121: Hunting team

The next day.

On the journey to the town, Chu Jingyu traveled along the specially constructed 'highway'.

Since this road was built, many Villagers from the villages along the way mostly used it when going to town, and it had earned countless thanks from the nearby Villagers.

But now, this smooth and solid main road was covered in muddy footprints, and there were even traces of fractures in some places.

Furthermore, some Source Beasts occupied the road quite openly, treating it as their own nest.

In just a short span of over ten days, the Human Race's Heyu Town now seemed to have become another world for Source Beasts.

Passing by the villages, Chu Jingyu could sense that many people were still alive inside. Clearly, these Source Beasts had little interest in humans who only had a small amount of messy energy in their bodies, unless the beasts' own body energy was severely depleted.

Generally, they wouldn't actively seek out humans to hunt; instead, battles between Source Beasts, or between Source Beasts and Contract Masters, were more frequent.

Even so, life was very difficult for these ordinary Villagers. Battles between Source Beasts didn't care about the surrounding environment; if they fought in a village, having houses destroyed was a minor issue, as the mere aftershocks of the battle could easily cause the deaths of Villagers.

Along the way, Chu Jingyu dealt with any Source Beasts he encountered, but that was only a fraction after all. There was no telling how many such Source Beasts were within the territory of Heyu Town.

Arriving in town, Chu Jingyu went straight into the Town Head's Residence. This time, he was once again the last of the three Clan Chiefs to arrive.

However, his expression remained indifferent, as if he didn't realize there was any problem with it.

On the contrary, from the moment he entered the study, the other three people's expressions became extremely complex as they felt the powerful Aura unique to the Spirit Rank emanating from him.

A hint of surprise appeared on Town Head Tang Cheng's slightly pale face.

The expressions of the new Clan Chiefs from the other two Noble Families were filled with a sense of indescribable meaning, including jealousy, vigilance, and wariness.

In front of their two Noble Families, the Chu Family was definitely considered a rising star. Yet, in just four short months, their Clan Chief's strength was already above theirs.

It seemed as if the shadow once cast by the Liu Family was about to return, which naturally made their thoughts complicated.

Chu Jingyu smiled and cupped his hands toward Tang Cheng, who sat behind the desk. After advancing to the Spirit Rank, he could sense Tang Cheng's current Realm more clearly—Middle Spirit Rank. He wondered if the previous trip Beyond the Border had caused Tang Cheng's rank to drop.

"Town Head Tang, we haven't met for many days. I hope you are well."

As for the other two Noble Family Clan Chiefs beside him, he didn't take the initiative to greet them. After all, the roles were reversed now; as a Spirit Rank Contract Master, it was only right for them to come and pay their respects to him.

Tang Cheng nodded toward Chu Jingyu and spoke with a smile, "Old Chu, one truly must look at you with new eyes after even a day's absence. In just these few days, you've already reached the Spirit Rank.

This is a great thing for our Heyu Town. If the timing weren't wrong, we would definitely have to hold a banquet to celebrate properly."

Chu Jingyu sat down on a chair brought out by a servant. From Tang Cheng's words, Chu Jingyu felt that he seemed to have changed quite a bit since their first meeting.

Whether it was his temperament or the look in his eyes, Chu Jingyu sighed inwardly at how things had changed. "The Town Head overstates it. It's just a small matter, not worth making a big fuss over."

Tang Cheng smiled and shook his head, then looked at the Clan Chiefs of the other two families, signaling them to come forward and give their greetings.

Despite the resentment in their hearts, they had to acknowledge the fact that their status was now a level lower than Chu Jingyu's. The two Noble Family Clan Chiefs exchanged a look and then simultaneously cupped their hands toward Chu Jingyu.

"We greet the Chu Family Patriarch."

Seeing the resentment in their hearts, the smile on Chu Jingyu's face faded slightly. "Greetings, fellow Clan Chiefs."

After the mutual greetings, Tang Cheng finally turned the topic to official business.

"Now that a major figure has arrived in Zhiyao County and resolved the crisis of the boundary breach we were facing, we must handle the overflowing Source Beasts in this town ourselves.

I've invited the three Clan Chiefs here today to see if you have any good strategies to allow our Heyu Town to quickly restore its former peace?"

The other two Clan Chiefs didn't speak, but their gazes unanimously fell on Chu Jingyu. The scene was somewhat eerie; although the three Clan Chiefs weren't close and even had some friction between them, they now seemed to implicitly follow Chu Jingyu's lead.

"For such matters, you can just make the arrangements, Town Head. We'll contribute money where there's money and strength where there's strength."

Tang Cheng's gaze fell on the other two Clan Chiefs and saw that they also nodded, appearing to follow the Town Head's orders.

Tang Cheng gave a light laugh. "Very well. The matter is urgent, and further discussion would only be a waste of time. I do indeed have an idea.

With the Town Head's Residence taking the lead, the three families and the Town Head's Residence will each provide manpower to form a Hunting Team. How about we start clearing the surrounding Source Beasts from the vicinity of Heyu Town?"

"It should be so."

"However, how much manpower should each Family provide? Our Chu Family is still in the period of being a newly promoted Noble Family, and we really have no extra manpower to spare.

I wonder if we could provide more Origin Rune Stones instead?"

Tang Cheng smiled and shook his head. "With Old Chu himself coming out to oversee the Hunting Team, the Chu Family doesn't need to provide a single other person.

Besides the guards and those from your Noble Families, the Hunting Team will also include civilian Contract Masters who have been forcibly conscripted. Now that the town is suffering, how can they stay out of it?

As for funding, that's also easy to handle. We'll sell the hunted Source Beasts for funds and distribute them based on contributions."

If it was only himself, it wasn't impossible. Chu Jingyu nodded silently, effectively accepting Tang Cheng's arrangement.

Of the other two Clan Chiefs, the one who was clearly a burly man from the Shi Family spoke up, asking in a coarse voice: "I wonder how many people of each rank the Town Head wants our two families to provide?"

"Twenty at the Mortal Rank and five at the Uncommon Rank will suffice."

Hearing Tang Cheng's words, the two Clan Chiefs instantly frowned. Twenty at the Mortal Rank was fine, but five at the Uncommon Rank meant sending out most of their Family's foundation.

The other man, who wore a gray long-robe and looked slightly thin, said: "Town Head, isn't five at the Uncommon Rank a bit too many? After all, we still have women and children in our clans who need protection, and we really can't spare so many people."

Tang Cheng's expression was indifferent. "You two families have stayed safely in town. I don't know if you've sent anyone to look outside the town, but there are Uncommon Rank Source Beasts everywhere, and many even move in packs.

If we don't send more Uncommon Rank Contract Masters, I don't know if we'll be hunting Source Beasts or if we'll be hunted by them?"

Hearing Tang Cheng's tone, the two Clan Chiefs knew the Town Head's decision was final, so they could only sigh twice and accept their fate.

Chu Jingyu sat calmly on the side watching them discuss the details, estimating in his mind roughly when this Hunting Team would be able to clear the territory where the Chu Family was located.