The competition process was truly agonizing.
It wasn't just the two contestants; even the commentators and audience were tormented.
However, despite the torment, the match was, overall, very exciting and of extremely high quality.
It was hard to believe that this was a match played by two novice Beast Masters.
Lin Chuan's performance, naturally, goes without saying.
Based on the paper stats, it was almost impossible for him to win, and he might even have been swiftly rushed and eliminated at the very beginning.
However, Lin Chuan managed to enter the arena area faster than Li Zeyu, then used a small item like a camouflage cloth to buy time to shield himself at the start, followed by a step-by-step playstyle, an endless wall of shields, terrifying recovery ability, soloing the Nether Lightning Bat, and a laughable yet very effective mind-game tactic that almost won him the match.
Li Zeyu's performance was also commendable.
From beginning to end, he never panicked or lost his composure, even when Lin Chuan played mind games, he could immediately calm down.
At the same time, he constantly remembered and firmly grasped his greatest advantage: air superiority!
Once the battle turned unfavorable, he would not cling to the fight, decisively disengage and retreat, waiting until he had adjusted his state before returning to battle.
Finally, and most crucially, Li Zeyu's willpower was recognized by both the audience and Professional Beast Masters.
Facing Lin Chuan's step-by-step Milk Shield Poison System, and such a nauseating and torturous battle, he could still contend with Lin Chuan in attrition, persist until the very end, until sunset, and ultimately win the match.
This level of willpower is not something an ordinary person can achieve.
…
The match had ended, but the related buzz did not immediately die down.
The Qinghe City Beastmaster Association forum was bustling, with discussion posts continuously sprouting like mushrooms after rain.
On the forum's video section, a post-match review live stream was currently underway.
It featured a professional data analyst and two Professional Beast Masters conducting a frame-by-frame analysis and review.
The professional analyst, Weng Xiang, was a middle-aged man in a suit and glasses.
The two Professional Beast Masters, a man and a woman, were Jin Siyuan and Lu Xiaoyan, respectively.
They were both Hall coaches and Professional Beast Masters belonging to Qinghe City's First Hall, Tianshui Flow.
From various minute details of the match, these three analyzed the spirit beast levels, skill proficiency, and even the Beast Master talents of both sides.
"There's no need to discuss contestant Li Zeyu's situation; everyone is familiar with his information."
"So, let's analyze contestant Lin Chuan in detail."
Weng Xiang spoke, opening a video analysis software and displaying images of Guoguo Sakura on screen.
"According to various data analyses, contestant Lin Chuan's two Flower Leaf Leaves are level 18 and level 17, respectively."
Through frame-by-frame analysis, Weng Xiang opened various detailed screenshots from the match and performed data analysis on a separate professional machine.
He analyzed the color of the Wood Attribute energy released by Guoguo Sakura, the flicker frequency of the energy light waves, the subtle influence on the surrounding environment, and various detailed characteristics of Guoguo Sakura's height and body surface, ultimately determining the specific levels of Guoguo Sakura.
It was well-reasoned and convincing.
Level 17, Level 18!
They were primarily there to play the role of amazed observers, but at this moment, the two Professional Beast Masters, Jin Siyuan and Lu Xiaoyan, were genuinely surprised.
It had only been a month and a half, yet Lin Chuan had cultivated two Flower Leaf Leaves to level 17 and 18. Even Li Zeyu, who had countless resources, only had a level 16 Mutated Blue Feather Eagle.
"Young people nowadays are truly amazing. Back when I was a novice, at this point in time, I had just cultivated my contracted spirit beast to Tier 1."
Jin Siyuan sighed, and Lu Xiaoyan also nodded. Her situation was slightly better than Jin Siyuan's, but still not as abnormal as Lin Chuan's.
With the amazed reactions in place, Weng Xiang continued his analysis, tapping on a small blackboard.
"But this level is not the key!"
"The key is contestant Lin Chuan's cultivation of his two Flower Leaf Leaves' various skills!"
"Commentator Teacher Lu mentioned that contestant Lin Chuan's two Flower Leaf Leaves' three basic skills—Rooting, Photosynthesis, and Growth—are at least Expert Grade."
"I think Teacher Lu's statement was conservative. According to my analysis,"
"All three of contestant Lin Chuan's two Flower Leaf Leaves' basic skills are Expert Grade! Yes, they have reached the highest limit for the Flower Leaf Leaf species' middle-tier combat bloodline."
"Furthermore, Vine Armor Shield, Wood Spirit Shield, Poison Powder, and Healing Aroma."
"None of these skills have a proficiency lower than proficient grade!"
"I ask, isn't that terrifying?! Other novice Beast Masters at this point in time would be considered excellent if they could cultivate one skill to proficient grade, but contestant Lin Chuan's two Flower Leaf Leaves' skills... I can only say that today's novices are truly monsters!"
"Therefore, we can boldly deduce that Lin Chuan's Beast Master talent is 'Skill Master'!"
"But that's not all! Please look at these scenes."
Weng Xiang then opened a video of Lin Chuan imbuing Guoguo and Sakura with the Spiritual Wood Heart.
The focus of the video was on the green misty light points emanating from Lin Chuan's hand, which then merged into the two Flower Leaf Leaves. Weng Xiang repeatedly dragged the progress bar, playing this segment three times.
"If I'm not mistaken, if my analysis is correct, the Beast Master talent Lin Chuan exhibited here is Spiritual Wood Heart!"
"So, Lin Chuan... he is a dual Beast Master talent holder! Natural awakening, plus ritual awakening!"
"Spiritual Wood Heart and Skill Master!"
After Weng Xiang finished speaking, Jin Siyuan and Lu Xiaoyan fell completely silent. Dual talents, and Skill Master combined with Spiritual Wood Heart...
With such talents, even if he couldn't get into one of the Eight Great Academies, countless Halls would be scrambling to recruit him.
Just as everyone was still in shock, Weng Xiang added:
"Do you think that's all?"
"Contestant Lin Chuan possesses terrifying talent, and his two Flower Leaf Leaves are also not simple!"
"Contestant Lin Chuan's Flower Leaf Leaf named Guoguo, its speed in casting various skills is noticeably faster than the other one! The effect is stronger! This proves that this Flower Leaf Leaf named Guoguo possesses a talent in Wood Attribute energy that ordinary Flower Leaf Leaves do not have; in other words, it's a genius!"
"And contestant Lin Chuan's other Flower Leaf Leaf named Sakura."
"Do you know why contestant Lin Chuan was able to solo the Nether Lightning Bat?"
"Why did the Nether Lightning Bat stagger around after entering the shield formation for a period, as if it had drunk fake alcohol?!"
Weng Xiang then clicked on another image, a full-body close-up.
It was precisely the Flower Leaf Leaf with pink flowers on its head, Sakura!
"This Flower Leaf Leaf named Sakura possesses a rare Illusion Attribute talent! Its Healing Aroma has a hallucinogenic effect!"
"This is all of contestant Lin Chuan's secrets. This Flower Leaf Leaf with Illusion Attribute abilities is Lin Chuan's trump card!"
Weng Xiang grew more and more excited as he spoke, feeling that he was witnessing the rise of a Heavenly King!
Jin Siyuan and Lu Xiaoyan, the two Professional Beast Masters, were also incredibly shocked at this moment.
Dual Beast Master talents, Spiritual Wood Heart plus Skill Master, plus two initial spirit beasts who are geniuses—what kind of protagonist script is this?!
At the end of the review and analysis, Weng Xiang said:
"Next, I have some advice for all novice Beast Masters."
"In the college entrance examination's secret realm trial, if you encounter contestant Lin Chuan, just turn around and leave. It's not shameful."
"He is not someone a Beast Master at the novice stage can resist, unless dozens of people team up to specifically target and besiege him. Otherwise, he can wear down almost all Beast Masters at the current stage."
"Li Zeyu?"
"If it weren't for the 2+1 arena size limit,"
"If there were terrain that could restrict air superiority and prevent him from easily disengaging, such as dense jungles or narrow alleys, then Li Zeyu would not be able to last even half an hour against Lin Chuan."
"And narrow terrain is almost 100% present in the secret realm trial!"
"Of course, Lin Chuan is not without weaknesses. His weakness lies in his lack of stronger burst damage skills and effective counter-attack or pursuit methods."
"So, as long as you avoid him, he can't do anything to you."
"Unlike Li Zeyu, his flying horsemanship allows him to easily hunt others."
…
Lin Chuan was also watching this post-match review and analysis live stream.
He had to admit, this analyst named Weng Xiang really had some skills; he had practically stripped him bare.
However, Lin Chuan wasn't flustered, or rather, all of this was within his expectations.
After this battle, coupled with this post-match analysis and review,
He believed that all the novice Beast Masters of this generation had been imprinted with a 'mental steel seal,' believing that he, Lin Chuan, specialized in the Milk Shield Poison System, that his trump card was illusion, and that he had no other means.
Thus, in the secret realm trial, he would not be easily targeted and besieged in the early stages, as targeting him would require at least a dozen people to team up, which would not be cost-effective, even very low, and moreover, they could easily be poached by others while besieging him.
What's more, the analysis video said it.
He, Lin Chuan, had no burst damage methods and no pursuit ability, which meant he posed little threat to others.
Unlike Li Zeyu, who was good at attacking and had flying horsemanship, once he targeted someone, they basically couldn't escape.
So, instead of targeting him, Lin Chuan, it would be better to target Li Zeyu.
As long as Li Zeyu's flying ability was restricted, he would be very easy to defeat.
Beep!
Just then.
Lin Chuan's watch Pet Space Device emitted a soft sound, and a virtual pop-up appeared, displaying a text message.
————
Congratulations, Beast Master Lin Chuan
You have won the runner-up prize in the 89th Xiao Qingkong Cup.
The reward of 7 million star rock coins and 700 Beast Master points has been deposited into your Beast Master account.
Please check immediately.
If there are any errors, please contact the relevant event staff of the Beastmaster Association immediately.
————
After reading the message, Lin Chuan smiled.
It finally arrived. He had been waiting for this money for two hours. Did they know how difficult those two hours were for him? Comparable to the match just now!
Closing the message, Lin Chuan immediately opened his Beast Master account.
Inside, quietly lay 10.05 million star rock coins and 1013 Beast Master points.
The 50,000 star rock coins and 13 points were what he had left over; the 10 million and 1000 points had just arrived.
Of these, 7 million and 700 points were the Xiao Qingkong Cup runner-up reward.
The remaining 3 million and 300 points were Liang Lu's private compensation.
Sufficient cultivation funds!
For the remaining one month and one week, he could spend lavishly and cultivate in seclusion to his heart's content.
Hmm, he could start formulating his subsequent cultivation plan.
Also, regarding the college entrance examination's secret realm trial, after almost a full day of battle today, he had accumulated a lot of wild combat experience, at least no longer stumbling blindly as before. So, it was time to conceive tactics and prepare various items in advance.
Furthermore, his trump cards had almost been completely exposed by Weng Xiang's analysis video.
Now, only Guoguo's Fruit Bomb, Sakura's Assistance, and the Sleeping skill mastered by both little ones remained. Logically speaking, these trump cards should be enough.
However, it's better to be safe than sorry, especially since there's still a month left.
Li Zeyu would also improve; at least his Mutated Blue Feather Eagle would very likely reach Tier 2 in a month, and that Nether Lightning Bat would at least reach the current level and strength of the Mutated Blue Feather Eagle.
Moreover, besides Li Zeyu, there were many other hidden 'old silver coins' (hidden powerful individuals). Every year in the college entrance examination's secret realm trial, there would always be a few terrifyingly strong 'old silver coins' who had never been known to exist, suddenly emerging and making a name for themselves in the secret realm trial.
Since funds were now plentiful, it was time to prepare new trump cards!
His eyes flickered. In fact, Lin Chuan already had ideas for his subsequent arrangements and new trump cards.
Lin Chuan clicked on the official website of the Beastmaster Association's confidential knowledge.
Soon, Lin Chuan found the knowledge file regarding Flower Leaf Leaf's premature evolution into Flower Spirit before reaching Tier 2.
"Spring Flower Ritual - Flower Leaf Leaf Chapter"
Price: 1 million star rock coins, 300 points