Chapter Summaries

Xu Ran's training with Purple Cloud improved its skills and physique, and Purple Cloud fell asleep from mental exhaustion on the way back. Su Xiaoxiao and Lin Yue asked whether Xu Ran's grooming had helped their pet beasts perform better, and he concluded that grooming improved their condition rather than their skills directly.

• Purple Cloud increased its Electric Arc and Electric Spark proficiency, improved its Self-Healing skill, and gained Growth Rank progress during training.
• Xu Ran carried the exhausted Purple Cloud back to the Starfire Foster Shop and found Su Xiaoxiao and Lin Yue waiting outside.
• Xu Ran quietly brought the sleeping Purple Cloud upstairs before asking the girls why they had come.
• Su Xiaoxiao told Xu Ran that her and Lin Yue's pet beasts had performed better in Skill Training Class after being groomed.
• Xu Ran explained that grooming could help pet beasts feel better and perform beyond their usual level without directly improving their skills.

Su Xiaoxiao and Lin Yue thanked Xu Ran for grooming their beasts and left him a cake, then Duan Anxun arrived hoping to have her Rainbow Cloud Parrot groomed. Xu Ran refused because the parrot had recently been groomed, leaving him suspicious of Duan Anxun’s motives as he shared the cake with Purple Cloud.

• Su Xiaoxiao gave Xu Ran a cake and asked about future services, while he refused to groom the Blazing Fox again so soon.
• After Su Xiaoxiao and Lin Yue left, Duan Anxun emerged from hiding and entered the Starfire Foster Shop.
• Purple Cloud woke from its rest, joined Xu Ran, and happily ate some of the cake.
• Duan Anxun asked Xu Ran to groom her recently groomed Rainbow Cloud Parrot, but he refused despite her offer to pay extra.
• Duan Anxun agreed to return another time and left, while Xu Ran wondered why she had wanted grooming so urgently.

After a quiet evening at the shop, Xu Ran’s grooming transformed Liu Gu’s Wind Lion Dog into a far stronger fighter during a hunting expedition outside Qingzhou City. The Fierce Tiger Squad credited Liu Gu’s healer pet for their successful haul, while Liu Gu realized the grooming had boosted his old companion too.

• Xu Ran studied pet-related knowledge before falling asleep beside Purple Cloud.
• At dawn, Liu Gu assured the Fierce Tiger Squad that his new Sea Wave Flower would support them, and his freshly groomed Wind Lion Dog impressed the team.
• Captain Zhang Yun led the squad out of Qingzhou City on Du Heng’s Steel-Armored Rhino.
• After hours of fighting, the squad cleared a gathering ground, and Zhang Yun awarded Liu Gu an extra share for the Sea Wave Flower’s healing support.
• Liu Gu noticed that the Wind Lion Dog had fought far beyond its usual level and concluded that its grooming had improved its condition.

Xu Ran groomed Duan Anxun’s deeply unhappy Rainbow Cloud Parrot, earning unusually few happiness points and no new Fur Plucking skill. After the satisfied pair left, Liu Gu arrived with friends and eight pet beasts, giving Xu Ran hope for a large job.

• The Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad discussed trying Xu Ran’s grooming services, though Du Heng worried about the cost for his Steel-Armored Rhino.
• Duan Anxun brought her filthy Rainbow Cloud Parrot to Xu Ran’s shop and chose to study in the lounge while he groomed it.
• Xu Ran noticed the parrot’s wounded heart and earned happiness points unusually slowly as he groomed it.
• Duan Anxun left with her clean, satisfied parrot, while Xu Ran realized he had earned only 96 points and no new Fur Plucking skill.
• Liu Gu arrived with two men, a woman, and eight pet beasts, and Xu Ran anticipated a big job.

Xu Ran began grooming Liu Xue’s Telepathic Mouse, using specialized Bathing Sand and Coat-Enhancing Cream to give it an intensely pleasurable experience. Its strange squeals startled Liu Xue, but Liu Gu reassured her that they were normal.

• Liu Xue asked Xu Ran to groom her Telepathic Mouse, while her teammates waited to see whether the shop’s service was worth its high price.
• Xu Ran received basic grooming knowledge for rodent and psychic beasts, then let the Telepathic Mouse roll in Bathing Sand.
• Xu Ran applied Coat-Enhancing Cream and massaged it into the Telepathic Mouse’s dense fur, earning happiness points as the mouse blissfully squealed.
• Liu Xue reacted to the noise from the Grooming Room, and Liu Gu told her it was normal and she would get used to it.

Xu Ran finished grooming the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad’s pet beasts and claimed the reward for completing Novice Mission 2, unlocking the Drugging skill. He discovered that fostering would let him build physique points for Purple Cloud, but the shop lacked a fostering service, so he asked the squad for help.

• Xu Ran returned Liu Xue’s freshly groomed Telepathic Mouse, and Yan Fan and Liu Xue arranged for their pet beasts to be groomed next.
• Xu Ran finished grooming Zhang Yun’s Coldscale Python and accepted payment after grooming seven pet beasts belonging to the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad.
• Xu Ran saw that Fur Plucking had yielded a two-star skill and claimed Novice Mission 2’s rewards, unlocking Drugging.
• Xu Ran learned that Drugging could earn physique points while feeding fostered pet beasts, but realized the shop did not offer fostering.
• Xu Ran received missions to gather Azure Jade Fruit and raise Drugging to C-rank, then called Zhang Yun back to ask the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad for help.

Xu Ran hired the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad to escort him outside Qingzhou City so he could complete his quest and gather resources. After they arranged to leave the next morning, he used a ten-pull draw, taught Purple Cloud Blood Rage, and discovered he had received a Lucky Charm, an Awakening Stone, and two Skill Fusion Stones.

• Xu Ran convinced Zhang Yun and the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad to escort him outside Qingzhou City for a hundred thousand, and they agreed to leave the next morning.
• Xu Ran used his happiness points for a ten-pull draw before Liu Gu left and was delighted to receive multiple blue items.
• Xu Ran taught Purple Cloud the Blood Rage skill and warned him about its serious side effects.
• Xu Ran examined his draw results, including a Lucky Charm, an Awakening Stone, and two Skill Fusion Stones.
• Xu Ran learned that the Skill Fusion Stone could combine skills into a stronger one, though the fusion might fail.

Xu Ran fused Purple Cloud’s Bite and Claw Edge into the stronger Combat Instinct skill and began preparing for their trip out of the city. Meanwhile, Duan Anxun’s mother told her she had arranged a place for her in the Pet Beauty Contest and ordered her to accompany her to a social engagement.

• Xu Ran discovered that a failed fusion attempt increased the success rate, then successfully fused Purple Cloud’s Bite and Claw Edge.
• Xu Ran saw that the new Combat Instinct skill improved Purple Cloud’s attacks and agility, and decided to take it training.
• Duan Anxun’s mother confronted her about losing the appearance assessment and failing to qualify for the Youth Beast Tamer Pet Beauty Contest.
• Duan Anxun’s mother said she had secured her a contest place and told her to get ready to attend a social engagement that night.

Xu Ran and Purple Cloud finished a three-hour training session, then prepared to leave the city with the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad. As the gates opened, Xu Ran saw the wilderness beyond the city for the first time.

• Xu Ran stopped Purple Cloud's training and reviewed its improved skill proficiency after the session.
• Xu Ran and Purple Cloud shared a packet of cat-head biscuits before returning to the Starfire Foster Shop for the night.
• Xu Ran packed for the trip, and Purple Cloud insisted on accompanying him outside the city.
• Xu Ran met Liu Gu, Zhang Yun, and deputy leader Du Heng at the city gates, where Liu Gu explained why hunters gathered early.
• The city gates opened, and Xu Ran followed the squad into the wilderness, seeing its purple soil, scattered bones, and distant forest.

Xu Ran traveled through the Sighing Wilderness with the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad and learned that Du Heng was considering boarding his Steel-Armored Rhino because his family needed room for a new baby. Xu Ran offered Du Heng a place at his shop once its boarding service opened, then arrived at the spot where he planned to gather resources.

• Du Heng summoned his Steel-Armored Rhino, and Xu Ran rode on its back with Purple Cloud.
• Xu Ran mentioned wanting another Contract Beast, but explained that he needed to raise his contract power before he could form a second contract.
• The squad discussed Du Heng’s wife, Pang Juan, being pregnant again and the family’s lack of room because the Steel-Armored Rhino occupied their living room.
• Du Heng said he was still deciding whether to board the rhino, and Xu Ran invited him to consider his shop’s upcoming boarding service.
• The Steel-Armored Rhino reached a shrub patch, and Xu Ran recognized it as the place where he wanted to gather resources.

Xu Ran and the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad gathered Azure Jade Fruits and began returning to Qingzhou City, but they discovered a beast tide charging toward the city. With the gates likely locked, the group realized they could not reach safety inside.

• Xu Ran and the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad gathered a sack of ripe Azure Jade Fruits, completing the resource requirement for his mission.
• Zhang Yun grew uneasy that they had traveled outside the city for nearly an hour without encountering any hostile Supernatural Creatures, so the squad hurried back.
• The Steel-Armored Rhino sensed unusual vibrations in the ground as the group neared Qingzhou City.
• Yan Fan spotted a vast beast tide surging across the wilderness toward Qingzhou City, and Zhang Yun ordered the group to turn away.
• Liu Gu warned Xu Ran that the city gates had likely been locked and the defenders would not open them at the cost of exposing the city to the beast tide.

Xu Ran and the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad tried to escape the beast tide, but a group of Elite Rank creatures surrounded them. Just as the Lucky Charm crumbled in Xu Ran’s hand, a Marshal-rank man arrived on a Red-Eyed Demon Dragon and halted the tide, leaving Xu Ran wondering if the charm had caused his rescue.

• Xu Ran clutched his Lucky Charm as Du Heng urged the Steel-Armored Rhino to flee the beast tide along Zhang Yun’s chosen route.
• A strange bird drew a group of Supernatural Creatures away from the tide to surround the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad, and Zhang Yun’s Coldscale Python drove back the diving birds with Ice Storm.
• The encirclement tightened as the squad fought off pursuing creatures, while an exhausted Purple Cloud helped Xu Ran and the Lucky Charm remained unresponsive.
• The Lucky Charm began to tremble and turned to ash as an angry voice approached and the surrounding creatures collapsed under a Marshal-rank presence.
• A man arrived atop the Red-Eyed Demon Dragon, whose attack stopped the beast tide, and Xu Ran wondered if the Lucky Charm had summoned him.

After a powerful Beast Tamer drove back the beast tide, Xu Ran and the Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad returned safely toward Qingzhou City. Zhang Yun explained how Contract Beasts evolved into monarch species and gained Monarch's Might, leaving Xu Ran wondering whether Purple Cloud could learn monarch-level skills before evolving.

• A man riding a Red-Eyed Demon Dragon saved Zhang Yun, Xu Ran, and the others, then flew toward Qingzhou City.
• Zhang Yun led the relieved Fierce Tiger Hunting Squad back toward the city as the beast tide began to retreat.
• Xu Ran asked Zhang Yun about the rarity of marshal-rank Contract Beasts, and Zhang Yun explained that reaching marshal rank required a dangerous evolution into a monarch species.
• Zhang Yun explained that monarch species could awaken the three-star skill Monarch's Might, which the Red-Eyed Demon Dragon had used to intimidate the beasts.
• Xu Ran considered whether Fur Plucking could let Purple Cloud learn Monarch's Might before evolving as the squad reached Qingzhou City's gates.

After completing the mission to gather Azure Jade Fruit, Xu Ran unlocked the Boarding Feature and discovered that the system had built a vast, adaptable boarding facility underground. He opened for business and showed Du Heng, a prospective customer, the space, leaving Du Heng amazed by its scale.

• Xu Ran claimed the reward for Beginner Mission 3, starting a three-hour shop renovation.
• Xu Ran found that the shop itself was unchanged except for boarding price signs, then discovered an enormous underground facility beneath the backyard.
• Xu Ran inspected the facility's spacious layout, ventilation, and environments that adapted to the boarded Contract Beasts.
• Xu Ran reopened the shop, and Du Heng arrived to assess whether it could board his Steel-Armored Rhino.
• Xu Ran led Du Heng underground, where Du Heng gasped at the facility's size.

Xu Ran showed Du Heng and the Steel-Armored Rhino the boarding facility’s customizable earth-type wilderness and prepared specialized food for the beast. The rhino eagerly devoured its first portion as Xu Ran’s Drugging skill took effect.

• Du Heng questioned whether Xu Ran’s enormous underground boarding facility was illegal, then inspected its unfinished-looking space with Xu Ran.
• Xu Ran used a Control Hub to transform the facility into a physical earth-type wilderness, delighting the Steel-Armored Rhino and convincing Du Heng to board it for ten days.
• Xu Ran prepared food tailored to the Elite Rank Steel-Armored Rhino using knowledge supplied by the system.
• Xu Ran activated Drugging as he served the food, and the Steel-Armored Rhino wolfed it down in bliss while earning Happiness Points.

Xu Ran cared for Du Heng’s Steel-Armored Rhino and gained physique points and Happiness Points from feeding it. He then cooked for Purple Cloud and spent the points to raise its growth progress, leaving it thrilled by its sudden gains.

• Xu Ran fed Du Heng’s Steel-Armored Rhino, which happily accepted staying at the shop, and Du Heng left it in Xu Ran’s care.
• Xu Ran earned seven physique points and Happiness Points from the Rhino’s meal, then prepared a new dish for Purple Cloud.
• Purple Cloud devoured the food and learned that Xu Ran had made it with Azure Jade Fruit, which it believed he had risked himself to gather for its sake.
• Xu Ran spent all seven physique points to raise Purple Cloud’s growth progress from 167/500 to 174/500, delighting the cat.

Xu Ran discovered that a comfortable fostering environment steadily earned happiness points and that Drugging experience was tallied daily, while Purple Cloud fled from the muddy Steel-Armored Rhino. On Monday, students at Qingzhou City's Second Beast-Taming High School noticed Duan Anxun's Rainbow Cloud Parrot had been groomed at Xu Ran's shop, as Su Xiaoxiao prepared for Tan Qingsheng's practical class.

• Xu Ran saw the Steel-Armored Rhino earn happiness points while playing in its mud pool and learned that a comfortable fostering environment provided a steady stream of points.
• Xu Ran disabled the environment-point notifications, while Purple Cloud visited the Steel-Armored Rhino, panicked at its muddy play, and hurried back to Xu Ran.
• Xu Ran received a Drugging skill experience point just after midnight and realized the skill's experience was tallied daily.
• At Monday morning exercises, Lin Yue and Su Xiaoxiao noticed Duan Anxun's Rainbow Cloud Parrot appeared to have been groomed at the Starfire Foster Shop.
• Su Xiaoxiao confidently prepared for Tan Qingsheng's practical training class with her Blazing Fox.

Su Xiaoxiao’s Blazing Fox trained eagerly for the promise of grooming, and the pair impressed their classmates with a dramatic improvement in Practical Training Class. After Su Xiaoxiao scored 663.8 across seven tests, Duan Anxun stepped up, determined to keep her top rank for her mother’s sake.

• Su Xiaoxiao realized her Blazing Fox was training hard so it could get dirty and go to Xu Ran’s shop for grooming, and promised to take it after class.
• Duan Anxun told Du Ting that a new grooming shop had improved her Rainbow Cloud Parrot, while Du Ting regretted Su Xiaoxiao had won the appearance assessment.
• Tan Qingsheng called Su Xiaoxiao first for the practical tests, where she and her Blazing Fox earned 98.3 on command ability and excelled in the other tests.
• Tan Qingsheng announced Su Xiaoxiao’s total score of 663.8 and praised her; Lin Yue also improved enough to avoid a scolding.
• Duan Anxun began her tests with her Rainbow Cloud Parrot, recalling her mother’s pride in her first-place record and resolving that she could not lose.

Duan Anxun pushed the Rainbow Cloud Parrot to endure the final test long enough to beat Su Xiaoxiao’s total, but Tan Qingsheng reprimanded her for endangering her Contract Beast and changed her final score to zero. After winning first place, Su Xiaoxiao noticed Duan Anxun’s distress and went to offer her Lin Yue’s cola.

• Duan Anxun matched Su Xiaoxiao’s score on the first test and surpassed her previous records on the next five, but still needed more than 90 points on the pressure endurance test to take first place.
• Duan Anxun urged the Rainbow Cloud Parrot to keep going until it lasted 61 seconds and scored 91 points, despite its worsening injuries.
• Tan Qingsheng stopped Duan Anxun from rushing to the unconscious Rainbow Cloud Parrot, scolded her for making it suffer for a score, and changed her final test score from 91 to zero.
• Su Xiaoxiao finished first in the class, then took Lin Yue’s spare cola and walked over to the slumped Duan Anxun.

Su Xiaoxiao comforted Duan Anxun after her Rainbow Cloud Parrot was pushed too far during training, and Duan Anxun revealed the pressure her mother put on her to win. At Xu Ran’s shop, he struggled to meditate until a customer paid for a month of boarding and left without his contract beast.

• Su Xiaoxiao brought Duan Anxun cola and asked where Du Ting was, prompting Duan Anxun to admit that her classmates had begun avoiding her.
• Su Xiaoxiao explained that she had opposed Duan Anxun for insulting Lin Yue’s contract beast and reminded her that partners mattered more than scores.
• Duan Anxun broke down and revealed that she had pushed her Rainbow Cloud Parrot because she feared her mother’s reaction if she failed to take first place.
• Xu Ran fed the Steel-Armored Rhino, earned eight Constitution Points, and added them to Purple Cloud’s growth progress.
• Xu Ran tried to meditate at the shop but repeatedly stopped for snacks and cola before a skinny young man paid for a month of boarding and left without his contract beast.