Beast Taming: Starting From Zero

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1:02 AM.

The moonless night was accompanied by a strong wind.

Qiao Sang shifted positions as she lay there.

Despite the wind, lying on the Fire-type pet beast kept her completely warm.

With no need to wake up early for school, she found herself increasingly absorbed in her phone.

It wasn't just her; Everyone in the Invincible Shengshui group was wide awake.

[Wang Yao]: My task giver this time is an adorable, soft-spoken young lady. Her voice is sweet, and she's also a great artist. You guys would be so jealous.

[Wang Yao]: You're just jealous.

[Shi Gaofeng]: Ha! My task giver is a 6’3” guy with an eight-pack and speaks very eloquently. Now who's jealous?

[Qiao Sang]: Didn't you take on a task related to fat absorption? How could that guy have an eight-pack?

[Wang Yao]: Hahaha, Qiao Sang, you totally exposed him.

[Shi Gaofeng]: I’m not lying. That’s what he looks like in his social media photos!

[Wang Yao]: So, you haven’t seen him in person?

[Xu Yajie]: You still trust photos these days?

[Shi Gaofeng]: …

[Shi Gaofeng]: Just wait till I meet him tomorrow and take a photo. Sure, you can photoshop abs onto a face, but not the real thing!

[Qiao Sang]: You better watch out. What if his abs are a result of fat absorption, and he needs your help to maintain them? If things go wrong and he ends up with only seven abs, you might get a bad review.

[Shi Gaofeng]: …

[Wang Yao]: Hahahahaha, there's a real possibility! Sculpting abs through fat absorption is way harder than just absorbing fat.

[Xu Yajie]: Brother Shi, I can already foresee your tragic ending.

[Shi Gaofeng]: ...I’m out. Goodbye.

Qiao Sang smiled as she read through the group chat. But her mood changed with the latest message.

[Wang Yao]: By the way, Qiao Sang, did you meet your task giver today? What’s their personality like?

Qiao Sang pursed her lips and typed out a reply.

[Qiao Sang]: It was an elderly lady. She seems kind, especially toward her granddaughter and pet. Her personality seems nice.

After sending the message, Qiao Sang put down her phone, her thoughts drifting back to her current task.

If she didn’t encounter the Ghost Lamp tonight, she’d have to call Mr. Jiang in the morning to speak with the old lady’s granddaughter.

Something just felt off about her taking the Ghost Lamp out at that hour.

And how could the old lady not suspect that the Ghost Lamp’s disappearance might be linked to her granddaughter?

Qiao Sang found it hard to believe. Even she, an outsider, felt it was odd for the Ghost Lamp to be taken out at that hour. There’s no way the old lady hadn’t noticed something strange.

“Xun.”

The small Little Treasure, who had been playing with a coin using telekinesis, suddenly dropped it.

The coin rolled on the ground with a loud clang.

In the dead of night, the sound echoed sharply.

“What’s going on?” Startled, Qiao Sang sat up halfway from the Yabao.

“Yap…”

Yabao muttered in his sleep, unaffected by the noise.

“Xun…”

Little Treasure tilted his head toward the courtyard lights of the neighborhood.

It was late at night, and though the sky was dark, the courtyard lights remained on, casting their usual glow.

But then, one light in the far distance flickered.

Then, from the farthest point to the nearest, each courtyard light began flickering.

The eerie scene appeared abruptly and vanished just as quickly. Once every light had flickered, everything returned to normal.

Qiao Sang shivered at the sight. A cold breeze passed through, and though she had been perfectly warm in the soft fur, she now felt a chill run through her entire body.

“Yabao, Yabao.” She shook Yabao gently.

Wake up, please… Without him awake, she felt so vulnerable...

“Yap…”

Yabao, drooling, shifted to a more comfortable position in his sleep.

Qiao Sang: ...

“Xun!”

At that moment, Little Treasure positioned himself protectively in front of Qiao Sang, scanning their surroundings warily.

Qiao Sang was deeply moved by the sight of his small figure standing guard.

Little Treasure, it really has to be you!

She got off Yabao and looked around the empty courtyard.

The West Ying neighborhood was an old, rundown area with sparse greenery, neglected by property management, and manned by an idle security guard. The whole place felt dilapidated and desolate.

Qiao Sang cautiously observed her surroundings.

The cold wind, the flickering lights, and Little Treasure’s behavior all hinted that something was wrong.

Could the Ghost Lamp have returned?

If that were the case, she might relax a little, since pets with owners typically wouldn’t attack humans without reason.

But what if this eerie atmosphere was caused by a wild pet beast?

Little Treasure tensed, his golden eyes scanning each courtyard light.

His nose twitched slightly. The scent of death was strong...

It quickly locked onto a direction, under the second courtyard light on the left.

Little Treasure hesitated, turning to inform his Beast Master. But he was conflicted.

Speaking in this quiet environment would surely alert the creature. What if it became prepared?

“Little Treasure, did you notice something?” Qiao Sang asked, seeing it fixated on one spot.

Little Treasure blinked, and Qiao Sang immediately understood.

In the next instant, Little Treasure vanished, reappearing under the second courtyard light on the left.

He stuck out his tongue and licked the air about 10 centimeters outside the lampshade.

Qiao Sang froze. She didn’t expect Little Treasure to move so swiftly.

Target acquired. Instant teleportation. Precise tongue strike. It was all executed flawlessly, like a seasoned pro, not a baby just over a month old.

Suddenly, a pet beast resembling a glass lampshade appeared in midair where Little Treasure had licked.

It had yellow eyes, long, swaying arms, and a broken right arm at the lamp’s support.

Its left arm, meant to be symmetrical, was almost entirely gone, leaving it even shorter than the right.

The blue flame that once burned brightly within the lamp was now so faint it seemed ready to disappear at any moment.

Holy crap! It’s the Ghost Lamp!

Qiao Sang’s eyes lit up with excitement. She had found it on the very first day!

Though the Ghost Lamp's left arm didn’t match the old lady’s description exactly, the broken right arm was undeniable.

With ghost-type pet beasts being rare in the city, and it appearing here at this hour, it was almost certain this was the one that had gone missing.

As for the red fingernail-sized mark on its head, it was too high up to see clearly.

But in the next second, Qiao Sang became 100% certain this was the Ghost Lamp.

Because it fell from the air, its head turning to reveal the unmistakable mark.

Qiao Sang froze, unable to believe the Ghost Lamp had collapsed so easily.

Even if Little Treasure’s paralyzing lick had worked, it shouldn’t have gone down so quickly. The Ghost Lamp was, after all, a mid-tier pet beast…

Looking at the dimming flame inside its lampshade, Qiao Sang suddenly understood.

It was the wick core...

A crystal emitting a faint, ghostly light fell from the Ghost Lamp’s body.

The Ghost Lamp’s already weak body froze, losing interest in the Little Ghost that had attacked it, or the nearby human.

It tried to rise but seemed weighed down by invisible stones, preventing it from moving.

The Ghost Lamp’s eyes locked onto the crystal lying on the ground ahead of it. Using its long arms, it began to crawl slowly toward it.

So close, so close...

But in the next second, a hand picked up the crystal.

It was the human!

The Ghost Lamp’s body trembled, its internal flame flickering violently. It lifted its head.

A hand opened before it, revealing the ghostly crystal in its palm.

"Here."

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