66: Chapter 66 Knowing When to Stop, Custom-Made Inner Armor

"Riiip..."

"Earth Dog, slow down. Don't tear the snake skin. This thing is worth a lot more if sold in one piece—fetching tens of thousands of federal currency shouldn't be a problem!"

Qin Ding and the Sha Jin Wolf pulled downward in sync, one using his hands and the other using its teeth. It took over ten minutes to peel the Scaly Python's skin off completely.

Before long, Qin Ding coiled the scaled skin of the Scaly Python and stored it in his Storage Ring.

The ten-cubic-meter space of the Storage Ring was indeed large enough that he could even coil up the Scaly Python and store it inside without wasting a single bit.

Though, he might need to cut it slightly, and the Emerald-horned Deer would likely need to be butchered as well.

As for the rest, it didn't matter; taking the best parts was enough.

"Awoo!" [Let's start by eating this snake first!]

After finishing his work with Qin Ding, Dahei immediately used his black claws to slice open the Scaly Python's abdomen. The first thing he ate was the snake heart, followed by the gallbladder; he didn't eat things like the intestines.

In just a few minutes, the Sha Jin Wolf had eaten all the internal organs of the Scaly Python. Finished with that, the Sha Jin Wolf immediately turned around to deal with the Emerald-horned Deer.

"Finished eating?"

"Woo..." [Finished, and I'm full too. Boss, should we take all this meat with us...]

Qin Ding glanced at the Earth Dog, who was walking toward him with meat scraps falling from the corners of his mouth.

"Fine. Your claws are quite sharp. After draining the blood, butcher it. The Emerald-horned Deer was crushed to death, so there's a lot of bruised blood inside."

As soon as these words were spoken, Dahei—who had just been asking with a tone of negotiation—instantly perked up and immediately turned to wave his claws.

The four deer legs and the head were separated from the body instantly. The speed and precision were such that, in Qin Ding's view, it looked like the Earth Dog had just circled the Emerald-horned Deer once.

Next was the Scaly Python. Without the scales and the tough skin, the Sha Jin Wolf found it even easier to butcher than the Emerald-horned Deer.

In almost no time, the butchering of the two spirit beasts was completed by Master Sha.

"Awoo." [Boss, where are we going next? The sun seems to be setting.]

Qin Ding, who was stuffing the meat into the Storage Ring piece by piece, didn't even turn his head as he replied, "Going home."

"The harvest this time is huge, so we won't stay in the wild any longer. Quit while you're ahead. We'll go back, you can eat the food, and next time, when we're stronger, we'll come back to the wild."

Qin Ding paused, then continued, "But before we go back, we need to wash up. Remember that river from earlier? We'll go wash there, and then we'll head back."

Dahei, who hadn't expected this trip to end so abruptly, was completely stunned. The anticipation in his wolf eyes for the night ahead froze instantly.

Huh? We're just going back? We're not staying in the wild? Didn't you say we were going back tomorrow?

Little Dahei couldn't understand why things had changed so drastically. Hadn't they just been slaughtering everything and reaping the rewards? Why were they suddenly leaving...

"Woo." [Alright, Boss.]

Hearing this muttering, which sounded exactly like a child reluctantly compromising, Qin Ding turned around and rolled his eyes.

He knew Dahei understood what he meant, but Dahei was a wolf, and he had seen blood more than once—be it from spirit beasts or people, more than once.

His wild nature had been awakened, so it was natural that it might lead to a situation where he got 'carried away.'

"Alright, it's not like we're only coming once. Are you stupid? There will be plenty of opportunities to come in the future..."

Qin Ding's words hit the nail on the head. The Earth Dog, who had been slightly dejected, recovered his spirits almost instantly upon hearing that they would come back again, and many times at that.

Clearly a majestic wolf, he was now acting like a pug, sticking his tongue out and leaning in, nuzzling Qin Ding's pant leg over and over, much to Qin Ding's disgust.

"Awoo!" [As expected of Boss, so farsighted!]

"You stupid dog, you're wiping all the blood and filth on me! Stop nudging!"

"Woo." [Boss, Boss, just a little longer, Boss.]

"Hiss..." Dusk. Beast Taming Street, Yangyang Weapon Shop.

The shopkeeper looked at the familiar face entering his shop as if he had seen a ghost. Seeing Qin Ding about to open his mouth, he interrupted him immediately.

"Let's get this straight: once weapon customization begins, there's no turning back. And once it's finished, the final payment must be made. You've already gone through these steps, and you took the weapon a while ago."

"Young man, this item cannot be returned, let me tell you. The federal government stands with us merchants on this point."

Qin Ding stood there blankly for a moment listening, smacked his lips, and looked at the righteous shopkeeper with a very complicated expression.

"Boss, is it possible that I'm here to customize something else?"

The shopkeeper was stunned for a moment upon hearing this. As he sized Qin Ding up and saw that complicated look in his eyes, he realized the situation awkwardly and apologized with a smile.

"Heh, hehe, don't mind me, young man, I'm just used to it. After all, in the custom weapon business, there are actually quite a few people who come to cause trouble. The most common case is that the weapon is made according to requirements, but those young people can't lift it and then come to ask for a refund..."

"You're a student too, right? You must have seen this kind of situation in school. You can understand me, right?"

Qin Ding turned his head slightly, avoiding the shopkeeper's eager gaze. To be honest, he didn't know; at school, other than cultivating and eating the free meals provided by the school, he didn't know anything else.

Now that things were clear, Qin Ding couldn't be bothered to dwell on such matters. He placed his arm on the counter and tapped it lightly.

"Boss, do you accept Scaly Python scales here? The kind that comes with the skin. Do you do custom inner armor?"

"Scaly Python?"

The shopkeeper was stunned at first upon hearing the term, but then his eyes instantly lit up.

"We do, we do! Weapon shops also take on this kind of armor business. But I have to ask: what level is the Scaly Python? How long is it? When skinning it, how was the damage and integrity?"

Looking at the shopkeeper, whose demeanor, attitude, and eyes changed completely the moment business was mentioned, Qin Ding couldn't help but take a second look.

"Level 17, no damage, ten meters long. I need three pieces of soft inner armor: one for a man and two for women. The processing fee can be deducted from the remaining material value. What do you think?"

The shopkeeper didn't speak after hearing the specs. He put on a thoughtful expression, rubbing his fingers, his brows furrowing and relaxing, while the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

Qin Ding wasn't in a hurry. On the way here, he had roughly checked the price of the Scaly Python materials online. A ten-meter-long Level 17 specimen could probably sell for about 50,000 to 60,000 federal currency and could likely produce five sets of inner armor.

Soon, the shopkeeper's furrowed brows relaxed, and he smiled. "One for a man and two for women, right? I just need the height and weight data to customize it. If the processing fee is covered by the materials, I can still give you 15,000 federal currency. Young man, what do you think?"

Hearing this number, Qin Ding didn't hesitate and nodded directly. "Shall I take the items out for you now?"

"The shop floor is quite large, just put it anywhere on the open ground. Then fill in the height and weight data. The inner armor is adjustable; as long as the data is correct, there will absolutely be no issue with it not fitting."

"As for the time, it will take about three weeks. Young man, just come back to pick it up then."

Qin Ding nodded slightly upon hearing this. Three weeks was no problem at all; as long as it was before school started, it would be fine.