Chapter 697

Chapter 697: Golden Hunter

Shen Continent, North Immortal Kingdom

North Immortal Kingdom is vast with few people, there are many wild beasts, coupled with the slightly weaker strength of North Immortal Kingdom, the monsters have occupied many territories here. With the establishment of the Hunter Organization, North Immortal Kingdom sought help from the Hunter Organization. The Hunter Organization offered handsome rewards, and many skilled hunters have gathered in North Immortal Kingdom to hunt demons, after all, it is safer to hunt demons here than in Fangzhang Continent, less likely to encounter high-level Demon Kings easily.

As members of the Hunter Organization gathered, several hunter organization bases were established on the wilderness, with many hunters usually gathering here to communicate with each other.

When Muse walked into the tavern inside the hunter’s stronghold, he immediately caught the attention of many people because there was a badge on his chest, which belonged to the Golden Hunter.

The hunter organization is divided into many levels, with Golden Hunter currently being the highest level in the organization, meaning that hunters have sold goods worth at least one billion Huaxia coins within the organization.

Of course, many Golden Hunters are not individuals, but teams. They concentrate the belongings of a team on one person to increase their level and gain higher privileges.

Ignoring the stares of others, Muse walked straight to the tavern owner, had a few words with him, then went into another room and exchanged some items.

The hunter organization platform accommodates everything for sale, but sometimes it is not convenient. For example, in this wilderness, the logistics they provide may not be as fast, leading to many private transactions.

After restocking supplies, Muse and his team members enjoyed a meal in the small tavern.

"Pah, the spiritual wine here must be watered down, it’s simply garbage compared to what the platform sells. It’s worse than slop."

A team member took a sip of the spiritual wine from the small tavern and immediately spat it out. This so-called spiritual wine, sold for eight hundred yuan per cup, was hard to drink.

"Although the platform’s items are expensive, they are genuine. Here, just quench your thirst, why expect better spiritual wine?"

"Isn’t it a fancy way of asking for more wine, Muse? Do you have any more special wine over there? Have a sip!"

"Nope, all gone. After we finish up here, I will treat you all to some."

"Thank you, Muse."

"Hurry and eat and drink, then find a place to rest and recharge your energy. Tomorrow morning, we set off."

Muse, after being in the North Immortal Kingdom for over a year, had made quite a reputation there. Although not a real hunter, he had gained some fame in the hunter organization. Last night, he received new orders to go on a mission.

The next morning, Muse and his group left by car. They didn’t have any flying vehicles because those were only safe in big cities. In the wilderness, it was dangerous as flying monsters could attack anytime. With no weapons on civilian aircraft, they could easily be shot down if they encountered any monsters, resulting in great loss.

They didn’t fly randomly to avoid surprise attacks by flying monsters. Also, to save their energy as replenishing it with pills was expensive. In the wilderness, they needed to maintain high energy levels at all times.

After traveling for several days, the convoy finally reached a city. After a two-day rest, Muse left with a few trusted aides. This time, they didn’t use a car but flew instead. Heading west, they reached a barren rocky mountain.

"Boss, there’s a lot of demonic energy here."

"I know, you all stop here, don’t go inside, I’ll go in by myself."

Muse nodded, then he took a camouflage symbol from the storage bag and stuck it on his body, slowly disappearing.

"Bang"

Several minutes later, in the deep mountains, Muse was hit by a stone and fell to the ground, facing a huge stone statue.

"You have the aura of a high-level Demon King, who are you?"

"I have met senior members of the demon clan. I come on behalf of the Demon God Temple, and this is my master’s token."

Muse took out a large Peng wing from his body. He knew that without this wing, he would be dead.

"Golden-winged Peng Bird, Demon Queen?"

"Yes, my master is indeed the Demon Queen."

"What does it want to say?"

"I asked my Demon Queen, is the senior Stone King or Stone Emperor?"

"In the demon clan’s heritage, is there a difference between Stone King and Stone Emperor?"

"Of course there’s a difference. If the senior is the Stone Emperor, why not go to the Demon God Temple? Why not take action against the human race?"

"I am the Stone King, my power is insufficient."

The stone person said that they, the Stone Monsters, are actually not part of the demon clan, but rather a type of elves. The Demon Queen suspects that the Stone Emperor also survived from the era of cultivation.

Unfortunately, the Stone Emperor didn’t escape the era of the destruction of the Dao. However, the current Stone King has gained some of the Stone Emperor’s memories, knowing much about the era of cultivation.

The demon clan in the western Shen Continent and the Demon God Temple don’t get along well. They don’t follow orders but do their own thing. Although they claim to be under the leadership of the Demon God Temple, they act independently. So after recovering spiritual energy, the Stone King didn’t respond to the Demon God Temple’s commands.

"My Queen said, if the Stone King is willing to obey the Demon God Temple’s orders, the temple is willing to pass on its heritage to the Stone King."

"I am different from the demon tribe."

"The Demon God Temple has been through endless time, inheriting the legacies of various races. Even the human race is the same."

"Not interested, I don’t want to get involved in the conflict between the demon tribe and the human race."

"Stone King, humans have a saying ‘Different species have different hearts.’ If the demon tribe loses, the Stone King clan will also suffer…"

Muse still refused to give up, he continued to persuade the Stone King. The Stone King clan is very strong in Shen Continent, mainly because they are tough and resilient. It’s hard for human technology to kill them, even the people of Huaxia are hesitant to act against them easily.

Despite Muse’s eloquence, the Stone King remained unmoved. They are different from the demon and human tribes, requiring very few resources. Their way of cultivation is simply sunbathing and sleeping, absorbing the essence of the sun and moon. They hardly need any extra resources. Additionally, they have reached an understanding with the North Immortal Kingdom. They don’t harm the human race, and in return, the North Immortal Kingdom doesn’t seek to harm them. Both sides coexist peacefully.

Seeing that he couldn’t persuade the Stone King, Muse had to retreat and return outside the mountain.

"Boss, what happened?"

"Stone King truly is made of stone, impervious to persuasion. It’s no use talking until we’re blue in the face."

"What should we do? They strictly demand that we must convince the Stone King."

"Let’s wait first. Once I breakthrough the golden core, then I will deal with him. I have a plan already."

Muse said, manipulating the fragile trust between Stone King and the human race isn’t easy, but it’s not the right time yet. He is too weak.

"Boss, have you made a breakthrough?"

"Soon, I already achieved the complete Building Foundation Period last year. I will save up money and exchange for a nascent soul treasure at the hunter organization."

Muse explained that he must purchase the nascent soul treasure at the hunter organization’s platform to have a legitimate identity that can withstand scrutiny, despite the treasures being very expensive there.

Muse led his team back to the frontline city of the North Immortal Kingdom, trying to raise money by hunting many demons. However, they needed support from the demon race as well.

As Muse learned about the demise of other spies, he couldn’t help but coldly smile. He thought they deserved it and the more who died, the higher his status among the demon race.

·······

Fangzhang Continent, Tianya Mountain Base

After most of the Demon Insects were defeated, the humans launched a strong counterattack, advancing thousands of miles and only retreating when they encountered the main forces of the demons.

This victory brought a lot of spoils of war to the humans, creating a scene of joy in the base.

"Winning is great, we have spoils of war to grab, which means Alchemist and Talisman Maker will have plenty of materials to practice with."

Shiyi, upon seeing the report of the battle results, also rejoiced as these spoils of war could help nurture many talents.

"Sir, there’s a video call."

"Connect."

"Yes, sir."

With a word from the people nearby, soon Lin Jiang’s face appeared on the large screen.

"Ancestor Lin"

"Shiyi, I heard you just won a big battle."

"Yes, the Demon Insect army was defeated, we advanced for thousands of miles, killing at least tens of thousands of demon clan main forces, even chopping two fourth-rank demon beasts."

"Good job, good job. Did those independent cultivators also make a fortune?"

"They did alright. Those independent cultivators are really fierce, charging faster than us."

Shiyi mentioned, "The independent cultivators are deeply divided. The fierce ones are really fierce, charging ahead faster than us, while the timid ones dare not even join the battle, hiding in the back hoping to scavenge."

"I’ve checked the backend of the Hunter Organization’s platform, many Golden Hunters have saved a lot of money, probably getting ready to exchange for elixirs and treasures. I’ll send a batch over for them to exchange."

"Elder, are you really going to give it to them?"

Shiyi explained, "These kinds of strategic-level treasures have always been monopolized by major sects, precisely to tightly control the strength of independent cultivators."

"I’ve suppressed it almost enough, need to give back, but I’ve raised the price several times."

Lin Jiang chuckled, saying independent cultivators need to be suppressed but not too harshly. They need to see some benefits. So, Lin Jiang has ordered to raise the prices of the treasures on the platform, which were already very expensive, several times.

"Don’t complain about the high prices. This world has only one place like this, nowhere else. All the officials in the world are united by Lin Jiang. Unless you have the ability to break through on your own, but the chances are less than one percent. If you really have such ability, Lin Jiang will acknowledge it."

"Understood, Ancestor Lin. I will take care of this matter and won’t let them cause trouble."

Shiyi nodded, understanding the implication. Doubling the prices would surely upset the independent cultivators. They might even cause trouble, so he had to handle this matter well.