Chapter 204 - 3: Taming the War Rhinoceros and a New Paper

Chapter 204: Chapter 3: Taming the War Rhinoceros and a New Paper

With the enhanced vision granted by his [Insightful Secret Eye], he had noticed Andy spying on him from the very first glance.

But he didn’t care.

’Let him watch all he wants!’

After all, this technique of making a War Rhinoceros’s eyes flutter shut in comfort with just a few casual strokes was something no one could learn just by watching.

This wasn’t brushing at all. It was a massage.

Every time the brush touched the skin of the War Rhinoceros, Kent, Mo Ning would discreetly cast the Trick [Vibration], releasing a wave at a specific frequency.

That Vibration penetrated the War Rhinoceros’s thick hide, reaching deep into the muscle. It not only effectively relaxed muscle fibers and alleviated fatigue, but also accelerated blood circulation and promoted tissue repair.

In short, the benefits were numerous.

At first glance, it might seem like all he had to do was mindlessly cast the Trick on the War Rhinoceros.

But the reality was far more complex.

The true key lay in the frequency of the Vibration.

Not just any frequency could truly relax the muscles, and certainly not just any random frequency could make a War Rhinoceros’s eyes flutter shut in comfort.

An improper frequency, on the other hand, could make the War Rhinoceros uncomfortable, or even cause it harm.

To achieve this, Mo Ning first spent several days carefully observing Kent, gradually building a ’War Rhinoceros muscle model’.

It was impossible to ascertain the precise condition of every muscle with the naked eye alone, of course.

But Mo Ning had an ace up his sleeve.

This ’ace’ allowed him to perceive the most subtle contractions and expansions of the skin, enabling him to deduce the shape and location of the underlying muscles.

Then, through rigorous calculations and deductions using Divination, he unraveled the connections between different muscles, organizing those in the same region into muscle groups.

After dozens of ’calculate-revise-recalculate’ cycles, the first version of the muscle model was finally complete.

The next step was to find the right frequency for the Vibration.

This wasn’t an ordinary physical vibration, but a complex Tier Two Magic Vibration.

Physical vibrations require time to travel, but a Magic Vibration could affect every single muscle fiber instantly. Its Effect was more than ten times stronger than a Tier One Vibration.

This step relied entirely on calculations using Divination, which just so happened to be Mo Ning’s greatest strength.

The result of these Divination calculations was the first version of his muscle vibration model.

Of course, there were bound to be discrepancies between the theoretical data and the actual reality.

He had to repeatedly test his theory in practice, identify the errors, and revise the model until it was perfect.

Mo Ning still vividly remembered the moment, two weeks ago, when he first picked up the brush and, while the War Rhinoceros wasn’t looking, gently stroked it across Kent’s body.

The War Rhinoceros, Kent, suddenly whipped its head around, a flash of alarm in its large eyes.

It glanced at the unfamiliar brush, its eyes filled with a hint of confusion. ’What is this?’

For years, the Taming Center had always used Witchcraft to clean the War Rhinoceros, so they had never seen a brush before.

Mo Ning seized the opportunity. Following the optimal frequency he had calculated, he quickly cast the Trick [Vibration].

Magic Power, carrying the specific vibrational frequency, instantly reached every corner of that muscle.

The next moment.

Something interesting happened.

Kent’s eyes shot wide open, a single word clearly written in them—shock!

A strange, tingling numbness washed over its entire body. It wasn’t unpleasant at all; on the contrary, it felt exceptionally relaxing.

It instinctively took half a step toward Mo Ning, pressing its body closer.

The body language couldn’t have been clearer. ’That feels amazing! Do it again!’

Mo Ning couldn’t help but smile.

With such a promising start, the rest of the process went smoothly.

After just three days and two rounds of revisions, he had a complete muscle vibration model.

With this technique, Mo Ning had easily ’cured’ the War Rhinoceros Kent’s foul temper.

’Hey, buddy, want me to give you a brushing? Then you’d better behave!’

’And how could Andy possibly learn this entire, painstakingly developed muscle vibration model just by sneaking a few glances from the side?’

’Besides, with Andy’s abilities, he probably couldn’t even cast an Apprentice Level, Tier Two Magic Vibration.’

Of course, Mo Ning hadn’t researched the muscle vibration model just to tame a War Rhinoceros.

Knowledge had value.

And at the academy, knowledge could be monetized with extraordinary speed—all one had to do was write a paper to earn a considerable fee.

Compared to Andy’s miserable days working at the Taming Center, getting bullied by a War Rhinoceros to the point of tears, this was a much faster way to make money.

Mo Ning had even drafted the title for his research paper:

"A Study on the Muscle Vibration Model of the Iron-Horned War Rhinoceros Using Divination—A Practical Method for Taming and a New Approach to Promoting the Development of Spiritual Creatures."

He could easily foresee that the academy’s various taming centers would be very interested in this paper.

Therefore, including the word ’Practical’ in the title was perfectly justified.

The muscle vibration model did indeed aid the War Rhinoceros’s development—a fact he had only discovered in the past few days.

Since he had discovered it, he naturally had to research it further, which would also serve to maximize the paper’s value.

He estimated that adding the ’promoting development’ section to the paper would earn him at least an extra 200 Black Tower Points.

「One minute later.」

Mo Ning cast the Trick sixteen times in a row, completing another deep-tissue massage for the War Rhinoceros, Kent.

The left side of Kent’s neck was a key area of focus for his massage.

He had noticed long ago that due to its poor sleeping posture over a long period, the muscles in Kent’s neck were especially prone to fatigue.

"HUFF—HUFF—"

The War Rhinoceros, Kent, let out two loud snorts, then affectionately nuzzled its head against Mo Ning’s hand.

It was undoubtedly expressing its gratitude.

Mo Ning stroked its large head and advised with a smile, "Go drink some water, then take an hour-long nap. It’ll be better for you."

Drinking water would promote circulation, while a nap would allow its muscles to rest more completely.

Kent let out an obedient "ROAR" and trotted happily toward the fountain designated for drinking.

Through his [Insightful Secret Eye] hovering above, Mo Ning saw, just as he’d expected, another flash of jealous hatred in Andy’s eyes.

For Andy, getting a War Rhinoceros to obey a simple verbal command was practically impossible.

And yet, a newcomer who had enrolled a year after him had done it with ease.

Jealousy, like a swarm of venomous snakes, gnawed at his heart.

Mo Ning turned to the other War Rhinoceros and waved with a smile. "Barce, come here. I’ll give you a brushing."

’Since Andy doesn’t appreciate the gesture, why should I be polite? I might as well mess with him.’

’Besides, massaging Barce will help me collect more data, which is great for improving my paper.’

"ROAR—"

Barce let out a loud roar and practically sprinted over, as if terrified Mo Ning would change his mind.

The big fellow had been watching its companion enjoy the massage with longing eyes, its heart filled with envy.

Andy’s face instantly turned ashen.

Even a fool could see that Barce preferred Mo Ning to him.

For Mo Ning to do this right in front of him was like a vicious slap in the face.

Andy shot a pleading look at the two apprentices who were still chatting, hoping they might intervene.

But he was disappointed. The two apprentices merely spared him a glance before continuing their conversation, obviously unconcerned.

Andy could vaguely overhear fragments of their conversation:

"...that new paper in *Shine*... a real bombshell..."

"I heard... they’re saying it might even be the cover feature!"

"Tsk, tsk... if it makes the cover... that would be the second time, right? That First Level Apprentice is something else!"

Andy had no interest in any of this.

He was completely consumed by a vortex of anger, humiliation, and jealous hatred, unable to break free.

After all, for a novice who hadn’t even formed his Spirit Ring yet, things like academic journals and research papers were a world away.