NOVEL NEXT Chapter 19 - The Third Tamed Beast
Chapter 19: The Third Tamed Beast
After dinner.
The two of them rested for a while before heading to the camp.
Mino held up a torch, glancing nervously at the silent darkness of the camp.
“You go that way, I’ll go this way. We’ll meet in the middle.”
Mu Liang raised his torch and instructed the girl, “Wait a moment—Xiao Cai will go with you.”
“Okay.” Mino relaxed immediately upon hearing that the big lizard would accompany her.
“Don’t stack too much firewood,” Mu Liang reminded.
“Got it.” Mino nodded and entered the camp with her torch.
“I thought she’d be braver.”
Mu Liang watched her timid figure retreat into the darkness. Turns out, she wasn’t much different from ordinary girls.
He stepped into an abandoned house, stacking firewood into the hearth.
By preparing the firewood in advance, he could start the fires first thing in the morning. Then, he would wait for the thieves’ scouts to investigate. Whether this would successfully lure Bloodbeard into a pursuit… that would be clear by tomorrow.
Time passed as they stacked wood.
“This house hasn’t been lived in for a long time.”
Holding up his torch, Mu Liang entered a room covered in cobwebs.
He stopped and was about to turn back when a spider suddenly dropped down in front of him.
“Come to think of it… I haven’t used today’s 10 taming points. Why not tame a spider?”
Mu Liang reached out toward the spider, and the familiar system prompt sounded.
Ding! Detecting a tamable creature. Would you like to tame it?
“Tame.”
Ding! Detecting Level 0 Lifeform: Redback Spider. Taming in progress…
Ding! 10 Taming Points consumed. Taming successful.
Mu Liang released his hand and saw that the spider, previously the size of a pinky finger, had grown to the size of a palm.
The entire spider was black, with red tips on its legs.
What stood out the most was the red mask-like marking on its back.
Ding! Would you like to inherit the Red Ghost Spider’s talent: Silk Perception?
“Inherit.”
This was Mu Liang’s third time acquiring a new ability.
Ding! ‘Silk Perception’ is being refined… adapting… inheritance complete.
Mu Liang felt a slight warmth in his fingers and palms, but that was it.
“Is my body already so strong? That’s why fusing with a low-level tamed beast’s ability doesn’t show much improvement?”
This was the only logical explanation he could think of.
He glanced at his system attribute panel and noticed that his enhanced attributes had only increased by a fraction of a point.
“System, upgrade the Red Ghost Spider to Level 3.”
To test his hypothesis, Mu Liang decided to evolve one of his tamed beasts to Level 3.
Ding! Evolving Level 1 Red Ghost Spider to Level 3. 110 Evolution Points deducted.
Ding! Level 3 Red Ghost Spider evolution successful.
Ding! Level 3 Red Ghost Spider’s talent evolved: Silk Manipulation.
Ding! Synchronizing ‘Silk Manipulation’ ability with the tamer. Syncing to Level 3.
Mu Liang felt the familiar warm current in his body. The strengthening effect wasn’t significant.
He opened the system panel to check his attributes.
Tamer: Mu Liang
Stamina: 24
Speed: 23.5
Strength: 24.2
Spirit: 35
Lifespan: 24 years / 450 years
Taming Points: 0 (Refreshes daily, can be accumulated)
Evolution Points: 109
Abilities: Earth Rock Spike (Level 3), Mimicry Invisibility (Level 3), Silk Manipulation (Level 3)
(Normal human base stats: 1)
Tamed Beasts:
Rock Armor Turtle: Talent – Earth Rock Spike (Level 3)
Tri-Color Lizard: Talent – Mimicry Invisibility (Level 3)
Red Ghost Spider: Talent – Silk Manipulation (Level 3)
“As expected, the strengthening effect was minimal.”
After checking his detailed attributes, Mu Liang confirmed that the enhancement from lower-level tamed beasts was limited compared to beasts of the same level.
For every tamed beast, the first enhancement yielded the best and most noticeable results.
“I was being greedy.”
Mu Liang chuckled and shook his head. It was unrealistic to expect every enhancement to be as dramatic as the first.
He snapped back to reality and turned to the Red Ghost Spider clinging to his arm.
“So… can you get down?” Mu Liang twitched his lips.
A one-meter-long Red Ghost Spider looked quite intimidating.
“Swish~”
The Red Ghost Spider shot out silk, attached it to the ceiling, and easily climbed up.
“Swish~”
Mu Liang mimicked it, extending his index finger toward a pile of firewood in the corner and shooting out silk.
A transparent strand of silk shot forward and instantly stuck to the firewood.
“I see… I can sense an object’s weight and even its shape.”
The feedback from the silk on his fingertips gave Mu Liang an immediate understanding of his new ability.
“The toughness is impressive—better than ordinary rope.”
“The adhesive property comes from tiny silk fibers interlocking.”
“Since the silk is transparent, it’s perfect for setting traps and ambushes.”
Just from a brief test, Mu Liang realized the spider silk had many potential uses.
He looked up at the Red Ghost Spider on the ceiling and conveyed his thoughts mentally: “Little Red, I need you to place some silk traps on the outskirts of the camp. If anyone triggers them, come notify me.”
“Squeak, squeak~~” The Red Ghost Spider emitted a sound like leather rubbing together, signaling its understanding.
Mu Liang repeated his instructions mentally: “Don’t capture them—just notify me if someone enters.”
He didn’t want the Red Ghost Spider mistaking the thieves’ scouts for prey and trapping them outright. That would be awkward.
“Swish~” The Red Ghost Spider shot out silk and swung from the ceiling, using its silk to swing away like a certain superhero.
“Spider-Man?” Mu Liang’s eyes gleamed with interest, itching to try it himself.
He glanced at the torch in his hand and dismissed the idea of imitating the chatty superhero from the movies.
Mu Liang left the house and continued stacking firewood.
“Mu Liang?”
A nervous voice came from a nearby room.
“I’m here.” Mu Liang stepped out of the house.
“Just a few more houses to go.” Mino jogged over, her tense expression softening with relief.
“Let’s hurry up and finish so we can head back.”
Mu Liang glanced at the girl’s slightly bent rabbit ears. She must be nervous.
“Okay.” Mino nodded obediently.
Ten minutes later, they finished stacking firewood in all the houses.
They walked side by side through the night without speaking, only hearing each other’s breathing.
Aside from the faint glow of the torches, everything around them was pitch black. Not a single star was visible in the sky.
“Let’s hurry back. It’s getting cold.” Mu Liang heard Mino exhale sharply in the cold air.
He reached out, grabbed her hand, and started jogging toward the Rock Armor Turtle.
“Okay.” Mino let herself be pulled along, her lips curling into a smile as she tightened her grip on his hand.