In the city of Jincheng, Da Xia, at Qinglong Eighth Middle School, Class 3 of Grade 10. The bell for the first afternoon class rang, waking the young boy who had been lying on his desk.
Chen Xing, sitting in his seat, looked a bit dazed. He had just had a dream where he lived in a place called "Huaxia."
In that world, there were no tamed beasts. Instead, people had to study terrifying subjects like Mathematics, Physics, Biology, and Chemistry. Even the language of the Eagle Alliance, which was only an elective course in Da Xia, was a mandatory subject there. Good heavens, how horrifying!
The dream felt so real that Chen Xing wiped the sweat from his forehead.
As the class bell rang, someone shouted in the hallway, "Hurry back to your seats! It's Old Lu's class!"
The students who had been playing outside quickly returned to their seats, each pulling out their textbooks and sitting upright.
The sound of leather shoes grew clearer outside the door, and soon, the homeroom teacher, Lu Junxiang, strode into the classroom. Lu Junxiang wasn't tall, standing just over 1.6 meters, but his eyes were sharp and piercing. He wore a traditional grey Zhongshan suit, held a book under his right arm, and carried a thermos in his left hand. A pair of thick black-rimmed glasses rested on the bridge of his nose.
"Everyone, summon your tamed beasts," Lu Junxiang said slowly after taking a sip of tea.
In the classroom, Chen Xing spread open his right hand, and a summoning circle formed in his palm. As the light from the circle faded, a small 30-centimetre-long crocodile with yellow and black markings appeared, resting in his palm.
Almost simultaneously, sharp cries of "Ao~ Ao~ Ao~" echoed throughout the classroom.
All the students in Class 3 of Grade 10 had Saltwater Bay Crocodiles as their tamed beasts. To be precise, all the first-year students at Qinglong Eighth Middle School this year had only three types of tamed beasts: Saltwater Bay Crocodiles, Armored Land Rhinos, and Iron Feather Battle Eagles.
The twelve-year compulsory education system included the free distribution of tamed beasts. The beasts provided by the state were carefully selected, suitable for beginners, easy to raise, and simple to handle. Most of them were gentle, intelligent, and loyal, making them ideal for novice trainers.
"Turn to page 14, Chapter 3: The Weaknesses and Natural Enemies of the Saltwater Bay Crocodile," Lu Junxiang's unhurried voice came from the podium.
The sound of flipping pages filled the classroom.
The little Saltwater Bay Crocodile on the desk seemed to have found a fun toy. It propped itself up on its four short legs and rushed over, biting down on the page of the book.
Chen Xing flicked his finger, ding~
A light tap landed on the crocodile's head. The little crocodile retracted its nonexistent neck and covered its head with its front claws, letting out an "Ao!" For a moment, it thought it was about to meet its ancestors.
On the podium, Lu Junxiang spoke leisurely, "As we all know, the Saltwater Bay Crocodile is an amphibious tamed beast. When fully grown, it can reach a length of 8 to 10 meters and weigh between 2.5 to 5 tons. Among non-evolved beasts, it's quite large. Before evolution, the Saltwater Bay Crocodile can rely on its size to gain a significant advantage in combat.
"But it has short legs! Its four legs combined aren't as tall as a single leg of some other beasts. This is its weakness—it's not fast. Crocodiles can only fight in short bursts.
"On land, the crocodile's body is under heavy strain. It can rely on its muscular strength to perform several quick bursts of speed in a short time, but after that, it will suffer from a lack of stamina. Against agile, long-range opponents, the Saltwater Bay Crocodile is at a severe disadvantage. Now, you have one minute to think about how to deal with such opponents."
A minute later, hands were raised all over the classroom.
"Wang Qiming, you answer."
"We can just not fight. If I see them, I'll run!" Wang Qiming stood up.
The classroom erupted in laughter.
Lu Junxiang smiled but said, "Don't laugh. Wang Qiming has a good idea. Avoiding a stronger opponent is a smart move. Knowing when to retreat is just as wise as knowing when to fight. But what if you can't run? What if you have to fight? Any other ideas?"
The girl sitting in front of Chen Xing raised her hand.
Lu Junxiang called on her, "Li Zhixuan."
Li Zhixuan said, "We can use the water-type skill Wave Rush to close the distance quickly. If we get close, we can use Ambush Stream to sneak attack the opponent. If that doesn't work, we can use Wave Rush to escape and hide in a nearby deep water area."
Lu Junxiang nodded approvingly, "Good. It seems you've previewed the later content."
"As we all know, apart from their natural physical abilities, the biggest difference between tamed beasts and wild animals is that tamed beasts can learn skills!"
"Based on energy detection within tamed beasts, we currently classify their energy levels from 1 to 100. Every 5 energy levels, a beast can learn a new skill, either active or passive. However, skill combination is a complex subject. The mastery of skills, the synergy between different skills, and the timing of skill usage all greatly impact combat."
"So, to deal with opponents who have an elemental advantage, you need to break the norm. Using skills is the key to turning the tide of battle!"
Lu Junxiang then went on at length about the common problems Saltwater Bay Crocodiles face in combat and how to deal with them, continuing until the bell rang for the end of class.
"In two weeks, we'll have the first monthly exam. Right now, all of you have the same resources, but after a month, your resources will vary based on your rankings. The higher your rank, the more resources you'll receive. Sometimes, the gap between students widens bit by bit like this. If you want more resources, you'll have to fight for them! Strive! Compete! I hope you won't become the worst class I've ever taught."
Chen Xing rubbed his eyes. Ever since waking up from his nap, he had been experiencing intermittent blurred visions. Making sure no one was paying attention to him, he focused his attention again.
A semi-transparent grey slate gradually appeared in the air before him. Chen Xing was startled but soon realized that none of his classmates seemed to notice it. It seemed that only he could see it. He confirmed this when he noticed that the slate was clipping into the head of the student in front of him.
As Chen Xing concentrated, the slate floated closer to him.
Not a single word, line, or detail was missed!
The next moment, the slate flipped open to the left. On the first stone page was a complex tree-like diagram. At the top of the diagram was a line of text: Pet Taming Instructor.
It wasn't written in any language he knew, but the moment he saw it, he understood its meaning.
Pet Taming Instructor?
Why does that sound familiar?
Before Chen Xing could think further, the stone booklet flipped two more pages, revealing two more complex tree-like diagrams with the text: Pet Caretaker and Pet Nutritionist.
This feels somewhat familiar...
Chen Xing racked his brain and finally remembered where the familiarity came from. In his dream, he had gone to university and majored in veterinary medicine.
The Pet Taming Instructor, Pet Caretaker, and Pet Nutritionist were all professional certifications that could be obtained in that world!
Damn! That sounds a bit weak!
What is a Pet Taming Instructor? Someone who trains pets to develop good habits and perform specific tasks. Similarly, Pet Caretakers and Pet Nutritionists are more or less the same.
I admit that professional Pet Taming Instructors must have some technical skills, but don't forget that in this world, we specialize in raising tamed beasts! How can a modern profession compete with a mature civilization that has been developing for hundreds of years?
Chen Xing was pessimistic about this, but he thought that perhaps some techniques could be borrowed from it.
However, he soon realized that these three professions were slightly—no, significantly—different from what he had imagined.
Each of these professions had a prerequisite skill.
At the top of the Pet Taming Instructor skill tree was the basic skill: [Beast Language Comprehension]. After learning it, one could understand the language of beasts, making it easier to communicate with them and proceed with training (0/1).
The prerequisite skill for the Pet Caretaker was: [Affinity Comprehension]. After learning it, the host's affinity would increase, giving them a warm and approachable aura, making it easier to establish friendly relationships with tamed beasts (0/1).
The prerequisite skill for the Pet Nutritionist was: [Health Inspection]. After learning it, one could inspect the current state of a tamed beast, gaining a clearer understanding of its condition (0/1).
Subsequent skills required the activation of prerequisite skills to unlock, but unlocking them required skill points. After some experimentation, Chen Xing, who hadn't yet figured out how to obtain skill points, suppressed his eagerness. Class was about to start, and it was best not to act too unusual.