C23 I'll Go Get It in Half a Year

A faint, barely audible voice floated through the air, closely followed by a succession of rapid footsteps.

"Captain, did Bloodline Master Dan Liang truly vanish in this place? Can anyone be certain that Bloodline Master Dan Liang met his end here?"

The voice grew clearer, and in response to the gruff inquiry, a light, articulate voice retorted, "Hmph, Mo Hu, you fool, the news about Bloodline Master Dan Liang has long been widespread. Countless people are now flocking to this location. We might already be too late. Have you noticed that in our twenty-mile trek, we haven't encountered a single Spirit Beast?"

"Someone may indeed have beaten us to it," the captain's voice turned somber. The captain, a woman, commanded, "Bloodline Master Dan Liang entered the Vast Sea Forest six months ago and has not been seen since. Our mission is to locate Bloodline Master Dan Liang and secure his relics. If we succeed, we could live comfortably for ten years without taking on any other missions."

The group, numbering between twenty and thirty, gradually moved on, their footsteps fading into silence.

"Crack, crack."

Xu Ming pushed the massive boulder aside from the cave entrance and gazed at the departing figures, pondering, "They're mercenaries on a mission. Bloodline Master Dan Liang—should I follow and see?"

Bloodline Masters were elusive and rare practitioners. While they may not have been the most powerful, the pills they crafted—be it the Divine Pill to enhance one's bloodline, strength-boosting pills, or a variety of other purposeful concoctions—were fervently coveted by Cultivators.

Technically, a Bloodline Master is a Pill Vein Master.

Dan Liang was a name unfamiliar to Xu Ming, yet the fact that it sparked a mercenary mission indicated the allure of Pill Vein Master Dan Liang's relics.

Tempted, Xu Ming's figure flickered as he decided to trail behind.

The Vast Sea Forest had been bustling for the past couple of days. Once a desolate expanse dominated by Beast Spirits and Spirit Beasts, it had transformed into a human hunting ground. Numerous high-level Spirit Beasts had been slain, driving the remaining creatures into hiding.

Without realizing it, Xu Ming had been trailing a mercenary group through the forest for two days. During this time, the forest had seen an influx of mercenary groups, as well as solitary adventurers seeking Pill Vein Master Dan Liang.

Gradually, Xu Ming decided to break away from the mercenary group and proceed on his own.

With the increased number of people, losing one's way was less of a concern. Simply following the crowd was the way forward.

The forest, of course, wasn't teeming with people; it was just more populated than before. After walking for several miles, it was quite likely to encounter a mercenary group, a lone traveler, or partners who had come together.

More people meant more conflicts, but everyone had their own objectives. Fights weren't to the death to avoid mutual destruction. Aside from occasional disputes among mercenaries over interests, lone travelers would typically steer clear of any skirmishes, lacking even the slightest interest in spectating.

Among these people, there was one exception: Xu Ming.

Over the past two days, Xu Ming had chosen not to lead but to linger at the back of the crowd because he had entered the forest's depths, a hundred miles in, at the fringe of the Rank One Spirit Beast's habitat. Venturing further meant entering the territory of Rank Two Spirit Beasts.

By staying behind the others, he didn't have to worry about Spirit Beast attacks. The more formidable warriors at the front cleared the path, and the sentient Spirit Beasts had long since retreated.

However, there were exceptions. Some Spirit Beasts staunchly defended their territories and didn't shy away from the encroaching mercenaries.

Occasionally, Spirit Beasts would be encircled and hunted by mercenaries. Xu Ming, instead of following lone travelers or teaming up with partners, opted to shadow the mercenary groups. He was now observing from a short distance as a mercenary group hunted down a Rank One Peak Spirit Beast on the cusp of breaking through to Rank Two.

Other mercenary groups, upon noticing this hunt, chose to steer clear, as did other solitary travelers. Lee Zhen, on the other hand, did not follow suit and instead moved closer to the action.

When a Spirit Beast was slain, members of the Mercenary Group would naturally have specialists tasked with extracting the Spirit Beast Inner Core. A wiry man, with a sharp knife clenched between his teeth, wielded another heavy, sharp tool in his hand to crack open the skull of the beast. Blood gushed forth in an instant, yet the man seemed entirely unfazed, his expression serious as his chopping movements gradually slowed and his force diminished.

Soon after, the wiry man took the sharp knife from his mouth and began to meticulously carve out the Spirit Beast Inner Core.

Xu Ming's arrival caught the attention of the mercenaries, but they appeared indifferent to a mere Martial Artist Grade Two like him. Only a few cast odd glances his way.

"Could there be another deal in the making?"

For the past couple of days, other Mercenary Groups had been hastening on their way, showing no interest in pursuing Spirit Beasts they encountered. This particular group, seemingly strapped for cash, would slay any Spirit Beast they came across, unconcerned about the time spent.

Xu Ming had left his previous group for this one precisely for this reason. Hunting Spirit Beasts and extracting their Inner Cores risked damaging the cores. A damaged core was worthless, unwanted by anyone. Just the day before, Xu Ming had watched this group discard a damaged Spirit Beast Inner Core.

They might have looked down on it, but Xu Ming certainly did not. To the mercenaries' amazement, he collected the discarded Inner Core.

While the mercenaries didn't understand Xu Ming's eagerness to collect a damaged Spirit Beast Inner Core, they recognized that it must have some value. So, when they damaged another Inner Core during extraction, they didn't discard it. Instead, Xu Ming offered one gold coin to purchase it.

Earning a gold coin was still a profit, but Xu Ming's presence seemed to bring a sense of misfortune; they had failed to extract the Inner Core successfully twice in succession.

"This kid is back again—damn, did he bring bad luck with him?"

A burly mercenary with a full beard shot Xu Ming a look of discontent, muttering, "I can't stand this kid."

The rest of the group was clearly unhappy, but since Xu Ming posed no threat, they didn't make a big deal out of it. It would have been fine if it happened once or twice, but now it was the third consecutive time. Lai Laoer from the Mercenary Group, who previously had at least an 80% success rate in extracting Spirit Beast Inner Cores, had now failed three times in a row.

"This kid trailing behind us doesn't seem to be searching for Danliang's Remains; he looks more like he's here to do business. He's probably hoping we mess up," someone remarked.

The Mercenaries were known for their frankness, yet they couldn't help feeling frustrated. "A Rank One Peak Spirit Beast Inner Core is worth a fortune in gold coins. If it's damaged, it's only worth one gold coin."

Big Beard spoke up, a note of resignation in his voice, "We used to just discard them. Getting one gold coin for a damaged one would be a stroke of luck. But what does this kid want with a damaged Inner Core?"

No one had an answer for Big Beard; only the heavens knew what the young man intended to do with a damaged inner core.

Big Beard furrowed his brow, "Be careful, Lai Laoer. That inner core represents our blood, sweat, and tears. Don't damage it any further."

"Damaged, it's damaged," Lai Laoer suddenly shuddered, mumbling under his breath. He stood up abruptly, glaring at Big Beard, "Qing Shi, could you keep it down? You've jinxed it; the inner core is ruined."

"Ruined? If it's just a scratch, we can still pass it off," someone suggested.

Shoving Lai Laoer aside, Qing Shi extracted a blood-stained, egg-sized green inner core from the Spirit Beast's head, which bore a deep gash.

"Way to go, Lai Laoer," Qing Shi said sarcastically as he kicked Lai Laoer's behind. "Have you been exerting all your strength on women lately? You've lost your touch!"

Lai Laoer's face fell, "The inner core was pressed against the skull, a rare outer shell type. It's hard to remove without breaking the bone, and once the bone is broken, it's tough to control the force." After a pause, Lai Laoer shot Qing Shi a venomous look. "It's all your fault, blabbering about that unlucky kid showing up. I got nervous and used too much strength."

"Has that kid shown up yet?" Qing Shi gestured towards Xu Ming, who was strolling over leisurely from a dozen steps away. "Quit trying to dodge responsibility, kid. But I'll admit, those outer shell pills are tough to extract."

Lai Laoer, however, wasn't interested in excuses. Confronting Xu Ming with a scowl, he blurted out, "This punk is the reason I've been messing up. Just watch me teach him a lesson and send him packing."

"Hey, Lai Laoer, you're no match for him," Qing Shi taunted, yet he followed Lai Laoer anyway.

"Kid, why do you keep tailing us? Shouldn't you be searching for Danliang's Remains? You're running out of time; the news has been out for two months. Keep following us and I might just have to knock some sense into you!"

Xu Ming, of average height and on the slender side, faced Lai Laoer, who was even skinnier and resembled a monkey with his snarling threat.

Unperturbed, Xu Ming retorted with a sneer, "Lai Laoer, did you botch it again? No worries, I'll take the damaged Inner Core off your hands."

As Lai Laoer's temper flared, Xu Ming quickly gestured to cut him off, "I've been thinking, and I'd like to propose a deal with you guys."

"A deal?" Qing Shi intervened, pulling Lai Laoer back and stepping forward. "What kind of deal?"

"What else?" Xu Ming approached with a look of pity. "You used to discard those damaged Spirit Beast Inner Cores. Such a waste! Given your extensive network and connections with many mercenaries, perhaps we could collaborate?"

"Collaborate?" Qing Shi looked puzzled. "How exactly?"

"I'm in need of damaged Inner Cores, regardless of their grade. I'll buy whatever you have. For the price, a Rank One Spirit Beast Inner Core goes for one gold coin, Rank Two and Three for two gold coins, and Rank Four and Five for three gold coins each. As for Rank Six Spirit Beast Inner Cores, they're rare, so let's not set a price for now." Xu Ming produced a hundred gold coins and tossed them to Qing Shi. "All I need is the address of your Mercenary Group. I'll leave this deposit, and I'll come to collect in half a year."