It was just a shame that Hudders couldn’t achieve any of the methods, no matter which it was. If he had such abilities, he’d have made it big a long time ago. Why would he still be stuck in this tiny little Magical Beast Village?
Therefore, in the case of mounts like the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros, the only thing he could do was just to daydream about it, and nothing more!
However, Meng Lei was telling him right now that he could make the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros recognize him as its master. How could Hudders not become agitated?
“Why not?”
Meng Lei smiled and began to quickly chant a magic incantation. Before long, a dazzling and colorful magic circle arose from underneath the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros, giving off strange fluctuating waves!
The Iron-Armored Rhinoceros became unsettled upon seeing the magic circle. It began to struggle fiercely, and the Thunderbolt Chains actually started to show signs of breaking! Upon seeing that, Meng Lei launched a few more Thunderbolt Chains in succession!
For a moment there, the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros was shackled and wrapped like a mummy, unable to budge at all!
Meng Lei landed on the ground and dragged his finger lightly across the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros. It easily cut through its tough skin, which was as solid and sturdy like iron, and formed a laceration!
Blood spurted from the wound and landed in the magic circle by itself!
“Captain Hudders, come over here and subdue this beast!”
“Sure, sure!”
Hudders hurriedly ran, so worked up that he could barely contain himself!
Meng Lei pointed at the magic circle and said with a smile, “Drip a few drops of blood into it!”
Hudders didn’t dare to be tardy. He took out his dagger, made a cut on his finger, and let a few drops of blood drip from the cut. At once, the magic circle emitted a bright light, which shrouded Hudders’ and the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros’ blood!
Both human and beast blood began to rapidly transform and formed a strange pocket-sized blood-colored magic circle. Then, it separated into two and shot swiftly toward the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros and Hudders, before entering their heads and vanishing without a trace!
Whoosh!
The magic circle on the ground also vanished along with it!
“How is it, Captain Hudders?”
Meng Lei looked at Hudders, a hint of curiosity in his eyes. He’d long wanted to subdue a Magical Beast as his mount, so he’d specially studied how to set up a Contractual Magic Circle before!
However, this was still Meng Lei’s first time setting up a Contractual Magic Circle and subduing a Magical Beast. Thus, he naturally found it very new and interesting!
“It... feels like... I now have a bit of a link with it?”
Hudders looked at the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros, which also looked at him!
Two pairs of eyes gazed at each other!
The irascibility and savagery in the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros’ eyes disappeared, and reverence and allegiance took its place. The way it looked at Hudders was completely different from how it had looked at him previously!
Hudders called out, “Come here!”
The Iron-Armored Rhinoceros walked over obediently without even the least bit of resistance!
It didn’t resist even when Hudders reached out and touched its nose and was as docile as a kitten. There was no trace of its previous demeanor at all!
“So this is the might of a master-servant contract? It’s impressive, indeed!”
Meng Lei clicked his tongue in wonder and admiration as he watched. The contract’s successful formation had actually straight up changed the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros’ will and thoughts, causing it to recognize Hudders as its master from the bottom of its heart!
This was too scary!
“Haha! I have a mount now! I have a mount now!”
Hudders kept stroking the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros, so excited that he was practically grinning from ear to ear. The other guards also approached them, both excited and envious!
“Captain, congrats!”
“Tsk, tsk, having the Fourth-Grade Magical Beast Iron-Armored Rhinoceros as a mount, I’m totally green with envy!”
“It’s so mighty and imposing! I’m dying of envy...”
Chapter 60: Superior-Grade Fire-Elemental Affinity, Bringing Fortune To The Village
Successfully subduing the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros was just an interesting new experience to Meng Lei, but to Hudders and everyone else in the village, it was an event of epic proportions!
Captain Hudders was incredibly excited!
The team of guards was also filled with joy.
Everyone knew that with the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros keeping watch now, the beast tide problem that had brought the village great suffering would be completely solved. There wouldn’t be any more suffering due to beast tide attacks!
This was an epic event!
“Thank you, Meng Lei!”
Hudders held Meng Lei’s hands tightly, his feelings of gratitude showing in his actions. The other guards also looked at Meng Lei with awe and astonishment in their eyes.
They couldn’t get the scene from just now out of their minds!
Countless magic thunder balls!
Sharp lightning lances falling like a rain of swords!
Dozens of Magical Beasts impaled to the ground!
Thunderbolt Chains securely restraining the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros!
Meng Lei!
He was actually this powerful and formidable?
How long had it only been? Yet he had already undergone such an astonishing change?
“I’ll feel like you’re treating me like a stranger if you say such words of gratitude!”
Meng Lei waved and let Jonah and the other two down from the magic carpet. He said with a smile, “After being away from the village for more than half a year, I miss the village’s roasted meat and your malt wine very much, Captain. I wonder if there’s still any left?”
“I might not have anything else, but I definitely have enough roasted meat and malt wine!”
Hudders burst into laughter and said, “Hurry! Inform the village chief, and get the villagers to hurry and come out to welcome our hero! We’ll have a campfire banquet tonight to welcome Meng Lei and the rest home!”
“Alright!”
“Haha! Yes, we certainly should give them a proper welcome back!”
...
The crisis this time had been quietly resolved, they had gained a strong guard like the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros, and there were even wild beast and magical beast carcasses strewn all about. One could say that this was killing several birds with one stone!
This delighted the villagers very much, and they happily cleaned up the carcasses. Everyone was happy and joyous as if it were the New Year celebrations!
The adults were extremely busy!
The kids went to Meng Lei and turned into curious little babies!
Meng Lei was a very patient person and was also very fond of children. He sat on a big rock in the middle of the village with a group of young children in tow and narrated what he had seen and done in the capital city.
Jonah, Joseph, and Andrew supplemented with additional information at the sides...
They spoke vividly and lively, making the children constantly gasp in astonishment!
“Big Brother Meng Lei, can houses really fly in the sky?”
“Big Brother Meng Lei, have all of you ever seen Dragon People with dragon horns on their bodies?”
“Big Brother Meng Lei, I heard from the adults that you can launch lightning from your mouth and control lightning. Is it true?”
Children’s curiosity could never be satiated. The group of young children chittered and chattered as they asked him questions. Despite Meng Lei’s great patience, even he was a little bothered by all the questions!
Upon seeing this, Jonah helped Meng Lei out. She took out a magic crystal ball and said with a smile, “Look over here, everyone. Do you kno
w what this is?”
“A glass ball?”
The children blinked at her.
“This isn’t a glass ball, but a magic crystal ball!” replied a smiling Jonah. She said, “With it, we’ll be able to evaluate our magic talent, just like this!”
She placed her hand on top of the crystal ball. At once, the originally transparent magic crystal ball emitted a pale green glow like vibrant green jade, brilliant and dazzling!
“Wow!”
“It’s green! It turned green!”
The children’s jaws dropped, wonder filling their eyes.
“Big Sister Jonah, the glass ball turned green. What kind of magic talent is that?”
“The magic crystal ball turning green means that I have Wood-Elemental magic talent!” Jonah smiled sweetly and explained patiently, “The green light isn’t very strong, which shows that I have average magic talent. If you look at Big Brother Meng Lei’s magic talent, you’ll see the difference!”
As she spoke, she passed the crystal ball over to him.
Meng Lei couldn’t help but chuckle. Then, he also placed his hand on top of the magic crystal ball.
Buzz!
For a moment there, the originally transparent magic crystal ball immediately emitted an incredibly piercing light, as though a 10,000-watt filament lamp. It was so bright that it made their eyes hurt!
There were three colors amid the dazzling light!
A silver that darted about everywhere like electric currents!
An ocher yellow that was rich and heavy, moving about slowly!
A fiery red that was boiling hot and burned intensely!
The three colors of light, two strong and one weak, intertwined, and coordinated with each other. They shone incredibly dazzling and beautifully, lighting up everyone’s eyes!
(⊙o⊙)
“Wow!” The children exclaimed in astonishment again.
“Huh?” Meng Lei’s eyes flicked over. “A fiery red color?”
Stunned by the lights, Jonah asked with a look full of puzzlement, “Big Brother Meng Lei, do you also have Earth-Elemental and Fire-Elemental magic talent?”
She remembered that Meng Lei only had Thunder-Elemental magic talent when they were going through the magic evaluation test half a year ago. Why had he gained Earth-Elemental and Fire-Elemental magic talent after a short span of half a year?
Moreover, judging from the current situation, his Fire-Elemental affinity actually didn’t lose out to his Thunder-Elemental affinity at all. Only his Earth-Elemental affinity was slightly weaker!
Even so, it was still much stronger than her Wood-Elemental affinity!
In other words, Big Brother Meng Lei had Superior-Grade Thunder-Elemental affinity, Superior-Grade Fire-Elemental affinity, as well as High-Grade Earth-Elemental affinity!
Two Superior-Grade elemental affinities!
One High-Grade elemental affinity!
Given his magic talent, he could truly be labeled as savage to the extreme!
“This... Maybe they had awakened recently?”
Meng Lei narrowed his eyes a little, various thoughts running through his mind. The High-Grade Earth-Elemental affinity was something that he had picked up from Fatty Hart. What was the Superior-Grade Fire-Elemental affinity all about, then?
He had never picked that up before!
Wait!
Could it be the Fire Demon bloodline?
It was also possible that it was the Fire Dragon bloodline!
When he thought of that, Meng Lei couldn’t help but figure it out somewhat. Be it the Fire Dragon or the Fire Demon, both of them were strong and powerful Fire-Elemental Magical Beasts. Both could control fire and manipulate flames!
After assimilating the Fire Dragon and Fire Demon bloodlines, having superior elemental affinity with Fire Elements... was completely reasonable!
Meng Lei took a deep breath.
Looks like there’s a great need for me to study fire-elemental spells in the future. It’s a huge waste if I don’t make use of such strong elemental affinity!
“Awakened recently?”
Jonah was a little dazed.
“Is that even possible?”
“Haha, of course it is. Aren’t I a living example?”
Meng Lei laughed and changed the topic. He said, “Jonah, this magic crystal ball isn’t cheap, right? Surely you didn’t spend that much buying this just to come back to the village to show off?”
“Of course not!” Jonah rolled her eyes at Meng Lei. She explained, “I want to let the children check their magic talent and then teach them how to use magic. I don’t want them to stay in the village and accomplish nothing for all of their lives!”
“That’s a wonderful way of thinking. I raise both hands in agreement!”
Meng Lei nodded slightly and said with a smile, “Hurry and do it, then. Who knows, there might really be people with magic talent here!”
“Okay!”
Jonah began to check the children’s magic talent right away.
As the saying went, “When a man achieves the Dao, even his poultry and dogs rise to Heaven!”
This was exactly it!
Although Jonah hadn’t achieved great accomplishments, as the first person in Magical Beast Village’s history to enter a magic academy to study, her existence had already begun to influence this tiny village!
All those above 10 years old and below 18 years old could get their elemental affinity tested.
Of course, all the children above 16 years old had already gone out of town to serve military service. Thus, only children below 16 years old were tested.
After a series of tests, they really did discover two lucky little fellows. Both were girls, and were even a pair of twins!
Chapter 61: Going Into The Mountains Again, Hunting Magical Beasts
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
They were dressed in long, coarse sackcloth dresses, barefooted, and covered in mud like clay monkey dolls, but both girls on the left and right looked exactly the same as if they were cast from the same mold.
They were that lucky pair of twin sisters!
Hester Draper, High-Grade Fire-Elemental affinity!
Monica Draper, High-Grade Water-Elemental affinity!
“High-grade elemental affinity! It’s actually better than mine!”
Jonah was astonished at the results of the test. High-grade elemental affinity was extremely rare. It was uncommon even among the nobility, not to mention the remote and secluded Magical Beast Village.
Yet it had appeared twice at once in this pair of sisters!
One could only say that different people really had different destinies!
“It would be too much of a waste not to study magic when they have such great magic talent!”
Meng Lei looked at the twin sisters with a big smile. “Hester, Monica, from now on, the two of you can learn how to meditate from Big Sister Jonah. Improve your spiritual power first, then enroll in a magic academy next year.”
“Okay!”
The two sisters nodded hard, as though they understood him but not quite, either. Two shallow dimples appeared on each of their muddy little faces, making them look extremely adorable.
Envy filled the other children’s eyes as they looked at the twin sisters. Despite their young age, they understood what having, or lacking, magic talent meant, too!
“Those without magic talent shouldn’t lose heart, either. You guys can learn Battle Aura from Joseph and Andrew. All of you will still have the chance to become someone strong in the future!”
“Okay!”
...
Night fell, and the roars of beasts rang out occasionally in the forest.
Numerous campfires blazed on the flat ground in the village center. Golden-yellow roast meats gave off a meaty aroma that enveloped the village while villagers sat on the ground as they cheered and laughed.
“Meng Lei, thank you for subduing the Iron-Armored Rhinoceros for me. Here�
��s a toast to you!”
“Meng Lei, thank you for forking out money to support Joseph’s studies!”
“Haha...”
Tonight was destined to be a lively and bustling night. The men played finger-guessing games and drank, the women danced and sang, and the children cheered and laughed. Everyone’s faces brimmed with joy and smiles of happiness.
The campfire banquet lasted all the way till late night before it ended. That night, Meng Lei skipped his daily meditation and had a good sleep instead.
Early in the next morning, he got his things ready and set off.
Morning fog shrouded the forest, and only the surroundings three to four meters around a person was visible. Not only was visibility very low, but the plants in the village had also grown all over the place.
Towering ancient trees and thorny undergrowth!
Draping vines and thick, verdant shrubs!
Speeding up one’s journey was a very difficult task in such a messy and unbearable environment. One could very easily come under attacks. A poisonous snake, a poisonous scorpion, a scourge of poisonous mosquitoes—any of these could take a person’s life!
“The higher a Magical Beast’s level is, the more valuable it is.
“I have to try my best to go as deep into the forest as I can.
“There’s no need to waste any time in the forest’s outer boundary!”
There were only ordinary wild beasts in the forest’s outer boundary. Meng Lei wasn’t the least bit interested in them, so he rode on the magic carpet and headed straight toward the depths of the forest.
Magical Beast Forest was enormous, so much so that it was practically boundless. After flying for a good half a day, Meng Lei finally landed in the forest, ready to hunt some Magical Beasts!
“Earthquake!”
With the spot beneath Meng Lei’s feet as the center, a series of rhythmic tremors quietly spread outward in every direction. It was the Earth-Elemental Spell, Earthquake!
Earthquake was a very simple spell that even First-Grade Magicians could cast. Capable of making the ground shake and sway, the tremors’ scale and frequency depended wholly on the spellcaster’s spiritual power and degree of control in magic power.
In the hands of a high-level Magician, Earthquake could shake the earth, trigger an avalanche, and cause massive destruction. At the same time, it could also produce vibrations in the ground so mild that they were barely discernible.
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