I'm Just a Beast Tamer

When it came to farming reputation, living people were far more useful than the dead.

Zhou Ruhai and his men wanted to kill the Grandmasters from the two nations, but Jiang Zuo had no intention of doing so.

Before leaving, he had a discussion with Zhou Ruhai and his men, making it clear that he would only intervene in the conflict within Wangxiang Sea City. He would remain a bystander in any other battles.

While Zhou Ruhai’s initial goal was for Wangxiang Sea City to become independent, if the Grandmasters from both the Cyan Seagull and Flying Eagle nations were to die at Great Black’s hands, their ambitions would likely swell instantly.

This would do nothing to help Jiang Zuo farm Beast Taming Reputation, so he naturally had no intention of playing along.

Jiang Zuo’s advice was to capture one Grandmaster and then use them as leverage to negotiate with the two nations.

This way, Wangxiang Sea City could establish its independence and coexist peacefully with the two nations.

Otherwise, there was no telling when the war would end.

To ensure things went down this path, Jiang Zuo secretly instructed Great Black to let one of the two Grandmasters escape if they both attacked.

If both Grandmasters were captured, Zhou Ruhai might just harden his heart and kill them both.

But if only one was captured, and with Jiang Zuo no longer intervening, the captive Grandmaster wouldn’t be killed so easily.

Using them as a bargaining chip in negotiations was the best choice.

After all, Wangxiang Sea City was rich in fish and ore. But as a coastal city, it had almost no agriculture and could only survive through trade.

According to Zhou Ruhai’s original plan, he only ever intended to force the two nations to the negotiating table.

With Jiang Zuo’s help, Zhou Ruhai now held the upper hand, having perfectly achieved his initial objective.

If he still wasn’t satisfied, Jiang Zuo wouldn’t indulge him.

The Cyan Seagull and Flying Eagle nations were both his potential audiences.

A prolonged war would actually be quite detrimental to Jiang Zuo’s future efforts to gain Beast Taming Reputation.

Then, no matter how impressively Great Black and Seated Mountain Eagle performed, the people of the two nations would only fear him, not admire him.

Only through peaceful coexistence could the tales of Jiang Zuo’s deeds and his persona be widely circulated.

Given time, a quantitative change would lead to a qualitative one, and Jiang Zuo could hope to reap a great deal of Beast Taming Reputation from these two nations.

’Wen Shulin and Zhuang Ruying... they must be surrounded by children and grandchildren by now, right?’

Since he was out, Jiang Zuo took the opportunity to check in on the two of them.

If they were both unharmed, it would mean that the incident from back then had been put to rest, with no one in pursuit.

In the small seaside town, Jiang Zuo spotted the couple, Wen Shulin and Zhuang Ruying, from a distance.

They were in their sixties now, their temples gray with age.

However, they both seemed to have aged well, and Jiang Zuo recognized them instantly.

Looking at them, Jiang Zuo sighed to himself.

He had been in this world for over ninety years, not far from a full century.

’Blacksmith Li and the others must have passed away from old age. And his parents... he had no idea if they ever came back looking for him after he left.’

’But whether they returned or not, they had surely passed on by now.’

Suppressing the faint, wistful thoughts, he confirmed the couple was safe. He didn’t linger, instead turning back to Fire Mist Island to continue his grand project of raising eagles.

Barring any surprises, the war in Wangxiang Sea City should be drawing to a close.

...

The war in Wangxiang Sea City didn’t spread to Fire Mist Island. Aside from a significant drop in population, the island wasn’t much affected.

The mines were also much less crowded. The Yu Family Siblings, Yu Xuemei and Yu Yunhui, seized the opportunity to make their move.

The day before the Grandmasters from the two nations were to join the battle, deep inside one of the mines.

As the two siblings broke through into a new section of the mine, several enormous rats suddenly scurried out.

"Such huge rats! We’re on the right track, it has to be just ahead!"

Yu Yunhui exclaimed in delight.

The siblings immediately swung their pickaxes, digging with all their might.

BANG!

Two hours later, after unearthing a large amount of ore, they dug up something unusual.

It was a pale white Jade Stone, and it wasn’t small!

This could already be considered a Longevity Jade Stone!

But the two paid it no mind, simply digging with even greater force.

Soon, they were digging up one Longevity Jade Stone after another.

But they tossed each one aside without a second glance.

After another hour, the Longevity Jade Stones they were unearthing had become cyan-green in quality.

A little further, and they even started digging up purple-quality Jade Stones.

They admired them for only a moment before continuing to dig.

CLANG!

Finally, as Yu Yunhui swung his pickaxe, he felt a completely different impact.

"We found it!"

Yu Yunhui cried out in delight.

He hurriedly worked to pry the object loose.

Yu Xuemei looked over and saw that Yu Yunhui had dug out a crystal-like piece of ore.

The transparent crystal was emitting a faint, earthy-yellow glow.

No, on closer inspection, the earthy yellow was tinged with a hint of a golden sheen. It was more of a pale gold than an earthy yellow.

"Damn it, this crystal is fragile! It cracked, and the Treasure Qi inside is leaking out!"

Yu Yunhui said, pained, as he picked up the pale gold crystal.

The crystal was cracked, and the golden Treasure Qi within was visibly dissipating.

"It’s fine. Keep digging! According to what Father said, there should be a lot more here!"

"With this, it won’t be long before we can advance to the Grandmaster realm!"

Yu Xuemei forced herself to remain calm, but she couldn’t help the hint of joy in her voice.

"Don’t waste it! There’s no guarantee we’ll find more. Sister, you absorb this Treasure Qi. I’ll keep digging!"

Yu Yunhui shook his head.

The leaking Treasure Qi made his body and mind feel incredibly refreshed and clear.

’He felt that if he could just cultivate while surrounded by this Treasure Qi, breaking through to the Grandmaster realm was only a matter of time.’

...

「On the surface of Fire Mist Island.」

In a workshop.

Lu Changhua felt a faint stirring from something deep within his sleeve pocket, and his mind whirred.

He gave some instructions to his subordinate, walked to a deserted spot, and took a small, nondescript piece of ore from his pocket.

The ore was only thumb-sized, but it was now vibrating constantly in Lu Changhua’s hand, seeming to want to roll in a specific direction.

’Back then, that unreliable fellow Wei Jichang claimed he’d found a super treasure. In the end, he was the only one who benefited, breaking through to the Meridian Passage realm. He just tossed me this piece of ore, saying it would react if anyone ever dug up the same kind of treasure.’

’He demonstrated it for me himself back then, but it hasn’t stirred once in all the years since. I’d started to think the bastard had used some trick to fool me.’

Clutching the special ore, Lu Changhua walked on, lost in thoughts of the past.

Back then, he wasn’t yet in the Nuhai Gang, but in another, smaller one.

Wei Jichang was in a different gang as well, but the two of them were on good terms in secret.

That night, Wei Jichang led some men on a treasure hunt. Since it was in the territory Lu Changhua was responsible for, he couldn’t show his face. He just followed them secretly, to avoid being implicated if things went south.

’Who would have thought that fellow Wei Jichang would be so reckless? He hadn’t even confirmed the location of the ore deposit. He’d just found a few good items and was already eager to kill everyone to silence them.’

In the end, after all his efforts, it was that bastard Wei Jichang who reaped all the rewards.

Afterward, no matter how hard that fellow searched, he could never find that type of treasure ore again.

A decade later, the Yu Family Siblings returned to Fire Mist Island, and that fellow Wei Jichang vanished without a trace.

Lu Changhua knew immediately that the siblings were involved.

After observing them in secret for a while, Lu Changhua confirmed the siblings were searching for something.

He just never imagined that the Yu Family Siblings would keep searching for twenty years.

He himself had given up long ago. But now, a sudden opportunity had appeared.

’It won’t be hard to track down the Yu Family Siblings. But Wei Jichang died mysteriously at their hands, and I’m only at the Great Success of Blood Exchange stage. Confronting them would be tantamount to suicide.’

’I don’t have many years left, so I’m not afraid of dying. But I doubt the two of them would be willing to share the spoils with me.’

’Fine, I’d better prepare a backup plan. I’ll have Lin’Er hide somewhere safe. If I don’t return for him within two hours, he is to go to the Worldwide Bank and report this.’

’If the Worldwide Bank’s records are correct, the treasure ore Wei Jichang found back then was called ’Heaven and Earth Primordial Power Ore.’ It’s a treasure that the Worldwide Bank is offering a reward for.’

Lu Changhua mused.

He had reached the Great Success of Blood Exchange, but he hadn’t joined the war. This was because he was old, had suffered severe past injuries, and didn’t have many years left to live.

All he wanted now was to secure a future for his grandson.

His mind made up, and feeling that he could secure a decent opportunity for his grandson Lu Feilin no matter what, Lu Changhua immediately set his plan into motion.

As for informing his gang and moving out with its members.

Lu Changhua didn’t even consider it.

If he brought too few people, he’d likely be killed for the treasure.

If he brought too many, his share of the benefits would be meager.

A treasure of this magnitude would never end up in his grandson’s hands.

And Lu Changhua couldn’t care less about ordinary wealth.

Informing the gang was far less practical than having Lin’Er report to the Worldwide Bank.

...

「Deep in the mine.」

The Yu Family Siblings had already made significant gains.

Beside them lay several crystal ores, each emitting a faint golden light.

"Someone’s coming!"

Suddenly, Yu Xuemei looked toward the mouth of the tunnel.

Lu Changhua’s figure gradually came into view.

Guided by the vibrations of the special ore in his hand, finding the siblings had been much easier than he expected.

’Lu Changhua?’

The siblings quickly stored the crystal ores, preparing to kill him to keep their secret.

They could come up with an excuse for being here, but no matter what they said, they would have to leave afterward.

And the two of them had no intention of leaving.

If they could just stall for a few more days, they would have nothing to fear.

The two recognized Lu Changhua. They were just waiting for him to get closer before launching a surprise attack.

However, Lu Changhua stopped several dozen meters away from them.

"Let’s talk."

Lu Changhua said coolly.

"Talk?"

The Yu Family Siblings frowned, looking at Lu Changhua.

Lu Changhua’s words sounded anything but ordinary.

"To be honest, I’ve been watching you for a long time. I know you’ve been searching for a certain kind of treasure ore. I assume you’ve found it."

Lu Changhua said, getting straight to the point.

"Were you in league with Wei Jichang?"

Yu Xuemei’s gaze turned chillingly cold.

’Anyone watching us who also knows about the treasure ore must have been involved back then.’

"I don’t have many years left. I want to make a deal..."

Lu Changhua ignored her question and simply continued speaking.

’He could feel that the siblings were about to strike. If he didn’t lay out his bargaining chip first and make them hesitate, they would probably attack immediately, not giving him another chance to speak.’

"Die!"

But before he could finish, the siblings, seeing him as another one of their father’s murderers just like Wei Jichang, attacked without another word.

’So fast!’

’They’ve reached the Great Success of Meridian Passage!’

’Great Success of Meridian Passage... With the gang leader away, it wouldn’t have mattered how many men I brought. It would have just been a dead end.’

’No wonder they had no intention of negotiating.’

’Good thing I made other, safer arrangements.’

He watched as a cold glint of light flashed toward him.

In his final moments, these thoughts flashed through Lu Changhua’s mind.

He had met with the worst-case scenario he’d envisioned, but he had no regrets.

Having dealt with the Worldwide Bank for many years, he had great faith in its credibility.

’Years from now, my Lin’Er will surely avenge me!’

SHLICK!

A dagger pierced through Lu Changhua’s head, killing him instantly.

The special stone he was clutching in his hand fell from his grasp and rolled across the ground.

The Yu Family Siblings paid no mind to the small, ordinary-looking stone.