Chapter 59: I'm only telling you this, so you must absolutely not...

"Students, quiet down!"

The Beast Taming instructor standing not far from A-Tu raised a hand to signal the excited students to quiet down, and instructed in a raised voice, "Although this Flame Hound is very quiet, you must never treat them like ordinary dogs for that reason. You must always remember that magical beasts are fierce and cruel. Even if it shows a friendly gesture at some point, it might just be a disguise."

"In addition, the abdomen of a Flame Hound is its weak spot. Therefore, when trying to get along with them, remember never to touch their abdomens. There was a student before who violated this taboo, and their entire right leg was bitten off..."

The Beast Taming instructor was lecturing with a solemn expression; however, a sudden outburst of noise from the students abruptly interrupted his class.

"Holy shit! Look over there!"

"What is Big Boss Qian Qi doing?"

"Didn't they say you can't touch a Flame Hound's abdomen?"

The students' remarks puzzled the Beast Taming instructor greatly. He turned around to look, and then he saw the fierce and cruel Flame Hound he had just described acting just like an ordinary dog. Its sharp-toothed mouth was dripping with a loose, floppy tongue, and its sturdy body lay limp on the ground like a puddle of water.

Only a dog's tail was wagging back and forth rhythmically against the ground, accompanied by excited whimpering sounds.

Beast Taming Instructor: ???

What the hell? What just happened?

Under everyone's gaze, Qian Qi's shins were kneeling beside the Flame Hound, and her two little fists, one after the other like a punching bag, thumped against the Flame Hound's abdomen with a series of "thump," "swish," "clatter," and "bang" sounds.

And with every single blow, the Flame Hound's tail would excitedly wag and flick upward.

Even though he had seen his fair share of the world, the instructor still couldn't help but drop his jaw in utter shock.

It was simply because this was too absurd!

Why did this Flame Hound not go berserk under Qian Qi's "attack," but instead looked so comfortable and thoroughly enjoyed it?

That was simply impossible!

"Teacher, what is going on here?!"

"Didn't they say you can't touch a Flame Hound's abdomen?"

"Why can Big Boss Qian Qi touch it? Could it be that she's a Beast Tamer, and this is her contracted hound?"

"Isn't she from the Magical Flora Department, though..."

The Beast Taming instructor was also extremely curious. He turned his head to look at the other classes and found that all the other Flame Hounds were baring their teeth with fierce and cruel expressions—that was how a magical beast was supposed to look.

"Hold on." The instructor gestured for the students to calm down, walked over to Qian Qi, and asked curiously, "Student, is this your contracted hound?"

Hearing this, Qian Qi stopped what she was doing. She looked up at the instructor, her eyes filled with utter bewilderment. "No, it's not. What's wrong?"

"Then why is it..." The instructor paused, remembered something, and continued, "Ah, you aren't a student of the Beast Taming or Magical Beasts Departments, so you might not know. A Flame Hound's weak spot is its abdomen. If you attack its abdomen, it will go crazy."

Yet right now, not only did the Flame Hound fail to go berserk under her attack, but instead...

"Oh~ You mean that!"

Qian Qi suddenly understood. She let out a sigh, looked around left and right, raised a hand to cover her little mouth, and whispered, "I'll only tell you this, so make sure you don't spread it."

Hearing this, the instructor quickly leaned down to listen closely.

"Actually..." Qian Qi said in a tiny, deeply mysterious voice, "This Flame Hound is a masochist!"

Beast Taming Instructor: ......

Beast Taming Instructor: ???

What on earth?

"Our A-Tu here has some special hobbies; please don't discriminate against it." Qian Qi bent down to lift A-Tu's right hind leg, pressing her flip-flop against its joint. Accompanied by a crisp "crack," A-Tu let out another excited whimper.

Beast Taming Instructor: ......

It really is a damn masochist!

He silently wiped his face, turned around to look at the students stretching their necks in eager anticipation of an answer, and didn't know how to respond for a moment.

He couldn't possibly tell them that this Flame Hound had unique fetishistic hobbies, right?!

Seeing that the instructor was in a bit of a bind, Qian Qi couldn't help but feel a spark of goodwill. She said to him, "I'll help you answer them."

She called over Grandpa Li, asked him to help hold A-Tu on its leash, and then walked over to the neighboring class, whispering to them one by one, "Our A-Tu here has some special hobbies, please don't spread it around, and definitely don't discriminate against it..."

Beast Taming Instructor: ......

Is this the solution you came up with?!

And here I thought I would be the only one who knew!

...

After the lecture on Flame Hounds concluded, several students walked over from the north gate of the Beast Taming Plaza, each leading a Flame Hound.

These students were all Rank-E Beast Tamers who had successfully contracted Flame Hounds. They had been specially invited to explain their contracting insights and share their experience with the students who had yet to secure a contract.

"Wanting to get along with a Flame Hound requires no special tricks. You just start by feeding them from a distance. Once they get used to your scent and hold no hostility toward you, you can use our Beast Taming Talent to send them a contract request."

"However, this method has at least a ninety-nine point nine percent failure rate," a senior student lectured. "Unless you are very wealthy and can buy a Fire Kirin Fruit, the success rate of the contract might increase by twenty percent."

Hearing this, Qian Qi frowned slightly and pulled out the system interface. "Why do I feel like I've been scammed?"

If a Fire Kirin Fruit could increase the success rate, given her proficiency in cultivating magical flora, wouldn't she be entirely capable of contracting a Flame Hound using Fire Kirin Fruits?

System: [Oh, my dear Qian Qian~ Don't listen to their nonsense. There are many bad students outside; they only know how to deceive you, understand? Only I am truly good to you~ ^v^]

Qian Qi: ???

What the hell, are you just echoing my own words back to me?

As soon as the system finished speaking, it immediately went offline, running faster than a rabbit.

Qian Qi: ......

Thank you, mutual trust minus one.

Just as Qian Qi was grinding her teeth in anger, she suddenly felt the dog leash in her hand jerk upward. She looked up and saw A-Tu aggressively farting in the direction of the already-contracted Flame Hounds.

Flame Hounds bound to pathetic, minuscule food sources! Bah! The shame of the canine world!

Qian Qi tugged on A-Tu's leash and said speechlessly, "What are you so smug about? You're still going to be contracted by me eventually."

The Flame Hounds were exceptionally sensitive to the word "contract." Even if they couldn't understand human speech, hearing certain words often enough eventually made their meanings clear.

A-Tu couldn't help but stretch its sleek, supple body, performing a movement that no ordinary dog could possibly manage.

A-Tu: Even if I get contracted, I am still a cut above ordinary contracted beasts!

Because I have evolved!

Look, come and look, look at my flexible body~ You guys don't have this, do you~

Hmph! I do!

Those few contracted Flame Hounds stared blankly at A-Tu's hyper-flexible body, failing to react for a long time. When they finally came to their senses, as if waking from a dream, they abruptly broke away from their masters' sides and dashed swiftly toward A-Tu.

What is going on? What is going on? Why has your body evolved?

Why, why? Waiting online! I'm dying of curiosity!