In the courtyard, the little loli Taozi had planted a small flower called "Immortal," which bloomed in a riot of colors.
"Yellow flower," Tang Wen said.
"Caw!"
The Blood Raven let out a cry, lowered its head, and with a precise peck of its sharp beak, it severed the yellow flower.
"White flower."
"Caw!"
Correct again.
[Beast Taming Art, Beginner (979→987/1000)]
After learning to identify a series of small flowers in red, yellow, green, and blue, the experience points increased slightly.
It had been seven days since Tang Wen acquired the two Mutated Beast donkeys.
The ice cellar at home had already reached the third layer, filled to the brim.
Under his deliberate targeting, over ten thousand pounds of meat came from the wild horses of the wilderness.
Now, even a single horse hair was rare in the wilderness.
Training the Blood Raven to recognize flowers was no longer useful.
Tang Wen decided to increase the difficulty for the Blood Raven. He took out a book used in the camp to teach children the basics—"Elementary Arithmetic."
The cards, made of kraft paper, had simple equations like "3+2/3+1" written in charcoal.
He wasn't training undergraduates, destined to graduate into unemployment.
Learning addition and subtraction was enough.
From the camp home to the southern wilderness, a warhorse and two donkeys trotted along with small, quick steps.
Tang Wen sat on the horse, patiently trying over and over again to make the Blood Raven remember the numbers.
Finally, just before the wilderness spring came into view.
The Blood Raven correctly arranged the numbers "1 to 10" three times in a row.
[Beast Taming Art, Beginner→Proficient (0/3000)]
Quietly, Tang Wen felt something different.
He reached out and patted the Blood Raven's small head.
"Caw caw!"
The cry seemed no different.
But Tang Wen could tell it was a bit restless, perhaps wanting to eat bugs?
"Go on, today's lesson is over."
The Blood Raven's eyes clearly lit up with excitement. It flapped its wings and soared into the sky, off to who knows where to find bugs.
"Neigh!" The warhorse whinnied.
Hmm, it was thirsty.
Tang Wen patted the horse's neck: "Hang in there a bit longer."
The horse snorted, still thirsty.
Not comforted in the slightest.
After some thought, Tang Wen suddenly pointed into the distance where dust was swirling: "Look, there's a plum grove over there!"
"Neigh!"
The horse was clearly impatient.
The tactic of "quenching thirst by looking at plums" clearly didn't work on horses.
"Alright then! Giddy up!"
With a quick whip, they arrived at the water hole where the spring gathered.
Only shallow, muddy water remained.
Tang Wen climbed to a higher spot and scooped clear water from the spring.
He fed the warhorse and the two donkeys.
He was curious about the donkeys' emotions.
However, after riding them for a while, he didn't sense anything.
It was as if they had no emotions, completely indifferent to the hard work of traversing mountains and rivers.
Tang Wen took out some dried meat, chewing it while idly summarizing: the Blood Raven, the warhorse, and the donkeys.
The three had completely different personalities.
The Blood Raven was like a carefree teenager from his past life, living freely and happily.
The warhorse was like a young adult just entering society, having taken a few hits but still in a state of defiance.
The donkeys were like middle-aged folks, with elders above and children below, mortgages, car loans, credit cards... forced to keep grinding, earning a few pounds of fodder.
The Blood Raven was off hunting.
The horse stood dozing, and the donkeys silently nibbled on the shrubs.
Tang Wen wasn't idle either; even in the wilderness, he practiced martial arts.
He approached the gray-brown rock face and silently put on his gray gloves.
The gloves were made from the soft yet tough belly skin of the Earth-Walking Beast.
They protected his hands without hindering the explosive force.
Boom boom boom boom!
Tang Wen began to pound the mountain.
His fists were like heavy cannons.
His feet were like steel whips.
Elbows smashed, knees thrust, and sonic booms echoed continuously.
After several consecutive bursts, Tang Wen walked into the stone wall.
To be precise, he used his fists to blast a cave into the mountainside.
After clearing the rubble from the cave, he looked at it with satisfaction: "Why didn't I think of this before? With all the dust outside, I should have dug a cave to rest in long ago."
The Blood Raven still hadn't returned.
Inside the cave, Tang Wen laid down a waterproof sheet and began practicing the Earth-Fire Harmony Standing Practice.
The effects of the modified and improved cultivation method were immediately noticeable.
If he were at home, he would practice alone in seclusion.
Not because he feared others might steal his techniques.
But mainly because, as he practiced, some rather unseemly changes would occur.
Changes so startling that even the most experienced courtesan from the Pleasure House in the inner city would be shocked!
Yet, the beauty of it was that, with the help of the Breathing Technique and the method of Entering Stillness, these changes were just barely kept under control.
The thrill of growing stronger was addictive.
"Caw, caw, caw!"
The Blood Raven flew back, cawing loudly, and even extended its left wing to point at the warhorse.
Tang Wen exclaimed in delight, "A black horse? You saw a black horse? Completely black with just a bit of white?"
Tang Wen remembered the majestic presence of that Superior Exotic Beast, Black Cloud Treading on Snow!
People often said, "Among men, Diaochan; among horses, Chitu."
But Black Cloud Treading on Snow was undoubtedly even more striking than Chitu.
Riding it would surely be more appealing than driving a Ferrari one-handed.
For this, he had made extensive preparations.
He rummaged through his bag, pulled out a bottle of powder, mixed it with beans, minced meat, and green salt, and brought it to the warhorse.
The horse snorted excitedly and, under Tang Wen's smiling gaze, devoured the food clean.
After a short rest, Tang Wen set off on horseback.
Two hours later, he noticed the horse beneath him breathing heavily, its body temperature gradually rising.
He nodded to himself: "As expected of Old Crow, this Female Beast Aphrodisiac really works."
The drug had taken effect.
The Blood Raven cawed softly, alerting Tang Wen that the black horse was nearby.
Tang Wen thought for a moment but didn't head straight for the black horse.
He reached out to determine the wind direction, then rode the mare in a circle, arriving at the upwind position.
Next, he tied the horse to a bush and removed the saddle.
He himself hid behind a rock.
Before long, the mare, having been fed the aphrodisiac, began to paw the ground restlessly and whinny.
Tang Wen listened and thought, "This isn't a whinny; it's practically a call: 'Come and play, big guy!'"
Clip-clop, clip-clop!
The sound of hooves rang out.
"It's here!" Tang Wen smiled confidently. "The beauty trap worked."
He peeked out, but his smile froze on his face.
What approached was a black foal, its coat gleaming jet black with only a heart-shaped patch of white on its chest.
This wasn't the Black Cloud Treading on Snow he was looking for!
Judging by its aura, it was a Mid-level Exotic Beast.
And, most crucially, it was a mare!
It had come to the warhorse, likely to drive this "flirtatious hussy" out of its territory.
"Throwing a flirtatious glance at a blind man. But it wasn't a wasted trip."
Tang Wen focused his energy, his legs kicking up sand and stones like a plume of smoke as he charged toward the black horse.
The black horse neighed in alarm, turned to flee, but suddenly felt a weight on its back as someone mounted it.
A horse will never be enslaved.
It reared up on its hind legs, its body almost perpendicular to the ground, trying to throw Tang Wen off.
"Whack!" Tang Wen gave it a lash with his whip.
The black horse, stung by the pain, lay down and tried to roll over, aiming to crush Tang Wen beneath it.
Tang Wen jumped to the ground and unceremoniously lashed the horse ten times, nearly rendering it unable to stand.
The black horse, a Mid-level Exotic Beast, though a mare, was as fiery as a flame.
It rose and fled.
But Tang Wen appeared on its back once again.
Thus, the training and fleeing continued.
The two left the area, heading into the distance, from day to night.
The Mid-level Exotic Beast black horse was utterly exhausted.
Tang Wen reached out to offer it a bean cake, but it glared fiercely, opening its mouth to bite.
Crack!
A whip strike.
He offered it again, and it still tried to bite.
Another whip strike!
He offered it once more, and it still attempted to bite.
Clang!
Tang Wen lost patience, drawing the long blade from his back. Under the moonlight, the blade gleamed with a chilling aura, exuding a murderous intent.
The black horse obediently approached, licking his palm, its tongue curling around the bean cake, and began to chew.
"That's more like it."
[Beast Taming Art, Mastery (0→1317/3000)]
Having secured a Mid-level Exotic Beast mount and gained experience, Tang Wen won twice—a double victory!
The black horse, true to its status as a Mid-level Exotic Beast, after eating the bean cake and resting briefly, carried Tang Wen at a gallop.
Its speed far surpassed that of a warhorse.
"Not bad. From now on, you'll be called Wuzhui. When I catch that black stallion, it'll be named Taxue."
Not long after, the man and horse returned to their original spot.
"Neigh, neigh!"
As they approached, the sound of a horse's unusually cheerful call reached them.
Tang Wen's expression turned odd; the warhorse and the black horse Taxue were shamelessly engaged in activity!
The black horse Taxue, decisive as ever, immediately ceased its activity and galloped away.
Leaving the warhorse behind, bewildered.
"What a scoundrel! A total scoundrel!"
It ran like the wind, and Tang Wen, exhausted from the night's events, had no intention of chasing after it.
Taxue, a Superior Exotic Beast, would not easily become his mount without injury, and it would take more than a day or two to achieve.
However, the wild horses across this wilderness had been mostly slaughtered by him.
Taxue was destined to remain a bachelor!
The mares, a scarce resource, were all in Tang Wen's hands.
Tang Wen was not worried in the slightest; there would come a time when it would submit!
Three days later, Tang Wen, with his new mount, returned to the hunting camp with several prey, three to four thousand pounds of meat.
"The sun sets behind the western hills, the red clouds fly..."
He munched on dried meat, humming a tune, occasionally taking a
sip of mountain spring water.
Suddenly, a group of people clad in animal skins, armed with bows and arrows, spears, surged toward the hunting camp from afar!
A rough count revealed over a hundred of them.
They moved with incredible speed, clearly skilled in martial arts.
Tang Wen suddenly found the dried meat in his hand unappetizing:
"Is the Black Mountain Camp attacking? But their equipment doesn't seem to match!"
(End of Chapter)