Upon noticing the vines binding its hind legs had disappeared, the leopard revealed a hint of joy. It then moved its legs, which were a little sore but not affecting its walking. Ignoring the gazes of the porcupine and the antelope, the leopard quietly headed towards Lin Qian's location.
The feast for the spirit beasts was simple, without any clinking of glasses, but it was still very lively.
The tiger family still sat at the head table, with the tiger father in the center as the main figure, and the tiger king having the most prestige.
Next were the Golden Orchid leader and his wife, along with the chipmunk, followed by Lone White and the giant panda mother and cub, and the rest were all Golden Orchids. At the very end sat Mountain Wind and Hundred Vine.
Bai Teng doesn't eat these things; it now prefers to learn to talk from the mountain wind, so it's currently perched on the mountain wind's shoulder.
The leopard sat at the foot of the mountain, in the very back and corner.
Lin Qian accepted the leopard's addition. He had originally intended to expand the team's size, but they hadn't encountered many suitable spirit beasts along the way.
Originally, a pair of red deer would have been a good match, but unfortunately, the red deer herd is a burden. Given their current situation, it is not suitable for them to lead a group of ordinary red deer.
Lin Qian had already planned to take advantage of the three leopard captives; otherwise, he wouldn't have given them a spirit stone or two. Even though it was just a few, who would complain about having too many spirit stones?
Lin Qian wouldn't have parted with the spirit stones if it weren't to lure the three captives into submitting on their own.
It's obvious that the spirit stone is very effective. The smartest of the three leopards was the first to submit, so the other two will soon follow suit as well.
The porcupines and antelopes weren't stupid either. Seeing that the leopard could not only move freely but also eat with Lin Qian and the others, their minds immediately became active.
After eating and drinking its fill, the leopard strolled leisurely toward the porcupine and antelope. Its new task was to keep an eye on them.
"Howl!"
"Leopard, please save us!"
The porcupine couldn't wait to open its mouth; if its two hind legs hadn't been tied, it would have charged forward by now.
It really didn't want to be a prisoner anymore; the pig had truly had enough of this life!
The leopard yawned lazily, completely ignoring the porcupine's anxiety.
"Baa!" Leopard, tell me quickly, how did you do that!
Seeing the leopard's leisurely demeanor, the antelope grew anxious.
The leopard squinted at them and lazily asked, "Aww?" Do you want to leave or stay?
"Howl!" Of course, we're leaving!
"Baa!" Let's go!
The porcupines and antelopes had long wanted to leave. They were originally free and capable of supporting themselves, so of course they didn't want to stay here and be oppressed!
The leopard squinted at the two eyes, then lay down, closed its eyes, and rested.
The porcupine and the antelope were dumbfounded. They howled for a long time, but the leopard just lay there as if asleep, ignoring them completely.
After howling a few times, the two dared not continue, since they were still bound by vines, and they would be beaten again if they broke the rules.
After resting, the spirit stone vein was excavated again.
Of course, now the porcupines and antelopes are in charge of digging, while the other spirit beasts are absorbing spirit stones to cultivate, even the leopard is doing so.
If it were just Lin Qian and his group, the porcupines and antelopes might not have felt much, since they were the ones being captured.
But seeing the leopard, who had received the same treatment in the past, compared to themselves, the two spirit beasts instantly felt bitter.
The leopard also obtained some spirit stones, but not many, only four or five, but this was still much better than before.
Previously, mining for a whole day would only yield one low-grade spirit stone. Now, it doesn't have to mine all the time; it just needs to watch over the porcupines and antelopes, and then switch shifts with the gold-plated beast at the cave entrance. Compared to the endless mining life before, it's incredibly comfortable.
Especially when he saw that the porcupines and antelopes would be whipped by the vines if they slowed down, the leopard was extremely glad that he had made the decision last night.
Although submitting to other spirit beasts would mean losing its freedom, the leopard was well aware that if it did not submit and choose not to join their ranks, it might die.
This speculation is not unfounded. During this period, Lin Qian and the others did not hide the fact that they were eating spirit beast meat. The aroma of the spirit beast meat was not only a temptation for them but also a source of fear.
It was terrified that it would become the next meal for those spirit beasts.
After witnessing the benefits of spirit stones, the leopard finally realized that it had to find a way out for itself!
Porcupines and antelopes are clearly simpler in their thinking. Although they are afraid, they still yearn for freedom and want to return to their previous way of life.
After refining its own share of the spirit stone, the leopard's eyes revealed a hint of surprise. It knew that this kind of stone was good, but it didn't expect it to be this good!
Previously, one piece of spirit stone could not be detected, and it could only experience the benefits of absorbing spirit stones. But now that a small pile of spirit stones has been stacked up, the increase in spiritual power is very obvious. The leopard felt that it only needed to absorb a few dozen more pieces to reach the breakthrough point!
After finishing his training, the leopard looked at the porcupine and antelope digging hard beside him with a hint of pity in his eyes.
These two idiots, keeping them alive would not only save their lives but also bring them so many benefits, they're incredibly stupid.
This time, the leopard's resentment completely disappeared. It was no longer a loser who chose to submit in order to save its life, but a lucky one who seized the opportunity!
Seeing the other spirit beasts possessing more spirit stones than it, the leopard's eyes revealed greed and envy, but that was all; it couldn't defeat any of the spirit beasts here...
Well, that human baby doesn't count.
The leopard withdrew its gaze, its mind becoming active again. It had been observing these spirit beasts for some time, and thus quickly analyzed the allocation mechanism of Lin Qian's team and the status and hierarchy of each spirit beast.
My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com