Chapter 266: Chapter 260: The Person Hasn’t Even Appeared, but the Teachers Are Already Fighting

The admissions officer from Shifangyu University took a deep breath, his expression shifting slightly.

After careful observation and appraisal, he had formed a general impression.

"The Dao Charm of this Breathing Technique... it’s like a fish, but not entirely. It’s not simple. This is definitely not a pure Breathing Technique for a Fish Pet."

Zhai Suhua was a Six-star Beastmaster, and the Beastmaster of the Thousand-eyed Wind Bird was also a Six-star Grand Beastmaster, capable of transmitting the technique’s aura from the stage back to the observation area.

Even if it was only one percent of the aura, the vastly experienced teachers were more than capable of appraising the technique’s fundamental quality.

Furthermore, Zhai Suhua himself specialized in Water Element Pet Beasts, and his university was dedicated to training Beastmasters with the same specialty.

He could easily discern the breathing rhythm of a deep-sea fish, lurking in the ocean, holding a single breath in its chest as it swam all the way to the bottom.

It was the tenacious drive to swim at full speed, even at the risk of suffocation.

This was also the source of Ah Kun’s Suffocation Domain.

However, Zhai Suhua’s great crab sensed that this Breathing Technique also held a trace of the sky.

A yearning for the sky was understandable. A fish leaping from the water, the Fish Leaping the Dragon Gate—both were challenges aimed at the sky.

But there was something not quite right about Ah Kun’s Breathing Technique.

It wasn’t the yearning of a fish.

Instead, it was the vision of taking on the form of a bird, spreading its wings and soaring through the sky.

This kind of imagery was rather niche among Beastmasters with Fish Pets.

The reason it wasn’t considered outright heresy was because fish that could fly truly did exist in this world.

However, evolving to that stage required an extremely high-level Bloodline.

For a Grouper Fish, evolving to that extent was, frankly, almost impossible. This was what had made Zhai Suhua’s expression shift.

’What a pity.’

Next was the scoring session. Originally, Ah Kun’s Cultivation Technique had no flaws and would have certainly received a perfect score.

But the appearance of this bird-like aspiration lowered the Breathing Technique’s compatibility, preventing Ah Kun from fully tapping into the power of a Grouper Fish Pet Beast. This made the perfect Cultivation Technique imperfect.

’Such a shame.’

Gu Ming had capped its potential.

Soon, the Six-star Beastmaster judges around him began to give their scores.

"I’d rate Ah Kun’s technique as A+ Level."

"Mmm... I agree. This is the most brilliant innovation we’ve seen in years. An A+ Level rating is spot on!"

"Objectively speaking, incorporating an Array into the Breathing Technique significantly lowers the barrier to entry. Plus, its overlap with the Green Treasure Breathing Technique is extremely low—only about 1%. An A+ Level rating is well-deserved."

Zhai Suhua had thought everyone would give it an A-Level rating.

But hearing so much praise, the ratings started straight at A+.

This made his own internal rating rise a bit.

"Hey, hey, just an A+ is too strict. If you ask me, it could even be rated S Level."

"This is a Tri-Colored Technique! Jiang Jinling’s Dual-Colored Technique got an A+, and Gu Ming’s Tri-Colored Technique is a whole level higher than hers. It would be unreasonable not to give it an S Level rating."

When Zhai Suhua heard this, his heart skipped a beat.

’No way.’

’This can get an S rating?’

But the fact that it was a Tri-Colored Holy Light Breathing Technique was undeniable. Its potential was very high, and at the very least, it could grant immense power to a Three-star Pet Beast.

Even if the Pet Beast later reached Four and Five-stars through Cultivation, the technique would still be usable.

With further development and slight improvements, the quality of this Breathing Technique could be raised even further.

"Zhai Suhua, do you think this technique is worthy of an S Level rating?" a teacher from Red Moon University smiled and asked him.

"It’s absolutely worthy of S Level!" The moment the words left Zhai Suhua’s mouth, he had given it an S Level rating.

He was even shocked at himself for saying it.

’I’d thought it through so much and even found some flaws.’

But when it came time for him to give his own score, he couldn’t stop himself from giving it an S Level rating.

’It seems I was too fixated on the purity of Fish Pet Techniques.’

The other teachers didn’t share his concerns. In their eyes, the Kunpeng Breathing Technique was full of strengths, with no weaknesses.

"The Breathing Technique created by the other candidate, Lu You, is also remarkable. The Earth Dragon Breathing Technique... an A+ rating!"

"No, no, no, they both used a Brain Array and are both Tri-Colored. It should logically be an S Level rating too!"

"Huh? Are you serious? This Breathing Technique can only be used by Pet Beasts that know the Earth Escape Technique, right? How can it be as versatile as the Kunpeng Breathing Technique, which can be applied to the vast majority of Water Element Pet Beasts?"

The teachers in the observation area exploded into a discussion over Lu You’s Cultivation Technique, arguing heatedly over whether to give it an A+ or an S Level rating.

Zhai Suhua hadn’t thought it was that amazing at first.

But as he listened to a dozen or so judges argue, the merits of the Earth Dragon Breathing Technique were laid out on the table.

A non-expert really couldn’t see the intricacies.

After learning more, Zhai Suhua was astonished.

It turned out that Mouse Treasure’s Earth Dragon Breathing Technique was exceptionally compatible with Sub-dragon Bloodline Pet Beasts.

Some teachers on site had already had their high-aptitude Pet Beasts use a Daoist Skill to deduce the technique, capture a trace of the "Earth Dragon Breathing’s" Dao Charm, and physically simulate Mouse Treasure’s Breathing Technique.

It circulated its own Bloodline, took deep breaths, and the Sub-dragon Race bloodline within its body was circulated along with it. Its Blood Qi billowed like wolf smoke, surging skyward, and an inexhaustible energy welled up within it.

On the surface, it seemed to be a Breathing Technique that integrated breathing exercises, Qi Refining, and Body Refining—a world-shaking innovation that used an Array to lower the barrier to entry.

But no one had expected that a member of the Sub-dragon Race using this method could double its combat power.

This was a game-changer.

This was a Breathing Technique that could fully activate the bloodline of the Sub-dragon Race; its benefits weren’t limited to just Qi Refining and Body Refining.

When this evaluation was thrown out, it was like a clap of thunder on a clear day. It stunned the judges from every university, leaving their heads buzzing. No one dared to refute it.

And just like that, the phenomenal S Level rating was awarded to Lu You.

After listening to the fifteen-minute debate, Zhai Suhua’s heart burned with excitement.

’A genius student like this belongs at my Shifangyu University.’

’Looking at Mouse Treasure’s physique, it’s also quite suitable for a Water Element specialty Beastmaster University. After all, without the earth to hold it, how can there be a vast ocean?’

"I think both Gu Ming and Lu You can come study at Red Moon University. I assume you all look down on bottom-tier Pet Beasts like the Little Cyan Snake, Grouper Fish, and Sunflower Seed-eating Hamster."

The admissions officer from Red Moon University said with a beaming smile, deciding to use this year’s special recruitment slots to enroll both of them, waiving all tuition fees.

"No!" Zhai Suhua from Shifangyu University instinctively objected.

"Insolence! Gu Ming should be a student of my Celestial Cloud University!"

"Heh! My Great Zhou Royal Academy hasn’t even spoken, and you’re already fighting over them. Have you no self-awareness?"

As soon as the teacher from the Royal Academy spoke, the room fell silent for several seconds.

The Great Zhou Royal Academy was the most prestigious and the oldest Beastmaster Academy in the Great Zhou Dynasty.

To this day, it had a history of sixty years!

It was an academy that had been founded at the same time as the dawn of the Spiritual Qi Revival era.

However, the Royal Academy was high and mighty, and even with free tuition, it wasn’t the first choice for students from humble backgrounds.

The teachers present had investigated Gu Ming and Lu You’s backgrounds and discovered that neither of them came from a wealthy family.

The resources the Royal Academy could offer the two of them would certainly not be as plentiful as those from other private universities.

It was full of so many members of the Royal Family and nobility; a commoner going there would just end up being a dog for the Princes and Princesses. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Only those from families with some power could thrive like a fish in water at the Royal Academy, building connections and joining factions.

The Great Zhou’s free Beast Taming University was no place for commoners.

The teachers didn’t say a word, but behind the scenes, they were already scheming, figuring out how to report to their superiors to secure enough resources to outbid the Royal Academy.