Starting with the Broken-Winged Frost Butterfly: Beast Taming

Chapter 80 Enslavement

"Ancient weapon beasts?!"

Wei Dan, Yuwen Qingtian, and Meng Baixuan, the three apprentice battle pet masters, regained their senses and their expressions changed drastically upon hearing this.

Gui Zizhi and Yin Xiong, who were a year ahead of them and were already senior battle pet masters, frowned upon hearing these four words, and their faces instantly became gloomy.

While weapons and beasts may be rare, why is there any ancient connection to them?

Zhu Ran pondered, "This goes back to the early days of the Extraordinary Era. In that chaotic and dark old age, there was a group of extraordinary beings who were more powerful than anyone could imagine. Because of their existence, the human race was left with corpses strewn across the fields, and people were filled with grief."

To remember this history, later generations gave it the prefix "ancient," both to commemorate this period and to remind future generations to strive for progress and never be complacent.

"The drumbeats of blood appeared twice at the beginning of the era."

"The first time, hundreds of thousands of civilians were slaughtered, corpses filled Taiping Road, lonely ghosts wept in the ruins, blood was like a curtain, and the world was desolate."

"The second time, a Beastmaster was born. A human sage tamed a Blood Drummer. Inspired by it, the Beastmasters on the front lines were filled with passion and their combat power soared, successfully defending a city that should have been breached—"

Wei Dan murmured to himself, the information that a mature A-level ancient weapon beast was hidden inside the cave was too shocking for him to process at once.

"Fortunately, Zhu Ran was there, using ice to cool his body and suppress his boiling blood."

Meng Baixuan was the only other woman among the seven. When her blood was raging, her face was ferocious and she was filled with murderous intent.

She dared not imagine what she would do if things continued to deteriorate, and a wave of fear washed over her.

"The drumming continues, the rhythm growing increasingly intense and ferocious; is the blood-soaked drumming indiscriminately attacking the creatures within the cave?"

"But as far as I know, the Blood Drum could not possibly possess the talent for sealing. The restriction at the entrance is imposed by another beast."

As the group talked, their suspicions deepened.

Qin Taozhi suddenly turned around, and Mo Jimei rushed towards the cave next to her.

Inside the cave, a student lay sprawled on the cold stone floor, his head twisted 180 degrees, blood gushing out, lifeless.

Not far away, a hunting bee and a green crystal rock zombie king, both enraged, joined forces to attack the other two students.

"Someone's coming! Help! Help us!"

Two students huddled inside the protective shield, their faces ashen. One of them, upon seeing Qin Taozhi, began to sob uncontrollably.

"What happened?"

Zhu Ran demanded an explanation. Although he couldn't recall the deceased's name, he vaguely remembered that the deceased was a senior pet master who served as a guard for the other two.

"A group of undead attacked just now, and Brother Tao stood in front to save us—"

The sobbing person wept incoherently.

Another person chimed in, trembling, "Then the drumbeats suddenly started, and Brother Tao lost his mind, abandoning his defenses and throwing a punch at the undead—"

"Then—then he died—"

"The undead suddenly retreated. The Hunting Bee and the Green Crystal Rock Corpse King were Brother Tao's contracted pets. With their master dead, the contract broke, and they began to go mad, unable to distinguish friend from foe—"

I listened to the whole process intermittently, and Zhu Ran remained silent.

At that moment, he truly felt that within the secret realm, life and death hung in the balance in the blink of an eye.

Even a seasoned second-life battle pet master can perish if they make a single wrong step.

"Whoosh!"

The Inkthorn Rose Demon bound the Hunting Bee and then tied up the Green Crystal Corpse, its thorny vines tightening to restrain the two beasts' frenzied attacks.

The broken-winged frost butterflies stirred up gusts of cold wind, cooling them down.

"No, Xuexi can't suppress the backlash of the life contract; she can only suppress it by force," Zhu Ran said.

"Sigh." Wei Dan sighed, "With the death of their master, the contracted beasts have become wild, and due to the backlash, they cannot be sealed in the sealing card in a short time. They can only be left to fend for themselves."

Whether it's training or adventure, dealing with pre-fate contracted pets has always been rather awkward and frustrating.

"Hmm? The undead are here again?"

Zhu Ran looked towards the other end of the cave.

At the entrance to the passage, a chilling wind howled, deathly energy surged, and countless undead silhouettes followed the commotion and came to attack.

"Rusty Bone Corpse General, Crystal Skull Zombie, Severed Limb Rotting Puppet, Weeping Blood Vengeful Spirit—"

Mature D-grade and C-grade organisms dominate.

The four leaders were mature B-level beings, their chilling killing intent rising like clouds of mist, their ferocity almost tangible.

"The undead are unaffected by the drums of blood, so why do they harbor hostility towards us?"

"There are over forty of them, of mixed species. The fact that zombies and spirits are working together suggests there must be a mastermind behind this—could there even be a mature, A-level zombie king?"

Gui Zizhi and Yin Xiong, relying on their experience to deduce the truth, felt even more heavy-hearted.

Zhu Ran, however, saw directly that the status "enslaved" was displayed on the panels of all the undead.

How many A-rank enemies in the cave can be enslaved even by B-rank enemies?

At that moment, Zhu Ran suddenly noticed that several engravings appeared on the stone floor, and the blood plasma of the deceased "Brother Tao" was slowly flowing, being swallowed up little by little by the engravings, and a dark red light was blooming in the darkness.

"Buzz!"

As if invisible tentacles were entwining his soul, Zhu Ran immediately sensed something amiss. He stepped onto the ground, feeling it was stealing his spiritual power, and a sense of weakness swept over his entire body.

Why is this happening?!

Yuwen Qingtian shouted, "The only energy that Beast Tamers rely on is their spiritual power. If it is drained, they will faint on the spot and be left to wait for death."

"Glug glug!"

Zhu Ran drank the mental tonic. The cool liquid entered his stomach and intestines, and a warm current flowed into the depths of his soul, reducing his fatigue.

"It's effective, but it only treats the symptoms, not the root cause; my mental energy is still waning."

Zhu Ran was deeply troubled.

A mysterious spell forcibly invades the soul, making it impossible for the spirit armor to defend against.

Once their spiritual supplies run out, what will become of them?

"Bang!"

The Inkthorn Rose Demon slayed the strongest Rusty Corpse General, its petals losing their sharp luster, and its vines drooping weakly.

"Oh no, this time it's indiscriminate killing of both humans and beasts; even plant-type pets aren't spared!"

"Look at the broken-winged frost butterfly, it's struggling too. Who's hiding in the shadows? Come out now!"

Yuwen Qingtian was already furious. At this point, who still cared about the beast-head chain? If they didn't bring out the enemy soon, "Brother Tao" would be a cautionary tale!

"Stay calm. Before entering the secret realm, everyone should have prepared mental medication. Judging from the current rate of loss, there is still room for maneuver."

"Look at those two students again. They are the only two who are unaffected. As long as the Taiping Stone Pendant is activated, they will be safe and sound for a short period of time."

Zhu Ran's shout was like a thunderclap from a clear sky, clearly reaching everyone's ears.

Yuwen Qingtian immediately looked at the two people inside the protective shield.

Although they looked disheveled, they were completely bewildered and clearly unaffected.

He managed to calm himself down and gradually regain his composure, his attitude no longer as agitated as before.

"Our biggest trump card is still in effect. I think a group of well-trained secret realm guards are approaching this valley right now."

"Of course, as long as we haven't reached our limit, there's no need to give up—Qin Taozhi, shall we venture deeper?"

A group of undead was no match for the Inkthorn Rose Demon, especially with the Broken-Winged Frost Butterfly providing cover.

The two beasts quickly cleared the road, and in the end only a few ghosts escaped, while the rest lay dead on the ground, creating a spectacular scene.

Taking this opportunity, Zhu Ran asked Qin Taozhi for her opinion.

Since we don't know where the enemy is, let's keep fighting our way in until they reveal their true colors!

"Whoosh!"

Qin Tao responded with action, leading the charge as Mo Ji Mei Yao spun and surged forward, disappearing into the darkness in the blink of an eye.

"Xuexi, let's go!"

The Broken-Winged Frost Butterfly nodded. At this moment, its spiritual energy was also draining away. This was the first time in its life that it had experienced this, and it was extremely uncomfortable.

On the contrary, the four adorable tiger cubs in Zhu Ran's arms, although their bloodline strength differed by two minor levels, were more resistant due to their deep roots in the spiritual realm, resulting in less damage.

During the flight sprint, Zhu Ran took out two Soul-Replenishing Pills.

He always kept precious supplies close to his body, and this Soul-Replenishing Pill was comparable to a high-grade spiritual supplement, but even more potent.

Zhu Ran pressed a pill under his tongue so he could swallow it at any time.

Another organ was inserted into Xuexi's mouth.

Pets can also absorb the medicinal properties, but due to individual differences, there will be some waste.

Zhu Ran couldn't care less about these trivial matters. The drumbeats were still stirring his blood, and coupled with his loss of energy, the double attack made him extremely annoyed.

"With a thunderous roar, the Inkthorn Rose Demon, like a mad bull, stretched out its vines and broke through the narrow passage."

As the crimson roses bloomed, all the monsters that blocked their path were mercilessly torn apart and crushed, sweeping away all obstacles with the force of thunder.

Finally, the seven-person team continued to venture deeper, traversing winding stone paths and leaping over muddy pits, until a breathtaking view suddenly appeared before them.

It was an incredibly vast underground cavern, with stalactites of varying lengths hanging from the top of the rock walls. The walls were pitted and uneven, studded with rusted armor plates, broken swords and spears. A strange wind swept by, sounding like the roar of a ferocious beast or the wailing of a dead soul, the sounds intertwining, eerie and terrifying.

Right in the center of the cave, a blood-red war drum, three zhang tall, was suspended by chains, instantly attracting Zhu Ran's attention.

"The drums of blood have been sounded; the source has been found!"

Wei Dan roared, he hated the noisy drumming. If it weren't for Zhu Ran's help, their group would have activated the Taiping Stone Pendant long ago and ended their secret realm training.

"How disgusting! No wonder our predecessors described it as a grotesque drumbeat of blood, perhaps even a demonic weapon!"

The focus of attention was on the blood-red war drum, its surface seemingly forged from the flesh and bones of countless living beings, its undulating and twisted surface covered with scarlet veins and festering scars.

A dark gray light and shadow hovered beside the drum, as if holding a drumstick, striking it heavily again and again.

Then, the booming sounds spread outwards in layers, stirring up everyone's blood and qi.

"Whoosh!"

At that moment, another streak of snow-white light pierced through the air.

When it stopped and hovered in the air, everyone immediately showed a look of fear, and Qin Taozhi was no exception.

It was a scepter, its shaft pieced together from the spine of some kind of creature, with a large bird skull inlaid at the top, its beak long and pointed.

At this moment, a cluster of crimson ghost fire shook violently within the hollow eye socket, and a sharp, evil human voice reverberated through the skull cavity, overlapping with the booming drumbeats, sending chills down the spines of everyone present.