After resting for a few hours, they left at around three in the afternoon. Their destination was clear—the Hundred Feet Waterfall—so they didn't bother with any sightseeing.
Besides, dragging a dead weight like Fatty An around Cloud Mist Mountain would have been exhausting anyway.
Even the relatively short walk from the hotel to the Hundred Feet Waterfall left him panting for breath, and that was *after* his recent awakening had significantly improved his stamina and Spirit.
When they reached the Hundred Feet Waterfall and saw the massive cascade plunging from halfway up the mountain, both Li Qian and Fatty An were momentarily stunned.
Li Qian didn't know what Fatty An was thinking, but there was only one way he could describe the sight before him, using a poem from his past life on Earth. 'A cascade plunging three thousand feet straight down, as if the Milky Way itself were falling from the heavens!'
It was truly magnificent!
No wonder Cloud Mist Mountain had become such a renowned tourist destination in all of Jiangnan Province.
A view like this was bound to draw a crowd.
That explained why there were so many tourists on Cloud Mist Mountain.
The Hundred Feet Waterfall plunged straight down into a ravine, forming a deep, tranquil pool whose bottom could not be seen.
Li Qian stood by the edge of the pool, tilting his head back to look at the top of the waterfall. He was already imagining Qizai making the climb.
"This place... it's really something," Fatty An praised, a rare compliment from someone who had seen his fair share of spectacular sights.
Then he turned to look at Li Qian. "So, is this the place you were looking for?"
"Mhm," Li Qian nodded.
After pacing around the edge of the pool a few times, Li Qian decided not to linger and headed back to the hotel with Fatty An.
On the way back, Fatty An asked, puzzled, "I don't know what you're planning, but are you sure you don't need to check the place out beforehand?"
"No need," Li Qian replied firmly.
'It's still broad daylight, with too many prying eyes around,' he thought. 'Not the right time for a test.'
'Besides, there's another very important point.'
'At Qizai's current Level, even if it trained the Climbing Waterfall Skill to the Perfection Level, it still wouldn't be able to scale the Hundred Feet Waterfall.'
'The only way it could charge up the Hundred Feet Waterfall in a single burst is after consuming Dragon Bone Powder and accumulating a massive amount of Energy.'
'And Li Qian wasn't wealthy enough to waste Dragon Bone Powder on a mere test.'
'Besides, he had only bought three pounds of Dragon Bone Powder. If he wasted it now, even if he could reorder it, he'd have to wait a day or two for delivery. More importantly, his bank account was completely empty; he didn't have the Federation Coins to buy more.'
'So a test was out of the question.'
'He only had one chance. One chance to get it right.'
'Otherwise, he didn't know what excuse he could possibly use to string Fatty An along any further.'
'And after spending nearly three years with Fatty An, Li Qian knew that while his friend might look simple and honest, he wasn't actually a fool.'
Back in the hotel room, Li Qian sat cross-legged on the bed, calmed his mind, and began his Meditation.
The sun sank in the west and dusk settled in. Before he knew it, night had fallen.
After a quick dinner, the two returned to their room.
Li Qian once again assumed his Meditation pose, though it was just for show. He wasn't actually meditating. Sitting cross-legged on his bed, he turned to Fatty An on the adjacent one. "Since you've awakened, I'm curious—what kind of Pet Beast did your family get for you?"
Li Qian knew that with Fatty An's family wealth, he'd never be satisfied with the Pet Beasts provided by the school, which at best only had Commander Level Potential.
'I wonder what kind of Potential his family's Pet Beast has.'
'If it isn't higher than a Tier Five Dominator, he might as well just form a contract with a Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon.'
"A Black Flame Swordsman," Fatty An said without hesitation, revealing what his family had prepared for him.
"A Black Flame Swordsman," Li Qian repeated, pursing his lips. "A humanoid, Fire Element, Strong Attack type Pet Beast. Not bad, but its Potential isn't very high. I remember Teacher Lv Xinmin mentioning it. Its Racial Potential is only Tier One Dominator, I think."
"Only Tier One Dominator?!" Fatty An's voice shot up as if he'd heard something unbelievable. "Do you have any idea how insanely valuable a Pet Beast with true Dominator Level Potential is?!"
"This Black Flame Swordsman cost my family close to fifty million," Fatty An continued, trying to enlighten Li Qian. "And that's not even counting the Contribution Points."
'Fifty million... That's some serious profiteering...' Hearing such an outrageous figure, Li Qian's eyes practically turned into Federation Coin symbols.
No wonder they say Breeders make money fast, especially High-Level ones.
Take the Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon, for instance. A fully cultivated one with Tier Five Dominator Potential would be worth at least a hundred million.
And it would probably be the type that's always in high demand.
But what's the cost to cultivate a Cyan-Scaled Flood Dragon? Aside from the time investment, it's only about a million Federation Coins.
At least a hundredfold profit.
No wonder High-Level Breeders were all filthy rich.
After muttering to himself, Li Qian's eyes lit up as he looked at Fatty An.
"Fatty An, doesn't your family run a business...?" he said, his voice tinged with excitement. "If—and this is a big if—I really did manage to cultivate a Pet Beast with Dominator Level Potential, could your family handle selling it for me?"
Although Li Qian had said "if," Fatty An heard the seriousness in his tone. He nodded. "Of course we can."
"But the best way would be to partner up and establish a Cultivation Base," Fatty An said, immediately suggesting what he thought was the optimal approach. "Then we could work directly with the Federation under the base's name and list them for sale on the Pet Beast Mall."
"Not bad, not bad. You actually know your stuff, kid. If we do end up working together, you can take the lead," Li Qian said with a nod.
"Hold on." Fatty An was stunned for a second before he caught on. "Hey, nothing's even certain yet, and you're already making plans for it!"
"How do you know nothing's settled? Tonight, I'm going to settle it for you," Li Qian said with a mysterious smile.
Fatty An laughed along. "Now you've really got me intrigued."
"Soon," Li Qian murmured, then fell silent and resumed his Meditation.
Time trickled by. A little after ten o'clock that night, Li Qian's eyes snapped open.
He glanced at Fatty An, who was already snoring soundly beside him, and gave a resigned smile.
He walked over and patted him on the shoulder. "Fatty An," Li Qian said with a grin, "time to go."
"We're leaving now?" Fatty An asked, groggily opening his eyes.
Li Qian shot him a look. "You can stay here in the room if you don't want to witness the birth of a Pet Beast with Dominator Level Potential."
"Let's go! I'm ready!" Hearing that, Fatty An's chubby frame immediately scrambled out from under the covers.