Chapter 575: Taking the Initiative

After a glance at the monsters on the floor, Lin Jin shot out two needles to rescue Huang Qi and Ominous Wind.

From his test of loyalty, Lin Jin could now confirm that they were both sensible and on his side. Although he wasn’t sure if they would betray him later on, for now, they should be rewarded.

Lin Jin cleared out the toxins in their system with acupuncture. After they got back on their feet, both monsters went over to greet him and revealed what happened earlier.

Lin Jin nodded. Foul Wind had obviously set an unfavorable example so he must be punished. However, his character had been commendable. Judging by his actions, he seemed like a very loyal monster, but wrongdoers still had to be punished.

Taking out his monster-locking pills, Lin Jin fed one to each monster. When he reached Wild Wind, Lin Jin was delighted.

He had found treasure.

Wild Wind was actually a rare monster. Although he was at the peak of Rank 4, his actual strength was comparable to a Rank 5’s. That was because Wild Wind’s original form was a ‘soaring tiger’.

Tigers were already mighty creatures, to begin with. Once his soaring tiger bloodline had been activated, he could fly and even manipulate the wind. It was a pity that he hadn’t received guidance all this while and his cultivation was all over the place. Hence, even without the poison pill, Lin Jin could easily defeat him in a head-on battle.

Thus, Lin Jin was delighted and thrilled.

After feeding Wild Wind the monster-locking pill, Lin Jin had control over his fate. He was curious to see just how far Wild Wind could grow under his guidance.

He might even become stronger than Shang’er.

Because of Wild Wind, Lin Jin became increasingly expectant. He thought his plan was a good one as finding rare monsters was no easy feat, much less one who had talent in cultivation. Lin Jin had tons of cultivation methods suited for monsters but all this while he had only taught them to Shang’er, Little Five, and White Ape. Although they were talented, Lin Jin didn’t think it was enough.

If his plan of controlling monsters and teaching them orthodox cultivation methods could succeed, not only would he have a strong army at his disposal, but he could also raise a team of top-class monsters.

Lin Jin was done feeding all the monsters a monster-locking pill. With this, their lives were in his hands.

Lin Jin wasn’t worried about them breaking free from the pill’s control. This monster-locking pill was a unique medicine crafted in the museum’s Feed Mill. According to the museum’s description, unless Lin Jin released them, no matter how strong the monsters get, they couldn’t break free from the pill’s control.

That was why Lin Jin dared to use them so openly.

Glancing around, he managed to control more than twenty monsters. Together with Huang Qi and the other three, there were almost thirty monsters now, making them quite a formidable force.

Of course, Lin Jin knew this couldn’t keep happening. Dark Wind Cave wouldn’t be so dumb as to continue sending batches of monsters to investigate the incident. If they did, the next search party would probably be led by the cave master and the rest of his seventy-two banner masters. That, and an entire army of their little minion monsters.

Although Lin Jin wasn’t scared, why should he resort to killing when there was an easier way? Moreover, these monsters had now become his personal property. Should any of them die or get hurt, he would be the one to suffer instead.

And so, Lin Jin decided to take the initiative.

Like how he handled Wild Wind and his group, he would have Huang Qi and Ominous Wind return to the cave and use the poison pills there. With this, he could control the entire nest of monsters without a fight. Wasn’t it a perfect plan?

Huang Qi and Ominous Wind had done great this time and Lin Jin trusted them. Lin Jin ignored Wild Wind and the others. He locked them up at Bull Village, as his plan could afford no further delays. The longer this went on, the more suspicious they would get.

Summoning Huang Qi and Ominous Wind over, Lin Jin told them his plan and the two nodded.

Now that they had gone down the rabbit hole, there was no turning back. They could only go forward, which meant following Lin Jin’s orders unconditionally.

“The both of you are good. Work hard and you will be handsomely rewarded after this.”

Lin Jin meant what he said. If he said they would be rewarded, they certainly would be.

After the two monsters left to carry out their mission, Lin Jin invoked a spell to bind Wild Wind and the others, rendering them immobile. Then, he followed Huang Qi and Ominous Wind to Dark Wind Cave.

Besides the tyrannical Water God Cult, Dark Wind Cave feared no one else in Arid Continent. No one dared to provoke them either.

This time, however, trouble was brewing.

First, Yellow Wind hadn’t returned from harvesting a sacrifice. Then, Foul Wind, Fire Wind, and Ominous Wind didn’t return from their search for Yellow Wind.

Something must have happened out there. Dark Wind Cave may be ruled by monsters but there were surprisingly tons of rules they had to follow. Those who went out for work had to return within a stipulated time frame.

When the interim ruler of the cave, Wild Wind, personally led a search party for the missing banner masters, the monsters of the cave finally rested easier.

After all, Wild Wind was very reliable when it came to his job.

Being the cave master’s right-hand man, not only was he strong but he was also clever, and he stuck up for his friends.

Pure strength alone wasn’t enough for one to make a name for himself in Dark Wind Cave. They also had to win the admiration of their peers, and the respect of the cave master. Fulfilling these three criteria was compulsory. Hence, Wild Wind, who managed to be appointed as one of the cave’s important officers, was no average monster. There shouldn’t be any hiccups with him handling the issue himself.

The other banner masters of the cave thought this, so they resumed their responsibilities as usual without too many worries.

However, after more than two hours had passed since Wild Wind’s departure, the monsters started to realize that something was off. Though, because there was still time, they didn’t take any particular actions either.

Suddenly, Huang Qi and Ominous Wind returned.

Admittedly, Lin Jin’s plan was drawn up meticulously. Had he hesitated, the monsters of the cave would begin to grow suspicious.

Huang Qi and Ominous Wind returned just in time.

“It’s terrible! Just horrible!” Huang Qi played the role of drama king. At the cave’s entrance, he had paused for a moment to prepare his expressions before exchanging a glance with Ominous Wind. Then, he nodded his head and rushed frantically into the cave.

The few banner masters guarding the cave saw him and quickly hurried over.

“What happened?”

“Quick! Report to the cave master that Banner Master Wild Wind and the others have been caught. We only managed to escape to pass on the message,” yelled Huang Qi.