My Pet Beast is Super Fearsome
Chapter 514 - 513: A Great Battle!

Chapter 514: Chapter 513: A Great Battle!

As the opening of the National Cup drew near, high schools across the country that had qualified for the event began to converge on Imperial City.

In this edition, a total of 427 high schools had obtained the qualification to compete. The reason so many schools could participate was that certain regions had multiple qualifying spots.

Don’t ask why the Yundu Region only had one spot. If you do, it’s because the Yundu Region is simply too small and too weak.

For instance, in the city cluster of the Shang-Zhejiang Region, several cities rank among the top few in Daxia and are even internationally renowned. Their qualification contests are battles between gods, so it’s obviously unfair to give them just one spot.

As for Imperial City, the central city of Daxia, it’s even more exaggerated. Imperial City itself has 98 high schools, nearly half of which are able to obtain participation spots. Go figure who you could complain to about that.

At noon in Imperial City, the sun fiercely scorched the earth, and there wasn’t a trace of wind in the air.

Shao Zifeng sat in his car, looking at the West City bus terminal not far away.

Although there were more than 400 participating schools, the well-developed transportation system in Imperial City didn’t make it feel crowded at all.

At that moment, the West City bus terminal was even somewhat deserted, which couldn’t compare to the bustling scene they had witnessed in Yundu City during the competition.

Speaking of which, the support teams from various high schools need to be mentioned. Because the National Cup was held in Imperial City, not everyone was in a position to come here to support their teams.

So aside from the well-off Shang-Zhejiang Region and the fan clubs from the Jiangnan Region, the majority of schools that made it here were met with quiet and sparse crowds.

It makes one wonder whether those students who are used to being big shots on campus could handle this drop in attention.

About an hour later, two custom luxury midibuses emblazoned with Su City University’s logo entered the terminal, one after another. In reality, these competition vehicles could have driven straight to the hotel, but this was Imperial City after all.

For safety reasons, these outside vehicles were only allowed into the city center after passing an inspection and obtaining a permit, which was why they had Shao Zifeng come early to pick them up.

When he saw familiar figures disembarking from the midibus, Shao Zifeng also hurried out of his car and waved to them.

"Captain!"

"Big Brother Shao!"

Casar, Li Yiming, and a few others spotted Shao Zifeng and excitedly ran over, waving their arms.

Afterward, Shao Zifeng’s gaze turned to the second vehicle.

It was clear that Su City University had spared no expense for this competition, not only renting custom luxury midibuses better suited for long-distance travel but also sparing no detail in staffing. Four accompanying Beast Doctors, two nutritionists, and several casually dressed staff members—all those who had helped him prepare the beast nutrition meals before—were among them.

Oddly, he couldn’t spot the figure of Bald Qiang anywhere, which puzzled him.

"Big Brother Shao, what are you looking at?" Li Yiming came to Shao Zifeng’s side, following his gaze.

Just as Shao Zifeng was about to reply, a figure suddenly rushed over and gave him a big hug.

That exceedingly ordinary face flashed by in an instant.

Big Brother, who are you?!

He was a bit stunned and just about to pull the person off him when Li Yiming gently shook his head nearby.

Li Yiming quietly stepped forward, raised his right hand, and Shao Zifeng could see it was written in small letters:

Question: "XX, do you still remember me?"

Answer: "Hu Shiwu, how could I not remember you."

Afterward, Li Yiming gave a thumbs up and nodded at him.

At this moment, the big brother who had been tightly hugging Shao Zifeng suddenly released him, grasping his shoulders tightly: "Captain, how did you remember me?"

"Do you know how happy I was when I saw we had five tickets?"

"Wuwu, even my mom doesn’t remember me."

Yikes!

Big Brother, this question is way off the mark!

Why doesn’t it match the standard question format at all?!

"Anyway, the ticket I mentioned was an open ticket I swapped for myself; you might have misunderstood something," he said.

At this moment, Casar, Xiang Nan, and a few others also came over, wearing expressions that relished the drama unfolding before them.

Shao Zifeng’s mind whirred rapidly, and in the end, he decided to take a gamble.

He put his hand on Hu Shiwu’s shoulder and said earnestly, "Shiwu, how could I ever forget you?"

Hu Shiwu was stunned.

The hand gripping his shoulder trembled slightly, and his eyes began to well up. He looked at Shao Zifeng with a "deep affection," saying, "Captain... could you say my name one more time?"

Shao Zifeng, with a forced composure, replied, "Hu Shiwu."

"Ah~"

Hu Shiwu closed his eyes blissfully upon hearing his name spoken by Shao Zifeng again, appearing to savor some lingering memory, though the expression on his face was a bit cringe-inducing.

Shao Zifeng pried off his hand and discreetly took a step backward.

"Captain."

Casar greeted Shao Zifeng with a shy smile. Perhaps it was because he had just returned from the Pamir Plateau; his face had regained its high-altitude flush, and his skin had tanned significantly.

Shao Zifeng gave him a friendly punch in the chest, saying, "The eagle of the Pamir Plateau."

Casar scratched his head bashfully, and judging by the unstoppable smile on his face, it seemed that he had succeeded this time.

Next was Li Yiren; this was Shao Zifeng’s first time meeting her. She wore a floral dress and had her soft long hair casually draped over her shoulders, looking like a quiet and gentle girl.

Assuming her personality would be similar to Li Yiming’s, Shao Zifeng was surprised when she confidently extended her hand first, saying, "Captain, nice to meet you. You can call me Yiren or Little Yi."

Shao Zifeng looked at her in surprise: "Hello, you can call me captain, or like Yiming, call me Big Brother Shao."

"Then I’ll call you Big Brother Shao," said Li Yiren with a grin, showing no hint of awkwardness.

Last was Xiang Nan, who was still dressed entirely in black, making his skin appear abnormally pale.

"Long time no see, my friend."

Xiang Nan displayed a trace of discomfort and, in a tsundere-like manner, turned his head away.

While they were chatting, a long-legged lady accompanied by others approached, giving them a beaming smile.

"I hope I’m not disturbing your reunion," she said before turning to Shao Zifeng, "Hello Shao, my name is Yu Xiaoyu, and I’ll be the acting coach for this event. This is Teacher Sun, our team doctor, and this is Teacher Tang, whom you should know, our school’s chief nutritionist."

"I hope we can all work together in the coming period and communicate promptly if there are any issues."

"Hello Shao," she added.

After she finished speaking, the staff members each greeted Shao Zifeng in turn, all very cordially.

Shao Zifeng looked around curiously and asked, "Isn’t there a Tactical Analyst?"

Actually, he was more curious about where Bald Strong had gone but thought it inappropriate to ask directly in front of others.

Yu Xiaoyu explained, "The principal said that since this honor was secured by you, you’re to make the decisions regarding all matters related to the competition, except for some necessary items."

Impressive.

Principal Hu Zhongwei really trusted him, granting him such considerable authority.

In truth, for the school, a Tactical Analyst acts as a check on the captain, because without such restraint, some captains might make misjudgments during official competitions due to youthful impetuousness.

But it was also for this reason that many assertive captains didn’t get along well with their Tactical Analysts. Perhaps Hu Zhongwei considered this factor and decided to give Shao Zifeng the full authority to make decisions.

After a brief contemplation, Shao Zifeng said nothing more. He checked the time and spoke to the group, "It’s getting late. I’ve made a reservation at a restaurant; let’s go have dinner."

"After all, it’s been so long since we’ve met, we must have a big battle after eating!"