Chapter 4
At this moment, the vast square filled with five thousand examinees fell into complete silence.
All eyes were fixed on the elevated platform not far away, where a man dressed in a black military uniform stood. His expression was stern as he scanned the crowd. The major’s insignia on his chest was understated yet unmistakable.
“Greetings. I am Huo Ming, a Grade B Advanced Beast Tamer, serving as a major in the Second Legion’s Blade Battalion of the Federation Army. I am also the chief instructor overseeing your examination today.”
“Today, alongside over two thousand soldiers from the Federation Army, you have gathered here for the annual Global Beast Taming Examination. But there is more I wish to say beyond this.”
“Perhaps in the past, you lived carefree under your family’s protection. But today, I must tell you—starting now, from the moment you chose to take part in this global exam—everything changes!”
“You have lost the right to be shielded! From now on, you will shoulder a far greater mission. You may find this hard to grasp now, but this is the future that belongs to Beast Tamers!”
“Every choice in life is no trivial matter. To gain something, you must give something in return. You may think today is just a simple exam. But what you don’t know is that the Blue Star Federation pays a tremendous price every single time!”
“This exam is far more dangerous than you imagine! Death can come in the blink of an eye.”
As his words fell, a sudden stir arose from the crowd. Major Huo Ming only gave a cold smile. “Young fledglings must leave the nest. This time, you will witness the outside world with your own eyes!”
“Now, all soldiers!” His voice rose sharply. “Escort the students in batches to the passageway and await the opening of the secret realm.”
“I hereby declare the Global Super Large-scale Apprentice Beast Tamer Unified Hazardous Examination officially begun!”
—
Passing through a curtain of light in the dark underground square.
After the world spun around and she opened her eyes again, Zhou Wanli found herself in an unfamiliar area.
Around her rose trees thick and towering like those in a primeval forest, their lush branches blocking most of the sunlight. The jungle was damp and shadowy.
The young girl stood still, hiding behind a massive tree, cautiously scanning her surroundings. The only sounds were the chirping of insects and birds; no other human figures were in sight.
Zhou Wanli felt bewildered, unsure where she should go or what she should do.
Since gathering at the school and everything that followed, each event had shaken her deeply, overturning her previous understanding.
Lost in thought, suddenly, a cold, mechanical voice seemed to descend from the distant sky, echoing throughout the forest.
[Ding dong—]
[Attention all examinees! Attention all examinees! This examination has officially begun!]
[Exam content: Candidates may respond freely. (Additionally, high-difficulty bonus questions will randomly appear during the exam. Candidates may choose to attempt them according to their own strength.)]
[Exam duration: 48 hours.]
[Reminder: Each candidate has been provided with one day’s worth of living supplies and a multifunctional watch. The watch will faithfully record all your performance during the exam and will be uniformly graded by the examiners afterward.]
[Warning: The exam site contains a certain degree of danger. Candidates are advised to proceed with caution.]
[Each candidate has one opportunity to withdraw. Pressing the red button on the watch will terminate this exam early and transport you out of the exam area, but your results will be voided. Please choose carefully!]
[Rules have been announced. Supplies will be dropped within 100 meters of each candidate.]
[Finally, best wishes to all candidates for a successful exam!]
Zhou Wanli was stunned once again.
---
Who in their right mind conducts an exam like this?! And it lasts two whole days, with freeform content?! Who wouldn’t be impressed!
No wonder she couldn’t find any information online about the Beast Taming Exam’s content—it simply didn’t exist!
Despite her complaints, Zhou Wanli quickly committed the announced rules to memory. This exam was clearly serious business. From the past half month of intense study, she had learned just how dangerous extraordinary creatures could be.
The Federation was throwing them directly into a secret realm to be tested; a single misstep could cost her life.
She dared not slack off and began to scout her surroundings again. At this moment, she didn’t even have the most basic tools to protect herself, so she had to find the supplies mentioned in the broadcast quickly.
One hundred meters radius.
In the outside world, that might take only a few minutes to cover, but this was a primeval-like secret realm. Besides the dense trees, countless shrubs, weeds, and deadwood blocked the path forward.
And there was always the threat of snakes, ants, poisonous insects, large beasts, and even extraordinary creatures.
Zhou Wanli’s scalp prickled, but she had no choice but to continue searching.
The damp, shadowy environment was uncomfortable, and each step felt slippery underfoot. Despite her caution, she accidentally stepped into a shallow pit and lost her balance, tumbling forward uncontrollably.
Bang—
Her arm slammed hard against a fallen tree stump. She let out a muffled grunt, but fortunately shielded her head in time.
Before she could relax, a sharp sense of danger swept over her. Instantly, a headache struck, and three nerve-like tendrils, each as thick as her fingers, shot out, wrapping tightly around a black stinger that nearly pierced her skull.
“!” Oh no!
Zhou Wanli twisted sideways instinctively, retracting the nerve tendrils and narrowly dodging the attack. At the same time, she caught sight of the assailant.
A grass-dry wasp the size of a basketball beat its wings. Its forelegs were like two sharp daggers crossed before its chest, its body marked with black and white patterns, the black stinger raised high, its gaze fierce.
This was a Grade E extraordinary creature!
Images of the grass-dry wasp flashed through Zhou Wanli’s mind: a dual-type flying and poison extraordinary creature, generally docile, fond of living inside damp, dark deadwood. Usually Grade E, considered an ordinary level of danger.
Docile? Ordinary danger? Looking into those crimson compound eyes, Zhou Wanli couldn’t help but twitch the corner of her mouth and without hesitation, turned and fled.
Apparently, the deadwood stump she had stumbled upon was the wasp’s home. After chasing her for a while and confirming the intruder was driven off, the wasp flew back and ceased pursuit.
Zhou Wanli’s heart was pounding. Had it not been for the quick reflexes of her nerve tendrils, one sting would have sent her to her grave by this time next year.
This wasp was only a low-level Grade E, yet it had forced her into such a panicked flight.
According to the Federation’s classification, extraordinary creatures are ranked from low to high as F, E, D, C, B, A, S, and SS, with each grade further divided into low, medium, and high sub-levels.
She believed the Federation was rational, so surely no Grade D or above creatures would appear, right?
In fact, Zhou Wanli’s guess was quite accurate.
The Federation intended for examinees who had yet to become Beast Tamers to acclimate to contact and combat with extraordinary creatures. These students were the Federation’s future Beast Tamers, after all, and their importance was self-evident.
Therefore, the Federation would not simply send candidates to fight powerful extraordinary creatures without any safeguards.
The secret realm itself served as the first line of defense.
The origin of these secret realms dates back over two centuries, following the cataclysmic changes on Blue Star, when spatial rifts appeared. The specific causes were complex, but eventually humans managed to control and develop parts of these rifts, forming the secret realms seen today with many strict restrictions.
—
For this global exam, the Federation activated a total of 101 secret realms and cleared out any Grade D or above extraordinary creatures within them. Each candidate’s supply drop point was thoroughly secured to ensure safety upon entry.
Moreover, the multifunctional watches included danger detection features that would automatically eject the wearer from the secret realm if the situation became uncontrollable.
Zhou Wanli could only say she had terrible luck—probably even Federation personnel hadn’t noticed that an E-grade extraordinary creature was hiding inside one unnoticed deadwood stump.
To evade the wasp’s pursuit, she had nearly run beyond the 100-meter range of her starting point. After this encounter, she dared not approach the wasp’s territory again.
Yet she couldn’t leave the supplies unclaimed, as they contained essential living materials and the emergency watch.
Reluctantly, Zhou Wanli began searching again from the outer edges nearby.
Half an hour later.
A dead tree broken in the middle lay quietly, and in the triangular gap between its base and the ground rested a green backpack.
The girl peered cautiously, her neural tendrils quietly extending to sense any spiritual waves nearby.
This was a skill Zhou Wanli had just discovered—her brain’s neural tendrils were highly sensitive to danger and the mental fluctuations of other extraordinary creatures, making them perfect for pathfinding.
After confirming safety, she dashed over, grabbed the backpack, and ran off, fearing another surprise attack. The wasp’s presence in the deadwood had left a deep shadow in her mind.
Finding an open space away from water and bushes, Zhou Wanli sat down and opened the backpack.
As expected, inside were some compressed biscuits, two bottles of water, along with bandages, iodine, and other first-aid supplies. The red watch lay at the bottom.
The girl took out the watch and strapped it onto her left wrist, then tore open a biscuit and bit into it. Checking the time, it was 11:05 a.m., exactly one hour since entering the secret realm.
It had not been easy.
Sighing, Zhou Wanli pulled out a foldable, detachable entrenching tool from the side of the backpack. Compared to a dagger or other weapons, the entrenching tool was more suitable for students encountering combat for the first time.
It could be used as a tool, yet had decent lethality and was less likely to cause accidental self-injury.
After some practice, Zhou Wanli roughly mastered how to wield the entrenching tool.
Feeling rested, she rose, ready to continue exploring the secret realm.
She had not forgotten that she was taking an exam.
Although the broadcast had stated there were no specific requirements, allowing candidates to respond freely.
Students afraid of danger could choose to stay in a safe place for the full two days until the exam ended, but such a strategy would certainly lead to poor final results.
Zhou Wanli had her own plan. Recalling the words her homeroom teacher had told her, the Beast Taming Exam was a tremendous opportunity for students from ordinary backgrounds.
If that was the case, why not seize it wholeheartedly?
Her exam goal was to successfully contract an extraordinary pet within the secret realm and become a genuine Beast Tamer.