244: Chapter 244 Views and Flower Play

"Let's hear it."

The manager and Lin Qing turned their gazes back to the Tenth Rank Disciple, who didn't beat around the bush.

"About ten days ago, someone posted a bounty knowing the whereabouts of a Level 11 Middle Stage Qingyan Beast, but they weren't confident in hunting it down themselves."

The manager only visited Xunshan Pavilion once every month or two and had just arrived today, so it wasn't strange that he didn't know.

Yao Beasts of the same Rank were slightly stronger than human Cultivators. To prevent accidents during the hunt, a Level 11 Middle Stage Yao Beast typically required three Level 11 Middle Stage or one Level 11 Late Stage human Cultivators. If the other party was merely an ordinary major power, they might not necessarily be able to produce such a lineup.

As for the Cultivators with the ability to hunt it, weren't they all Old Ancestor-level figures of various powers? Take Level 11 Late Stage for instance; even in a superpower, there wouldn't be more than ten of them.

These people certainly didn't have the habit of acting as hired muscle for others. This was why this bounty with clear target information hadn't been accepted even after ten days, which was also part of why quite a few purple orders had accumulated on the walls of the outer hall.

"It's just that I don't know if the Materials needed by Senior are the same as theirs. If they are the same, things might become troublesome."

"It's fine, let's ask about it first. As for this final bounty, let's not publish it for now."

The manager wasn't unhappy about missing out on a bounty; after all, they only earned a small commission. If the ten-billion Spirit Stone bounty order was completed, the Spirit Stones that finally ended up in their hands would barely exceed one hundred million. If Lin Qing tipped them directly, they might actually earn more.

Lin Qing certainly wouldn't be stingy with such important information. He took out two Storage Rings filled with five hundred million Spirit Stones each and handed them to the manager and the Disciple respectively.

"Please help introduce me first."

Information on a Yao Beast was worth ten billion, but information about that information certainly couldn't be worth that much. The true information had to be obtained from that group of people. Moreover, if Lin Qing's required Materials were the same as theirs, the other party might not necessarily tell Lin Qing. Therefore, five hundred million per person was already quite a lot; Tao Tao and those Senior Brothers' net worths were roughly around this level.

"Please wait here for a moment, Fellow Daoist."

After taking the Storage Ring, the manager said with a chuckle, then left the room with the Disciple. The manager needed to fetch the voice transmission token of that group of people, and the Disciple was there to assist. After all, the manager didn't know who those people were, so having the Disciple assist would be faster.

After the time it took to burn an incense stick, the manager and the Disciple pushed open the door again. After respectfully making a gesture of invitation, a male and a female Cultivator walked in. It seemed the two of them had been staying in Qingai City for the past dozen days or so.

Seeing the two of them, Lin Qing was slightly surprised—not because he knew them, but because their cultivation Realms were only Level 11 Early Stage, which was within Lin Qing's expectations.

What surprised Lin Qing was that the two of them were actually a pair of Dao Companions, and a very affectionate one at that. Not only were the styles of their clothing consistent, but even some of their accessories were clearly matching pairs.

One had to know that these ordinary Level 11 Cultivators had lived for at least a thousand years. A thousand years of time was extremely long. Cultivators who had seen all the vicissitudes of life no longer had any concept of love to speak of. By the time they reached this Realm, almost all marriages were alliances of convenience.

Even Lu Xue, the beauty hailed as a once-in-four-thousand-years occurrence, wasn't she forced by her parents to marry someone she disliked? Fortunately, Lin Qing helped her out of that predicament.

There was also another possibility: they had known each other since their youth, which made this situation even rarer.

Improving one's Realm wasn't something that could be achieved just by working hard enough; it heavily tested one's talent and was extremely unreasonable. Even if your rate of improvement at lower Realms was enough to break historical records, you might still end up getting stuck at a certain Realm, unable to advance further for the rest of your life.

After only a brief glance, Lin Qing immediately stood up and cupped his hands in greeting. Regardless of the subsequent outcome, Lin Qing wasn't the type of person who would sit and welcome guests from his seat.

"This one is Yundu."

"Zhang Wang."

"Hua You."

The two opposite also cupped their hands in a greeting. The male was named Zhang Wang, and the female was named Hua You. Afterwards, Zhang Wang couldn't help asking:

"Fellow Daoist, your cultivation is...?"

Zhang Wang was considered quite amiable. If it were anyone else and they saw Lin Qing, who was only at the Tenth Rank Early Stage, wanting to discuss hunting a Level 11 Yao Beast with them, turning around and leaving would be the mildest reaction. Those with bigger tempers would likely raise their hands and obliterate him on the spot.

"Please rest assured, two Fellow Daoists. This one naturally has a Revered Master, but it is inconvenient for him to show his face. When we encounter the Yao Beast, he will naturally make a move."

"This..."

Seeing that the two of them were still somewhat hesitant, Lin Qing continued:

"At that time, I will act together with the two of you. If I can't call anyone out, I won't be able to outrun you either. It's impossible for me to make a joke out of my own life, right?"

Seeing that Lin Qing had put it this way, the two naturally had no further objections. After all, what Lin Qing said made complete sense. If an accident really happened at that time, the first one to die would definitely be Lin Qing himself. Furthermore, the Qingyan Beast wasn't adept at speed; the two of them had successfully escaped from it last time.

Seeing that the three of them had reached a preliminary consensus, the manager hurriedly guided the three to their seats. After serving each of them tea, he left with the Disciple.

"Since that is the case, I wonder which part of the Qingyan Beast Fellow Daoist requires?"

Zhang Wang asked first, feeling somewhat apprehensive inside. If they cooperated with Lin Qing and Lin Qing truly had a mysterious Revered Master, then the combat strength of Lin Qing's side was clearly stronger and could even crush him and Hua You.

If Zhang Wang stated the part he needed first, and it happened to be the same part Lin Qing needed, Lin Qing could easily lie to them and say it was a different part. Once they brought Lin Qing over, Lin Qing could then make a move to snatch it, and they would be helpless.

Lin Qing naturally perceived the other party's thoughts and didn't conceal it, immediately speaking up:

"I need the beast horn. If our targets overlap, I hope to at least get one."

The Qingyan Beast was somewhat different from the legendary Suanni; both had forms similar to lions, but the Qingyan Beast had two horns on its head, and its body was covered with thick scales.

Zhang Wang and Hua You visibly relaxed; clearly, their targets didn't overlap.

"The two of us need its scales, and we hope Fellow Daoist can grant us this favor when the time comes. As for the other parts, the two of us will not take a single fraction."

Because Lin Qing had a mysterious Revered Master, they would have to rely entirely on him to make a move when the time came. Zhang Wang and the other maintained a very cautious attitude throughout the negotiation, and their tone even carried a hint of pleading when mentioning that they wanted the scales.

After all, if they ventured deep into the Southern Territory and Lin Qing's Revered Master wanted to turn on them and kill them for the loot, there was nothing they could do, and there was even a possibility of being killed if they weren't careful. But these scales were clearly very important to the two of them, so they were willing to take a small risk.