was here for a shot at breaking into the top hundred and earning a chance to bet on spirit stones.

There weren’t many spectators—barely a dozen scattered about. Bai Lingque, under Bai Su’s orders, had come to accompany her and was now seated beside Ji Mingyue. Silver Crane had shamelessly slipped into the group as well.

Not far from them, Gong Yu had bought a seat and sat alone. The flame-like tattoo stretching from his neck glowed faintly beneath his cold expression, giving him a rather intimidating appearance.

“Didn’t expect the Second Boss to show up for General Bean’s match,” Gong Yu said flatly.

Bai Lingque replied coldly, “You skipped your match without permission—aren’t you afraid people will talk?”

Gong Yu: “Who would dare?”

Bai Lingque withdrew his gaze. “True.”

“I’ve noticed,” Gong Yu continued, “Flying Sea Pavilion seems unusually invested in General Bean. They even kicked out my friend for her sake. What exactly does the Pavilion Master see in her?”

“That’s not for outsiders to question,” Bai Lingque said. “Linghu Meng sought revenge after a match, breaking the rules. He should’ve been expelled. The Pavilion Master showed leniency by letting him stay. What more do you want?”

Most people only knew that Linghu Meng had somehow managed to stay, but Gong Yu knew the real cost—Linghu Meng had nearly emptied half his family fortune to buy that second chance.

After a pause, Gong Yu said, “Her Spirit Pet is… strange. Is Flying Sea Pavilion just going to ignore that? It’s not fair.”

“If the Pavilion Master let her in, then it’s within the rules,” Bai Lingque replied. “I know you don’t like Silver Crane’s kind, but let me remind you—General Bean isn’t as simple as you think.”

“They’re all just modified demonic beasts. Same thing,” Gong Yu snorted and said no more.

Ji Mingyue glanced at Bai Lingque, a flicker of thought in her eyes.

So Bai Lingque wasn’t entirely on Lian Mu’s side. He’d just warned Lian Mu earlier, and now he was warning Gong Yu. His words could only be taken with a grain of salt.

Silver Crane’s smile faded slightly. “How rude. I’m right here, you know. Second Boss, are you so busy charming those two that you’ve forgotten about me?”

Bai Lingque turned his gaze back to the arena, calm and unbothered, as if he didn’t care about offending anyone.

Clearly, Bai Lingque didn’t like modified demonic beasts—or more precisely, he didn’t like Green Bean.

Ji Mingyue also looked away, her expression gradually cooling.

In the center of the arena, both Spirit Pets took their positions. Lian Mu’s opponent was named “Pond King”—he shared his name with his Spirit Pet. When Lian Mu saw the beast her opponent had brought, the corners of her mouth lifted slightly.

But to Pond King, that smile looked like pure provocation.

“What the hell are you smiling at?!” Pond King shouted.

Lian Mu: “I’m smiling at you.”

Pond King: “…”

Inside Pond King’s cage crouched a green, four-legged creature. Its cheeks puffed in and out as it breathed, and its amber, bulging eyes stared blankly ahead—locking eyes with Green Bean.

The two dazed-looking Spirit Pets facing off gave off the ridiculous vibe of a battle between two clueless fools—like a clash between a sleeping dragon and a fledgling phoenix, only far less majestic.

“Dumb versus dumber. What a waste of a ticket,” muttered one of the few spectators, clearly disappointed. Some even left their seats.

People came to beast fights for the thrill—two fierce demonic beasts tearing into each other. Nobody wanted to watch a couple of dimwits flail around.

“So this is the legendary General Bean? Doesn’t look nearly as impressive as the rumors say.”

“Just wait. General Bean’s weird. It only looks dumb on the outside.”

In the arena, Lian Mu patted Green Bean’s shell and pointed at the opposing Spirit Pet’s back. “Bite that off and bring it to me.”

Green Bean blinked and clicked its pincers to show it understood.

That “Pond King” over there was none other than a Green-Clawed Toad—a first-tier one, at that.

Lian Mu hadn’t expected to run into a Green-Clawed Toad here. If she could get the spirit armor off its back, it would save her a good chunk of spirit materials for her sword cultivation. She wouldn’t even need to worry about compatibility with a new type of spirit armor.

“Oh, and dig out its core too. You can eat the rest.”

The match hadn’t even started, and General Bean’s side was already discussing how to divide up the opponent’s corpse. The Silver-masked Person nearby couldn’t help twitching at the corner of his mouth. “Don’t speak too soon. If you piss them off, it might backfire on you.”

In many matches, both sides could’ve fought with some dignity. But there were always those who liked to provoke their opponents beforehand—only to end up going from “leave a whole corpse” to “not even bones left.”

Anything could happen in a match. Until the outcome was decided, it was always safer to keep a low profile.

But General Bean’s Beast Master clearly wasn’t listening. She was now gesturing at the opposing Spirit Pet, as if picking the best spot to strike.

Silver-masked Person: “…”

He quietly stepped back, giving up on trying to talk sense into her.

Pond King and his Spirit Pet saw her hand signs and felt thoroughly humiliated. It was clear the other side didn’t take them seriously at all.

Pond King was furious. “You think low-ranked people are easy to bully? I just arrived late—that doesn’t mean I’m weaker than you!”

He hadn’t seen this so-called General Bean in action before. All he’d heard were wild rumors. But now that he was seeing her for himself, she didn’t seem all that great.

He couldn’t tell what rank General Bean was—maybe the Beast Master had hidden it on purpose. Judging by appearance, General Bean seemed to be an earth-type beast. Scorpion-shaped beasts were unique to the earth element, after all.

His Spirit Pet belonged to the Metal Beast class, known for its indestructible external spirit armor—especially effective against venomous Earth Beasts. No matter how potent General Bean’s poison was, it couldn’t penetrate the metal beast’s armor, rendering it useless.

“The 125th match of the Beast Combat Stage Seven begins!”

At the silver-masked referee’s command, the gate of the demonic beast cage swung open. The Green-Clawed Toad leapt out, its bulging eyes locking onto its opponent. Green Bean also crawled out.

But Green Bean barely made it past the cage door before stopping in place, sitting there blankly.

The Green-Clawed Toad didn’t move either. The match opened in a deadlock.

“That’s weird. Why aren’t they fighting?” someone in the audience murmured.

“Told you they’re both idiots. Now do you believe me?”

A full fifteen minutes passed without a single movement. Bai Lingque finally saw through it. “The Pond King can’t see things that stay still.”

Toads under the Metal Beast category were a unique subtype. Not only were they protected by tough spirit armor, but their skin secreted mild toxins, and their gills could spray venom. They bore the traits of both Metal and Earth Beasts. However, they had two fatal weaknesses: they couldn’t see stationary targets, and they feared the cold. If left in a cold environment for over an hour, they would enter hibernation, their spirit armor losing effectiveness and becoming fragile.

“General Bean is clever. It actually spotted the opponent’s weakness right away. That’s more than many Beast Masters can train into their pets,” Silver Crane commented. “I’d love to know how General Bean’s Beast Master trains it.”

Ji Mingyue: “……”

Given Lian Mu’s usual indifference toward Green Bean, there was no way she spent time training it. As for why Green Bean wasn’t moving, it was probably just being lazy, hoping the Green-Clawed Toad would hop into its mouth. With a brain the size of a bean, it couldn’t possibly realize the other side couldn’t see it.

Still, the match remained at a standstill. The Pond King was getting anxious, but it was too early to use spiritual power to control the Green-Clawed Toad. Doing so would expose his tactics—no one wanted to show their hand right at the start.

Just as he grew restless, General Bean twitched. The Pond King’s eyes lit up—this was his chance. The next moment, the Green-Clawed Toad locked onto its target, leaping with its hind legs like it had grown wings, arcing through the air.

All eyes turned to it. The toad spread its four limbs—though they looked soft and floppy, they were razor-sharp. Once its spirit armor was activated, those claws could pierce anything with ease.

Its claws aimed straight for Green Bean’s eyes. Just before impact, it adjusted its angle.

An Earth Beast’s shell alone couldn’t withstand a Metal Beast’s piercing attack.

The Pond King finally smiled.

“Hiss—!”

But the expected scene never came. General Bean’s black shell absorbed the strike without a scratch. It even raised a pincer and clamped down on the toad’s snow-white belly.

The Green-Clawed Toad struggled to flip over, but in the next instant, it was crushed—its belly and the thin spirit armor along with it shattered into pieces.

The Pond King’s eyes widened. “Impossible…”

A one-hit kill?!

This General Bean wasn’t an Earth Beast at all!

As the Green-Clawed Toad fell, the Pond King suffered a backlash. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his abdomen wracked with searing pain, as if his internal organs had been torn apart.

But General Bean didn’t stop. It began dismembering the toad’s twitching body. Its tail hook extended, stabbing into the torn green skin.

Venom injected, and the Green-Clawed Toad melted into black sludge at a speed visible to the naked eye, flooding the entire Beast Fighting Arena.

The stench hit the sky like a wave, making the scattered spectators gag and retch.

“Damn it, I just ate a snack—ugh…”

“What the hell is that smell?!”

Even Silver Crane and Gong Yu couldn’t help but frown. Silver Crane pulled out a fan and used spiritual energy to waft the stench away—deliberately fanning it toward Gong Yu.

Gong Yu: “…Childish.”

Bai Lingque remained unfazed, flipping open the roster and crossing out the Pond King’s name. He tapped the next one. “He’s up.”

Ji Mingyue: “You’re not giving her a break?”

Bai Lingque: “This arena is reserved for her today. Every Beast Master who’s challenged her will settle things here.”

Ji Mingyue: “Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

Fifty matches back-to-back with no rest—this was clearly deliberate.

Bai Lingque said calmly, “She has faith in General Bean. Flying Sea Pavilion naturally wants to give her a chance to prove it. The crowd outside is already getting restless.”

Ji Mingyue followed his gaze to the arena entrance, where a long line of challengers waited—all of them Lian Mu’s opponents for the day.

Gong Yu was not among them. He was clearly being saved for last.

“Take me to your Pavilion Master,” Ji Mingyue said, annoyed. “I want to know if this is your personal decision or an order from above.”

“The Pavilion Master isn’t here,” Bai Lingque replied. “What, don’t you trust your friend?”

Ji Mingyue: “You’re deliberately pushing her too hard.”

“We’re just trying to unlock General Bean’s full potential,” Bai Lingque said coolly. “I suggest you stay put. If she gets hurt, you’ll be the first to help.”

Ji Mingyue looked toward Lian Mu in the arena, worry creeping into her heart. But now that Lian Mu was already in the thick of it, there was no easy way out. She could only sit and keep watching.

After the Green-Clawed Toad melted away, only a greenish-blue spirit armor and a single inner core remained. The Pond King had already passed out from the pain, and the silver-masked referee didn’t hesitate—he took him away immediately.

Green Bean dragged the spirit armor back, the inner core clamped in its mouth, and crawled to Lian Mu’s side.

For the first time, it didn’t eat the opponent’s corpse—because the Green-Clawed Toad stank too much. One bite and it’d be reeking for a year.

Lian Mu, in full view of the crowd, collected the spirit armor and inner core. But when she looked around, the exit door remained shut.

Something was off. She looked up at Bai Lingque in the stands. He met her gaze and raised the roster in his hand.

The entrance on the opponent’s side opened again, and in walked a stranger with their Spirit Pet already in position.

Lian Mu understood Bai Lingque’s intention—he wanted her to take down all her challengers in one go.

She nodded toward Bai Lingque in the spectator stands, smiled, and walked back into the Beast Taming Zone.

There weren’t many people left in the stands. After enduring the stench from earlier, the Silver-masked Person had taken the initiative to place a barrier around the stands to block out the smell.

What followed was a spectacle: Lian Mu, with General Bean at her side, swiftly defeated one challenger after another. The pace was much faster than the first match—most were taken down in a single move.

After General Bean killed each demonic beast, he would devour it completely, leaving the opposing Beast Masters in utter despair.

“You brought me here just to show me that it eats demonic beasts?”

In the stands, Gong Yu asked calmly.

Bai Lingque stood tall and straight. He replied in a low voice, “Not just that.”

Gong Yu stared at the black scorpion gnawing on the corpse in the arena, a wave of nausea rising in his chest. “Modified demonic beasts… utterly disgusting. But you’re overthinking it.”

“You’re the pride of Flying Sea Pavilion. Naturally, I don’t want you to lose,” Bai Lingque said.

Gong Yu replied, “I’m not Amon. He lost. I won’t. When it comes to Spiritual Roots, I’m trash. But in Beast Taming, no one surpasses me.”

Just as he finished speaking, General Bean finished off the last demonic beast. Lian Mu looked toward the stands, her gaze locking with Gong Yu’s.

Bai Lingque flipped through the roster, crossing out a long list of names until only the top one remained—Gong Yu. He closed the book. “That’s enough for today. Your match with her will be scheduled separately by Flying Sea Pavilion. Gong Yu, be prepared. The promotion round is about to end. Your battle with General Bean will be your final stand at the top.”

Gong Yu stood, smoothing out the creases in his sleeves, his expression cold. “Got it.”

He turned and left.

As soon as the arena gates opened, Ji Mingyue rushed down from the stands to meet Lian Mu. She looked her over. “Are you okay?”

Lian Mu waved her hand. “I’m fine.”

Green Bean wasn’t hurt, so naturally, she wasn’t either. In fact, she’d raked in a pile of loot—practically a free haul.

Lian Mu asked, “Where’s Bai Lingque?”

Just as she spoke, Bai Lingque descended from the stands. “I’m right here.”

Lian Mu walked over with a smile, raising her hand. Bai Lingque thought she wanted to see the roster and was just about to hand it over when a gust of wind whooshed past his ear.

“Smack—!”

A crisp slap landed on the left side of Bai Lingque’s face. Before he could react, another hit struck his right cheek.

Lian Mu grabbed him by the collar and slammed him to the ground with a loud thud—at least two bones were broken.

“Next time you tamper with my match without permission, it won’t just be two slaps,” Lian Mu said. “Go back and tell your Pavilion Master to send someone smarter. Don’t let me see your face again.”

The spectators were dumbfounded. That was Flying Sea Pavilion’s Second Boss! And she dared treat him like this?

Bai Lingque’s expression didn’t change. He straightened his twisted face, stood up, and brushed the dust off his clothes without a trace of anger—calm as ever.

“Your match with Gong Yu is the morning after tomorrow. I’ll send someone to inform you of the exact time. Best not to leave Flying Sea Pavilion until then,” he said flatly.

Then he pulled out a transmission talisman from his sleeve. As it ignited, his figure vanished instantly.

Up above, Silver Crane watched the scene with amusement, leaning against the railing. His royal blue brocade robe draped elegantly with his movement. He folded his fan and chuckled. “You’re quite the fiery one, little friend. But still, he’s the Second Boss of Flying Sea Pavilion. You’d best be careful.”

“Bai Lingque isn’t on your side,” Ji Mingyue said.

“I figured that out long ago,” Lian Mu replied.

She knew Bai Lingque was skilled, but she also knew today’s stunt had been entirely his doing. Bai Su was likely unaware.

Otherwise, Bai Lingque wouldn’t have taken the hit without resistance—he clearly didn’t want to escalate the matter.

“Your Beast Taming Technique truly opened my eyes,” Silver Crane said. “If I had your skill, I wouldn’t have lost to Gong Yu.”

Lian Mu saw right through him. “You’re not really interested in Beast Taming, are you?”

Silver Crane smiled. “You got me. I’m actually interested in your Spirit Pet. I’m an artifact refiner—I don’t care for live beasts, only Spirit Materials. Your Spirit Pet is quite unique. Your sword—was it forged from one of its kind as well?”

Lian Mu narrowed her eyes. “This isn’t the place to talk.”

“…My mistake,” Silver Crane said, stepping down from the stands. “Why don’t we move to my Artifact Forging Room for a chat?”

As he approached, Green Bean glared at him, its pincers clicking menacingly, tail poised to strike.

Silver Crane sidestepped quickly and backed away, wiping sweat from his forehead. “Could you maybe put it away first?”

Lian Mu eyed him curiously. “It’s never aggressive toward ordinary people.”

Ji Mingyue also grew wary. “Don’t tell me you’re…”

“Misunderstanding! You’re both misunderstanding!” Silver Crane waved his hands quickly. “I’m not from the demon race. It’s just… I’ve killed quite a few of its kind before. I probably carry a scent it finds offensive.”

Lian Mu and Ji Mingyue exchanged a glance.

Looks like Silver Crane had also guessed that Green Bean was a Spirit Beast.

“I remember you once said you were very interested in my modified demonic beasts,” Silver Crane said, leaning in and lowering his voice. “If you trust me, how about we make a trade? Let me take a look at it—and your sword—and I’ll tell you everything you want to know.”

Lian Mu was indeed intrigued by his modified demonic beast. The creature in Silver Crane’s hand was truly unusual—it could seamlessly fuse limbs from demonic beasts of different ranks, and the integration was flawless. That was exactly the kind of material her sword required.

However… Green Bean’s rejection of him definitely wasn’t without reason. She couldn’t just take his word for everything.

Ji Mingyue subtly squeezed her palm, signaling her not to trust him too easily.

Lian Mu wasn’t about to fall for his bait so quickly either. She said, “I don’t have time right now. The day after tomorrow, I have a match against the top-ranked cultivator in the Advancement Arena. I need these two days to prepare. Besides, I don’t really need your information at the moment. Once the match is over, you can come find me again.”

Silver Crane clearly expected her to decline and didn’t seem bothered. He handed her a folding fan and said, “Then I’ll be sure to come cheer you on during your match. Once it’s over, we can talk again.”

Lian Mu nodded. “Alright.”