Shi Lang collected his space ring and arrived at the gate where Old Man Yu Xian awaited him. They did not communicate about the interaction Shi Lang had with Tian Long. Yu Xian knew his place on the food chain, and he had some morals, too.
He quietly guided Shi Lang out of the space gate, took a silver plate from his space ring, and said, “This is your identity plate. You will have to show it to accept the tasks.”
Shi Lang nodded and thanked the old man. They came down the stairs, and Shi Lang shook his head. He mumbled, “What wondrous things one can do with spirit energy.”
Yu Xian nodded and said, “Indeed. I have been meaning to ask you, what do you intend to do now?”
Shi Lang said, “I will look at the tasks and then leave to complete the missions. However, it is a hassle to come back and turn in every task here.”
Yu Xian smiled faintly and said, “You can hand in the task to any Moon Night Dining, Soul Bell Gallery, and Tryst Smithery. These three places work with the Head Hunter organization.”
Shi Lang was surprised and said, “I see. It seems like the Head Hunter Organization has quite an extensive network.”
The old man nodded and said, “You can check the missions on the mission board.”
Shi Lang nodded and came downstairs quickly. He spotted the board hanging behind the reception counter, and to his surprise, a new person was sitting there. The lady raised her gaze to look at him before returning to her work. Shi Lang also did not bother and looked at the tasks labeled for a silver-level head hunter.
After skimming through the board content, Shi Lang asked, “Miss, I would like to accept Task number three two two.”
The lady stood up like a machine and approached the board. When she gazed at the content, she was surprised but tore down the note and returned to hand the task to Shi Lang.
She said, “The task is limited to seven days, and you do not have to bring physical evidence. An image stone recording will suffice.”
Shi Lang nodded and accepted the task. The young man put the document in his space ring and walked out without a word. The lady raised her head and asked, “Grandpa, who is this person? Is he eager to die by choosing that task?”
Yu Xian smiled and said, “You did not see him finishing a platinum-level task ahead of time. That is why you are saying so. Do not bother about him. Go to your work.”
The girl was shocked and watched the old man walk away.
…
Shi Lang walked to the Cloud Pavilion building and hurriedly entered the reception hall. This place was more active than the Head Hunter organization. He approached the reception counter and took out a jade card the elder gave him. The lady behind the counter was surprised but then gave him a professional smile and said, “Sir, please follow me to the second floor.”
Shi Lang nodded and followed her to the second floor under the gazes of many people. He did not care one bit about their thoughts. He would kill them if they dared to have ideas about him.
After a flight of stairs, he came to the second floor, where the lady led him to a room and said, “Sir, your package has been collected. Please have some tea while I retrieve it.”
Shi Lang nodded calmly as the girl bowed and left. His mind was much calmer than in the past. He looked at the porcelain tea set and smiled faintly. ‘If those people in the federation saw it, they would go crazy.’ he thought.
He poured himself a cup of tea and took a modest sip. He felt his spiritual energy triggering as he gulped it down his throat. He held the cup and ran his cultivation sutra. After running a cycle, he mumbled, “Good tea.”
The curtain parted, and the receptionist lady came back with a letter in her hand. She said, “I apologize for the delay, Sir.”
Shi Lang waved his hand and said, “That is fine.”
The girl handed him the letter and said, “Please call me if you need anything.”
Shi Lang nodded as he watched the girl sensibly leave. She knew this package was a letter and gave him some privacy. The service of the Cloud Pavilion was good. Shi Lang opened the letter. The letter read, ‘Love, you know I was about to leave the sect and come looking for you. However, as usual, you are faster than me. I miss you too and do not worry, everyone back home is fine. Mom and Dad have decided to stay back and look after the family’s younger generation. Tao will be ascending soon, I guess.
She has made sure to instill your character in Xiao Gao. The little one has a low talent, as they say, but she is very hardworking and has made the talented run for their money.
I am well, do not worry. If anything, you should worry about yourself, and you cannot address me as Amy anymore. I am Sect Maiden Amelia. I am talented enough to succeed the sect mistress. I will vent to gain strength and see you in the Centurian Tournament. Make sure you do not lose before fighting me. If you come here, I have instructed the people that they will not stop you from meeting me. 𝗈𝓋𝑙xt.𝒞𝒐𝓶
The rest, we shall talk when we meet.
I love you, yours, Amy.’
Shi Lang nodded, and he said, “Excuse me.”
The lady outside entered the room and tentatively asked, “Sir, is there anything I can do?”
Shi Lang nodded and asked, “I would like to send back a message to this place. Can you tell me the fee?”
The lady said, “Sir, I will call an elder to help with your queries.”
Shi Lang thought about it and shook his head. He replied, “Forget it, it won’t be necessary.”
Then he stood up and left the place. He would earn some money before he could send another message to Amelia. He wanted to flex his status as a Hall Master, but his forces were too immature compared to the War Maiden Sect.
Shi Lang walked out of the cloud pavilion and stretched his body. He snapped his stiff neck and mumbled, “Time to work again.”
He left the Tiexian City and flew to the location of his first mission.
…
Tian Long walked out of a void portal and stomped into the courtyard. His arrival made the gentle Guzheng sound. A gentle voice echoed in the surroundings, “What made you so angry?”
Tian Long snappily scoffed, “Who else could it be that bastard Shi Lang? Why does he have to get on my nerves all the time.”
His Daoist companion walked over from the pavilion and said, “He is only messing with you. Do you not see that he has never been able to form a strong bond with anyone in this life? Only his immediate family and wife are the people he is deeply connected to. However, they do not know his secret. You know, and that is why he acts like this.
Shi Lang was the scavenger you used to praise the most. You cannot go around saying he was the only one you knew. Neither can you pay off the debt of life you owe him. If he had let you die in that cave, he could have been a strong person in the Immortal realm. That opportunity cost him his chance of ascension and his life. He could have selfishly ascended, but he did not and saved the world.”
Tian Long sighed and said, “To think his charm is so great that even you speak in his favor. This guy is my life long enemy. I will fight him when he reaches my realm.”
He was annoyed to the core. The fairy beside him smiled and said, “Be careful what you wish for. He is no longer a scavenger.”
Tian Long snorted and said, “Come, play me your song again. I do not wish to talk about that guy.”
The lady chuckled and went back to play the Guzheng again.
…
Shi Lang stood on a high peak and looked at the valley with furrowed brows. He could not understand which fool decided to form a bandit group and hide in this place.
The location was called Acid Swamp Canyon. This place was filled with swamps that gave off rancid stink and were so toxic that even an Immortal King would die if he fell in the swamp. This place was a graveyard of experts.
It was said that if the swamp did not kill you, swamp thorn bandits would. These people were notorious, and they did not spare anyone. These bandits have been living in the swamps for generations. However, despite being the size of a small village, they had managed to remain undetected.
Shi Lang wanted to know how they did it, so he chose this task. To Challenge himself.