Chen Yue had no intention of looking for another team.
After the earlier encounter, he realized that blindly teaming up with strangers was rather risky.
After careful consideration, Chen Yue decided to act alone. It might be a bit dangerous, but better than entrusting his back to someone else.
Besides, with Bastet by his side, what was there to fear?
Walking beside him, Bastet seemed to sense Chen Yue's thoughts and let out a soft "Meow!", as if in response.
The boy and the cat, one on the left and one on the right, approached the entrance to the secret realm together.
The Federation had little control over the secret realm entrances.
They had only stationed one Gold-rank Beast Tamer and a few small squads to monitor the area, just in case anything happened that needed to be reported back to headquarters.
In fact, Chen Yue didn't know much about secret realms.
Despite all his preparation, most of the information available to someone not yet in college was severely limited—after all, the Federation didn't encourage students to enter them.
If one were to use terms from Chen Yue's past life, secret realms were like spatial rifts—only more stable.
Even so, each realm had level restrictions depending on its difficulty.
For example, the one Chen Yue was heading into was a low-level realm, with a maximum entry limit of Gold-ranked Beast Tamers.
Interestingly, depending on when one entered the realm, they would arrive at different locations.
Even a second's difference could mean landing in a completely different place.
Secret realms were vast and resource-rich, filled with rare treasures not found on Earth.
This was the main reason Beast Tamers risked their lives to explore them.
The entrance was oval in shape, surrounded by faint blue-purple electric arcs.
It was just wide enough for five people to enter at once.
Seeing this, Chen Yue finally understood:
"No wonder most teams only have up to five members—it's because of the entrance size."
He took a deep breath, hugged Bastet to his chest, and stepped forward—disappearing from the spot.
Inside the Secret Realm.
The first thing Chen Yue did upon opening his eyes was scan his surroundings cautiously.
Only after confirming there was no danger did he relax.
Bastet had already leapt from his arms, remaining alert at all times.
Looking around at a forest not unlike those on Earth, Chen Yue couldn't help but marvel:
"Aside from all the plants I can't name, it's not all that different from the scenery outside."
He stayed alert as he slowly observed the environment.
He had heard stories about Beast Tamers who were unlucky enough to be attacked by ferocious beasts the moment they landed—so his caution was warranted.
"Seems I got lucky this time."
Without planning to linger, Chen Yue focused on his goal and chose a direction before setting off deeper into the forest.
Along the way, he encountered a variety of unknown flora—towering golden shrubs, mushrooms glowing with green light, and black, dandelion-like floating plants.
These were all plants he had never seen in textbooks.
Fortunately, Bastet's keen sense of smell allowed them to safely identify and avoid danger.
Suddenly, Bastet froze in place, its nose twitching.
Then, it began walking in a specific direction.
Chen Yue followed closely.
"Did it sense danger?"
But Bastet didn't seem alarmed—rather, it looked intrigued or excited.
Sure enough, after a short walk, a golden tree came into view.
The tree wasn't very tall—about the height of a person—and it wasn't large either.
But it was covered in round, golden fruits.
"Golden Saint Fruit!"
Though not the highest grade, it was plenty suitable for Bastet to consume—or, at the very least, could be sold.
Though many plants in the realm were unfamiliar, Chen Yue recognized some rare treasures—he had done his homework, even asking Yun Xiaohai specifically about what grew in this realm.
Golden Saint Fruit was a resource that could accelerate beast growth.
Market price: 2,000 to 2,500 per fruit.
It was one of Bastet's primary food sources in the future.
Currently, Bastet was already max level and only needed one more item to evolve into the Mature stage, so Chen Yue prioritized picking the fruit.
Just as they approached the tree, a green serpent with black-blue stripes appeared, coiled around a branch.
It flicked its tongue menacingly, eyes filled with hostility.
Chen Yue instantly activated the Eye of Truth to inspect it:
[Name:] Bamboo Viper
[Level:] Growth Stage – 38%
[Potential:] Elite Grade
[Attribute:] Poison
[Skills:] Venom Fang, Constriction
[Description:] A highly venomous snake. Its only weakness is its relatively fragile body.
[Evolution Paths:] …
Chen Yue studied the panel thoughtfully:
"Compared to Bastet, this Bamboo Viper is slightly weaker. But Poison-type beasts are famous for defeating stronger enemies with cunning—definitely need to be cautious."
Instead of attacking outright, Chen Yue had Bastet activate Light's Protection first.
Bastet obeyed, and with a flick of its will, a transparent shield of light surrounded both itself and Chen Yue.
This marked Bastet's recent growth—it could now cast protection on others too.
Though it could only shield two targets at once, this was already a major breakthrough.
Interestingly, Bastet had learned this skill through frequent battles with the Rapidstream Frog—proof that training and wealth could go hand in hand.
On the battlefield, both sides remained still.
Time passed.
The Bamboo Viper lost patience and struck first!
It darted forward like a green blur, its venomous fangs gleaming like the blades of death.
Thankfully, Light's Protection blocked the fatal strike.
Without hesitation, Bastet retaliated with Light Claw, dazing the serpent.
At this level, neither beast could one-shot the other—but Bastet was no soft-hearted feline.
It launched a flurry of attacks, each more brutal than the last.
The Bamboo Viper, with its weak body, couldn't withstand the barrage.
It was quickly reduced to a beaten pulp.
After confirming there were no further threats, Chen Yue approached the battered snake and his panting partner.
Bastet was fine—only slightly fatigued.
The Bamboo Viper, on the other hand, was in miserable shape.
Its entire body was covered in claw marks, not a single inch spared.