Ye Ranran's Desert-Tailed Fox was far more capable than Qiao Sang had ever imagined, and she immediately relaxed.
With over two hundred pet beasts, and Fire-Fang Dog running second, there was no way it could possibly come in dead last.
On this end, after putting on the yellow relay band, Fire-Fang Dog shot forward with a *whoosh*.
"Xun!"
"Xun!"
Little Treasure-Hunting Ghost shouted encouragement with all its might.
As it cheered, it began to float along after the dog.
Quick as a flash, Qiao Sang pulled it back.
"Xun?"
Little Treasure-Hunting Ghost looked completely innocent.
"Don't waste your energy; we're relying on you for the sixth leg. We'll go straight to Liuyang River to wait for Ya Bao," Qiao Sang said.
This statement was half-true and half-false; the first half was a lie, while the second half was true. She wasn't counting on Little Treasure-Hunting Ghost for the sixth leg at all.
Following along was out of the question. The third leg was at Liuyang River, over ten kilometers away. With her small arms and legs, she'd probably be exhausted before she even made it halfway.
Furthermore, pacing was not allowed in marathon races. Professional medical teams, technical services, and logistics support were provided during the process to ensure safety.
Pacing would cause unnecessary trouble and chaos during the race, making order difficult to control.
Qiao Sang watched the direction where Fire-Fang Dog had disappeared.
*Ya Bao, we can only support you spiritually!*
*Keep going!*
...
Fire-Fang Dog ran forward desperately.
It remembered its Beast Tamer saying to follow the main pack, but far from a main pack, there wasn't even a single competitor ahead of it.
At that moment, it thought of the Six-Tentacle Snail that had started before it.
"Ya!"
Fire-Fang Dog accelerated.
It would just have to catch up to that Six-Tentacle Snail first!
After running for an unknown amount of time, Fire-Fang Dog dragged its four limbs wearily, struggling to move forward.
Now, forget running—even walking was a struggle.
Although the Pet Beast Marathon was different from a traditional human marathon, it was essentially a high-load competitive sport involving a massive amount of exercise and long distances.
While pet beasts could use characteristics and skills to increase their speed and add excitement to the race, it was unrealistic to constantly use characteristics and release skills.
Excessive energy consumption could cause a pet beast to collapse from exhaustion mid-race.
Therefore, pet beasts with marathon experience would run a stretch on their own and occasionally release skills to boost their speed.
As they neared the destination, they would use characteristics or skills for a final sprint; Ye Ranran's Desert-Tailed Fox had done exactly that.
But Fire-Fang Dog didn't know this. From the moment it started, it had been running with everything it had.
It was fine at first, but once it slowed down, dozens of competing pet beasts overtook it one after another.
Fire-Fang Dog wasn't stupid.
Seeing some of the other competitors use skills, it also released skills to speed up.
Flame Charge, Tackle—it had used them all.
But it soon ran out of steam.
Fire-Fang Dog had not undergone professional training; recently, it had mostly been practicing skill-related exercises.
Running a few laps around Liugan Stream had provided almost no training benefit for a marathon.
In terms of physical fitness, it might be decent among pet beasts of the same rank, but it still didn't meet the standards of a marathon.
The scorching sun baked the earth.
Even Fire-Fang Dog, which usually didn't fear the heat, felt the torment.
Fire-Fang Dog panted with its tongue out, struggling to breathe. It felt as if it were suffocating more and more; it took an immense effort just to lift its limbs, making it even harder to move than when it had first worn the weighted ring.
"Ya."
Fire-Fang Dog let out an unconscious cry, its throat as dry as if it were on fire.
Suddenly, it remembered the water its Beast Tamer had mentioned.
It looked around but found no tables or water.
*Am I not there yet?*
Stars danced before Fire-Fang Dog's eyes. Looking ahead blurrily, it thought of the word "give up" for the first time.
*So tired...*
*Really so tired...*
"Qiu."
A Bounce-Ball Pig happened to pass by.
Its tail was like a spring, with a grey ball at the end, and it wore the competition number A099 on its body.
Its tail stood upright, the grey ball touching the ground. Utilizing the spring-like characteristic of its tail, it bounced along, instantly overtaking Fire-Fang Dog.
"Qiu."
The Bounce-Ball Pig didn't leave immediately. It turned its head and gave Fire-Fang Dog a smug smile, provocatively lifting its smallest short toe.
"Ya."
Fire-Fang Dog was instantly enraged.
It wanted to roar at the Bounce-Ball Pig, but the roar it produced was so weak that only it could hear it.
Watching the Bounce-Ball Pig turn and bounce away, Fire-Fang Dog felt a fire ignite in its heart, wanting to charge forward.
But it had the will but not the strength.
The impulse to charge was too strong, and its already limp limbs simply couldn't support it. After two steps, Fire-Fang Dog's legs gave way, and it collapsed.
In a daze, it seemed to hear its Beast Tamer calling its name.
*Ya Bao.*
Actually, it didn't like that name very much—it had no presence at all—but there was nothing it could do since its Beast Tamer liked it.
If it collapsed here, would its Beast Tamer be disappointed?
And then there was the little junior, who was still waiting for its relay band.
Fire-Fang Dog suddenly felt a sense of defeat.
Its Beast Tamer trusted it so much, telling it that she would wait for it at Liuyang River. If it didn't arrive...
*I want to get up and keep going...*
The faint spark within Fire-Fang Dog's body gradually turned into a flame. In the next instant, the flame leaped, and crimson fire surged, instantly engulfing it from the inside out.
"There's a Fire-Fang Dog here, looks like it's collapsed, quickly send—Holy crap!" The logistics staff member was startled.
"What happened? What's going on?" the person on the other end of the phone asked worriedly.
"Nothing, just a Fire-Fang Dog that had fallen over suddenly burst into flames... it must have triggered the Blaze characteristic, and then it just *whooshed* away. This is the first time I've seen a Fire-type pet beast trigger Blaze while running a marathon," the logistics staff member explained, still shaken.
It was like seeing a collapsed patient suddenly stand up full of vigor and perform a backflip for you; it was quite terrifying...
...
Liuyang River.
Watching the Bounce-Ball Pig in the distance, which was rapidly heading toward the third leg handover point by bouncing on its tail, Qiao Sang remarked, "That tail is just too suited for this race."
"I still think that Ice-Snow Civet's skill was more suitable. It actually made the paw pads on its claws stick to ice balls to slide along; I don't know how it thought of that," Ye Ranran said.
"In the middle of summer, the ground is so hot. Those ice balls wouldn't last long before melting; it's just for a bit of ease in the middle. But you can tell it put in the effort; the balance was impeccable," Qiao Sang analyzed.
"In a pet beast marathon, as long as you can come up with a slightly energy-saving plan to buffer the fatigue in the middle, that's enough. It mainly depends on the pet beast's physical strength and endurance," Ye Ranran smiled.
Qiao Sang was silent for a moment before asking, "What if there isn't an energy-saving plan?"
Ye Ranran thought for a moment and said, "Relying purely on strength and endurance? Probably not. That would be too exhausting. Everyone prepares a plan for the pet beast marathon. I've never seen any idiot come to compete without a plan."
Qiao Sang: "..."
*Heh, the idiot is right here.*
"Xun!"
"Xun!"
Little Treasure-Hunting Ghost suddenly let out two excited cries.
Qiao Sang looked toward the track.
In the distance, a figure wrapped in blazing flames came racing toward them, like a streak of red lightning. It *whooshed* past her eyes in an instant, overtaking the Bounce-Ball Pig that was about to reach the handover point before finally coming to a stop.
(End of Chapter)