Qin Ziwen asked, "How many people are in their families?"

Deng Guang gave an awkward smile. "I forgot to ask. I’ll go ask them later."

Sitting beside them, Zhao Pu couldn’t help but smile as he listened to their conversation. He spoke up, "Captain, our team has been performing exceptionally well lately. That, combined with the news that you ranked number one in the Gated Community, has led to a lot of residents privately calling us the ’Qin Alliance.’"

Plus, after we hunted the Giant Hyena King yesterday, our prestige shot up. In the eyes of many residents, while we might not be as large as the Alliance Association, our strength lies in being an elite force capable of killing beasts. Some residents are already asking how to join the Qin Alliance."

Hearing the name "Qin Alliance," Qin Ziwen felt it was a little odd, mostly because his own surname was Qin.

But if he were to come up with a more suitable name, he couldn’t think of one right away.

He said to the two men, "I plan on making our team’s division of labor clearer. We’ll form a dedicated Hunting Group for expeditions, while the logistics department will focus exclusively on support."

"Captain, what’s considered logistics?" Zhao Pu asked.

"Blacksmiths, leatherworkers, and bowyers. For now, those are the only three departments. We’ll have specialized craftsmen teaching the skills. Later on, there will be more departments. For example, the leather tanned by leatherworkers can be used to make Leather Armor. The ones responsible for that step in the process are the Armor Craftsmen.

We also need a Carpenter, but we’re currently lacking talent in that area. One of you should get in touch with Huang Tao’s Carpenter’s Workshop. It would be best if we could poach that old Carpenter."

Zhao Pu said, "Captain, that might be difficult. From what I’ve heard, that Carpenter basically has a stake in the business for his skills. He gets a direct cut of the profits from Huang Tao."

Deng Guang looked worried. "Captain, I’m concerned people will try to learn our techniques and then just leave."

Qin Ziwen shook his head. "That’s unavoidable. However, we can control the core techniques. The people we recruit will be ordinary members. They can start by handling the tedious, time-consuming, but less technical parts of the process. Only trusted core members will be allowed to learn any crucial skills."

He paused for a moment before adding, "Of course, if someone is truly determined to steal our secrets, there’s no stopping them. The real key is the building Level. The higher the Level, the more competitive our finished products will be. For this afternoon, everyone is free to do as they wish. We’ll hold a meeting tonight. Dr. Zhao, please notify the other members of the squad. Then, compile a list of everyone who wants to join our... Qin Alliance."

"Alright, Captain." Zhao Pu and Deng Guang got up and left.

Qin Ziwen sat on the sofa, reviewing his plans for any oversights or areas that needed improvement.

’First, contributions. Now that hunting and logistics are separate, the system for tracking contributions needs to be more robust.’

’That includes making individual contributions during hunts more clearly defined and specific.’

’Before, there was only the Alliance Association. If we grew recklessly, we would inevitably clash with them.’

’But now, with the Student Alliance in the mix... well, everyone knows a triangle is the most stable structure.’

’In that case, we can start thinking about expanding.’

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK.

A knock sounded at the door.

Qin Ziwu opened the door to find Pan Congning standing outside. "Chairman Qin, are you free this afternoon? Teacher Luo would like to speak with you and Chairman Zou about something."

Qin Ziwen thought for a moment. "What time?"

"Six o’clock this afternoon." As she spoke, Pan Congning glanced curiously into the room, her gaze lingering on the Beaked Eagle wandering about the living room.

"Alright, I’ll be there on time," Qin Ziwen said with a slight nod.

Pan Congning gave a polite nod, then turned and went downstairs.

Sitting back on the sofa, Qin Ziwen beckoned to the Beaked Eagle. When it came over, he retrieved the phone from beneath its neck.

The phone was hot to the touch and wouldn’t turn on.

Only after plugging it in did he realize it was simply out of battery.

Once it powered on, he began to review the recorded video.

After taking flight, the Beaked Eagle had pursued the departing Duck-billed Dragons.

The herd of Duck-billed Dragons had walked toward the Gobi Desert ridge east of the Gated Community, entering through a fissure in the rock. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

After entering the fissure, the herd of Duck-billed Dragons continued eastward. They didn’t linger within the mountain range, but pressed on toward its eastern face.

The Beaked Eagle rested for a good while on a shaded slope; the shaking of the camera suggested it was looking around for something.

A moment later, it launched into the sky, leaving the desert ridge behind and continuing east. After about half an hour of flight, a massive lake appeared on screen, like a sapphire set into the Gobi Desert.

The lake’s edge was lined with dense trees. Farther away, a small, winding river flowed into the lake from the east, its banks lush with vegetation.

Through the camera, he could see many animals resting by the shore.

In the lake itself, two long-necked dinosaurs were wading slowly through the water.

It was a veritable oasis of life in the middle of the Gobi Desert.

After discovering the Oasis, the Beaked Eagle turned and headed straight back. The footage ended abruptly not long after; he figured the phone must have run out of battery and automatically shut down.

"No wonder you’re so exhausted. You flew a long way," Qin Ziwen said. He got up, walked over to the Fish Pond, and netted a large crucian carp. Grabbing it by the tail, he tossed it in front of the Beaked Eagle.

For the Beaked Eagle, eating a fresh crucian carp on such a hot day was as satisfying as having ice cream in summer. It bobbed its head in bliss.

"You’re a clever one, aren’t you?"

What surprised Qin Ziwen most about the video was the Beaked Eagle’s intelligence. The herd of Duck-billed Dragons hadn’t been moving very fast.

Instead of continuing to follow them, the Beaked Eagle had flown on ahead in their general direction, scouting past them to find the Oasis.

This wasn’t just a simple case of completing a task; it showed the Beaked Eagle was capable of independent thought and deductive reasoning.

Its intelligence was far beyond his expectations.

Qin Ziwen then used the video’s timestamps and the Beaked Eagle’s approximate flight speed to make a rough calculation. He concluded that the Oasis was about thirty to forty kilometers away!

Without mounts, traveling there on foot with all their gear would likely take fifteen hours or more.

It was impossible to do in a single day, meaning they would definitely have to spend a night in the wild.

Factoring in the need to conserve energy and combat effectiveness, a trip from the Gated Community to the Oasis would take at least two to three days.

Adding the time needed for hunting and setting ambushes at the Oasis, a single expedition could take nearly a week!

The prospect seemed daunting to Qin Ziwen.

However, if the Beaked Eagle could increase its star-rank just one more time, it might be able to carry a person.

Then, by riding the Beaked Eagle, they could make the round trip in a single day.

"Soup’s on!" Qin Ziwu emerged from the tavern’s back kitchen, carrying a large, fragrant basin of Single Claw Dragon broth!

"Bro, time for lunch!" Qin Ziwu set the large basin on the table. Chunks of skinned and deboned Single Claw Dragon meat bobbed in the thick broth.

A layer of shimmering golden oil floated on the surface.

"This stuff actually looks a lot like chicken soup," Qin Ziwen remarked with some surprise. He took a sniff and detected a faint herbal aroma.

"Dr. Qian added some medicinal herbs for flavor," Qin Ziwu explained, ladling a bowl for his older brother. "See if it’s salty enough. If not, I can add more."

Qin Ziwen lifted the bowl, blew on the surface gently, and took a small sip.

The broth was savory and perfectly seasoned.

"It doesn’t need any more salt," Qin Ziwen commented.

"Haha, great." Qin Ziwu grinned, then called out to Liu San, "Uncle Liu, there’s more of this ’chicken’ soup in the kitchen! Go help yourselves!"

While they ate, Qin Ziwu said enthusiastically, "Bro, I’m not gonna lie, this Single Claw Dragon meat is delicious! Do you think we could capture the remaining young ones and raise them ourselves? That way, we could eat this all the time."

The words were like a bolt from the blue. Hearing his brother’s suggestion, Qin Ziwen’s first reaction was to think it was absurd. Raise dinosaurs? But then... why *couldn’t* they raise them?

Qin Ziwen mulled it over and realized there might be something to it.

’We could just treat them like a flock of slightly bigger chickens.’

’The only question is how quickly they put on weight.’

...

...