Beast Taming: I Can Add Points

I really can’t write anymore.

Seriously, not a single drop left.

Su Zhi pushed his keyboard away. Staring at the screen densely packed with skill frameworks made his scalp tingle.

He was starting to wonder if his dad was even human. How could his father furiously crank out thirty thousand characters when he was extremely angry, while Su Zhi himself couldn’t squeeze out a single word no matter how hard he tried...

Su Zhi stretched, lost in thought.

He now had two choices:

1. Fail to finish while drowning in extreme self-blame and guilt, then toss and turn all night with regret, only to fall into a new vicious cycle of underperformance the next day.

2. Gladly accept that today was a wash, go to sleep with a clear conscience, and come back tomorrow full of energy.

Su Zhi decisively chose the latter. His gaze shifted from the screen, turning toward the starry sky above the distant buildings.

’Since I’ve already failed, there’s no point in impotent rage.’

’Du Tingbei can take the fall for this one,’ he mused.

Unfortunately, there were no stars tonight. The weather didn’t seem very clear.

Su Zhi’s gaze lowered, and lowered, finally landing on the green space of the residential complex outside his window.

After allocating the points to Yu Bao’s Intelligence, Yu Bao had gone out to train on his own.

Most Pet Beasts needed their Beast Tamer to supervise their training. Otherwise, even the most diligent Pet Beast would inevitably slack off, and their progress would regress over time.

Even the few Pet Beasts that trained proactively were usually just internalizing their Beast Tamer’s expectations as their own motivation; they didn’t genuinely want to grind.

Yu Bao was different. He truly wanted to train.

Every Skill he practiced suited his affinity, so he had a natural interest in them.

There was a meme in the Beast Taming Realm: ”If training gets boring, just switch to another Skill.jpg.” For Yu Bao, this was an everyday reality.

One side needed supervision to grind, while the other wanted to grind on its own. The difference in quality was obvious.

Recalling all the nights they had trained together, Su Zhi couldn’t help but smile.

’But... it seems a little quiet today? I don’t hear any commotion.’

Puzzled, Su Zhi put on some clothes and went out the door.

Yu Bao was sitting on the lawn, propping his chin up with his left forepaw, deep in thought.

In front of him, a Sandstorm would blow one way, then the other.

He had also summoned Yellow Earth Walls, arranging them in various regular patterns. One moment they would form a circle, the next they would line up in two rows, and then they’d shift into an Array that Su Zhi couldn’t comprehend.

Yu Bao’s expression was grave, and he didn’t make a sound.

Sometimes he would suddenly unleash a Quicksand Shield, smashing it into the circle formed by the Yellow Earth Walls.

Other times he would suddenly summon a Furious Sand Blade, making it fly between the two rows of Yellow Earth Walls.

At times, his eyes would light up as if he’d had an epiphany; at others, he would shake his head alone as if he had discovered a problem.

He was so immersed in a state of concentration that he didn’t even notice his master approaching from behind.

”...?”

A big question mark appeared over Su Zhi’s head.

He didn’t make a sound, tiptoeing up behind Yu Bao.

Yu Bao’s ears twitched. He turned his head, and the gazes of master and pet met.

”Woof!” the little guy cried out happily, leaping into Su Zhi’s arms.

”What are you up to, Yu Bao?” Su Zhi asked curiously while patting his head.

”Woof.”

But Yu Bao just shook his head, a look of disappointed resignation in his eyes.

’I’m researching something very profound. You wouldn’t understand even if I told you.’

”Huh?”

Su Zhi looked at Yu Bao, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

’I add one point to your Intelligence, and you get this full of yourself?’

”Woof!” Yu Bao pawed at him anxiously.

’Don’t you believe me! I really am smarter than you now!’

”Haha, okay, okay. Let’s go home for now, shall we? You’ve worked hard enough today, and you spent the whole afternoon fighting in the arena.”

”Woof woof!”

Without a backward glance, Yu Bao went PITTER-PATTER-PATTING all the way home.

When Su Zhi got back home, Yu Bao was using his mouth to flip open his ”Introduction to Beast Taming” workbook.

”Woof!”

Yu Bao tapped the question with his paw—TAP TAP—then lowered his head and started scratching at it... as if doing mental arithmetic.

Su Zhi glanced over. It was a problem asking to prove whether a sand wolf could use a Sandstorm to shoot down a Cyan Feathered Falcon.

”Woof!”

After a flurry of masterful scribbles, Yu Bao slapped his paw down with satisfaction.

’The answer is ’yes’! Let me explain the process, you can check the answer key!’

So Su Zhi flipped to the answer key. ”Cannot.”

Yu Bao was stunned.

”Isn’t this pretty simple? The range of the Sandstorm can’t reach the minimum flight altitude of the Cyan Feathered Falcon shown in the diagram.”

”Woof-wah... woof...” Yu Bao explained, scratching his ears and cheeks in frustration.

’But there’s clearly a small hill in the diagram! If the sand wolf ran up it, wouldn’t it be able to hit it?’

Su Zhi was grinning from ear to ear.

”Hmph...” Yu Bao huffily kicked the workbook shut.

’What a stupid question. There’s no logic to it at all.’

”Yes, you’re right, it’s the question’s fault. It’s getting late, let’s go to sleep now.”

Su Zhi coaxed Yu Bao to sleep as if he were a baby.

The little guy lay on his back on the bed, all four paws in the air, hugging the Brown Relics that Old Ban had given him.

The corresponding Attribute Energy contained within resources could continuously repair the Energy deficit in a Pet Beast caused by using Skills, thereby increasing the Pet Beast’s maximum Energy and Energy recovery rate.

Yu Bao had abundant resources and would absorb a set amount on schedule every night.

It was precisely because of this that Yu Bao could be full of vigor every day, a truly dedicated and hard-working Dog.

Hearing the little guy’s snores, Su Zhi sighed like a stay-at-home dad.

’So it turns out there’s a side effect to adding points to Intelligence? It makes a Pet Beast think it’s smarter than it is and get a big head?’

’Or could it be that Yu Bao was doing all those strange things because he’d really thought of something...?’

As Su Zhi thought about this, he gently tucked the little guy in, being extra careful as he covered his paws and tail.

On a whim, he glanced at the apartment building across from them.

The light in that window was already out, but a faint azure glow shone on the glass, seemingly a reflection of the moon.

With a smile, Su Zhi also slowly slid into his own bed and turned off the lamp.

’Yu Bao is putting his ideas into practice. All I need to do is believe in him.’

’Isn’t that the kind of relationship a Beast Tamer and their Pet Beast should have?’

Su Zhi closed his eyes, waiting for his consciousness to sink into sleep.

Just then, his phone vibrated—

6:06 PM

[Old Ban]: Piao told me you went to the Fengyun Arena? Those are underground matches! Be careful, and stay out of trouble!

[Old Ban]: But don’t panic. Piao is an Advanced Tier Beast Tamer. I can’t say he can do whatever he wants in Huai City, but at least he won’t get beaten to death.

10:17 PM

[Old Ban]: I looked at your skill framework. You can’t do it like this, Brother Shu. Your whole approach is wrong.

[Old Ban]: Since your idea is to have the Pet Beast at the core, you have to consistently choose Skills based on the Pet Beast’s affinity. But these last few Skills you added just seem slapped on to make the system work.

[Old Ban]: Your Skill System, starting from version 7.12, feels like you’re making a pie just to use up the filling. But your original idea was to make a whole pot of dumplings just for a saucer of dipping vinegar. Of course making a pie feels out of place.

10:26 PM

[Old Ban]: Piao said you’re back. Say something, will you? I can’t be calling your parents this late to check on you, can I?

11:15 PM

[Old Ban]: You there?

11:49 PM

[Old Ban]: Woof?

’Make dumplings for a saucer of vinegar, don’t make a pie just to use up the filling!’

HOLY SHIT!!!

A flash of inspiration struck Su Zhi. He shot out of bed and turned his computer back on.

At that moment, he was possessed by the spirit of his father!

Of course, before diving into his marathon work session, he didn’t forget to let Old Zhou know he was safe—

[Su Zhi]: Got it.

As the night deepened, another middle-aged man in the city could finally sleep in peace.

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