"Hello, I’m Akagi Shu. Like you, I’m number one in my grade."

He spoke, extending his well-defined right hand.

The young man had fiery red, spiky hair and a sharp gaze.

His school uniform collar was open, revealing a simple T-shirt with a Flood Dragon print underneath. A red necklace hung around his neck, constantly drawing Fire Spiritual Qi to circulate around his body.

One look was enough to tell he came from an extremely wealthy family, casually carrying a Spiritual Artifact that aided in Pet Beast Cultivation.

Gu Ming looked at Akagi Shu and sensed an unconcealed drive about him, as if he were constantly ready for a challenge.

Cyan Treasure’s gaze was fixed on Akagi Shu’s arm.

A Red Flame Flood Dragon the length of a forearm was coiled around the side of Akagi Shu’s arm. Its scales were crimson, and its horns looked like semi-cooled molten iron. A few whiskers sprouted from its mouth, wreathed in tiny streams of fire.

Even from half a meter away, Cyan Treasure could feel a wave of distorted heat wash over it.

"Hey!"

An arrogant voice came from behind.

"He’s my opponent! It’s not your place to interfere!"

Gu Ming turned around and saw a "little snake" covered in wood-colored patterns.

It had no horns on its head, but it did have amber eyes and four claws that resembled tree roots. Its appearance was exceedingly strange.

The Flood Dragon Scales on its body resembled the patterns on a turtle shell. They were seamless and tightly connected, as if it were clad in sturdy Turtle Scale Armor.

This must be the second-ranked Turtle Wood Flood Dragon, another one of Cyan Treasure’s formidable rivals.

Gu Ming hadn’t been at the school for long before the number one and number two students from the opposing school came looking for him.

It was obviously impossible that they were just bored.

Some lackey must have tipped them off, and since they wanted to take the number one student down a peg, they had rushed over at the same time to stage this little drama of fighting for the right to challenge him.

Gu Ming crossed his arms, annoyed.

"If you want to fight, then let’s fight. You don’t get to pick me; I get to pick my opponent!"

As the top student in his grade, Gu Ming had his pride.

He wasn’t some target for anyone to challenge as they pleased.

Normally, Gu Ming wouldn’t deliberately show off his rank as number one, nor did he have any intention of putting others down.

But now, faced with their condescending attitudes, it was clear they saw him as a mere stepping stone.

He couldn’t take it anymore. Cyan Treasure felt the same, its tail standing straight up.

Before either of them could get angry, Gu Ming raised his hand and pointed at the Turtle Wood Flood Dragon that had piqued his interest. "You. Let’s fight!"

The chosen number two, Fang Tian Gui, roared with laughter.

"Excellent, excellent! Looks like you won’t be fighting him today, Akagi Shu."

"After this battle, his Snake Pet will be completely crushed!"

As he spoke, a ruthless killing intent faintly emanated from the Beastmaster.

Gu Ming quickly made the connection. The Pet Beasts injured this morning were probably this guy’s handiwork.

Observing his clothes, the Spiritual Qi-rich bracelet on his right arm, and the large amount of Grass Attribute Spiritual Qi swirling around him, it was obvious he was also from a wealthy family with powerful backing.

Gu Ming didn’t argue. Even if fighting this opponent was dangerous, he had no reason to run away like a coward.

It was a pity that while his opponent had killing intent, Gu Ming couldn’t afford to cripple the other’s Pet Beast. His family’s status wouldn’t allow it.

However, as long as he controlled his strength and made it so his opponent couldn’t compete for the rest of the day, their family wouldn’t have anything to complain about.

Gu Ming and Cyan Treasure exchanged glances. As they looked for a place to fight, he quietly discussed tactics with it, and the latter nodded angrily.

’Leave it to me! I’ll beat it so bad it won’t be getting out of bed today!’

Seeing this, the surrounding crowd instantly made way, clearing out a space about fifty meters square.

Word spread among the students, and soon, students from all over stopped their own fights and gathered around to watch the number one versus the number two.

Akagi Shu, though somewhat displeased, saw that Gu Ming had already made his choice and didn’t try to stop him. He just snorted coldly.

"Gu Ming, don’t you disappoint me."

"If you lose to him, then your ’number one’ title isn’t worth much."

With that, he retreated to the edge of the cleared space and crossed his arms.

Lu You had just squeezed through the crowd and secretly greeted Cyan Treasure. The little Pet Beast noticed her and wagged its small tail in her direction.

Just then, she heard Akagi Shu’s sharp tone and her brows knitted together.

She had terrible social anxiety; even when watching others fight, she didn’t dare push her way into a crowd.

Everyone was afraid of Akagi Shu and gave him a wide berth, so there was a large, empty area around him.

Lu You happened to be standing in this less crowded area, thinking she was invisible.

But then she heard Akagi Shu slandering and looking down on her best friend and his Pet Beast.

A surge of anger erupted within her, quickly overwhelming her fear of interaction.

So much so that she did something rare: she lifted her head, revealing the eyes beneath her bangs, and stared straight at him, as if to memorize the appearance of both him and his Pet Beast.

Mouse Treasure also bared its teeth and chittered, letting out a stream of nasty-sounding squeaks.

Akagi Shu felt the malicious gaze from his side and turned to see Lu You and her Sunflower Seed-eating Hamster. ’I thought it might be someone strong, but this is it?’

He glanced at her as if she were thin air before turning his head back to the main event.

’A duel!’

’Challenge him to a duel!’

The thought flashed through Lu You’s mind, growing stronger and more intense.

"I challenge you to a duel!"

Lu You shouted subconsciously, her tone more fierce and angry than it had ever been.

Only after she’d spoken did she come to her senses and realize just how furious she was.

In the past, she wouldn’t have dared to start a conflict with anyone, but now, she simply couldn’t hold back.

This guy was the one exception. He was just too infuriating.

But after the anger subsided, she started to get scared again. ’Can I even beat him?’

’What if Mouse Treasure is defeated?’

’What if he doesn’t hold back and gets ruthless?’

She was so scared.

"Ha?"

Akagi Shu laughed.

’Who is this, challenging me while holding a Sunflower Seed-eating Hamster?’

’Anyone who didn’t know better might think that Sunflower Seed-eating Hamster was some dark horse Pet Beast with High-star Potential.’

"If you’re looking to die, then come on. Don’t blame me if it gets killed, haha!"

Akagi Shu didn’t refuse.

His first battle upon arriving at Qing Lake High School was against the student ranked tenth in the grade.

He ended up crippling his opponent’s Pet Beast in less than three moves. It wasn’t interesting at all.

This cute, bespectacled girl before him started trembling right after making her bold declaration.

She obviously regretted it but was too proud to back down, so she just stood there, frozen.

’Normally, she would never have challenged me.’

’It must be because I just bad-mouthed the number one student, which really set her off.’

And look, the crowd around him was also staring at him angrily. They all wanted to teach him a lesson and make him bow his head.

They were just holding back, knowing the power gap was too large. They were worried their Pet Beasts would be crippled, or even killed.

After all, the Akagi Family could afford the compensation for killing a Pet Beast, but the same couldn’t be said for others.

So, if there really was someone not afraid to die, then they were welcome to try.

This would be a good warm-up for him before challenging the number one student.