Chapter 2, I Treated You Like a Bro, but You Want to Be My Wife?
"What? You're actually serious?" Xiao Ye was dumbfounded.
*Wasn't my bro Cheng Bingxi trying to bail me out? Why was she saying she wanted to form a contract with me?*
"Damn! SSS-level Nine-tailed Celestial Fox template, there couldn't be many SSS levels in the entire Dragon Country, right?"
"Holy crap, this Beast-Eared Girl is gorgeous, her face is flawless, the top campus belle is back!"
"I'm so damn pissed off, isn't Xiao Ye just a little taller, a little fairer, a little better-looking than me, so why do both school beauties want to be his girlfriend?!"
The students around exploded in chatter, one after another freaking out.
"Of course I'm serious, what, Xiao Ye, you look down on me?" Cheng Bingxi heard what Xiao Ye said, a trace of grievance flickering in her beautiful eyes, her flawless face puffed up as she spoke.
"No way, but aren't we bros? If we form a contract, you'll become my wife!" Xiao Ye scratched his head.
*I treated you like a bro, and you actually want to become my wife!*
In the Beast Girl era, in everyone's common sense, a person could only form a contract with one girl—a contract was basically a marriage certificate, so it was super important, and boys and girls couldn't just randomly contract each other.
To form a contract with someone else, you had to terminate the old one, but breaking a contract came at a huge price—normal people absolutely wouldn't do it.
Seeing Xiao Ye hesitate, Cheng Bingxi stepped right up and locked onto his arm, sneaking her hand around his waist and giving his soft side a 360-degree twist! Her cute-yet-scary voice came out fierce as heck,
"Bro? You seriously think pure friendship exists between a guy and a girl? That was just my backup plan, duh!"
She continued, "Contract or not? You gonna say yes? If you don't agree, you're doomed!"
Xiao Ye sucked in a breath from the pain and said, "Contract, I agree! Cheng Bingxi, wifey."
Beast-Eared Girl Cheng Bingxi finally let go, a rosy tint spreading on her flawless cheeks as she said, "Good, you know what's good for you!"
"Hurry up and go awaken your Beastmaster Talent! After you awaken, we can form the contract, duh."
Cheng Bingxi didn't care what level Beastmaster Talent Xiao Ye would awaken, all she knew was that, for the past three years of high school, Xiao Ye was the only one who'd never drifted away, her only true friend, only real bro, only love.
"The principal's coming, and so is the grumpy-ass director, everyone line up!" Someone called out, and the lazy, scattered lineup straightened up at once.
The director was always super strict, harsh with students, always putting the Awakening Class through hellish training—even if students got hurt he'd have them ask for leave. In all the students' eyes, he was an old relic, a stubborn old dog, so everyone called him Old Dog behind his back.
The principal, on the other hand, was legendary in Wilderness Base City. As a Grandmaster-level Beastmaster, he once beat back a Beast Tide attacking the Third High School alone. Unfortunately, he was badly injured since and left with some gnarly health problems.
"Cheng Bingxi! Get yourself together, as the owner of an SSS-level template, you're the nation's pillar, destined to fight Demon Beasts, and you have to form a contract with an SS-level or higher talent Beastmaster!" The director had barely arrived before he started yelling at Cheng Bingxi.
"And you, Xiao Ye, as a guy, can't you grow up a little? If you want to contract with Cheng Bingxi, you have to awaken SS-level or above Beastmaster. But to be honest, you…"
Just as Old Dog was rambling on, the principal cut in, his face kind as he spoke to Xiao Ye and Cheng Bingxi,
"Forming a contract is no small thing, your parents have to be in the loop. How about you both take a couple days to think it over?"
"Uh," Cheng Bingxi's fluffy fox ears drooped, pain flickering in her beautiful eyes.
Back in ninth grade, if the principal hadn't saved her, she would've died in that Demon Beast attack instead of standing here now, scarred but alive.
*Cheng Bingxi was torn inside—she didn't want to disappoint the principal, but she also didn't want to give up on Xiao Ye!*
Xiao Ye cut in, "I grew up in an orphanage!"
"From my end, as long as I agree, that's enough! Grandpa Dean will respect my choice."
Xiao Ye didn't budge; as long as Cheng Bingxi wanted the contract, nothing anyone said could stop him.
The director frowned, ready to chew him out, "Xiao Ye, you're top student in humanities, how'd you pick up a bad attitude like this—instead of listening to the principal, you talk back? Answer the principal, now."
Cheng Bingxi got pissed, "Old Dog, this is Xiao Ye's personal choice—you don't have the right to interfere."
The director was floored; it was the first time anyone had dared to curse him out loud—especially Cheng Bingxi. "What did you just call me?"
Cheng Bingxi patted her fox ears, "Old Dog, oops, it just slipped out, duh!"
The director snorted, "Anyway, you two can't just rush into a contract! With your template level, this is a national-level matter."
The principal walked over to Xiao Ye, slung an arm around his shoulders, and whispered quietly, "Xiao Ye, don't be rash. Take a couple days, wait for Bingxi's parents to agree, then form the contract. Don't worry, I'll make it up to you."
*Xiao Ye thought for a second and felt like turning him down. He had the Divine-level Beastmaster System, whatever Beastmaster Talent he awakened would not be low. Him not matching up to Cheng Bingxi? Impossible.*
The principal saw that Xiao Ye didn't speak, figured he was hesitating, so he said,
"As long as you awaken F-level talent or higher, I'll introduce you to my daughter, okay?"
While he said this, the principal even glanced over at the director.
"What?" Xiao Ye was shocked—F-level talent was enough? Could it be the principal's daughter hadn't awakened a Fierce Beast template? In this world, not everyone awakened Fierce Beast templates or Beastmaster Talents—there was only about a fifty percent chance.
"No need, Principal, Bingxi's parents will agree, I promise!" Xiao Ye flat-out refused the principal's offer and compensation.
"I doubt it," the director snorted coldly.
"Next, Xiao Ye, prepare to awaken!" came the voice of the instructor by the Awakening Platform.
"Heh heh heh!" His ex-girlfriend Xie Mengxuan, seeing even the principal was blocking him from contracting Bingxi, was so happy, "Xiao Ye, you really think someone will pick up your mess? You should look at your own worth."
Trash that Xie Mengxuan had dumped—she couldn't stand the thought of someone else picking him up. Trash belonged in the trash heap.
From the other students' point of view, they also thought there was no way Xiao Ye and Bingxi would be able to contract. Just a minute ago, they were envious; now, they were all mocking him.
"As if the number one campus belle is someone Xiao Ye can lay a finger on! She belongs to all of us!"
"You scared me for a sec, I thought I was gonna have to pay back that 129.05 yuan, that's my meal money, man!"
"I've got a feeling, at most Xiao Ye's going to awaken B-level Beastmaster Talent, which is enough to get by in Wilderness Base City. But to contract with Bingxi? Sorry, he's not worthy."
Watching that handsome figure on the Awakening Platform, Beast-Eared Girl Bingxi clenched her fists, her gaze full of worry, even her fluffy fox tail was stuck still in suspense.
When Xiao Ye stepped up on the Awakening Platform, his system panel lit up.
[Divine-level Beastmaster Awakening In Progress]
"Shing!"
Suddenly, the entire sky above Wilderness Base City darkened, waves of mysterious purple energy drifted in from the east, covering the sky for ten thousand miles.
"Roooar!" "Graaah!" "Screee!" "Grumble!"
The Five-Clawed Golden Dragon soared in the purple clouds, the War God White Tiger leaped inside them, the Divine Vermilion Bird danced through the purple haze, and the Kunpeng swooped as if it would swallow up the whole city.
The Nine-tailed Celestial Fox, Divine-level Taotie, Divine Turtle Xuanwu, Auspicious Qilin, Divine Phoenix, and more all manifested in the sky one after another.
Above Xiao Ye, fairy music rippled through the air, and Immortal Flowers bloomed in perfect rows.
This show of force was at least ten times what Bingxi had caused.
Purple aura from the east for a hundred thousand miles, reflecting countless Divine Beasts across the worlds.
The Awakening Platform's booming voice blared, "Xiao Ye, SSS-level Beastmaster!"
"Error detected, re-detecting, program overloaded, shutting down automatically!"