Chapter 23 See which one you like
About 6 kilometers from Qingcheng Jiayuan is the Tea Osmanthus Park.
Under the lush phoenix trees, a slim figure sat cross-legged in the shade, reading a book.
The Fire-Toothed Dog had already forgotten how many laps it had run around the park.
Every time it got tired and returned to its own Beast Tamer, it saw its master shouting encouragement with trusting eyes, making it feel powerful and capable of continuing.
When it snapped back to reality, it found itself running again...
Qiao Sang closed her book and shook her head at the Fire-Toothed Dog, which was moving at a snail's pace in the distance.
Fire-Toothed Dog, you're not doing well. You've already become exhausted after only ten laps.
Morning runs couldn't improve the Fire-Toothed Dog's speed, at most they exercised its stamina, and also let Qiao Sang have a rough idea of the limits of its endurance.
When the Fire-Toothed Dog persevered and ran back to Qiao Sang again, the morning run came to an end.
Qiao Sang handed over the Wondermilk she had bought earlier to the Fire-Toothed Dog.
Wondermilk was a beverage made for Pet Beasts and was considered one of the better-reputed brands on the market, able to slightly replenish the stamina of a Pet Beast; Qiao Sang had bought it from a breakfast store on the roadside that specialized in food for Pet Beasts.
Products related to Pet Beasts always seemed to be priced exorbitantly, but Wondermilk had not raised its price for decades, a bottle costing only 98 Alliance Currency.
The Fire-Toothed Dog extended its feeble paws to receive the milk and gulped it down eagerly, emptying the bottle in just a few swigs.
"Tooth."
The Fire-Toothed Dog looked at Qiao Sang with longing in its eyes.
Qiao Sang hesitated; she had only bought one bottle...
Unable to resist the Fire-Toothed Dog's pleading gaze, Qiao Sang handed over the tofu pudding she had incidentally bought for herself for 3 Alliance Currency.
The Fire-Toothed Dog silently stared at the tofu pudding, which only had one bite left.
"Tooth!"
The Fire-Toothed Dog's wet eyes were full of reproach.
"Alright, alright, I'll buy you more later," Qiao Sang soothed.
You can't scrimp when it comes to a Pet Beast; how could one expect it to train properly if even its cravings weren't satisfied?
We're talking about someone who now had 50,000 Alliance Currency, so what's the big deal about Wondermilk?
Buy!
Fifteen minutes later.
Qiao Sang, carrying a large bag of Wondermilk, fell into contemplation.
This sum of 50,000 Alliance Currency should last for a while, right...
After the Fire-Toothed Dog finished three bottles, there were still seven bottles of Wondermilk left in the bag.
After downing four bottles of Wondermilk, the Fire-Toothed Dog finally perked up, but its limbs were still weak and shaky even when walking.
Seeing this, Qiao Sang did not let it start skill release training right away.
"I'm going to buy you something nice," Qiao Sang said with a smile to the Fire-Toothed Dog.
"Tooth."
The eyes of the Fire-Toothed Dog lit up, clearly interested in this "nice thing."
...
Verdant Plaza.
The largest shopping center in the Tangxin District, Verdant Plaza is a boutique commercial complex that combines leisure, shopping, dining, and entertainment.
No sooner had Qiao Sang arrived than she was stopped by a handsome young man with blue wolf-tail hair.
"Miss, are you interested in learning how to make your Pet Beast more charming? Come to our DreamBeauty Pet Grooming Studio. We have a professional team of Pet Groomers, and our chief stylist even designed styles for competitor Luo Gang's Purple Devil Vine."
"Thank you, but I'm not interested," Qiao Sang declined.
"Miss, don't rush to refuse, take a look at my Azure Butterfly," said the young man with the wolf-tail hair, stepping aside.
Behind him, an Azure Butterfly with a body of blue and purple and wings veined in teal appeared before Qiao Sang.
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The Azure Elegance Butterfly twirled gracefully in the air, its scales shimmering dazzlingly under the sunlight.
It looks so beautiful...
Qiao Sang was momentarily dazzled by the butterfly before her.
The youth with the wolf-tail hairdo watched the girl before him become captivated by the charm of his Pet Beast and, seizing the moment, said, "How about that, the blue-purple color looks good, right? Our stylist adjusted it according to the Azure Elegance Butterfly's preferences. Your Fire-Toothed Dog has nice color, but it lacks personality. Why not come to our Dreamy Beast Beast Beauty Salon and get a unique style designed?"
"Grrr!"
The Fire-Toothed Dog growled dissatisfiedly at the wolf-tail-haired youth.
This guy actually said I have no personality!
With the development of the Beast-Taming society, numerous derivative professions had emerged, most of which served Pet Beasts, and Pet Beast stylists were among them.
There are millions of Pet Beasts in the world, all kinds, but those of the same species look almost identical, with only variations in height and weight.
With the advancement of information, the existence of uniquely colored Pet Beasts began to appear before the public.
If it weren't for the spread of information, a person might not encounter a uniquely colored Pet Beast in their lifetime.
Rarity brings value.
Although a uniquely colored Pet Beast's value cannot match that of a Dragon-type Pet Beast, its selling price can already compete with that of the Fairy Series Pet Beasts.
If encountered by some rare species, the price may exceed a hundred times more.
Later, the profession of Pet Beast stylist came into being.
It's okay not to have a uniquely colored Pet Beast, you can dye it to look unique.
While that sounds great, almost no professional Beast Tamer who competes seriously would choose to dye their Pet Beast.
The reason is simple.
The color fades...
A Pet Beast getting slightly injured during a competition could result in a layer of fur being shed or skin peeling, which would ruin the whole styling effort.
That being said, some well-known Beast Tamers cannot resist the allure of unique colors.
Recently, competitor Lin Ruochu used a golden Silver Frost Centipede in a nationally-broadcasted college super league match. The first opponent was a Water-type Impact Bubble Turtle.
Ice-Type inherently has a huge advantage over Water-type.
However, after a barrage of high-pressure water jets, the golden color on the Silver Frost Centipede's body was mostly stripped away, looking extremely pitiful and directly affecting Lin Ruochu's mentality and performance, resulting in the loss of the entire match.
Qiao Sang truly was mesmerized by the Azure Elegance Butterfly, but not to the extent that she would have her Fire-Toothed Dog dyed and styled.
The fiery red of the Fire-Toothed Dog looks so good!
This person has no taste at all.
"No, thanks," Qiao Sang declined once more.
Seeing her adamant refusal, the youth with the wolf-tail hairdo wasted no more time and approached another young woman walking by.
"Beauty, interested in learning how to make your Pet Beast more charming? Come to our Dreamy Beast Beast..."
...
Qiao Sang took her Fire-Toothed Dog to a Pet Beast accessory retail store on the third floor.
Following the signs, she arrived where the item she wanted to buy was displayed.
"Here, Fire-Toothed Dog, see which one you like," Qiao Sang said to the Fire-Toothed Dog with a smile.
The Fire-Toothed Dog looked curiously at the items before it.
There were beaded necklaces strung together and various styles and colors of bracelets.
"Grrr."
The Fire-Toothed Dog pointed with its paw at a strung blue bead necklace.
Qiao Sang picked up the beads and weighed them, but her hand uncontrollably sank down by 50 centimeters.
"Let's go for a bracelet instead, this isn't good for the cervical spine," Qiao Sang said, looking at the Fire-Toothed Dog's neck.
The Fire-Toothed Dog: "???"
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