Yuan Ming entered the hall where a middle-aged man with a dignified appearance sat firmly, his aura profound, clearly a Foundation Establishment being.
Standing beside the middle-aged man were two young individuals, a man and a woman, both clad in white. The man was handsome, and the woman was charming, appearing like an elegant couple.
Both were young, but their cultivation was extraordinary, each emitting an aura stronger than Yuan Ming's by several degrees.
"Are you the elder in charge of the test?" Yuan Ming's gaze fell on the middle-aged man as he calmly inquired, not at all intimidated by the unique pressure exuded by a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
"Indeed, I am Huan Shi, Vice Alliance Hierarch of the White Night Scatter Alliance. This hunting mission is of no small matter, and for the safety of our guests and the interests of our alliance, we must be cautious in selecting our members. I hope you can understand," the middle-aged man said with a light smile, his demeanor quite courteous.
"Of course, may I know what the test involves?" Yuan Ming asked.
"The test is simple; the mission requires a certain level of strength. If you can last a quarter of an hour against one of these two behind me without using any magic artifacts or talismans, you will have passed," Huan Shi stated.
"Is that all?" Yuan Ming had expected a difficult test, but this sounded relatively straightforward.
"A Qi Refining Ninth Level like you sure talks big. Let's see how capable you really are!" The young man in white couldn't help but retort coldly upon hearing this.
Huan Shi, upon hearing Yuan Ming's response, also raised his eyebrows, looking at Yuan Ming with interest.
"Come with me!" The young man in white walked towards a side hall next to the main hall.
Seeing that Huan Shi did not stop him, Yuan Ming followed.
The space of the side hall was not smaller than that of the main hall. Its thick stone walls were reinforced with forbidden spells, and the floor was paved with thick slabs of stone, making it look like a room specifically designed for martial contests.
"You make the first move," said the young man in white, closing the door behind him with an air of arrogance.
Without a moment's hesitation, Yuan Ming readied himself, sinking his energy into his dantian as he adopted the Shadowless Step stance.
…
A quarter of an hour later, the side hall's doors were pushed open, and Yuan Ming walked out at a leisurely pace, his breathing normal, clothes as tidy as before, and his bamboo hat still intact.
A few breaths after, the young man in white also emerged.
Half of his body was charred black, his hair burned away on one side, and his right cheek swollen, making him look quite disheveled.
"Brother, are you alright?" the woman in white rushed up anxiously to support him.
The young man looked dejected, opened his mouth as if to say something, but eventually, he said nothing.
In the side hall just before, he had been confident that his cultivation was superior to Yuan Ming's and allowed Yuan Ming to take the initiative. However, Yuan Ming stood still and even asked if it was enough just to last a quarter of an hour, much to his irritation.
Unable to restrain himself, he attacked first, but when Yuan Ming moved, his movement technique was unpredictably strange. He simply evaded repeatedly, and the young man not only couldn't catch up to him but also couldn't land any spells or techniques, which Yuan Ming narrowly avoided with his peculiar step technique.
After enduring for longer than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the young man, frustrated and angered by Yuan Ming's ever-smiling, handsome face, recklessly activated a magic artifact, intending to teach Yuan Ming a lesson.
Unexpectedly, Yuan Ming suddenly raised one hand, the tip of his finger glowing with a ball of fire, seemingly ready to cast the Fireball Technique, but whether due to lack of skill or something else, he couldn't release it and seemed somewhat flustered.
Not wishing to miss such an opportunity, he pressed on, aiming to deliver a thunderous blow.
However, just as he closed in, the "fireball" that was slightly larger than a regular Fireball Technique suddenly exploded, and he was too close to avoid it, taking a minor but significant hit.
Given his prideful nature and since he had already resorted to using a magic artifact, he felt he had no place to complain.
However, Huan Shi's expression remained calm as he had been using his Divine Sense to track the battle inside the side hall.
"So, have I passed the test?" Yuan Ming asked Huan Shi.
"Of course. You are modest yet possess deep hidden strength, easily defeating my foolish disciple. I am impressed," Huan Shi lauded with a smile.
"I merely abided by the rules set by your esteemed alliance and was lucky to hold out for a quarter of an hour," Yuan Ming humbly maintained.
"It's even rarer to find someone who is victorious without being arrogant. I am curious to know which Fellow Daoist is fortunate enough to have you as a disciple. I envy them," Huan Shi said with a light sigh, probing with his question.
Yuan Ming merely returned a polite smile, not taking the bait.
"Hehe, take this token. We will meet ten days from now at Ghost Cry Gorge in the Ten Thousand Mountains. The specific details of the mission will be disclosed to you there," Huan Shi produced a white jade token and handed it to Yuan Ming.
"Ten days later..." Yuan Ming murmured.
This gave him ample time to return to Biluo Cave and refine his Green Fish Sword into a magic artifact, which would significantly enhance his power.
"Elder Huan Shi, since I have passed the assessment, may I be enlightened about the target fierce beast? It would allow me to prepare adequately in advance," Yuan Ming inquired after some thought.
"It's not that our alliance wants to keep things hidden. It's truly out of necessity. If news of that fierce beast spreads, our alliance will be put in a very passive position and could even cause the mission to fail directly. Young friend, please be patient. Once we gather at Ghost Cry Gorge, every detail about this mission will be fully disclosed," Huan Shi shook his head and said.
Yuan Ming's eyebrows furrowed slightly as he spoke again, "Since there is a reason behind this, I will not inquire what the fierce beast is. However, could you inform me of the strength of that fierce beast?"
"That is possible. Our target this time is a second-level fierce beast. However, you need not worry, young friend. High-level Foundation Establishment experts from our alliance will also accompany us, and this mission is not just recruiting you alone," said Huan Shi.
Seeing that he couldn't get more information, Yuan Ming took his leave and departed.
The sky outside had darkened, and the stream of people in South City grew increasingly sparse.
Yuan Ming did not go far. He found an inn nearby to stay and closed his eyes to rest.
Time passed by little by little, and soon it was past midnight.
He took out the incense burner, as usual, channeled mana into it, and the Tai Chi pattern quickly lit up, the missing point swiftly filled in.
Yuan Ming put away the incense burner and looked out the window towards the White Night Scatter Alliance's quarters.
"At this time, the selection should have ended," he murmured to himself. He sat cross-legged on the bed. A black light flashed between his brows, and a soul crow flew out, heading towards the White Night Scatter Alliance's location.
Although Huan Shi sounded certain, Yuan Ming didn't dare to fully trust him. As his life and fortune were at stake, he had to personally investigate what exactly this beast hunting mission from the White Night Scatter Alliance was about.
With the speed of the soul crow, it quietly arrived at the Scatter Alliance's headquarters. By then, the gates were tightly shut, and recruitment activities had ended.
Despite being late at night, many rooms in the headquarters were still brightly lit, filled with people engaging in lively conversations, their voices incessantly heard.
Yuan Ming listened for a while. They were talking about trivial and complex matters, unrelated to the hunting mission. He then controlled the soul crow to fly deeper into the headquarters.
The headquarters of the White Night Scatter Alliance covered a large area. The small paths between several buildings interconnected, spreading out like blood vessels into the depths of the headquarters, sinking into the darkness, making it difficult to determine where important figures resided at a glance.
The soul crow perched on a tree branch, contemplating which direction to go.
Just then, the sound of footsteps approached, and a tall woman came by—it was the white-clothed woman who had stood behind Huan Shi during the earlier test.
The woman was seen holding a tray with tea and refreshments, seemingly on her way to deliver them somewhere.
Considering the daytime situation, this white-clothed woman held a high position. Whoever merited her personal tea service must be an important person within the White Night Scatter Alliance, perhaps even Huan Shi himself.
The soul crow flapped its wings silently and followed her.
The white-clothed woman soon arrived at a two-story pavilion and entered.
The soul crow too approached the pavilion and heard faint voices coming from a room on the second floor, one of them undoubtedly belonging to Huan Shi.
"Found them at last," Yuan Ming hastily controlled the soul crow to fly over.
Considering Huan Shi's status as a Foundation Establishment cultivator with powerful divine sense, he didn't allow the soul crow to get too close, settling it on a large tree two zhang away, concealed in the darkness.
"Is everything arranged on all fronts?" Huan Shi asked.
"All arrangements are in place. Up to today, we have recruited a total of fifty-five people. According to our previous estimates, even if only sixty percent of them ultimately stay, that would still suffice to deal with the group of Golden Flower Poison Pythons and locate the Python King's nest," another voice sounded, the white-clothed youth he had defeated earlier in the day.
"Excellent. The Golden Flower Python King's snake gallbladder has likely transformed into a snake pearl by now. That is a treasure beyond price; we must not lose it," Huan Shi advised.
"Master, rest assured, your disciple is very careful. I only told those who came in response to the recruitment that we were hunting a second-level fierce beast. For those who attempted to inquire about specific information regarding the fierce beast, I dealt with them ambiguously. Among them, a few are suspected of being from other Scatter Alliances who infiltrated to gather intelligence—those, too, have been dealt with," the white-clothed youth replied.
"Very good," said Huan Shi.
Inside the inn, a hint of unusual color flashed in Yuan Ming's eyes.
This reconnaissance with the soul crow turned out to be quite fruitful, uncovering the White Night Scatter Alliance's real target.
He had some understanding of the Golden Flower Poison Python; it was one of the group-dwelling fierce beasts in the Ten Thousand Mountains. With tough scales and flesh and highly potent venom, it was one of the most troublesome among the many types of python fierce beasts and was among a few extremely dangerous beasts that even Fur Beast Slaves typically dared not hunt. Clearly, the true aim of the White Night Scatter Alliance was that very Golden Flower Python King.
Regardless of the Snake King's actual strength, just the need to gather so many people for the hunt indicates that the mission wasn't as simple as they had described.
As for the previously mentioned maximum reward of five hundred spirit stones, although tempting, it probably wouldn't be that easy to obtain. There would likely be stringent requirements set.
No matter what, given his current strength and his familiarity with the terrain of the Ten Thousand Mountains, he should be able to ensure his own safety as long as he proceeded with caution.
Just at that moment, another voice came from the soul crow's location—it was the white-clothed youth.
"Master, you used your divine sense to observe that fellow with the bamboo hat during our encounter earlier today. Were you able to discern his origins?"
Yuan Ming was taken aback, not expecting the conversation to suddenly turn to him. He hurriedly pricked up his ears to listen intently.
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