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

Cheng Yuan rolled his eyes listlessly: "You...you wait...once I recover...I promise..."

"Definitely what? Add another two kilometers?" Zhao Lu smiled slyly, then suddenly lowered her voice, "Want to know a little trick to be lazy?"

Cheng Yuan immediately perked up his ears: "What tricks? Bribing the teacher? Pretending to faint? Or just defecting to a regular class?"

"Idiot!" Zhao Lu pointed at her Gearmon, "Ask a Digimon for help!"

Suddenly, the Gear Beast accelerated and rushed in front of Zhao Lu, leaning to the side and gently pressing the edge of its gears against her back. As the gears turned, they actually propelled her forward!

"You can do that?!" Cheng Yuan exclaimed in disbelief. "Isn't that against the rules?"

Zhao Lu winked smugly: "Teacher Xu only said 'run with your partner,' but didn't say how to run~"

Cheng Yuan suddenly realized something and turned to his dog, "Dog Beast, did you hear me? Think of a solution!"

The little dog tilted its head and thought for two seconds, then its eyes suddenly lit up. It slowed down and rushed behind Cheng Yuan, and then—suddenly accelerated!

[Extreme Collision] Speed ​​Control Version + [Sacred Barrier]!

"boom!"

With the barrier formed by divine power on his back, Cheng Yuan ran wildly, propelled by the rapid collision of the little dog beast, doubling his speed.

It felt like a huge truck was pushing me forward at breakneck speed.

"I... damn it..." Cheng Yuan, bewildered in the wind, felt his mouth filled with air.

Seeing this, the other students followed suit, and the training ground lit up with colorful skill lights.

However, many Digimon are not known for their speed; in fact, they are slower than their trainers and can only run slowly and laboriously.

After running ten kilometers, they were all red-faced and drenched in sweat, lying sprawled on the ground, looking completely disheveled. Their Digimon companions were also mostly exhausted and panting with their tongues hanging out.

Kang Zhaodi and his pangolin were quite adept at it, only breaking out in a light sweat. Clearly, their daily "martial arts manual" style training had paid off, though their speed wasn't particularly fast.

Ultimately, Cheng Yuan, who relied on his dog's cheat code, was the first to cross the finish line in this "marathon".

He lay sprawled on the lawn, not wanting to move a finger. His little dog lay on his chest, the two of them panting heavily in unison.

Continuously using Extreme Speed ​​Crash while maintaining speed control is also a great way to train the Puppy Beast's skill control.

Xu Xin strolled over and looked down at them: "Class representative, how does it feel?"

Cheng Yuan, barely able to speak, said, "Teacher... I understand..."

"What have you realized?"

"To become an animal trainer... the first thing you need to do is... buy personal accident insurance..."

Xu Xin couldn't help but chuckle, squatted down and patted Cheng Yuan on the shoulder: "I have some bad news for you. Because of the dangerous nature of the professional animal trainer industry, most insurance companies refuse to insure them. However, if someone dies in the line of duty, the government will provide compensation."

To hell with your martyrdom!

"Take a ten-minute break, then proceed to the next lesson."

Cheng Yuan sprang up as if he'd risen from the dead: "There's more?!"

“Of course,” Xu Xin said with a devilish smile, “this is just the warm-up.”

Looking at the group of pampered Seed students in front of her, Xu Xin's face remained expressionless. She simply commented, "Physical fitness is one of the lifelines of a trainer. I hope to see your progress in the next class."

For the next lesson, Xu Xin didn't let everyone continue to overexert themselves. Instead, he took out a new-looking and more streamlined and sturdy T-Rex machine from his equipment case.

This Tyrannosaurus Rex machine seems to be made of a higher-grade material, gleaming with a cold metallic luster. Most notably, there is a prominent slot on the side of the machine.

"Let me introduce you," Xu Xin said, holding up the Digimon so everyone could see it. "This is the latest achievement of Dongda National Digital Technology—the 'Arc Light Digimon,' a new generation of Beast Tamer terminals that will soon be launched on the market."

Chapter 14 A Bottomless Pit of Pay-to-Win

He paused deliberately, his gaze sweeping across the expectant faces in the room before finally settling on Cheng Yuan: "Class representative, guess what this slot is for?"

Cheng Yuan was staring blankly at the slot when he was suddenly called on and almost bit his tongue: "Huh? Uh... is it... is it for swiping a card?"

All items sold

He pointed to the slot: "This is the tactical chip slot. The Arc Light Machine is equipped with a more powerful computing core. Its core function is to enhance the Digimon's abilities in real time during battle by inserting specific tactical chips."

Xu Xin's tone carried a hint of popular science: "Our Dongda Country's digital chip technology has been striving to catch up with the Divine Eagle Country. The significance of the Arc Light Machine lies in the fact that it allows tamers to provide powerful, real-time temporary boosts to their Digimon through tactical chips during battle, based on the ever-changing situation."

Zhao Lu raised her hand and asked, "Teacher, how is this different from ordinary data enhancement?"

“Good question.” Xu Xin snapped his fingers. “Ordinary data enhancement is permanent, but it takes time to absorb. But tactical chips…” He winked mysteriously, “are plug-and-play add-ons!”

He listed examples: "Imagine your Digimon suddenly gaining a temporary weapon, a short burst of speed, a brief flight ability, a significant increase in energy of a specific attribute... and even..." He deliberately dragged out the words, "it can even give the tamer an energy shield!"

A murmur of amazement and discussion immediately erupted from the audience. This feature sounds incredibly tempting! It's practically a godsend in battle!

Cheng Yuan's pupils contracted slightly. A D-Ark Arc Machine? A tactical chip? This setting… it's so similar to the D-Ark Arc Machine from the third season of Digimon in his past life! Only, in the anime, the children used cards whose symbolic value outweighed their actual cost, while in this real world, they became expensive "tactical chips" that needed to be purchased with real money!

His brain raced: chip enhancement…weapons, acceleration, flight, energy amplification…it sounded wonderful, a weapon capable of instantly changing the course of battle. But Cheng Yuan knew perfectly well—this kind of thing was an absolute money pit! Each tactical chip that could bring substantial improvement was probably as expensive as an advanced data cube, or even more! And that was just the price of the chip itself; what about the Arc Light Tyrannosaurus Rex itself? Absolutely astronomical!

"Teacher!" Kang Zhaodi raised his hand at just the right moment and asked the question Cheng Yuan wanted to ask: "Are these chips expensive?"

Xu Xin's smile grew even brighter: "Well... the more powerful the chip, the more... beautiful the price will be. However, it is still in the testing phase, so there is no price yet, but the initial estimate is that the basic tactical chip will be more than 10 in the early stage."

The training ground fell silent instantly, so quiet you could hear the Digimon breathing. Cheng Yuan mentally calculated his savings, beads of sweat forming on his forehead—this price was practically robbery!

Xu Xin's subsequent words confirmed his conjecture: "In the future, professional animal trainers will be given priority to be equipped with arc light machines. In the future, this technology will gradually be popularized among ordinary animal trainers."

“Gradually popularized…” Cheng Yuan pondered the word in his heart, a bitter smile appearing on his lips. How long would this “gradual” process take? How could a civilian version of the Digimon be replaced so quickly? The high cost destined the Arc Light Digimon to be the exclusive equipment of a few elites and “pay-to-win players” for a considerable period of time.

—As expected, the world of professional beast tamers is the real abyss of pay-to-win!

This realization was like a bucket of cold water poured over Cheng Yuan's head, which had just been flushed with excitement at being selected for the elite class. Aspiring to become a professional beast tamer, he seemed perpetually on the path of financial hardship. He subconsciously touched the ordinary Digivice in his pocket, then glanced at the Arc Beam in Xu Xin's hand, a machine representing the future and power, and a sense of urgency and a deeper "anxiety about wealth" welled up within him.

His current wealth accumulation is essentially the result of cash subsidies; he loses money on every sale, slowly climbing the ranks. To catch up with these true "whales" (players who spend real money), acquire the Arc Light Machine, and purchase powerful tactical chips... the road ahead is still long.

Xu Xin looked at the group of young people, his serious expression softening slightly: "With this Arc Machine, tamers can truly participate in battles, and combat is no longer exclusive to Digimon. In the wild, in digital space, you may encounter all sorts of unexpected situations. Trusting your companions and looking out for each other is sometimes more important than individual strength."

"If you become professional animal trainers in the future, this will even become standard equipment for you, with subsidies directly delivered to your home by the Animal Trainers Association."

Hearing this, the top students became even more eager for the profession of animal trainer.

He packed up the training equipment, turned and headed towards the exit: "Tomorrow at the same time, we will continue with more effective training. Class representatives, please stay and clean up the area."

Cheng Yuan: "......" How come this blessing is still not over?

After everyone left, Cheng Yuan sighed as he packed up the training equipment, complaining to the little dog, "If I had known being a class representative was this tiring, I should have firmly refused and let that girl Zhao Lu do it herself..."

The little dog suddenly perked up its ears: "Cheng Yuan, someone's coming."

Cheng Yuan turned around and found that Xu Xin had returned sometime earlier, carrying two bottles of [unclear - possibly a brand of medicine].

"You've worked hard." Xu Xin handed him a drink. "Have something to drink before you get back to work."

Cheng Yuan accepted the gift with a flattered expression: "Thank you, teacher!"

Xu Xin leaned against the wall, her gaze fixed on the little dog beast: "Your little dog beast... is very special."

Cheng Yuan's heart tightened: "Extra cute? Extra handsome? Or extra..."

“It’s particularly incongruous,” Xu Xin interrupted his narcissism. “I heard you evolved it to the growth stage in just two weeks? To evolve to the growth stage in such a short time, you must have a secret, whether it’s your own adventure or a family secret. I have no intention of investigating. Actually, I’ve reached this point because of my own circumstances. But what I want to say is that its sacred attributes are very strong, but its basic qualities can’t keep up. It’s like a bicycle with an airplane engine installed; it’s fast, but it might fall apart at any time…”

Cheng Yuan was speechless. This was precisely the problem he had been worrying about lately—the puppy beast was evolving too fast and its control over its own power was not yet proficient.

"Teacher, what should we do?" Cheng Yuan asked, unusually serious.

Xu Xin didn't answer directly, but instead asked, "Do you know that Agumon evolved into the Virus type DarkGreymon, a Dark-type Virus, which should be extremely prone to losing its rationality? Do you know how I kept DarkGreymon rational?"

Cheng Yuan shook his head, and the little dog also tilted its head curiously.

“Because I spent three whole months training it in the volcanic zone of the digital space.” Xu Xin’s eyes became profound. “Every day I was with magma and fought with volcanic beasts, using the most extreme methods to make it solidify its mastery of every bit of power, even the power of darkness.”

“Evolution is not the end, but a new beginning.” He squatted down and gently patted the little dog beast’s head. “Jade must be carved to become a gem. Your partner’s divine power is very pure and has great potential, but it needs more systematic polishing. Starting tomorrow, I will develop a special training plan for you two.”

Cheng Yuan's eyes lit up: "Really? Thank you, teacher!"

"Don't get too excited yet." Xu Xin stood up, revealing a meaningful smile. "My special training... is quite 'exciting'."

Watching Xu Xin's departing figure, Cheng Yuan suddenly had a bad feeling. He looked down at Little Dog Beast: "Little Dog Beast, do you think... it's too late for us to apply to withdraw from the elite class?"

The little dog covered its eyes with its paws: "Don't let me look down on you..."

Just as Cheng Yuan started tidying up, Zhao Lu suddenly returned and helped with the tidying.

Then more and more people came back, and they all came back together to pack up.

Kang Zhaodi's imposing figure appeared at the doorway, with the pangolin leisurely following behind him. Next came Wang Wei and Yang Tao, respectively the tamers of the hedgehog and the mineral beast…

One by one, the students from the intensive classes returned, each bringing their own Digimon companions.

“You guys…” Cheng Yuan was stunned, and almost dropped the training protective gear in his hand.

“Don’t misunderstand,” Zhao Lu pouted, and the silver gear beast had already started to tidy up the scattered training equipment. “We just don’t want to be put to extra training by Teacher Xu tomorrow.”

Kang Zhaodi picked up a box of training balls and said, "Stop talking nonsense and hurry up and finish this so we can eat."

Looking at these classmates who were saying one thing but meaning another, Cheng Yuan suddenly felt a lump in his throat. He squatted down and patted the little dog's head, whispering, "It seems these kids are actually quite cute. Let them continue being class representatives for now."

Chapter 15 Speed ​​Training

The next day, as the class representative, Cheng Yuan arrived at the school training venue early in the morning.

At that moment, he was stunned by the newly added facilities in the venue, as if it had undergone a major renovation overnight.

The once empty venue seemed to have undergone a dramatic transformation—on the left was a dodging training area filled with iron balls that swung at different frequencies; in the center was a fighting arena covered with special materials, along with various training equipment.

The most eye-catching feature is the row of giant treadmills with a metallic sheen on the right.

Xu Xin is the pride of Pengcheng No.1 High School. It is a rare opportunity to invite such an outstanding professional animal trainer to come back and train the freshmen. Therefore, Pengcheng No.1 High School is very generous this year and has allocated special funds to meet the training needs of the students and achieve the desired results.

All of this is in the hope of taking advantage of this year's opportunity to increase the college entrance examination success rate of students entering the Beastmaster University, leaving other schools behind, and making Pengcheng No.1 High School the undisputed number one high school in Pengcheng.

We don't ask for another genius like Xu Xin to emerge; we only hope that more students can meet the minimum score requirement for Beast Tamer University.

Therefore, in addition to the school's original equipment, Xu Xin was also allowed to rent professional training equipment from external training institutions.

Cheng Yuan's gaze wandered around the training hall, eventually being drawn to a uniquely designed professional-grade treadmill.

This behemoth was seven or eight times larger than a regular treadmill. The conveyor belt was covered with a honeycomb-shaped anti-slip pattern, and the guardrails on both sides shimmered with a metallic luster—it was so large that even Xu Xin's enormous Dark Tyrannomon could fit comfortably on it.

"Woof!" The little dog couldn't wait to leap onto one of the controls, its dark eyes sparkling with excitement. It curiously poked the control panel with its paw, leaving a trail of wet paw prints.

Cheng Yuan bent down to study the operating interface and discovered that in addition to the usual speed and slope parameter adjustments, there were also options designed specifically for Digimon, such as "2-legged/4-legged" and "Skill Selection".

He flipped open the instruction manual pasted on the machine: "The seventh-generation Digimon training platform of the Eagle Nation, using honeycomb cushioning technology, can withstand an impact of up to 150km/h. It has been improved in terms of speed, incline, and intensity..." When he read this number, he couldn't help but gasp. "This is not a treadmill, it's clearly a speed tester."

"Anyway, no one else has arrived yet, why don't we try it out first?" Cheng Yuan's lips curled into a wicked smile.

He recalled the evolutionary path of Gatomon—whether in its current form or the future Gatomon, it was known for its speed before mastering divine power.

Is this treadmill specifically designed to train speed?

"Play, I want to play!" The little dog wagged its tail happily, clearly regarding it as a new toy.

"Watch closely, I'll demonstrate first." Cheng Yuan stood on the ordinary treadmill next to him and set it to a gentle 6km/h jogging mode. The conveyor belt creaked smoothly, and his movements produced a regular rustling sound from the friction of the belt.

Five minutes later, when he stopped wiping his sweat, he was greeted by the dog's disdainful gaze, its face clearly saying, "Master, is this all you've got?"

“Running is that simple,” Cheng Yuan said, barely suppressing a laugh. “Come on, it’s your turn to try.”

The puppy leaped onto the conveyor belt; due to its small size, the specially designed treadmill was practically a mini playground for it.

Cheng Yuan suppressed a laugh and carried the little dog onto the professional machine. He quickly entered the parameters: "Height 0.3 meters, weight 7.5 kilograms, has mastered speed-related skills: Extreme Speed ​​Collision!" In the "Normal Speed" column, he hesitated for a moment and entered "60km/h".

The little dog's ears suddenly perked up, and it looked at its owner warily—wait, you didn't set such high standards for yourself just now!

However, before it could protest, the machine had already started humming to start.

The initial speed was indeed gentle; the little dog beast could even stroll leisurely, occasionally casting provocative glances at Cheng Yuan.

"Drip drip drip drip!"

After six rapid beeps, the conveyor belt suddenly accelerated.

The little dog's expression froze instantly, and its four short legs hurriedly began to tumble.

Wait, what did you secretly press, Beast Tamer?

"Drip drip!"

Its speed increased again. Now the little dog beast was no longer taking a walk, but trotting properly. Its snow-white fur fluttered in the simulated airflow, its long, drooping ears billowed backward like two small flags, and the sacred ring around its neck began to shimmer.

"Drip! Drip!"