It was the morning of the second day of climbing the mountain to gather spiritual herbs, and Zhao Xing was not in a hurry to go to the Temple of Divinity.
While keeping an eye on the cave, he gathered materials on the spot to prepare for the plan to lure the tiger away from the mountain.
If the fierce beast inside the cave went out to hunt for food, that would be excellent; he could take the opportunity to sneak in and steal away.
If it did not come out, then he would have to draw it out.
Fortunately, the Grass and Wood Soldiers had already reached the fourth transformation. There were many types of vines and willow branches on this mountain, so he was not lacking in materials for the scarecrow.
Zhao Xing did not intend to use the Great Strength Diamond, as the Diamond Bamboo was difficult to replenish in a short time.
Faced with the strange beast, he could not match its strength, so what Zhao Xing needed to supplement now was the Divine Walking Scarecrow.
"Go and bring me some stones."
Zhao Xing ordered the Grass and Wood Soldiers.
"Go catch some wild rabbits, mountain mice, and wild boars."
Zhao Xing then commanded the Great Strength Diamond.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~
The Grass and Wood Soldiers began to execute the orders.
Zhao Xing then stepped back, moving further away from the cave.
He found a patch of soil.
From the Wenzhu box, he took out two types of seedlings.
The Wenzhu box was given to him by Xue Wenzhong and Chen Shijie two days before entering the mountain. Zhao Xing spent some time cultivating some of the seeds into seedlings.
Now that he had a task, he could use them immediately.
"If this strange beast eats meat, then I will get some meat for it."
"If it is herbivorous, then these vine-scented berries and passion grass should attract its attention."
Both types of plants were of the second-tier lower grade.
The vine-scented berries and passion grass had one main effect: they were addictive and delicious!
They had a considerable allure for herbivorous strange beasts.
Looking at the dry bones in the cave, Zhao Xing felt that the likelihood of the strange beast eating meat was higher, but the vine-scented berries and passion grass also had some effect on carnivorous strange beasts, albeit to a lesser extent.
"Flowing Cloud!"
Zhao Xing's Flowing Cloud had already reached the ninth transformation, and after breaking through to Gathered Essence Sixth Level, its control had greatly increased.
Now, this Flowing Cloud was as large as a bed, and its height could be controlled relatively low, with vital Qi condensing without dispersing, so it would not cause any disturbance.
"Rainfall!"
Drip, drip, drip~
Rain began to nourish the seedlings.
"Grow strong!"
The fully leveled "Grow Strong" caused the seedlings to begin to change.
The spiritual mountain had sufficient earth energy, and Zhao Xing did not use the Earth Vein Comprehensive Essence, as the growth cycle of these two plants was not long. Once they entered the growth phase, he could use Wild Growth without wasting vital Qi on the Earth Vein Comprehensive Essence.
An hour later, the passion grass and vine-scented berries both entered their growth phase.
Zhao Xing opened his eyes and began to cast spells.
"Wild Growth!"
The two types of plants began to grow at a visible speed, with the passion grass quickly blooming and bearing fruit, emitting a faint fragrance.
"Wind!"
Zhao Xing gathered a circular wind wall around him to control the fragrance from dispersing, to avoid attracting other beasts.
After completing all this, he waited quietly for the two types of plants to mature.
At the same time, he closely monitored the movements at the cave entrance.
"I hope this strange beast is hungry and goes out to find something to eat..." Zhao Xing prayed in his heart.
If that happened, it would be the best; he would not have to waste the Grass and Wood Soldiers or time.
Time slowly passed.
As noon approached, the passion grass had already matured, and the berries had produced a second batch, but there was still no movement in the cave.
"What kind of strange beast is so lazy, sleeping until noon?" Zhao Xing complained, "Could it be that it hunts at night and sleeps during the day?"
However, even so, Zhao Xing continued to wait patiently.
"As long as I reach the Temple of Divinity before the hour of the rat, it will be fine."
"If I have gains today, I can compete for the first incense."
"If there are not many gains, I will compete for the top ten incense."
There must be a Temple of Divinity on the spiritual mountain, and gathering spiritual herbs on the spiritual mountain was uncertain.
Where were the spiritual herbs? How to gather them? Everything was unknown.
Just searching blindly, relying solely on luck, few people would have gains.
Even if they found a place, they might not be able to gather anything.
For example, the expert riding the bamboo horse, Zhao Xing had already seen it bouncing around the mountain gorge for most of the day.
And now, the spiritual herbs in the cave were guarded by a strange beast.
To ensure he had gains, climbers must first go to the Temple of Divinity to offer incense and seek guidance.
After the hour of the rat each day, the True Lord in the temple would reveal himself, telling climbers where the spiritual herbs were and how to obtain them.
The first incense was the best, with the highest possibility of obtaining the spiritual herbs.
The subsequent effects would weaken in order and would face the True Lord's tests.
On the first night, Zhao Xing did not compete for incense.
On the second night, he planned to participate.
However, it was still early before the hour of the rat, just past noon, so he was not in a hurry.
"How long does this senior intend to keep us here? Are we supposed to stay here as long as he doesn't leave?" Fang Jie muttered quietly.
"Are you afraid?" Zhou Gang asked.
"Yes!" Fang Jie replied honestly, "That senior's strength is profound; he can escape from the jaws of a strange beast, but you and I cannot be so sure. If we continue to stay here..."
Zhou Gang thought for a moment and nodded, "I'll go ask."
But as soon as he got up, he heard the nearby Grass and Wood Soldier turn and leave, while a voice carried on the wind: "The next movements will be quite large; you two may leave on your own. If fate allows, we shall meet before the temple tonight."
"Thank you, senior." Zhou Gang and Fang Jie were overjoyed and quickly left.
As the time approached the hour of the monkey, the patient Zhao Xing could no longer hold back.
He seriously suspected that the strange beast hunted at night and slept during the day.
Continuing to wait was a waste of time, so he began the plan to lure the tiger away from the mountain.
First, he used two Divine Walking Scarecrows as a group, moving them closer to the cave, and began to alternately throw stones and the captured small animals, as well as the vine-scented berries into the cave.
There was no reaction when he threw stones, nor when he threw small animals.
But when he threw the vine-scented berries, there was finally a reaction from inside the cave.
A shadow quickly darted out, heading straight for the Grass and Wood Soldier that had thrown the items.
It was still fast enough to become a blur, but Zhao Xing, staying at a distance, finally caught a glimpse of the strange beast's appearance.
"It’s actually... a lynx cub?"
The lynx was quite small, which completely did not match the identity of the cave's master.
However, the plan was still in progress.
The two groups of Divine Walking Scarecrows had not run far before they were destroyed by the lynx.
After confirming that the berries had an effect on it, Zhao Xing decisively ordered the second group of scarecrows, standing a hundred meters away, to stand up and throw fruits in the direction of the lynx.
"Swish~" The lynx indeed rushed towards the second group of scarecrows; it did not charge at the people, but while snatching the fruit, its claws lightly touched the scarecrow, causing it to collapse.
But it was fine; soon a third group of scarecrows stood up not far away, continuing to attract the lynx.
Just like that, in an instant, the lynx had already appeared three miles away.
Three miles was the control limit of the scarecrows.
But Zhao Xing was not in a hurry; along the way, he transplanted the passion grass, connecting them in a line to attract it to walk further away, with the ultimate goal of luring the lynx to the area where he had planted the vine-scented berries.
"Almost there, take action!"
(End of Chapter)