Chapter 13 : Chapter 13
Chapter 13: The Special-Grade Warhorse, Yaogu!
Under Old Zhou’s lead, Qin Zhanye and Li Mu entered the stables.
The warhorses on both sides all looked extraordinarily magnificent, and their appearances varied greatly.
Some had double horns growing from their heads, some had bony protrusions jutting from their shoulders, some had beaks like hawks, and some had razor-sharp claws growing from their hooves.
“All of these warhorses were bred through hybridization by fusing them with the genes of various monsters.”
“At present, humanity has identified four superior types of warhorses.”
“They are the Luyao, the Guya, the Yingzhan, and the Guishou.”
“Each excels respectively in endurance, toughness, extreme speed, and combat support...”
Although Old Zhou had been bickering with Qin Zhanye the whole time, he still explained things to Li Mu as they walked.
And while explaining, he did not forget to emphasize how difficult it was to breed these warhorses.
Before long, Old Zhou led the two of them to a particular stable.
Every stall here was guarded, and after counting them, Li Mu found that there were nine stalls under watch.
At that moment, someone was just coming out of one of them.
“Do not lock it yet.”
Old Zhou shouted.
“Huh?” The moment the man turning the lock looked back, an earth-shaking neigh erupted from inside the stall.
In the next instant, the stable doors were blasted open with a BOOM, and the guard at the door was sent flying several meters away.
A black horse burst out through the shattered doors, reared upright, and let out a piercing cry.
Then it shot off toward the open racing grounds in the distance!
Several guards shouted, “Damn it, it got loose again! Hurry and chase it!!”
Four or five guards launched themselves after it, but their speed was nowhere near the warhorse’s.
“Old Zhou, and this is the fine horse you were talking about?”
Qin Zhanye was immediately displeased.
But Old Zhou lifted his chin.
“Instructor Qin, since when did you lose your eye for quality? That is a top-tier special-grade horse!”
“It is only two and a half years old this year. This is exactly the age when its spirit is fiercest!”
“Nonsense. Of course I can tell it is special-grade, but it has not even been tamed yet!”
Qin Zhanye pointed at the wildly galloping black horse.
“It actually was tamed, but the horse underwent a mutation once, and its quality jumped directly from premium to special-grade!”
“I was delighted at first. It is currently the youngest special-grade warhorse in this stable.”
“But who would have thought that after mutating, this young horse would become so fierce and impossible to tame?”
Old Zhou explained.
Qin Zhanye immediately bristled. “Then give me another— Hey!!”
Before Qin Zhanye could finish, Li Mu had already dashed out!
He went straight after the black warhorse, leaving behind only one bold shout:
“I want this horse!”
Back on Earth, Li Mu had watched film and television dramas.
Whenever a general saw a treasured blade or a fine steed, he would love it so much that even beautiful women and piles of gold could be cast aside.
Li Mu had never understood that before.
But just now, the moment he saw this horse, a fierce urge to conquer it rose within him!
The horse was black all over, a glossy, gleaming black. It was so black that it looked as though it had hauled charcoal from the eastern mountain and dug coal from the western one.
It had double horns on its head and bony protrusions rising from its shoulders.
Amid the mane at its neck were scattered streaks of silver hair.
Its scarlet eyes shone like red lamps.
Li Mu had a feeling.
This horse is mine!
“Damn it, what a disaster!” Qin Zhanye gritted his teeth and sprinted after it as well.
No matter how large the grounds ahead were, they were still bounded.
When Qin Zhanye ran, he was no slower than the horse. He soon caught up to the black steed.
He grabbed a fistful of its mane with a savage yank and planted his feet hard.
The black horse let out a pained cry, but it still charged forward without stopping, dragging Qin Zhanye’s feet across the ground and gouging trench after trench into the earth.
Its speed did indeed drop sharply.
“Get on!” Qin Zhanye shouted.
Li Mu had already arrived and leaped onto the horse’s back.
The black horse instantly went mad and reared upright.
With one violent shake, it threw Li Mu straight off.
The surrounding soldiers no longer dared go near.
But Li Mu got up again and again, mounted again and again, was thrown off again and again, then got back up again.
Qin Zhanye kept forcing the horse’s head down the whole time, and even he was drenched in sweat.
Li Mu, meanwhile, was soon covered in dust and dirt from head to toe, but the amount of time he could remain on the horse kept growing longer and longer.
At last, on the final attempt, Qin Zhanye released the horse’s mane.
The black horse let out a chilling scream. Li Mu had a flash of inspiration and, with a WHOOSH, yanked out the Size-Shifting Cloak and threw it over the horse’s head!
The black horse’s shrill cry stopped instantly, and its whole body rapidly calmed down as well.
Its hurried breathing could still be heard, and it looked just as exhausted as they were.
Delight appeared on Li Mu’s face as he slowly removed the cloak.
The black horse stirred restlessly once more, but this time it no longer struggled with all its might.
“It is not because its head was covered. It is that cloak!”
Qin Zhanye shouted excitedly from the side.
When many newcomers tried taming horses, they instinctively covered the horse’s head, thinking it would calm the horse down.
But practice had proven that covering a horse’s head was useless.
Li Mu looked at the cloak, and sure enough, a strange energy was flowing across it, as though it had formed some sort of connection with the warhorse as well.
He had never expected the cloak to have such a special function too.
“Move! Hyah!”
Li Mu tried nudging the horse’s belly with his foot, and the black horse immediately burst into a run.
Its posture was beautiful, and its speed was extraordinary.
Even Qin Zhanye stared in fascination. Though this horse clearly possessed traits of both the Luyao and the Guya, its speed was no slower than the Yingzhan-type monster horses. It might even have surpassed them.
What kind of mutated monster horse was this?
Li Mu rode in exhilaration for a full ten minutes or more. Even after he put away the cloak, the horse seemed to have accepted him.
Li Mu finally reined in before Qin Zhanye.
He was covered in dirt, and the wind had blown his hair into a Super Saiyan halo, yet he was grinning foolishly, so widely that it looked as though his mouth might split.
“You have already thought of a name for it, have you not?”
Qin Zhanye laughed helplessly.
“Yaogu!” Li Mu said as he slapped the horse on the head. He really had already decided on the name.
Qin Zhanye smiled and nodded.
Though Old Zhou was unwilling in every possible way, he still handed the Horse Token over to Li Mu.
And he kept reminding Qin Zhanye and Li Mu that if they ever had the chance, they absolutely had to put in a few good words for their stable.
After chatting with Old Zhou for a while longer, Qin Zhanye finally left the stables with Li Mu.
When they left, both of them were riding horses at an easy pace, partly to let Li Mu’s horse get used to the environment outside the stables.
And that very scene happened to be witnessed by two women.
Those two were Li Xiaohong and Li Lan.
Li Lan was also Li Mu’s cousin, and she was extremely close to Li Xiaohong.
Ever since the two of them had entered the Abyss today and seen the warhorses ridden by the officers, they had liked them very much.
Taking advantage of the lunch break, they had asked around and found the military district stables.
They had been thinking that with the Li Family’s current influence, spending a little money ought to let them make an exception and buy warhorses from the military district.
But the moment they arrived, they saw Li Mu and Qin Zhanye walking out together, chatting and laughing.
Naturally, they recognized the rank insignia on Qin Zhanye’s shoulder.
Both women frowned deeply.
“How is that bastard laughing and talking with a Senior Wolf Guard?”
“And he is even riding such a beautiful warhorse!” Li Xiaohong said furiously.
She still remembered the grudge of the slap Li Mu had given her!
She was still missing a tooth.
Since he had dared lay hands on her, she was absolutely going to find someone to beat Li Mu half to death.
It was just that yesterday she had been busy coaxing Sun Long, and today there had been military training.
She had not yet had the chance to arrange for anyone to make a move.
Li Lan shook her head, indicating that she did not know either.
Then she seemed to think of something and made a guess.
“Could it have something to do with his father? Back then, his father killed no small number of Abyss monsters for the sake of the family.”
“Could it be that he knew officers in the Abyss-Suppressing Army, so that officer is taking care of him?”
Li Xiaohong nodded.
“That must be it! Otherwise, they would never have sold him a horse as a special exception.”
“It is just that where did that little cur get so much money? As far as I know, he does not have any money at all!”
Li Lan waved a hand and looked toward the stable entrance.
“Who cares? In a while, we will call home and report what we have seen.”
“Come on. Let us go pick out a horse first!”
“Mm!” Li Xiaohong pursed her lips into a smile, not without a hint of smugness, as she said,
“It seems we were worrying too much. If even a poor loser like Li Mu can buy a horse here,” “then once we reveal our identity, they will probably give each of us a horse for free.”
As they spoke, the two of them quickly walked over to the stable entrance.
But before they could get close, two guards stopped them.
“Halt!”
The guards stood ramrod straight and shifted the sabers at their waists, blocking the two women.
“Military district stables. Students keep away!”
Li Xiaohong smiled faintly and said with absolute confidence, “East District. The Li Family.”