Baili Jinxuan looked at her skyrocketing points and then at the Rock-plated Lizard retreating to the side, saying excitedly, “We did it! We challenged a higher level and won!”
The four of us are really strong!
Liu Yi smiled and rubbed Ziyue’s head. “Good job.”
But her smile soon froze as Ziyue’s body suddenly went limp, and she collapsed into her arms.
Facing an Intermediate stage Rock-plated Lizard, the frequent use of skills—especially the B-rank skill Ice Spike—had taken a massive toll on Ziyue. She needed immediate treatment.
The two of them rushed back to the supply station.
...
Deep in the dense forest, Ji Xiaoyao stood with her back against an ancient tree, her Juvenile Rock Dragon standing guard in front of her.
Three participants surrounded her in a triangular formation, their pets watching her with hostile glares.
“Give up,” the leading boy said, wiping sweat from his forehead. “You’ve fought five battles in a row already.”
It was now the sixth day of the Secret Realm. In truth, most people had been avoiding Ji Xiaoyao.
However, there were some participants who were unwilling to accept their standing. They wanted to use teamwork and a battle of attrition to wear Ji Xiaoyao down and take her points.
Ji Xiaoyao glanced at the Points Leaderboard.
1st Place: 【Liu Yi】— Points: 4555
2nd Place: 【Ji Xiaoyao】— Points: 4266
3rd Place: 【Baili Jinxuan】— Points: 2089
Ji Xiaoyao’s lips curled; her old classmate really trusted her.
“Youyou,” she called out softly.
The Juvenile Rock Dragon suddenly lunged forward, its tail sweeping across to send the nearest Vine Monkey flying. At the same time, it opened its mouth and unleashed a Dragon Breath to force back the enemies on both sides.
“How is that possible?!” the three exclaimed. “It should be out of stamina!”
Ji Xiaoyao took the opportunity to break through the encirclement, and the Juvenile Rock Dragon caught her with perfect coordination before flying away from the area.
...
Inside the supply station’s medical room, Ziyue was gently placed into a treatment chamber.
A pale blue treatment liquid was slowly injected, completely enveloping her small body.
“For a Junior pet to fight an Intermediate stage Rock-plated Lizard to that extent is truly remarkable,” a volunteer praised. She had been following this participant, who had an undefeated record. “You’ve worked hard these past few days. Let her rest for a while after the treatment is finished.”
Liu Yi nodded, her gaze never leaving the treatment chamber.
It was only then that she felt a sharp, stinging pain coming from the wound on her left arm.
“You should have your wound treated too.” Baili Jinxuan pulled her over to the nearby treatment table. “What if it gets infected?”
The volunteer skillfully disinfected and bandaged Liu Yi’s arm.
The wound wasn't deep, but the scratch from the stone shard was quite long.
“By the way,” Baili Jinxuan suddenly lowered her voice. “Did you notice that Wind Eagle? It’s been following us ever since we got back to the supply station.”
Liu Yi looked through the window and indeed saw the Wind Eagle with the blue band perched on a treetop outside the station.
“It should be the academy’s monitoring method,” Liu Yi said, withdrawing her gaze. “Our performance is all being recorded.”
Baili Jinxuan nodded as if she understood. “Oh, I see.”
As night fell, the supply station gradually grew quiet.
Most participants had already gone to rest, preparing for tomorrow’s final push.
Liu Yi leaned against a bench outside the medical room, watching the numbers on the leaderboard constantly flickering.
Ji Xiaoyao’s points were still steadily rising; she had already reached over 4,400 points.
At this rate, it wouldn't be a problem for her to overtake Liu Yi before the Secret Realm closed tomorrow at noon.
...
On the seventh day of the Secret Realm, at 11:50 AM.
The Points Detectors of all participants chimed simultaneously:
【The Secret Realm is about to close. Final ranking confirmation in progress...】
In the supply station lobby, everyone held their breath as they stared at the leaderboard.
1st Place: 【Ji Xiaoyao】— Points: 4567
2nd Place: 【Liu Yi】— Points: 4545
3rd Place: 【Baili Jinxuan】— Points: 2089
“She really caught up,” Liu Yi said softly.
Ziyue had already recovered her vitality and was now crouching on Liu Yi’s shoulder, looking around curiously.
“I heard Ji Xiaoyao encountered three waves of gauntlet battles yesterday,” someone nearby whispered. “She managed to pull through entirely because of her Juvenile Rock Dragon.”
“Too strong. As expected of a Dragon-type.”
At 11:55 AM, the door to the supply station was pushed open.
Ji Xiaoyao walked in with her Juvenile Rock Dragon. Her clothes were somewhat torn, and there were scratches on her face, but her eyes remained as sharp as ever.
The gazes of the two girls met in the air.
Ji Xiaoyao nodded slightly, and Liu Yi returned the gesture with a smile.
【Secret Realm closing countdown: 10, 9, 8, 7...】
As the final prompt sounded, the light of teleportation glowed on all the participants.
Liu Yi felt her vision blur, and when she opened her eyes again, she was back on the plaza where they had started.
The summer sunlight poured down, shining on the young students.
“We’re out!”
“Oh my god, finally.”
“Woohoo! I can go home!”
Cheers erupted all around.
Ziyue squinted at the sunlight and nuzzled against Liu Yi’s neck.
The school staff began to organize the assembly.
Luo Xia walked over with a list, her gaze lingering on Liu Yi and Ji Xiaoyao for a moment. She smiled, then led Ji Xiaoyao and the Juvenile Rock Dragon away.
The award ceremony was brief and efficient.
As the first-place winner, Ji Xiaoyao received a special admission offer from Qinglan Academy and three years’ worth of training rewards.
When asked for her thoughts, Ji Xiaoyao said only one thing:
“See you at the National High School League.”
These words were clearly directed at Liu Yi, who was standing below the stage.
Many people showed expressions of sudden realization and began to whisper among themselves.
Liu Yi smiled. The National High School League was still a long way off; what she needed to prepare for first was signing up for the Longwu High School Entrance Tournament.
After the award ceremony ended, everyone basically headed home to their families.
Those in the top 100 of the Points Leaderboard who intended to apply to Qinglan Advanced Beast Taming Academy could proceed directly with early registration.
Those who didn't make the top 100 but still wanted to apply would have to prepare for the upcoming Longwu High School Entrance Tournament to see if they could earn a spot.
After saying goodbye to Baili Jinxuan, Liu Yi walked out of the plaza holding Ziyue, met by the oncoming summer heatwave.
However, because she was holding Ziyue, Liu Yi didn't feel particularly hot.
She buried her face in the fur on Ziyue’s neck and said in a muffled voice, “Let’s rest well for two days, then we’ll prepare for the Longwu High School Entrance Tournament.”
“Bing bing.”
Ziyue silently made the cold air radiating from her body a bit stronger.
When they returned home, the aroma of food drifted from the living room.
Auntie Chen had already prepared their food in advance.
Liu Yi set down her backpack and sat at the dining table.
The Secret Realm had only provided energy meals, so now that there was fresh food, Liu Yi had quite an appetite.
While eating the meal Auntie Chen had made, she sent messages to her sister.
She told her sister everything that had happened during the Secret Realm over the past few days, including meeting her old classmate and the final rankings...
And the fact that her Beast Taming Space development progress had reached 17%.
Yes, in just these few days in the Secret Realm, her development progress had increased by another 1%.
Rate on N.U.
