Ming Dynasty: Gain one supernatural power every day

Zhu Gaoxi nodded and waved to the side. Several officials brought out the ants, grasshoppers, and earthworms they had dug up earlier, piling them up in a large pile in the center of the drill ground.

The soldiers below craned their necks, wondering what this divine prince was going to do.

Zhu Gaoxu stood to the side, his eyes fixed on the insects, his palms sweating with excitement.

He had already spoken with the fourth brother and agreed that he wanted a white tiger. After all, he was the commander of the vanguard battalion, so his mount naturally had to be the most imposing.

Thinking of this, he moved closer to his fourth brother and lowered his voice to confirm again, "Fourth brother, it's White Tiger, it's a promise!"

During previous discussions in the military camp, Zhu Di had asked his fourth son if he could conjure up a dragon.

After learning that dragons are mythical creatures and that monkey talismans cannot conjure them, the brothers felt a little regretful. After all, if they could conjure dragons, their whole family could ride them into battle, which would be recorded in history books and could even be said to be unique throughout the ages.

But regrets aside, riding a tiger or lion is impressive enough and enough to make one famous for all time.

Zhu Gaoxu exclaimed, "The white tiger is perfect! If it weren't for our fourth brother, how could we even imagine riding a tiger into battle? Father, let's take the tiger! The whole family can ride tigers together!"

Zhu Di and the others nodded quickly, after all, they weren't ungrateful.

Zhu Gaoxi immediately made the decision: the imperial family's mounts should be tigers, and his father and several brothers would be paired with tigers.

Several generals were paired with lions, which are considered half the king of beasts and are no less powerful than tigers on the battlefield; the lower-ranking generals and soldiers were all paired with rhinoceroses; and the generals of the logistics and supply battalion were paired with elephants, which are strong and can carry grain and fodder.

These military officers had never expected to be assigned these ferocious beasts, since they had never made any contribution to His Highness Prince Rui. At this moment, they were so excited that they all knelt down on one knee, clasped their fists and shouted that they were loyal to him to the death, and repeatedly promised to help His Highness find what His Highness wanted.

Back on the training ground, everyone's eyes were focused on the pile of insects.

The soldiers had heard countless rumors about Prince Rui, but very few had actually seen him in person.

Today we can finally witness it with our own eyes; no one wants to miss it.

Zhu Gaoxi raised his right hand, and the divine power of the monkey talisman condensed at his fingertips, golden light flowing from them. With a casual flick of his finger, the golden light poured out, enveloping the ants and earthworms on the ground.

The tiny insects rapidly swelled and deformed in the golden light, like deep-fried food thrown into a pan of oil, instantly expanding dozens or even hundreds of times in size. Their black shells shed, revealing mottled fur; their slender antennae transformed into robust limbs.

In the blink of an eye, their tiny bodies transformed into mighty beasts: tigers crouched on the ground and roared, while lions shook their manes.

The entire drill ground was completely silent.

Several veterans in the front row stared wide-eyed, nearly dropping their spears. After a brief silence, a deafening roar erupted across the drill ground once more.

"The ant turned into a tiger..."

"His Highness Prince Rui is truly a divine being!"

"You don't need to tell me, everyone knows His Highness Prince Rui is a deity..."

Zhu Gaoxi stepped forward and, starting with Zhu Di, instantly drew a very thin stream of blood from each person's body and flicked it into the bodies of the ferocious beasts in front of them.

The Beast Taming Technique was activated, and a mental connection was established in their minds. Everyone felt a link between themselves and their mounts on the field.

The men rushed forward to check on their mounts. Zhu Di, Zhu Gaoxu, Zhu Gaochi, and Zhu Gaosui each approached their tigers.

Those tigers were already taller than a person when they were lying down, and they were even more terrifying when they stood up. They were more than twelve feet tall from head to tail, with a shoulder height of nearly six feet. Their thick limbs were like four stone pillars, and their tiger tails swept slowly across the ground like steel whips.

Weighing at least seven or eight hundred pounds, its muscles bulged beneath its fur, and just standing there it exuded the aura of the king of beasts. Its eyes were like copper bells, and a low growl rolled from its throat, causing the ground to tremble slightly.

Zhu Gaoxu circled the white tiger twice, looked up at its shoulders and back, which were taller than his own, and couldn't help but gasp: "My goodness, how come the character '王' (king) is so big? This tiger is so fierce, I want to hug this tiger and sleep..."

He became increasingly satisfied with his inspection, but then something occurred to him. He glanced down at the tiger's belly, and his smile faltered for a moment: "A female? That won't do, because we already have one at home..."

Besides, it's not like he hasn't ridden a tigress before.

Zhu Gaochi and Zhu Gaosui each stood in front of their own tiger, carefully reaching out to touch its body. The tiger skin was warm and rough, and their fingertips could feel the hot blood surging beneath.

Zhu Gaochi rarely spoke with emotion, saying, "Thanks to my fourth brother, I never dared to dream of riding a tiger in my lifetime. We must do our best for him."

Zhu Gaosui nodded: "Eldest brother is right. Fourth brother is so good to us, we should be even more attentive to him."

Zhu Gaochi looked at his tiger and suddenly said, "This tiger truly deserves to be called the king of beasts. Look at its head, it's so big and round."

Zhu Gaosui subconsciously replied, "Look at this body, it's so long and wide."

After saying that, Zhu Gaosui showed a rare look of confusion, thinking, "Why did I say that?" Maybe the King of Zhao was also a time traveler, but he had lost his memory, and he must have been a rapper before he time traveled, the kind who made up stories.

Zhu Di stood beside his tiger and reached out to stroke its head. The tiger obediently lowered its head to let him touch it, its eyes half-closed, and let out a comfortable roar.

He remained outwardly calm, but his mind was racing: "Even the king of beasts bows down to me; I truly am the Son of Heaven."

Zhu Gaoxi: Old Zhu Di, you're patting yourself on the back again. Without me, you would have been food long ago.

Hearing his two sons chatting beside him, Zhu Di stroked the tiger and casually remarked, "Hmm, you two really need to help your fourth brother a lot. Of course, I will certainly help him as well."

The sons all nodded in agreement, their expressions sincere. As for who was helping whom, everyone present had their own opinion.

To be honest, if it weren't for the fact that the Tang Dynasty next door had a divine son, why would Little Fourth Brother be your son?

The military officers beside them were even more excited.

Zheng Heng circled his lion several times, sometimes touching its mane, sometimes patting its front paws, muttering, "This lion is so fierce."

Xue Lu went even further, squatting down to examine the lion's paws, then standing up to touch its head, before turning back to Zhang Fu and shouting, "Old Zhang, look at my lion! Its paws are bigger than my face!"

"It's really big, I reckon one swipe could kill you," Zhang Fu said casually as he was busy examining the mane of his lion.

"What are you talking about? I shouldn't have told you." Xue Lu was stunned when he heard this. What did he mean by "kill me with one slap"?

Yang Ji, Jian Fang, and their cousin Xu Jingchang from Prince Rui's residence each led a lion. Xu Jingchang stood next to his lion, smiled, and cupped his hands in greeting to Zhu Gaoxi: "Cousin, I'm just basking in your glory."

The soldiers below watched with envy, but a wild beast is not a horse, and no one dared to approach recklessly.

Before long, everyone had mounted their beast mounts.

Zhu Di rode his golden tiger with black stripes, leading the way in the middle without hesitation. Zhu Gaochi followed closely behind, with Zhu Gaoxu and Zhu Gaosui on either side. Further out were Zhang Fu, Zheng Heng, Xue Lu, and the officials of the Prince Rui's mansion, all riding lions.

As for Zhu Gaoxi, he sat on the clouds to the side watching them. After all, if he summoned Little Gold, it would probably scare these beasts to death.

A group of people surrounded the royal family in the center and slowly surveyed the training ground.

Wherever they went, the soldiers all looked up, their eyes following the ferocious beasts. With each step the beasts took, the ground trembled slightly, and their deep roars, mixed with the soldiers' murmurs, sent shivers down their spines.

The soldiers below couldn't contain themselves and started whispering among themselves.

"When will I be able to ride this lion? Being able to ride such a beast would make my life worthwhile."

Another soldier chimed in, his eyes fixed on the lions and tigers, his voice trembling with envy: "I'm so envious. If I could ride a lion into battle, I'd die happy."

An old soldier next to him tapped him with the shaft of his spear: "You wish. Those who get selected are probably the best from each battalion. You should focus on riding your horse properly first."

The soldier scratched the back of his head and chuckled twice, but his gaze remained fixed on the beasts, unable to look away.