CHAPTER 448: CHAPTER 436: THE PALE GOLD HORSE?

When Han Qiwu jumped onto the short and stocky Mongolian horse, he felt like his butt was about to burst.

Too much pressure on the butt!

Who said horse-riding was so dashing?

Fortunately, after a few jolts, his butt went numb.

It doesn’t feel like much anymore...

Looking around, Han Qiwu discovered that the situation was still under control.

Above his field of vision, a line of numbers was constantly scrolling:

[5m]

[6m]

...

[10m]

"I wonder how far I have to go to get the first reward," Han Qiwu thought, pulling himself back to focus on his surroundings. He noticed that as long as he was riding this Mongolian horse, the other horses wouldn’t come over to attack him.

The scenery around him quickly flashed by, and the Mongolian horse started to pick up speed.

Just then, Han Qiwu noticed a large rock appear right in the horse’s path.

He had to dodge it!

Otherwise, he’d turn into a pancake.

So, he patted the horse’s head.

The Mongolian horse didn’t respond at all.

This is bad!

The horse doesn’t turn!

At the last split second, a notification popped up.

[Congratulations! Your taming distance has broken through 100m, you’ve obtained a taming bridle.]

As the notification appeared, a deep brown bridle instantly wrapped itself around the Mongolian horse’s head.

Han Qiwu quickly pulled the reins to the right.

The horse’s head turned to the right, narrowly scraping past the large rock.

"Phew, this bridle came at just the right time. Was that intentional?" Han Qiwu muttered, continuing to guide the Mongolian horse left and right to avoid obstacles.

He noticed that the path wasn’t just filled with rocks, but also trees and pools.

Judging from the reactions of other horses, bumping into a tree would cause them to be dazed for a while, and falling into a pool would sharply reduce their speed for a time.

He figured that if he crashed into one of them, he might get eliminated right away!

As he kept riding, he realized he also had to avoid other horses.

Among the various horses, there seemed to be a hierarchy.

Moments ago, he’d seen a Quarter Horse collide with a Mongolian horse. The Mongolian horse staggered to the sides, completely disoriented, while the Quarter Horse continued forward unaffected.

"Looks like the Mongolian horse is the slowest and most prone to collisions. Next time, I’ll try riding a different horse," Han Qiwu noted silently.

Watching his distance counter hit 150m, Han Qiwu gradually got the hang of the Mongolian horse’s pacing.

But right then, as though it had been provoked by Han Qiwu, the Mongolian horse suddenly started to buck violently, nearly throwing him off.

"What’s going on? I didn’t hurt you, did I?" Han Qiwu looked down at the Mongolian horse beneath him.

Only now did he notice—it was a little mare.

Han Qiwu tried to calm the Mongolian horse’s aggression by patting its head, but the effect was less than ideal. The Mongolian horse just bucked harder, and Han Qiwu was nearly thrown off.

After ten or so meters of bucking, the Mongolian horse suddenly stopped, crouched with its hind legs, gathered force, and executed a powerful forward launch.

It directly threw Han Qiwu, reins in hand, back into the air.

"What the heck is happening?" Han Qiwu was utterly bewildered but knew this wasn’t the time to be dazed.

He needed to find his next horse quickly.

Scanning his surroundings, he suddenly noticed that the reins in his hand would occasionally light up as they swayed.

What’s going on?

While still airborne, Han Qiwu took the chance to observe the pattern of the reins lighting up.

Oh.

Got it.

Whenever the swaying reins came to hover over the heads of the wild horses nearby, they would light up.

Each time they lit up, there was an accompanying prompt to tighten the reins.

Seeing that he was about to land, Han Qiwu quickly targeted a seemingly docile Hequ horse and tightened the reins.

In that instant, his reins materialized onto the Hequ horse’s head, pulling his body firmly onto the new horse.

"Crap, I’m about to feel like my butt’s exploding again."

Yet just then, as Han Qiwu was still in midair, his taming distance crossed 200m.

[Congratulations! Your taming distance has broken through 200m, you’ve obtained taming gear.]

"Phew!"

Han Qiwu landed on the Hequ horse’s back with a thud.

Huh, this feels comfortable?

The butt pain he had dreaded didn’t arrive.

He reached down to touch and took a closer look.

Whoa, another little mare.

Wasn’t this supposed to be Horse Taming Canyon?

Why are all the horses little mares?

As for the recent reward, the taming gear was essentially a high-comfort saddle and stirrup set, ideal for novice riders like Han Qiwu.

Onwards!

The riding experience of the Hequ horse, however, wasn’t quite as good as the Mongolian horse—it’s back was slightly narrower but made up for it with faster speed. It bounced along swiftly, soon bringing Han Qiwu to the 250m mark.

Though he hadn’t been riding the Hequ horse for long, it remained steady and got along well with Han Qiwu.

"Taming horses isn’t so hard, after all," Han Qiwu thought, feeling a hint of smugness as he continued to guide the horse while observing the other steeds around him.

As he watched, a pale golden horse with noticeably higher speed than the others suddenly dashed up from behind.

Its fine head, slender neck, long legs, and smooth, thin coat gave it a sleek and graceful appearance.

Additionally, it was incredibly strong.

Han Qiwu watched as it plowed through small obstacles like Xiao Shu without a hitch, and leapt over other horses with ease.

"This horse is something else!"

Han Qiwu was intrigued.

Ride it!

Using his previous method, Han Qiwu tentatively raised his reins and began to swing them.

It worked!

Just like before, the airborne reins lit up whenever they hovered above a horse’s head.

But once the reins were raised, Han Qiwu could no longer control the direction of the horse he was currently riding.

Pros and cons.

"Here we go!"

Calculating the speed difference between the two horses, Han Qiwu used his practiced fishing techniques to flick the reins outward, tightening them at the exact moment they lit up.

As he tightened, he felt a surge of force pulling him onto the pale golden horse.

Got it!

Instinctively, Han Qiwu looked down.

Alright, there it is.

This time, it’s not a mare.

The riding experience on the pale golden horse was unique—its long legs allowed for smooth, moderate strides that didn’t jostle excessively.

With the taming gear equipped, horse-riding transformed into an entirely new kind of enjoyment.

Han Qiwu sat on the horse’s back, feeling the canyon winds whistling past his ears. Occasionally, the cries of eagles echoed from above, filling his heart with bold excitement!

"Clatter clatter clatter clatter"

The pale golden horse was incredibly fast, effortlessly leaping over pools in their way without Han Qiwu having to intervene.

All he had to focus on was dodging rocks and the larger horses that appeared.

Hundreds of meters passed in an instant, and Han Qiwu suddenly noticed tiny beads of red sweat dripping from the horse’s shoulder area.

[Congratulations! Your taming distance has broken through 500m, you’ve unlocked the Taming Illustrated Guide.]

[Current mount: Akhal-Teke horse]

[Game speed: 15m/s]

[Rampage state: Zigzag thrusts]