Chapter 4: Chapter 4 “Taotie

There are a total of three cafeterias at Azure Dragon Middle School, with each grade’s Beast Taming cafeteria being separate.

The cement floor was slightly damp, high-speed ventilation fans operated at the top of the walls, and low walls formed fenced enclosures. Attached to the walls in the enclosures were food pipes, with a bathtub-sized large iron basin underneath.

This was also jokingly referred to by many students as the “feeding trough.”

In front of each “trough position” was a photo of a student attached, along with their name and class.

It felt as if it wasn’t the beasts being fed, but rather them.

In the central area of the cafeteria hall, there was a giant scale positioned on the ground, six meters in length and three meters in width, using gravity sensing.

Chen Xing picked up an iron basin from the side, placed the little crocodile in it to queue up, and soon it was his turn. A woman wearing an apron, mask, and hat operated the display screen in front of her with practiced ease.

She quickly pressed a few buttons, then took the iron basin and placed it on the giant scale, tapped a few more times, and a slip of paper printed with a QR code issued from the machine beside her. She then tore off the QR code and, together with the iron basin, handed it to Chen Xing.

After receiving the iron basin, Chen Xing used one hand to lift the little Salty Bay Crocodile out, pinched the slip of paper with two fingers, and while following the large group, placed the iron basin on a nearby shelf.

Returning to his own “trough position,” he scanned the QR code paper with a “beep” over the scanner.

A buzzing sound came from the pipe in front, and shortly after, a whole bunch of food slid down the smooth-lined tube.

Plop~

A lump of deep yellow meat paste-like mush dropped into the feeding basin.

Having become used to the eating routine here over the past few days, the little crocodile, cradled in Chen Xing’s arm, couldn’t help but wriggle its four legs at the delightful and pleasing sound of tasty food dropping into the basin.

Chen Xing placed the little crocodile into the large iron basin, clatter clatter clatter clatter clatter~

The hard little claws moved swiftly in the basin, making a crisp sound, and as it walked, its tail swayed non-stop.

It opened its maw and took a bite! Aroo!

(●’◡’●)

A quarter of the mush was gone.

Aroo! Another bite.

(˃⌑˂ഃ)

Only half remained.

Aroo, aroo.

And then it was gone.

This speed of scarfing down food was breathtaking.

After finishing its food, the little crocodile frantically ran around, its nose constantly sniffing, trying to find more food nearby.

But alas, there was no more.

Each day’s meals in the cafeteria were dispensed according to the weight of the beasts; the heavier the weight, the more beast food from the cafeteria per day.

It’s not to say that the fuller they eat, the better. Salty Bay Crocodiles have a feedback mechanism in their body; eating too much at once would cause their bodies to instinctively slow down the digestive speed of the stomach and intestines, storing a large amount of energy inside.

Many reptiles have similar instincts, and to break free from these instincts, they must evolve into higher life forms, overcoming the limitations of their species.

Before that, the best method is to take advantage of its instincts.

“Oh~” The little crocodile couldn’t find food, and it urgently called out to Chen Xing.

It clearly smelled the rich scent of food in the air, so why was there no food?

Chen Xing couldn’t help but laugh, picking it up.

This was the cafeteria, surrounded by little Salty Bay Crocodiles eating. The smell of food in the air was naturally strong.

“You’re like a glutton, just like Taotie.”

Hm? Why did he suddenly think of that name? Taotie seemed to be the name of an auspicious beast from a dream… right? An auspicious beast, right?

Chen Xing couldn’t quite remember; although it had only been a few days, many details from the dream had been forgotten, leaving only some vague outlines.

After all, how could one remember every detail from a dream, no matter how deep the impression it left?

Thinking of this, Chen Xing looked at the little crocodile. He hadn’t named it yet, and calling out “suck suck suck” all the time wasn’t great. It would be awkward if the little crocodile ended up thinking its name was “suck suck suck.”

And surely he wouldn’t be the only one calling “suck suck suck.”

In the future, calling out “suck suck suck” in a public place? If all the beasts on the street turned to look simultaneously, it would be quite a sight to see.

To avoid such an embarrassing situation, “Then you’ll be called Taotie.”

That name should be rare, and there shouldn’t be a chance of having the same name as another.

“Taotie, suck suck suck.”

“`

…

The afternoon was the Beast Taming Common Knowledge class.

“Quick, back to your seats, it’s Teacher Parrot’s class!”

Taotie was looking around when Chen Xing pressed a finger to its forehead to anchor it.

The sound of leather shoes outside the door gradually became clearer, and the teacher in charge of the Beast Taming Common Knowledge class, Zhang Chunlei, strode into the classroom. Zhang Chunlei was not tall, standing just over 1.6 meters, but his eyes were very sharp. He wore a plain gray Zhongshan suit, with a book clipped to his right waist and a thermos in his left hand. On his nose perched a thick pair of black-frame glasses, and on his shoulder sat a colorful parrot, its hues striking a harmonious contrast against the gray.

“Take out the quiz papers from the day before yesterday, I’ll go over some of the commonly mistaken questions.”

A shrill voice came from the podium; the parrot on Zhang Chunlei’s shoulder opened and closed its beak, its large eyes watching the students in the classroom. If anyone dared to slack, the crest of feathers on the parrot’s head would stand on end, and with a piece of chalk in beak, it would flutter overhead, dropping a chalk bomb as a warning to any student who became distracted.

The students in the classroom were used to this. On the first day of school, Zhang Chunlei had written on the blackboard with chalk that his vocal cords had been injured and he couldn’t speak, so during class, his Beast Taming Phoenix-Crested Parrot would speak for him. This was an advanced technique for a Beast Tamer, who could communicate with their beast through thoughts.

“Let’s look at the second multiple-choice question.”

The Phoenix-Crested Parrot flew overhead, shouting loudly; no one dared to drift off during Teacher Parrot’s class because the parrot’s eyes were sharper than a camera—they missed no small movement.

On the podium, Zhang Chunlei took the chalk and wrote the first question on the blackboard with sharp, definitive strokes.

Tap tap tap tap, chalk dust fell from the edge of the blackboard.

(8) Beast Taming cultivation is divided into four major stages, which are ( ).

1. Growth Stage, Transcendence Stage, Evolution Stage, Ascension Stage

2. Growth Stage, Evolution Stage, Transcendence Stage, Ascension Stage

3. Growth Stage, Transcendence Stage, Ascension Stage, Evolution Stage

4. Growth Stage, Ascension Stage, Transcendence Stage, Evolution Stage

“Ascension is the final step; it can only be in the last major stage, so you should choose between options one and two. Many students don’t understand the difference between the Growth Stage and the Evolution Stage; this is a point of confusion. The Growth Stage is the natural growth phase of a beast; if nothing untoward happens in the middle, any beast can grow from youth to maturity simply by following a routine.”

Zhang Chunlei drew a horizontal line to underline and highlight ‘Growth Stage’ and ‘Evolution Stage’ respectively.

“The Evolution Stage is a transformation; nearly all known beasts have an upper form they can evolve into, and most beasts have more than one possible evolutionary form. Some beasts may even evolve differently depending on whether it is day or night, resulting in significant differences in their post-evolutionary form. There’s a specialized field of study in universities dedicated to beast evolution, and those interested can apply for related majors. Discovering a new evolutionary form of a beast can be a significant fortune. And the Evolution Stage is the next major stage after the Growth Stage.”

“When beasts naturally grow to their limit, the energy they can store inside their bodies reaches this limit. To increase this limit, they must choose to evolve to expand their upper limit. Scientists have discovered that over vast eons, all life has been evolving, including humans; the evolution of beasts simply condenses this lengthy evolutionary process into a very short period of time.

After beasts evolve, the Energy Level Limit inside their bodies also increases, and when the Energy Level inside the beast reaches 100, they then choose Transcendence.

“`

Whether it’s Transcendence through bloodline, Fleshly Transcendence, or Transcendence in the soul aspect, they are all different paths of choice, so the answer to this question is 2.”

Chen Xing’s deskmate, Zou Minghan, suddenly raised his hand to ask, “Teacher, what is the Ascension Stage? The book doesn’t go into detail, it just mentions that this realm exists.”

Zhang Chunlei pushed up his glasses, “The teacher doesn’t know much either, it won’t be on the test.”

After hearing Zhang Chunlei’s words, the students were somewhat disappointed.

Sitting behind Zou Minghan, Wang Qiming said in a low voice, “The last time I went to dinner with my dad, I heard other people talking about the Ascension Stage possibly being related to gods in the legends of the Exotic Region.”

“Hey, do you know what that god looks like?” Zou Minghan turned around with curiosity, since Wang Qiming’s family could afford custom nutrition drugs for him, they must be well-off, and he certainly knew more.

“I’ve never seen it. The most impressive thing I’ve ever seen is our Security Bureau Chief’s Beast Taming creature, a Transcendence Stage Beast Taming creature. Just standing there made my calves go weak.”

Thud.

Two pieces of chalk descended from the sky and landed precisely on the heads of Zou Minghan and Wang Qiming.

“No talking without raising your hand during class!” The crested parrot warned as it flew in a circle above their heads.

Being reminded in front of the whole class, Wang Qiming’s face flushed red and Zou Minghan quickly turned back and lowered his head, not daring to speak.

Once Zhang Chunlei left the classroom after class, the classroom buzzed with activity again.

Wang Qiming took out his Beast Taming creature from his drawer; his Salty Bay Crocodile was much bigger than those of many classmates, well-developed with a head that seemed like a tiger’s, much larger than other crocodiles, already starting to shed the appearance of a crocodile juvenile.

“Wow, your Beast Taming creature is so big, with this rate of progress, you could make it into the top ten of our grade in the monthly test,” Gao Jianqiang said as he came over with his own crocodile, sounding envious, but discreetly showing off his own not-so-small Beast Taming creature.

Since the Beast Taming creatures were distributed, those without means could only eat the food provided by the school, while those who could afford it would have meals prepared at home.

“Your crocodile seems pretty big too!” Zou Minghan said enviously, his family’s financial situation was average, and they couldn’t offer much support; he had to rely on himself to nurture his Beast Taming creature.

Hearing this, a smile involuntarily appeared on Gao Jianqiang’s lips, but he remained modest, “It’s not as exaggerated as that, it just grew a little after drinking a few bottles of common nutrition serum. Your creature is bigger, old Wang, I’m definitely behind you in the ranking.”

“If he could be in the top ten, then your Beast Taming creature could probably also be in the top fifty.”

“Making it to the top ten is not that simple. In the first monthly test of the first year of high school last year, the top ten students all had at least Level 5 Beast Taming creatures that had mastered a skill. To get into the top ten, you have to not only break through to Level 5 but also learn a skill.” Li Zhixuan, seated in front of Chen Xing, spoke without turning around.

Hearing this, the few who were just chatting looked at each other and fell into a brief silence.

Especially Wang Qiming, who had just tested his Beast Taming Level the night before, it was only at Level 3.

With only fourteen days until the monthly test, to break through to Level 5 in that time and also spend time mastering a skill was definitely a great challenge.