Chapter 18: Hunting Hour

The Monster Hunting Teams are subsidiary forces belonging to the clan. They owe their allegiance to the Song family and make a living by hunting monsters within the Song family's territory.

Every year, they are required to offer a certain amount of resources to the Song family and accept the family's deployment. In exchange, they receive the protection of the Song family and access to their sales channels.

The Song family's industries are primarily focused on various mineral veins and artifact refining, so the Song family purchases all monster materials hunted by the teams at market prices.

They can choose to be paid in spirit stones or contribution points. The contribution points earned by the hunting teams hold the same value as those of the Song family members and can be exchanged for various cultivation resources in the Song family's treasury.

Theoretically, as long as one has enough contribution points, even Foundation Establishment Pills can be exchanged. There have been precedents for this in the past, and it is also their primary goal.

However, ever since the Song family went through that great war, the clan suffered significant losses of Foundation Establishment cultivators, and the supply of Foundation Establishment Pills became limited. The main family barely has enough for themselves, so there is none left for the hunting teams.

This has led to a dwindling number of hunting teams attached to the Song family, dropping from over a dozen in the past to just two today.

Although these two hunting teams are not particularly strong, they are incredibly loyal to the clan. They fought with their lives on the line during the great war over a decade ago and have remained steadfast ever since.

Therefore, whenever something happens, if the clan eats meat, they are allowed to share in the spoils.

Song Changsheng and the others waited for about half an hour before Song Luyao returned to the temporary camp. She gathered everyone and said, "We are now assigning the clearing zones.

First is the trial zone. The area you are responsible for is in the east. There are only a small number of monsters there, and the difficulty is not high. You only need to kill or drive away all those monsters to complete the trial.

Remember, during the trial, it is strictly forbidden to attack fellow clansmen, and acting alone is not allowed. Violators will be severely punished without exception. Is that clear?"

Song Luyao's tone was extremely cold. She is in charge of the clan's punishments and is known for being impartial, cold, and ruthless. There is no room for negotiation once you fall into her hands.

The group felt a chill in their hearts and replied in unison.

Song Luyao then looked at the Law Enforcement Team and said, "You are clearing the west side, where the pressure is greatest. The hunting team will assist you from the north, and I will oversee the overall situation. I will intervene if any second-tier monsters are encountered.

If a situation arises and I am unable to attend to it, you are to request aid from the Fifth Elder. Remember, the Fifth Elder's task is to guard the city and he must not move easily. Do you understand?"

"Understood!" The Law Enforcement Team responded with a thunderous roar, their momentum awe-inspiring and intimidating.

"Good. The clearing operation begins now. Depart." After saying this, Song Luyao immediately rode her sword and transformed into a long rainbow as she departed.

The Law Enforcement Team was disciplined and well-trained; upon receiving the order, they immediately split into ten pairs and headed toward their assigned areas.

In contrast, Song Changsheng and the others were left standing in place, looking at each other.

Everyone's gaze turned to Song Changsheng. After all, he had the highest cultivation level present, so he was naturally regarded as the backbone of the group.

Song Changsheng did not shirk his responsibility and said bluntly, "Everyone, our cultivation levels vary. If we act together, the efficiency will be too low. I intend to divide the team into three groups.

Led by myself, Changhu, and Changxiu, we will proceed in three directions to conduct a sweep-style clearing. What do you think?"

The people present looked at each other and all agreed. Even Song Changhu, who had some opinions about him, did not try to be clever.

Seeing that everyone agreed with his proposal, Song Changsheng immediately began to divide the groups, trying to distribute them as evenly as possible according to their strength.

In the end, his group only had four people, and three of them were at the early stage of Qi Refining.

The other two groups had five people each, with a mix of two mid-stage and three early-stage cultivators. Compared to the Law Enforcement Team, they did indeed look a bit shabby.

"Alright, everyone, prepare to depart. Use your communication jade talismans to stay in touch at all times. Do not stray too far from each other, and send a signal if something happens.

Again, it is strictly forbidden to leave the team and act on your own," Song Changsheng warned sternly.

Many of them were coming down the mountain for the first time, and it was easy for them to do something brainless. Song Changsheng needed to make them clear-headed; he did not want to attend their funerals.

"We've heard this so many times already, stop nagging. We're leaving first." Song Changhu was the most impatient and left with his team, looking annoyed.

Song Changxiu nodded to Song Changsheng and also chose a direction to move in.

"Follow me closely," Song Changsheng said to the three people behind him, then quickly entered the dense forest.

...

In the jungle, a scarred Golden-Headed Striped Leopard was enjoying its spoils—a first-tier mid-grade Tusked Wild Boar, which had already been half-eaten.

Song Changsheng and the others were hiding in the bushes not far away. He whispered to the people beside him, "This is an injured first-tier mid-grade monster. You are capable of handling it. I will stand by and cover for you."

The group understood that Song Changsheng was arranging another training opportunity for them. They looked at him with gratitude, briefly discussed their tactics, and then crept toward the Striped Leopard.

The Striped Leopard seemed to sense something, immediately stopped eating, and assumed an offensive posture.

Realizing they were exposed, the group attacked the Striped Leopard from two sides. The three people and the beast were soon locked in a chaotic battle.

The three Song family members were all at the third level of Qi Refining and lacked practical combat experience, so they fought somewhat timidly and were unable to take down the injured Striped Leopard for a while.

Song Changsheng stood not far away, observing the battle without any intention of intervening. This was a rare training opportunity for them, but for Song Changsheng, it was completely unchallenging. He only needed to ensure that no one got hurt.

The Song family disciples were extraordinary after all. Although they lacked experience, their artifacts and spells were top-notch, and they soon suppressed the Striped Leopard.

Just as they were about to finish it off, Song Changsheng keenly sensed an unusual aura.

His divine sense spread out overwhelmingly, and he quickly discovered a two-tailed chameleon that had blended into the surface of a large tree.

"You beast, how dare you hide in the shadows to hurt people!" Song Changsheng shouted, immediately forming a [Fire Arrow Technique] and firing it.

The chameleon was a first-tier high-grade monster. Realizing it had been exposed, it immediately jumped to another tree. The next moment, the tree it had been on was pierced through by the fire arrow.

The chameleon was terrified and immediately prepared to flee, but Song Changsheng did not give it a chance. He directly summoned his treasure gourd, and a powerful suction force erupted from the gourd's mouth, pulling the terrified chameleon inside.

Song Changsheng immediately closed the stopper and activated the [Bone-Eroding Array] inside the gourd to refine the chameleon. Soon, the first-tier high-grade chameleon turned into a pool of blood, which was then burned to nothing by the flames Song Changsheng channeled.

Fortunately, the wine was stored in a separate space, otherwise, it would have ruined the good wine.

By this time, the other three had also finished off the Striped Leopard and began to cut the materials from the monster's body. This was considered a source of income for them.

The process of Song Changsheng cleanly and efficiently dealing with the chameleon was seen by them, and they couldn't help but feel a bit more awe toward him.

"Cousin, although this beast skin is not entirely intact, it is still worth some spirit stones. Please take it," one of them said, handing over the skin they had just peeled off.

They knew very well that the journey had been so smooth only because of Song Changsheng, so every time they killed a monster, they would consciously leave a share for him.

"These are your spoils of war. Keep them yourselves," Song Changsheng refused as always.

Just as the other party was about to say something else, Song Changsheng's eyes narrowed, and he looked into the distance, saying, "Something's wrong. Stay alert!"

...

(End of chapter)