Plan Begins

Lin Ze guessed that the Flame Mercenary Group and the Wolf Head Mercenary Group might be working together, conspiring to seize the Fire Wolf King Cub.

After treating this possibility as a certainty and reasoning backward from it, he found that all his earlier doubts had been answered.

It was only a guess based on a few words and traces of evidence.

But Lin Ze still chose to trust his judgment.

He made preparations accordingly.

Since the Flame Mercenary Group and the Wolf Head Mercenary Group were in cahoots, Lin Ze had nothing to worry about anymore.

After all, even if they really succeeded in seizing the Fire Wolf King Cub this time, it would inevitably provoke an attack from the Wolf Pack.

To avoid suffering losses in the attack, they would most likely drag all of Fire Wolf Town into it.

They would make the entire town share the risk.

The previous, relatively small Wolf Pack attack had already overwhelmed the town's apothecaries.

The damage caused by a much larger attack was easy to imagine.

Of course, Lin Ze wasn't doing this entirely for the mercenaries he didn't know. More importantly, his own interests might suffer.

By now, he had deployed quite a number of Death Soldiers in Fire Wolf Town.

Moving them all elsewhere would be rather troublesome.

And if he didn't take part in the two Mercenary Groups' operation, he wouldn't know exactly when it would happen.

That would make it impossible to avoid the risks precisely.

He could easily end up in the same perilous situation as during the first Wolf Pack attack.

He had been hunting Magical Beasts when the Wolf Pack attacked, resulting in heavy losses.

Lin Ze came up with all sorts of reasons for himself, but in the end, it was because he saw a chance to turn their plan against them and get revenge on the Wolf Head Mercenary Group.

He himself remained behind the scenes. Even if this plan failed, he could simply start over.

He now had nearly fifty Death Soldiers under his command. Even if all the White Common Death Soldiers were sacrificed, it would take only a dozen days or so to restore their numbers.

Of course, Lin Ze's plan didn't involve sacrificing all the Death Soldiers in the first place.

The key to turning their plan against them was the Blue Rare Death Soldier he had manifested earlier.

The Death Soldiers possessed Hunting Skill and talents related to traps.

Lin Ze had the Blue Death Soldier lead a group of Death Soldiers into the Magical Beast Mountain Range to lay traps.

Lin Ze couldn't be sure which route the Flame Mercenary Group and the Wolf Head Mercenary Group would take.

But he knew the terrain around Fire Wolf Town like the back of his hand.

So he chose several of the most likely routes and had the Death Soldiers lay traps along them in turn.

This was the most crucial part.

If they didn't choose one of the routes Lin Ze had selected, then there would be no way to turn their plan against them.

Two busy days passed in the blink of an eye.

Lin Ze had the Death Soldiers lay traps in the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

At the same time, he used Wang Wu's perspective to investigate the Flame Mercenary Group's base further.

That day, with help from the Flame Mercenary Group's mercenaries, the Death Soldiers finished their daily drills.

The mercenary in charge of training the odd-job workers rested his hands on his hips and called out loudly.

"Congratulations! Tomorrow, the group will be heading into the mountains to hunt Magical Beasts!"

"This mission isn't very dangerous, so all of you can come along and see what it's like."

"If you go through enough trials, sooner or later you'll become proper mercenaries."

"By then, the gold you earn hunting Magical Beasts will be enough to let you live in comfort!"

The people present listened to the mercenary's bold words and all showed their delight.

Wang Wu, whom Lin Ze controlled, also wore an expression of anticipation and excitement.

But inwardly, he sneered.

They were practically hoping to send them to their deaths.

These odd-job workers hadn't been mercenaries before.

Some of them might have cultivated, but the dangers of the Magical Beast Mountain Range were still not to be underestimated.

Even a proper mercenary could easily come to grief in the mountains if he let his guard down.

And now the Flame Mercenary Group was taking this group of odd-job workers, who had trained for less than three days, into the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

It was practically like pushing them into a blazing pit of danger.

But Lin Ze also knew why the Flame Mercenary Group was in such a hurry.

The longer the Fire Wolf King Cub stayed in the Fire Wolf Lair, the wilder it would become and the harder it would be to tame.

That was why they were in such a rush.

They were taking this group of odd-job workers, who had trained for less than three days, into the mountains. They probably weren't even qualified to serve as cannon fodder.

At most, they could distract the Wolf Pack when they encountered it.

It was like encountering a bear in the wilderness. You didn't have to run faster than the bear; you only had to run faster than your companions.

If their plan went smoothly, they would get two Fire Wolf King Cubs, and all they would lose were these unfortunate odd-job workers, who would be left behind to cover their escape.

In fact, if everything went as the Flame Mercenary Group envisioned, even its members wouldn't suffer many losses.

With so many odd-job workers covering their retreat, they would only have to run faster than them, greatly reducing the danger.

It would be all too easy for these mercenaries to outrun the odd-job workers.

Now that he knew when the Flame Mercenary Group would act, Lin Ze hurried to refine his own plan.

He spent nearly the entire night refining the traps along those routes.

The next day.

Xiao Yi Xian knocked on Lin Ze's door. When she saw him with dark circles under his eyes, she was surprised.

"Didn't I tell you not to overwork yourself?"

Xiao Yi Xian said with concern.

"Haha, I'm fine. I have something important to take care of. I'll just be busy for a little while."

Hearing Lin Ze's answer, Xiao Yi Xian knew it would be hard to talk him out of it.

"All right, but take care of yourself. If you feel unwell at all, come see me."

"Of course. How could I not make the most of living with a kindhearted, beautiful pharmacist like you?"

Hearing Lin Ze tease her, Xiao Yi Xian's cheeks flushed slightly, and she shot him a look.

"You're all talk!"

"Come on, get ready. It's time for breakfast."

"I've noticed you really love meat. When I first saw that huge pile of Magical Beast meat, I was startled."

Lin Ze smiled at her words. Of course, he couldn't tell her that it was the Death Soldiers' food reserve.

He ate the steak Xiao Yi Xian had fried herself while chatting with her.

Ever since Xiao Yi Xian had decided to take the entrance exam for Jia Nan Academy, she had begun cultivating hard too.

Although Lin Ze had said that the Eighth Stage of Dou Qi was enough to pass Jia Nan Academy's entrance exam, Xiao Yi Xian still wanted to be more certain.

Besides, greater strength could solve many problems and troubles.

Just like the problem she had encountered this time.

If she were strong enough, she could solve it with her own power.

She might even keep such trouble from ever appearing before her.

Seeing Xiao Yi Xian work hard at cultivation too, Lin Ze smiled inwardly.

Perhaps, before they headed to the city where Jia Nan Academy's entrance exam would be held, he could take Xiao Yi Xian on a trip through the Magical Beast Mountain Range near Qingshan Town and claim that inheritance.

After enjoying the delicious food Xiao Yi Xian had made, Lin Ze regained some of his energy.

He began focusing most of his attention on Wang Wu.

The Flame Mercenary Group had set out!