Beastmaster: I'm really just a forest ranger

Chapter 376 Blade's Edge in the Snowstorm! The Invincible Path of the Steel-Slaying Earth Lord!
As the last rays of the setting sun completely sank behind the western mountains, night quietly descended.

On the edge of the farm, a specially designated battleground was illuminated as bright as day by several outdoor lights. A biting wind swirled up fine snowflakes, adding to the somber atmosphere.

Zhuang Jianbai looked up and saw a tall, slender figure covered in cold silver and dark gray rock armor.

Those sharp eyes that shimmered with a deep blue light, the uniquely shaped metal helmet, and those deformable steel blades concealed in arm armor yet constantly exuding a sharp aura made it impossible for him to look away.

All of this was completely different from the steel-headed gopher he remembered standing silently at the farm gate, yet it carried an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

Recalling the series of rumors surrounding Consultant Chen, he instantly understood that this was the new form of the Steel-Headed Gopher after its successful evolution.

As his thoughts began to wander, Zhuang Jianbai looked around. He saw the Blazing Sky Falcon standing quietly on Chen Yuan's shoulder, the Wind-Riding Dog barking loudly beside him, and the Morning and Evening Flower Fairy fluttering gracefully.

Including this newly evolved, unnamed pet, Advisor Chen now has four Morning Star quality pets by his side.

And what about him?
Zhuang Jianbai turned his head to look at the Winter Hound beside him, who was poised to pounce, and fell into a long silence.

Even with the strong support of the academy and the association, coupled with his own hard work, he barely managed to obtain the necessary conditions and resources for the Winter Hound's advancement, and successfully advanced it to Morning Star some time ago.

And what about Consultant Chen?
In addition to rigorous daily training, they also need to use their limited free time to study the advancement requirements of their pets and find advancement resources one by one, so that their pets can advance smoothly.

In comparison, he was not only far less talented than Consultant Chen, but also far less diligent and hardworking.

Zhuang Jianbai let out a long breath, forcing himself to abandon these chaotic thoughts and focus his attention on the present moment.

Even though the pet that Advisor Chen Yuan sent was not his main pet, or even a contracted pet, his past experiences taught him an undeniable lesson: never underestimate any choice Advisor Chen makes, for there is always a deeper meaning behind it.

He took a deep breath of the cold air, his eyes sharp as an eagle's, instantly raising his vigilance to the highest level.

The surrounding students, gazing at the imposing yet metallic design of the Iron-Headed Doll, murmured in amazement and speculated about its origins:

"A newly discovered pet?"

"It looks like it's made of steel, and it seems like it's not to be trifled with."

Chen Yuan smiled slightly and explained in a calm tone, "This is the evolved form of Steelhead Diglett, which I call Steel-Slicing Earth Lord."

Upon hearing this, everyone suddenly understood, and their faces showed admiration and emotion.

"I can't believe Steelhead Gopher can evolve into such a cool form!"

"As expected of Consultant Chen! He always manages to figure out the conditions for advancement!"

"The academic world is about to be shaken again!"

A thoughtful expression appeared on Wang Yuan's chubby face, his thoughts surging like a tide:

"This guy does look good, but he's not one of the main contracted pets that Consultant Chen personally trained, so his strength should be much weaker than those three pets."

"Maybe Brother Zhuang really has a chance to win this time?"

"If we can win, we might be able to completely break his mental block and start making great strides from then on."

As she thought about it, a faint sense of anticipation rose in Wang Yuan's heart.

Defeating Consultant Chen and crushing past inner demons is now at this very moment!

"Are you ready?" Chen Yuan's voice pulled everyone back to reality.

Zhuang Jianbai nodded emphatically, his eyes resolute: "Ready!"

"Wang!"

With a deep growl, the figure of the Winter Dog, Dunshi, appeared in the center of the arena.

Its entire body was covered in hard, dark blue armor, with sharp icicles growing from its joints. Its breath turned into white mist, which condensed into tiny ice crystals in the cold night wind.

His icy blue eyes were fixed on the Steel Slash Earth Lord opposite him, and a chilling aura gradually spread around him, making the already cold arena even more frigid.

The wind and snow seemed to favor it, surrounding it and making it appear even more majestic.

This is the Winter Dog, a darling of the cold winter.

In contrast, Steel Slash Earth King simply stood quietly in place, without emitting any additional aura, as silent as a piece of metal ore buried deep underground.

But the deep blue markings on its head shimmered slightly, as if it were carefully observing everything about its opponent.

"Grrrrrrrr!"

The little ones all came here to cheer for Tie Touwa, with Youmi being the most enthusiastic.

It flew around in mid-air, its demonic tentacles radiating a dazzling purple light, constantly waving its claws and letting out a clear, loud cry.

"start!"

Huo Hong, acting as the temporary referee, announced loudly!
Zhuang Jianbai did not launch a rash attack. He decided to test his opponent's strength first, and the thought surged in his mind: "Winter Hound, Frost Breath!"

The Winter Dog took a deep breath, its chest bulging, and then opened its mouth to exhale a torrent of extremely cold breath.

The icy air currents, mixed with the swirling snowflakes, swept towards Steel Slash King like a white wave.

The already heavy snowstorm was amplified by this force, instantly becoming extremely fierce, like a small blizzard sweeping across the field. Visibility dropped drastically, and Steel Slash King's figure was quickly swallowed up by the surging snow mist!

"Ka"

Seeing himself shrouded in snow and fog, with even his vision greatly affected, Tie Touwa remained calm and still, without moving around, standing quietly in place like a silent statue.

Chen Yuan, standing behind Tie Touwa, did not speak, but silently watched the former's back.

He did not have a contract with the Iron-Headed Kid, so he could not give real-time command through telepathy.

Since that's the case, it's better to keep quiet and let the Ironhead assess the situation and respond accordingly, so as not to let our voices interfere with its judgment.

"A perfect opportunity!" Zhuang Jianbai's eyes flashed with a sharp light. "Now's the time to unleash the Ice Crack Claw!"

With a burst of speed from its limbs, the Winter Dog silently darted into the raging snowstorm like an arrow released from a bow.

Under the cover of the wind and snow, the massive figure of the Winter Dog became indistinct, and its sharp claws and teeth gathered icy energy powerful enough to tear apart frozen steel. From a tricky angle, it suddenly pounced on the position of Steel Slash Earth Lord!

The attack was swift and ruthless, and thanks to the cover of the snow, the opponent was almost unable to react.

The spectators held their breath at that moment, and Wang Yuan clenched his fists, hoping that the Winter Hound's surprise attack would be effective.

"Coo-choo!"

Upon seeing this, Youmi cried out anxiously and waved her paws excitedly.

Get out of the way!
However, faced with the raging blizzard that obscured his vision and the deadly attack that came silently, Steel Slash's reaction was surprisingly calm.

It didn't even move its feet, but simply raised its right arm steadily.

In the next instant, the ferocious composite steel blade popped out, combined, and extended, its blade shimmering with a cold metallic luster and highly concentrated energy.

The smooth blade reflected the raging snowstorm and a pair of extremely calm eyes.

"Crack."

With a crisp sound, Steel Slash Earth King casually swung his blade at the surging wind and snow in front of him, and suddenly slashed down from above!

Steel blade!

There was no earth-shattering roar, only an extremely condensed silver-white sharp light suddenly bursting forth.

A sharp, cold light burst forth, followed by a silvery-white blade that shot straight forward, easily tearing through the surging cold air and cleaving through the thick snow curtain with its immense shockwave!

With a single stroke, the wind and snow dissipated.

scoff!

The sound of tearing cloth quickly rang out, and a clear path was forcibly cleaved through the swirling snow.

At the end of the passage stood the Winter Dog, its figure pouncing and filled with astonishment, completely exposed to the cold, azure gaze of Steel Slash King.

"what?!"

"It's open???"

"How can it be?!"

"Is that Steel Blade? That most basic Steel-type skill?"

A gasp of surprise erupted from the sidelines, and Zhuang Jianbai's pupils suddenly contracted.

"Coo-choo!"

Yumi's eyes widened and curved, and she flew around happily in mid-air, making a cheering sound like a whoosh.

In that instant, the Winterhound had no time to react. The sharp edge that cleaved through the wind and snow continued its momentum, instantly filling its entire field of vision and striking its breastplate with precision and weight.

boom!
Click!

A muffled thud accompanied by the sound of ice armor shattering suddenly rang out. The Winterhound couldn't help but let out a painful whimper. Its entire body was as if struck by a heavy hammer, flying backward uncontrollably before crashing heavily onto the frozen ground, splashing up a cloud of ice shards and snowflakes.

Zhuang Jianbai's heart tightened suddenly: "Winterhound!" However, the Winterhound's tenacity was beyond imagination. Despite its body trembling, it still struggled to stand up again.

Upon closer inspection, a clear slash was visible on the Winterhound's icy blue armor, with fine cracks at the edges. However, its eyes burned with an indomitable flame as it stared intently at Steel-Slaying Earth Lord, letting out another low, battle-ready roar: "Woof woof!"

The next moment, the Winterhound strode forward, its sharp claws sinking deep into the snow, its blue fur fluttering in the wind, and it roared with its head held high.

Steel-Slaying Earth-King looked at his opponent who had stood up again, his eyes flickered slightly, and then he nodded solemnly: "Crack."

This world is indeed fraught with danger; one can easily encounter such a tenacious and powerful opponent who can withstand one's attacks.

It seems my cultivation is far from sufficient, and I am still too weak.

We'll start extra training tomorrow.

Wang Yuan and the others were dumbfounded by the sudden turn of events:
"This Steel Slash Earth-kun is too powerful."

"I suddenly had a bad feeling."

"Wang Yuan, be ready to contact Teacher Jiang at any time."

Wang Yuan swallowed silently, then belatedly pulled out her phone and quickly sent a message: "Teacher Jiang, the situation is urgent. Lao Zhuang may be about to have a new inner demon."

Staring at the Steel-Slicing Earth Lord opposite him, Zhuang Jianbai's eyes flashed, his mind raced, and he decisively abandoned the steady and cautious strategy of squeezing out the enemy: "Winter Hound, go all out and use Winter Domain directly!"

“Woof woof!!!”

The Winterhound howled to the sky, and the immense ice energy within its body erupted without reservation in that instant. Centered on it, an even more frigid and bone-chilling extreme cold spread wildly in all directions like a shockwave!
Click!Click!
The ground it stood on and the large area around it were instantly covered with a thick and smooth layer of dark blue ice. Even the moisture in the air was instantly frozen, forming countless tiny ice crystals.

The extremely cold air currents, like invisible tentacles, wrapped around and eroded the Steel Slash Earth King in the center of the arena from all directions, attempting to freeze it completely.

The cold air spread extremely quickly and over a vast area, almost covering the entire site.

"Coo-choo!"

Even Youmi, which was flying around in mid-air, felt the power of this cold air. Its body trembled continuously, and it opened its mouth to exhale a ball of hot air. Before its tail could be frozen, it flew directly towards the spark.

All the little creatures approached the leader at the same time. She gently flapped her wings, and in an instant, a warm stream of flames appeared, illuminating the surroundings and dispelling the surging chill.

Standing in the center of the arena, Steel Slash Earth Lord scanned his surroundings, seemingly trying to find a space to dodge, but the all-pervasive extreme cold aura had already formed an encirclement, leaving no way to escape!

The next moment, the surging cold air completely engulfed the figure of Steel Slash Earth Lord, and the dark blue ice mist shrouded its location. The biting cold even made the people watching on the sidelines shiver.

"Success?!"

"Frozen?!"

Wang Yuan and several classmates couldn't help but gasp, their faint flame of hope rekindled.

They could almost see Steel Slash Earth Lord frozen into an ice sculpture, then shattered by Winter Dog in one blow. Perhaps Zhuang Jianbai could really create a miracle this time.

But someone frowned and muttered, "If Advisor Chen is so easily defeated, he's not the universally acknowledged Great Demon King."

Chen Yuan looked ahead, his gaze seemingly able to pierce through the surging ice mist and see the Iron-Headed Boy within.

Winter Domain is a racial skill of the Winterhound, and its effect is very similar to Arctic Beam, both of which can freeze the opponent.

At such a short distance and at such a high speed, Ironhead couldn't possibly avoid it.

Chen Yuan and the little ones both showed worried expressions, while Zhuang Jianbai stared intently at the icy mist, his palms slightly sweaty.

Before long, the icy mist slowly dissipated, but the scene of Steel Slash Earth Lord being frozen by the cold air, as expected, did not appear.

It stood silently in place, its silver-gray body covered with a thin layer of white frost, but its movements were not slowed down at all, and its eyes remained calm and sparkling, as if the extreme cold that had just frozen steel was nothing more than an ordinary cold wind in the harsh winter.

"What...what's going on?!"

"Completely ineffective?!"

"Impossible! It's impossible that it missed at such close range, but if it did hit, why didn't it freeze?"

The sidelines were immediately filled with astonishment and confusion. Zhuang Jianbai's heart sank, and his brows gradually furrowed.

He had conducted several experiments before, and found that if the two sides were evenly matched, the probability of being frozen was 100% if hit by the Winter Domain at close range.

However, the greater the distance, the lower the probability of success.

However, the distance between Winter Dog and Steel Slash King was less than ten meters, and the latter was hit head-on by the Winter Domain but was not frozen. This scene was really abnormal.

But in the instant everyone was stunned, Steel Slash Earth Lord moved.

It took half a step forward, its right foot, covered in heavy rock-gray armor, landing heavily on the ice.

The earth shook!

Boom boom boom!
A powerful surge of earth energy flowed through its right foot and forcefully injected into the frozen earth, causing the entire area to tremble violently!

The smooth, hard ice layer was simply unable to withstand this terrifying force from the earth, and instantly emitted a "crackling" sound as it shattered layer by layer like a spider web!

In an instant, ice blocks flew and snow sprayed everywhere!
The Winter Dog, standing on the ice, was caught off guard. Its foot slipped suddenly, its balance was broken instantly, and it let out a startled whimper, staggering as it was about to fall.

Steel-Cut Earth-King's eyes flashed as he seized this fleeting, golden opportunity.

The huge steel blade on his left arm popped out again with a "crack," its tip pointing diagonally at the ground, and then suddenly swept upwards!
Another incredibly sharp, silvery-white beam shot out, faster and at a more cunning angle, aiming directly at the exposed opening in the Winter Hound's abdomen caused by its loss of balance.

Zhuang Jianbai reacted extremely quickly, issuing a command in shock: "Winterhound, use Ice Claws to block!"

The Winterhound twisted its body forcefully while losing its balance, crossing its claws, which were covered in icy energy, in front of it in an attempt to block the fatal blow!
clang! ! !
scoff!

The sharp edge of the steel blade clashed violently with the ice claws at that moment, producing a piercing sound of metal clashing and ice shattering!
However, the difference in strength and skill proficiency was now clearly evident. The hastily organized defense of the Frosty Dog was no match for Steel Slash King's long-awaited attack, which contained the power to shatter steel!
The Ice Claw was instantly shattered, and the remaining power of its edge slammed into the Winter Hound!

"Woof!!"

The Winterhound let out a shrill howl as its body was once again sent flying, tracing an arc like a kite with a broken string before crashing heavily onto the broken ice in the distance. It struggled for a few moments but could no longer stand up.

With a final effort, it raised its head to look at its owner, its icy blue eyes filled with resentment, regret, and deep exhaustion before slowly closing and losing consciousness.

The venue was eerily silent, both inside and out.

Only the mournful sound of the cold wind whistling across the broken ice surface could be heard.

Zhuang Jianbai stared blankly at the Winter Hound, which had lost its ability to fight. His lips moved, but no sound came out.

A cold, familiar sense of frustration swept over me again, more biting than the surrounding cold wind.

All his preparations and determination seemed so pale and powerless in the face of such an absolute disparity in strength.

Wang Yuan and the other classmates were all silent, their faces filled with shock and helplessness.

The faint hope they had held onto was utterly crushed by Steel Slash Earth Lord's effortlessly overwhelming power.

"Old Zhuang" Wang Yuan cast a concerned glance at Zhuang Jianbai, who looked completely lost, and silently gripped his phone tightly.

Being defeated by Consultant Chen is not a shameful thing, but the opponent is not even Consultant Chen's contracted pet.
Wang Yuan sighed deeply, then sent a message to Jiang Yuntao:
"Teacher, we've lost."

"Okay, I understand. Which one defeated it? The Blazing Sky Falcon? The Wind-Riding Hound? Or the Dawn and Dusk Flower Fairy? They are all very powerful, so it's perfectly normal for it to lose."

"neither."

"Ok?"

"It's Steel-Cut Earth Lord, a pet beast that wasn't contracted by Consultant Chen."

"?"

At the same moment,

"quack!"

"Electricity!"

"Ouch!"

Runrun Duck, Dian Dian Flying Cat, Sprite and other little guys let out joyful chirps. Youmi was so excited that she did somersaults in mid-air, and then kept circling around the Steel Slash Earth Lord that stood like a war god in the center of the arena, making admiring chirping sounds: "Coo-choo coo-choo!"

Steel-Slaying Earth King slowly retracted its steel blade, and its arm armor closed up again.

It glanced down at the unconscious Winterhound, its eyes gleaming slightly.

Then it turned around, silently walked back to Chen Yuan's side, nodded slightly, as if it had only completed a trivial matter.

"Crack."

Cherish this moment in front of everyone! Steel-Cut Earth King braved the wind and snow, slowly walking towards the farm gate, its tall and slender figure gradually disappearing from everyone's sight.

In its attempt to advance, it has slacked off for a whole day.

The battle is over; it's time to get back to work.

(End of this chapter)