Qinglong No. 8 High School has three cafeterias, each separated by grade level. The beast cafeterias for each grade are also distinct.
The cement floor was slightly damp, and the high-mounted ventilation fans spun rapidly. Low walls formed enclosures, with food pipes connected to the walls and large iron basins, about the size of bathtubs, placed below. These were often jokingly referred to as "feeding troughs" by the students.
In front of each "trough" was a photo of a student, along with their name and class. It felt less like the beasts were being fed and more like the students themselves.
In the centre of the cafeteria stood a massive scale, six meters long and three meters wide, using gravity-based sensors.
Chen Xing picked up an iron basin, placed the small crocodile inside, and joined the queue. Soon, it was his turn. A middle-aged woman wearing an apron, mask, and hat skillfully operated the display screen in front of her. After a few quick taps, she took the basin, placed it on the scale, and printed out a QR code from a nearby machine. She then handed the QR code and the basin back to Chen Xing.
Chen Xing took the basin, fished out the small Saltwater Crocodile with one hand, and held the QR code between two fingers. He followed the crowd and placed the basin on a nearby shelf.
Returning to his designated spot, he scanned the QR code on the reader.
A hum came from the food pipe, and moments later, a lump of food slid down the smooth pipe.
Plop~
A glob of deep yellow, meaty paste dropped into the basin.
Over the past few days, the small crocodile had grown accustomed to the feeding routine. Hearing the delightful sound of food hitting the basin, it wriggled in Chen Xing's hand, its four legs paddling eagerly.
Chen Xing placed the crocodile into the large iron basin. Click-clack-click-clack~ The sound of its hard claws scraping against the basin echoed, its tail wagging as it moved.
It opened its mouth wide and took a big bite! Chomp!
(●''●)
A quarter of the paste was gone.
Chomp! Another bite.
()
Only half remained.
Chomp, chomp.
And it was all gone.
The speed at which it devoured the food was astonishing.
After finishing, the small crocodile scurried around, sniffing desperately for more food. But unfortunately, there was none.
The cafeteria provided food based on the beast's weight—the heavier the beast, the more food it received. However, eating too much at once wasn't beneficial. The Saltwater Crocodile's body had a feedback mechanism; overeating would slow its digestion and cause it to store excess energy. Many reptiles shared this instinct, and overcoming it required evolving into a higher life form, breaking free from the limitations of its species.
Until then, the best approach was to work with its instincts.
"Ao~" The small crocodile, unable to find more food, cried out to Chen Xing in frustration.
It could smell the rich aroma of food in the air, so why wasn't there any more?
Chen Xing chuckled and picked it up.
This was the cafeteria, surrounded by other Saltwater Crocodiles eating, so the air was thick with the scent of food.
"You're such a glutton, like Taotie."
Huh? Why did that name come to mind? Taotie was the name of a mythical beast from his dream—or was it an auspicious beast? Chen Xing couldn't quite remember. Though only a few days had passed, many details of the dream had faded, leaving only vague outlines.
After all, how could anyone remember every detail of a dream, no matter how vivid it was?
Thinking of this, Chen Xing looked at the small crocodile. It still didn't have a name. Calling it "here, here, here" all the time wasn't ideal. What if it started responding to that? And he certainly wasn't the only one who used that call.
Imagine calling "here, here, here" in public, and every beast on the street turned to look. That would be quite a scene.
To avoid such an awkward situation, "From now on, your name is Taotie."
The name was obscure enough that there shouldn't be any duplicates.
"Taotie, here, here, here."
...
In the afternoon, it was time for Beast Knowledge class.
"Get back to your seats! It's Mr. Zhang's class!"
Taotie was still looking around, but Chen Xing pressed a finger to its forehead to keep it still.
The sound of leather shoes grew clearer as the Beast Knowledge teacher, Zhang Chunlei, strode into the classroom. Mr. Zhang was short, standing just over 1.6 meters tall, but his sharp eyes commanded attention. He wore a traditional grey Zhongshan suit, carried a book under his right arm, and held a thermos in his left hand. Thick black-rimmed glasses rested on his nose, and perched on his shoulder was a brightly coloured macaw. The vibrant colours oddly complemented his otherwise plain attire.
"Take out the test from two days ago. I'll go over the common mistakes," a sharp voice came from the podium. The macaw on Mr. Zhang's shoulder opened and closed its beak, its large eyes scanning the classroom. If anyone slacked off, the macaw's crest would rise, and it would grab a piece of chalk, flying over to drop a "chalk bomb" as a warning.
The students were used to this. On the first day of class, Mr. Zhang had written on the blackboard that he couldn't speak due to a vocal cord injury. His macaw, a Crested Macaw, delivered his lectures. This was a high-level skill among beast tamers—being able to communicate telepathically with their beasts.
"Let's look at the second multiple-choice question."
The Crested Macaw flew around the classroom, loudly reciting the question. No one dared to slack off in Mr. Zhang's class because the macaw's eyes were sharper than any camera, catching every little movement.
On the podium, Mr. Zhang wrote the first question on the blackboard with firm, clear strokes. Tap, tap, tap~ Chalk dust fell from the edges of the board.
(8) The cultivation of beasts is divided into four major stages. These stages are:
1. Growth Stage, Transcendence Stage, Evolution Stage, Ascension Stage
2. Growth Stage, Evolution Stage, Transcendence Stage, Ascension Stage
3. Growth Stage, Transcendence Stage, Ascension Stage, Evolution Stage
4. Growth Stage, Ascension Stage, Transcendence Stage, Evolution Stage
"Ascension is the final step, so it can only be the last stage. That means you can immediately eliminate options 3 and 4. Many students confuse the Growth Stage and the Evolution Stage—this is a common point of confusion. The Growth Stage is the natural development phase of a beast. As long as nothing unexpected happens, any beast can grow from infancy to maturity through proper care."
Mr. Zhang drew a line under "Growth Stage" and "Evolution Stage" to emphasize them.
"The Evolution Stage is a transformation. Almost all known beasts have higher forms they can evolve into, and many have multiple evolutionary paths. Some beasts even have different forms depending on whether they evolve during the day or at night. In university, there are entire fields of study dedicated to beast evolution. If you're interested, you can pursue related majors. Discovering a new evolutionary form for a beast can be incredibly lucrative. The Evolution Stage comes after the Growth Stage."
"Once a beast reaches its natural growth limit, the energy it can store also reaches its maximum. To increase this limit, the beast must evolve, expanding its potential. Scientists have found that all living beings, including humans, are constantly evolving over long periods. Beast evolution simply compresses this lengthy process into a much shorter time frame."
"After a beast evolves, its energy level cap increases. Once a beast's energy level reaches 100, it can choose to transcend. Whether it's through bloodline, physical, or spiritual transcendence, these are different paths. Therefore, the correct answer is option 2."
Chen Xing's deskmate, Zou Minghan, suddenly raised his hand. "Teacher, what about the Ascension Stage? The textbook doesn't explain it in detail. It just mentions that it exists."
Zhang adjusted his glasses. "I don't know much about it either, and it won't be on the exam."
The students were disappointed by this answer.
Wang Qiming, sitting behind Zou Minghan, whispered, "I heard from someone during a dinner with my dad that the Ascension Stage might be related to the Gods from other realms."
"Really? Do you know what those Gods look like?" Zou Minghan turned around, curious. Wang Qiming's family could afford custom nutrient solutions, so they must be well-off. He probably knew more than most.
"I've never seen one. The strongest I've seen is the beast of our district's Police Chief. It's a Transcendent-stage beast. Just standing there made my legs go weak."
Thud.
Two pieces of chalk landed precisely on Zou Minghan and Wang Qiming's heads.
"No talking without raising your hands!" The Crested Macaw flew overhead, issuing a warning.
Being called out in front of the whole class, Wang Qiming's face turned red, and Zou Minghan quickly turned back, not daring to speak.
After class, once Mr. Zhang left, the classroom buzzed with activity again.
Wang Qiming took out his beast from his desk. His Saltwater Crocodile was noticeably larger than many of the others in the class, with a robust build and a bigger head. It had already started to shed its baby crocodile appearance.
"Wow, your beast is huge! At this rate, you could make the top ten in the monthly exam," Gao Jianqiang said, carrying his crocodile over. Though his words sounded like praise, he subtly showed off his own sizable beast.
Since the beasts were distributed, those without the means could only rely on the school's food, while those with resources could provide extra care at home.
"Your crocodile isn't small either!" Zou Minghan said enviously. His family was of modest means, so he had to rely on himself to raise his beast.
Hearing this, Gao Jianqiang couldn't help but smile, though he tried to remain humble. "It's not that impressive. I just gave it a few bottles of generic nutrient solutions, so it grew a bit. Wang's beast is still bigger. I'll probably rank below him."
"If he can make the top ten, you should at least make the top fifty."
"Getting into the top ten isn't that easy. Last year, during the first monthly exam for freshmen, the top ten all had beasts with energy levels above 5 and at least one skill mastered. To break into the top ten, you not only need to get your beast's energy level past 5 but also teach it a skill. That's no small feat," Li Zhixuan, sitting in front of Chen Xing, said without turning around.
Hearing this, the group fell silent for a moment.
Especially Wang Qiming. He had just tested his beast's energy level the night before—it was only at 3.
With only fourteen days left until the monthly exam, reaching energy level 5 and mastering a skill in that time would be a significant challenge.