Chapter 74 – The Second-Year Senior

Lin Ze felt something was off the moment Guo Xinyi mentioned “senior sisters.”

When they arrived at the agreed-upon café and took a look—

Sure enough.

Three Second Year senior sisters were waiting for them.

The entire squad, apart from himself, was made up entirely of girls.

“Xinyi, over here!”

Spotting Lin Ze and Guo Xinyi walking into the café, one of the three—a girl in a white long coat, graceful and radiating youthful vitality—stood up and waved eagerly at Guo Xinyi.

Once they drew closer, the girl turned her smiling gaze to Lin Ze.

“So you’re Junior Lin Ze, huh? Hehe, just as handsome as the rumors say. Nice to meet you—I’m Liu Man.”

Lin Ze’s expression shifted slightly as he instinctively took a few glances at Liu Man.

After his Wager Duel with Luo Han, he had made a point of looking into the rankings of the Second Year students.

There was no way he wouldn’t know Liu Man, the Second Year runner-up.

She was a celebrated genius girl renowned throughout the Second Year—and indeed the entire Ningjiang Academy.

She was said to possess three Tier 5 Pet Beasts.

Her strength surpassed Luo Han’s by more than a notch.

Lin Ze had to admit that with his current power, unless he used Soul Arts and Burst Cards, he would most likely be no match for Liu Man either.

“Hello.”

Though countless thoughts churned through his mind, Lin Ze remained outwardly composed.

As he greeted her, he extended his hand.

But to his surprise, Liu Man didn’t shake it. Instead, she stepped forward and gave Lin Ze a direct hug.

The sudden move left both Lin Ze and Guo Xinyi momentarily stunned.

The other two senior sisters rolled their eyes, wearing helpless expressions.

Clearly, they were long accustomed to Liu Man’s antics.

It took several seconds before Guo Xinyi snapped back to her senses and blurted out:

“S-Senior sister!”

Liu Man released the hug with a giggle.

“Sorry, sorry—Junior Lin Ze just happens to be exactly my type. The moment I saw him, I couldn’t hold myself back.”

“Alright, Liu Man, stop teasing the juniors.”

At that, another senior sister rose to her feet.

She wore a deep green dress, revealing fair, snow-white shoulders.

Her demeanor was steady and composed, her delicate features carrying an intellectual air.

“Let me introduce myself—I’m Song Ting.”

The other senior sister gave Lin Ze a slight nod.

“Gu Lengyan.”

Unlike the lively Liu Man and the refined Song Ting, Gu Lengyan seemed rather cold and aloof.

Even when greeting, her face showed little expression—plain and indifferent.

Her voice, however, was quite pleasant, carrying an ethereal, faraway quality.

After the introductions, the five of them sat back down around the table.

Once they placed their orders and the waiter served the coffee, they got down to business.

“First, let me welcome Junior Lin Ze to our Exploration Squad.”

Song Ting smiled at Lin Ze.

“Junior Lin Ze’s strength surpasses that of many Second Year students. With you on board, I think we can attempt to enter the second ring zone of the Stone-Condensing Secret Realm this time.”

On the way to the café, Lin Ze had already thoroughly read through the intelligence on the Stone-Condensing Secret Realm listed in the document.

The moment Song Ting spoke, the relevant details immediately surfaced in his mind.

Different Secret Realms have different internal environments and forms.

The internal environment of the Stone-Condensing Secret Realm is, in essence, a vast underground city.

Based on the density and strength of Ferocious Beasts, it can be divided into five zones.

From the outermost fifth ring zone all the way to the deepest first ring zone.

The further in you go, the higher the level of danger.

Starting from the third ring zone, Tier 5 Ferocious Beasts begin to appear.

Teams without a Tier 5 Pet Beast could hardly move an inch in this area.

The second ring was even more dangerous—even Second Year students wouldn’t dare enter unless their entire squad was made up of elites.

Thinking about this, Lin Ze couldn’t help but glance at Guo Xinyi.

Liu Man went without saying.

Song Ting and Gu Lengyan were also elite students ranked in the top ten of the Second Year.

The former was fourth, the latter seventh.

Both possessed Tier 5 Pet Beasts, giving them ample ability to protect themselves even in the second ring of the Stone-Condensing Secret Realm.

But Guo Xinyi was different.

She only had a single Tier 3 Pet Beast.

With strength like that, even moving through the third ring would be a struggle.

Let alone the second ring.

Any Ferocious Beast there could tear her to shreds.

This was clearly a curse rather than a blessing for Guo Xinyi.

As if sensing Lin Ze’s confusion, Liu Man smiled and explained:

“Xinyi has a Wonder Item on her that will be a great help to our exploration this time. And with that Wonder Item, she can protect herself even in the second ring, so no need to worry.”

Lin Ze looked at Guo Xinyi in surprise.

But then he thought about it—Guo Xinyi came from a Beast Tamer family, and a direct-line descendant at that. It wasn’t unusual for her to possess one or two Wonder Items.

“We’ve already accepted the Secret Realm mission and obtained the entry permit. The time is set for tomorrow. How does that sound?”

Song Ting said, looking around.

Liu Man and Gu Lengyan had no objections.

Lin Ze also nodded.

He was eager to earn enough Resource Points as quickly as possible to exchange for the Ice Blue Tear.

Seeing this, Song Ting continued:

“Also, all gains within the Secret Realm will be distributed according to each member’s strength. Liu Man and Junior Lin Ze each get 25%, Gu Lengyan and I get 20% each, and Xinyi gets 10%. What does everyone think?”

No one raised any objections.

The distribution was quite reasonable.

“Alright, then it’s settled. We’ll meet at the stone tablet plaza at the main gate tomorrow at nine. Everyone should prepare their own food and drinking water.”

Song Ting made the final call.

After settling the details, the group chatted for a few more moments before going their separate ways.

Watching Lin Ze’s retreating figure, Liu Man walked up to Guo Xinyi with a grin, nudging her waist with her elbow and whispering with a chuckle:

“This exploration is a rare opportunity. You should seize it well.”

Guo Xinyi’s face flushed red. “What are you talking about, Senior?”

“Hehe, getting shy now? Anyone can see what’s on your mind.”

“Senior!”

Liu Man was about to say more when Song Ting grabbed her and pulled her away.

“Alright, you’ve never even been in a relationship yourself, so stop pretending to be the experienced one here. Let’s go—didn’t you say you needed to buy something?”

The group laughed and chatted as they left the café entrance.

Back at the apartment, Lin Ze saw Guan Ning standing at the door.

“Brother.”

Guan Ning came up to him.

Lin Ze patted the girl’s head and asked casually:

“Did you need something?”

Guan Ning smiled and nodded.

“I’m going to the wilderness for training with the seniors from my club tomorrow. It might take two or three days, so I wanted to let you know first.”

Going to the wilderness for training was very common for Beast Tamers.

Even students of the Beast-Taming Academy were no exception.

The relaxed curriculum at Ningjiang Academy took this into account as well.

Lin Ze wasn’t surprised to hear this and nodded to show he understood.

He also mentioned to Guan Ning that he would be going to a Secret Realm tomorrow.

When she heard that Lin Ze had joined Guo Xinyi’s squad, Guan Ning’s eyes widened in shock.

Damn it!

That guy actually used this method to get close to Brother!

What a miscalculation—if I’d known, I should have gone to the Secret Realm with him too!

A flicker of chagrin passed through Guan Ning’s eyes.