WebNovels

Chapter 30 - Chapter Twenty Nine - Competition

The Kes family? Is that the Maine family? 

Xie Sen looked at the giant lion beast, puzzled, and asked, "What if more than one giant lion beast owner wants to form a bond with it?" 

"The market value of an A-level contracted beast is 20 million. We'll sell it to the owner who offers the lowest price and has the highest synchronization rate," Sun Mao said. 

Xie Sen's eyes suddenly widened. 20 million? How could Maine have that much money? 

Just as he was thinking, his communication buzzed. He stopped what he was doing and checked the communication display. It was Maine. 

He said to Sun Mao, "I have a friend who's also a giant lion beast master. I've asked him to come over. Can he come in?" 

Sun Mao looked at the giant lion beast, which was about to rise after Xie Sen's hand left his hand, and said hurriedly, "You clean its wounds. I'll have someone bring it in." 

Xie Sen nodded, connected Maine's call, and asked him to come in with the people Sun Mao had arranged. After a moment's thought, worried that he wasn't prepared, he said, "The Kes family is here too." 

Maine wasn't surprised at all: "Three powerful families have giant lion beasts as their contracted beasts. They'll all come when they hear the news." 

Xie Sen suddenly realized, and subconsciously lowered his voice: "The price of the giant lion beast is 20 million. You..." 

"Let's see the synchronization rate first. If it's high enough, I'll find a way." Maine didn't seem worried, and his tone was calm. 

Xie Sen breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good. Come on over." 

Xie Sen hung up the call, tended to the giant lion beast's wound, and was gathering up the medicine and bandages when a young man's voice, filled with amazement, came from the doorway. 

"Oh! That's so cool! I want it!" 

He turned around and saw a young man in a well-tailored black suit running towards Giant Lionmon. Behind him was a stern-looking middle-aged man and two burly bodyguards. 

The young man was about 5 feet 4 inches tall, with curly blond hair and delicate features. He resembled Maine, though a bit heavier, with a hint of baby fat on his face. 

He ran up to Giant Lionmon with an excited look on his face. As if sensing something, Giant Lionmon stood up from the ground, growling softly. 

The boy was not afraid. He jumped up and down and stretched out his hand to touch the giant lion beast, but was stopped by the serious-looking man: "Rui Luo!" 

"Father," the young boy Rui Luo withdrew his hand and stood still, turning his head to look at the approaching middle-aged man, "He is rejecting me, I can feel it, our synchronization rate is over fifty." 

The middle-aged man nodded: "Yes, before the contract is made, the high-level contract beast will reject all possible people who may become its beast master. It will only be willing to form a contract with the beast master who makes it obey." 

He paused and reminded: "Before making it obey, you must restrain yourself and not provoke it." 

Rui Luo nodded: "I understand, father." 

Sun Mao waited until the father and son finished speaking before stepping forward to greet them: "Lieutenant General Kes." 

Mile Kes nodded and praised: "It really deserves to be a gold medal. There haven't been A-level contract beasts on the market for a long time." He looked at the giant lion beast, "How is it?" 

"Great," Sun Mao's eyes lit up, "physical fitness, IQ, muscle strength, and toughness are all perfect. It just suffered some external injuries, which have been cleaned up and will recover soon." 

Meyer nodded with satisfaction and made a decision directly: "Arrange a synchronization rate test. As long as Rui Luo's synchronization rate with it exceeds 50%, the bond ceremony will be carried out directly." 

Sun Mao thought to himself that the calculation was very good. He wanted to form a bond quickly to avoid competition from beast masters with higher synchronization rates! 

He put on a standard smile: "The synchronization rate test is ready, but there are still a few giant lion beast masters who have not arrived. Please wait a moment, Lieutenant General Kes." 

"It's enough to test mine. I can form a bond with it!" Rui Luo said loudly. 

Meier also looked dissatisfied. Sun Mao smiled and explained, "The sales process for all contracted beasts is the same. The higher the synchronization rate, the stronger the combat power. Synchronization rate is even more important for high-level contracted beasts. According to regulations, we must choose the buyer with the highest synchronization rate among the bidders." " 

Brother Kes, don't be so impatient. I'll bring my little brat over to test it. If it's lower than yours, I'll just take him back." A cheerful voice came from the doorway. 

Xie Sen looked over and saw a dark-skinned, sturdy man with a tall, thin young man at his side. 

"Lieutenant General Yaben," Sun Mao greeted. 

"You guys are really well-informed. I rushed here as soon as I got the news, but I was still the last one to arrive." Yaben had taken a few steps forward when a gruff voice came from behind him. 

This time, it was a tall, muscular, yellow-skinned middle-aged man who entered, accompanied by a young boy. 

Sun Mao greeted again, "Lieutenant General Qiao." 

After Lieutenant General Qiao took a few steps forward, another person walked in, but he said nothing and remained quiet. 

Xie Sen's eyes lit up, and he hurried to the door. The others, focused on the giant lion beast, hadn't noticed him. His sudden movement drew everyone's attention. 

"Father, why is he here? Did you notify him?" Rui Luo followed Xie Sen's direction and saw Maine, looking at Meier in disbelief, suppressing his anger. 

"No," Meier said in a deep voice, warning, "That's not how you should treat me." 

"Sorry, father, I'm just surprised," Rui Luo apologized, bowing his head. 

The other parents and teenagers exchanged glances, their expressions of anticipation mounting. 

"Maine," Xie Sen ran into Maine halfway. He looked at Maine, still dressed in black from that morning, his exposed skin bare of wounds. He smiled, "Were you in a hurry?" 

"Not bad," Maine said, looking ahead, his steps pausing slightly. Xie Sen looked at him worriedly, then changed the subject. "Manager Sun said the synchronization rate test is ready. Now that everyone's here, we should be able to start the test." 

Maine nodded, "Yes." 

"Why are you here?" As the two approached, Rui Luo stepped forward and loudly questioned Maine. 

Xie Sen rushed in front of Maine with dissatisfaction, "I notified him to come. He's the Lord of the Giant Lion Beast. Why can't he come?" 

Maine didn't expect him to block his way, staring at the top of his black hair in surprise. 

Rui Luo glanced down at him and said disdainfully, "Who are you? One of his female friends? You have terrible taste." 

"You're the female!" Xie Sen glared at him. "I'm his friend, and besides, my taste is a hundred times better than yours!" 

Rui Luo tutted, his lips curled up in a mocking look as he looked at Maine. "Friend? I didn't expect you to dare to make friends." 

Maine's face darkened for a moment, and Xie Sen frowned. 

"Rui Luo," Meier growled, giving Rui Luo a warning look. 

Sun Mao, seeing this, interrupted, "Everyone, please follow me. We'll do the synchronization test." 

He looked at Xie Sen and pointed to the upper left corner, where a square metal instrument stood. "Xiao Sen, take Giant Lionmon there." 

"Don't you have any gold medals left? You're letting him do this kind of thing. Don't let Giant Lionmon trample you to death later," Rui Luo scoffed. " 

Stupid kid," Xie Sen glared at him. Maine pulled his arm. "I'll go with you." 

"No need," Xie Sen smiled. "I'm fine. You follow Manager Sun."

Sun Mao smiled and said, "Only Xiao Sen can handle this. Master, come with me and prepare." 

Xie Sen approached the giant lion beast. Prodded by its master, the giant lion beast had been standing still until Xie Sen approached, looking down at him. 

Xie Sen jumped and touched its chin, then walked over to its front legs, hugged them, and gently gestured for it to move. 

The giant lion beast was clever and immediately understood his intention, following his force and moving to the position Sun Mao indicated. 

"Who is he?" Lieutenant General Yaben, who was waiting nearby for his son to be fitted with the device, looked at Sun Mao in amazement. 

Sun Mao smiled and said, "He's one of our employees. He has a very friendly personality, and all the contracted beasts like him." 

"So amazing?" Lieutenant General Qiao touched his chin. "In all my years, I've never seen such a docile, uncontracted A-rank contracted beast." 

Maine, who had already fitted the device, heard this and looked in Xie Sen's direction. The giant lion beast lay on the ground, and Xie Sen was stroking its mane. 

Lieutenant General Kes glanced at Xie Sen thoughtfully. "Is he the student who was trending on social media because of Dean Ma and Dean Mu?" 

As soon as he finished speaking, the three lieutenant generals exchanged glances, each seeing a mixture of speculation and surprise in the other's eyes. 

Maine saw this and frowned. 

After the four giant lion beast masters donned their testers, Sun Mao led them to the metal instrument next to the giant lion beast. 

He turned on the instrument, and a pair of footprints appeared on the ground in front of it. Sun Mao said, "Everyone, just stand where the footprints are. In ten seconds, you'll know your synchronization rate." 

The men exchanged glances, and Lieutenant General Qiao patted his son on the shoulder. "You go first." 

Ten seconds later, the instrument displayed the value: 50%. 

Lieutenant General Yaben's son was next, with a synchronization rate of 153%. Maine 

stepped forward, and Rui Luo immediately said, "I'll go first!" He quickly walked to the footprints, with a synchronization rate of 58%. 

He smiled and jumped aside, but when he saw Maine's synchronization rate was 60%, his smile froze. 

Lieutenant General Yaben laughed 

heartily and said, "Brother Kes is still the best." Although he didn't say it explicitly, everyone present understood that he was referring to the two people with the highest synchronization rates, both of whom were Meier's sons. Rui Luo gritted his teeth, pointed at Maine, and shouted, "He doesn't count. He can't even afford the price!" 

Sun Mao looked at Maine inquiringly. Maine said, "Can you give me a few days?" 

Xie Sen looked at him in surprise. Just a few days and he could come up with 20 million? 

"Didn't we say we have to choose from those who can afford the price? He can't even afford it like this!" Rui Luo was dissatisfied. 

Sun Mao ignored him and looked at Meier with embarrassment. The two people with the highest synchronization rates were both named Kes. If Meier agreed with Rui Luo and insisted that Maine couldn't afford the price and denied him the right to participate, even the gold medal would be helpless. 

Xie Sen couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong with giving him a few days? Do you have to pay the full amount right now?" 

Maine patted his shoulder and suggested to Sun Mao, "I can give you half as a deposit." 

"You have ten million? Where did you get all that money?" Rui Luo was shocked. He looked at Meier suspiciously, "Father, you..." " 

Shut up!" Meier's forehead vein throbbed. He looked at Maine and asked the same question as Rui Luo, "Where did you get the money from?" Maine 

lowered his eyes and didn't answer. Xie Sen only knew that he made his money hunting, but large supermarkets sold meat at ten star coins per pound. Selling it directly from hunting would definitely be cheaper. No matter how he looked 

at it, he couldn't possibly have saved ten million. Even if the ten million was all hunting, he couldn't tell anyone about it. Maine had left the city illegally! 

Rui Luo was silent for a moment before speaking again, his tone full of realization, "It must have been your uncle who gave it to you, right? I'll contact your uncle right now and forbid him to pay you. Even if you pay half now, you won't be able to pay the rest!" 

Maine said nothing, only looking at Sun Mao questioningly. 

Before Rui Luo could say anything else, Meier's communication buzzed. Everyone around him fell silent, listening to him explain the current situation. Then, with a "hmm," he hung up. 

As soon as he hung up, Rui Luo hurriedly asked, "Was that from Grandfather? What did he say?" 

Meier looked at Maine. "I'll arrange for Rui Luo to participate in this graduate league. Whoever ranks higher will form a bond with it." 

He paused. "If you win, the 20 million yuan fee will be covered by the Kes family." 

"Father!" Rui Luo complained. 

"That's what your grandfather meant," Meier glanced at him, then said to Sun Mao. "My assistant will pay the money later. Regardless of who wins, the bond ceremony will be held after League Nine. You'll take care of the Giant Lion Beast for the next few days. Let me discuss the cost with my assistant." 

"Okay," Sun Mao nodded. 

Several lieutenant generals left with their son. Xie Sen felt deeply distressed watching Maine's silence. He could have formed a bond directly! 

He looked up at Maine, pumped his fist, and said firmly, "We'll definitely win the championship. It'll be your contracted beast!" 

Maine stared at him for a moment, then suddenly smiled and couldn't help but rub the top of his head. "It's okay. Actually..." He lowered his voice a little, "Sixty percent, that's a bit low." 

He said helplessly, "But high-level contracted beasts are so rare. You're lucky to come across one with a 50% or higher rate. If you miss it, you might never see one again in your lifetime." 

Xie Sen's heart moved. He remembered that in the book, Long Teng and Maine both had extremely high synchronization rates with their S-level contracted beasts, both above 85%. That's why their combat power was so abnormal. 

His eyes fell on Maine's chest. Could Maine have misread the contracted beast pattern? 

"What are you thinking about in broad daylight?" Sun Mao patted his shoulder with his left hand, smiled ambiguously, and held his chin with his right hand and said, "That's right, it's unlikely for a small male like you to find a female, it's right to 

find a male!" "Don't worry, we don't discriminate against homosexuals," Sun Mao said, looking at Maine, "Xiao Sen has a good temper and is hardworking. Except for his infertility, he is much better than a female. You should consider him. He likes you very much. Just now, he wanted to tear the clothes off your chest with his eyes." 

Xie Sen was very upset and inexplicably embarrassed. He slapped Sun Mao's hand and said, "Manager Sun, don't talk nonsense. We...we are not gay." 

Maine's eyes fell on his slightly red ears, rubbed his fingers silently, and nodded seriously, "I will think about it carefully." 

Xie Sen glanced at him speechlessly, "Why are you joining in the fun!" He checked the time, "I still have an hour and a half to get off work, you go home first!" 

Sun Mao's eyes lit up, "Oh~ So you are already living together!" 

"Manager, I'm going back to the maintenance department. Don't look for me if you need anything in the future," Xie Sen said as he walked out. Sun 

Mao reached out and pulled him back, "Why are you still so angry? You're an incompetent employee. Forget about the maintenance department for now. Take care of the giant lion beast for the next two days. It's best to get it used to staying here. If it causes trouble while you're participating in the league, it will be troublesome!" 

Sun Mao had just finished speaking when the communication rang. After he answered it, he gave Xie Sen a few more instructions and left District 4. 

Maine said, "I'm free today. I'll wait for you after work." 

Xie Sen sat cross-legged on the ground, touching the giant lion beast's paw, and waved at him, "That's fine. You can get more familiar with it. I heard that even if the synchronization rate is sufficient, it's not easy to get it to obey the contract."

"Yes, that's the nature of beasts. They only submit to creatures stronger than themselves." 

Maine said as he sat down beside him, sizing up Giant Lionmon. He tilted his head in confusion, then followed Xie Sen's lead and reached out to touch Giant Lionmon's paw. 

Giant Lionmon raised his eyelids to glance at him, then narrowed his eyes again. 

"Huh," Xie Sen thought about what he had heard before and couldn't help but wonder, "Isn't it said that contracted beasts will reject those who might become their masters? It doesn't seem to reject you." 

"I find it strange too," Maine frowned, and after a moment's pause, he speculated, "Could it be because of you?" 

Xie Sen wasn't sure, but he was more inclined to believe that Maine had made a mistake with his contracted beast. 

He blinked, but couldn't resist his curiosity. He pointed at Maine's chest and said, "Can I see your contracted beast mark?" 

Maine's eyes changed slightly. He looked at him and whispered, "Do you know what you're talking about?" 

Xie Sen nodded. "Of course, I'm curious." 

Maine looked into his black and white eyes, and an inexplicable disappointment rose in his heart. He rubbed the bridge of his nose. "You've forgotten a lot of things. Don't say such things to others in the future." 

Xie Sen realized something was wrong. Before he could ask, Maine explained, "This is what a female says when confessing to a male. The beast mark is the symbol of a male. When a female makes such a request, it means she is attracted to the male." 

Xie Sen was stunned and waved his hands repeatedly. "I don't know... and I'm not a female. Even if I were to confess, I wouldn't say that!" 

Bah, what was he thinking! There were only men here. How could he possibly confess his feelings to others? 

Maine chuckled, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "So, how would you confess?" 

Xie Sen met his gaze, his heartbeat inexplicably quickening. He looked away, "Just say you like me!" He changed the subject, "Can I see? I'm curious." 

At this point, he suddenly remembered that he'd seen Maine undress! 

"No," he looked at Maine in surprise. "Are you actually a female? The last time you changed, there was no beast pattern on your chest." 

If they hadn't talked about this, he wouldn't have noticed anything was wrong. In his mind, no beast pattern was normal. 

Maine's lip curled, his voice low and dangerous: "Do you think I look like a female?" 

"No, no, no," Xie Sen quickly waved his hands away. "Curious, just curious." 

Maine said, "Haven't you noticed that your contracted beast pattern doesn't normally appear? It only appears when you're emotionally intense or when you're deliberately controlling it." 

Where did he even have a beast pattern? 

Xie Sen chuckled dryly, "I didn't notice." He looked at Maine expectantly, "Can I see it?" 

Hearing Maine's explanation, he grew increasingly convinced that Maine might have mistaken his contracted beast. The beast mark was on his chest, not normally visible, so it was likely he hadn't seen it clearly. 

Flying Lionmon and Giant Lionmon had similar names and looked alike. He still remembered the description in the book—Flying Lionmon was a lion with wings. 

Maine hesitated for a moment, then lifted his shirt and quickly removed his pullover T-shirt. His skin was pale, yet not frail. His muscles were solid, and he looked incredibly powerful. 

Xie Sen stared at his chest. Gradually, a roaring lion's head emerged from the center of Maine's pale chest. The lion's eyes were fierce, and Xie Sen, simply looking at the beast mark, imagined a lion's roar, powerful and fierce. 

Xie Sen examined it for a long time, but couldn't see any difference from Giant Lionmon. 

Could the wings be white, obscured by the skin? 

Xie Sen pondered this, leaning his hands against the ground and bringing his head closer for a closer look. 

Maine's body subconsciously tensed. Xie Sen was so close, Maine could even feel his breath. Every breath on his skin tickled, as if it passed through his skin and into his heart. 

Seeing Xie Sen getting closer, Maine couldn't help but reach out and grab the back of his collar. Just as he was about to pull back, a surprised voice came from the door. 

"Sorry to bother you. Please continue!" The intruder was shocked at the scene of a shirtless man throwing himself into the arms of another. 

Why did Asen's posture look like he was sucking... 

Stop! The intruder put the food bucket he was carrying by the door and said quickly, "Xiao Sen, this is food for the giant lion beast. Remember to feed it before leaving work." 

The words were still ringing when he disappeared and the door was firmly closed. 

Xie Sen was stunned by his fast-forward-like movements. When he came to his senses, he realized something was wrong. How did he get so close to Maine? 

He glanced to his left. Why was Maine's hand on his shoulder? A hug? 

"You..." He looked up in surprise, his forehead brushing against Maine's chin. 

Maine lowered his eyes to look at him, pinched his collar and pulled it back slightly. Xie Sen instantly realized that he had just misunderstood and stepped back with a red face. 

Maine's eyes swept across his red face: "You are too close. Did you see clearly? If you see clearly, I will put on my clothes." 

"I see clearly." Xie Sen nodded awkwardly, but thinking about the beast pattern that was no different from that of the giant lion beast, he couldn't help but show a puzzled expression. 

"Is there a problem?" Maine saw that his expression was wrong and asked while putting on his clothes. 

Xie Sen thought for a moment, then asked, "Could it be possible for two contracted beasts to have the same markings? For example, Giant Tigermon and Flying Tigermon, or some other tiger-like beast?" 

"No, each contracted beast's markings are unique, at most they're similar." Maine, hearing his question, probably knew what he was thinking. "Are you suspecting I made the wrong contracted beast because Giant Lionmon doesn't reject me?" 

Xie Sen rubbed the back of his head and laughed. "I just like to imagine things." Maine 

laughed. He loved Xie Sen's wild speculations; it made him feel warm. No one else had ever done that for him. As 

he smiled, his mind suddenly flashed back to Rui Luo's mocking expression when he said, "You dare to make friends?" He lowered his head, his smile gradually fading. 

Xie Sen didn't notice. He stood up and patted his pants. "I'll get the food. It was injured earlier, and I don't know if it's hungry." 

Xie Sen walked to the door and looked at the wooden barrel that could be used as a water tank. A look of helplessness filled his face. He tried to lift it, but it wouldn't work. So he pulled it backwards, slowly dragging it. 

"I'll do it." Maine walked over to him and patted his shoulder. 

Xie Sen released his grip and watched enviously as Maine lifted the barrel with ease. He quickly followed, letting Maine place the barrel next to the trough. Once Maine had it steady, he used a large pair of tongs to lift the meat into the trough. 

Maine grabbed his wrist and said, "Stop, I'll do it. You step back a few steps." 

Xie Sen obeyed immediately. Maine grasped the lower end of the barrel and lifted it with all his might, emptying the entire contents into the trough all at once. 

Xie Sen's face was filled with admiration. This boyfriend power was off the charts! He gave Maine a thumbs-up. "Great! If you worked here, we could save a lot of staff in the feeding department." 

Maine smiled. Xie Sen ran over to Giant Lionmon, ruffled its mane, and pointed at the trough. "Are you hungry? Go eat something." 

Giant Lionmon tilted its head and nuzzled his hand, then stood up and went to the trough to eat. 

"Are you very popular with the contracted beasts?" Maine asked.

"Yes, I have a high affinity, and I like them, too." Xie Sen smiled, looking at the giant lion beast tucking into its meal. Thinking of Sun Mao's words, he frowned. "If it refuses to submit, there are ways to force it to form a pact with its master, right?" 

"Yes," Maine said. "I won't force my contracted beasts. A master who can't make their contracted beasts submit isn't worthy of forming a pact with their contracted beasts." 

Xie Sen's brows relaxed. "That's very kind of you," he looked at the giant lion beast worriedly. "If you don't form a pact with it, it will be Rui Luo's turn. If he can't make the giant lion beast submit, he'll force it." 

"Are you confident you can win?" Maine asked with a smile. 

"Of course," Xie Sen's eyebrows lit up. "You, Long Teng, and Bai Jiao are recognized as the strongest team in the forum. 

You're definitely going to win." "Then don't worry. I'll make it submit," Maine said with exceptional confidence. 

Xie Sen shrugged helplessly. He felt something was wrong. It didn't make sense that everything should be exactly as written in the book, but Maine's contracted beast was wrong. 

Maine was silent for a moment before speaking again, "Do you really like browsing forums?" 

"Not really. I usually check them out when I have questions, looking for answers." Xie Sen couldn't help but laugh as he thought of the neat responses on the forums. "You're universally recognized as the strongest team, but they all think you can't team up. I'm really looking forward to their reactions when they find out you're teaming up." 

"We'll see tomorrow," Maine said. "Tomorrow, team registration closes, and the team rosters will be announced. Prizes will be distributed according to the rosters." 

After he finished his explanation, he looked at Xie Sen and said, "They should have listed the reasons why we won't team up. Did you see that?" 

Xie Sen thought of Maine's words, and his smile faded slightly. He looked at him sincerely, "Don't worry about it. People can't choose their own background. It has nothing to do with you." 

He smiled and gestured, "They don't understand you. You're amazing, better than anyone I know. You're good-looking, a good fighter, and you can make money. You're organized, and you're kind!" 

Maine stared at him for a long moment, chuckled, and whispered, "I hope you'll always think that way." 

Xie Sen blinked and quickly said, "As long as you stay like that, of course I'll always think that way!" 

No dark transformation, no alien beasts attacking Brandt Star. 

The two chatted casually, and soon it was time to leave work. Xie Sen asked Maine to wait for him at the door while he swiped his card. 

Along the way, he noticed his colleagues looking at him with subtle expressions. He glanced down at his clothes, nothing amiss. 

He swiped his card in confusion, and Sun Mao suddenly appeared from behind him, patted his shoulder and gave him a thumbs up: "Great, you got it so quickly, but you have to know how to be moderate, and pay attention to the occasion and time. Just restrain yourself when you are at work." 

He smiled teasingly: "You are living together anyway, you can do whatever you want at night." 

Xie Sen was confused at first and had no idea what he was saying. After hearing the last part, he finally understood. He grabbed Sun Mao's arm and said through gritted teeth: "What nonsense are you talking about? I said he and I are just friends." 

"Do I look like a fool?" Sun Mao pointed his index finger at himself and shook it from side to side. "You should use this to comfort children. Now everyone in the company knows that you were having sex with a handsome guy on the grass in District 4 during working hours." 

Xie Sen's voice was almost gritted: "Everyone?" 

"Yeah, there's solid evidence," Sun Mao laughed, patting him on the shoulder. "Don't worry, the brothers won't laugh at you. They're all praising you. You look like a female, but you're actually quite aggressive and straightforward!" 

Xie Sen covered his face. "What the hell? Nothing happened, what are you talking about?" 

He let go and gritted his teeth. "What's the name of the guy who delivered food to the giant lion beast? Tell me, and I promise I won't kill him!" 

Sun Mao shook his head. "The company forbids internal fighting. You look so peaceful, but I can't tell you. Just be thick-skinned. What's the big deal?" 

Xie Sen looked at Sun Mao's smiling face and felt the urge to hit his boss. He waved goodbye and trotted to the door. 

"Did someone bully you?" Maine said coldly, seeing his frustrated and angry expression. 

Xie Sen looked up at him, feeling both embarrassed and amused at the thought of the rumors. He couldn't help but laugh. "No one bullied me, it's just that I seem to have accidentally ruined your reputation." 

"Mine?" 

"Yeah," Xie Sen coughed lightly, a little embarrassed. "Someone saw me looking at your beast markings, and they misunderstood us doing... and spread the word." 

A smile flashed in Maine's eyes. "It's okay, I don't mind." 

Xie Sen thought to himself, he really is too thin-skinned. Two grown men, what's the big deal about a misunderstanding? 

However, the next day, he still felt very uncomfortable when his colleagues teased him, surprised him, praised him, and teased him. 

At lunch, he ran into Yang Shun, who was as gentle as ever. They ate together, and Yang Shun didn't make a single joke during the meal. Xie Sen was moved to tears. 

After finishing their meal, as they were about to separate and return to their respective lounges, Yang Shun said with concern, "I sent you a website. I thought you might find it useful. Since you're a male, you need to be more careful than us females." 

Xie Sen returned to the lounge, puzzled. What did he need to be more careful about than females? 

He opened his bracelet and clicked on the link Yang Shun had sent him, then frowned. 

Lubricant, condoms, aftercare cream... what on earth were all these things? 

How could he possibly use them? 

Xie Sen's face flushed as he deleted Yang Shun's message and all his web browsing. Then he opened the school forum. 

Upon entering, he saw a trending post with a flame logo floating at the top. "Shocking! They've teamed up!" 

He clicked on it. On the main page was a list of league team members. One group, highlighted in bold red, stood out. It was their group. 

"I can't believe it! Aren't they just going it alone?" 

"I'm curious, how did Xie Feicai get in there?" 

"Didn't anyone notice these guys were isolated? I guess they're just banding together for warmth." 

"Maybe it's just to win the championship? The other three are incredibly capable. After Xie Feicai's suicide attempt and awakening his mimic beast, his abilities are incredible. He won his match against Ah Meng so quickly and easily, he seems quite capable." 

"Then we're done. Forget about the championship." 

"The person above is really dreaming. You dare to dream of the championship?" 

"I'm so curious now. I want to know how strong Xie Feicai is. It feels like he's teaming up with the three of them." 

"Plus one, I'm curious too. With Long Teng's personality, he must have fought him before. Since he's teaming up with him, he must have recognized his strength." " 

The more you talk about it, the more I feel Xie Feicai is unfathomable." 

Xie Sen couldn't help but laugh. "Unfathomable!" Are your imaginations just too wild? Teaming up with Long Teng doesn't require comparable strength; just knowing how to navigate is enough. 

After laughing, he chose to remain anonymous and replied to the comments: "Xie Sen beat Ah Meng in a sparring match and got first place in his major on the graduation exam. Can he still be called a loser? Those chatting on the forum are all top students in their respective departments on campus, right?" 

He sent a shy emoji: "I feel awesome hanging out on the forum with such talented people like you!"

After his reply was sent, the thread seemed to freeze for a moment. Originally, there were ten replies a minute, but after this one, it took two minutes for someone to finally reply. 

"I can't believe Xie Sen actually has supporters. Such a thick tone of sarcasm!" 

"Isn't being number one in the Botany Department a joke?" 

"...Am I the only one who thinks that makes sense? It's really not a good term to call him that now." 

"I think he's just Xie Feicai himself. Number one in the Botany Department means nothing. If they want someone to call him that, it's simple. Just go on the sparring stage and beat everyone who looks down on him. If they can't even beat Xie Feicai, then the name of "Waste" can be changed." 

Xie Sen snorted and replied, "So, Ah Meng, who has already lost to Xie Sen, will be called Meng Feicai from now on?" 

Ah Meng: "Who calls me that? See you on the sparring stage!" 

"Wow, Ah Meng showed up." 

Xie Sen had already posted the comment he wanted to make and saw his classmates' surprised reactions. He checked the time and realized he wouldn't have enough time to sleep if he didn't rest, so he closed the forum and took a nap. 

His afternoon duties continued with tending to the giant lion beasts, with only occasional visits to the maintenance department to help out. This slowed his energy collection considerably, leaving him with a total of only thirty-five by the end of the day. 

Returning to his apartment, he was just opening the door when Grandpa Longteng came over to return the lunch box. "Your cooking is excellent. It's so delicious. I've cleaned the box. I was busy yesterday and didn't return it to you in time." 

"No problem," Xie Sen said, taking the box and pushing the door open. The old man followed him inside. Xie Sen turned back and asked, "Is there anything else?" 

The old man smiled and said, "I have something to ask you. Sit down and talk." 

Xie Sen led the man into the living room, secretly suspecting he was going to ask how he'd snatched the potatoes, and was prepared to plead good luck again. 

However, the old man's words cut him off. He cut to the chase, "Where did you get your potatoes? I checked the buyers' information for the Fuyou Supermarket potatoes, and you're not on the list. The other buyers have no connection to you." Was 

there such a thing? Xie Sen asked in surprise, "How did you find the buyer's information?" 

The old man smiled and said, "I know the boss." He blinked and lowered his voice, "I originally thought you were a plant-type beast master, and your contracted beast was a pepper tree, but suddenly a potato appeared, and I was very confused." 

Xie Sen was not surprised by the old man's guess about his identity. The old man said a lot of suggestive words last time, and he knew at that time that the old man had guessed his identity. 

He spread his hands: "Just think of me as something I picked up on the street!" 

The old man was very perceptive; he knew he didn't want to tell the truth. He laughed heartily: "Aren't you trying to lie to me?" 

Xie Sen said helplessly: "Will it work?" 

The old man's eyes narrowed with laughter: "I'm only asking you this to try. It's normal to have some secrets. I came to you for something else." 

His smile faded, his expression becoming serious: "Currently, only wealthy supermarkets sell potatoes. Those potatoes are produced in the Botanical Research Institute's research lab. The yield is low, the size is small, and they don't taste as good as the potatoes you gave me." 

"I know Ma Qun and I have some knowledge of potatoes. They can be cut and cultivated. Can you give me a potato so I can take it to the Botanical Research Institute for research?" 

Xie Sen's heart fluttered. He actually wanted to grow potatoes, but with the league coming up, he didn't want to spend energy on them, and he hadn't found a suitable place to grow them. 

He had never seen exposed ground on Brandt Star. Even if the potatoes exchanged by the system were extremely resilient, they couldn't grow in stone. 

Seeing that he didn't say anything, the old man continued, "If you don't want to be exposed, I will keep it a secret for you." 

"What if they ask you where you are from?" Xie Sen felt that keeping it a secret was not very reliable. 

The old man smiled and said, "I brought it back from outer space. My family is an interstellar merchant and has discovered many new species.

It won't arouse suspicion." 

Seeing him say it so lightly, Xie Sen thought that he must not be an ordinary businessman. He thought for a moment: "I can agree to this, but if the cultivation is successful, you have to provide me with potatoes for free every week." 

This way, he wouldn't have to expend energy on eating potatoes, nor would he have to spend time growing them himself. 

"No problem!" The old man agreed without hesitation. 

Xie Sen returned to his room, exchanged one energy for a potato, took it in his hand, walked into the living room and handed it to the old man. The old man's face was full of joy. He turned the potato over and looked at it, and then leaned in to smell it. 

"This is much better than the ones cultivated by the research institute!" 

Seeing his expression, Xie Sen couldn't help but say: "If you eat it, it will be gone." 

The old man coughed dryly: "I still know the importance of things," he said, and stood up. Just as he was about to say goodbye, he thought of something, sat back in his original seat, and looked at Xie Sen expectantly, "Can I have a pepper too? " 

Xie Sen thought about it. The potatoes had already been given to him, and there was nothing to hide about the peppers. If they could really be cultivated, he wouldn't have to worry about food. 

He went back to his room and exchanged for a pepper. When he was about to pick it, he had an idea. After he went out, he didn't go to the living room, but went to the kitchen. 

When he came to the living room again, his eyes and nose were red, and he held a small paper bag in his hand. He handed it to the old man: "This is the seed of the pepper, which is just right for cultivation. Don't touch it directly with your hands, it's too spicy." 

The old man took the paper bag carefully, looking at Xie Sen with shining eyes: "Where is the rest? " 

Xie Sen raised his eyebrows proudly, smiling without saying anything. 

He thought that since he had to spend energy to exchange for peppers, he might as well make the best use of them. He ordered the peppers to keep the seeds and fry the rest into powder. He gave the seeds to the old man for research, and kept the pepper powder to make spicy dried meat. 

Fortunately, the pepper tree listened to his instructions, otherwise if he separated them himself, his hands would definitely be swollen from the spiciness. 

The league starts tomorrow, and it's a good time to make some spicy dried meat to take to eat. Food in the wild is too unstable. 

Even without him saying it, the old man could guess: "Are you going to make spicy dried meat? Sell me half a pound. I won't give it away for free, I want to buy it!" 

Xie Sen smiled, nodded and agreed: "I'll send it to you later. " 

The old man left contentedly. A short while later, Maine returned. Xie Sen asked him to take a shower while he went to the kitchen to make dinner. 

After dinner, he went to the kitchen to make spicy dried meat, a total of four pounds. He left half a pound for the old man and divided the rest into four food boxes. 

After packing, he sent the old man's half pound next door, then borrowed a backpack from Maine and put all the rest into the backpack. 

The next day, he took Maine's shuttle with his backpack and headed to school. 

The contestants were sent by the school to the southernmost part of Yuzhu Island. At ten o'clock, all the contestants set off together, their destination being the northernmost part. 

After arriving at school, Xie Sen was extremely excited: "I'm looking forward to meeting my teammates." 

Maine, wearing a black long-sleeved shirt and long pants, walked side by side with him, but he didn't understand his feelings: "You know them." 

Xie Sen said, "How is this different from usual? Besides, I haven't even spoken to Bai Jiao yet!" 

He paused and looked around: "Do you feel... that the way our classmates look at us is not right? " 

Main was not affected at all: "It would be strange if it was right." He was already used to all kinds of gazes. 

"Here!" As soon as they arrived at the playground, they saw Long Teng jumping and waving at them. Next to him stood a handsome young man with long white hair, Bai Jiao. 

When the four met, Xie Sen smiled and said to Bai Jiao: "Hello, I'm Xie Sen." 

Bai Jiao's voice was very clean and sounded very comfortable: "Hello, I'm Bai Jiao." 

"Haha," Long Teng laughed, "You two are too formal!" 

As he said that, he put his hand on Xie Sen's shoulder and looked at his backpack: "Grandpa said you made delicious food. Is it in the backpack?" 

Maine twisted his collar and pulled him away. Bai Jiao looked at Maine: "The situation is not good. Someone paid a high price to bribe many teams and wanted to stop us." 

Xie Sen frowned, and immediately thought of Rui Luo, and said unhappily: "Don't the organizers care?" 

Maine said: "This kind of thing is not easy to investigate. The organizers encourage contestants to set obstacles for their opponents." 

"What are you afraid of? Whoever comes will be beaten! "Long Teng jumped on the spot, his face full of excitement.

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