Zhou Lu was in no hurry to have Huohuo practice Headbutt. Whether it could successfully learn that skill was entirely unknown, while the exam was already right around the corner.
He planned to have Huohuo train Entangling Vines to a proficient level. At the very least, it would ensure that it could perform well during the exam and help him earn more Academic Credits.
After reading Wu Xiaoqing's reply, Zhou Lu picked up Huohuo, who was by the window "sticking its head out" in search of bees, and headed out.
As he left, he deliberately glanced next door. The music had stopped, and he had no idea whether Teacher Xiao Xi had gone to work at the research building.
Even academy students had to go through the Explorer Association if they wanted to enter a secret realm.
It was an official organization established to manage secret realm exploration, primarily responsible for issuing Exploration Permits of the corresponding ranks.
After the Pioneer Army had roughly explored a secret realm, aside from a small portion of its territory, most areas would be designated public exploration zones for Beast Tamers to explore freely in search of desired resources or Spirit Beasts.
During this process, the Pioneer Army would assess the danger level of the open areas, using the danger rating of the most dangerous region within the secret realm to determine what rank of Exploration Permit was required to enter it.
Although the authorities had established safe zones in every secret realm for student exploration and scientific research, entering them still required an Exploration Permit of the appropriate rank.
When it came to entering secret realms, everyone was treated equally. The only advantage students had was that, after paying Academic Credits, a teacher responsible for their safety would accompany them throughout the trip.
The place Zhou Lu was heading to was a D-rank secret realm. Secret realms of this level basically posed no threat. The few Spirit Beasts inside were mostly mild-tempered first-rank creatures that would not attack humans on their own initiative.
After the authorities abolished D-rank Exploration Permits a few years ago, D-rank secret realms had gradually begun developing into tourist secret realms. However, the program was still in its testing phase, and only Beast Tamers could enjoy such travel benefits.
Since D-rank Exploration Permits had already been abolished, Zhou Lu only needed his student ID to enter the secret realm.
At Wu Xiaoqing's suggestion, he chose secret realm D0153, commonly known as the Grassland Secret Realm.
Secret realm codes consisted of a letter and a string of numbers. The numbers indicated which discovered secret realm it was, while the letter represented its danger level. As for secret realms that had yet to be fully explored and could not be rated, their codes generally began with S.
The C0032 secret realm Zhou Lu intended to visit in search of Jade Snails was the thirty-second secret realm discovered by humanity. Its danger level was C-rank, and entry required a C-Class Exploration Permit.
The Explorer Association within the academy was not far from the dormitories, but Huohuo wanted to get down and walk by itself several times along the way, forcing him to stop.
Watching Huohuo crawl along happily, Zhou Lu felt rather gratified. Compared to yesterday, when it had only just learned to walk, it was now walking with some semblance of skill. Its speed, however, could still only barely keep up with his pace.
If he watered Huohuo with another Low-level Growth Potion tonight, its branches and leaves should grow sturdier and be able to withstand a more intense Vine Step.
In truth, Zhou Lu could have put Huohuo away in its Beast Taming Card. But Beast Tamers who had only just begun raising Spirit Pets generally would not do that. They needed to spend long periods with their Spirit Pets to cultivate their bond.
Feelings were something mysterious and profound, yet sometimes they truly could affect a Spirit Pet's evolution.
"Eh? Zhou Lu!"
When Zhou Lu arrived at the entrance to the Explorer Association, he unexpectedly heard a familiar voice.
Mm, the voice of a fine.
Following the sound, Zhou Lu spotted Xu Wuhu in the crowd at a glance. The burly Class Monitor stood out especially clearly amid the sea of people.
With the first combat exam of their sophomore year only a month away, the Explorer Association was packed with students preparing to head into secret realms. He had heard that the queues at the training hall were even more outrageous, with some people simply living in the facility and refusing to leave.
With so many people around, Xu Wuhu had still spotted him at a glance. Zhou Lu could not help but admire that.
Since they were teammates, there was naturally no reason to avoid him. Zhou Lu took a queue number, squeezed through the crowd, and made his way to Xu Wuhu's side.
Only then did Zhou Lu notice another male student standing beside Xu Wuhu. He looked refined and quiet, wore half-rim glasses, and had an ordinary appearance. In fact, he was not even as eye-catching as the Spirit Pet perched on his shoulder.
Zhou Lu's gaze briefly settled on the man's Spirit Pet.
It looked like a blob of pink jelly, surrounded by a layer of transparent fluid.
Sticky Baby.
The name of the Spirit Pet immediately flashed through Zhou Lu's mind.
As one of the greatest successes of Spirit Beast industrialization, the Sticky Slime produced by Sticky Babies was already one of the most important products in this world. Its presence could be found in nearly every industry.
By adjusting its water content, Sticky Baby slime could serve different purposes, ranging from the strongest adhesives to fluids used to assist with caulking.
As for why Zhou Lu knew that, the story had to begin with the news about some guy who bought the wrong product for entertainment, then ended up in the hospital in a highly indecent posture.
Zhou Lu's thoughts swiftly returned to reality, because the System's notification sounded at that moment.
Optional Task Five: Kill Li Yi Task Description: Li Yi, the future president of Xin'an Biotechnology, would provide Zhou Lu with a great deal of Spirit Beast technology after becoming acquainted with him, becoming one of the people who assisted him on his path to growth. Kill him, and perhaps Zhou Lu's rapid rise could be hindered. Task Reward: Random Permanent Beast Taming Skill Card (B-rank) *2, Random Single-use Beast Tamer Skill Card *1
Another person who would help him.
No, where was he supposed to find so many benefactors?
Seeing the System Task, Zhou Lu silently complained to himself.
"We're all classmates, so I probably don't need to introduce you, right?" Seeing the two sizing each other up, Xu Wuhu laughed loudly. "Didn't expect you to come over at just the right time. I was about to contact you."
"Contact me?" Zhou Lu asked in confusion.
"Training." Xu Wuhu said, "The exam is team combat. Though I can get all of you through the exam by myself, you would only receive passing Academic Credits that way. You only get two chances a year to farm credits through exams, so it would be too much of a pity to waste one. We should strive for more."
Probably only Xu Wuhu in the entire Class Three combat class dared to say he could carry them through the exam alone.
But taking a closer look at himself and Li Yi, barring the unexpected, it seemed they really would need Xu Wuhu's help to have any chance of passing this exam.
His Huohuo was a Plant-type Spirit Beast that could not leave the soil before reaching the second rank, while Li Yi's Sticky Baby was not much better.
Sticky Babies were also famously slow-moving among Spirit Beasts.
Wild Sticky Babies were standard ambush hunters. They often stuck fallen leaves and dirt from their surroundings onto themselves as camouflage, then caught passing insects by spitting slime. Thus, they had no need for rapid movement at all.
Both teammates had Spirit Pets that needed to be carried by their owners to move quickly. Putting himself in Xu Wuhu's shoes, even Zhou Lu felt the pressure of clearing the exam surge sharply.
Smack!
Just as Zhou Lu was analyzing the team's situation, the sound of Huohuo slapping its leaves interrupted his thoughts.
Huohuo raised its head and earnestly spread its leaves, declaring its presence to Zhou Lu.
Master had been staring at that pink blob since earlier. This absolutely would not do!
I'm obviously very cute too!
Before you continue