Having solved the mystery of why she was wet, Ya Bao naturally continued with its skill release. If it weren't for the sake of training, Qiao Sang wouldn't have gone to such great lengths to move out of the school dorms in the first place.
However, after discovering there was a Water Luana in the pond, Qiao Sang found herself in a bit of a dilemma.
If she wanted to get on good terms with the Water Luana, she couldn't keep causing destruction in its home.
Although water could be replenished, their current relationship with the Water Luana was not good.
After thinking for a long while, Qiao Sang could only tell Ya Bao to release its skills on the open ground far from the pond.
In any case, the ground in the courtyard had already been mostly ruined by the Fire Star Rain. She would have to find someone to renovate it sooner or later when she moved out, so a few more blasts wouldn't make a difference.
In the courtyard, the sounds of flame attacks exploding against the ground echoed one after another.
Dust flew and pebbles scattered, inevitably falling into the pond.
At the bottom of the pond, the Water Luana opened its eyes and looked at the murky water; bubbles instantly erupted from its nostrils.
That night, a puddle of water flowed in through the gap under the bedroom door.
...
The next morning, Qiao Sang was once again awakened by a shrill scream.
Bolting upright in bed, she saw the exact same scene as yesterday appearing before her.
Leaning against the headboard, Qiao Sang pressed a hand to her forehead and said, "Your Flame Body."
Ya Bao's wailing stopped abruptly, and the air seemed to freeze for a moment.
The little Treasure-Hunting Ghost silently drank its milk to the side.
Once Ya Bao used Flame Body to evaporate the water on its skin, it immediately became spirited again.
It spun around, intending to charge toward the courtyard.
"Ya!"
It had to be that guy again! It wanted to find it and fight for three hundred rounds!
"Wait, there's no time, let's go to school first," Qiao Sang quickly made up an excuse to stop it.
She had a bit of a headache. Fire-type pets and Water-type pets were naturally incompatible; after this series of events, would she really be able to get on good terms with the Water Luana?
"Ya..."
Ya Bao reluctantly stopped its steps.
To keep the lie consistent, Qiao Sang had to set off 40 minutes early.
Only those who had experienced it could know the bitterness of this struggle.
Once it was certain no one was in the house, the Water Luana finally closed its eyes in peace within the water.
Last night, it had nearly died of exhaustion trying to change the water to make it clean...
Humans were truly cruel. Setting fire to the pond and forcing it to replenish more than half of its water source wasn't enough; now they had directly polluted the water, forcing it to replace everything from start to finish.
Too cruel...
If it weren't for the fact that a Ghost-type pet that never slept was always following her, it would definitely have let her taste the power of water.
In a daze, the Water Luana fell fast asleep.
A red-and-white figure appeared by the edge of the pond.
...
On the way to school.
Sitting atop Ya Bao, Qiao Sang discovered with surprise that when they reached yesterday's spot—roughly 290 meters away—Ya Bao didn't stop but continued forward.
"Is the clone at home still there?" Qiao Sang asked.
Since she wasn't walking on her own today, she couldn't count by steps; Qiao Sang could only estimate their current position based on yesterday's distance.
They had definitely passed 300 meters.
"Ya."
Ya Bao nodded while walking.
Qiao Sang suddenly felt it was unbelievable.
What happened? How did the control distance for the clone increase in just one day?
As Ya Bao walked, its brain was running at high speed, its attention split in two, and its mental strength was being continuously consumed. Its expression was more serious than during its usual training.
Its Trainer was in a rush to get to school, so while it didn't have time to go beat up the culprit, the clone did!
Thinking this, Ya Bao further intensified its focus on controlling the clone.
After advancing another 50 meters or so, Ya Bao stopped, its expression looking a bit deflated.
A smile bloomed on Qiao Sang's face. She patted Ya Bao's head and praised, "Your speed of progress is practically god-like."
"Ya..."
Ya Bao narrowed its eyes comfortably.
If Qiao Sang knew that Ya Bao's focus had improved—and thus increased its clone control distance—solely because it wanted to fight the Water Luana, she probably wouldn't be smiling anymore.
Just as they were about to arrive at school, the phone in her pocket vibrated. It was an unknown caller.
"Hello?"
Normally, Qiao Sang would definitely not answer an unknown number, but this was a special period; she hadn't been notified about the 5 million yet.
She carried her phone 24 hours a day, hoping it would ring. No matter the number, as long as it called, she answered.
"Hello, is this Miss Qiao Sang?"
"It is."
"This is the Hanggang City Public Security Bureau. Your bounty has been approved. I wonder if you have time today to come and collect it."
"I do!"
Heaven knows how many days and nights she had tossed and turned, unable to sleep, waiting for this call!
After hanging up, Qiao Sang immediately called the Vice Principal to ask for leave.
She didn't give a specific reason, only saying she had something to attend to.
Liu Yao was speechless upon receiving this call.
Who had ever seen a student request leave directly from the Vice Principal?
"Do you not have Teacher Zheng's contact information?" Liu Yao asked tactfully.
Qiao Sang was in a state of extreme excitement and completely ignored the underlying meaning: "Vice Principal, you're so smart! How did you know I don't have it?"
Liu Yao: "..."
Just as Qiao Sang thought the Vice Principal had hung up, Liu Yao spoke again: "If you have time after finishing your business today, come to my office. There have been too many things lately, and I forgot to help you formulate a cultivation direction for your pet."
"I have time!"
Qiao Sang happily hung up the phone.
What a good person... she felt more and more that the Vice Principal was reliable.
...
The call was from the Hanggang City Public Security Bureau.
Qitang Town was under the jurisdiction of Hanggang City, so such a large bounty naturally had to be collected from the higher-level public security organ, which was the Hanggang City Public Security Bureau.
Since she knew she could collect it today, Qiao Sang wasn't in a rush; it was still early.
She opened the navigation and set off toward the bureau on Ya Bao's back.
If one looked closely, they would find that Ya Bao was currently hovering one centimeter above the ground.
Qiao Sang never forgot to make Ya Bao train, anytime, anywhere...
By the time she arrived at the Hanggang City Public Security Bureau, 40 minutes had passed.
As soon as Qiao Sang entered, a beautiful woman with long hair flowing over her shoulders walked over holding a microphone, accompanied by a chubby little pigeon with a camera hanging around its neck.
"Hello, I am a reporter from the Hanggang Focus channel. May I interview you?"
Qiao Sang paused. The last time she was interviewed by a reporter was during the Baixin Competition. Was the Baixin Competition still that popular?
"I'm sorry, I have something to attend to right now and it's inconvenient," Qiao Sang refused.
You've got to be kidding; this was the police station, and she was about to collect 5 million.
If the interview revealed she was collecting a 5-million-yuan bounty today and it was broadcast to her acquaintances, what would happen if everyone came to borrow money from her?
"I just feel that the pet beside you looks a bit like the new evolution of the Fire Fang Dog that has been circulating recently. I wanted to know the name of this pet," the beautiful reporter explained.
So it wasn't because of the Baixin Competition...
"I'm sorry, it's inconvenient right now," Qiao Sang still refused.
Five minutes later, accompanied by an officer at the registration desk, Qiao Sang arrived at the designated reception room.
As soon as she entered, she saw a face she had just encountered.
"Hello, you must be Miss Qiao, who subdued the A-rank wanted criminal Zhou Xian. I am a reporter from the Hanggang Focus channel, specifically here to interview you. We just met," the beautiful reporter said with a beaming smile, holding her microphone.
Qiao Sang: "..."
(End of Chapter)