Lord of the Magical Beasts

Chapter 223: Earl

Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

With Yang Ling’s invitation, Viola and the rest hesitated no longer, and each pledged their loyalty to Yang Ling.

Following that, Yang Ling mobilized all of his resources and built a basic Beast Taming Ground near the Donau River. Even though its facilities were meager at the beginning, the space was huge and there was room to grow. The area around it was undeveloped land.

After coming up with general directions, he naturally left the details to Goode, Yuna and the rest. He need not worry about those individually.

Goode was responsible for quickly perfecting the facilities in the Beast Taming Ground, as well as purchasing Magical Beast Eggs and young Magical Beasts. He was also responsible for building a team to hunt within the Terras Forest.

The old butler Murbaqi was in charge of the budget, checking the amount of crystal coins needed at every stage of development so it didn’t impact the territory’s normal operations. Yuna was in charge of recruiting experienced adventurers and hunters, and contacting the Sumeer tribe in the Wilderness of Siberia, hoping that they could lend them some experienced Beast Tamers to put the Beast Taming Ground on the right track as soon as possible.

“Buying Magical Beast Eggs at a high price, over a hundred Purple Crystal Coins for every egg.”

“Buying a large number of Magical Beast Essence Crystals, price dependent on the quality!”

“Recruiting a large number of hunters for the development of the Beast Taming Ground, generous remunerations.

...

The crowd once again broke into commotion when they saw the notices that had just been placed outside the bar. They did not expect Yang Ling to be purchasing large amounts of Magical Beast Eggs and Magical Beast Essence Crystals after he had just purchased various saplings and seeds. Furthermore, he was also recruiting a large number of hunters.

After their shock, the people started discussing about the Beast Taming Ground announced on the notice. Some said that they had personally seen a large number of Magical Beasts in the Beast Training Ground, from mid to low-level Horned Bee Beasts and Barbaric Bulls to high-level Magical Beasts like the Twin-legged Flying Dragon. Some even said that a large group of powerful Beast Tamers had arrived from Yang Ling’s family, prepared to tame and rear these Magical Beasts in the Magical Beast Territory on a large scale.

There were also people who claimed that Yang Ling’s family was going to recruit a large number of warriors from the Magical Beast Territory into their family, and were prepared to teach the best of the best powerful Beast Taming techniques and Summoning Magic.

With the intentional hype and the discussions of the people, the news took off. Soon, almost everyone knew about the contents of the notice and the news of Yang Ling building a massive Beast Taming Ground.

With Viola’s lead, many of the detached adventurers joined the Beast Taming Ground. Even though some were still contemplating the offer, they would compare the prices between merchants whenever they captured a Magical Beast or obtained a Magical Beast Essence Crystal. They were no longer subject to merchants trying to push the price down.

Soon, the adventurers realized that no matter the Magical Beast, Yang Ling’s price seemed to be the fairest. Even better for them, they got to sign an agreement whenever they received a job from the Beast Taming Ground. They had their rewards written down in black and white, and there was no need for them to worry that their payments would be pushed down or deducted after they completed each mission.

Furthermore, Yang Ling had also announced in his name as the leader that families of those who were injured or met with misfortune while on a mission issued by the Beast Taming Ground would be able to receive a compensation fee of not less than five times the stipulated reward. This created an unprecedented uproar within the troops and adventurers gathered in Wissen Town.

A compensation fee of not less than five times the stipulated reward. That was a treatment that not even troops who had the backing of an association had, much less the wandering adventurers!

Many people remained doubtful at the start, but no one doubted the authority of the notice after the family of an adventurer who had been torn in two by a Violent Earth Bear after entering the Terras Forest to hunt received a full thousand Purple Crystal Coins as compensation.

As the news spread, more adventurers willingly joined the Beast Taming Ground or chose to work with the Beast Taming Ground, providing them with Magical Beast Essence Crystals and Magical Beast Eggs. Of course, even though the news had spread throughout the entire Magical Beast Territory, there were still adventurers who had entered the Terras Forest for many days who were still unsure about the news.

“Cains, your bags are getting heavier and heavier. You must have quite the loot this time!” This day, a small team of adventurers had encountered a familiar tall, lanky person as they exited the Terras Forest.

“I was quite lucky. I came across the nest of a Steelback Eagle and got over a hundred of the eagle’s eggs!” The hunter named Cains smiled before continuing, “Even though the Steelback Eagle is not a high-level Magical Beast, they could be used as messengers when they grow up. It is very popular in Montson. I think I can sell an egg for a dozen Purple Crystal Coins!”

“What, over a hundred Steelback Eagle eggs?” After his surprise, the lanky man said in envy, “Brother Cains, the market for Magical Beast Eggs have changed. Go look for the leader’s butler. You can get at least fifty Purple Crystal Coins for an eagle egg. You are going to get a windfall!”

It was Cains’ turn to be shocked when he heard the lanky man say this. He would never have expected the market to have transformed this drastically even though he had only been in the Terras Forest for a few days. After getting the details from the lanky man, he did not speak any more, leading his partners behind him straight for the Beast Taming Ground at the Donau River. He would have flown there if he could.

Just like that, after some comparison, the people all chose to work with Yang Ling’s Beast Taming Ground. Seeing this situation, the other merchant associations could only increase their prices. But no matter how much they raised their prices, they were somehow always a little lower than Yang Ling’s. Sometimes, even though there was no difference in price, the people chose to work with Yang Ling out of habit, much to the anxiety of the other merchants.

Wissen Town was rich in resources. Even though it possessed a large amount of mineral ore and wood, what attracted the large merchant associations the most were the resources related to Magical Beasts, like the Magical Beast Essence Crystals and Magical Beast Eggs. After having most of their business stolen by Yang Ling, the merchants that were hoping to make a killing could no longer hold it together any more.

They had many ways to deal with their competitors if it had been someplace else. But in Wissen Town, after having seen the leader Yang Ling and his powerful army, none of them dared have any wicked thoughts.

Since that was the case, all they could do was increase the reward to insane levels and try to bury Yang Ling alive with their vast capital. They were gambling on the fact that Yang Ling might not have enough money, and were forcefully pushing for Yang Ling to exit the market or at least enter negotiations with the large merchant associations, returning the prices to what they had been before.

With the allure of the merchants’ high prices, many of the adventurers chose to work with them. Just like that, the business of the Beast Taming Ground plummeted instantly. Many of the large merchant associations reached a stalemate with Yang Ling, none of them willing to exit the market for resources relating to Magical Beasts, yet at the same time not having the resources to raise the rewards further.

Even though Yang Ling could use his authority as the leader to force the large merchant associations out of the sales of resources relating the Magical Beasts, that would undoubtedly be a foolish move. Yang Ling would not force the large merchant associations to leave the market even without the reminders from Goode, Yuna and the rest of the people.

However, even though the two parties had reached a stalemate on the surface, Yang Ling had already achieved the first step of his tactical goals. He had successfully obtained the heartfelt respect and acceptance of many of the adventurers. Of course, it was necessary to push on while he was winning!

“Sir, we have basically reached the limit of what we can bear in terms of rewards. Our capital chain might break if we raise the price again!” Goode expressed his opinion in worry when they gathered to discuss the next phase of the plan.

Hearing Goode say this, the calculating old butler Murbaqi was the first to agree loudly. “Even maintaining the current expenditure is extremely difficult, much less raising the price even more. If this drags on, I am worried that it will affect the development plans for the rest of the territory!”

“That’s right, Brother Yang, we have had no choice but to pause some of our projects because of our shortage of funds!” Yuna also voiced her worries, her brows knitted.

...

The group voiced out their concerns one by one. While Yang Ling’s expression remained unchanged, he understood more than anyone how serious the situation was.

Was there no other way to attract the adventurers other than increasing the price?

He silently deliberated about a way to deal with the situation after taking a sip of the ice-cold rum, closely analyzing the needs and wants of the adventurers. Humans were unlike animals. They would have many other wants besides crystal coins. Perhaps he could think of a way to target another aspect of their needs.

“Viola, if you were a normal hunter, what would you wish to obtain other than crystal coins?” After a moment’s deliberation, Yang Ling chose to ask Viola directly.

Over this period of time, Viola had gotten the acceptance of the group with his rich experiences in the area of hunting and taming beasts. In some aspects, even Bolso and the rest of the Sumeer people who had come over from the Wilderness of Siberia with haste could not help but be in awe. He had become Yang Ling’s able assistant because of his exceptional abilities.

After a moment, Viola said, “Sir, to be honest, we would not be too calculative when it came to one or two Purple Crystal Coins. What we hope is to not have to be soft-spoken and submissive when negotiating our reward with the merchants. We wish even more that our families would one day no longer be ashamed that we are wandering hunters. We want our lives to be as exciting and respected as the soldiers’!”

Boosting the status of the hunters?

Yang Ling quickly grasped the crux of the issue. The fundamental reason that hunters had to be submissive when discussing their rewards, why merchants could freely deduct their rewards after they completed their missions, why their families would be ashamed of their identities, was because hunters had no status to speak of. They had no faction to fall back on, and thus were discriminated against by the soldiers and merchants alike.

According to conventions on the Tailun Continent, an independent leader, similar to a king, could bestow medals or give them titles to exceptional subordinates, thereby increasing their income and status. Yang Ling quickly understood what he had to do after understanding the hunters’ plight.

He would give exceptional hunters who were loyal to him medals, positions as Earls, or even small pieces of land. Yang Ling believed that this would quickly cause a stir. He believed that there would be no better reward for the adventurers who spent the entire year wandering the continent.