"Uncle, this Bai Ze is quite large. Can we safely get it back?" Wu Hen asked.
"How can it be that primitive? See these two pieces of gourd I brought?" Chongli Mountain said.
"Aren't those what we use to hold our drinking water?" Wu Hen asked, puzzled.
"The gourd is actually a calabash. If you tie it with a rope , it becomes a gourd." As Chongli Mountain spoke, he put the two halves together and bound them with some ivy twine.
Wu Hen's expression was bizarre. He didn't understand why Chongli Mountain turned the pieces back into a gourd. Could this gourd really...
Before Wu Hen could finish his inner complaints, Chongli Mountain actually lifted the makeshift gourd and pointed the gourd's mouth at Bai Ze!
Wu Hen was genuinely worried. Chongli Mountain shouted, "Bai Ze, I call upon you, do you dare to answer?"
What was even more outrageous was that Chongli Mountain didn't even shout. He merely performed an ancient spell, and the highly improbable gourd produced an equally improbable burst of immortal energy, sucking the completely paralyzed Bai Ze into the incredibly makeshift gourd!
"Is this even allowed?" Wu Hen exclaimed in shock.
This Scroll Realm, especially the Ancient Clan people, always gave off a ridiculous yet strangely plausible vibe. It was too fantastical!
"Hold it, and take good care of the Purple Gold Gourd!" Chongli Mountain said.
Wu Hen held the heavy, water-stained gourd they had used to drink mountain water, unable to calm down for a long time.
Strength is great, but bravery is more important; bravery is great, but imagination is even greater. Wu Hen began to reflect. Despite being exposed to so many bizarre and fantastical stories and films, he had never thought that two pieces could form a gourd, and that the gourd could capture creatures.
In the end, facing difficult problems is more about imagination. As long as the mind doesn't regress!
"Can it jump out on its own?" Wu Hen asked.
"Of course, it's still a Divine Beast, but this gourd is the Heaven and Earth Wisdom Gourd. You only need to set a question, and if it can't answer, it will be sucked back in," Chongli Mountain said.
"Wisdom Gourd..." Wu Hen found the name absurd, though the Ancient Clan folks were indeed —the more outlandish, the more reliable.
"Quickly, set a challenging question. Bai Ze is a highly intelligent creature. If you compete with it in terms of strength, it might not submit to you; but if you can trap it in a mental conundrum, it will likely admire your wisdom," Chongli Mountain said.
Wu Hen looked at Chongli Mountain with a doubtful expression, feeling that this sounded too casual—after all, Bai Ze was a Divine Beast.
"What, you don't believe me? How about I put you in and test you? As I've said, we in the Scroll Realm don't get involved with fighting. Having great Divine Skills isn't a true measure of capability; returning to simplicity is. Winning a game of rock-paper-scissors is more valuable than spell-casting," Chongli Mountain explained.
"Alright, I get it. I'll pose a math problem from our side; it shouldn't be able to solve it, right?" Wu Hen said.
"Don't make it too easy. Bai Ze is highly knowledgeable, well-versed in ancient and modern topics, strategies, poetry, and the eight schools of thought. Moreover, it can read minds. If you have the correct answer in your mind, it will steal it. If someone else knows the answer, it can steal it from them too," Chongli Mountain emphasized.
"Alright, I'll come up with a sealing question to prevent it from escaping the Wisdom Gourd."
"Let's head back then. It's been a rough journey. This taming skill isn't something I'd teach just anyone. Luckily, we got a big haul this time," Chongli Mountain said.
"So, can I use this knowledge to tame other mysterious creatures in the future?" Wu Hen asked.
"I'm just providing an example; I didn't say it would always work. Take this gourd, for instance. You can't just use two pieces of gourd to capture a Divine Beast randomly outside. Moreover, such Divine Beasts aren't common elsewhere. Finding one is rare enough, let alone capturing it!" Chongli Mountain said.
"Uncle, are there things like blood contracts, binding agreements, future elf balls, or card summons to make pets immediately?" Wu Hen asked.
"Of course. In Otherworldly Dust, what isn't there? I've seen those futuristic elf balls. They should be from the interstellar empire, using materials similar to this Wisdom Gourd, combined with spatial compression and telekinetic restrictions, and then enhancing it with consciousness chains, forming a physical bond between man and beast. This equals taming. When you need to fight, you throw out the high-tech elf ball, and the monster appears. The cards you mentioned are merely sealing a mutant beast into a talisman. If you make the talisman look cool, it becomes a card. This is even simpler than the elf balls; the Immortal lineage has them," Chongli Mountain said calmly.
Truly scholarly and keeping up with the times, these ancients were admirable.
Wu Hen momentarily couldn't distinguish who the primitive person was anymore.
In other words, the people from his homeland were still dreaming, while the other realms of Otherworldly Dust had already stepped into action, developing splendid civilizations.
With the gourd, Wu Hen and Chongli Mountain set off on their journey home.
When they returned to Red Snow Village, the two wild men were greeted with a warm welcome.
The taming skill was the highest art of the Ancient Clan. Many of them couldn't fully understand their partners, let alone the preferences of mythical creatures or making them compliant.
"Release it, let everyone take a look." Du Mao was overly excited, following Wu Hen and Chongli Mountain like a curious village kid.