Celestial Beast Taming

Chapter 464: Chapter 265: Ecological Realm

Now that he was a Steward at the Wanyu Source Material Company, Zhong Yi planned to log into the Virtual Source Network every night, as he always did, to browse and subscribe to ancient texts.

Sitting in his reception room, Zhong Yi discovered that a Director from the Wanyu Source Material Company had sent him a message two days prior.

[Song Zhixu: Hello, and welcome to the Wanyu Source Material Company. You’ve made a very wise choice.]

[I’ll be on the Virtual Source Network for the next few days. I’ve already granted you permanent access to my reception room.]

[Come find me in my reception room whenever you have time. I’ll take you to get your Steward identity certified.]

Zhong Yi noticed that Song Zhixu was a B Level Talent who possessed a Zhenxing C Level Talent Badge.

In addition to these two badges, Song Zhixu also had a golden Director’s badge.

As far as Zhong Yi knew, only those whose strength reached the Divine Fire Tier—the so-called Seventh Level—were qualified to make a bid for A Level Talent status.

Each year, the Four Major Companies would conduct an internal assessment of all B Level Talents who had reached the Divine Fire Tier.

Only one A Level Talent was selected from within each company annually.

In other words, only four A Level Talents emerged across all the worlds each year.

To become an A Level Talent, the most basic requirement was to join one of these Four Major Companies.

’I wonder if Song Zhixu, a B Level Talent with a Zhenxing C Level Talent Badge, has actually reached the Divine Fire Tier.’

These two badges, along with his position as a Director of the Wanyu Source Material Company, were enough to testify to Song Zhixu’s talent and strength.

Song Zhixu’s initiative in granting Zhong Yi permanent access to his reception room was a clear sign of his friendly attitude, and this was indeed the case.

Although the Secret Realm Monopolizer Badge Zhong Yi had obtained only granted him treatment equivalent to a B Level Talent for now, there was a saying within the Four Major Companies.

It said that those who obtained the Monopolizer and Blast Killer badges were almost all considered shoo-ins to become A Level Talents.

Of the two, bearers of the Monopolizer Badge were considered even more likely to become A Level Talents than bearers of the Blast Killer Badge.

This was why even a Director like Song Zhixu was more than willing to befriend a promising newcomer like Zhong Yi.

Zhong Yi didn’t immediately enter Song Zhixu’s reception room just because he’d been granted permanent access.

Instead, he politely replied to Song Zhixu’s message first, using his Soul Fighting Bracelet.

He explained to Song Zhixu that he hadn’t logged into the Virtual Source Network for the past few days.

Only after receiving a reply from Song Zhixu did Zhong Yi enter his reception room.

Zhong Yi saw a slender man dressed in a white robe.

With one hand, he was adjusting the gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of his nose; with the other, he was flipping through an ancient text.

Upon seeing Zhong Yi, Song Zhixu placed a vibrant Sparrow Feather in the ancient text as a bookmark and stood up to greet him.

The moment his gaze fell upon Zhong Yi, Song Zhixu was visibly taken aback.

As a Director of the Wanyu Source Material Company, Song Zhixu had already seen Zhong Yi’s virtual avatar via the Soul Fighting Bracelet before this meeting.

Even then, Song Zhixu had felt that Zhong Yi’s looks were undeniably top-tier, not just on the Virtual Source Network, but across the countless worlds.

But now, seeing Zhong Yi in person, Song Zhixu suddenly realized something.

The stunning impression the young man gave off came only in small part from his physical appearance.

Most of it stemmed from the young man’s aura—a natural, easygoing composure laced with a hint of dignified grace.

Song Zhixu himself was something of an aesthete; even when eating pork trotters, he insisted on picking the most visually appealing ones.

On the Virtual Source Network, however, talent was more important than strength.

Many things, such as Bloodline purity, Divine Origin Value, reputation, and status, all ranked higher than mere appearances.

In a world where strength had to be built up with resources, one could perhaps get by on looks alone, but one could never get far.

In other words, looks alone would never lead to great achievements.

However, when a young prodigy also possessed unparalleled looks and charisma, they would stand out from their peers like a crane among chickens.

After his brief moment of surprise, Song Zhixu spoke to Zhong Yi in a warm voice:

"You’re a Guardian Beast Master. To obtain the Monopolizer Badge in a Second Level Secret Realm is truly remarkable."

Typically, a Guardian Beast Master’s advantages only become apparent after the Third Level.

The First and Second Levels are considered a Guardian Beast Master’s weakest period.

Song Zhixu wasn’t in a hurry to take Zhong Yi to the Wanyu Source Material Company’s headquarters.

Instead, he poured Zhong Yi a cup of tea and started a conversation.

While conversing with Zhong Yi, Song Zhixu refrained from asking overly personal questions, such as how many Guardian Beasts he had.

Instead, he focused on introducing Zhong Yi to the inner workings of the Wanyu Source Material Company, giving him a clear understanding of its internal structure.

The Wanyu Source Material Company has 36 Directors and 72 Stewards.

These 108 individuals form the company’s core management team.

Among the 36 Directors, an internal election is held every 30 years to select three new Presiding Directors.

All of the Wanyu Source Material Company’s core decisions are determined by a vote among the 36 Directors.

In these votes, each of the three Presiding Directors holds two votes.

In the case of a tie, the Presiding Directors can choose to either pass or veto a resolution.

Furthermore, when exercising this power to pass a resolution, the three Presiding Directors must conduct their own internal vote.

It must have the support of at least two of them to be executed.

This ensures that the Presiding Directors don’t have many special privileges compared to the other Directors.