"Lubao is less than a year old?"

Qiao Sang felt her mind go blank.

Wasn't it already seven years old, almost old enough to be mounted on the wall? How could she suddenly regress to such a young cub?

With a bewildered expression, Qiao Sang stammered, "But… Lubao told me she was seven years old. How could that be?"

It wasn’t that she doubted the vice principal's judgment, but who would know better about its age than the creature itself?

Lubao wouldn't lie about being older, unlike the Little Treasure.

Before Liu Yao could answer, Lubao was already displeased.

"Lu lu!"

"Lu lu!"

Lubao first looked at Qiao Sang in confusion, then indignantly protested.

She never said she was seven years old!

Not once!

Qiao Sang hesitated.

"Didn’t you show me seven claws the last time?"

"Lu lu!"

"Lu lu!"

Lubao angrily held up seven short claws and protested again.

She meant seven months!

Seven months!

Qiao Sang: !!!

Qiao Sang was speechless, almost uttering a specific plant's name in shock. But standing in the vice principal's office, she held back.

So, the last time Lubao was indicating seven months, not seven years! What a ridiculous misunderstanding! There’s a world of difference between seven months and seven years!

One is still a budding flower, while the other is almost withering.

As a keen observer and a skilled beast tamer, Liu Yao could easily guess what was happening from Qiao Sang’s words, her stunned expression, and Lubao's reaction.

He chuckled.

"So, you didn’t even know your pet's real age before."

Qiao Sang snapped out of it, scratching her head in embarrassment.

"I only contracted with Lubao yesterday. I couldn’t understand what it was saying at first, so I had to guess."

"Lu lu!"

Lubao turned her head proudly, clearly showing her displeasure.

At her prime age, how could she think she was that old?

"My bad." Qiao Sang said quickly, trying to appease it.

"How about I let Yabao take you for a flight later?"

"Lu lu…"

Lubao's tail wagged slightly before she huffed and looked away again.

Liu Yao gave Qiao Sang an admiring look.

"I think you have real potential as a beast tamer."

"Maybe." Qiao Sang replied, accepting the compliment shamelessly.

After a while, Liu Yao reluctantly petted Lubao a few more times before saying, "You can put it away now."

"Alright."

Qiao Sang nodded, waving her right hand, and Lubao disappeared.

Liu Yao sat back in his chair with a hint of envy.

"I've lived so long without ever really seeing an endangered pet beast up close, let alone contracting one. These days, nearly all endangered beasts are under the protection of the Alliance. The last time I saw one was for a research project, which required a lot of paperwork. I didn’t expect you to be so lucky as to contract with one."

Qiao Sang felt the same. She'd certainly lucked out.

In her past life, pandas were national treasures, yet there were still over 1,800 of them. Water Luriana, on the other hand, was even rarer, fewer than 100 in existence.

If more people knew about Lubao's whereabouts, she would never have had the chance to contract with her.

Thankfully, the only person who knew about Lubao's location wasn’t stronger than she was.

In truth, she owed that person a bit of thanks.

If it hadn’t been for his relentless pursuit, Lubao probably wouldn’t have left the ancient Guwu region and ended up here in Yuhua.

"Yeah, I do think I’m pretty lucky." Qiao Sang nodded in agreement.

Liu Yao looked at her.

"By the way, you probably don’t know how Water Luriana can evolve, do you?"

"I looked it up online." Qiao Sang replied.

"Water Luriana needs to experience heartbreak, then, during a rainy moment, it channels its emotional turmoil to evolve."

Liu Yao was surprised.

"I didn’t think you’d know that. I thought it’d be hard to find online."

Qiao Sang smiled.

"Lucky again. I happened to meet someone online who knew about Water Lurianas."

"Since you know Water Luriana’s evolution conditions, you must realize how demanding they are. Water Luriana's has a hard time getting attached to other beasts, which is part of why they’re so rare." Liu Yao sighed.

Qiao Sang gave a sheepish grin. "Actually… my Lubao already has a crush."

Liu Yao was stunned.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive." Qiao Sang nodded.

"That’s good." Liu Yao murmured, sounding a bit envious. An evolving Water Luriana was completely different from one that could only be kept as a cherished pet.

He composed himself and added, "Since Water Luriana has a love interest, your next steps are simple. Make sure you have a rain-summoning pet on standby, and… when Water Luriana experiences heartbreak, the more painful it is, the better."

Qiao Sang was taken aback.

"Why?"

She understood having a rain-summoning pet on hand, but why should heartbreak be as painful as possible?

Liu Yao explained, "Water Luriana’s evolution is driven by intense emotional fluctuations. Normally, Water Luriana isn’t highly competitive, but after evolving, there’s a clear shift."

"Research has shown that Water Lurianas who undergo harsher heartbreak evolve with significantly higher energy levels and attributes than those who experience mild heartbreak."

"In other words, the stronger the emotional fluctuation during heartbreak, the stronger Water Luriana will be after evolving."

That’s just too tragic… Qiao Sang couldn’t help but feel sympathy.

"If Lubao evolves through emotional fluctuations, could falling in love work instead?"

Liu Yao shook his head.

"People have tried that, but it doesn’t work."

Poor thing, Qiao Sang thought. She hesitated, then tentatively asked:

"If Lubao could evolve through an energy material, like a Water Stone, would it be less powerful than if it evolved through emotional fluctuations?"

Liu Yao considered this before replying, "First, that’s purely hypothetical. But if it were possible, Water Luriana evolved through material would likely be weaker than one that evolved through emotions."

"You’ve probably heard the saying, ‘The wise don’t fall in love; the heartless always make it to shore.’ For Water Luriana, it’s ‘The heartless will be strongest.’"

"After experiencing heartbreak, Water Luriana’s desire to grow strengthens. I told you, there’s a clear shift after evolution."

Seems like I can’t rely on chance; Yabao’s my only hope. Qiao Sang nodded.

"Got it."

After chatting a bit more, Liu Yao wrote down the recipe for Lubao’s energy pill and handed it over.

Qiao Sang took it, said goodbye, and was about to leave when-

"Wait." Liu Yao called out suddenly.

Qiao Sang stopped and turned to look at him.

Liu Yao let out a heavy sigh.

Honestly, he regretted calling her back. But considering her potential and her pet, he couldn’t let his personal reservations hold her back.

After a long silence, he finally said, "If your Treasure-Seeking Ghost or Water Luriana can evolve into a mid-level pet within the next month, you should participate in the national campus beast mastering league for third-year students."

Qiao Sang blinked.

"Didn’t you tell me not to participate in that level’s competition before?"

They say women are fickle, but men aren’t any better.

Liu Yao straightened his posture, his expression serious.

"If your beast-taming codex didn’t have a third page, I wouldn’t have suggested it. But things are different now. You might have a shot at earning an exchange student spot."

"Exchange student?" Qiao Sang repeated, surprised.

Liu Yao looked her in the eye and enunciated clearly, "To be precise, an interstellar exchange student."

Qiao Sang: !!!