"The car crashed into an ancient tomb..."
"Why does this plot feel so familiar? Ah Qing and the others aren't bringing freeloaders home, are they? Having just me, Ansheng, to cutely freeload is already the limit."
Ansheng looked at Lin Ying with a peculiar expression, listening to her recount Ah Qing and the others' experiences over the past couple of days.
The car crashing into an ancient tomb—didn't this happen to Wang Ya? Later, they even took out security facilities from the Dragon Ruins, turning them into a giant scorpion.
Considering that, and Lin Ying saying Ah Qing had been hesitant in her words on WeChat.
Ansheng now had every reason to suspect that a freeloader might have sneaked into the dorm.
"No way, we have to finish everything quickly and rush back to the academy to deal with this!"
Ansheng's expression turned serious. He let out a groan toward the base cafeteria's direction and said to Lin Ying, "Help me prepare some tape and cardboard boxes, and contact air transport."
"Tape and cardboard boxes? Okay..." Lin Ying took out her phone, ready to notify the Lin Clan's mercenary team.
Meanwhile, from the cafeteria, a lion's roar echoed out. A plump lioness wobbled over to Master Fuli, sticking out her big tongue:
"Master Fuli, do you have any commands? The cafeteria's buffet is just amazing, much better than those frozen meats at the zoo..."
After spending a day at the airbase, the lioness already felt like time was flying by without her noticing.
Day or night didn't matter; what mattered was when the aroma of food would waft from the cafeteria.
No need to say more; after a day's feast, paired with the base's complete living facilities, she felt her feeding device was smooth, and the little lions were full too.
"Eating well is a given, isn't it? Human's lower genes strive like lazy dogs, developing over thousands of years just to eat well..."
"Stick with me, Ansheng, and you'll get eight meals a day, plus all the cat snacks you can eat."
Seeing the lioness's face full of happiness, reminiscing about her past days as hell, Ansheng couldn't help but chuckle inside, "Let's go! Take me to find the other spirit beasts; I'll pack them all up and ship them to Xia Country."
"Pa...pack spirit beasts?"
Having just finished her call, Lin Ying was surprised at Ansheng's words, a touch of astonishment on her cheeks.
Tape and cardboard boxes...so this is how they're used?
"Lin Ying, let's go—"
Ansheng waved to Lin Ying, as they both mounted the back of the spiritualized lioness, heading towards the parched yellow grasslands.
With the lioness's guidance, Ansheng easily found the spirit beasts' feeding and watering areas.
Master Fuli leaped up, delivering a slap mid-air that spun a spirit beast around four and a half times.
Lin Ying hesitated a little, starting the spirit beast packing work with a hint of awkwardness.
"Master Fuli, the giraffe can't fit in the box; should we get a container?"
"No need for a container; just have the giraffe hold a box with its head and carry the tape with its mouth..."
"Okay..."
Lin Ying dubiously opened a cardboard box, handing it to the giraffe. The giraffe, its cheek marked by a plum blossom paw print and its limbs limp on the ground, rolled its eyes, hooking its tongue around the box, and wore it like a hat.
"Gulp—" The giraffe couldn't help but complain.
You beat us, fine. You say you want to smuggle us out, fine—after all, food and lodging are covered—but saying you'd arrange transportation, only for us to go on foot?
Even if we're not pals, you don't have to do us like this, right?
"Snort..." A rhino carrying an elephant rolled its eyes at the giraffe.
All you have is a box on your head. If you're not happy with your life, let's swap; I'm now holding a box with my horn and carrying an elephant.
On the vast savannah, Master Fuli was like a pied piper from a fairy tale, seated in a jeep at the front, humming a pleasant tune while leading the spirit beasts towards the airbase, gradually expanding the Spirit Beast Gang.
"Sigh, the Tropical Continent is truly poor. Capturing so many spirit beasts, yet there's no Wish Power..."
Seated in the passenger seat, Ansheng glanced at the Wish Power details on his wish list, sighing quietly.
The Tropical Continent is indeed impoverished. Spirit beasts never expect humans to have surplus grain; they usually fend for themselves from birth, not bothering with humans at all.
This avoids desperate locals from picking up their rifles to attack their rears.
The spirit beasts here naturally do not have as many thoughts as those in Xia Country, not to mention conflicts, fierce beast uprisings, or spirit beasts quietly using humans as pets—so little talk of Wish Power.
However,
This journey wasn't in vain. Mayflower yielded 3 points of Wish Power, Lin Wanying had 3 points, and the Landlords of Longevity yielded 15 points.
In this visit to the Tropical Continent, over two days, Ansheng gained a total of 21 Wish Power Value points.
[Physique: 240 (+)]
[Wisdom: 142 (+)]
[Wish Power: 27]
"Hmm... It's already enough to level up to the five-tailed fox; just ten more points to go till six tails."
As Ansheng looked at his panel, a spirited determination gleamed on the little fox's face.
Growing two tails at once, he reckoned the next sleep would be dreamily restful.
"Master Fuli, it seems like something's ahead..." Lin Ying, driving, noticed something unusual ahead and eased her foot off the gas pedal. The speed dropped from 173 to 110, heading towards the base.
"Hmm?"
Ansheng unfastened his seatbelt, placing his paws on the dashboard to gaze outside, spotting a group of crouching locals.
The locals were saying something, but it was too far to hear clearly; however, they could be seen holding large banana leaves, offering white balls to the Beast Warriors.
"Oh...this must be the fufu." Ansheng explained the locals' retaliatory tactics to Lin Ying.
Lin Ying reacted with a start, her fox ears atop her head entering airplane ear mode, her head unconsciously swaying as if pondering.
"Is this...retaliation? Shouldn't it involve hiding a knife behind their backs, hoping to gain even with a single kill and make a profit with two? Feeding enemies as revenge?" Lin Ying was full of confusion and shock.
"So... Master Fuli, if they stop us later, what should we do?" Lin Ying asked Master Fuli with a peculiar expression.
"What to do? We're all good students from social obligation education; our bottom line is not to take a single needle or thread from the people!" Ansheng resolutely stated.
"Really? That does seem right..."
Lin Ying glanced at the spirit beasts trailing the car and the gold ore inside the trunk, indeed not a single needle or thread to be found.
The jeep drove to the base entrance and encountered locals kneeling on the ground, begging apologetically.
"Sir, we offer all our food, begging you not to take our villagers away. We'll even give up the village..." The highly respected village chief pleaded like a broken record to passersby.
"Eh! What nonsense are you spouting, old chap? How could I possibly take your food?"
Ansheng leaned out of the car, grinning, firmly stuffing the fufu into the village chief's mouth, the dry sticky rice paste choking the chief, turning his face red with tears in his eyes.
"Cough cough cough..." The chief clutched his chest, coughing heavily, incredulously looking at the wise one in the car.
My cunning plan was actually seen through.
"Here, the new M7, 6.8 mm caliber." Ansheng rummaged through the back seat, pulling out several guns, shoving them into the chief's arms, and then pulled out two strands of grenades, along with a C4, tossing them to the villagers and said:
"You all are doing this wrong; trust me, when you see anyone coming, hold the grenade in your left hand, pull the safety ring with your right hand, and you'll surely experience the truest form of human emotion."
"If the opposition dares to speak rudely, just pull the safety ring out a millimeter; if they don't wet themselves, you come find me."
"I'll see if their water guns are clogged."
"???"
Watching the jeep depart, the local villagers and the chief were left dumbfounded, staring at the items in their hands.
The chief, dazed, turned around, instinctively following Master Fuli's advice, and pulled out a grenade, holding the safety ring towards the vehicles behind.
"!?"
The beast warrior in the rear vehicle was shocked, staring at the grenade aimed at them, cold sweat pouring from their forehead:
"Hey—friend, I think there's some misunderstanding between us; I have some all-powerful US dollars here that might resolve our misunderstanding."
"Wow! The chief is amazing—" The villagers, witnessing genuine human emotion, were full of admiration.