“Ya!”
The Fire-Fang Dog let out a cheerful bark, seemingly very satisfied with the name.
“That name is worn out. The boyfriend of my neighbor's daughter had a Fire-Fang Dog named that last time,” Bai Yunmiao remarked.
Qiao Sang fell into deep thought beside them.
She truly hadn't given much thought to the matter of naming.
In this society, not all Beast Masters gave their pets names.
Some Beast Masters gave their pets names similar to online handles rather than formal ones, aiming to stand out from the crowd and attract attention.
Others sought out professional naming masters who chose names based on attributes, birth dates, and birth locations.
But most people simply picked a name from the species' title and added a reduplicative syllable to finish the job.
However, as a pet grew, these reduplicative names became awkward to say.
Because pets evolved.
Setting aside how the Beast Master felt, many pets became dissatisfied with their original names after evolving.
Take the Cotton-Joint Bug, for example.
Many Beast Masters would call a Cotton-Joint Bug "Buggy," but its evolved forms, such as the Frost-Snow Butterfly or the Venom-Butterfly, had undergone a perfect metamorphosis.
At that point, they weren't very happy to be called "Buggy" anymore.
Yet, since "Buggy" had been used for so long it became a habit, changing it to "Butterfly" felt awkward.
Because of this, some Beast Masters simply called their pets by their species name.
Since they shared a contract, the pet knew exactly who was being addressed.
Calling them by their species name was perfectly fine normally, but once a pet became a spokesperson, things changed; they definitely needed a name of their own.
“Let's call you Ya-bao,” Qiao Sang spoke up.
Since she had to pick a name, she might as well choose one that wouldn't sound out of place even after the Fire-Fang Dog evolved.
“Ya ya!”
The Fire-Fang Dog barked in protest.
It still preferred being called "Ya, the Handsomest in Hanggang."
Qiao Sang: “...”
“Calling you Ya-bao means you are my baby. Don't you like it?” Qiao Sang pretended to be disappointed.
The Fire-Fang Dog paused, and upon realizing this, it quickly began to coax its Beast Master.
“Ya!”
“Ya ya!”
“Ya!”
It liked it! Ya-bao it is!
“That's good.” Qiao Sang's disappointed expression vanished instantly.
Bai Yunmiao was used to this sight.
Song Yuan, however, was stunned for a long while.
As expected of someone who dared to contract a Fire-type pet as her first; she could actually get a Fire-type pet to comfort her in return...
What a talent...
And so, the matter of the name was settled.
...
Qingcheng Garden.
When Ye Xiangting returned home, she saw a table full of dishes, along with Speed-Lure Fruits, which Flying-type pets were exceptionally fond of.
These Speed-Lure Fruits cost 1,500 Alliance Credits each; normally, she wouldn't dare buy them.
Ye Xiangting frowned, her first reaction being to wonder how her ex-husband found out her daughter had been admitted to Shengshui Middle School and contacted her.
Just as her mind was racing, Qiao Sang walked out of her room.
“Mom, you're finally back. The food I made has gone cold.”
Ye Xiangting froze, hesitating. “You made all this?”
“Yeah, to celebrate me taking first place in the Baixin Competition.” Qiao Sang walked to the dining table, pulled out a chair, and sat down.
“Ya.”
The Fire-Fang Dog ran out of the room at that moment and leaped onto Qiao Sang's lap.
First place in the Baixin Competition...
Ye Xiangting was stunned once again.
She naturally knew her daughter had been participating in the Baixin Competition recently.
But she thought she had just gone to join in the fun.
She actually got first?!
Were all the participants middle schoolers who had just graduated like her daughter...
Even so, first place was still very impressive...
“I got 200,000 in prize money, so I bought some Speed-Lure Fruits. Fat-House Pigeon, eat up.” Qiao Sang pushed the Speed-Lure Fruits toward the Fat-House Pigeon.
“Jiu!”
The Fat-House Pigeon flapped its wings happily.
When they had returned together, it had been drooling over the Speed-Lure Fruits on the table, but it hadn't moved because it didn't know who bought them.
Now that it knew the little master had bought them, the Fat-House Pigeon had no more reservations and immediately picked up a fruit to eat.
Throughout the entire dinner, everything Qiao Sang said felt surreal to Ye Xiangting.
200,000 Alliance Credits...
A pet egg worth under 500,000...
Should she find someone to talk this over with...
At 7:22 PM.
Qiao Sang returned to her room and opened her computer to research her second pet. Out of habit, she first glanced at the trending searches.
The trending topics were all news regarding the Interstellar Cup.
【The True Dark Horse: Felinus!】
【Yuki Akashi Hates the Interstellar Cup】
【Nightmare Spirit Completes an Epic Feat with a Triple-Kill!】
【Blue Star Beast Masters Have Been Completely Wiped Out】
【Eight Blue Star Personnel Caught Stowing Away to Planet Tianyuan This Afternoon】
Planet Tianyuan was the host planet for this edition of the Interstellar Cup.
In every Interstellar Cup, there were always a few stowaways caught trying to watch the matches live, and this time was no exception.
It was just that this time, the stowaways were from Blue Star.
Without even clicking, she knew the comments would be full of criticism, likely accusing the stowaways of embarrassing Blue Star.
The Interstellar Cup was a sensitive period.
On average, there wasn't even one participating Beast Master per country.
Everyone's sense of honor was no longer limited to nations, but had risen to a competition between planets.
Qiao Sang continued scrolling, and her gaze soon stopped on a certain trending line.
Among so many topics about the Interstellar Cup, one that didn't belong to the subject stood out prominently.
【A-Rank Wanted Poster, The Handsomest Fugitive】
Qiao Sang clicked on it.
She swore she didn't click it because she was attracted by the words "handsomest."
The man on the wanted poster had no beauty filters. He had cold, pale skin, deep-set eye sockets, and a pair of profound phoenix eyes that were as deep as a cold pond, like stagnant water.
His crimson lips were pressed thin, giving off a "do not approach" vibe. It was undeniable that he possessed an exceptionally handsome face.
Among fugitives, he lived up to the title of "handsomest."
Qiao Sang looked further down.
【Zhou Xian (Male, 28 years old, from Xianglin, Zhehai) and accomplices murdered Researcher Qin Yuxin and stole classified research data.】
Further down.
Qiao Sang's breath hitched.
5 million Alliance Credits!
This big brother is so valuable!
Qiao Sang couldn't help but scroll back up to look at the wanted poster a few more times.
Since this man was from Xianglin, Zhehai, there was no guarantee he wouldn't return to his hometown for a visit.
They were in the same province; if they happened to run into each other...
Someone with this kind of bounty was naturally very dangerous, but if she encountered him, she didn't have to handle it herself—she could just call the police!
That way, she could even get an informant's fee.
Although the odds were comparable to winning the lottery, one must have dreams in life.
After committing the man's appearance to memory, Qiao Sang browsed the trends for a bit longer before starting her research on Water-type, Grass-type, and Flying-type pets.
Regarding the attribute of her second pet, her priority order was Grass-type, then Water-type, and finally Flying-type.
Needless to say, Grass-type pets had no flaws other than being expensive.
As for Water-type pets, not many could exert their full strength on land, but the possibility of learning healing-type moves was what Qiao Sang currently wanted.
The Flying-type pet was purely to satisfy her desire to take to the skies.
(End of Chapter)