In Locke, beast taming begins with a black pot.

Early the next morning.

Chen Xun got up with dark circles under his eyes, while Old Man Han looked refreshed. He got up early to shave his beard and changed into a white shirt he had been keeping at the bottom of his trunk.

Although the shirt was wrinkled like pickled vegetables, and there was a soy sauce stain on the collar that couldn't be washed off.

"How is it? Handsome, right?"

Old Han smoothed his hair in front of the mirror, looking confident.

"handsome."

Chen Xun said expressionlessly, "You're so handsome I want to throw you off the second floor."

"Young man, don't be so hot-tempered."

Old Han patted him on the shoulder: "Today is the day you report to the Beast Taming Academy in the capital. Be in a good mood."

"My good mood was ruined by your snoring last night."

Chen Xun picked up the small black pot, slung his bag over his shoulder, opened the door, and went downstairs.

Old Han followed behind, all excited.

The proprietress was still eating sunflower seeds at the counter when she saw the two of them come down. She said lazily, "Breakfast is over there: congee and pickled vegetables, plus two eggs."

Chen Xun drank two bowls of plain porridge and fed Xiao Hei Guo one bowl.

After finishing the porridge, Little Black Pot symbolically gained 1 experience point, and is now level 2 (1/200).

Reaching level 3 requires 200 experience points. At 5 experience points per boxed meal, you would need to eat 40 boxed meals.

At 50 yuan per boxed meal, that's 2000 yuan.

After Chen Xun finished calculating the score, the corner of his mouth twitched.

Seasoning a pot is really expensive.

"Let's go! To school!"

Old Han wiped his mouth and strode out of the hotel, looking as if he were going to attend the Oscars.

The Capital Beast Taming Academy is located on the street behind the hotel.

It's a five-minute walk, just around the corner.

Chen Xun followed Old Man Han around the street corner, and suddenly the view opened up before him.

A huge archway stands at the end of the street, with six large golden characters engraved above it: Capital Beast Taming Academy.

On either side of the archway stand two towering stone pillars, each carved with reliefs of various spirits: a majestic fire-breathing dragon, an elegant and mysterious water spirit, and an adorable Snorlax.

Each relief is so lifelike that it seems as if it might jump off the stone pillar at any moment.

Behind the archway lies an endless campus.

Shady trees, lawns like carpets, and teaching buildings of different styles are scattered throughout the campus.

In the distance, you can also see a huge open-air battle arena and a Pokémon training ground that is even larger than the Jiangcheng Stadium.

"How about it? Impressive, isn't it?"

Old Man Han proudly raised his chin: "This is the best beast-taming academy in all of China, bar none."

Chen Xun nodded.

It is indeed impressive.

Compared to this place, the universities in Jiangcheng are like vocational schools in the urban-rural fringe.

"Let's go in and report for duty."

Chen Xun lifted his foot to walk inside.

"Wait a minute."

Old Han grabbed him, his expression suddenly becoming somewhat subtle: "Um... you go in by yourself, I'll wait for you here."

Why?

Chen Xun looked at him with a puzzled expression.

"Uh... I'm feeling a little unwell, my stomach hurts."

Old Han clutched his stomach, his acting was clumsy.

"You just drank two bowls of porridge and ate three eggs, why does your stomach hurt?"

"I probably ate too much... You go ahead, don't worry about me."

Old Han turned around and was about to disappear into the alley next to him.

Just then, a loud voice came from the school gate:

"Han Zhou! You fucking dare to come back!"

Chen Xun looked in the direction of the sound.

A middle-aged man in a security guard uniform walked out of the school gate. He was burly, with a fierce face, and was carrying an electric baton. He was walking angrily toward us.

Old Han's face turned green instantly.

"Brother Wang... it's been a long time."

He chuckled dryly and took two steps back.

"Long time no see? You've owed me three thousand yuan for five years! Five years!"

Security guard Brother Wang grabbed Old Man Han by the collar, spitting all over his face: "You said you were going to the secret realm to catch a rare elf to sell for money to pay me back, but you never came back! I thought you died in the secret realm!"

"Um... Brother Wang, let me explain..."

"Explanation my ass! Give me my money back!"

Brother Wang slammed the stun gun into the ground, making a "snap" sound.

Old Han shuddered in fright and quickly pointed at Chen Xun: "This is my apprentice! He's here to register! I'll return his scholarship to you as soon as it's issued!"

Chen Xun: "???"

Why should I use my scholarship money to pay off your debt?

Brother Wang turned to look at Chen Xun, sizing him up: "Your apprentice?"

"Yes! A genius with 3 spirit slots! A blue-quality spirit! He'll definitely make it in this year!"

Old Han was exaggerating.

Brother Wang loosened Old Man Han's collar and walked up to Chen Xun: "Young man, your master owes me three thousand. You'd better deal with it."

Chen Xun took a step back, his expression cold: "You've mistaken me for someone else. I'm not familiar with him."

Old Man Han: "..."

Brother Wang: "..."

"He used my credit card and hasn't paid it back; I'm thinking of contacting him."

Chen Xun added, picked up the little black pot, and walked into the school gate.

"Hey! Xiao Xun! Don't go! Xiao Xun!"

Old Han was so anxious he was jumping up and down.

Chen Xun didn't turn his head back.

Not familiar, that's all.

You have to bear the debts yourself.

Just as I stepped into the school gate, I heard a commotion behind me.

"Han Zhou! When are you going to pay me back the 20,000 yuan you owe me?"

"Han Zhou! You old liar! You promised to appraise my Pokémon egg, but you killed it!"

"Han Zhou! Give me back my wife's nine-tailed fox! You said you'd borrow it for breeding, but after breeding, the nine-tailed fox became infertile!"

……

Chen Xun quickened his pace.

I don't know him, I really don't know him.

This old man's reputation at the Capital Beast Taming Academy is worse than that of a rat crossing the street.

It's a miracle that he managed to come back here alive, after accumulating a mountain of debt and swindling a bunch of people.

……

The registration location is the auditorium of the school's main building.

Chen Xun followed the signs, walked through a tree-lined path, and arrived in front of the main building.

The main building is a five-story European-style building with ivy climbing all over its gray and white stone walls, giving it a very old feel.

The auditorium is on the first floor of the main building, and there was a long queue at the entrance.

It was full of students who came to register, along with their parents.

Chen Xun stood at the back of the line, glanced ahead, and had only one thought in his mind.

So many people.JPG

The crowds were immense, shoulder to shoulder, even more so than at train stations during the Spring Festival travel rush.

"There are only 100 places available for enrollment this year, but at least 2,000 people have registered."

A boy wearing glasses next to me struck up a conversation, adjusting his glasses as he said, "The acceptance rate is twenty to one, even harder than taking the civil service exam."

Chen Xun glanced at him.

The boy was dressed simply, carrying a faded canvas bag and holding a "Pokémon Skill Combination Guide" in his hand, the pages of which were all curled up.

"Are you here to register as well?"

Chen asked.

"right."

The boy extended his hand: "My name is Lin Bei, I'm from Jiangcheng."

Chen Xun shook hands with him: "Chen Xun, you're also from Jiangcheng."

"Jiangcheng?"

Lin Bei's eyes lit up: "Hey, fellow villager! Which school in Jiangcheng did you go to?"

Jiangcheng No.1 Middle School

"I'm from Jiangcheng No. 2 Middle School."

Lin Bei said excitedly, "I've heard of you! The genius with three spirit slots at the Awakening Ceremony! The blue-quality pot-shaped spirit! It's all over the Jiangcheng Beast Taming circle!"

Chen Xun: "..."

The news spread so fast?

"Where's your pot? Can I take a look?"

Lin Bei leaned closer, looking expectant.