After using cheats, I became the strongest Beast Tamer

Back at the school team residence, Chen Xing closed the door.

Lying on the bed, Chen Xing closed his eyes and opened the Stone Booklet to check the mini-game related to Taotie's newly awakened skills.

Interactive Minigame (Escape the Great Vortex): Create a Great Vortex within the designated area. The owner throws a small ball into the vortex and the pet must dive into the heart of the Great Vortex to retrieve the target ball and bring it back within three minutes. Exceeding the time limit results in failure.

Proficiency Level: Beginner (0/10)

There was a friendly progress bar following the minigame.

It seemed to represent the skill's Proficiency Level, which could optimize the skill if the game was cleared successfully, much like a Passive Skill.

But after thinking for a while, Chen Xing couldn't help but stare at the word "Beginner."

The previous Passive Skill, Water Concealment, did not have this Proficiency Level advancement. Could it be that completing this only improves the Proficiency Level instead of directly evolving the skill like a Passive Skill?

Was it because one was an Active Skill and the other a Passive Skill?

Could Proficiency Levels even be maxed out?

After reaching perfection, could there be even higher Proficiency Levels, and what would happen if all Proficiency Levels were maxed out?

These questions surfaced one after another in Chen Xing's mind.

Regardless, at least the game seemed not challenging.

It certainly wasn't as tricky as hide and seek and only required ten attempts to fill the progress bar.

But now there was another problem. Chen Xing flipped to the front of the Stone Booklet to learn Intermediate Carnivore Pet Food!

Ten Skill Points were deducted, emptying the Skill Points he had accumulated over time.

A wealth of knowledge on making a large amount of carnivore pet food flooded his mind.

After digesting the knowledge, Chen Xing checked the subsequent skills for Intermediate Carnivore Pet Food, the next should be Advanced...

Chen Xing's eyes widened. Behind the Intermediate Carnivore Pet Food skill was not Advanced Carnivore Pet Food

but a new skill: [Spicy Dried Fish] – Spicy and sweet dried fish, a food many Beast Tamers love. It quickly restores spent energy, maintaining a clear mind and refreshing vitality. (0/10)

Hissss... this thing.

Chen Xing pondered for a moment, it was called Spicy Dried Fish, right?

Considering the cost of Primary and Intermediate Carnivore Pet Food, the cost of Spicy Dried Fish shouldn't be exorbitant. According to the Skill Tree's nature, it should be budget-friendly, suitable for an ordinary person like himself.

Chen Xing immediately took out his phone to check the prices of dried fish and small fish. After finding the prices, he felt reassured.

A magic power recovery capsule for two thousand bucks apiece?

No, no, no, I just need cost-effective dried fish.

However, activating this skill requires 10 Skill Points.

Such a tempting skill, always coaxing me.

He estimated the time needed; at least half a month.

...

"Have you made your decision?"

"I've made my decision; I'm going to train the Intermediate Skills first. Perhaps it won't be as hard to train in Intermediate Skills." Chen Xing replied.

"You," Kuang Shiyi chuckled, but young people are just like this, so he wasn't too surprised.

"Alright, whatever choice you make, this was what the school prepared for you from the start. I'll let you keep it, and you can use it whenever you feel like it."

Kuang Shiyi handed a wooden box to Chen Xing, "Let me introduce you to the things inside."

Chen Xing opened the box to find five pigeon egg-sized spheres that looked a bit like crystal balls, with a faint blue outline vaguely visible inside the transparent spheres. In addition, there was a yellow crystal.

Kuang Shiyi introduced Chen Xing, "These five are Skill Orbs of Water Rotation. Since learning Skills has a success rate, I'm giving you five as a precaution. Your Beast Taming is of the Water Element, and you have a higher success rate with Water Element Skills, so with five you should be able to learn it."

"The yellow crystal is a Skill Forgetting Crystal, which can erase the Skills mastered by Beast Taming. Of course, the Beast Taming must cooperate with all its heart for it to work; if it doesn't cooperate, then the Skills can't be erased."

"If you end up unsuccessful with all five Skill Orbs, you can contact the school. The school can still provide you with Skill Orbs until you succeed."

Although Chen Xing didn't say he would use the things in the box, Kuang Shiyi seemed sure that Chen Xing would definitely choose to learn the Primary Skills first.

"There you go, I've given you everything inside the box. If there are extras after you've used them, you don't need to return them; deal with them yourself," Kuang Shiyi said with a laugh.

Chen Xing nodded; he truly felt the school's investment.

The cheapest Skill Orb on the market costs several thousand, and that's for Primary Skills, which are more common among the various Attributes. I've heard that some rare Skill Orbs can sell for tens of thousands or even six figures.

The Skill Forgetting Crystals are not cheap either. I've heard that there are Low, Intermediate, and High grades of Skill Forgetting Crystals.

Only a Forgetting Crystal of the corresponding grade can erase Skills of that grade. The one in the box should be an Intermediate Skill Forgetting Crystal.

Chen Xing wanted to sneak a look at the price, but it felt inappropriate with the teacher present. It just didn't seem right.

"The Intermediate Skill Forgetting Crystal in the box has a market price of 660,000 each," Kuang Shiyi, as if seeing through Chen Xing's hesitation, pointed at the items in the box and heartily laughed, "No need to be embarrassed. I went through the same thing back in the day."

"I was an orphan, and after graduating from high school, I thought that since the state raised me, I might as well join the military. After the new recruit training, the unit issued us combat uniforms. Our platoon leader pointed at the newly issued clothes and told us that each set was worth four hundred thousand.

Damn, at that time I thought to myself that I had never worn clothes so expensive in my life. I was so careful every time I wore it, afraid I'd tear it."

"My platoon leader laughed and scolded me, saying I might as well enshrine the damn thing like an ancestor. Then he made me wear that uniform and do prone position training in the field for an afternoon. You know what? The expensive stuff really is durable; I didn't have a scratch, but my hands that were exposed got chafed.

After that day, I understood one thing — the gear was made for soldiers to use! What I mean is, no matter how expensive something is, its essence is just an item. It's only worth that money if you use it; otherwise, it's worth nothing."

After finishing, Kuang Shiyi gave Chen Xing a firm pat on the shoulder, "Don't feel any pressure. The school is investing in you, and with investments, there are losses and gains. Worst case, the school will just have to learn a lesson, hahahaha."

Chen Xing was speechless, unsure whether Kuang Shiyi was trying to encourage him or take a dig at him.

However, after Kuang Shiyi's speech, Chen Xing did feel a bit less pressure.

From the monthly exam rewards to the "salary" of the school team and now the school's investment.

Apart from initially earning his first pot of gold from Four Rams Milk Powder, his second, third, and fourth pots of gold all came from the school, each one bigger than the last.

These investments had saved him a lot of trouble, at least in the beginning he didn't have to wrack his brains over every little bit of money.

The hardest part is never earning the second ten million, but the first million.

In his heart, Chen Xing resolved that if this was considered an investment, he at least wanted those who invested in him to know... they would not lose out.