Chapter 162: Taming |
One mother Mononykus charged the fastest. Qin Ziwen retreated half a step, hooked his foot, and flipped it to the ground.
The two young Mononykus behind, seeing this, tried to escape on their short little legs.
He caught up in two or three strides, grabbing one in each hand from behind, lifting the two young Mononykus.
The Mononykus had no scales, only feathers similar to birds, their plumage short and somewhat coarse.
Once caught, the young Mononykus struggled desperately, but it was useless.
Qin Ziwu took out a burlap sack, shook it open, and then tossed the young Mononykus inside.
After a round of counting, they ended up throwing in thirteen young dragons. Besides these, six mother Mononykus remained.
They used rope to bind the two legs of the Mononykus.
On the altar, what refreshed was a Micro Blank Expansion Card. Taking the card, everyone prepared to return.
They needed to be taken back as soon as possible.
Returning along the original route, just as they were about to enter the bottom of the ravine, they heard the Crowned Eagle flying overhead let out a piercing shriek.
"Wait."
Qin Ziwen called everyone to a halt, stopping in his tracks. The Mongolian Horse behind him shook its head and stomped its hooves incessantly.
"There's something ahead."
Qin Ziwen took out his long trident.
From the rear, Du Yu pushed off the wall with both feet, vaulted over everyone's heads, and landed in the narrow passage ahead. "Master, I'll scout ahead!"
"It's gone."
Because Qin Ziwen had already heard the rhythmic sound of alternating footsteps fading into the distance.
This sound was familiar, as it was the same sound Mononykus made when running, though the Mononykus sound was crisper, related to their body weight.
The sound from outside was heavier.
"Go!"
Entering the ravine, they looked to the left.
The dinosaur that had been lying in wait outside earlier had already disappeared around the corner, but the Crowned Eagle was circling in the sky not far away, seemingly having locked onto that dinosaur's position.
"Chase." Judging by the footsteps he heard, that dinosaur should be alone, and its size wouldn't be too large.
Everyone chased in the direction the sound disappeared, but the target's footsteps grew increasingly distant, fading away quickly.
"Come back." Qin Ziwen beckoned to the Crowned Eagle.
The Crowned Eagle, which had already flown out several hundred meters, circled once and then flew back.
"Judging from the footprints in the sandy soil, it should be a dinosaur similar to the Mononykus. However, based on the depth of the footprints, its weight is at least five times that of a Mononykus." Yang Cunshen squatted on the ground, carefully observing the footprints before drawing his conclusion.
Du Yu and Shi Hu also squatted down. After checking, they confirmed there was only one set of footprints. This should be a solitary dinosaur.
"Judging from its ambush position, I suspect it might have been lying in wait for these Mononykus."
Wang Yun stood up. "A dinosaur of this size, living in the Gobi Desert, and from its reactions, very alert, its intelligence might not be low. I suspect it could be a dinosaur from the Dromaeosauridae family."
The group circled around and reached the surface of the Gobi Desert.
Before noon, they returned to the residential complex.
People saw the dinosaurs they were carrying, especially since they were alive, attracting a crowd of onlookers, both adults and children.
They were both excited and scared. Qin Ziwen extended the mother Mononykus in his hand towards them.
It scared several children into screaming, scattering like a swarm.
"Guild Leader." Wei Zhaohua and Zhao Pu, leading three adults back from outside, saw the Mononykus they were carrying back.
They glanced curiously a few more times.
They had seen Mononykus yesterday, so they weren't that surprised.
However, the three people following them were seeing dinosaurs for the first time, and live ones at that.
They found it incredibly novel, as if seeing some rare treasure.
"Guild Leader."
"So this is a dinosaur. It seems to have fur. Can it be used for farming?"
"If this were on Earth, probably rich people would buy it as a pet. This little thing looks quite rare."
After greeting them, Qin Ziwen took the Mononykus upstairs and returned home.
First, he took a look. The rabbits had all successfully given birth. Now there were twenty to thirty more baby rabbits in the Beast Cage. These little rabbits huddled close to their mothers.
Seeing someone approach, they huddled even tighter.
Seeing this, Qin Ziwen couldn't help but frown. If the Mononykus were kept next to them, it might scare the rabbits, especially since the mother rabbits had just given birth.
Unless they got another Beast Cage.
Just as he was pondering this, there was a knock at the door.
It turned out Zou Jianghe, having learned he had captured a group of small dinosaurs, had come to visit on his own initiative.
"I heard you caught a bunch of little dinosaurs? Are you selling them?"
Qin Ziwen didn't agree immediately. Instead, he looked at him and suddenly asked, "Do you have a building that can raise dinosaurs?"
Zou Jianghe was stunned for a moment, then laughed heartily. "How could that be possible."
After laughing a few times, he gave a dry chuckle. "It's not specifically for raising dinosaurs. It's an Advanced Building for taming animals."
"One that can tame animals? The category of 'animals' includes dinosaurs, right? This building of yours..." Qin Ziwen didn't know how to evaluate it. Zou Jianghe's building sounded pretty good.
Zou Jianghe said, "Actually, telling you is fine. After all, the animals I tame in the end are also intended for sale.
My building just provides a platform. I still have to recruit tamers myself, and the beasts to be tamed also have to be captured by me.
Then, it's not like you can just lock a beast inside and tame it immediately. There's a success rate.
The more ferocious the beast, the longer it takes to tame. Also, I currently can't tame beasts that are too large.
Animals that are too small aren't worth taming either, because they lack combat power. Everyone's food is tight right now. Sigh, it's really quite troublesome. There's no hope of mass sales in the short term. It's a luxury item. If I sell them, the price won't be cheap.
But if you're willing to invest, when the tamed adults are ready, I can give you one-third."
Seeing Qin Ziwen remain silent, Zou Jianghe quickly added, "One-third is really not little. The taming process will definitely have failures. It's not a 100% success rate. Plus, I have labor costs, and I'm responsible for the food, drink, and waste during the taming period. I also provided the building."
Qin Ziwen asked, "Is this one-third one-third of the tamed adults, or one-third of the total number I give you?"
"Definitely one-third of the tamed results." Zou Jianghe said.
Qin Ziwen made a gesture. "How about this, you can negotiate with my Liangcai."
Under Zou Jianghe's bewildered gaze, Jia Liangcai walked out from behind him, gave a slight bow, and gestured with a 'please' motion.
The two entered the adjacent room and closed the door.
Inside the room, the two engaged in a fierce battle of words, their language sharp, going back and forth. Someone who didn't know might think they were mortal enemies.
After quite a while, the door opened. Zou Jianghe stepped out of the room with an unchanged expression, though upon closer inspection, one could notice his steps were slightly unsteady.
He cupped his hands towards Qin Ziwen. "President Qin, I hope for a pleasant cooperation in the future."
After Zou Jianghe left, Jia Liangcai straightened his robes and walked before Qin Ziwen. "Master, I have not failed your trust. President Zou is willing to hand over half of the tamed adults to us and ensure the loyalty and stability of the tamed beasts. If the beasts become unstable later, they will provide free correction."
"The tamed beasts they provide can't even guarantee stability?" Qin Ziwen frowned.
Jia Liangcai pondered and said, "According to Zou Jianghe, the tamed beasts have stable temperaments and can understand simple commands, but they will still retain their own instincts. Behaviors like escaping or shying away from battle may occur."