The first round tested their attitude toward demon beasts and whether they could coexist peacefully with them.
The second round assessed loyalty—to become a Beast Tamer, not only must the demon beast be loyal, but the tamer must also be loyal in return. It’s a mutual bond.
So Chen Chang'an was curious—what would the third round be?
"You’ll find out when you get there."
The Beast Tamer from the Beast God Academy didn’t explain. Instead, he directly led Chen Chang'an to the location of the third test.
"Oh? Someone made it to the third round so quickly this time?"
"And he brought his own tamed beast? A dog?"
"Interesting, very interesting."
The Beast Tamer overseeing the third round found Chen Chang'an quite amusing.
It wasn’t unheard of for someone to bring their own tamed beast, but bringing a dog? That was a first.
"Kid, what’s your name?"
"Chen Chang'an."
"Chen Chang'an? Not a bad name. Why do you want to become a Beast Tamer?"
"Because it’s cool!"
Cool?
What kind of answer was that?
Just for the sake of being cool?
"And what do you plan to do after becoming a Beast Tamer?"
"Look even cooler!"
"..."
The Beast Tamer in charge of the third round gave Chen Chang'an a speechless look. This guy’s reasoning was absurdly simple.
"Got any other reasons?"
"Meeting the Beast God—does that count?"
Meeting the Beast God?
"Ha! Not bad, kid. I’d like to meet him too."
"Alright, you pass."
"Starting today, you’re an entry-level student at the Beast God Academy."
Huh?
What the hell?
The third round was just… small talk?
He thought the testing process here was sloppy, but this was downright ridiculous.
The Beast God Academy—the largest and most prestigious Beast Tamer academy in Beast God Province—recruited students this casually?
Then why did so many people fail to get in?
Could it be that most were eliminated in the first or second rounds?
"Confused?"
"Most people either fail the first or second round. Very few make it to the third."
"But most who do are too ambitious. Their reasons for becoming Beast Tamers aren’t pure."
"People like that? The Beast God Academy doesn’t accept them."
"But you’re different. You…"
The Beast Tamer glanced at Chen Chang'an. His motivation for becoming a Beast Tamer was refreshingly straightforward.
Cool?
Looking cool?
But damn if he wasn’t right—Beast Tamers were undeniably cool.
Chen Chang'an’s seemingly odd answers had struck a chord with the examiner.
Beast Tamers? All of them were cool!
"So, what about me?"
"Nothing. You’ve got good taste—Beast Tamers really are cool."
"Then can I meet the Beast God?"
"Pfft! Who doesn’t want to? It’s not something just anyone can do."
Hmm?
If it wasn’t something just anyone could do, then with the right approach… could it be done?
"So, there’s still a way to meet the Beast God, right?"
As he spoke, Chen Chang'an pulled out some spirit stones and handed them over—after all, these were still a valuable commodity.
Both Beast Tamers and demon beasts could make use of spirit stones.
"You think I’m the kind of person who’d betray the Beast God for a few spirit stones?"
"You’ve got the wrong idea!" The Beast Tamer’s expression darkened at the sight of the stones.
"Ah, come on, don’t put it like that."
"Is this betrayal? Is this selling out?"
"I’m just asking for a little information."
"Look, if it’s not enough, I can add more."
With that, Chen Chang'an doubled the amount of spirit stones, making the Beast Tamer’s eyes gleam.
Ahem!
"Well… when you put it that way, I suppose there’s some logic to it."
"Just asking for information?"
"Exactly! Just information. My admiration for the Beast God is as vast and unending as a mighty river—utter reverence!"
Hearing this, the Beast Tamer’s gaze toward Chen Chang'an shifted entirely.
Kid, you’ve got potential. You’ve got vision!
You’re a true believer of the Beast God.
While silently pocketing the spirit stones, the Beast Tamer gave Chen Chang'an an approving look.
After glancing around cautiously, he lowered his voice.
"Truth is, meeting the Beast God is incredibly difficult—but not impossible."
"If you become the headmaster of the Beast God Academy, you’ll qualify to compete for the position of Beast Taming Alliance Leader."
"Rumor has it that once a new Alliance Leader is chosen, they get an audience with the Beast God."
"And honestly, the headmaster of the Beast God Academy already represents the pinnacle of Beast Taming—both in strength and status."
"It’s practically the same as being Alliance Leader."
"So, if you become our headmaster, you’ll have a real shot at meeting the Beast God."
"Kid, I’ve got high hopes for you. You can do it. I believe in you."
"Maybe in a few hundred years, you’ll have a shot at becoming headmaster."
"Keep at it!"
A few hundred years?
What kind of nonsense was that?
"Is the headmaster really that strong?" Chen Chang'an asked.
"Of course! The headmaster is the current Alliance Leader."
"His tamed beast is a peak ninth-tier demon beast. You tell me—is that strong?"
A peak ninth-tier demon beast?
That was undeniably powerful. After all, a ninth-tier demon beast stood at the very apex of the demon beast hierarchy.
Da Huang was also a peak ninth-tier, but unlike ordinary demon beasts, he carried divine beast bloodline, making him even stronger.
"So, if I challenge the headmaster and win, I become the new headmaster?" Chen Chang'an asked.
"Kid, you’ve got some nerve. You think you can just challenge the headmaster like that?"
"And it’s not like just any powerhouse can challenge him. Otherwise, any random expert could waltz in and take over."
"You’ve got to be a top-tier Beast Tamer. Not only do you have to defeat the headmaster, but your tamed beast must also surpass his."
"Anyway, there’s no point telling you all this. You’re nowhere near ready to challenge the headmaster."
Nowhere near ready?
Chen Chang'an didn’t see it that way. Now that he knew how to meet the Beast God, he had a goal.
However, the Beast Tamer’s words also revealed another detail—not just anyone could challenge the headmaster.
There were qualifications involved, though he didn’t specify what they were.
"What’s going on today? It’s been so long, and no one else has come through?"
"Did everyone else fail the earlier rounds?"
"Kid, looks like you’re the only one joining this time. Congratulations."
"Come on, someone will show you around."
Chen Chang'an nodded. Since the Beast Tamer clearly had nothing more to say, he didn’t press further.
"Huh?"
"It’s you?"
To his surprise, the person assigned to guide him around was the old man he’d met when he first arrived in Beast God City—Little Qiqi’s grandfather.
"You joined the Beast God Academy?"
The old man was equally startled, never expecting such a coincidence.
"Yeah, just got in."
"Good. Follow me, then."
The elder gave Chen Chang'an a tour of the surroundings. As a junior disciple, his activity area was limited to the beginner's zone.
Here, there were many who had only recently joined the academy, and at this stage, they couldn’t yet be considered true Beastmasters.
Since Chen Chang'an came from outside the Beast God Province, his living quarters were in a separate, isolated area.
"In the Beast God Academy, there aren’t many outsiders among the junior disciples."
"Are there even ten?"
Chen Chang'an noticed that the area felt desolate, lacking any real signs of life.
"Probably. I don’t remember exactly. Occasionally, an outsider joins," the elder replied casually.
"Can an outsider become the academy head?"
Academy head?
Hearing Chen Chang'an’s words, the elder was visibly stunned.
This kid had quite the audacity—just joining the Beast God Academy and already eyeing the position of academy head?
"It’s not that easy."
"Can you win the respect of everyone?"
Win their respect?
What did that mean?