Liu Yi smiled and politely extended her right hand, lightly shaking Baili Jinxuan’s hand.
“Liu Yi, fifteen years old, Trainee Beast Tamer,” she introduced herself briefly.
A flash of mischief flickered in Baili Jinxuan’s eyes, and the corners of her mouth curled upward. “I heard you actually defeated Wang Yan in your very first real battle. That’s amazing~” She intentionally elongated the last syllable. “How about a friendly match between us fellow Trainee Beast Tamers?”
Her tone was casual, but her eyes were filled with anticipation.
Liu Yi paused for a moment, seemingly considering the proposal.
Seeing that Liu Yi didn’t agree immediately, Baili Jinxuan grew a bit anxious and quickly added, “If you agree to battle me, regardless of the outcome, I’ll cover all your combat fees at this training hall from now on!”
“What do you think? It’s a great deal, right!” Baili Jinxuan looked at Liu Yi expectantly, her large eyes filled with hope as if saying, “Please say yes!”
Liu Yi couldn’t help but laugh at the sight.
She shook her head helplessly and said, “A battle is fine, but there’s no need for you to cover all the fees.”
In truth, Liu Yi hadn’t agreed immediately only because she was taking a moment to think. She hadn't expected Baili Jinxuan to be so impatient as to offer such conditions right away.
In reality, there was no harm for Liu Yi in having a match with Baili Jinxuan, who was also a Trainee Beast Tamer.
“Yay!” Seeing Liu Yi agree, Baili Jinxuan was delighted.
Baili Jinxuan turned to Wang Yan and said, “Then we’ll use the arena in Combat Zone 7. Wang Yan, you’ll be the referee.”
“Shadow, let’s get ready for battle!” Baili Jinxuan walked toward one side of the battlefield.
Meanwhile, while their masters had been talking, Ziyue and the Phantom Cat had already approached each other to exchange words.
“Phantom.”
My master gives me delicious food every day.
“Bing bing, bing bing.”
My master does too, and she takes me to train every day.
“Phantom?!”
Training every day?!
The Phantom Cat shook its head in disbelief, then looked at Ziyue with an expression that seemed to say, “You poor thing.”
“Bing bing?”
What’s wrong? Ziyue didn’t understand why the Phantom Cat was looking at her like that.
“Phantom, phantom.”
Hearing Baili Jinxuan calling, the Phantom Cat shook its head and stopped talking to Ziyue, only telling her to go easy during the battle before walking over to Baili Jinxuan.
“Bing bing?”
Shouldn’t we give it our all in a battle?
Ziyue tilted her head in confusion as she watched the Phantom Cat’s retreating back.
Unfortunately, the Phantom Cat didn't hear Ziyue's words.
...
Both sides were ready.
Wang Yan temporarily took the place of the mechanical referee. “The rules for this match: the battle will end when one side’s pet is knocked down and doesn't get up for ten seconds, or when a Beast Tamer surrenders.”
“Battle begin!”
“Illusion Claw!” Baili Jinxuan urgently gave the first command.
The Phantom Cat dashed out like lightning, instantly splitting into three afterimages. Along with the original body, it pounced toward Ziyue like a ghost.
Watching the situation on the field, Liu Yi remained exceptionally calm.
It was obvious that Baili Jinxuan and the Phantom Cat were not yet proficient with this skill; the four figures were actually attacking Ziyue from the same angle and direction.
In this situation, there wasn't even a need to specifically find the real body at the start.
As the four purple figures drew closer and closer to Ziyue, Liu Yi finally spoke: “Frost Breath.”
Ziyue suddenly exhaled a cloud of ice-blue mist from her mouth. Like a cold whirlwind, it swept toward the four Phantom Cat figures at an astonishing speed.
In the blink of an eye, the mist tightly enveloped them like a layer of cold gauze, and their movements seemed to freeze for an instant.
The four figures trembled slightly within the ice mist, their speed dropping abruptly as if a binding spell had been cast on them, completely losing their previous fluidity and agility.
Liu Yi immediately followed up: “Ice Blade, the second real body from the left.”
Ziyue quickly summoned her Ice Blades, and five shimmering blades of ice instantly shot out from behind her.
Carrying a bone-chilling cold and a sharp aura, the Ice Blades flew straight toward the targets.
Three of the Ice Blades accurately struck the three afterimages.
In an instant, three crisp popping sounds rang out as the clones burst like punctured balloons, vanishing into nothingness.
The remaining two Ice Blades, like two fierce sharks, charged straight at the Phantom Cat’s true body.
The Phantom Cat had just been slowed by the Frost Breath and hadn't had time to react.
Baili Jinxuan had also clearly not expected Liu Yi and Ziyue’s attack to be so swift and precise. Before she could even issue a command, the Phantom Cat was struck hard by the two Ice Blades.
Seeing that the Phantom Cat had fallen, Wang Yan began the countdown: “10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5...”
Baili Jinxuan stared at the field in a daze, not yet processing what had happened.
It wasn't until Wang Yan was halfway through the countdown that she snapped out of it. “Shadow! Can you still stand up?”
The Phantom Cat struggled to prop up half its body, wobbling painfully for a moment before falling back down.
When Wang Yan’s countdown ended, the Phantom Cat ultimately failed to stand up again.
Baili Jinxuan ran into the arena and knelt beside the Phantom Cat, only to find that small ice crystals had already condensed on its purple fur.
“Shadow!”
Baili Jinxuan frantically turned to the bodyguard who had been following her. “Sister Qianfan, come quickly!”
Yu Qianfan walked over and skillfully summoned a translucent jellyfish. “Healing Bubble.”
The Crystal Jellyfish expertly placed a Healing Bubble over the Phantom Cat.
Seeing this, Liu Yi also walked over quickly, with Ziyue following behind her, looking at the Phantom Cat with a hint of pity in her eyes.
“I’m sorry, I didn't expect...” Liu Yi knelt down, but her words were interrupted by Baili Jinxuan before she could finish.
“That was so cool!” The young girl suddenly looked up, her eyes shining brightly. “How did you see through to the real body at a glance? And the timing of that ice mist slow was perfect!”
She was so excited that her cheeks were flushed, showing no sign that she had just lost a battle.
Liu Yi was somewhat stunned by this sudden enthusiasm. “It’s because when the Phantom Cat was hit by the Frost Breath, the reaction of the real body was much more obvious than the other three clones.”
“Actually... if you practice this move until you’re more proficient, having the Phantom Cat and its clones attack from different angles and directions simultaneously would be much more effective.”
“So that’s how it is!” Baili Jinxuan stood up abruptly, nearly bumping into Liu Yi’s chin.
The Phantom Cat, having been treated by the Healing Bubble, let out a weak cry and covered its eyes with its paws, seemingly ashamed of its master’s impulsiveness.
Rate on N.U.
