Chapter 215: Hunting Begins
After leaving the Underground Lake, Zhou Ming briefly received various reports from Su Mei and the camp’s upper management, then directly departed from the camp.
As for the camp’s current development, it only needed to advance according to the direction he had laid out; other matters were not worth him expending too much energy on at present.
As for whether the camp would break away from his control, Zhou Ming did not have the slightest worry.
In this world that possessed transcendent power, strength was what decided everything.
In the valley ten kilometers away from the camp, the Ironthread Snake swarm was carrying out frenzied predation.
As Zhou Ming’s strength increased, under the feedback of his Spiritual Power, the Ironthread Snake swarm was also affected.
Among them, the greatest changes were in the three Ironthread Snakes: Colorful Scales, Golden Horn, and Iron Block.
With the assistance of Star-glow Spirit Liquid, combined with the Ironthread Snake genetic structure diagram and research into the corrosive nature of Dragon Blood, all of them had already officially transformed into high-tier Ferocious Beasts.
Iron Block’s body length had already exceeded ten meters. Compared to the other Ironthread Snakes, its body was somewhat bulky. After mastering earth-element energy particles, its scales had turned the color of yellow sand.
The muscles throughout its body bulged, resembling an indestructible rock, and it was uniquely outstanding in strangulation capability.
As for Colorful Scales, its body length had already approached ten meters. The scales across its body gradually became multicolored. After mastering wood-attribute energy particles, the corrosiveness of its snake venom became even more terrifying.
Golden Horn’s body length had already exceeded five meters. Having mastered metal-element energy particles, the single horn on its head could fire metal-element energy beams with extremely strong penetrating power.
The strength of the other Ironthread Snakes had also improved, but their changes were not as significant as those of Golden Horn and the others. Ordinary Ironthread Snakes already had body lengths exceeding three meters.
Fortunately, the camp helped hunt Ferocious Beasts to obtain flesh and blood; otherwise, Zhou Ming would have had no time to calmly conduct research, as merely caring for the Ironthread Snake swarm would have taken up most of his time.
Facing the starving Ironthread Snake swarm, the Ferocious Beasts and mutated animals within the valley ahead directly encountered annihilating predation.
Apart from the Ironthread Snake swarm, the two Secret Technique models within Zhou Ming’s Spiritual Sea had also undergone multiple improvements by him.
Just as Zhou Ming was immersed in the changes to his own strength, a rumbling sound echoed from the distant horizon, as helicopters with payloads of several tons flew toward the Panlong Mountain Range.
Over the course of a year and a half, the Blue Star Alliance had still not successfully expelled the Giant Race.
Through the intelligence provided monthly by the camp, Zhou Ming had a detailed understanding of the changes within the Panlong Mountain Range.
Although the Alliance Headquarters had provided considerable support to the north, the Giant Race’s strength was not weak either. While there had been no major changes in high-end power, the number of subordinate races continued to increase.
Compared to upper-tier foreign races that had difficulties in reproduction and slow growth, lower-tier foreign races possessed much stronger reproductive abilities, requiring only a little over ten years to grow from juveniles to adults.
With high-end power mutually restraining one another, both sides could only rely on low-end power to wear each other down.
During this year and a half, the most significant event was the advancement of the Duanmu Family Head to War Knight.
Once this news spread, it brought a tremendous boost to morale in the Alliance’s northern front.
After Zhou Ming watched the helicopters depart, the well-fed Ironthread Snake swarm returned to his side.
Among them, the gluttonous Iron Block lay in front of him with its belly round and swollen.
Seeing this, Zhou Ming could only shake his head helplessly.
Within the Ironthread Snake swarm, Iron Block was the greediest; even when it was already full, it would still force more food into its stomach.
Zhou Ming did not deliberately correct Iron Block’s gluttonous nature; as long as it could digest the food, it was fine.
As for Inkband, Zhou Ming’s first Ironthread Snake, it was currently flicking its tongue as it crawled toward Zhou Ming’s arms, still wanting to burrow into his embrace and sleep there like before.
Toward Inkband, Zhou Ming was clearly much more indulgent. After spending some time being close with it, he only left Silver Scale outside as a means of transportation.
He then sat atop Silver Scale’s head and headed toward the military’s No. 3 Outpost.
After being away from the No. 3 Outpost for a year and a half, the place had already become a massive military fortress.
Just as he approached the No. 3 Outpost, Zhou Ming faintly sensed a dangerous aura emerging; it was clear that the outpost before him was already capable of threatening his life.
“From the looks of it, the Alliance military has really expended quite a bit of effort on these outposts.”
Based on the current situation, it was difficult for the Alliance to drive the Giant Race out of the Panlong Mountain Range, but it was also difficult for the Giant Race to break through the Alliance’s encirclement. Both sides would likely remain locked in a long-term stalemate.
After verifying his identity, Zhou Ming smoothly entered the outpost, where various heavy weapons came into view.
As he went deeper inside, the figures of Professional Beast Tamers also began to appear.
Compared to the Professional Beast Tamers within bases, those Zhou Ming saw before him carried an extremely heavy killing aura, as if a high-tier Ferocious Beast were passing by at his side.
Professional Beast Tamers who managed to survive within the Panlong Mountain Range, this flesh-and-blood grinder, not only possessed exceedingly rich combat experience, but had also earned considerable merits to exchange for resources. Their strength could be said to far surpass that of Professional Beast Tamers of the same rank.
The purpose of these Professional Beast Tamers was to take advantage of this opportunity to advance further, thereby promoting themselves to Transcendent Beast Tamers.
Not only would they possess powerful strength, but they would also enjoy over three hundred years of lifespan.
Faced with such an opportunity, any Professional Beast Tamer with ambition would be willing to take risks.
At the core area of the outpost, a town-like scene appeared before Zhou Ming—restaurants, bars, potion shops, and material purchasers.
“It seems the intelligence was correct. The military is now only responsible for surrounding the Panlong Mountain Range; the task of clearing foreign races has already been delegated to civilians.”
Zhou Ming had learned from intelligence that the military had confirmed it could not expel the foreign races from within the Panlong Mountain Range in a short period of time, so it had already changed its originally formulated strategy.
The Alliance military’s main task now was to firmly encircle the foreign races within the Panlong Mountain Range. As for extermination tasks, they were handed over to Alliance private Beast Tamers in the form of bounties.
The current Panlong Mountain Range was more like a gigantic instance dungeon, with foreign race heads serving as proof for earning merits.
Arriving at the task hall where merits were exchanged, Zhou Ming once again rented an independent room within the outpost and, along the way, familiarized himself with the changes inside the outpost.
A short while later, inside a two-bedroom, one-living-room suite, Zhou Ming was flipping through a set of documents.
They recorded the changes in the outpost over the past year and a half, as well as the situation within the Panlong Mountain Range.
Among them, in terms of merits, the Alliance had also made very generous adjustments.
Originally, one giant’s head could be exchanged for one merit; it had now been changed to two merits. Three lower-tier foreign race heads comparable to Professional Beast Tamers originally could only be exchanged for one merit; now, a single head could be exchanged for one merit.
Under the Alliance’s adjustment of merit exchanges, many civilian Professional Beast Tamers headed to the Panlong Mountain Range. Even many major powers within the Alliance Headquarters took advantage of this opportunity to send their younger generation to temper themselves while conveniently obtaining precious Alliance resources.
After all, even Beast Tamers born into major powers could not remain like greenhouse flowers, waiting for the forces behind them to provide resources without limit.
A Beast Tamer who had not undergone tempering was nothing more than a good-looking flower.
After understanding the specific changes at the outpost and within the Panlong Mountain Range, Zhou Ming re-entered the Panlong Mountain Range on the second day, beginning his journey of hunting foreign races in exchange for merits.