After all, it’s not easy to cultivate a Pet from a beginner to an Advanced Level.

Three to five years is not long, and some even take ten to eight years without success.

The Changheng Group's internal selection rules state that only Beast Tamers under 17 years old can participate, which means that, in cases of non-natural awakening, these contestants have been Beast Tamers for at most two years.

It's unlikely to cultivate a Pet from a beginner to an Advanced Level in two years.

Mingxi guessed that these nine people most likely had Soul Keys of four stars (including four stars) or higher, and like Mingxi, their Pets were already Intermediate Level when contracted.

Coupled with various ‘advantages’ acquired later, it's not impossible to cultivate a Pet to an Advanced Level within two years.

Moreover, this world is never short of geniuses.

No wonder Mingxi had felt something was off before. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Now that she thought about it, it was indeed off.

In previous years, the entire internal selection competition had at most three Advanced Level Pets.

This year, their Haizhou branch alone had two!

It was clearly abnormal.

She was just too slow herself.

Alas!

Fu Yifan also sighed, “As a tiny middle schooler squeezed among a group of high schoolers, it was already hard enough for me to qualify, and now it’s even harder.”

“My grandpa even demands that I must qualify, he doesn't consider how long it's been since his grandson, me, awakened, alas!”

Indeed.

They, the middle schoolers, had it too tough.

Mingxi clutched her chest.

What is adding insult to injury?

She seemed to see her spatial button flapping its wings and telling her:

‘You and I were never fated, and indeed, we are not.’

It stung.

“Fànfàn, what are you doing?”

Not far away, a boy who resembled Fu Yifan by about thirty percent was glaring at them with a pair of unruly, indifferent eyes.

His inherent arrogance was no less than that of Gu Shengxi, whom Mingxi had encountered in the Haizhou City elimination round.

They were both geniuses whose eyes weren't looking straight, stubbornly fixed on the top of their heads.

Fu Yifan: “Mingxi, my cousin is calling me, so I’ll head over first. You can find me if you need anything; this is somewhat my home ground here in Hanning.

Oh, right, I don’t think I’ve added your personal terminal number yet.

Quick, quick, add it now.”

After a series of fierce actions, Fu Yifan sprang like a spring to his cousin’s side.

Gone was any hint of a campus heartthrob’s reserved demeanor; he was completely a clown.

Over there.

Fu Sushu raised an eyebrow, glancing sidelong at Mingxi, and asked, “That girl just now, she’s not your girlfriend, is she, Fànfàn?”

Fu Yifan immediately shook his head like a rattle drum: “How could she be? She’s my Junior from Haizhou Third Middle School. I didn’t expect her to participate in this selection competition.”

Fu Sushu: “Junior? Naturally awakened?”

Fu Yifan: “Mm, it seems she just awakened half a month ago.”

After competing with Mingxi that day, he had asked someone to inquire about her situation.

Fu Sushu was surprised: “Only half a month? And she passed the regional competition?”

“Her situation is quite special. Her family is in a very difficult situation, and she happened to awaken a Colorful Key, so she directly performed a Colorful Summon and contracted a Thunder Demon Bird.”

“Thunder Demon Bird?”

“Mm.”

“...Then it’s not surprising she managed to slip in by chance.”

Fu Yifan saw his cousin’s clearly colder attitude and knew he didn’t take Mingxi too seriously.

It wasn't that he had an issue with Mingxi, but rather that his cousin preferred strength; the stronger the opponent, the more it ignited his fighting spirit.

As his own cousin, Fu Yifan still kindly reminded him: “She’s very powerful, Cousin. If you encounter her, don’t take her lightly.”

If his cousin underestimated Mingxi just because she contracted a Thunder Demon Bird, Mingxi would feel wronged, and he himself would regret it afterward.

Fu Yifan didn't know that Mingxi had already eliminated an E-Level Beastmaster with an Advanced Level Pet in the Haizhou regional competition. If he had known this, he would definitely have told his cousin.

“Heh, powerful? Just because she has a Thunder Demon Bird?” Fu Sushu’s tone was somewhat mocking.

Alright then.

Believe it or not.

Anyway, he had said all he could.

There were a total of 236 contestants in the combined regional competition, and the first round of eliminations would determine the top 118.

Similar to the regional competition, ten matches would proceed simultaneously.

Mingxi was randomly matched with contestant #184, Wei Xuanming, and the two took their positions on Stage 10.

On the main stage of the venue, the host, sitting with the special commentator Wang Rui, surprisingly noticed them immediately.

His voice was heard through the loudspeaker:

“Let me see, on Stage 10 now, contestants #96 and #184 are about to begin their match. The contestant information I have shows that contestant #96 is the youngest participant in this year’s Changheng Cup, and arguably the youngest ever.”

As the organizer, Changheng Group naturally had basic information on all contestants.

It was only natural for someone as representative as Mingxi to receive attention.

Upon hearing this, Wang Rui couldn't help but ask, “How old is she?”

“She just turned 14 one and a half months ago.”

“So young, then she must have awakened naturally, and not long ago.”

In the history of the Alliance, the youngest Beast Tamer to awaken was 13 years and 11 months old.

This record has yet to be broken.

That means contestant #96's age when she naturally awakened must have been over 13 years and 11 months.

So, she had been awakened for at most two or three months.

“I guess the quality of her first Soul Key must be very high, at least 4 stars, and she directly contracted an Intermediate Level Pet, which is why she was able to stand out from the regional competition.”

Wang Rui was a Beast Tamer competition commentator, and although he was just starting out, he possessed this kind of basic common sense reasoning ability.

Mingxi could naturally hear the voices coming from the main stage, but she was accustomed to being fully focused on what she was doing.

Once on the competition stage, her eyes only saw her own Pet and her opponent.

After polite greetings from both sides.

The whistle blew, and the match officially began.

Both sides summoned their Pets.

Two ethereal Pet Spaces appeared simultaneously, one white, and the other red.

Wei Xuanming stared wide-eyed at the dazzling, fiery red Pet Space opposite him.

He almost interrupted his hand seal.

“An E-Level Beastmaster?”

Did he step in dog poop when he left home?

He encountered an E-Level Beastmaster in the very first round!

No, this isn't right.

He just heard the host mention that in their match, ★ 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 ★ his opponent, contestant #96, was the youngest in this selection competition.

Apparently only 14 years old.

So, this girl opposite him awakened her second Soul Key at 14?

What kind of monster is this!

Mingxi was, of course, not an E-Level Beastmaster.

More accurately, she wasn't yet.

When a Beast Tamer awakens their first Soul Key and successfully contracts their first Pet, regardless of whether the Pet has hatched or not, they can successfully register at the Yushou Center as an F-level Beast Master.

However, ascending to E-Level Beastmaster is not that simple.

Firstly, a Beast Tamer must possess two Pets, which also includes unhatched Pet eggs.

Secondly, among the two Pets, at least one must be of Intermediate Level (including Intermediate Level) or higher.

Finally, one must clear the E-Level Limit Tower challenge mission at the Yushou Center.