Qiao Sang looked at Dai Shushu for two seconds and smiled, "Yes, do you have anything else?"
Dai Shushu's eyes narrowed slightly, and she shook her head, "No."
Qiao Sang turned around and returned to the classroom.
As soon as she sat down, Fang Sisi leaned over, "What did Dai Shushu say to you? You look so pale."
"Do I look very pale?" Qiao Sang asked.
"Yes, your face is all stiff, you scared me to death," Fang Sisi joked.
If there had been a mirror, Qiao Sang would have wanted to take a look at herself.
Fang Sisi continued to ask, "What exactly did Dai Shushu want from you?"
"Nothing," Qiao Sang picked up her book and began to read again.
Fang Sisi wanted to ask more, but seeing Qiao Sang's expression, indicating she did not want to talk about it, she closed her mouth.
When the morning classes were over, Qiao Sang packed up her things and went to the office of the ninth grade section.
"Teacher, I need to ask for leave," Qiao Sang said, focusing on the teacher's thick hair.
The class teacher stood up abruptly.
There was another female teacher in the office, and her gaze immediately locked onto them.
The class teacher restrained himself, "Do you know what you're saying? There are only a few days left until the middle school exams, and you want to ask for leave. I still haven't asked you to write a reflection paper for skipping class last time."
Qiao Sang seriously said, "Teacher, if you don't grant me leave, I'll have to skip class. I'll make up the reflection paper."
A vein popped in the class teacher's temple, "Do your family members know about this leave of absence?"
Qiao Sang did not answer.
The class teacher took a deep breath, sat down, and spoke earnestly, "If you don't want your mother to make another trip to the school, then go back to class. The teacher wronged you last time, but even if you have awakened independently, you can't neglect your studies. There are only a few days left until the middle school exams."
Qiao Sang smiled, "Last Friday, when my mom came to the school, you were there too, teacher."
The class teacher paused for a moment, then said, "I asked your mother to come to the school to explain the skipping incident."
Qiao Sang tilted her head and asked, "Why did you send my mom away?"
The class teacher was stunned, his face complex, thinking it was Qiao Sang's mother who had told her, and for a moment he did not know how to respond.
He shared an office with the class teacher of class nine.
That day, class nine's Dai Shushu and her mother had come to the school at the same time as Qiao Sang's mother.
Dai Shushu had just been given a guaranteed placement at Shengshui Middle School, and the head teacher had come over to congratulate her.
Naturally, the office's attention was all on class nine.
At this time, Qiao Sang's mother explained that her daughter had forgotten to ask for leave in the excitement of independently awakening and contracting a Pet Beast.
Kids might lie, but adults certainly shouldn't be indiscreet; he naturally believed her.
This was supposed to be a happy event, but unexpectedly, the office's attention turned to them, and after a few questions and answers, Qiao Sang's background was completely exposed.
Dai Shushu's mother mocked her a few times, and Qiao Sang's mother started arguing with her.
Dai Shushu cried on the side.
As the school's treasured student, they couldn't allow her to feel wronged, so the head teacher spoke up and asked Qiao Sang's mother to leave.
The class teacher considered himself to be a qualified teacher.
He was not good at interpersonal relationships but worked diligently, and it took him more than twenty years of struggle before he finally became a class teacher.
This long journey had taken away all his former vigor, and he didn't dare speak up even when the parents of his students were treated differently.
Yet, he felt he had done nothing wrong, since he was merely a bystander the entire time; there was no need to explain the process to a child.
The class teacher paused for a moment, then said, "It wasn't sending away, it was asking, just to let your mother calm down a bit."
Qiao Sang smiled, "I understand, but that request made my mom sick, teacher. You also know my family's situation; I am the only one who can take care of my mom."
The class teacher's demeanor deflated upon hearing that, "How long do you need to leave for?"
Qiao Sang answered, "Until my mom gets better."
The class teacher hesitated before saying, "You need to come back soon, the middle school exams are just a few days away."
Qiao Sang nodded and turned to leave.
Watching Qiao Sang's retreating figure, the class teacher couldn't help but admonish once more, "Make sure to review well at home. There's not much time left for the middle school exams. Come back as soon as your mom feels a bit better."
Qiao Sang turned her head and glanced at the class teacher, smiling, "Teacher, your wig is crooked."
The class teacher:"..."
The female teacher:"..."
...
...
Hangkang Xiangzhen Beast Taming Combat Club.
"How much does your club charge for a day with a junior level sparring partner?"
"Hello, our sparring partners charge by the hour. It's 1000 Alliance Currency for one hour with a junior level partner. If you book for the entire day, we can offer you a 2% discount," the receptionist said with a smile.
Beast Taming Combat Clubs can provide different sparring partners based on client requests. As a popular industry in today's society, it has expanded throughout large and small neighborhoods.
In some listed Beast Taming Combat Clubs, if you're willing to pay enough, they can even find you an S-rank Beastmaster to spar with, though there are only a few such clubs.
Xiangzhen Beast Taming Combat Club was the fifth club Qiao Sang had visited.
There was only one reason for visiting so many Beast Taming Combat Clubs.
Not enough money...
Qiao Sang felt the total sum of her possessions in her pocket and walked out silently with the Fire-Toothed Dog in her arms.
Qiao Sang felt somewhat lost, unsure where to go for a moment.
She had always had a just-get-by attitude toward Shengshui Middle School. If she passed the special recruitment, great; if not, she had Sixth Beast Taming Middle School as a fallback—no big deal.
But now, she wanted to get into this school.
The special recruitment exam at Shengshui Middle School was in 10 days, and it wasn't even certain she could pass the minimum qualifying score for the middle school exams with her current level.
To be admitted from second to fifth place, one had to score 50 points higher than the minimum qualifying score. Qiao Sang wasn't confident about that.
Therefore, her only choice was to aim for the top score in the special recruitment exam to achieve the privilege of meeting the minimum qualifying score for the middle school exams.
Having made this decision, she had to start training the Fire-Toothed Dog sooner than planned.
Although the Fire-Toothed Dog was a Fire Element Pet Beast with strong attack power, it was still a cub with little combat experience. The reason it won so easily last time was entirely due to it being a 2V1 fight and the opponent's slow reaction time.
If she went to the special recruitment exam as things were, first place was probably out of reach.
With only 10 days left, staying at school would be a waste of time; she could self-study while training the Fire-Toothed Dog.
She had the Golden Finger, and through combat, she could quickly improve the Fire-Toothed Dog's fighting ability over a short period of time.
Qiao Sang had a good plan, but once she stepped out, she was at a loss.
Currently, there are many Pet Beast battles and venues of various sizes, but they also come with many requirements. Some competitions demand certain levels of Beast Tamers.
Beast Taming competitions aim to earn viewership and ticket sales. A newbie Beast Tamer generally has only one low-level Pet Beast, and with just a few moves to showcase, it's not particularly exciting to watch.
If the spectators aren't interested, naturally, no organizer would want to run an event at a loss.
Qiao Sang checked and found that the next available competition in Hangkang City that allowed F-rank Beast Tamers to participate was on June 30th.
The organizers timed it well, as by that time, all Grade 9 students would have completed their middle school exams, and those who were set to contract their Pet Beasts would have done so.
There would be no shortage of sign-ups from a flood of newly minted Beast Tamers.
And with their parents, school teachers, and all sorts of relatives and friends as a base audience, the viewership was bound to be high.