Chapter Five: The Golden Armor

Originally, Cheng Yuan thought the most that would happen was a simple level-up. But when the little tiger’s panel appeared, some of the numbers on it took him by surprise.

Species: Royal Gold White Tiger
Level: 4
Gender: Male
Racial Trait: Hundred Victories Forge King (see note)
Element: Metal
Innate Ability: None
Skills: Sharpen Claws LV5, Scratch LV2, Bite LV3, Run LV2, Metal Element Enchantment LV6
Evolution Paths: 1. Adult Stage - Royal Gold White Tiger, 2. Adult Stage - Sabertooth Savage Tiger...

When did these stats increase? When did Sharpen Claws reach level five, and Metal Element Enchantment level six? Sure, the two basic skills level up quickly, but he hadn’t seen the little tiger train at all. If he remembered correctly, the contract was only signed yesterday, and the panel then had all its numbers at one, didn’t it?

Cheng Yuan looked at the little tiger across from him. “Why are you staring at me?” The little tiger was a bit confused. Its eyes were clear, unguarded, and pure—it didn’t seem like a creature intelligent enough to train diligently. So perhaps the issue was with the system itself. Could it be that his system was actually an idle leveling system, where skills improved automatically? But then, why weren’t all the skill proficiencies rising evenly? Shouldn’t all five skills be at the same level? And what about this outstanding level-six Metal Element Enchantment?

He couldn’t make sense of it, so he decided to observe for a while. That afternoon, the first round of matches finished. If things went smoothly, the results would be out the day after tomorrow; if not, perhaps one day later. He took the little tiger home, checking its panel every hour—there was no change at all.

Ningning Wang, carrying her Explosive Overlord Turtle, asked lazily, “Did you win?”
“I did. What about you?”
“I won too.”
“Good. Don’t lose before you face me.”

Cheng Yuan glanced at Ningning Wang in surprise. That kind of odd camaraderie sounded like the boast of a tsundere from a harem novel—or maybe even a second male lead. How strange. He couldn’t help but ask, “Do you like me?” The moment he said it, the image of Ningning Wang and Xu Hao leaning against each other on the campus bench flashed through his mind—something only couples would do.

Just as Cheng Yuan was about to clarify that he was only joking, he saw Ningning Wang’s strained expression. It wasn’t shyness; it seemed more like regret or apology.
“Of course not,” she replied. Cheng Yuan, unable to understand, gave up pondering and answered straightforwardly, “Then I’ll try not to lose.”

The two parted at the door, each lost in their own thoughts. When Cheng Yuan got home, he put the little tiger down, which immediately dashed off toward the tigress—mealtime had arrived.

An hour later, in his own room, Cheng Yuan played games while glancing over at the little tiger, who was practicing Sharpen Claws and Metal Element Enchantment. After casually defeating four bosses, he checked the little tiger’s panel again—Sharpen Claws had leveled up.

Rubbing his chin, Cheng Yuan began to understand. His system wasn’t an idle system after all; it was a proficiency-based system. “Well, let’s continue training and see what max-level Metal Element Enchantment and Sharpen Claws look like.”

There were no bottlenecks; after an hour of practice, Metal Element Enchantment had risen by two levels, reaching level eight. At level eight, as soon as the little tiger wished, it could complete the enchantment with just two swipes of its claws on the ground, especially when combined with Sharpen Claws. The latter did require a few more scratches, though.

By now, the little tiger didn’t want to train anymore—a full hour was tiring, and it wanted a break. Cheng Yuan checked the time: 8 p.m. He poked the little tiger’s face, “A kitten your age can’t possibly go to bed so early. How about this: train for two more hours, and you’ll get a surprise.”

The little tiger blinked, thinking it wasn’t used to sleeping this early anyway. Two more hours it was. After one hour, the little tiger suddenly stopped and looked at its paw. The once steady, brilliant golden glow began to recede—it felt different. Just a bit more, it thought.

Another hour passed. The glow on the little tiger’s paws had grown faint, almost vanishing. Just as the little tiger wondered what might happen if it kept going, a massive presence silently approached from behind.

In the next moment, the little tiger suddenly found its feet off the ground. That familiar feeling on its neck—“Mom’s here.” The little tiger was carried off; bedtime had arrived. Little ones needed their sleep.

The next morning, Cheng Yuan was woken by a rough tongue. The little tiger gazed at him excitedly.
“Look at my paw.”
Cheng Yuan heard its voice, grabbed one of its front paws, and pressed a finger to its pad.

Golden claws sprang out. Cheng Yuan was stunned, immediately pulling up the panel. Metal Element Enchantment had vanished from the skill list; Sharpen Claws had reached level nine; the tiger itself was now level five. Two new skills had appeared: Tiger Roar LV1 and Golden Armor LV1. Most importantly, the Innate Ability slot, once marked ‘None,’ now displayed ‘Metal Enchantment.’ Clicking for details, he saw: After prolonged synergy, the metal element had fused into the creature’s body, increasing bone hardness and granting permanent metal elemental damage on attacks.

Cheng Yuan understood instantly—this was a permanent Metal Element Enchantment. This innate ability acted as a passive, permanent buff—a huge advantage. Was this what max-level Metal Element Enchantment became? It was powerful indeed.

He wasn’t surprised by Tiger Roar—most beast-type monsters had similar skills: Tiger Roar, Dragon Chant, Wolf Howl, Earthquake Call, and so on, usually awakened at level five. Golden Armor rang a bell too—some metal-element monsters could awaken this skill. The easiest one was the Ironhide King Turtle, but in all cases, it was something monsters only awakened as adults. The skill was strong enough that even King-class monsters used it; adult Ironhide King Turtles could survive a King-class Fanged Giant River Crocodile’s jaws thanks to it.

Looking at the now-missing Metal Enchantment from the skill list, Cheng Yuan reasoned Tiger Roar came from leveling up, while Golden Armor must be an advanced form of Metal Element Enchantment. This panel was incredibly strong—at least during the juvenile stage, Cheng Yuan couldn’t imagine how he could lose.

“A’Yuan, breakfast is ready!” someone called.

He scooped up the little tiger and dashed to the table. After wolfing down his meal, he lifted the little tiger under its armpits and announced, “Attention, everyone. I have an announcement.”

The little tiger, panicked, mouth agape, looked around—what was happening?

“Little one, use Golden Armor.”

The little tiger froze, then closed its eyes. Golden light began to gather on its belly. Everyone’s mouths dropped open. After a few minutes, Cheng Yuan awkwardly lowered his hands; a patch of golden scales now adorned the little tiger’s stomach.

He’d been holding it up for several minutes, but progress was slow. This was the common weakness of first-level enhancement skills—they took time to activate. Even so, Cheng Yuan’s parents were still in shock.

“Mom, Dad, I’m heading out now.”

Only after the door closed did Cheng Fu finally react, “That was Golden Armor just now. Isn’t this little one’s talent extraordinary? Amazing.”