Third-Tier Beast Tamer

Time flew like a white colt passing through a crack, gone in an instant.

Practicing breathing techniques, honing sword forms, swinging the hammer to forge iron, feeding the snow apes, leafing through martial arts miscellanies... Such day-after-day life made the years pass swiftly.

Seeds were sown when spring swallows returned south, harvests gathered when autumn leaves withered. As the north wind grew sharper, frost and snow had seeped bone-deep into the lands around Lin Family Fortress. The bitter winter of the Year 23 of Jiajing had finally arrived as promised.

The snow on the training ground had already been cleared away. Lin Zhao was currently exchanging moves with Zhao Tieying.

Zhao Tieying held the "Shadowless" sword in one hand, his swordplay raging like wind and rain, every strike aimed straight for a vital point. Lin Zhao was forced back again and again, his blocks already growing strained—though his "Frost Condensation" sword was sharp, it could never break through Zhao Tieying's circle of steel.

With a crisp clang, Lin Zhao's longsword was knocked aside half an inch. His wrist went numb, and he could only withdraw his stance and stop, panting heavily.

Zhao Tieying sheathed his sword and stood tall, approval in his eyes. "Young Master, your progress has been astonishing. At this time last year, you could not even last one incense stick. Now you can withstand more than five. Your coordination between inner force and sword moves is far more practiced than before."

Lin Zhao wiped the sweat from his brow and laughed brightly. "It is all thanks to Uncle Zhao's guidance. I have benefited immensely from your swordsmanship!" He knew perfectly well that Zhao Tieying had not even used thirty percent of his strength just now. This old Martial Master had once slain Tatar cavalrymen on the northern frontier, and his martial skill had long reached the pinnacle. Even if he suppressed his inner force to the same Quasi-Martial Master level as Lin Zhao, Lin Zhao would still be no match for him.

Zhao Tieying turned to drill the estate guards, while Lin Zhao found a bluestone to sit on. With a flick of his fingertips, he summoned the Proficiency Panel that only he could see:

Lin Zhao

-Mystic Dragon Breathing Technique: Third Tier (4566/10000)

-Three Talents Slash: Third Tier (4599/10000), effect: Advanced Shocking Force

-Beast Taming Technique: Third Tier (Perfect), effect: Heart of Beast Taming

-Martial Arts Blacksmithing: Third Tier (2118/10000), effect: Guaranteed Supreme Grade

Over the past year, the progress of these four main skills had been truly gratifying.

The most demanding was the Mystic Dragon Breathing Technique. After a year of bitter cultivation, he had accumulated just over four thousand proficiency points. Without the "Qi-Replenishing Pills" issued by the army, relying solely on meat to replenish his body, it would take at least another two years to break through the fourth tier and condense a Qi Seed.

Such speed would already be considered heaven-gifted genius in the eyes of ordinary people, but Lin Zhao did not dare slacken in the slightest.

The land north of the river had always been troubled. The Tatars eyed the southern frontier like tigers watching prey, while roving bandits entrenched themselves in the mountains and forests. Without genuine skill to protect oneself, one could only be butchered by others.

Previously, the Wild Jackal Gang had relied on the backing of the "Vagrant Alliance" to forcibly abduct Zhang Laochui, the Blacksmith Shop's smith from the fortress. At the time, Lin Zhao had been too weak and could only swallow his anger. He had not forgotten that humiliation to this day.

The progress of the Three Talents Slash had been relatively smooth. At this pace, he would be able to train Advanced Shocking Force to perfection in another year.

By then, with this sword technique, even a Quasi-Martial Master would have the strength to fight an ordinary Entering Martial Master—Shocking Force could pierce armor, and in battlefield slaughter, that was the key to preserving one's life.

The greatest surprise was that the Beast Taming Technique had reached perfection first.

The copies of the Jianghu Beast Taming Manual and Study of Northern Exotic Beasts that could be found in the fortress had already been read to tatters. With three snow ape cubs as subjects for practice, improving it had proved less difficult than imagined.

Lin Zhao now believed that among beast tamers north of the river, he could bear the title of "expert."

What delighted him even more was that when the Beast Taming Technique reached perfection, it had also produced the special effect "Heart of Beast Taming":

[Heart of Beast Taming: By observing a beast's actions and listening to its cries, one may discern its intentions. Through one's own inner force and special whistles, one may establish a rudimentary connection with the beasts one raises.]

The most practical benefit of this effect was that the three snow apes no longer bared their fangs and growled at him as they had before. Instead, they would affectionately rub against his arms. He could also clearly sense whether the little fellows were hungry or wanted to play. Such a mysterious experience was beyond anything ordinary beast tamers could imagine.

With this technique at his side, the three snow apes had grown increasingly robust under his care.

In one year, they had grown nearly six feet long and weighed over five hundred jin. Though they were still cubs compared to adult snow apes, an ordinary strong man who encountered them barehanded would already be no match for them.

Even a Quasi-Martial Master like Lin Zhao had to summon every ounce of focus if the three little ones pounced together—if he took a solid palm strike, even with the inner force of the Mystic Dragon Breathing Technique protecting him, he would ache for half a day.

He had understood this principle in his previous life: news reports said that a Northeast tiger could shatter a car window with one swipe. These creatures might look clumsy and adorable, but savage, baleful power lay hidden in their bones. They must never be underestimated.

More importantly, these three snow apes were not yet two years old. Their room to grow in the future was far more astonishing than what they showed now.

Though the great success of the Beast Taming Technique was gratifying, breaking Martial Arts Blacksmithing through the Third Tier was the gain Lin Zhao valued most.

Though the skill had not yet reached perfection, it had still granted him the special effect "Guaranteed Supreme Grade":

[Guaranteed Supreme Grade: Any weapon or armor personally forged by you will inevitably be Supreme Grade, with no defective products. Its sharpness and defensive power will also exceed ordinary forging by thirty percent.]

The wording of the effect was plain, yet it was the core of Lin Zhao's plan to make money.

Becoming rich enough to rival a nation with this craft alone was naturally unrealistic, but supporting everyone in the fortress and supplying the meat and medicinal herbs needed for cultivation would be more than manageable.

Over the past year, he had forged more than a hundred ring-pommel swords in his spare time. Of them, all fifty Supreme Grade blades had been issued to the fortress estate guards.

Before reaching the Third Tier, he might forge ten times without producing a single Supreme Grade weapon. Now, with the effect's enhancement and his inner force precisely controlling the force of every hammer blow and the timing of quenching, the blades he produced were razor-sharp and tough as steel, a hundred times better than the goods from the town's Blacksmith Shop. Even Yingtian Prefecture's famed armor-forging masters would have to bow in defeat when it came to Supreme Grade output and efficiency.

Yet to become a true master armor smith, knowing only how to forge sabers was far from enough—saber-making was the most rudimentary skill in the forging trade. Those complex lamellar armors and scale armors were the realms blacksmiths pursued their entire lives.

The proficiency he gained from forging swords was now negligible. Each sword added only one point, and perfection at ten thousand points remained far away.

Thus, Lin Zhao had long made plans. Once spring came and the snow melted, he would take several Supreme Grade swords to Zhenbei Prefecture to sell, exchanging them for refined iron and armor-forging blueprints. He would then send men into Qixia Mountain to search for Iron Ore. The rudimentary prospecting knowledge he had learned in his previous life might prove useful.

For now, heavy snow had sealed the mountains, and both selling swords and searching for ore could only be put aside.

Lin Zhao simply suspended his forging and devoted himself wholly to the Mystic Dragon Breathing Technique and Three Talents Slash, hoping to enter the Martial Master Realm as soon as possible.

Year 23 of Jiajing, the full moon of the winter month.

Lin Zhao was training the snow apes in the rear courtyard when he suddenly heard waves of wolf howls from the forest behind the fortress—hoarse and desperate, and less than three li from the fortress.

His heart sank. Just as he was about to send someone to investigate, Zhao Tieying hurried in, his face grave. "Young Master, something terrible has happened! A large pack of demonic wolves has come from the mountains, perhaps more than a hundred! They have already carried off three farming households from West Hamlet, and over twenty cattle and sheep have been bitten to death! Stay in the fortress. I will lead the estate guards to intercept them!"

"What? I am going with you!" Lin Zhao sprang to his feet and grabbed the "Frost Condensation" sword and cloth armor from the wall.

Lin Family Fortress had been built against Qixia Mountain. Small outbreaks of wolves were common enough, but a pack numbering over a hundred was something they had never encountered before.

Seeing his resolve, Zhao Tieying knew he could not persuade him otherwise and could only say solemnly, "Then you must stay close to my side and never charge ahead recklessly. A wolf pack of this scale must have a wolf king commanding it, and its strength cannot be underestimated."

The two hurriedly donned their armor and mounted their horses. The fortress gates creaked open, and fifty estate guards, armed with Supreme Grade ring-pommel swords and clad in iron-inlaid rattan armor, were already waiting in formation.

Lin Zhao tightened the reins, a cold gleam flashing through his eyes. "Move out!"

The group galloped toward West Hamlet. Before they had gone a single li, anguished cries came from ahead:

"The demonic wolves are here! Run!"

"My cattle! My cattle are being eaten!"

"Help! Someone save my child!"

In the snow, a pack of gaunt Gray-Maned Demonic Wolves raced about madly. The cattle pens and sheepfolds beside the field ridges had been smashed to pieces. Livestock lay in pools of blood, their cries of pain filling the air.

The estate guards of West Hamlet wielded hoes and sickles as they fought desperately against the wolves. Yet before the hungry wolves' bites and pounces, most could only barely protect themselves. Some had been so frightened by the howls that their limbs turned weak, leaving them rooted to the spot and unable to move.

Zhang Shan, a recent recruit to the estate guard unit, was one of them.

The hand gripping his ring-pommel sword would not stop shaking. During ordinary sword drills, his results ranked among the best in the unit, and he had long memorized the basic forms by heart. But when a Gray-Maned Demonic Wolf bared its fangs, drool dripping from its jaws as it pounced at him, the reeking wind and oppressive force still made his calves cramp. He could not even stand steadily.

"Zhang Shan! What are you staring at? Raise your sword and block!" Not far away, estate guard captain Li Hu roared hoarsely. His long sword had just hacked one demonic wolf back when two more attacked from the side, putting him in immediate peril.

"C-Captain... my legs won't listen to me..." Zhang Shan replied in a tearful voice. His trousers were already soaked through—he had truly been frightened into wetting himself.

When people faced sudden terror, they often froze on instinct, like a wild sparrow beneath an eagle's talons, knowing it should flee yet unable to move.

This fear of bloodthirsty beasts was carved into humanity's bones, passed down from the days when their ancestors struggled to survive in mountains and forests.

Green light gleamed in the Gray-Maned Demonic Wolf's eyes as it growled and pounced at Zhang Shan. It had been hungry for half a month and had long cast its fear of human iron weapons beyond the clouds. At this moment, it saw nothing but flesh and blood.

"Mother, your son has failed you..." Zhang Shan squeezed his eyes shut, his mind utterly blank.

At the critical moment, a sharp whistle tore through the air! A feathered arrow split the sky and struck precisely into the demonic wolf's brow.

The demonic wolf gave a whimper and collapsed. It twitched a few times, then fell still.

Zhang Shan remained dazed until a broad hand slapped his shoulder. "Our ancestors do not raise cowards who cling to life and fear death! Get up, grip your sword tight, and kill wolves with your fortress lord!"

Lin Zhao approached from behind him, his voice striking the ground like gold and stone.

He sighed inwardly. If estate guards like this truly encountered Tatar cavalry, they likely would not even be able to raise their swords—after all, they lacked real combat experience.

With that, Lin Zhao leaped forward and landed before another demonic wolf.

His arm trembled in the force-generating rhythm of the Three Talents Slash. The "Frost Condensation" sword rang from its sheath and chopped down, wrapped in Advanced Shocking Force!

Crack!

The demonic wolf's head fell at once, and blood splashed across Lin Zhao's face.

[Three Talents Slash Proficiency +5]

He licked the blood from the corner of his lips, then drew the zhe wood bow from his back. Nocking an arrow, drawing the bow, and firing came in one seamless motion.

The feathered arrow shot forth like a meteor, piercing the throat of a demonic wolf fifty paces away that was tearing open a cow's belly.

"Zhang Shan, do not be afraid. Wolf fangs may be sharp, but they cannot overcome the sword in your hand. Get up and kill with me!" Zhao Tieying also walked over and patted Zhang Shan's shoulder. He had seen many recruits face fierce beasts for the first time. Only by making them kill a wolf with their own hands could they break the demon in their hearts.

Zhang Shan wiped the tears from his face and looked toward Lin Zhao, who had just cleaved off a wolf's head with one stroke. This young fortress lord was only fourteen, five years younger than Zhang Shan himself. He was clearly still half a child, yet his courage in charging ahead only made Zhang Shan look like useless trash by comparison.

"I... I am a man!" Zhang Shan gritted his teeth, raised his trembling ring-pommel sword, and charged at the demonic wolves surrounding Li Hu.

On the other side, Zhao Tieying saw that Lin Zhao was killing with growing fervor and hurriedly followed.

He knew well that a wolf pack of this scale had to be led by a wolf king—one capable of commanding over a hundred wolves could never be an ordinary beast.

Though the wolf king had not yet appeared, Zhao Tieying could clearly sense a pair of sharp eyes in the darkness, staring fixedly at the battle.

Sure enough, a long wolf howl rang out from halfway up the mountain, shaking the surrounding wilderness.

Lin Zhao and Zhao Tieying looked up at the same time. They saw a giant wolf, its shoulders over three feet high and its body comparable to that of an adult black bear, standing atop a snowy slope.

Its entire body was covered in snow-white mane, save for its four pitch-black paws. Its amber wolf eyes looked coldly down at the humans below, carrying a cunning and ferocity unbefitting a mere beast.

This was the Silver-Maned Wolf King of Qixia Mountain—the Gray-Maned Demonic Wolves Lin Zhao had hunted last year had belonged to its pack.

With its mutated intelligence, it could clearly sense the threat posed by Lin Zhao and Zhao Tieying. The middle-aged man in particular was dangerous, his aura heavy and still as a mountain, even more dangerous than the Northern Snow Ape it had encountered before. As for the youth, he carried the scent of a snow ape—the scent of the mother ape it had hunted last year!

Old hatred and new grudges piled together, and a vicious gleam flashed in the Silver-Maned Wolf King's eyes. These two must die today, or my pack will never know peace!

Its body moved, and like a white phantom, it raced down the snowy slope.

It was so fast that even cheetahs of the grasslands could only stare after it in the dust. This wolf king had long surpassed the racial limit of demonic wolves. Its inner force rivaled that of a Peak Martial Master. It could no longer be considered an ordinary exotic beast; rather, it resembled a martial master of the jianghu who had broken through a realm.

At the foot of the mountain, more than ten wolf corpses had already piled up around Lin Zhao.

Though the hungry wolves knew he was a fiend, they still surrounded him without fear of death, intending to exhaust his inner force with their numbers.

Fortunately, Zhao Tieying remained at his left side. The "Shadowless" sword danced in an impenetrable curtain. Any demonic wolf that dared launch a sneak attack had its throat sealed with one stroke. Not a single one could withstand a move from him.

But Lin Zhao could also see that Zhao Tieying had now used his full strength. He drew deep breaths of frigid air, white mist condensing before his nose and mouth. A faint white vapor rose from his body, and his once-gentle eyes had become sharp as blades.

"Young Master, the wolf king is here! I must face it with all my strength. Have the estate guards protect you, and do not come near!" Zhao Tieying shouted sternly. He then summoned five elite estate guards and ordered them to form a Mandarin Duck Formation around Lin Zhao.

Lin Zhao nodded in agreement, his gaze already locked onto the charging Silver-Maned Wolf King. The giant wolf burst into the battle formation like a streak of white light. Three estate guards standing in its path were sent flying with ease. One was struck in the chest by its paw, and with a crack of breaking bones, died on the spot in a gruesome state.

So fast! So strong! Lin Zhao's heart jolted. He hurriedly drew his bow and nocked an arrow. In the past, even against moving Gray-Maned Demonic Wolves, he had never missed. Yet before the Silver-Maned Wolf King, the moment his arrow flew out, the wolf casually knocked it aside with a swipe of its paw. It did not even damage a single strand of mane.

"Uncle Zhao, be careful! This wolf king has Martial Master-level strength!" Lin Zhao warned urgently.

Zhao Tieying had already raised his sword to meet it. The "Shadowless" sword, carrying Binding Force, stabbed straight at the wolf king's throat.

Yet the Silver-Maned Wolf King neither dodged nor evaded. Its left paw, trailing a black wind, slapped toward the sword blade. With a crisp clang, Zhao Tieying was shaken back two steps, his arm numb.

What hard claws! Zhao Tieying was secretly alarmed. The wolf king's claw tips were actually harder than refined iron, capable of taking even Binding Force head-on!

The Silver-Maned Wolf King pressed its advantage, opening its jaws to spew out a stream of white Qi Force. This was the Ice Soul Force it had condensed, sharing the same origin as the inner force of the Northern Snow Ape and carrying piercing cold.

Zhao Tieying hurriedly twisted aside. The Qi Force grazed his shoulder and struck the snow, instantly freezing a thin layer of ice across it.

"Young Master, this wolf king can already condense force. I must use my Killing Moves! Protect yourself!" Zhao Tieying shouted. His inner force surged throughout his body, and a faint silver glow appeared along the "Shadowless" sword—this was his trump-card technique, the Binding Force of the Three Talents Slash!

Lin Zhao gripped the "Cold Moon" sword tightly, his eyes sharp. He knew that the true vicious battle had only just begun.