Chapter 221: Hundred-Li Sound Transmission
Since communication was impossible, Zhou Ming did not bother too much with the Catwoman in front of him.
He casually tossed a spare ordinary protective suit to her.
He only intended to study the Catwoman’s bloodline changes.
He was not some lust-driven breeding beast, nor would he go so far as to let her remain naked.
When Aina saw Zhou Ming’s action, disbelief immediately surfaced in her eyes.
However, upon realizing that she was still unclothed, Aina no longer cared about Zhou Ming’s intentions.
She immediately reached out and took the protective suit in front of her.
As for Inkband, when the Ironthread Snake swarm fused into the Dark-gold Purple-patterned Python, it had already ceased restraining Aina.
Meanwhile, as Zhou Ming watched Aina put on the protective suit and inadvertently reveal a fleeting glimpse of scenery, he could not help but silently marvel at the Catwoman’s perfect body.
Zhou Ming simply disliked being led astray by beauty—it did not mean he disliked beauty itself.
If conditions allowed, he naturally did not mind appreciating it.
Especially those adorable cat ears, as well as the cat tail behind her, gave the innocent-looking Aina a strangely alluring charm.
If it were someone else, Aina might have been able to rely on her looks to escape.
Unfortunately, she had encountered Zhou Ming, who was obsessed with research.
While wearing the protective suit, Aina cautiously observed Zhou Ming in secret.
From time to time, she would deliberately reveal a hint of scenery before quickly covering it again.
Through this half-hidden approach, she attempted to test Zhou Ming’s reaction.
However, Zhou Ming’s gaze remained unusually pure.
Other than appreciation, there was not the slightest trace of obsession, which made Aina realize that even if she abandoned her bottom line, she still could not escape his grasp.
In an instant, Aina felt as though her heart had fallen into an icy abyss—her final method had completely failed.
Once Zhou Ming saw that Aina had finished putting on the protective suit, he stopped paying attention to her and instead began thinking about how to bring the Catwoman back to the camp.
Although he had previously been severely injured, the commotion caused by a battle between transcendent-level experts in the Panlong Mountain Range was still perceptible to Zhou Ming through the thick underground rock layers.
The matter of the Catwoman had likely already spread.
Even if it had not, he still could not bring her back to a military outpost.
After all, given the Catwoman’s allure, Zhou Ming had no intention of hanging a taunt aura on himself—anyone would want to come looking for trouble.
After a brief moment of thought, Zhou Ming closed his eyes again and began activating the descending power of the Dark-gold Serpent Pupils.
Seeing Zhou Ming’s unusual behavior, Aina did not dare make any small movements, because the Dark-gold Purple-patterned Python was coiled nearby.
Three Mounds Ridge, underground dark river camp.
Inside a secret chamber within a small courtyard, an Ironthread Snake that had fallen into a state of feigned death suddenly awakened.
At this moment, Zhou Ming’s consciousness, separated by a hundred li, entered the body of the Ironthread Snake he had placed in advance.
After advancing to Professional Beast Tamer and acquiring the Ironthread Snake’s bloodline, the maximum connection distance between Zhou Ming and his beast had now reached one hundred kilometers.
Because the Rat Nest had still dared to make underhanded moves after the Alliance Conscription, Zhou Ming had deliberately left behind an Ironthread Snake when he departed the camp, ensuring constant contact.
Zhou Ming controlled the Ironthread Snake to trigger the preset mechanism.
Upon detecting the mechanism being activated, the Snake Guards responsible for security followed Zhou Ming’s instructions and immediately went to invite Su Mei over.
“My lord.”
Inside the secret chamber, Su Mei sensed the mental fluctuations emanating from the Ironthread Snake before her and greeted Zhou Ming with a slightly hesitant tone.
Zhou Ming paid little attention to Su Mei’s hesitation and instead conveyed his orders through mental consciousness.
His plan was to have Su Mei infiltrate the outskirts of the Panlong Mountain Range and take responsibility for escorting the Catwoman back to the camp, while he would submit the heads of the Foreign Races at the outpost, obtain merits, exchange them for the resources he needed, and then return.
During his exchange with Su Mei, Zhou Ming also learned about changes in the outside world, including the fact that many forces were searching for the Catwoman.
After the brief communication, Zhou Ming sensed that his spiritual power had been heavily depleted, and thus chose to end the long-distance consciousness projection.
……
Night fell.
Zhou Ming successfully arrived at the outskirts of the Panlong Mountain Range with the Catwoman and waited at the agreed location for Su Mei to arrive.
However, as time passed, Zhou Ming still did not see Su Mei’s figure.
At this moment, Zhou Ming’s brows slightly furrowed.
“Could something have happened?”
He began to consider the possibility of an accident.
After all, the military defenses around the Panlong Mountain Range were mainly aimed at the Foreign Races.
With Su Mei’s abilities, entering the outer perimeter should not have posed any difficulty.
As for whether Su Mei would choose to betray him, Zhou Ming dismissed the thought after brief analysis.
Since she knew the Catwoman had been captured by him, she also knew that he had successfully escaped while being hunted by two transcendent-level experts.
Given his current strength, if she dared betray him, Su Mei naturally understood the consequences she would face.
Just as Zhou Ming was considering whether to temporarily change his plan, the sounds of battle suddenly rang out in the distance, rapidly approaching his direction.
“So there really is an accident.”
Zhou Ming looked into the distance.
Even though he wore cosmetic lenses, the chilling killing intent in his eyes was impossible to conceal.
Without wasting time, Zhou Ming placed his right hand on Aina’s shoulder.
Inkband immediately emerged from his palm.
With Inkband guarding Aina, Zhou Ming no longer needed to worry about his prey seizing the opportunity to escape.
He then rushed straight toward the site of the battle.
Within a few breaths, Zhou Ming arrived in the forest where the fighting had erupted.
The darkness of night no longer affected Zhou Ming’s vision, and the scene before him instantly came into view.
Su Mei, dressed in a protective suit, was riding her Sword-tailed Lizard.
Relying on the surrounding shadows, she was evading the pursuit of two Professional Beast Tamers.
Compared to other Professional Beast Tamers, Su Mei had advanced to Beast Knight only recently.
Whether in combat techniques or transcendent equipment, she was far from fully equipped.
Among Beast Tamers of the same rank, her strength could be considered at the bottom.
If not for the Sword-tailed Lizard obtaining Earth-Walking Dragon Bloodline Essence, Star-glow Spirit Liquid, and enhancements from the Phantasmal Scale Snake Lizard—thereby mastering shadow power—Su Mei might have already been slain.
Seeing this, Zhou Ming directly drew the Phantasmal Spirit Sword and charged like lightning toward the Beast Knight riding an Armored Bull.
Facing two early-stage professional opponents, Zhou Ming did not choose a sneak attack, and the enemy immediately detected his move.
“Run! It’s a high-level professional!”
Sensing the aura radiating from Zhou Ming, the other Phantasmal Tamer spoke in extreme panic.
The two, who had been smug just moments ago, now deeply regretted not killing their target sooner, instead allowing themselves to fall into a life-and-death crisis.
As the two attempted to flee, Zhou Ming, intent on ending the battle swiftly, immediately activated the throne power of the Dark-gold Serpent Pupils.
An overwhelming pressure, as if from a king gazing down from on high, instantly descended upon them.
The fear in their hearts plunged their consciousness into chaos.
Seizing the opportunity, Zhou Ming cleaved off the Beast Knight’s head with a single sword strike.
A body capable of withstanding a hail of bullets offered Zhou Ming no resistance whatsoever.
As for the remaining Phantasmal Tamer, Zhou Ming summoned Golden Horn, who excelled at long-range attacks.
A beam condensed from metal-element energy particles pierced straight through the opponent’s heart.