Between the player waiting area and the District B staging area was an aerial walkway, flanked by transparent energy shields. Walking along it, one could clearly see the surging sea of clouds below.
Liu Yi didn't take the elevator, choosing instead to walk slowly along the skybridge.
Few people chose the walkway; occasionally, contestants in various school uniforms hurried past.
Some recognized Liu Yi, glancing at her twice and whispering to their companions.
Liu Yi paid them no mind, her steps unhurried.
As she neared the entrance to the District B staging area, a boy wearing a Blazing Sun High School uniform walked towards her.
His expression was indifferent, and no pet accompanied him.
As they brushed past each other, he glanced at Liu Yi, his gaze calm and devoid of any particular emotion.
Liu Yi also looked at him.
On the chest of his uniform was the embroidered school emblem of Blazing Sun High School, and two bars on his shoulder strap indicated he was a second-year student.
She quickly recalled the information; this was the face from Shui Heyu's photo.
So, this was Shui Heyu.
Neither of them stopped; they simply passed each other by.
Entering the District B staging area, Liu Yi glanced back.
Shui Heyu's back had already disappeared at the end of the skybridge, his steps unhurried and as composed as before.
Ziyue squatted at her feet, also looking back, and let out a cry.
“Bingbing?”
“It's nothing,” Liu Yi said, retracting her gaze. “It's today's opponent.”
Ziyue's ears twitched, and a hint of fighting spirit flashed in her eyes.
Chiying floated from her side to the front, its crimson eyes fixed on the direction Shui Heyu had departed, its tail gently swaying.
“Mo?”
Am I going first today?
Liu Yi nodded. “Yes, Chiying will go first.”
Entering the District B staging area, Liu Yi found a spot to sit. After observing for a while and confirming there were no hidden mechanisms or sudden acceleration settings, her gaze turned to the large screen in the center of the waiting area.
The screen was broadcasting matches from other districts. She glanced at it, found nothing of particular interest, and then closed her eyes to rest.
Time passed minute by minute.
At 4:50 PM, the broadcast in the District B staging area began.
“Contestants for Battle Zone 1 in District B, please proceed to the teleportation point. Repeat, contestants for Battle Zone 1 in District B, please proceed to the teleportation point.”
“Contestants for Battle Zone 2 in District B, please proceed to the teleportation point. Repeat, contestants for Battle Zone 2 in District B, please proceed to the teleportation point.”
“Contestants for Battle Zone 6 in District B, please proceed to the teleportation point. Repeat, contestants for Battle Zone 6 in District B, please proceed to the teleportation point.”
The broadcast in the District B staging area continued, urging contestants from various Battle Zones to proceed to their teleportation points as quickly as possible. Liu Yi rose from her seat.
Ziyue and Chiying voluntarily returned to her Beast Taming Space, their silver-blue and ink-black forms transforming into streaks of light that merged into her body.
Upon entering Battle Zone 2 in District B, Liu Yi was about to step onto her maglev skateboard to ascend into the air, intending to quickly survey the layout of the entire Battle Zone.
Then she paused slightly.
Across from her, someone was already there.
Shui Heyu stood on the lowest floating island, his maglev skateboard hovering beside him. He didn't step onto it but instead kept his hands in his uniform pockets, looking slightly upwards at the higher floating islands.
Beside him was a Blazing Feather Eagle.
The eagle was entirely covered in golden-red feathers, and the flight feathers at the tips of its wings were translucent orange-red, like glass dipped in lava and then cooled and solidified.
It wasn't flying, but rather crouched at the edge of the floating island, its sharp eyes scanning every surrounding island.
It was already surveying the terrain.
Shui Heyu noticed the light of the teleportation and turned his head.
His expression remained unchanged; he simply gave Liu Yi an indifferent glance and a slight nod, a gesture of greeting.
Liu Yi nodded back in response.
There were no superfluous pleasantries or pre-match probing. The two stood opposite each other, separated by five staggered floating islands, with only the faint hum of the energy shields and the whistling of high-altitude winds sweeping past the edges of the islands filling the air.
Liu Yi stepped onto her maglev skateboard, not ascending too high, only two or three meters above the highest floating island.
From this vantage point, the staggered distribution of the five floating islands became even clearer: from the highest plum blossom-shaped island to the lowest leaf-shaped island, there was a drop of nearly thirty meters, with no connections between them.
This terrain favored Flying-type pets, but was a natural disadvantage for Ground-type pets that required a foothold.
Shui Heyu remained on the lowest floating island, not ascending. He raised a hand to recall his Blazing Feather Eagle to his Beast Taming Space, then unhurriedly stepped onto his maglev skateboard, rising to Liu Yi's height.
“Battle Zone 2 in District B. National High School League, First Stage, Second Round, Match Two: Liu Yi of Tianqi Beast Taming High School versus Shui Heyu of Blazing Sun High School.”
The mechanical voice echoed throughout the entire Battle Zone.
“Match rules: Each side may send out two pets for 1v1 battles. The match ends when both of one side's pets are incapacitated.”
“Both sides, please release your first pet.”
Liu Yi didn't hesitate. Chiying was summoned from her Beast Taming Space, hovering steadily above the highest plum blossom-shaped island, its crimson eyes calmly fixed on the opponent across from it.
At the same time, a golden-red figure leaped out from Shui Heyu's Beast Taming Space, landing at the edge of the lowest leaf-shaped island.
It wasn't the Blazing Feather Eagle.
It was a massive lizard, about 1.6 meters long, its entire body covered in black and red scales, with a back ridged like a volcanic spine.
Its four limbs were thick and strong, its claws deeply embedded in the floating island's surface, leaving several shallow scorch marks.
Most striking was its tail, which ended in a retractable volcanic structure. It was slightly open now, with orange-red molten lava flowing out, dripping onto the island's surface with a 'hissing' corrosive sound.
The Molten Blast Lizard.
Chiying hovered in the air, its crimson eyes watching the heat-spewing lizard below. The Molten Blast Lizard also raised its head, its amber vertical pupils fixed on the ink-black dragon shadow in the sky, a low rumble emanating from its throat.
Shui Heyu stood on his maglev skateboard, his hands still in his uniform pockets, his expression unchanged. He simply looked up slightly, glanced at Chiying hovering high above, then lowered his gaze to the Molten Blast Lizard at his feet.
“Both sides' first pets confirmed. Match start!”
The moment the mechanical voice faded, the Molten Blast Lizard made its move.
It didn't immediately spew flames like most Fire-type pets at the start. Instead, it slammed a claw onto the floating island's surface.
The edge of the floating island slightly indented from the impact. The Molten Blast Lizard used the force to leap, not pouncing towards Chiying, but jumping towards the slowly rotating floating island to its right.
It adjusted its posture in mid-air, its four limbs landing precisely on the edge of that floating island, while its tail's volcanic structure suddenly opened.
A mass of orange-red molten lava shot out, tracing an arc in the air, heading straight for Chiying!
This sequence of movements was smooth and fluid, with almost no pause between the leap and the projectile launch.
Rate on N.U.
