Chapter 192: First-Rank Wanted Poster — Someone’s Backing Him

“That’s it for the first round?”

“General Bean didn’t even show its true strength and managed a draw just by running away. Is it chickening out?”

The spectators began to doubt General Bean. Normally, running away wouldn’t be a big deal, but this was a battle for the top spot—every round mattered. Anyone serious about winning would pull out all the stops, not waste time aimlessly.

Demonic beasts have their limits. They start off fierce and energetic, but the longer the fight, the more exhausted they get. The first round is usually the best time to go all in. Gong Yu had done just that, unleashing his Thousand Forms Flame right off the bat, making the most of his beast’s peak stamina. That was the smart move.

Could it be that General Bean was all bark and no bite? That it couldn’t match Gong Yu at all and was just stalling for time?

That thought crept into everyone’s mind. Some even recalled that it was Gong Yu who had issued the challenge in the first place. Was it possible that General Bean didn’t want to fight at all, but was forced into it by the declaration of war?

“Don’t tell me General Bean plans to keep using this trick. I didn’t pay for tickets just to watch them play tag.”

“Intermission now. Gong Yu’s probably thinking up a new strategy. Too bad he already used his Thousand Forms Flame in the first round—won’t be as effective if he tries it again. General Bean’s bound to come up with a counter too.”

As soon as the man finished speaking, realization dawned on those around him: Could General Bean be trying to win without lifting a finger?

It hadn’t done anything in the first round, yet it had already drawn out one of Gong Yu’s ultimate moves. Meanwhile, General Bean remained an enigma.

“The Pavilion Master called it—ended in a draw,” said Silver Crane. “Looks like I won’t be getting my bet back on the round, but if General Bean wins in the end, I won’t lose too much.”

Since even Bai Su had predicted General Bean would win, he wasn’t too worried.

Silver Crane glanced at General Bean as it entered the rest area, then looked around Bai Su’s side. “Where’s your guy? He was just here.”

Bai Lingque had vanished. Silver Crane had been too focused on the match to notice when he left.

“Got a message just now—some pesky rat showed up on Flying Sea Street. I sent him to deal with it,” Bai Su replied coolly, her eyes distant and cold, clearly displeased.

“Rat?” Silver Crane murmured. “Yeah, best to deal with that quickly. If it bites someone, it’ll be a real headache.”

Rest Area.

Lian Mu led Green Bean into the rest area, which offered places to sit, food, and a wide variety of Spirit Pet feed—all provided free of charge by the Flying Sea Pavilion for competitors.

Currently in a fasting phase, Lian Mu resisted the urge to eat. A Silver-masked Person brought over a tray of beast feed. “Not sure what type your Spirit Pet is, so the Pavilion has prepared a full assortment. You can pick one, and we’ll fetch the proper quantity.”

Lian Mu glanced at the table—squirming black bugs, bleeding unidentified limbs, oddly-shaped beast cubs…

None of it looked remotely like something Green Bean would eat.

“It doesn’t need food,” Lian Mu said flatly.

The Silver-masked Person blinked. “?”

He looked over at the Red-eyed Five-form Beast across the way, happily chowing down after its match, and was clearly baffled.

High-level beasts usually needed to eat after a battle to maintain their condition. Otherwise, they’d be drained for the next round.

“Even if General Bean didn’t win, you can’t just starve it…” the Silver-masked Person said hesitantly.

Lian Mu couldn’t help but laugh. “Really, it doesn’t need anything.”

Green Bean thrived just fine on air. Feeding it actually made it lazy.

As they spoke, Green Bean lifted its body and gave the Silver-masked Person a wink. It might not be the prettiest creature, but compared to Gong Yu’s massive, terrifying flame beast, it was downright adorable.

The Silver-masked Person felt a pang of sympathy. But since the Beast Master had said no feeding, he couldn’t push it. He silently thought to himself: Poor thing. If it loses, it won’t even get a meal. Might go hungry for a long time.

“If it doesn’t need to eat, then General Bean will have to stay in the cage. To ensure fairness, Beast Masters aren’t allowed to feed their pets anything not provided by the Pavilion,” the Silver-masked Person explained. “You can rest here. The next round starts in half an hour.”

Lian Mu handed Green Bean over. Across the way, Gong Yu also had his flame beast taken away by another Silver-masked Person. But unlike Green Bean, the Red-eyed Five-form Beast had a nasty temper. It took all the handler’s strength to drag it off, and he nearly got doused in searing red fire liquid. The place was a mess.

Gong Yu didn’t seem fazed—he was used to it. At least he had the decency to clean up after his own Spirit Pet. Without a word, he picked up the scattered items and neatly put everything back in place.

He picked up a piece of pastry, ignored the dust on it, and popped it into his mouth with a blank expression.

They weren’t far apart—Lian Mu could even hear the faint sounds of him tidying up.

Gong Yu swallowed the pastry and, sensing her gaze, looked up and met her eyes.

Maybe it was because the flame beast wasn’t around, but he seemed much calmer now.

What surprised Lian Mu, though, was that his first words weren’t mocking her performance in the match—but about someone else.

“A’Meng—did he come looking for you?”

Lian Mu raised an eyebrow. “You know?”

“I saw him yesterday,” Gong Yu said. “He told me… about you.”

Knowing they were close, Lian Mu assumed he was here to defend Linghu Meng. “So you declared war on me to stand up for him?”

“No,” Gong Yu said. “That was my idea. Because your modified demonic beast… I don’t like it.”

General Bean just so happened to be the most well-known among the modified demonic beasts. It had only arrived recently, yet it was already nearly as famous as Silver Crane.

Lian Mu: “……”

Well, that was blunt.

Lian Mu gave a faint smile. “Perfect. I can’t stand either of you. If we were in the sword cultivator dueling arena, I’d cut down your pathetic friend first, then finish you off.”

She could tolerate Linghu Meng being a nuisance to her, but the moment he laid a hand on Ji Mingyue, he crossed a line.

Nothing disgusted her more than someone dragging innocent people into personal vendettas.

Linghu Meng was a useless piece of trash, only acting so arrogant because he had Gong Yu backing him. And Gong Yu didn’t even bother to rein him in, letting him run wild.

“Too bad you’ll never get the chance,” Lian Mu said.

Gong Yu: “…At a time like this, you still can’t provoke me.”

Lian Mu raised an eyebrow. “Oh really?”

As she suspected, his emotions were tied to that flame beast.

She had watched Gong Yu duel Silver Crane two months ago and noticed then that the flame beast’s explosive power was linked to emotional fluctuations.

From the moment she stepped into the arena, she’d been hammering at his weak spot, all to test him.

With that, she gained a better understanding of him. Her mind was already working through strategies for the next match, even as she kept up the verbal sparring. “You came to talk to me just to get cursed out, didn’t you? Well, now you’ve got what you wanted. Get lost.”

Gong Yu was silent for a moment, then said in a low voice, “About A’Meng… I apologize on his behalf.”

Lian Mu froze. “?”

He said it so smoothly, like he’d practiced it countless times, the words flowing out in one breath.

“A’Meng attacked your friend to use them as leverage against you,” Gong Yu said. “He wanted to shake your focus during the match, so you’d lose to me.”

“What he did was wrong.”

His tone softened only for a moment before turning cold and hard again. “I don’t stoop to that level. I’ll beat General Bean fair and square, in front of everyone.”

Lian Mu: “……”

Lian Mu: “Got it. Now scram.”

Gong Yu let out a cold snort and turned to walk toward the cage of the Red-eyed Five-form Beast.

Half an hour later, the second match entered its preparation phase. The two of them returned to the arena.

“Second trial of Beast Battle Advancement Match No. 1 is about to begin. Spectators, please return to your seats so you don’t miss the match. Second trial of Beast Battle Advancement Match No. 1…”

……

……

Feihai Street.

A large group marched down the main road, drawing stares from shopkeepers and passersby alike.

At the front was Bai Lingque, clad in a fitted combat outfit, half his face covered by a silver mask that gleamed coldly. His hawk-like eyes swept over the street as a Communication Talisman flared to life between his fingers.

“Have you found him?” His voice was icy.

There was a pause on the other end before someone responded. “He escaped too fast. No ordinary person could move like that. He’s carrying Spirit Artifacts—more than one—and none below fourth grade. Be careful on your end.”

Bai Lingque: “Spirit Artifacts above fourth grade? Looks like we didn’t fine him enough Spirit Stones—he still has money to burn.”

Fourth-grade Spirit Artifacts were considered high-tier. Setting aside quality, the base price alone ran into the millions. A well-crafted fourth-grade artifact cost even more.

“Speed boost, defense, stealth… He’s got at least three types of Spirit Artifacts on him. Yesterday, he took the little thief General Bean brought in. Probably trying to silence him. Those artifacts aren’t the kind you find in the mortal world. He couldn’t have gotten them on his own—someone powerful must be backing him.”

Bai Lingque: “Alert the street guards. Seal off all exits of the Flying Sea Pavilion. We let him off last time, and now he dares stir up trouble again? He clearly thinks nothing of the Pavilion. Just a mere mortal with some beast-taming skills, and he dares ride roughshod over us? We’ve been too lenient.”

“Should we expel him once he’s caught?”

“We’ll see. The Beast Fighting Arena is in its final rounds—too many people around. Best not to make a scene,” Bai Lingque said. “The boss gave orders: if he doesn’t resist, expel him. If he does… break his arms and legs. Do whatever you need after that.”

“Yes, sir.”

Bai Lingque: “Which way did he run?”

“He was too fast—vanished in the blink of an eye. All we saw was the general direction. Looks like he headed toward the Beast Fighting Arena.”

“The Beast Fighting Arena?” Bai Lingque narrowed his eyes and looked in that direction. “He picked quite the spot.”

So he was after someone there.

Losing twice wouldn’t be enough to create such obsession. If he had his sights set on someone inside the Beast Fighting Arena, he must have another agenda.

Bai Lingque extinguished the Communication Talisman, pulled out a command slip from his spatial pouch, scribbled a few lines, and sent it out to all Flying Sea Pavilion guards.

“Unauthorized intruder. Activate the alert formation. Eastern unit, follow me to search the Beast Fighting Arena.”

The ink on the paper began to dissolve, revealing the words: First-Level Wanted Order.

Target: Linghu Meng.