Chapter 88: Step by Step Entrapment
“What is it? Did you notice something unusual?”
In a concealed patch of grass, Da Yong noticed that his contracted beast, the Violent Lion, was restlessly glancing around. He immediately connected with it through the Spiritual Thread.
“Feeling?”
Although the Violent Lion couldn’t articulate its thoughts precisely, through the Spiritual Thread connection, Da Yong could still sense that his beast instinctively felt danger approaching.
He ultimately chose to trust his Violent Lion’s instincts, as it was exactly this heightened alertness that had kept him alive in the wilderness and allowed him to eventually abandon the hunter profession to join the Xin Hui Construction Group.
Just as Da Yong prepared to stand and signal Hu Peng—
“Bang!”
From a patch of grass thirty meters away, Zhou Ming, realizing he couldn’t get any closer, aimed directly at Da Yong and pulled the trigger.
The Violent Lion instantly sensed where the danger came from. It leapt up, standing protectively before Da Yong.
This time, Zhou Ming didn’t use the Thunder Type-2 Revolver, only a less powerful Blood Hunter Type-1 Handgun, whose bullets could, at most, leave a blood mark on the Violent Lion’s hide.
“Zhou Ming!”
Recognizing Zhou Ming’s face, Da Yong shouted out instinctively.
But this wasn’t the arena—it was a fight to the death.
Da Yong immediately commanded his Violent Lion to charge at Zhou Ming while he himself dove for cover to avoid being shot.
Under normal circumstances, he would have fired back while his beast attacked.
However, since he wanted to capture Zhou Ming alive, Da Yong planned for his Violent Lion to entangle Zhou Ming’s beasts, buying time for his boss and others to surround him. As long as Zhou Ming was successfully encircled, half the mission would be complete.
Just as he expected, a streak of black lightning darted out from Zhou Ming’s shoulder, tangling with the Violent Lion.
It was Inkband, using its slender body and agility to prevent the Violent Lion from approaching Zhou Ming.
Peeking from his cover and seeing everything go according to plan, Da Yong smirked smugly.
“Found us and still not running? How arrogant.”
He still vividly remembered Zhou Ming’s arrogant words on the arena stage—boasting that he could defeat three opponents in a row.
Though he regretted not being able to torment Zhou Ming after capturing him, just thinking about the fate awaiting him under experimentation made Da Yong’s lips curl into a sinister smile.
“Swish—”
A slicing sound brushed past Da Yong’s ear. Before he could react, a brilliant red gleam flashed across his neck.
“There’s… still another…”
His artery was cut.
Bright arterial blood spurted wildly as foam choked his throat. His body turned cold and weak.
Before he could finish saying “there’s another beast,” his eyes dimmed, and life left his body.
Da Yong collapsed face-first onto the ground, never to rise again. His once fierce Violent Lion didn’t even have the chance to enter its berserk state before it too lost all vitality along with its master.
“Da Yong!”
Hearing the gunshot, Zhu Ming, riding his Diamond Ape, rushed toward Da Yong’s position—but he was one step too late.
“Die!”
Realizing something was wrong, Zhu Ming immediately raised his gun and fired wildly, abandoning the plan to capture Zhou Ming alive.
The Diamond Ape beside him roared angrily and lunged at Zhou Ming.
“Zhu Ming, get back!”
Hu Peng and Shi Lei arrived shortly after.
Seeing Zhu Ming losing control, they shouted for him to retreat.
Ever since the arena match, Hu Peng had known that Zhou Ming wasn’t an ordinary Beast Tamer.
The fact that Zhou Ming dared to strike first meant he had already prepared thoroughly.
“Boom!”
Like a raging beast’s roar mixed with thunder’s fury, an explosive sound erupted from Zhou Ming’s right hand before anyone could react.
The gun’s angular frame gleamed silver-white with a cold light. Its oversized caliber symbolized the power of justice.
A custom tungsten bullet burst forth with a fiery flash, blasting into the Diamond Ape more than ten meters away.
A bowl-sized hole appeared in the ape’s abdomen. Its charging body suddenly recoiled backward as if it had slammed into an invisible barrier.
All fear stems from inadequate firepower. Yet Zhou Ming, gripping the Thunder Type-2 Revolver, could face charging beasts calmly—because the weapon in his hand suppressed all fear.
“Thunder Type-2 Revolver!”
Seeing Zhou Ming’s weapon from afar, Hu Peng’s face drained of color as he dove to the ground in terror.
But he hadn’t completely lost his wits—immediately after hitting the ground, he raised his rifle and fired back at Zhou Ming.
“Bang! Bang! Bang—”
Gunfire echoed. Shi Lei, reacting quickly, joined in, coordinating with Hu Peng to suppress Zhou Ming.
As former hunters, they both understood the power of the Thunder Type-2 Revolver, but they also knew its flaw—its accuracy dropped sharply at long range, earning it the title “King of Close Combat.”
Unable to release their beasts now, they had no choice but to fight back with firearms.
After finishing off the Diamond Ape, Zhou Ming swiftly moved positions, leaving only two deep footprints pressed into the dead leaves.
The revolver’s immense recoil had been redirected mostly into the ground beneath his feet.
This was the result of Zhou Ming’s over two months of intense martial training. His mastery of force redirection and dispersal had reached an impressive level. It was clear that not only had his physical abilities grown stronger, but his Mad Python Martial Way had also improved greatly.
“Pop! Pop!”
Two smoke bombs flew from Zhou Ming’s hands, blanketing Hu Peng and Shi Lei’s vision in thick white fog moments later.
“Shi Lei!”
Unable to see through the haze, Hu Peng shouted loudly.
“Got it!”
Shi Lei understood his meaning immediately. It was no longer about Zhou Ming’s eyes—but about survival.
Just as Shi Lei and Zhu Ming were about to pull out grenades to throw toward Zhou Ming, Zhou Ming acted first.
He had used the smoke bombs precisely to conceal his own grenades.
“Boom!”
A deafening explosion rocked the gorge of Windback Valley, its echoes rolling through the mountains.
“Ah!”
When Hu Peng and Shi Lei noticed the grenade flying from the smoke, it was already too late to dodge.
They could only use their newly contracted beasts to block the blast.
Though the grenade’s power was formidable, as long as they weren’t hit directly—and with their beasts shielding them—Zhou Ming’s attack might not be fatal.
But as soon as the explosion ended, before they could react, Zhou Ming sent Inkband and Vermilion Jade charging toward Hu Peng.
As the leader, Hu Peng was the most likely one to have a hidden trump card.
Zhou Ming’s plan was to seize the moment and eliminate him instantly—giving Hu Peng no chance to counterattack.
Hearing the screams that followed, Zhou Ming dashed out from the smoke.
“Lightning Mink?”
Seeing the defeated beast lying on the ground, Zhou Ming immediately recognized it. Hu Peng had indeed come prepared.
The Lightning Mink, two meters long and extremely fast, was a predator of venomous serpents and highly resistant to poison.
But Zhou Ming had not only Inkband—he also had Vermilion Jade, whose speed and physical attack power were exceptional.
Watching Hu Peng lying on the ground, groaning in pain and suffering from a backlash of mental strain, Zhou Ming saw that the man was too weak even to curse him.
“Bang.”
The Blood Hunter Type-1 Handgun finally played its part—Zhou Ming shot Hu Peng in the head.
After dealing with Hu Peng, Zhou Ming turned his attention to Shi Lei nearby.
The man was lying unconscious, stunned by the grenade blast. His beast, acting purely on instinct, stood guard beside him, having failed to assist Hu Peng against Inkband and Vermilion Jade.