A Level 4 Pet Space Device can absorb and slightly purify natural energy from the outside world, subtly accelerating the growth rate of spirit beasts within the Pet Space.
However, for some spirit beasts, this small boost is still far inferior to the natural world; for example, most Wood Attribute spirit beasts, like Lin Chuan's two little ones, are precisely like this.
Unlike animal-type spirit beasts, which only need good food and drink and sufficient natural energy, the growth of Wood Attribute spirit beasts is influenced not only by natural energy but also by soil, nutrients, and water, but most crucially, by natural sunlight, which contains a trace of solar energy not found in artificially simulated sunlight; this is an indispensable energy for the growth and development of many Wood Attribute spirit beasts.
Without solar energy, Wood Attribute spirit beasts can still grow, but they will likely suffer from stunted development, specifically manifesting as being smaller and thinner than other spirit beasts of the same type, with universally weaker foundational attributes like physique.
Of course, if one possesses a Level 5 custom-made Pet Space Device, that would be a different story.
By installing a restricted-item Solar Energy Gem inside the Pet Space and constructing a dedicated sunroom, it can substitute for natural sunlight.
Back to the main topic.
Lin Chuan's Guoguo and Sakura were already exhausted after half an hour of explosive long-distance running, barely able to move.
At this moment, what they needed was not growth and development, but rather a good rest to recover their physical strength.
In this way, being in the Pet Space would actually not be much worse than a natural environment.
Therefore, Lin Chuan put his two little ones into his Pet Space and entered the Tianshang Town Beastmaster Association by himself.
The deputy head of the security department, the Golden Sun Furry Dog named Jindapang, seemed to recognize Lin Chuan; it merely glanced at Lin Chuan from afar and did not come over for a detailed inspection, continuing to doze in its dog bed.
This was clearly dereliction of duty and slacking off; Lin Chuan thought to himself that even spirit beasts would slack off.
Well, it was just an internal complaint; Lin Chuan had no intention of causing any trouble while the deputy head was slacking off; he walked straight through the front hall and into the Beastmaster Association's work service area.
Arriving at the mission reception area, which consisted of 30 small cubicles arranged in three rows and ten columns, Lin Chuan went to the nearest unoccupied cubicle counter and consulted the staff member behind it.
"Hello, excuse me, are there any new member courier missions going to Qinghe City?"
Lin Chuan went straight to the point.
The staff member behind the counter was a young woman in her twenties, wearing large round glasses, giving her a somewhat dazed impression.
Hearing Lin Chuan's words, she couldn't help but take another look at him.
This period was graduation season for recent graduates.
New Beast Masters who fought in the Baby Cup to sustain themselves through battles were ultimately a minority; most new Beast Masters chose to proceed steadily, taking on new member missions to acquire initial funds for raising spirit beasts.
There were many types of new member missions, including but not limited to finding cats, catching dogs, and catching mice, and slightly more difficult ones included working as temporary sparring partners in the association's training area.
Among all new member missions, there was one type that was most popular among new Beast Masters; it was usually snatched up quickly as soon as it appeared, and these were courier-related missions.
Because these missions were the simplest and most mindless; even if one didn't know the way, they could just open navigation, enter the address, and follow it.
Although the reward for a single courier mission was small, as long as the delivery route was reasonably planned, taking on three to four courier missions at once would result in final earnings no lower than other new member missions, and the Beast Master points obtained would be slightly more, because even the lowest-level mission would grant at least 1 point, so taking three or four courier missions at once would yield 3 or 4 points per trip.
While missions like finding cats, catching dogs, and catching mice were also simple, if the cat to be found was hidden too well, and the new Beast Master and their contracted spirit beast were too clumsy—literally clumsy, for example, the cat was hidden on a beam directly above their heads, but they were blind and couldn't see it—there were too many cases where a whole day was spent without completing the mission.
Well, although courier-type missions were the most popular among new Beast Masters and were quickly taken whenever they appeared, they were also limited to regional scope; those in Tianshang Town would generally only take courier missions within Tianshang Town; cross-regional deliveries would not be worth it, as the round trip would be too inefficient.
Therefore, upon hearing Lin Chuan say he was looking for a courier mission to Qinghe City, the staff member, the young woman, took another look at him.
If it wasn't for some important personal matter that required a trip to Qinghe City, such as a sick relative.
Then, he must be a true genius Beast Master, for whom the small pond of Tianshang Town was no longer enough, thus seeking further development in Qinghe City and taking on missions there incidentally.
She wondered which of the two Lin Chuan was.
Curiosity aside, her professional ethics prevented the young woman from asking another word; she simply asked Lin Chuan for his Beast Master ID as per regulations, and after verifying that Lin Chuan was indeed a new Beast Master who had just graduated this year, she began operating her work computer.
Her fingers flew, typing on the keyboard.
Ten seconds later, a total of four new member courier missions bound for Qinghe City were filtered out.
One was a letter for an individual.
Two were goods to be delivered to a certain beast-taming store in Qinghe City.
The last one was a sealed box labeled 'Important Document' to be delivered to the Qinghe City Beastmaster Association.
Well, these so-called 'Important Documents' were fake; how could truly important documents be entrusted to a new Beast Master for delivery?
The 'Important Documents' were merely to add a bit of difficulty to the mission, telling new Beast Masters that this sealed box must not be touched, and if it was bumped or damaged in any way, the mission would be considered a failure.
Lin Chuan simply glanced at them and accepted all four missions.
Soon, a dedicated staff member brought over the four items Lin Chuan needed to deliver.
A letter, two black express packages, and the last 'important document' was in an insulated box; could this important document be some kind of frozen food? Lin Chuan wondered.
After confirming, Lin Chuan put all four items into his Pet Space and, through voice control, instructed Guoguo and Sakura, who were resting and recovering inside, not to touch these four items, especially the 'important document'.
Then, Lin Chuan left the Tianshang Town Beastmaster Association and set off for Qinghe City on his beloved bicycle.
Along the way, Lin Chuan constantly monitored the condition of his two little ones in the Pet Space.
When he saw that they had almost recovered, he would let them out to run alongside his bike, constantly giving them motivational speeches to make them burst with energy; once they reached their limit, he would recall them to the Pet Space to rest, and after a brief recovery, let them out to continue.
In this manner, Guoguo and Sakura were put through six rounds of this grueling training.
Finally, Sakura successfully leveled up by 1, from Level 15 to Level 16, or more precisely, Stage One, Level Six, putting her on par with Guoguo, while Guoguo was still a little short of reaching Level 17.
With Sakura's upgrade, Lin Chuan naturally received feedback energy.
However, Lin Chuan did not level up; he remained at Level 5, but the energy feedback still invigorated him, recovering much of the exhaustion from long hours of cycling.
At 4:30 PM, Lin Chuan arrived in Qinghe City.
Qinghe City, from its architectural style, didn't seem to have anything special.
It just had a few more tall buildings, a few more vehicles on the road, a few more people, and a few more various spirit beasts... …
Alright, the difference was quite significant!
Compared to Qinghe City, Tianshang Town truly felt like the countryside versus the city.
It was almost evening; I need to find a place to stay quickly, Lin Chuan thought; as for the delivery missions, there's no rush, they can be delivered tomorrow.
As for where to stay?
A regular hotel, a high-end hotel, or the Qinghe City Beastmaster Association's rented villa apartments.
Ultimately, Lin Chuan decided to stay at the Qinghe City Beastmaster Association's rented villa apartments.
Leaving aside other considerations, simply being close to the Beastmaster Association, with all basic training facilities readily available, was something ordinary hotels couldn't compare to; more importantly, the Beastmaster Association also had professional Beast Masters serving as part-time coaches, as well as sparring partners of various levels; as long as one was willing to spend money and points, they could receive guidance and enjoy a supreme experience.
At the same time, buying nutritional products and training tools was also very easy; the Beastmaster Association's internal trade area had all kinds of Beast Master department stores, and one could even call for a personal shopper to buy and deliver items.
With so many advantages, were there any disadvantages?
Of course there were!
There was only one disadvantage, and that was the cost! And it required consuming Beastmaster Association points.
The rent was about 50 times that of a regular hotel, costing 300,000 star rock coins per month, with a point consumption of 1 point per day.
300,000?
Isn't that too exaggerated? This monthly rent is almost catching up to the championship prize money of a small Baby Cup.
Not exaggerated! This price is actually nothing.
300,000 star rock coins is a huge sum for a newly graduated Beast Master, but for those who have truly embarked on the path of Beast Mastery and hope to become Professional Beast Masters, it's just a minor matter that can be earned by taking on two missions in their spare time.
Many Beast Masters who want to go further on the path of Beast Mastery and aim to become Professional Beast Masters basically rent an apartment long-term at the local Beastmaster Association.
Some rent for a year, or even ten years.
There are still two and a half months until the advancement assessment. Now that Guoguo and Sakura's foundations are almost solid, it's time for specialized intensive training. Specialized intensive training first requires specific nutritional products, then various venues and tools, and even sparring services. Therefore, renting a small apartment at the Beastmaster Association is a must; otherwise, if they rent outside, they would have to commute every day, which would be truly too troublesome.
Currently, Lin Chuan's Beast Master account holds a total of 2.33 million star rock coins.
Beast Master points: there are also point rewards for participating in new Beast Master competitions; 50 points for the champion, 30 points for the runner-up, and 10 points for the third place. Lin Chuan currently has 50 points in his account.
Considering the consumption of nutritional products and other items needed for future specialized strengthening, Lin Chuan planned to rent for one month first, and then decide on the remaining time later.
… …
Having made his decision, Lin Chuan no longer lingered, nor did he continue to gawk at Qinghe City like a country bumpkin.
Turning on his watch's map navigation, Lin Chuan prepared to cycle towards the Qinghe City Beastmaster Association.
Then, Lin Chuan suddenly choked; he realized he had miscalculated.
Lin Chuan had thought that cycling from Tianshang Town to Qinghe City would take a steady 6 hours, and he had indeed arrived, but the crucial point was that he had forgotten that the area of Qinghe City was more than ten times larger than Tianshang Town, roughly 30 times; the distance from the outskirts of Qinghe City to the Beastmaster Association located in the central area of Qinghe City was no shorter than the distance from Tianshang Town to Qinghe City.
Helpless, Lin Chuan had no choice but to put his bicycle into his Pet Space and then called Blue Feather Airlines.
Blue Feather Airlines.
This is a municipal enterprise of Qinghe City, supported by the Star Rock Federation official and jointly established by relevant breeding bases as an aerial spirit beast company.
Qinghe City has many local special spirit beasts not found elsewhere, among which is a spirit beast named the Blue Feather Eagle, and Blue Feather Airlines was established based on the Blue Feather Eagle as an aerial passenger transport company, providing convenience for local residents, and more so for tourists unfamiliar with Qinghe City, for their travels.
Simply put, it's the spirit beast version of an aerial ride-hailing service.
————
【Name】: Blue Feather Eagle
【Attributes】: Wind, Water
【Race】: Animal, Bird
【Racial Potential】: General (Lower Grade)
【Skills】: Ride the Wind, Tear Claw, Water Wing (Exclusive)
【Introduction】: Among eagle-type spirit beasts, it is a rare docile spirit beast, with an average wingspan of 10 meters, making it a very suitable spirit beast for aerial riding.
————
Lin Chuan logged into the relevant software and called for a Blue Feather Eagle air travel service.
After waiting for about 5 minutes, Lin Chuan heard the cry of an eagle, "Lii lii lii," from the sky; a huge eagle, primarily blue with black secondary colors, with a wingspan of about 10 meters and crystal-clear blue feathers on its head, circled in the air.
Lin Chuan waved to it, and the Blue Feather Eagle swiftly swooped down.
About three meters in front of Lin Chuan, the Blue Feather Eagle stopped abruptly, its massive wings stirring up a gust of wind that blew Lin Chuan back two steps.
"Lii lii~"
The landed Blue Feather Eagle called out twice to Lin Chuan, then lowered its head to peck at the small tag hanging on its chest, which was its employee ID.
————
Name: Lan Xiaojiu
ID: QHLYKC-188
Years of Air Service: 3 years
Riding Tips:
1. Passengers must fasten their seatbelts!
2. Passengers must put their contracted spirit beasts into their Pet Space; spirit beasts cannot be released during flight, even if they possess flight capabilities themselves.
3. During the flight, it is best to hold onto the handrails; if you wish to take photos or videos at high altitude, please inform the Blue Feather Eagle first, and it will appropriately slow down its flight speed to facilitate your high-altitude photography or videography.
【Special Attention】: Do not secretly pluck the Blue Feather Eagle's feathers during flight! Otherwise, once a crash occurs, you will be responsible for the consequences!
————
After carefully reading the employee ID of this Blue Feather Eagle named Lan Xiaojiu twice, especially the notes on it, Lin Chuan spoke to Lan Xiaojiu to confirm.
"I've read everything clearly. I will pay attention to the relevant matters."
Hearing Lin Chuan's reply, the Blue Feather Eagle responded with two "Lii lii" sounds, then slightly lowered its body to make it easier for Lin Chuan to climb onto its back.
A high-tech riding vehicle, similar to a saddle but also like a car seat, was installed on the Blue Feather Eagle's back, and there were two ring-shaped handrails near its neck.
With a light leap, Lin Chuan straddled the Blue Feather Eagle's back and fastened his seatbelt as required.
The method was complex; it wasn't as simple as just crossing the shoulder and waist like in a car; both shoulders and the waist needed to be buckled in, and smaller safety ropes also had to be attached to the calves and knees.
"Alright, let's go. To the Beastmaster Association."
"Oh, and can you fly a bit slower and lower? I want to take some photos and videos later, to show my contracted spirit pets the view from above."
Lin Chuan said.
"Lii lii~ !"
The Blue Feather Eagle nodded.
Then, it spread its wings and slowly flapped them, stirring up dust that blew in all directions.
Slowly, the Blue Feather Eagle carried Lin Chuan into the sky.