Chapter 196: 196
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"Roar!" The Diamond Ape watched as Wang Baole shut the doors to his cave abode and started to panic . It seemed on the verge of flying into another rage and started howling fiercely again . Its palms smashed against the doors of the cave abode, and the loud slams drew the attention of many in the area .
"The Diamond Ape!"
"Why has it come here?"
"This is… Wang Baole's cave abode? Its doors are shut?"
In the Dharmic Armament Pavilion, disciples who witnessed the scene sucked in a collective, frightened breath . They weren't completely taken over by terror, though; they realized that something interesting seemed to be unfolding before their eyes . However, after seeing the raging mad Diamond Ape, no one dared to venture too near; everyone started observing from afar .
Wang Baole watched as the doors to his cave abode quaked under the ape's slamming, coughed heavily once, and opened up a narrow slit again . He glared .
"What do you want exactly?"
"Roar!"
"I really can't understand a single thing," Wang Baole blinked . The Diamond Ape had gone completely mad . It jumped outside the cave abode, thudding its chest heavily, and turned around at the same time . It seemed to be trying very hard .
The scene was like a sudden bolt of lightning exploding in everyone's minds .
"My god, the killer move!"
"Goodness, quick, let's make our retreat!"
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Wang Baole's scalp started prickling too . He knew he couldn't go too far . He spoke hastily .
"Fine, fine . I know what you're trying to say . "
Once those words were out of his mouth, the Diamond Ape spun around immediately . It stared at Wang Baole through the narrow slit in the cave abode with a look of agitation .
"But there's no point in you yelling . I don't have what you want… even if you unleash a powerful attack, I'll just shut this door . We'll just have to see who's quicker . " As Wang Baole spoke, he sneaked a glance at the Diamond Ape .
Upon hearing Wang Baole saying he didn't have what he was looking for, the Diamond Ape's body started shaking . It howled again, throwing punches everywhere and sending the ground trembling . The mountain rocks quaked . Its demeanor proclaimed loudly—it would not stop until it got what it came for .
The scene caught the attention of a growing number of people . Wang Baole put on an appearance of exasperation as he watched the relentless Diamond Ape . He sighed, and through a slit in the door, his gaze fell on the Diamond Ape, honing straight in on his teeth .
"Fine, fine . I, Wang Baole, am a soft-hearted fellow . How about this—you give me one of your molars, and I'll hand over what you came for, how's that!"
The Diamond Ape's eyes widened upon hearing Wang Baole's words . He glared furiously at Wang Baole, seeming to grow angrier, and shook his head vehemently in refusal .
"Then there's nothing we can do about this . I wanted to let you have a monster puppet that would never be broken by, um, you know what I mean…" Wang Baole coughed, and slowly reeled it in .
When it heard the puppet would never be broken, the Diamond Ape was torn . It let loose a round of howls outside the cave abode and paced about as if it was considering the matter .
Wang Baole's eyes shone as he saw that the time was almost right . His goal wasn't to make an enemy of the Diamond Ape or get its tooth . The beast, after all, belonged to the Beast Taming Pavilion Elder . If he plucked its tooth, the Beast Taming Pavilion would likely come knocking .
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The goal of every one of Wang Baole's plans was to teach the other party a lesson . More importantly, he wanted to build a positive relationship between tamer and beast .
He didn't know how the Beast Taming Pavilion tamed beasts, but he had discovered a principle from the high officials' autobiographies—one must giveth, then taketh away, and then giveth again . Through the process, the other party's gratitude would shoot up exponentially .
"Fine, fine, Diamy . I don't want your tooth anymore . I'll let you have this beast puppet . Don't worry, it won't break!" Wang Baole said . He activated his scabbard and let the nine mosquitoes roam around the area without being discovered . Only after that did he open the door to the cave abode decisively, retrieve a completed ape puppet, and place it before the Diamond Ape .
The Diamond Ape heard what Wang Baole said . It looked at the ape puppet and froze . Then, it rushed forward and swept the puppet into an embrace . The ape looked at Wang Baole with suspicion; it was clear it didn't think things would turn out that way . It had been ready to pull its tooth out .
But Wang Baole didn't want his tooth after all . In fact, he even decided to give him the toy . The sentient Diamond Ape, which was capable of thought—albeit barely—was lost .
"But you should stop bullying me . Don't worry, I know you like this toy . I've removed the self-destruct mechanism," Wang Baole said with a sigh . He even stepped forward and patted the Diamond Ape .
The Diamond Ape's body quivered . It instinctively wanted to throw a punch . Besides its owner and a few others whom he was close to, such contact from strangers made him uncomfortable .
But upon thinking that Wang Baole had given him a toy, he hesitated . Without the loss of a tooth as a basis for comparison, his simple mind wouldn't have given the matter so much thought . But with the tooth already in the picture, the ape felt, as he looked at Wang Baole in its stunned daze, that it shouldn't be violent towards Wang Baole .
The entire proceeding was witnessed by the surrounding Dharmic Armament Pavilion disciples . Their eyeballs almost fell out of their eye sockets, and they exploded into a hushed chatter .
"The Diamond Ape's actually treating him so gently?"
"What is going on, giving the Diamond Ape presents can foster its goodwill? Others have done such a thing before, but it's never worked!"
The ones surprised weren't merely the Dharmic Armament Pavilion disciples . Many cruisers currently hovered in mid-air . Aboard them were disciples from the Beast Taming Pavilion . The Diamond Ape had been throwing a tantrum for nearly half a day—they had a duty to track it down and investigate the matter .
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As they witnessed what had taken place, the impact shook them and stirred waves of emotions within them even more .
"The Diamond Ape actually allowed him to touch it!"
"Am I actually seeing this?"
Under the crowd's stunned gazes, Wang Baole grew secretly pleased . He patted the Diamond Ape a few more times and said, laughing, "Go home, Diamy . When I have time, I'll craft a few more toys for you . Go home now . " Wang Baole smiled with his hands behind his back and looked at the Diamond Ape .
The Diamond Ape was clearly still in a daze . However, when it looked back at Wang Baole, there was a hint of gentleness in its gaze . It clutched the ape puppet tightly, nodded at Wang Baole, and turned away, racing straight back to the Beast Taming Pavilion .
With the ape gone, the surrounding crowd was stirred into an uproar . Many who were quick-thinking realized the trick .
"This tactic is impressive!"
"No wonder he's an Armament Soldier . This Wang Baole has been conspiring and plotting since he arrived, fighting until he became the head of the College Administrative Department . I'd thought it was sheer luck . Now I know… his ability to strategize is beyond spectacular!"
Every disciple who saw the scene unfold was shaken to the core and harbored feelings of envy . More than a few were tempted to do the same, but the infamy of the Diamond Ape had spread far and wide . No one dared to anger it…
Wang Baole listened to the discussions around him, his mood growing merry . He cupped his fists towards the crowd then returned to his cave abode, humming a tune under his breath . He sat down, cross-legged, and pulled out his snacks . After a few bites, he played out the entire incident in his head and was satisfied with how everything turned out .
He felt that he had executed the entire thing flawlessly . He didn't incur the wrath of the Beast Taming Pavilion, and he resolved the ill feelings the Diamond Ape had harbored towards him . In the end, he even ensured the Diamond Ape would be more docile towards him in the future .
Furthermore, as long as he continued crafting ape puppets with a few unique features, the Diamond Ape's feelings towards him would improve . When the time came, whenever he came across anyone he didn't like, he could simply have a few words with the Diamond Ape . Matters would be easily resolved then .
But to build such a relationship requires some time, Wang Baole thought, pleased . Especially so when he stepped out in his cruiser a few days later and came across the Diamond Ape . When the Diamond Ape saw Wang Baole, it grinned and raced towards him .
There was no knocking around . Instead, it stopped beside Wang Baole, bared its teeth in a wide grin, and thudded its chest and hollered as if in greeting .
Wang Baole's mood lightened tremendously . His life resumed normalcy, and his cultivation and his proficiency in crafting armaments improved steadily . A month passed .
That was when a piece of news was announced . It was like a pebble dropping into a pond, sending thousands of waves rippling out . The attention of very disciple from every pavilion on the Upper Academy Island was ensnared .
Due to the recent Beast Tide, the Federation staged an ambush on the Sea of Beasts and successfully slaughtered numerous Beast Kings . That won them twenty years of stability . Built on that two-decade foundation and with such a grand victory, a proposal that had been intended for a later implementation was brought forward, and was approved!
The name of the proposal… Operation Sword Sun!
The mission of Operation Sword Sun… to land on the ancient green-bronze sword!
After landing on the ancient green-bronze sword—to colonize a portion of the land and transform it into a colony!
The impact of the matter was immense and was felt across all the political forces . The disciples of the Ethereal Dao College were all shaken to the core . That was something that every cultivator dreamed of achieving . It was something that was challenging in the climate of internal conflicts and external threats .
However, with the external threat suppressed for the moment and the Federation seeking a target to distract the internal political entities, Operation Sword Sun became an obvious course of action!
The operation was a huge matter though . True Breath realm cultivators weren't eligible for participation . However, there was a phase within Operation Sword Sun that involved True Breath ream cultivators, and that was the Federation's Hundred Seedling Plan!
From the respective political entities in the Federation, a hundred True Breath realm prodigies were to be chosen as seedlings and specially groomed!