Castle of Black Iron

Chapter 423: Motive

Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem

The Grey Hill covered about tens of thousands of square kilometers. Therefore, it was not easy to find a person on it, even for a wild patron from the school of patron, not to mention that the target was a powerful animal controller.

Given the survival ability and concealment ability in the wild, animal controllers were much better than pioneers. Because animal controllers were especially about getting along with wild beasts, they were good at concealing themselves in the wild. As an old saying went, "Animal controllers could live wherever wild beasts lived. However, wild beasts might not survive where animal controllers could live."

After circling around Grey Hill for 3 days, Crell gained nothing.

For Zhang Tie, those 3 days were his happiest period that he could even laugh out when in dream.

The benefit to stay with a wild patron was displayed on the 2nd day. Previously, if Zhang Tie wanted to kill the iron-teeth hyenas, he had to depend on fortune or set some harsh traps. He could only hunt 20-odd iron-teeth hyenas a day at that time. However, staying with Crell, Zhang Tie didn't need to find those iron-teeth hyenas anymore; because Crell seemingly had a marvelous talent; he could always take Zhang Tie to the most aggressive pack of iron-teeth hyenas easily.

Crell said that these "most aggressive" iron-teeth hyenas probably had just contacted with the animal controller. After the hidden animal controller took effective measures on these iron-teeth hyenas, he drove them more aggressive and irritable. Based on this, they could narrow the animal controller's scope of activity.

Zhang Tie really admired this ability.

Zhang Tie felt being a bit selfish as he only cared about seven-strength fruits instead of that mysterious animal controller when he was staying with Crell.

In the 3 days, he had 3 more seven-strength fruits on the small tree. Plus that seven-strength fruit of iron-teeth hyena that Zhang Tie had not eaten on the day when he met Crell, there were 4 ripe seven-strength fruits of iron-teeth hyenas on the small tree. With 3 more, Zhang Tie would have all the seven-strength fruits of iron-teeth hyenas from the small tree.

On the 3rd night, the 2 people chose to sleep in a mountain cave of the Grey Hill. When Zhang Tie came back with some firewoods, he found one more guest in the mountain cave——an iron-teeth hyena.

The iron-teeth hyena was lying at the foot of Crell and was as docile as his pet dog. Fondling its head, Crell was muttering something like holding a strange ceremony.

Zhang Tie kept silent; he just stood and watched aside. Crell was uttering that strange sound "Gulugulu" completely through the resonance between his throat and abdomen.

2 minutes later, Crell drew a strange pattern on its head before patting it slightly. After that, the iron-teeth hyena stood up. With a glance at Zhang Tie, it flashed out of the mountain cave.

"This iron-teeth hyena looked very relaxed when it left."

Crell glanced at Zhang Tie with an admiring look, "You're right. It indeed felt relaxed when it left!"

"What were you doing? Was it a ceremony? I was told that all the wild patrons were able to control animals." Zhang Tie put down the firewood and set a fire rapidly as he asked out of curiosity.

"I was comforting it and removing the invisible bound in its mind so as to set him free again. That was a skill to control animals, being similar to that of an animal controller!" After these days, Crell had trusted Zhang Tie very much. He imparted some secret knowledge to Zhang Tie which could be barely touched by commoners in the school of patron. Remarkably, he had taken Zhang Tie as his fellow. Soon after Zhang Tie's question, he answered honestly, "Actually, all those with the heart of mother nature have the potential to be an animal controller or a wild patron!"

It was an evident hint. Of course, Zhang Tie could understand it. However, Zhang Tie pretended to consider it for a short while, "I'm interested in animal controllers, but I cannot be a clergy of the school of patron as I've got many things to concern. I cannot sacrifice myself to Gaia!"

After these days, Zhang Tie had known what it meant by becoming a clergy of school of patron. As school of patron had very strict disciplines, if being not decisive enough to sacrifice one's youth and life to Gaia, the mother of land, one better do not attempt to be an official clergy of this school. Take Crell as an example, as a wild patron, he had to live in the wild all the year. He could not get married and have babies. Since the day a person became the wild patron, he had been forbidden to eat meat. Because everything on the land was the offspring of Gaia, the mother of land. As a clergy of Gaia, of course, he could not eat the offspring's of Gaia.

After staying with Crell for 3 days, Zhang Tie ate roasted potatoes and wild vegetables every meal. To tell the truth, Zhang Tie could not stand such an ascetic-like life.

Hearing Zhang Tie's explanation, Crell responded with a smile, "All those who chose to be official clergies of school of patron made the decisions voluntarily after sensing the existence of Gaia. The alleged rules and disciplines in your eyes are just the realest reflection of our mind. We don't consider them as a bound; conversely, we take them as the true freedom. If you want to learn animal controlling skill, I can teach you some. However, it's uneasy to master this secret skill; it's harder to make an achievement on it. As to how much you can master, it depends on you!"

Zhang Tie became thrilled immediately, "That's great..."

'"If so, my 'Great Wild Sutra' would not be discovered. Because I learn how to control animals from a wild patron. No matter how rich the opponent's imagination was, they would not imagine that I'm the only disciple of the "Great Wild Sect" on Eastern Continent."

As he thought this, Zhang Tie felt a bit embarrassed. "My motive is not as pure as I've told you."

"Alright, I will help Crell find the culprit as a compensation..." Zhang Tie thought.