Once upon a time there was a greedy snake

“Since you’re going to hunt in the Great Snow Mountain, it means that your land can no longer produce the kind of catch you want… This shouldn’t be happening. This land should be able to meet all your needs.”

"……oh?"

If Du Yi was merely interested before, now, after listening to the words of the blue-faced giant lion, he unexpectedly began to think that the lion might actually have some merit.

It was at this moment that the blue-faced lion continued speaking.

"As for how to make what you want appear on the land, I...we, I mean we, we are all experienced. We can do those things that are extremely troublesome for you. You just need to wait for the harvest."

Perhaps to prove his words were convincing, the Blue-Faced Lion even began to talk about his own past.

"Back then, what I liked best was live prey. After all, hunting live prey not only provided me with enough to eat, but also allowed me to hone my hunting skills in the process... However, if I hunted alone, the speed would be too slow, and after a while, the prey would run away on the spot even if they just smelled my scent..."

After realizing this, the Blue-faced Lion tamed some humanoid creatures with wolf heads on their heads, whom he called the Catan. These dog-headed creatures were quite weak and had almost no fighting ability, but they liked to howl. Their lack of strength but love to make such a commotion made the Catan a target for many beasts.

But this gave the Blue-Faced Lion an opportunity.

Wild beasts prey on the Catan people, and blue-faced lions prey on wild beasts. As long as these weak but bad-tempered Catan people are around, he will have a steady stream of prey.

"Can you still do this?"

Du Yi was completely stunned.

The process is actually not complicated. He has even done it himself, such as using sheep to lure out saber-toothed tigers. He has actually done such things before. However, large-scale operations like the Blue-faced Lion are completely outside his field of vision. He can understand it immediately, but he would never think of it without a reminder.

However, compared to this method that he could think of himself, Du Yi was more interested in another piece of information.

"So you just said that those Catan people have dog heads?"

Du Yi had always been quite curious about these unfamiliar races.

"Where are they now? Where do I need to go to see them?"

"They are..."

The blue-faced lion choked immediately.

"They are with the Natas."

After glancing at the six-tusked white elephant beside him, the blue-faced lion could only manage to utter this one sentence.

The Nata people were yet another new race he had never heard of, which naturally piqued Du Yi's interest once again.

The blue-faced lion continued speaking.

Unlike the Catan, the Nata people, who are sturdy and resemble small giants, mainly live on the land of the Six-Tusked White Elephant. The Six-Tusked White Elephant has always trained these small giants as warriors and used them as auxiliary forces in its battles.

This is also a way for the six-tusked white elephant to strengthen itself after analyzing its own weaknesses. Although the giant elephant is extremely large and has six hard and sharp tusks, it is as brave as a chariot when it charges. However, that is only because of its superior frontal combat power. Its empty back has always been the weakness of the six-tusked white elephant.

But once these Natas were carried on his back, everything changed.

In a direct confrontation, the six-tusked white elephant would personally lead the attack. If the enemy dared to circle around to its back, they would face the Nata people's flying axes and spears. Of course, these weapons themselves might not be able to cause much damage, but that brief obstruction would be enough for the giant elephant to turn around and deliver a vicious blow to the enemy.

After mating with the Nata people, the already ferocious six-tusked white elephant became a true war machine, its huge hooves crushing everything in its path, leaving nothing but desolation in its wake.

"You can do it like that?"

Although it was still within Du Yi's imagination, this combination technique was indeed beyond Du Yi's expectations—mainly because when he was whipping the giant elephant, he didn't see any Nata people.

"So where are these Nata people now?"

"...They were with the Mani people."

After a moment's hesitation, the blue-faced lion continued.

Most Mani people look similar to monkeys, but out of their worship of Garuda, they adorn their heads with eagle feathers—compared to the Katan people who are used as bait and the Nata people who are used as backup weapons, these Mani people, under the command of Garuda, can be called truly multi-functional.

When it comes to fighting, these Mani people possess considerable combat prowess. When it comes to production, they know how to lure wild beasts and ambush prey. These Mani people can even act as the eyes and ears of the Golden-Winged Roc, bringing it all the surrounding intelligence and even firing signal arrows before the enemy attacks, giving the Golden-Winged Roc a warning.

"In short, whoever controls the land controls everything on that land."

This time, before the ancient snake in front of him could even ask where the Mani people were, the blue-faced lion decisively made a conclusion first.

"Judging from your situation, although you control this land, you still need to go to the Great Snow Mountain to hunt... I don't know if it's because no one is managing your land or if there's some other reason, but in any case, this shouldn't be happening."

“You are the rightful owner of this land, and everything you desire should be born here… You don’t even need to ask; just having this thought is enough to prepare everything.”

"We can do this for you; we are of such use to you."

Chapter 100 It must be possible, easily possible

Considering that the three giant beasts, especially the blue-faced lion, had made some very logical points, Du Yi decided to give them a trial period.

It wasn't really an opportunity, just a trial period. These three giant beasts needed to quickly produce the mammoths and saber-toothed tigers he wanted to eat right under his nose, with tender meat and excellent taste. Most importantly, they couldn't leave this mountain area.

"If there aren't any suitable mammoths to roast, then we'll just put you up there; it'll be the same."

Before everything began, Du Yi gave the three giant beasts this warning.

Of course, even so, after realizing that these three giant beasts were intelligent and could communicate, Du Yi found it somewhat difficult to bring himself to eat them—in a sense, this was a kind of curse brought about by civilization; he would rather eat those that couldn't speak than those that could.

However, even if he refused to eat, threatening them was still necessary. Du Yi felt that these three giant beasts that he had captured on the snowy mountain were not telling him the truth about something—although he couldn't tell exactly what they were hiding right now. But if these three giant beasts really intended to do something, he would be happy to kill them all.

Not eating doesn't mean not killing. After all, the remains of the three giant beasts can be buried in the ground. After absorbing the remains of these three giant beasts, the soil on this mountain will become fertile, and naturally more things will grow.

The importance of carefully managing one's land holdings is a new lesson Du Yi has just learned from the Blue-Faced Lion.

"In short, whether they do things seriously or not, I will gain something...wait a minute."

Remembering something, Du Yi went straight to the three giant beasts.

"And one more thing."

"Please say what you want."

The three giant beasts nodded repeatedly, looking as if they would agree to anything.

After all, things went much more smoothly than the three of them had imagined. They had thought they were going to be eaten, but now they not only survived, but had even gotten what they wanted to some extent—temporary control over the land itself.

Even if it's just temporary control, it's enough for them to do a lot. After all, what this ancient serpent wants isn't complicated; it's simply to herd mammoths and saber-toothed tigers, something that doesn't take much effort.

So, in the meantime, can they use this land to do what they want to do?

That should work, it definitely will.

After all, they themselves had faced similar situations before.

That was a long time ago. To the west of the Great Snow Mountain, they all had their own land. At that time, they did not know each other. The people gathered around them were the Katan, Nata, and Mani.

Until the Hennu people came to them.

The Hennu people, who have bull heads, know how to manage a piece of land. They outperform the Katan, Nata, and Mani people. Over time, the other groups have become accustomed to having the Hennu people do things for them.

Of course, the Hennu also had their own underhanded tactics. For example, the Katan, Nata, and Mani people who had once followed them gradually disappeared under the open and covert pressure from the Hennu. But such things didn't matter to them, since they were no longer of much use compared to the bull-headed Hennu.

"So...we can do it too."

Although placing themselves alongside the Hennu people was somewhat beneath them, considering the vast land before them, which was in no way inferior to the land west of the Great Snow Mountain, they felt that lowering their status was not a big deal.

What they gave up was merely their identity, and besides, now that they had become prey, they had no identity to speak of. But what they gained was everything before them.

"As long as we satisfy this ancient serpent's demands... then everything else will be ours, right?"

With this in mind, they had already made their decision: they were prepared to grant the ancient serpent any request it might make, even if it meant cutting off two pieces of their own flesh.

However, they never expected that the ancient serpent in front of them would propose something that they could never do.

"Bring those Katan, Nata, and Mani people I mentioned before to me as well."

Du Yi's face was full of curiosity.

"I've never seen this before."

"This……"

The three giant beasts looked at each other, and for a moment none of them could say a word.

The Katan, Nata, and Mani people all died out a long time ago. Now, only the Hennu people live on those three lands. Where are they going to bring these extinct races back to life?

But if it's a refusal... then those words can never be uttered.

Simply because this was the achievement that the three of them had just been showing off.

The Katan people, who belong to the blue-faced giant lion, the Nata people, who are dominated by the six-tusked white elephant, and the Mani people, who worship the golden-winged roc, are the three people they use as typical examples to prove their abilities.

As for why they didn't mention the Hennu people... one reason is that the Hennu people weren't that closely related to them. It was only later that they learned that the Hennu people had always worshipped the sacred bull god Dehennu.

On the other hand, it's also because what they want to do is the same as what the Hennu people do: to use the territory of this ancient serpent to do what they want.

They had other ideas in their minds, so how could they possibly tell the truth?

However, the facts proved that poor communication can cause trouble, just like now. A mere concealment has once again pulled them back to the brink of death. If they really cannot produce the Katan, Nata, and Mani people they claim to know, then they will likely face the wrath of this ancient serpent.

If you can't do that, you'll have to go on the grill; that's what the ancient snake said himself.

and so……

"We can do it! We definitely can!"

After taking a deep breath, the blue-faced lion, who possessed telepathic abilities, finally spoke.

"We can definitely do it, we just need some more time..."

"Of course, after all, it takes some distance for people to get here, that's understandable."

Du Yi nodded with a smile.

"Then hurry up. This matter can be put before the mammoths and saber-toothed tigers. I am really curious about what the people you brought out actually look like."

"...Okay, we'll do it as soon as possible."

All three giant beasts lowered their heads.

In order to survive, they may have to think of other ways.

Chapter 101 Life Will Always Find Its Own Way

Life will always find its way.

Faced with the conditions offered by the evil ancient serpent, the three giant beasts were completely unable to meet them. After all, no matter how powerful they were in battle, they could not possibly resurrect the Katan, Nata, and Mani people who had been extinct for countless years.

However, after a moment's thought, they found a way that could be called a solution.

"That evil ancient serpent said it wanted to see it because it was curious, because it had never seen one before..."

Of the three giant beasts, the most intelligent, the Golden-Winged Roc, narrowed its eyes.

"Why don't we just make a few on the spot?"

As for how to put them together temporarily, it's very simple. Just find a few people, anyone will do, put dog heads on them, dress them in elephant skin, tie on feathers, and make them look very similar.

Of course, if we were to do that, it would definitely involve another problem.

"What if we fail to fool the ancient serpent?"

The six-tusked white elephant raised its own questions.

After all, this method is too crude and too easy to expose. The savages they found on the spot may not be reliable. The ancient snake might just ask a couple of questions and discover that they are deceiving each other.

But at that moment, the six-tusked white elephant noticed that both the golden-winged roc and the blue-faced giant lion shook their heads.

"Your idea is too simplistic."

In the end, it was the blue-faced giant lion who revealed the key to the matter.

"If we were truly deceived... then was the ancient serpent the only one who was deceived?"

"You mean..."

The six-tusked white elephant was stunned, and for a moment it did not understand what this was talking about.

This forced the blue-faced giant lion to explain the key points in detail once again.

"If it really gets exposed, then it won't just be the ancient serpent who's been deceived; the three of us also need to act like we've been tricked... After all, our lands are all west of the Great Snow Mountain, over there with those Hengnu people. Do you understand?"

"This……"

The six-tusked white elephant gradually understood the key to it.

This is where the Golden-Winged Roc's cleverness lies. Whether this matter succeeds or fails, it will benefit them—firstly, if it succeeds, and the ancient serpent is truly deceived, then they have successfully survived this calamity.

If that doesn't work, then they've been tricked too, and the Hennu people on the other side of the Great Snow Mountain have been deceiving them all along. These damned Hennu people even sent fake goods to deceive them—taking this opportunity, they could even tell the ancient serpent about the evil of the Hennu people, and if they're lucky, they might even be able to provoke a fight between the ancient serpent and the sacred bull god Dehennu.

Of course, it's hard to say whether the later parts will succeed, but following the Golden-Winged Roc's method, they seem to be able to get by no matter what.