Chapter 328 - Dominating the Alliance Tournament

“I understand. I know you didn’t mean it that way.” Master Jiang Dou’s eyes welled with tears.

Captain Doofus had formed a contract with a sword spirit, and Master Jiang Dou would also form a contract with a sword spirit. If he thought about it negatively, it meant he was receiving the same treatment as that dog.

But how could he think about it negatively? Lu Ran was a filial disciple. He definitely wasn’t the type to mistreat his master. He had to look at this from a positive angle. Captain Doofus wasn’t just a dog—it was also the strongest being in the realm of swordsmanship on Blue Planet.

If he thought about it that way, then he and the strongest swordsmanship entity on Blue Planet now had the same configuration. Thinking like this made him feel much better.

“

Ahem.

Master, let me take you to meet your new familiar.” Lu Ran smiled slightly and waved his hand.

Spatial fluctuations appeared around them. Master Jiang Dou was curious about what this was, but he still followed eagerly.

Inside the ruin space, Lu Ran’s familiars were not training at the moment. As a beastmaster, Lu Ran was quite humane. He didn’t exploit his familiars like a capitalist. They only needed to train for a few hours each day. The rest of the time, they could rest freely.

Of course, due to the presence of the Broken Horn of the Divine Deer, those few hours of training were anything but ordinary as the intensity was rather extreme.

Captain Doofus' eyes lit up when it saw Lu Ran bringing in the old man. It excitedly ran over with the three sword babies.

“

Woof!!

”

“Hey, Captain Doofus. I knew you had potential back then, and now you’ve become even stronger. Sword domain is so impressive.” The old man patted Captain Doofus’ leg and praised it.

Captain Doofus panted happily, its expression full of joy.

“

Woof, woof, woof, woof!

”

Master Jiang Dou turned to Lu Ran and asked, “What is it saying? It doesn’t sound like it’s happy to hear the praise.”

“Uh...” Lu Ran’s face darkened, and he made Captain Doofus go away. “Nothing...”

Lu Ran was fuming. That dog had just said,

It’s just a sword domain. Even Captain Lu has grasped it. Nothing praiseworthy.

If no one were watching, Lu Ran would definitely discipline it properly. Maybe he’d let it experience the embrace of Sudden Death King’s lethal hug, or Dark Crow’s Pig Transformation Curse.

“You actually got that doofus a few sword spirits of its own?”

At this moment, Master Jiang Dou noticed the two sword spirits and the swordgrass. By now, he was no longer a rookie beastmaster, so he immediately recognized them as Undead-attribute and Plant-attribute creatures.

“Restoring the glory of swordsmanship. Captain Doofus is duty-bound!” Lu Ran said seriously.

Master Jiang Dou was taken aback. He looked at Lu Ran.

Then what about you? This brat... he isn’t still thinking about firearms, is he?

Master Jiang Dou knew that an alternate world had a beastmaster branch called mecha familiars. According to online sources, they included gun-type beings, tank-type beings, fighter jet-type beings, and even mecha-type beings.

Young people seem to love these things...

At this moment, Lu Ran summoned the Wind-Lightning Sword Spirit. “Master, look at this.”

Under Captain Doofus’ guidance, the Wind-Lightning Sword Spirit already knew it would be training under this old man from now on. However, after comparing Lu Ran’s overflowing vitality with Master Jiang Dou’s significantly weaker presence, it suddenly burst into tears.

This old man looks so weak!

Master Jiang Dou’s face twitched at this. Lu Ran refusing to be his disciple was one thing, but now even a sword spirit was looking down on him.

Great. Are people and familiars these days all this pragmatic?

“Easy now...”

Master Jiang Dou looked at the Wind-Lightning Sword Spirit, unsure how to comfort it.

Lu Ran chuckled. “Master, just show it a little something.”

“Show it something?” Master Jiang Dou immediately understood and raised his right hand, extending two fingers.

The next moment, a sharp sword intent burst forth from his fingers, surging into the sky. Lu Ran and the others only saw a flash before witnessing a lingering rainbow-colored sword qi slashing through the distant sky.

“That’s amazing.” Lu Ran was stunned.

He hadn’t expected Master Jiang Dou’s sword intent to be this refined. And he was only an apprentice beastmaster. The Wind-Lightning Sword Spirit was also shocked.

All life forms respected the strong. After sensing the overwhelming sword intent from Master Jiang Dou, the small sword spirit immediately changed its perception of him. It started to eagerly float closer.

“

Hahaha!

” Master Jiang Dou grinned with satisfaction.

“Little one, you won’t regret following me. In time, I’ll make you the second lifeform on Blue Planet to master sword domain!”

Lu Ran wanted to correct him.

Third... no, maybe sixth.

But seeing how happy the old man was, he didn’t want to ruin the moment. As long as Master Jiang Dou was happy, that was enough.

“Master, if you plan to enter the ascension realm, be careful. Before, you would mostly match with domestic beastmasters, which wasn’t too dangerous. But now, the chances of matching against a beastmaster from Stellar Moon Federation are increasing... Stay safe,” Lu Ran reminded.

Master Jiang Dou laughed. “I will. If it was just me, I wouldn’t care. After all, I’ve lived long enough. But now that I have the golden eagle and the little sword spirit, I need to ensure they grow strong. Besides, don’t underestimate me. If the old president could become the world’s strongest at his age, then give me a few years. I should at least make it into Xia’s top ten, right?”

“Alright, alright.” Lu Ran surrendered.

The old man’s competitive spirit flared up again. Sure enough, men remain boys until death. He was already at the age where he would wet his pants, yet he still dreamed of getting stronger. However, with sword intent techniques and a sword spirit at his disposal, it seemed he wouldn’t be able to remain weak even if he wanted to.

After handing the Wind Lightning Sword Spirit to Master Jiang Dou, Lu Ran finally returned to Green Sea satisfied. At the same time, Dark Crow had already delivered the Dragonstone Tablet to Mystic Turtle, further enhancing its combat power.

***

By the time Lu Ran returned to Green Sea, the Alliance Tournament’s news had already spread across the world. Although it wasn’t a traditional competition, it was still the first large-scale beastmaster event that invited all countries to participate in a global challenge.

According to the International Beastmaster Alliance, 51 countries had sent first, second, and third generations to serve as gatekeepers. Meanwhile, beastmasters from over 200 countries—spanning the second, third, and fourth generations—could challenge these defenders.

Each participant would face five randomly assigned gatekeepers from different nations. Every battle would be broadcasted globally. At the end of the tournament, the accumulated public resources from the International Alliance would be distributed based on the results of the challenges.

It was obvious to any observer that this tournament was designed primarily for second-generation beastmasters. After all, one had to clear as many stages as possible to claim a larger share of the resources.

Even if some third- or fourth-generation beastmasters had greater innate potential, they couldn’t match the longer development time of second-generation beastmasters, who were theoretically stronger due to their extended training.

Against fellow second-generation gatekeepers, they would also have a more balanced chance at victory. However, as long as there were no rigid restrictions, there would always be room for unexpected outcomes.

Xia’s Beastmaster Alliance Headquarters.

The old president reviewed the final recommended roster for Xia’s representatives and fell into deep thought. Xia’s strongest second-generation beastmaster was the dean of Beastmaster University’s Combat Academy, and the newly promoted level 5 beastmaster, Qin Ming.

Qin Ming was the guild leader of the Living Fossil Guild, Youxiong.

Qin Ming had always been one of the top second-generation beastmasters, and after receiving the guidance of the Guardian Panda, his strength had grown significantly.

And then, there was a fourth-generation beastmaster that was only at level 3... Lu Ran.

“Five gatekeepers. One from the third generation, three from the second generation, and one from the first generation. The third-generation representative is most likely a level 4 beastmaster, and is probably one of the strongest from that level.

“The three second-generation representatives are likely two level 4s and one level 5. Then there’s the final level 5 first-generation representative...

“Letting Lu Ran, a level 3 fourth-generation beastmaster, challenge above his level is interesting. Since the Twelve Zodiacs recommended him, it means this kid must be quite confident in his strength.”

The old president stroked his beard thoughtfully. Then, he noticed a confidential intelligence report attached to the recommendation list.

Lu Ran has mastered the beastmaster skill, kinship. His first familiar, Sword Domain Dog, has additionally contracted two King-rank familiars, the Longleaf Swordgrass and the Winter Sword Spirit. He can store them in a contract card, allowing him to deploy them as a single entity. In a 3v1 battle, he may even be capable of surpassing a first-generation gatekeeper.

—Manager Ying, Gu Qingyi.

“Hmm?” The old president pondered for a moment, then placed a call to Lu Ran.

“Old president?”

On the other end, Lu Ran was slightly surprised to receive the call.

“The Alliance Tournament is about to begin. I just saw Xia’s roster and you’re on it.”

“Yeah. Manager Ying mentioned that we could secure a good amount of resources, so I had Dr. Gu and the others put me on the list. Although the opponents are all second-generation beastmasters, my familiars have certain species advantages, so it’s possible to compete.”

Lu Ran wasn’t particularly aiming for any specific resources in the tournament. His main goal was simply to help Xia win as many resources as possible. After all, his Dark Crow legion relied heavily on Xia’s support.

“The fourth gatekeeper is highly likely to possess an Overlord familiar, so your advantage may not be as big as you think. Currently, several second-generation beastmasters worldwide have begun cultivating new Overlord familiars. However, according to Gu Qingyi’s report, your one contract card can contain three familiars?”

“That’s right. If I can use this trump card, forget the second-generation participants—I might be able to put up a fight even against a first-generation gatekeeper. What do you think? Is this tournament worth revealing my hidden card?” Lu Ran asked.

The Elder Guild Leader paused for a moment, then burst into laughter.

“

Hahaha!

The fifth stage was never designed to be cleared in the first place. If you manage to push through all five stages, the amount of resources Xia can secure will be astronomical. The resources we lost in the black dragon incident would be instantly recovered. Whether you want to expose your hidden card is up to you.”

Lu Ran fell into deep thought but eventually replied, “It doesn’t really matter to me. I’m only at level 3. My strength hasn’t fully developed yet, and my combat style is still evolving. Revealing my kinship skill isn’t a big deal. The only concern is that if I actually defeat a first-generation gatekeeper, others might refuse to acknowledge the result.”

The old president chuckled. “You don’t have to worry about that. Even limitless city has acknowledged that your three familiars function as one entity. The International Alliance is insignificant in comparison. Initially, I thought Xia would have to settle for a supporting role in this tournament, given that it mostly involves second and third-generation beastmasters competing.

“But seeing that you’re confident in competing, I can rest easy. Do your best. If you manage to clear all five stages, I’ll give you the Kunpeng Feather as a reward. You won’t have to wait for the Stellar Moon task to finish.”

“What? Are you serious?” Lu Ran was stunned.

“Of course!”

“It’s just an Alliance Tournament! I’ll make sure to completely dominate it!”