Ultragenic Warlord

Chapter 630: Two Tamers

Zhang Lie frowned. "The ground's been cleared away, and there are a few burial mounds over there. There's a trail of fresh footprints, both humanoid and bestial."

Mu replied, "It could very well be those from the beast tribe hoping to loot the remains of the village. Their tribe isn't too far from here."

Zhang Lie glanced around. He could sense fluctuations of genetic energy nearby. He thought that they came from genetic lifeforms, but were there really any wild ones that wouldn't run away upon sensing Red Comet and the two superior-grade black leopards? Either they were very confident peak-grade lifeforms, or weak lifeforms that were scared stiff.

Under these circumstances, however, the most likely scenario was neither of these hypotheses—it had to be someone from the beast tribe! The lifeforms he was sensing were being controlled by one of their beast tamers.

"The elder was a wily old fox indeed..." Zhang Lie smiled coldly as he allowed their mysterious enemy to lay their plans.

He wanted to see just what these beast tamers could achieve, as well as what gave them the courage to try to tail Zhang Lie. If they chose not to make a move, they would get off scot-free, but if they did, well, Zhang Lie was ready for them.

Indeed, tailing Zhang Lie and Mu were tamers from the beast tribe.

"As expected, those from the alcohol tribe have returned to their village! Father's guess was right—they must have a secret alcohol cellar somewhere around here! Their millennia of hoarding surely couldn't have amounted to just those few pitiful vats of alcohol. I bet everything they have is hidden underground—including large quantities of their hundred-year-old brew!"

As he thought back to the taste of that divine alcohol, one of the beast tamers licked his lips, his eyes filling with greed.

Beside him, the other tamer urged, "Brother, shouldn't we return and head back to our tribe? Something seems strange."

"What's the matter?"

"Our beasts are trembling, as if they're afraid of something."

The other tamer began to laugh. "Kaimie, you're the only coward among us. If we can find their stockpile of hundred-year-old alcohol and drink it all ourselves, we'll become fearsome warriors. There'd be nothing that could stand against us then! If you return and inform the tribe of what we've found, how much of the alcohol do you think will be given to us?"

Kaimie hesitated after hearing his brother's words.

His brother continued, "You know how much alcohol's in one of the alcohol tribe's storehouses, don't you? You can drink your fill, then hide the rest away for later. You're interested in Cuihua, aren't you? I see you making faces at her all the time."

"Y-Yes."

"As long as you bring her enough of this alcohol, I'm sure she'll go out with you."

Kaimie blushed. "Cuihua isn't like that!"

His brother glanced askance at him. He had no intention of mentioning the fact that he had lured Cuihua to bed with him using three vats of hundred-year-old alcohol which he had sacked from the alcohol tribe, and whom he remembered rather fondly.

"If you're strong enough and boast enough resources, Cuihua will naturally be attracted to you," he affirmed.

Kaimie thought for a moment and nodded slowly. The two tamers trailed behind Zhang Lie.

Mu led them directly to the secret underground cellar. When he broke through the hastily bricked up entrance with a punch, a strong aroma of alcohol wafted out.

Zhang Lie strode in to find vat after vat of alcohol. He broke the seal off a vat to find sticky pre-processed alcohol within.

Mu sighed. "You've ruined that vat!"

Zhang Lie: ? ? ?

Mu explained, "The alcohol precursor has to be kept in an inert environment at all times. You've broken the seal, and replacing it will be useless now!"

"Is that so..." Zhang Lie turned behind him and called out, "Did you all hear that? This alcohol precursor has to be brought back to the alcohol tribe. It won't be of any use to you, so you'd better leave now!"

Mu's eyes widened as he glanced to his back and saw nothing but desolate ground. "Savior, who are you talking to?"

Zhang Lie smiled. "There are a few flies around."

Two tamers slowly appeared from afar, their beasts clambering through the ruins. The older said, "I'm very curious how you noticed our presence."

Mu frowned. "Kaichen!"

Kaichen's lips parted in an exaggerated grin. "Hand over the alcohol now!"

The other tamer, Kaimie, added, "If you don't want to become food for our lifeforms, hand over those vats immediately. The two of you won't be able to do anything against our lifeforms!"

Zhang Lie glanced at the two lifeforms, one of which was regular-grade and the other of which was mutated-grade. He really didn't know what gave the tamers ?confidence that they could overwhelm him.

Kaichen laughed again. "I've waited here for over three months! At least let me get something for my troubles."

Mu thundered, "You damned beast tribe! Not only did you ransack our village, you even killed so many among our clan. I'll give you nothing!"

Kaichen shrugged and spread his arms wide. "I've waited over three months for you in penance—that means something, surely? Don't think that you're still the dominant tribe you used to be. Hand over the alcohol and I might spare your lives."

In the past, the alcohol tribe had been the strongest of the tribes in the region, with close ties to many of the neighboring ones. There were even rumors that a hegemon would emerge from their midst and unite the world.

However, an incident had occurred. One of the key ingredients necessary for the tribe's famous alcohol had become impossible to acquire, and the ties that it had forged slowly fell apart.

The alcohol tribe's power and prestige grew lower by the year. They managed to develop new brews after a hefty amount of research, but they were only ersatz versions of the original.

Kaichen mocked, "Are the two of you all the tribe sent to retrieve these vats? Do they think we're so stupid that we wouldn't keep any guard around the area?"

Zhang Lie called out, "Red Comet, kill the hunters and cripple their lifeforms!"

Kaichen laughed as though he had heard a marvelous joke. Who did this upstart think he was? He and his brother were beast tamers from the beast tribe! Perhaps they would have to be worried about people from the alcohol tribe in the past, but surely not when they had become so downtrodden.

In a flash of red light, Kaichen's smiling face fell from his head.

Out of the corner of his eye, in his last moments of consciousness, he seemed to see his brother's head beside him. The two genetic lifeforms lay crouched on the ground, paralyzed with fear.

Mu's eyes widened. How had Zhang Lie taken care of the two beast tamers so easily? But it did make sense—those silver birds were far stronger than these tamers. If they fell to Zhang Lie, then it was only reasonable that these tamers would, too...