The Dragon Blood Horse has powerful muscles and is entirely crimson, rumored to have dragon blood flowing through its veins.
An adult Dragon Blood Horse can rival a second-tier warrior in strength, and those with good talent can even match a third-tier warrior.
Logically, as a wild magical beast, a Dragon Blood Horse should not easily become a human mount. If the nobles in Quartz City, high above, were to see this scene in the valley, they would surely widen their eyes in astonishment.
Humans can tame magical beasts, but mostly weaker, more docile ones, such as the Misty Hounds raised by the Wilson Family. Taming a Dragon Blood Horse is practically impossible.
"Master!"
Ze Kai entered the valley. Along the way, the busy people, seeing his iconic Shura mask, greeted him in unison, their faces filled with reverence.
These people were originally Slaves, purchased by Ze Kai from the Slave market.
He did not immediately destroy the Slave contracts on them; only those who earned enough merit could have their Slave contracts removed, like Andre and others.
The village was not large, with only five or six hundred people in total. Ze Kai quickly arrived at the very back of the village, a pasture.
Dozens of Dragon Blood Horses roamed leisurely, without any of the aura of a magical beast; they had been completely tamed.
At the entrance to the pasture, a fierce tiger, the size of a house, lay sleeping on the ground.
The tiger's fur was blue and white, resembling ripples, and it had a pair of magnificent wings on its back, covering its body like a blanket. Although its eyes were closed, the aura of a fourth-tier magical beast was not restrained in the slightest.
"This is... a Brilliant Winged Tiger. Is it a newly tamed magical beast?"
Ze Kai looked at the magical beast before him with some surprise. It was indeed very imposing.
As if sensing Ze Kai's gaze, the Brilliant Winged Tiger opened its eyes, and a terrifying aura began to spread. Its tiger eyes stared intently at Ze Kai, as if it could pounce at any moment.
Ze Kai was not afraid and met its gaze. The Dragon Blood Horse beneath him seemed to sense something and also settled down.
"No! Miao Miao!"
A slightly angry female voice came from a distance. Immediately after, a young girl riding a Dragon Blood Horse blocked the Brilliant Winged Tiger's path.
"Miao Miao, the Young Master is the Master, you must not be rude!" the girl shouted in a sweet voice.
Upon hearing the girl's reprimand, the Brilliant Winged Tiger's magical beast aura dissipated. It lowered its body like a docile cat and slowly approached her.
"That's right, it's good that you know you were wrong."
The girl stroked the Brilliant Winged Tiger's head, plucked a small Dango from her face, and tossed it to the Brilliant Winged Tiger.
The Brilliant Winged Tiger's eyes lit up, and it immediately opened its mouth, swallowing the not-so-large Dango. A look of joy instantly appeared on its face.
Only after all this did the girl have time to turn around and ride her horse towards Ze Kai.
At this moment, Ze Kai finally saw her full face. The girl's skin was clear and snow-white, with a hint of baby fat, as if nourished by natural spiritual energy, making one want to pinch her cheek.
Her eyes were deep emerald green, hiding liveliness and playfulness. The most unique feature was her pointed, very distinctive ears.
That's right, the girl was an Elf.
"Young Master!" the girl called out excitedly.
"Alice, long time no see." Ze Kai also greeted her.
"This Brilliant Winged Tiger is no ordinary magical beast. How did you tame it?" Ze Kai asked curiously.
Alice's eyes flashed with thought as she said, "This is my fate with Miao Miao. A few months ago, Miao Miao was severely injured by a sixth-tier magical beast and fled to the outskirts of the Misty Forest, where she happened to meet me."
No wonder. An adult Brilliant Winged Tiger is a sixth-tier magical beast. This one, still in its juvenile state, is already a fourth-tier magical beast. It's a magical beast with immense potential, usually residing in the central area of the Misty Forest, making it difficult to encounter.
Of course, even if one encountered it, ordinary people couldn't tame it. Alice's ability to tame it was entirely thanks to the Devil Fruit Ze Kai gave her—the Dango Fruit.
In the Pirate World, Kozuki Hiyori's Devil Fruit in Wano Country could turn ferocious beasts into docile pets.
In this Alien Continent teeming with magical beasts, the Dango Fruit was also a Devil Fruit with an extremely high upper limit.
At first, Ze Kai himself was a bit tempted, but upon careful thought, it was completely unnecessary. There were so many Devil Fruits, and the best ones were those that suited him.
The pasture was not a place for conversation. Andre and others left to do their own things, and Ze Kai followed Alice back to her home.
Alice was the acting manager of the village; Andre and others were only responsible for protecting the village.
In the fresh-aired room, Alice brewed a pot of tea for Ze Kai and was surprised to find that he had already removed his Shura mask.
"Young Master, you are so young!" Alice exclaimed.
Ze Kai was already accustomed to others' exclamations. He smiled and did not dwell on the topic.
"Alice, report on the village's situation."
Saying this, he picked up the steaming tea and drank it.
This tea was brewed from tea leaves personally dried by Alice. Its taste was fresh, with a natural fragrance, and drinking it relaxed the mind and brought a sense of peace.
Alice stared at Ze Kai's face for a long time. Hearing Ze Kai's words, she finally began to report the situation, but while reporting, she couldn't help but steal glances at Ze Kai's excessively handsome face.
"The village currently has 654 people, 7 third-tier warriors, 25 second-tier warriors, 53 first-tier warriors. Besides that, there is 1 fourth-tier magical beast, 12 third-tier magical beasts, 45 second-tier magical beasts, and 11 underage first-tier magical beasts..."
Alice briefly described the village's situation. She had all this information memorized and spoke clearly and fluently.
Ze Kai listened attentively to Alice's report, feeling a sense of pride.
He hadn't been idle for the past four years. The arrangements for the Tulip Dream Workshop and the arena were merely incidental; this border village was his primary focus.
These villagers were all former Slaves, including Alice, and their loyalty was very high, as Ze Kai controlled their lives and deaths.
With his four years of financial support and the help of Devil Fruits, they had already become a respectable force.
Zoan Devil Fruits were the most numerous type of Devil Fruit, but Ze Kai's backpack contained none, precisely because they had all been used to train his subordinates.
Andre and the others were Zoan Devil Fruit users. Although they couldn't cultivate Haki, cultivating Battle Aura was just as effective.
Devil Fruits and Battle Aura did not conflict.
Ze Kai put down his teacup, and Alice immediately refilled it.
"Alice, we should leave this place. I need you to organize the villagers. We will set off in a few days."
Alice's eyes were full of confusion, but she didn't ask why.
She simply responded with a gentle 'Okay'.