Beast Taming Begins with the Inner Circle of Pets

Chapter 138 The Unexpected Twist

"We've finally found you! You're really fast! If you hadn't used Xiao Ba, I wouldn't have been able to find this place for at least two days." Meng Wenbin, looking travel-worn, was led to Lin Manman by the people from Zhao Family Village.

The old man in front of me, his clothes somewhat dirty and disheveled, looked exhausted, and his former refined and gentle demeanor was no longer visible.

When Lin Manman saw him like this, and heard the implication in his words that he had been searching for her all night, she couldn't help but be stunned.

"A nobody like me doesn't need Old Master Meng to come looking for me personally."

When Meng Wenbin saw his apprentice's expression, his heart skipped a beat.

Oh no, this guy seems really angry. This time things might not end well.

"Manman...it's not what you think, I..." He paused, glancing discreetly at Zhao Gui and Zhao Ziyan in the room.

"Oh right, you and your master must have a lot to talk about. We'll go out and pack up first. You can chat slowly. We'll come back to call you when it's time for lunch."

Zhao Gui witnessed the old man arrive riding a flying dragon. Faced with such a powerful figure who could wipe out their village with a flick of his wrist, he dared not show any temper.

Having received the old man's message, he quickly pulled his niece outside.

He also chased away the others who were curiously peering out from outside the door, leaving only Meng Wenbin and his apprentice Lin Manman inside the room.

Seeing that Lin Manman had no expression on her face, Meng Wenbin gently comforted Xiao Qi while holding her in his arms, sighed softly, and sat down next to Lin Manman.

"This story begins more than twenty years ago. Let me tell you the tale slowly."

"Do you know who those people who arrested you are?"

"More than 20 years ago, this organization called itself the Beast King Kingdom, advocating the power of beast tamers and spirit beasts, and attempting to control the beast tide and unify the Eastern Continent through extreme means."

"More than 20 years ago, this organization's power in the Eastern Continent was at its zenith. Later, they intended to launch a large-scale beast tide against China."

"Fortunately, China had noticed it early on, and almost all of the alliance's twelve councilors and elite forces were mobilized, which prevented the beast tide from reaching China's city walls."

"Although that battle shocked the surrounding forces, large and small, for more than 20 years, how many people know the enormous price we paid?"

"Five of the twelve councilors of the alliance have fallen. China originally had more than fifty experts at the level of level nine, but this battle has caused us to lose more than half of our elite forces."

Even after many years, Meng Wenbin still feels immense grief when he recalls the brutal battles of that time.

Although Lin Manman had heard Gao Zhixian mention the siege of the city by the beast tide when she was over twenty years old, she never imagined it would be so brutal.

"Although we have preserved the safety of the main urban area, only one-tenth of the villages outside the city walls remain. Most of the villages you see now were built in the last twenty years."

"Your second senior brother, Gao Zhixian, was one of the few survivors among the people outside the city back then."

"I will never forget that when your second senior brother was about ten years old, he secretly came to ask me when no one was around, asking if there was any way to give ordinary people the same strength as professionals, so that more people could have the chance to survive."

"He didn't blame us for choosing the area outside the city as the battlefield, nor did he complain about the injustice of the world or the difficulty for ordinary people to survive. He simply wanted ordinary people to have the ability to survive."

"Later, I saw that he was exceptionally intelligent and that he was an orphan with no parents left. So I took him in as my apprentice. It was at that time that I set a goal for myself: to break the rules of the world together with your second senior brother in the future, so that ordinary people could also have the ability to protect themselves."

It turned out to be like this...

Gao Zhixian was actually an orphan of that war. No wonder Gao Zhixian's face showed some sadness when he talked about the war twenty years ago.

"And I have this idea not only for your senior brother, but also for the future of China."

"Since the birth of the secret realm two hundred years ago, and the awakening of professionals all over the world, whether it is the four continents of the east, west, south, and north, or the most expansive central continent, there are many forces, and the struggle and erosion between them has never stopped."

"As for the Eastern Continent alone, although we Chinese are united, it is not without other forces that have followed suit and grown."

"Later, the Chinese government secretly established a corresponding agency to sow discord, which is why there were few powerful forces in the Eastern Continent."

As Meng Wenbin finished speaking, he couldn't help but glance at Lin Manman, who was listening intently.

Politics, like the world, is never black and white. Often, in order to protect their own country, those in power will resort to some dishonest means.

He hoped she would understand sooner rather than later that this world is not a place where one can rest easy simply because one has the bigger fist.

"In fact, whether it was the Beast Emperor's Kingdom more than 20 years ago, or these guys who call themselves the Beast Tamer Alliance but are actually remnants of the Beast Emperor's Kingdom, they all have the shadow of other continental forces behind them."

"We can think of sowing discord among other forces to prevent them from growing stronger and thus threatening us. Others can naturally think of the same thing. It's not just the Beast King's Heavenly Kingdom; there are other rapidly developing forces on the Eastern Continent that have some connections with other continental powers."

Meng Wenbin sighed deeply, "Using you to lure out their headquarters was an accident, but also a last resort."

"Fan Chengye, who captured you, is now the leader of the remnants of the Beast Emperor's Heavenly Kingdom. He took his father's research on spirit beasts to the Central Continent to exchange for enough support and resources, and then sneaked back to the Eastern Continent."

"He was more cunning and treacherous than his father. Instead of developing his power openly, he chose to infiltrate the main urban areas of China and then use the principle of hiding in the dark to quietly develop his power around China."

Upon hearing this, Lin Manman thought of Wu Anbang and quickly interrupted him, asking, "Since you know Wu Anbang has problems, haven't you taken any measures regarding Jinling city?"

More than understanding the whole story, she was concerned about the safety of her family in the city.

Startled by the interruption, Meng Wenbin paused for a moment, then suddenly burst into laughter. "So you didn't go straight back to Jinling last night because you were worried that Wu Anbang and the garrison would threaten your safety?"

These words left Lin Manman bewildered. Wasn't that true?

"Hahaha." Seeing Lin Manman's silly expression, Meng Wenbin found it rather cute and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Do you think we could deliver messages to you without Wu Anbang?"

Lin Manman's eyes widened, and at that moment, many fragmented and disconnected pieces of information in her mind seemed to come together.

Fan Chengye had been in contact with Wu Anbang for a long time and used Wu Anbang's wife's life to force him to side with him.

When Wu Jingfeng came to Jinling to help capture Fan Chengye because of her, Wu Jingyu and Xia Ming already knew that Wu Anbang's wife might have been murdered, so it was impossible for him not to know this news.

Considering his warning to her to be careful before leaving, it suggests that he was already aware of the crisis in Jinling and likely knew that Meng Wenbin and others had made corresponding arrangements for Jinling.

However, given the relationship between Wu Jingfeng and Wu Anbang, it is completely unreasonable for him not to help his friend find out the truth or prevent him from making mistakes, but instead to help Wu Anbang put on a show and pretend to eliminate the part of Fan Chengye's exposed influence.

The only explanation is that Wu Anbang had already sent the message to the capital. Meng Wenbin, Wu Jingfeng, and her third senior brother Fu Mingyuan, who came to rescue her last night, were not there for any new secret realm. They came to eliminate the remnants of the Beast Emperor Heavenly Kingdom led by Fan Chengye!

"So, when the eldest brother came to Jinling before, he cooperated with Wu Anbang in staging a play... to help Wu Anbang gain the trust of Fan Chengye?"

Lin Manman found it hard to believe. Just a few days ago, she had cursed Wu Anbang and his ancestors, and today he was suddenly exonerated.

Meng Wenbin looked at her approvingly, "Not bad. Fan Chengye is a very suspicious person. Although he controlled Wu Anbang through Xiao Xiao, he only asked Wu Anbang to provide him with convenience in Jinling City. He did not truly accept Wu Anbang as a member of their organization."

"Wu Anbang was unable to obtain the exact location of their base, and it just so happened that you caught Fan Chengye's attention at this time. Wu Anbang took advantage of your status as my apprentice to stage this defection act."

Meng Wenbin suddenly remembered something and asked in surprise, "You don't actually think that my plan was to get you caught by Fan Chengye this time, do you?"

Lin Manman also realized that if Wu Anbang had used her to gain Fan Chengye's trust and infiltrated Fan Chengye's base long ago, then there would be no need for her to act as bait.

So the only time she acted as bait was during the Junior Professional Tournament, to help Wu Anbang obtain the location of Fan Chengye's stronghold...

Her being caught by Fan Chengye this time was truly an accident.

Seeing that she had been as cold as ice before, but now she was as quiet as a chicken, Meng Wenbin understood everything.

He was so angry his beard almost flew off his face. "You, you... I thought you were angry that your teacher didn't save you in time. Who knew you thought such a bad thing about me?"

Lin Manman shrank her shoulders guiltily. There were too many coincidences in her arrest this time. How could she possibly understand Wu Anbang's matter? Wasn't it only natural that she would misunderstand?

(End of this chapter)