"By the way, Big Thighs…” Fang Sisi started to say something.

“Can you stop calling me Big Thighs?” Qiao Sang interrupted her.

“Then how about I call you Beautiful Thighs?” Fang Sisi suggested.

Qiao Sang: “…”

Under Qiao Sang's deadly glare, Fang Sisi finally changed her tone, “Qiao Sang, have you already contracted a pet beast?”

No newly awakened Beast Master could resist the temptation to contract a pet beast as soon as possible.

Qiao Sang nodded without denying it.

“So, you…”

Just as Fang Sisi was about to continue asking, the noise in the classroom abruptly quieted, as if someone had pressed the mute button.

Looking up, she saw that it was the homeroom teacher who had arrived…

In the next second, Fang Sisi’s face turned pale.

Oh no, oh no, she hadn’t finished copying her homework!

“We’ll gather on the playground in five minutes,” The homeroom teacher said, glancing in Qiao Sang's direction after speaking.

Wencheng Junior High School’s over 4,000 students and 300 teachers were all gathered on the playground, forming a dense crowd.

“Why is the entire school here?” Fang Sisi, standing behind Qiao Sang, poked her with her finger.

“No idea.” Qiao Sang replied.

Since the third years were in the middle of intense preparations for exams, they generally didn’t participate in morning assemblies with the first and second years.

Even when the school called for a gathering, there were always one or two classes that were exceptions.

Qiao Sang glanced up at the stage and saw that all the top school officials were present, including the principal, vice principal, and head of teaching.

This was a rare occurrence at the usual morning assemblies.

Principal Chen Yongfeng was on stage, giving his usual old speech. Every time he spoke at an assembly, it was the same few lines, nothing new.

Qiao Sang felt bored and didn’t pay any attention to what was being said on stage.

After ten minutes, the sound of thunderous applause filled the air, and Qiao Sang instinctively joined in.

A petite figure from the third year walked onto the stage.

“Respected teachers, dear students, hello everyone, I’m Dai Shushu from Class 9 of the third year. It’s an honor…”

What Qiao Sang thought would be an ordinary assembly turned out to be a personal commendation ceremony for Dai Shushu.

Qiao Sang had never interacted with Dai Shushu, but she had heard plenty about her from others and knew a bit about her.

Dai Shushu came from a poor family and was the only student in the school receiving financial aid.

She had been the top student for three consecutive years and was later self-awakened and recommended to a Beast Master high school. She was the typical inspirational figure.

“What’s the point of being recommended? With her family situation, can they even afford a pet beast?” A boy standing to Qiao Sang’s right said sarcastically.

“Neither of her parents are Beast Masters, so how did they manage to have a self-awakened Beast Master as a child?” Someone else remarked.

Qiao Sang was a bit surprised. With the development of the Beast Master society, people had long realized that the children of Beast Masters were more likely to become Beast Masters themselves.

The higher the level of the Beast Masters, the more likely they were to have children with high innate abilities.

Conversely, if both parents were ordinary people, the chances of their children becoming Beast Masters were only 2%.

Even if ordinary people had a slight chance of producing a Beast Master, the odds of producing a self-awakened one were incredibly slim.

Qiao Sang’s curiosity was piqued, and she started paying closer attention to the speech.

“This opportunity to be recommended to Shengshui High School wouldn’t have been possible without the help of my teachers…”

Qiao Sang’s eyelashes twitched.

Both she and Dai Shushu were self-awakened, and now, with Shengshui High School in the picture, it was hard for Qiao Sang not to compare herself to her.

The comparison left her feeling a bit disheartened, and she quickly lost interest in listening.

Back in the classroom, Qiao Sang focused solely on her studies.

As a third-year student approaching the high school entrance exams, all the coursework had already been covered, and now it was all about reviewing and doing practice papers.

[Over 3,000 years ago, disaster struck: earthquakes, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, and other cataclysmic events plunged the world into an apocalyptic state. Which Beast Master stopped this catastrophe?]

[A. Chen Jiading]

[B. Sen Xiaoman]

[C. Wang Wenyu]

[D. Wang Yao]

Qiao Sang had seen many questions like this over the past few days. The chaos that occurred over 3,000 years ago wasn’t a natural disaster but a man-made one.

It was Wang Yao who had used his pet beast to create the disaster. As an SS-level Beast Master, he had the power to alter nature itself.

With each awakening of the Beast Master’s codex, Beast Masters would gain some life force feedback from their pet beasts when they reached D-level, which would affect their lifespan and physique.

As their level increased, the feedback became stronger.

Unless directly attacked, it was difficult for them to be harmed by mere aftershocks.

Wang Yao, with his SS-level Beast Master physique, managed to break through the Alliance’s encirclement and even killed 223 Beast Masters, including 11 S-level Beast Masters.

Becoming an S-level Beast Master required at least a century of effort, and the Alliance suffered heavy losses.

Later, the SS-level Beast Master Wang Wenyu returned from Yantian Star and finally subdued Wang Yao, but in that battle, five of his long-standing pet beasts were killed.

After that, Wang Wenyu went into seclusion.

This question was easy to get wrong if you didn’t read it carefully.

This question had appeared in the last mock exam, and Qiao Sang had chosen D, not because she hadn’t read the question properly, but because she thought the pattern "three long, one short" was the answer.

This time, she changed her answer from last time.

“Qiao Sang, someone’s looking for you,” A girl sitting by the door called out.

Qiao Sang looked up and saw a girl in a faded school uniform smiling at her from the doorway.

“It’s Dai Shushu! Since when did you know her?” Fang Sisi asked in surprise.

Dai Shushu was a popular figure in the school, naturally attracting the attention of her classmates, and many heads turned to look.

“I don’t know her,” Qiao Sang said, equally puzzled.

She walked out.

“What’s up?” Qiao Sang asked, confused.

She was sure that her previous self hadn’t had any interactions with Dai Shushu. One was a top student, the other a low achiever, and they weren’t even in the same class.

With graduation approaching, she couldn’t think of a reason why Dai Shushu would want to talk to her.

“I’m here to apologize on behalf of my mother for what happened last time." Dai Shushu said.

She had a delicate appearance, and due to malnutrition, she looked fragile, as if a gust of wind could blow her away.

“What happened?” Qiao Sang raised an eyebrow.

“Didn’t your mother tell you? Last Friday, my mom said some unpleasant things to your aunt. There were teachers around at the time, so I couldn’t intervene. Did your mother go back home alright?” Dai Shushu asked in a soft voice.

Qiao Sang was silent for a moment before asking, “What did your mom say?”

Dai Shushu showed an apologetic expression.

“Just some harsh words. My mom didn’t mean it. Your mother also said some things.”

She paused, then added, “It’s just that the teacher saw they were about to start fighting and asked your mother to leave. I felt a bit guilty about it.”

Qiao Sang’s face was expressionless. “The teacher asked my mother to leave. What does that have to do with you?”

Dai Shushu smoothed her hair.

“The teacher wouldn’t have asked her to leave if it weren’t for me.”

“I see.” Qiao Sang said, then asked again,

“What exactly did your mom say?”

Dai Shushu lowered her head. She was already shorter than Qiao Sang, so with her head down, her expression was hidden.

“My mom said that your poor grades were because you lacked a father’s discipline and that you only awakened by sheer luck. She also said that with your mother being so fierce, it’s no wonder she got divorced.”

She looked up, her expression innocent. “So, did you really awaken on your own?”