Chapter 293: Stripey's Back

A few days later, the furor around the awakened stone statues gradually died down.

This was because most people soon found that it was extremely difficult to sign a blood contract with them.

Some had even captured these statues by force and tried to coerce them into signing a blood contract, but their efforts were all in vain.

These stone statues were a remarkably resolute species.

They would have rather had their bodies shattered into a million pieces than submit to anyone else.

Most trainers trained their familiars with the carrot-and-stick approach. Some even chose to raise their familiars from a young age so that they could grow more intimate with each other. Doing so would also make it easier to sign a blood contract with their familiars.

It was also noted that more intelligent monsters were easier to train, as they were more receptive to fear.

After dinner, Gao Peng and his grandfather sat by the lake while enjoying the peace and quiet outside.

After hesitating for a while, Gao Peng finally said to his grandfather, “Grandpa, I have an idea, but I’m not sure if it’s going to work.”

“Well, if you think it’s a good idea, just do it,” said Ji Hanwu with a warm smile.

“Yeah…” said Gao Peng, nodding.

He began explaining his idea to his grandfather. “There are countless treasures still waiting to be found in the mountains outside Yuzhou City. There’s a chance we might strike gold in this endeavor, but I also think that we wouldn’t be able to cover enough area with the Southern Sky Group’s influence alone. Instead of just having the whole cake for ourselves, I think it would be better to split the cake for everyone to eat.”

“Go on,” said Ji Hanwu.

“After absorbing the Mountain Spirit King’s essence, Stripey now has a bit of Mountain Spirit aura in it. I’m thinking about letting it bring the Mountain Spirits together and possibly establishing a Mountain Spirit outpost of sorts in the wild.

“The wild has always been a dangerous place to explore, especially at night. For the past few years, Yuzhou’s Monster Hunter Association has stripped the forest area near the city of its valuable resources, while only an intrepid few have dared to venture into the depths of the wild. You’ve probably noticed that the overexploitation of these resources has caused their prices to go up a lot.

“I think that we could provide a safe place for organizations or adventurous individuals to rest in the wild by building an outpost in the mountains. We could also set up living spaces on the Mountain Spirits and maybe even a commercial area where we can sell supplies at five times the market price. I think that’s quite reasonable, seeing that we would be the ones handling their transportation. We could also charge our guests for accommodation, maybe even a fixed amount per hour in the morning…”

“Not a bad idea. Have you tried reaching out to the Mountain Spirits? I don’t think this idea of yours would require too much finessing. The only hard part about it would be to persuade the native Mountain Spirits to help you with your plan.”

After thinking for a while, Gao Peng replied, “I’ll try.”

In a manner of speaking, Stripey had become a Mountain Spirit King, albeit an unofficial one. This could work, thought Gao Peng.

If Stripey could convince the other Mountain Spirit Kings to help him, he would be able to proceed with the rest of his plan.

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The next day, Gao Peng headed out to the mountains alongside Stripey.

Despite its increase in size, Stripey’s speed hadn’t diminished in the slightest. Each of its steps was equal to 100 steps made by any other monster. However, Stripey had grown too big to ride on an airplane or a helicopter. The only way Stripey could move from one point to another now was by putting one foot in front of the other.

Gao Peng and his familiars were all riding on Stripey’s back, which was covered with lines of ravines and hills. Only a small portion of it was flat.

Gnarled tangerine trees had sprouted from some of the ravines. Their leaves were yellowing, and some of the oranges on them seemed small and shriveled.

These trees had all been planted by Da Zi.

There were rows of holes near the trees. Columns of black smoke issued out of the holes and into the dark clouds overhead. Streaks of red flashed across the clouds at times, as if a malevolent entity was spying on them from the sky.

“Whew, it’s kinda hot here.” Gao Peng wiped some of the sweat off his face.

The heat from the black smoke was coming from beneath the Earth’s crust. Gao Peng figured that he could probably smoke meat with it if he wanted to.

“Next time, don’t put anything on Stripey’s back without its permission. It’s not polite,” said Gao Peng, flicking a finger on Da Zi’s head.

“All right… But Gao Peng, didn’t you build a house on Stripey’s back as well?” asked Da Zi, pointing at the little cottage behind Gao Peng. It had a black roof, white walls, and a huge umbrella in front of its entrance.

Gao Peng coughed. “Well, I asked for Stripey’s permission first!”

“I did too…”

Gao Peng quickly clasped a hand over its mouth and said, “Have you completed today’s drills?”

Upon hearing this, Da Zi’s head drooped slightly, and it obediently scuttled towards the training equipment area.

“Stripey, are we making you feel uncomfortable with the things we’ve built on your back?” asked Gao Peng.

Stripey happily replied, “Not at all, Gao Peng. My back’s literally made of stone. I can’t feel anything there. Also, this way, you can all live on my back and keep me company all day.”

All of a sudden, a crack appeared on the ground, where a pair of eyes blinked at Gao Peng mischievously.

Gao Peng couldn’t help but smile at this. “Brat.”

Stripey had a steady gait. Even when it was walking over a bumpy area, Gao Peng didn’t feel the ground sway beneath his feet.

Gao Peng poured himself a cup of tea and lazily watched his familiars work out diligently in the training area.

They really take after their master! thought Gao Peng with pride.

Suddenly, Gao Peng heard a sharp cry overhead. A crane gracefully landed on Stripey’s back with a fish thrashing about wildly in its beak. “Gao Peng, you’ll never guess what I found just now!”