Chapter 8: Strength Test · Two (Second Update)
The moment Andy declared the battle started, Bai Li Yuan released Bulbasaur, Poliwag, and Oddish.
Andy and the Elders nodded at Bai Li Yuan's decisiveness; releasing his contracted Beasts the moment battle began was a wise choice and a fundamental quality a Summoner should possess.
However, their gazes were mostly fixed on the Elves Bai Li Yuan had summoned.
For a Summoner, the quantity and quality of contracted Beasts brought forth by the Emblem awakening are crucial; while they don't determine the Summoner's future, they can significantly impact the Summoner's early development.
An excellent contracted Beast can save a Summoner a lot of trouble and greatly enhance their strength.
Moreover, the contracted Beasts that appear with the Emblem can better reflect the Summoner's talent and power inclination, and a Summoner's future choice of contracted Beasts and team composition generally revolve around the first contracted Beast.
"Three of them?"
"Not bad, not bad."
The Emblem brought three contracted Beasts, proving Bai Li Yuan's talent was quite good.
"Two Wood-type, one Water-type; he'll likely follow the path of a Control-type or Recovery-type Summoner in the future," one Elder analyzed.
Wood and Water types are recognized as non-violent attributes, with Wood leaning more towards control and Water more towards recovery.
"However, these three contracted Beasts don't seem to be known contracted Beasts. Could they be Otherworld contracted Beasts?" an Elder raised an eyebrow.
The other Elders also observed the three Elves and finally nodded.
"They are indeed not known contracted Beasts."
"Haha, we've really found a treasure."
Contracted Beasts brought by a Summoner's Emblem are divided into two types: native, referring to contracted Beasts that exist in the local world's magical Beasts, and Otherworld, referring to those magical Beasts that come from an Otherworld!
Compared to native types, Otherworld contracted Beasts are more popular, regardless of their strength. This is because due to insufficient information, their specific strength and abilities cannot be determined. Enemies can only judge based on attributes and past experience, often allowing for the creation of unexpected tactics in battle.
Furthermore, compared to native contracted Beasts, an Emblem that brings Otherworld contracted Beasts has the chance to establish a channel connecting to an Otherworld. Through this channel, a Summoner can contract Otherworld contracted Beasts, obtaining more of them.
However, the operation involved requires the Summoner to perform it themselves. Some Summoners can easily open the channel connecting to the Otherworld within their Emblem, while others may never succeed in their lifetime, ultimately only being able to contract native contracted Beasts. Although native contracted Beasts are not weaker than Otherworld contracted Beasts, and some are even stronger, they are more easily targeted by enemies.
After all, having fought with magical Beasts from their own world for so many years, countless guides for common magical Beasts have been published. Just knowing a name can lead to several pages of targeted tactics. Of course, this situation doesn't include cases where rare magical Beasts are contracted.
"But these three contracted Beasts don't look like powerful contracted Beasts," an Elder questioned.
The other Elders were stunned, then realized. Indeed, these three contracted Beasts didn't look particularly aggressive; they seemed more like cute pets. Hmm, the frog-like contracted Beast was already licking Bai Li Yuan's face like a puppy.
"We can't judge by appearance. Let's observe during the battle," Andy said.
The Elders nodded.
Despite this, the Elders were somewhat worried, fearing that Bai Li Yuan's summoned contracted Beasts were truly just cute pets, which would mean his Summoner profession Emblem was useless.
After all, if contracted Beasts can't fight, can a Summoner personally engage in close combat?
"By the way, Dean, what magical Beast did you arrange for Xiao Yuan?" an Elder asked.
Andy showed a mysterious smile and did not answer.
At this moment, a hole appeared in the wall opposite Bai Li Yuan in the arena, and a beast's roar echoed from within, as if something was rushing out.
"Alright, everyone, stop messing around. Get ready for battle!" Bai Li Yuan said.
The three Elves nodded, forming a triangular formation to protect Bai Li Yuan behind them.
At this time, the attributes of the three Elves were as follows:
Bulbasaur: Grass/Poison, Level 6, Jolly nature, Overgrow ability, learned three skills: Tackle, Growl, Vine Whip, height 0.7 meters.
Poliwag: Water, Level 5, Hasty nature, Water Absorb ability, learned one skill: Bubble, height 0.6 meters.
Oddish: Grass/Poison, Level 3, Quiet nature, Chlorophyll ability, learned one skill: Tackle, height 0.5 meters.
Unlike the settings in "Replication," the Elves appearing in the real world have already awakened their abilities, unlike in the game where they need to evolve to their final state to awaken abilities, and the three Elves in the game still haven't awakened their abilities.
After all, these Elves are living beings!
Bai Li Yuan somewhat doubted whether, because these Elves had become true living beings, there would be more situations in the future that differed from the settings in "Replication."
However, he could only experiment later.
Roar!
A red figure rushed out of the hole, announcing its arrival.
This was a giant red wolf, estimated to be over a meter tall. Its pair of green vertical pupils glowed faintly even in daylight, and its exposed fangs and sharp claws proved its extreme aggressiveness.
"Bittong Hongran Wolf!"
"Its strength is almost reaching Tier 1!"
The Elders' expressions became serious, not because the Bittong Hongran Wolf was strong, but because compared to a newly awakened Emblem User, the Bittong Hongran Wolf was very dangerous!
The Bittong Hongran Wolf is a relatively common wild Beast. Yes, a wild Beast. The Bittong Hongran Wolf isn't even a magical Beast, but it is extremely aggressive. Just by its appearance, one can tell that the Bittong Hongran Wolf is not easy to deal with, and its speed is extremely fast, often jokingly called the "rookie killer."
What's more, this was a Bittong Hongran Wolf whose strength was about to break through to Tier 1, and Bai Li Yuan had only awakened as an Emblem User today. Even with the help of three summoned Beasts, the probability of defeating the Bittong Hongran Wolf was extremely slim.
"Isn't this a bit much?" an Elder looked at Andy with a displeased expression.
"This is a test, not an attack on Xiao Yuan. Arranging such a Bittong Hongran Wolf to fight Bai Li Yuan, isn't that just playing around?" another Elder said, his tone not good, even dropping the honorific.
"Dean, tell us honestly, do you have a grudge against Xiao Yuan?" an Elder looked at Andy seriously.
"Now that you mention it... I remember Xiao Yuan seemed quite afraid of the Dean. Dean, what exactly did you do? Even if you're still single and can't find a partner, you can't lay a hand on Xiao Yuan! He's still a child!"
Crack!
The chair in front of Andy shattered into pieces. Andy looked at the Elders with a "kind" smile.
"I naturally have my reasons. That child Bai Li Yuan is not as simple as he seems, and he looks unwilling to cooperate. Therefore, only a stronger enemy can truly test his real strength. That is my reason, understand?" Andy explained.
"So that's how it is." The Elders finally realized, and listening to Andy, they felt there was some truth to it.
"My hands have been itching lately. After Bai Li Yuan's test is over, let's have a practice match," Andy continued with a smile.
The Elders' expressions stiffened. Although they were Elders, in terms of pure strength, Andy could absolutely crush them. Otherwise, it would be impossible for her to reach such a high position at such a young age. One must know that the Dean of the Badge Academy's status was even above the City Lord's!
However, it was also because Andy was too strong that she encountered a major problem—she couldn't find a partner!
Those weaker than her she didn't fancy, and those stronger were too old. This was the awkward situation Andy was currently in.
Therefore, "can't find a partner" became Andy's minefield.
The Elders just remembered that they had accidentally "stepped on a mine."
And judging by Andy's tone, the so-called practice match would definitely not be as pleasant as they imagined!
However, before the Elders could refuse, Andy had already booked the battle arena, then looked at the Elders with a smile.
"The battle arena has been booked. The time is after Bai Li Yuan's match ends. Don't rush, one by one!"
The Elders' bodies stiffened, and a chill ran down their spines.
Whoosh—
It was as if the biting cold wind of winter's end blew across their spines.