Digimon: I really didn't want to be the Digimon Emperor!

"Could it be a new type of evolved form?"

Cheng Yuan watched this scene thoughtfully. It seemed that the dark evolution path was not yet widely understood in this world.

He put away Greymon, and BlackGreymon was recalled as a data stream.

This action brought a sigh of relief to everyone present.

"As you can see, this is my partner, DarkGreymon." Xu Xin's voice broke the silence. "You are still far from reaching the Champion stage, so there's no point in saying more. Right now, the most important thing is the Beast Tamer College Entrance Examination."

"By the time of the college entrance exam at the end of the semester, most of you here will have Digimon that have reached the Rookie stage and will be able to meet the entrance requirements for Tamer University."

"The entrance exam for beast tamers mainly consists of a written test and a battle. The results of the battle will greatly affect the admission outcome."

Cheng Yuan pricked up his ears. This was firsthand experience from a professional animal trainer.

"You can only rely on your own efforts for the written exam, but I do have some experience to share regarding the combat exam."

"The difference in data volume and attribute values ​​between growth stages is not as large as you imagine. Preparing some advanced resources before the exam, such as attribute cubes, can change the fate of many beast tamers."

"But in addition to the amount of data and basic attributes, the number of skills, the level of skill development, and basic qualities will all seriously affect the course of the battle. You need to work hard on these aspects in the next six months."

Cheng Yuan nodded to himself. Wasn't this exactly the direction he had been focusing on to specifically train the little dog beast, which he had realized was lacking?

"In addition, if that's not enough, I can teach you some tips."

The entire audience immediately fell silent, holding their breath in anticipation—it was a small trick for Xu Xin, but for these newbies, it was undoubtedly a divine skill.

"A Digimon's fighting power depends not only on its own strength, but also on the condition of its tamer."

"We must remember that Digimon do not fight alone. The tamer and the Digimon are a whole. The tamer's emotional state will affect the Digimon's state. Whether it is joy, anger, sorrow, fear, love, hate, or desire, when the emotion reaches its extreme, it will give a bonus to the Digimon's attributes."

Cheng Yuan's eyes lit up. Wasn't this the "bond" often mentioned in animation?

"Of course, you are still inexperienced and it is difficult to influence Digimon through extreme emotions." Xu Xin changed the subject, "But by spending more time with Digimon and building your own bonds, you will gradually master the methods of manipulating emotions."

……

Today, the real world and the digital world are merging, and Digimon have become integrated into human life and production. While Digimon use their special abilities to unleash human productivity and combat power, powerful professional Digimon trainers also gain many privileges.

Professional animal trainers receive many preferential treatments when opening companies, doing business, accessing public facilities, and allocating resources.

Animal trainers all aspire to become professional-level animal trainers.

Getting into an animal trainer university is undoubtedly a fast track to becoming a professional animal trainer.

Principal Liu felt he was very wise to expose these novice trainees to professional animal trainers ahead of time, and to the rising stars among them. This undoubtedly broadened their horizons and helped them grow quickly.

After the legendary senior's speech, the students benefited greatly. Even after the meeting ended, they were still discussing it back in their classrooms.

Meanwhile, Xu Xin was in the teachers' office, tidying up his temporary workspace. He carefully placed a photograph in a frame; it was a picture of himself with a yellow Agumon with clear, bright eyes.

The phone rang abruptly. Xu Xin glanced at the caller ID and quickly walked to a deserted corner.

The call connected, and a deep voice came from the other end: "Team leader, we have contacted the Pengcheng Public Security Bureau and started a city-wide carpet search. We will receive news as soon as we have any."

"However, we just received intelligence that Devimon has apparently entered the Aota Ward, because Digimon data remnants that were devoured by dark forces have been found there."

Xu Xin frowned and said, "Tell the conventional forces not to act rashly. The Devil Beast is not something that conventional physical weapons can handle. Taking rash action will only alert it."

He lowered his voice and continued, "You should know that this Devimon is a special being that can sneak out of the Digital Abyss into the real world. It is no ordinary creature. The fact that the Beast Tamers Association has summoned us back to the real world is enough to prove that it is not easy to deal with."

"If my Greymon hadn't needed a lot of resources to break through recently, and if this Devimon hadn't smuggled itself into my hometown of Pengcheng, I wouldn't have come back to take on this mission."

"According to the feedback from the Pengcheng Beast Tamer Association branch, they need to deploy professional beast tamers but don't want other cities to know. This shows that this demon beast is very special. Even the F-level mission that I brought back to assess and train the juniors at Pengcheng No. 1 Middle School was just a cover. So we must not let our guard down."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone: "Okay, I'll send you the relevant clues now. Leave the detection and search to me. Once we've locked onto its trail, that's when you, as its core combatant, will be deployed."

"Okay." Xu Xin rubbed his temples. "Remember, my identity at school is only to carry out an F-level assessment and training mission. Don't reveal your true purpose."

After giving a few more instructions, Xu Xin hung up the phone, rubbed his temples, and said, "I hope this fugitive from the Digital Abyss doesn't cause trouble in the real world, otherwise the reward will have to be reduced."

The human world's data resources are far too scarce compared to the digital world, causing the prices of special data, chips, and computing power to rise continuously. Even the resources for my Digimon's growth when I was in school were half subsidized by the country and the school, and I was responsible for the other half.

The thought of DarkGreymon breaking through its limits and even evolving into its Ultimate form in one fell swoop gave him a terrible headache.

Even if the breakthrough resources are raised, if BlackGreymon, a Champion-level Digimon of the Virus type, were to evolve into a Perfect-level Digimon, it would most likely evolve into that insane and idiotic tragic Virus type... Zombiemon!

Chapter 12, First Lesson of the Advanced Class

After a selection process, the first cohort of members for the senior year key class at Pengcheng No.1 High School has been finalized.

Thirty boys and girls, along with their various Rookie-level Digimon partners, gathered in a spacious and brightly lit dedicated battle training arena.

The air was thick with excitement and tension. These top students from eighteen classes had very different personalities, but their eyes all sparkled with anticipation for the future and a hint of competition.

The list includes almost all known animal trainers in their developmental stage from students at Pengcheng No.1 High School:

Cheng Yuan's snow-white, sacred little dog beast;

The pangolin with thick scales and a steady gait;

Zhao Lu's gleaming, precisely rotating gear beast;

There are also Digimon such as Flamemon, Palmon, Candlemon, Wormmon, and Goremon... These Digimon, representing different evolutionary paths and functional roles, are all quietly lying down or standing beside their respective tamers.

"Squeak-"

The heavy metal door of the training ground was pushed open, and the footsteps were steady and powerful.

A young figure walked in. He had a neat buzz cut, wore a simple and practical dark gray training uniform, and had a tall and straight posture. His steps were efficient and steady, characteristic of a professional animal trainer.

His sharp gaze swept across the entire field, and an invisible pressure instantly silenced the previously noisy training ground.

"Hello everyone." His voice wasn't loud, but it reached everyone's ears clearly, carrying a calmness born from real combat experience.

"My name is Xu Xin, and I believe you already know me this morning." Xu Xin nodded slightly, his face showing a hint of seniority. "Perhaps you are still relatively unfamiliar with me, but technically, I am your senior. I also graduated from Pengcheng No.1 High School and am currently studying at Pengcheng Animal Trainer Technology University. I am now a professional animal trainer. This month, I was invited by my alma mater to return to the school to assess and train you all, helping you improve your abilities to prepare for the college entrance examination. Please guide me in the coming month."

Looking at the humble Xu Xin, Cheng Yuan became even more curious about professional animal trainers.

He subconsciously patted the little dog's head, and the little guy looked up at his new teacher with curiosity in his bright blue eyes.

"Because we've added practical training courses this semester, which are quite intensive, we need to select a new class representative to assist with the work," Xu Xin said bluntly. "Anyone willing to volunteer?"

The vast training ground fell silent instantly, so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Thirty pairs of eyes looked at each other, maintaining a tacit silence. Everyone knew that being a class representative under a professional animal trainer, especially in this elite, elimination-based class, meant more responsibility, more exposure, and also... more "special attention" and extra training.

Xu Xin seemed unsurprised by the silence, her expression remaining unchanged: "So, does anyone have any recommendations?"

He then listed several requirements: "They need to have a certain level of organizational and coordination skills, their physical fitness shouldn't be too poor, they need to react quickly, and preferably... a little bit clever, able to adapt to changing circumstances, and a little 'restless' but not inherently bad." He paused, "On the training field, following the rules isn't necessarily a good thing; sometimes you need a bit of the drive to break the mold."

As Cheng Yuan listened, his heart skipped a beat, and an ominous premonition arose within him.

"I recommend Cheng Yuan!" A clear voice rang out with a hint of sly laughter; it was Zhao Lu. She raised her hand high, and Cheng Yuan glared at her instantly.

"Zhao Lu, please don't hurt me."

"Teacher Xu, Cheng Yuan meets all the conditions you mentioned! He's a clique member, a witty fellow, a goofball, and has a sharp tongue, and... well, he's not a bad person at heart!"

Cheng Yuan: "..." Did I take that as a compliment?

"Oh? Is that so?" Xu Xin turned her gaze to Cheng Yuan, her expression a mixture of inquiry and understanding.

In the next few minutes, with Teacher Xu Xin's unwavering encouragement that "I have faith in you," Cheng Yuan almost reluctantly accepted his first "class officer" title—representative of the key class's practical training session.

He inwardly groaned: Zhao Lu! This feud is now set in stone! Don't leave after school!

Xu Xin looked at Cheng Yuan, who seemed helpless and resigned, and a thought flashed through her mind. Was this the tamer who evolved from a digital egg to a child stage in just two weeks?

He glanced at the little dog beast, which had already revealed quite a few problems: its basic attributes were somewhat weak, and its control over energy was rather crude... It had potential, but it needed to be honed and refined by the system.

"Alright, class representatives, back to your positions." Xu Xin composed himself, clapped his hands, and drew everyone's attention back to the main topic. "Now, let's begin the first lesson of our elite class—the basic operation of the Digivice and survival training for trainers."

His voice suddenly turned serious and cold: "First of all, you need to understand one thing: real-world battles, especially encounters in the wild and in the digital space, are not the friendly sparring with protective shields that you see in the arena! There, once your Digimon suffers a fatal attack and its Digicore is shattered, it means—complete disappearance, never to be recovered!"

The cold reality made many students instinctively tighten their grip on their Digimon, and their eyes looked at their partners with more seriousness and worry.

"Therefore, as Digimon Tamers, your primary responsibility is not to command your Digimon to defeat your opponents, but to use your Digivices to accurately and swiftly recall your partners at crucial moments, avoiding irreparable losses!" Xu Xin's gaze swept across the entire arena like a blade. "Remember, the battlefield is not a fair 1v1 duel, but a life-or-death struggle. And Digimon Tamers are never spectators standing on the sidelines!"

He raised his voice, each word striking the students' hearts: "You are part of the battle! Your positioning, movement, ability to find cover, and ability to command remotely via the internet... all of these directly determine the life and death of you and your Digimon partner!"

As Cheng Yuan listened, he silently compared this cruel reality with the huge difference between it and the Digimon anime he had watched in his previous life.

In the anime, Tai and his friends are blasted away by the skills of mature or even complete stages, but they can just dust themselves off and stand up to continue shouting slogans.

But here, a full-force attack from a Rookie-level Digimon is enough to seriously injure or even kill an unprotected human.

The tamer's own survival skills become the most basic yet most crucial element. Those who cannot protect themselves will only become a burden to their partners.

“Therefore,” Xu Xin summarized, “today’s first lesson is the most basic of basics—physical fitness! Without sufficient physical fitness, all tactics and skills are just empty talk. Class representative!” He looked at Cheng Yuan.

Cheng Yuan's heart skipped a beat, but he forced a smile and said, "Here!"

"Lead the team in warm-up, then with your partners—a 10-kilometer weighted run! Let's begin!" Xu Xin gave the order that left no room for argument.

Chapter 13 Arc Light Tyrannosaurus Rex

"Ten kilometers?!" Cheng Yuan almost bit his tongue. "Teacher Xu, a Digimon running ten kilometers is fine, but for a tamer..."

Xu Xin's lips curled up slightly: "Class representative, set an example and add two kilometers, making it twelve kilometers."

Cheng Yuan: "......"

This blessing came too suddenly!

The training field was instantly filled with cries of despair. Zhao Lu winked gloatingly at Cheng Yuan, but her joy turned to sorrow the next second—

"Zhao Lu looks very energetic, so she'll run two more kilometers."

Zhao Lu's smile froze on her face instantly, and the gear beast on her shoulder clicked and jammed into place.

"Everyone, line up!" Cheng Yuan forced himself to walk to the front of the line, mentally cursing Zhao Lu a hundred times over. As he turned, he whispered to Little Dog Beast, "Little Dog Beast, slow down later, let's save our energy..."

"The class representative is leading the way in slacking off, so add another kilometer." Xu Xin's voice floated down from behind.

Cheng Yuan nearly stumbled: "Teacher, do you have mind-reading abilities?!"

“No,” Xu Xin pointed to her ear, “it’s because you’re talking too loudly.”

I'd give you 99 points on this listening test; I'm leaving 1 point so you won't get arrogant.

The little dog covered its face with its paws, its tail drooping: "Master... please be more careful, woof..."

With the sound of a whistle, the grueling training for the elite class officially began.

Thirty boys and girls, each with their own Digimon, began running laps around the playground.

At first the team was fairly organized, but after three laps, the gap gradually widened.

Kang Zhaodi's burly body took the lead, with the pangolin following beside him like a small tank. The two of them ran with great speed and agility.

Although Zhao Lu complained, she was surprisingly physically fit because she had been in her father's police force since childhood. The gear beast followed closely behind, its metal body turning.

And our class representative...

"Huff...ha...this track...is...is a passage to hell..." Cheng Yuan gasped for breath like a stranded fish, his legs feeling like they were filled with lead.

The little dog beast, however, had an unexpectedly easy time. Its small size, combined with its speed, made it very easy to handle the situation, except that Cheng Yuan held it back.

"Hold on... eight more laps... If only I could fly." Cheng Yuan's vision was already blurry, and in a daze, he seemed to see the gates of heaven—through which Taiyi was waving at him with the Divine Plan in hand: "Go, Cheng Yuanmon! Cheng Yuanmon Ultimate Evolution... BGM starts playing..."

"Cheng Yuan! Wake up!" The little dog jumped up and down anxiously. "Teacher Xu is watching you!"

Cheng Yuan snapped out of his daze and met Xu Xin's ambiguous smile.

The professional animal trainer had somehow appeared on the inside of the track, holding a timer, calmly watching their disheveled state.

“Class representative, your physical fitness is even worse than that of a baby Digimon.” Xu Xin shook his head. “Looks like I’ll have to give you some extra training.”

"It's perfectly reasonable for a tamer like me to be physically weaker than a Digimon!" He didn't finish the sentence, but instead cried out, "Wait, teacher! I'm about to evolve... oh no, I mean, I'm about to unleash my full potential..."

After five laps, Cheng Yuan was in a mysterious state—his body was swaying mechanically, but his soul was floating in mid-air, contemplating life.

He stared at Kang Zhaodi's burly back ahead, and suddenly a thought struck him: "Big guy... wait for me... let me grab your pants and run with you for a bit!"

Kang Zhaodi didn't even turn his head: "Get lost."

"What happened to the...care and concern from the students in the next class?"

"Why didn't you mention the care and concern of classmates when you invited me to supervise Lin Meng and the others running ten laps last week?"

Cheng Yuan: "......" Is the ship of friendship really so fragile that it can capsize so easily?

Just as Cheng Yuan was considering whether to lie down and wait for the ambulance, an unexpected savior appeared—Zhao Lu had slowed down and was running alongside him.

"Hey, class representative, you're not feeling well anymore?" Although Zhao Lu was also covered in sweat, she could at least still manage to say something sarcastic.