Gu Mengzhong felt uneasy as he asked this question. He was afraid of hearing a helpless answer.
After all, he had heard this answer far too many times.
Lin Jin smiled. "Since it's a pet beast, of course there's a way to tame and form a blood contract with it. But …"
Halfway through his sentence, he hesitated.
Upon hearing that there was a way, Gu Mengzhong couldn't hold it in any longer. With an anxious expression, he asked, "What is it? Tell me."
What Lin Jin wanted to say was, 'You can't make me do this for free. Whether it's money or something else, I have to show you something. After all, we're not related so I can't help you form a blood contract with a pet beast for free.'
However, the anxious Gu Mengzhong didn't understand what Lin Jin was trying to say.
Or rather, Gu Mengzhong was used to it. Usually, people were the ones begging him for help. Even if it was a beast appraisal, as long as he paid a visit to a famous master, they would be more than willing to help him without asking for a single cent. However, Lin Jin was clearly an exception. Who cared if you were a master painter or not? You should at least pay for an appraisal.
In the end, Lin Jin had no choice but to shrug. "The association has a rule that I'm not allowed to take on private jobs. If you want to know how to form a blood contract with a pet beast, sure. Come to the association this afternoon to register."
After all, this was a normal request. Gu Mengzhong, on the other hand, was stunned. Then, he blushed as he finally understood what Lin Jin meant.
To put it bluntly, Lin Jin didn't have much of a relationship with Lin Jin. It was already a favor for him to capture a pet beast that was about to escape. Moreover, Lin Jin was asking for a free appraisal. If he were to ask about a blood contract taming method, that would be too much.
Although Gu Mengzhong was anxious to know the method, he was still a man of status. After some thought, he said, "I have something to do this afternoon. Tomorrow, I'll definitely go to Maple City's Beast Appraisal Association and register with you. I hope Appraiser Lin will do his best to guide me on the blood contract taming method."
Lin Jin mused, 'Why is this man so stupid? Asking you to register was just a formality. You could've just given me a few hundred taels and I would've done it for you.'
However, Lin Jin couldn't bring himself to say it out loud so he nodded.
"What about this ink monster …" Lin Jin patted the head that the ink monster had formed before placing it on the table.
The ink monster did not run. It obediently congregated into a puddle and continued to squirm.
At this, Gu Mengzhong was shocked once more. He said, "I don't have a container and I can't control it myself. I'll leave it with Appraiser Lin for now. You can return it to me tomorrow after the evaluation."
Being straightforward, Lin Jin nodded in agreement.
Just then, Masterchef Liao came out with a few plates of stir-fried dishes. When he saw Lin Jin and Gu Mengzhong chatting happily, he was stunned and mumbled, "They were just ignoring each other just now, and now they're chatting?"
"The dishes are here!"
Lin Jin had a sharp nose so he could smell the aroma from afar. After talking for so long, he was famished.
The dishes were served. There were three meat dishes and two vegetable dishes, all of which were treasures.
Liao Gu wanted to hear Lin Jin's comments but how could Lin Jin do that? He could only comment on the ingredients used in the meat dishes. This museum had such information but it only made Lin Jin seem inscrutable. Liao Gu was especially surprised by Lin Jin's understanding of meat. He could even learn something from Lin Jin.
Gu Mengzhong no longer had the estrangement from before and the three of them chatted happily. As the saying goes, 'strangers on the road become close friends after a glass of wine.' After a meal, the three of them became friends despite their age difference.
In terms of culinary skills, Liao Gu was unrivaled. In terms of calligraphy, Gu Mengzhong reigned supreme. As for beast appraising, Lin Jin managed to convince both Liao Gu and Gu Mengzhong in just one meal. They even developed a sense of respect for Lin Jin as a junior.
For no other reason than the fact that the knowledgeable were the teachers, a scholar should be respected.
Since they were now familiar with each other, Lin Jin pondered for a moment before telling Gu Mengzhong, "Generally speaking, to tame this ink monster, just raising it slowly isn't enough. This is especially true for a rare species like this. It has great potential and combat strength but it also has a weakness, which is its low intellect. Normal taming methods won't work on it."
Gu Mengzhong was no fool. His eyes immediately lit up. "No wonder taming it didn't work. Could it be that we have to suppress it by force?"
Lin Jin nodded.
"What should we do then?" Gu Mengzhong asked again.
Lin Jin answered, "That's a little troublesome. I wonder if Master Gu can get your hands on the blood or fur of a Rank 4 fire attribute pet beast?"
Gu Mengzhong frowned. "I can but it'll take a long time."
Lin Jin shook his head. "This can't be delayed. Forget it, I'll think of something. Come to the association tomorrow and look for me. That should be enough by then. I'll need to prepare this overnight. Otherwise, I could have done it for you now."
At this, Gu Mengzhong knew that Lin Jin had another idea. He was overjoyed. He had waited for so long already so one more day was nothing.
Now, his attitude toward Lin Jin improved.
Sometimes, it was easy to see the difference between people. For example, Jia Qian and Zhang He, who were sent by the association to entertain him, had a very respectful attitude. However, they did not have any ability. Being overly respectful would cause others to look down on them. Moreover, they liked to speak ill of others, especially that Zhang He.
At this, Gu Mengzhong glanced at Lin Jin, musing, 'Look at Lin Jin again. Lin Jin is unfazed by honor and disgrace, unafraid of rumors. Even in this oppressive environment, he doesn't forget his original intentions and strives for perfection. Just one look and you can tell that he's made for great things.' If Lin Jin could really help him tame the ink monster, Gu Mengzhong would help Lin Jin as well.
Though he didn't say it out loud, he made up his mind.
If Gu Mengzhong befriended Lin Jin because of his usefulness, then Liao Gu was purely admiring him.
In his words, they had taken a liking to each other.
After having his fill, Gu Mengzhong gave it some thought before drawing two paintings on the spot. He gave one to Liao Gu and the other to Lin Jin.
Lin Jin wanted to be polite but Liao Gu said, "Meng Zhong's paintings are priceless outside. You can easily sell them for up to a thousand silvers, or even several thousand silvers."
At this, Lin Jin quickly accepted the painting.
After saying their goodbyes, Lin Jin returned to the Beast Appraisal Association. There was still an afternoon before he had to work in his consultation hall. Who knows, maybe someone would register for his consultation in the afternoon.
Inside the consultation hall, Zhao Ying and Lu Xiaoyun were studying the evaluation reports Lin Jin gave them. At the same time, they had to flip through some books on pet beasts' bloodlines to apply for their studies.
Xiao Huo was still cultivating, but from the outside, he looked like he was sleeping on the ground.
The sapphire turtle was behaving too, not moving at all. Tang An went over to take a look and nodded. This turtle actually had a powerful bloodline and great potential. It was just that Zu Can didn't know how to activate this turtle's bloodline. Also, the turtle's skin was thick and its physique strong. Otherwise, it would have been poisoned to death.
Upon seeing Lin Jin, the turtle stuck its head out and rubbed it against Lin Jin's hand as a gesture of affection.
"Alright, you big guy, just stay here for a few more days. I'll bring Goldy over one day so you can get to know each other and be friends. "
Lin Jin didn't care if the sapphire turtle could understand him or not and continued nagging.
Having said that, as if remembering something, Lin Jin fished out a wine gourd from his pocket. Obviously, this gourd didn't contain wine but Gu Mengzhong's ink monster.
Putting the gourd away in the cabinet, Lin Jin took out the painting Gu Mengzhong gave him and placed it on the table. Lin Jin planned to ask around at the market and see who would buy it.
Of course, he wasn't going to sell it. He just wanted to confirm if this painting was really worth that much money.
After taking a sip of tea, Lin Jin waited for customers to show up.
However, the situation didn't improve at all. Other than the few customers he had shamelessly taken the initiative to invite, his account was basically ignored.
While Lin Jin was dozing off in the afternoon, there was a commotion outside. It sounded like someone was cursing and the voices were getting closer and closer. Just then, Lin Jin's consultation hall's door was kicked open with great force, shattering it as a person barged in angrily.
"Who's Lin Jin? Get your ass out here! How dare you deceive my sister? If I don't teach him a lesson today, he'll think our Lu family is a pushover!"
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