Chapter 212: Breaking the Deadlock |
Watching Wei Zhaohua's calm, carefree expression, Qin Ziwen said nothing.
"Alright." Qin Ziwen hesitated, then added, "Teacher Wei, for the next few days keep a close eye on it and see if there are any side effects."
Wei Zhaohua patted his chest reassuringly, "Guild Leader, rest assured! If this fruit has no side effects, then it definitely has no side effects!"
Qin Ziwen looked at him for a long moment, "As long as you know what you're doing."
He turned and glanced once more at the Mysterious Little Tree in the field.
He also recalled the first map, and that cave-dwelling ancient Giant Toad whose size far exceeded its kin, enormous to the point of terror.
Previously he had guessed the fruit might prolong lifespan — that after long-term consumption, the Giant Toad’s life extended beyond its peers, and it kept growing larger and larger. Now, thinking about it, that hypothesis had plenty of holes.
If merely having a long enough lifespan allowed for infinite growth, that would not be something an ordinary animal could possess. Although the cave ancient Giant Toad had the trait of continuing to develop and grow over time, there must be an upper limit.
Normal animals' growth is locked by three upper bounds: physical laws, physiological structure, and ecological constraints, and they ultimately stop at a limit size — that is the law of nature.
"I didn't expect the key to breaking the deadlock would be here." Qin Ziwen murmured. He shook his head — who would have thought that the opportunity for him to break through to Superhuman would be tied to a plant dug up from a cave a month ago.
He hoped the fruit’s size-growth effect would be obvious; otherwise, if this fruit couldn't make Little Black One grow to an 80-ton scale, they'd have to wait another month for the next fruit to mature.
"Guild Leader, Zou Jianghe wants to see you." Jia Liangcai came briskly, reporting the news.
Qin Ziwen cradled Little Black One in his arms, "Bring him in."
"Hahaha, I heard from downstairs that the Crowned Eagle is back, so I guessed Guild Leader Qin had returned early. Congratulations on completing your second-level task again, Guild Leader!" The voice arrived before the man did; Zou Jianghe came in wearing a formal suit.
"President Zou, please sit." Qin Ziwen held Little Black One with his left hand and spread his right hand to indicate a seat for Zou Jianghe.
Zou Jianghe's normally composed expression showed some disturbance when he saw Little Black One.
He stared at Little Black One, "This is a Tarbosaurus hatchling?!"
"Yes."
"I can help you train it. Want to put it under my care?" Zou Jianghe probed.
"That's unnecessary, and I have a bond with it. It might consider me its father, and it listens to me without training." Qin Ziwen lightly weighed Little Black One in his hands. The hatchling's head bumped against his shoulder and it made soft whimpering noises. Its little tail wagged, it adjusted to a comfortable position, two small claws tucked at its chest, and it slept soundly.
Zou Jianghe withdrew his gaze with regret, "Alright then."
He picked up the glass of cold water on the table and wet his throat, as if remembering the purpose of his visit, "The Mononykus you asked me to raise is almost trained. As agreed, half belong to you. I brought them over today. Guild Leader Qin, would you like to go downstairs to see them?"
"So soon?" Qin Ziwen rose and went to the balcony. From there he saw a young man downstairs wearing a hat, holding a leash; at the other end of the leash stood three Mononykus, quietly remaining where they were.
A crowd had gathered around the youth. Some braver kids, seeing the Mononykus didn't react, stepped forward to try to pet them.
The Mononykus suddenly turned its head, opening its mouth full of sharp teeth, scaring the children into wailing as they jumped back into their parents' arms.
"Bring them up here." Qin Ziwen said.
"Okay, I'll call him up." Zou Jianghe laughed, and soon the young man with a hat and mask led the three Mononykus to the doorway.
The Mononykus seemed to remember Qin Ziwen somewhat; upon seeing him they took two fearful steps back.
Qin Ziwen noticed these Mononykus weren't large, and didn't appear to be adults. "These are all hatchlings?"
"Right, all hatchlings. Adults are hard to train; so far no adult Mononykus has been tamed. From our tests, hatchlings are the easiest to domesticate." Zou Jianghe glanced at Little Black One in Qin Ziwen's arms.
Zou took the leashes from the cap-wearing man, then handed them to Qin Ziwen. "These Mononykus are yours. If there are more hatchlings later that need taming, you can come to me. As we agreed, after training, half belong to you."
Qin Ziwen accepted the leash and suddenly asked, "By the way, President Zou, what commands can these Mononykus understand? They won't suddenly turn on me and bite, will they?"
Zou Jianghe answered, "Of course not! Simple commands like forward, back, sit, sleep, they can all understand. They're timid, so if you act stern, they'll obey."
Qin Ziwen tightened his grip on the leash. Because of the leash length, the three Mononykus were restricted to a certain distance from him.
But their bodies trembled continuously, as if they wanted to get away, yet the leashes held them fast.
In the end, a strange scene formed.
The leashes pulled taut, the three Mononykus stood on one leg each with the other leg lifted, bodies leaning forward, trying to keep as much distance from him as possible.
Qin Ziwen cast a cautionary glance at Little Black One.
He knew these Mononykus were likely not afraid of him, but of Little Black One.
Even a newborn Tarbosaurus is still a Tarbosaurus.
One is at the top of the food chain in this Gobi region, the others are mid-to-lower level on the food chain.
Between them lay several ecological tiers.
Qin Ziwen said, "President Zou, I see something's on your mind. If you've got something to say, just say it. I'm resting a bit but I have to head out soon."
Zou Jianghe laughed, "You really can't be fooled. What do you think of these three Mononykus we raised? Don't they look spirited?"
But as his words fell and he looked at the Mononykus, an awkward expression creased his face.
One of the Mononykus had turned into a mess, leaving chocolate-brown droppings while a faint foul smell spread through the air.
It had both urinated and defecated.
Qin Ziwen leaned back and Jia Liangcai hurriedly called people over to clean the filth.
Zou Jianghe said awkwardly, "Uh... Guild Leader Qin, your Tarbosaurus is just too dominant. These Mononykus are timid and got scared out of their wits. But from our tests over the past few days, Mononykus are actually very effective as auxiliary hunting animals.
First, their sense of smell is sharp, like a hunter's hound, able to detect prey or danger in advance. They're skilled at running through mountains; even in dense forests they can move quickly. Their small size is an advantage: they eat little and are easy to raise. If a team can have one or two Mononykus, they're helpful for supporting hunts.
And for now they're only Mononykus. If we could domesticate some larger animals, they'd not only scout but might become our hunting assistants or even main forces.
Our training ability is currently unmatched in the residential complex! Would Guild Leader Qin be willing to cooperate so we can build a breeding-and-training industry chain together?"