Chapter 26: Inkband

At this moment, Zhou Ming’s eyes seemed to resemble those of a serpent.

Previously, when people described his eyes as being like a snake’s pupils, it was merely a metaphor for his gaze.

But now, Zhou Ming’s eyes truly bore a resemblance to a serpent’s.

His pupils had subtly become vertical slits, and the dark irises surrounding them now carried faint traces of a dim golden hue.

When he narrowed his eyes, an invisible pressure emanated from them.

However, Zhou Ming himself had yet to notice this change.

He cared far more about the transformation of his own Spiritual Power.

“So this is what the book called a ‘minor improvement’? This isn’t a minor boost at all—it completely elevated my Spiritual Power to the point where I can now condense a Spiritual Seed without relying on the efforts of my predecessor.”

That statement was akin to scolding the cook after finishing the meal—crossing the bridge only to tear it down.

Without the Spiritual Seed left behind by his predecessor, he might very well still be cleaning dog kennels right now.

At last, Zhou Ming understood why, once one could sense Spiritual Power, it was possible to condense a Spiritual Seed using only resources.

Unless one was utterly unable to perceive their Spiritual Sea through meditation, then as long as they had sufficient resources, becoming a Beast Tamer was not as difficult as it was made out to be.

Given his current condition, as long as not all of his Ironthread Snakes died, he would no longer suffer from the headaches he experienced before.

Of course, the number of deaths that could affect him depended on the number of Spiritual Seeds he had, not on the total number of Ironthread Snakes currently in his possession.

“No. 1?”

As always, Zhou Ming cared for himself first before thinking of his beasts.

Only now did he remember his No. 1 Ironthread Snake.

“Hiss, hiss.”

Hearing its master’s call, No. 1 Ironthread Snake happily slithered onto Zhou Ming’s hand.

“Ah!”

Zhou Ming was momentarily startled by the dramatic transformation of the Ironthread Snake before him.

After repeatedly confirming through their Spiritual Link, he was certain that the one-meter-long snake before him was indeed No. 1.

Now, it measured over a meter in length, its thickness having increased from that of a chopstick to nearly the width of a thumb.

The scales covering its body were the size of mung beans—tightly set and neatly overlapping like dark metallic plates, now transformed into the luster of polished black jade.

No. 1 slithered close to Zhou Ming’s body, only to be grabbed and thoroughly examined—without the slightest dignity left.

“Bang!”

Zhou Ming suddenly swung No. 1 like a whip toward a nearby rock.

Seeing the mark it left, Zhou Ming nodded in satisfaction.

“Not bad. With this level of defense, it could serve as a short whip.”

“Hiss, hiss.”

No. 1 Ironthread Snake voiced its protest at Zhou Ming’s treatment.

Looking at those mung-bean-sized, dark-golden snake eyes staring at him innocently, Zhou Ming gave an apologetic smile.

“You little fellow, you’re just too much like a handy short whip—I couldn’t help myself.”

Zhou Ming immediately shifted the blame onto No. 1.

“Anyway, you’ve now become a Ferocious Beast. As agreed, I’ll give you a name—Inkband.”

Zhou Ming could naturally feel Inkband’s strength increase; otherwise, he wouldn’t have acted the way he just did.

He had simply been too overjoyed by the immense gains.

Since the environment around them wasn’t suitable, he could only apologize to Inkband for the rough treatment.

Once his excitement subsided, Zhou Ming finally noticed his own condition—the stench on his body was unbearable even to himself.

He took Inkband and the Ironthread Snake group toward a nearby water source.

He had only ever drawn water from there before, never daring to bathe, uncertain of what might lurk beneath the surface.

But now that Inkband had become a Ferocious Beast, Zhou Ming planned not only to wash up but also to test its new strength.

Once Inkband confirmed that no danger was present, Zhou Ming filled a kettle with clean water, stripped off his clothes, and jumped straight in.

The clear surface instantly turned murky black—the speed and potency were such that, even without Inkband’s scouting, it would have been enough to poison any lurking predators beneath the water.

After washing away all the grime, Zhou Ming dressed himself in the combat uniform he had stripped from the dark-skinned gaunt man earlier.

He didn’t mind it—it was far better than his old tactical jacket.

“Didn’t expect that besides Inkband, only thirty-six Ironthread Snakes remain. Thankfully, all of them are the stronger and higher-quality ones.”

Once he tidied up, Zhou Ming finally had time to inspect the snake group’s condition.

“Move out—hunt.”

With greater strength came greater confidence.

Before setting off, Zhou Ming even rallied his snake swarm.

The once-calm front section of Serpent Valley was thrown into chaos once again by Zhou Ming’s disturbance.

If not for the risk of triggering a full serpent tide, he might not have stopped at all.

With his strength now vastly improved, Zhou Ming’s focus—aside from nurturing the snake swarm and seeking rare medicinal herbs—was on finding stronger and higher-quality Ironthread Snakes.

According to his plan, unless he completely “digested” the resources gained this time, it would be impossible to venture into the wilderness again in the short term.

After all, the purpose of exploration was to obtain resources to strengthen oneself—he would never confuse means with ends.

“Winter is almost here?”

Standing atop a giant boulder at the mouth of Serpent Valley, Zhou Ming stretched out his hand to catch a snowflake, murmuring softly.

He knew it was time to return.

The harsh snow of winter would cause severe food shortages, driving the Ferocious Beasts and mutant animals of the wilderness into frenzy.

The danger level would increase drastically—it was time to leave.

In truth, Zhou Ming, who had a more introverted temperament, preferred to hide away in quiet solitude and enjoy the gradual process of strengthening himself.

But reality did not allow him that luxury.

Beyond environmental challenges, there were many other matters awaiting him—learning Beast Tamer knowledge, training his body through martial arts, improving his marksmanship, and acquiring knowledge for his future advancement.

Armed with a combat blade, a classic twenty-round pistol, a bulging backpack, and his loyal snake swarm, Zhou Ming began his journey back toward Qinshan Base—laden with harvest.

……

“Bang.”

A corpse, its eyes filled with confusion, fell into the grass—completely unaware of how it had died.

Far in the distance, a figure carrying a backpack larger than his own head approached—it was Zhou Ming, returning to Qinshan Base.

“Sigh, another one trying to take without earning.”

Though his tone carried a hint of pity, Zhou Ming’s hands were very honest as they began looting the spoils.

This was already the third time he had encountered hunters attempting to rob others along the way.

Fortunately, Zhou Ming had previously sent out his Ironthread Snake swarm to form a circular sensory field with a radius of one kilometer.

The limited range was due to his current Spiritual Power and the number of snakes under his command.

However, as Zhou Ming’s Spiritual Power and beast count continued to grow, so too would the scope of this sensing field.

He called this field the “Radar Sensory Domain,” for it was woven from Spiritual Threads, forming a detection net akin to a biological radar—capable of sensing creatures within its range and gauging their strength.

Such a simple yet practical ability—if made public—would surely draw the attention and invitations of countless powers.

In the wilderness, this ability was invaluable.