Chapter 108: The Bounty Hunt

The weathered ancient walls of Yuantian Old City silently recounted the tales of a bygone era. Scarred by countless cuts from blades and swords, imprinted with the marks of countless fists and palms, these walls had witnessed innumerable wars from the medieval age to the present day.

Though nestled within the desolate plains, the prosperity of Yuantian Old City far exceeded Luo Hao’s expectations. Inside the city, crowds surged relentlessly; warriors of the Blood Convergence Realm were ubiquitous, and even those of the Heavenly Gang Realm appeared occasionally.

Along both sides of the ancient city’s streets, a clamorous bustle prevailed. Numerous shops flung open their doors to welcome customers, while many warriors set up street stalls, hawking their wares with loud calls.

“A thousand-year-old Purple Gold Ginseng, a sacred remedy for flesh regeneration from bone—it’s only three thousand spirit stones!”

“Seeds of the Azure Sky Ancient Vine, selling cheap! Not ten thousand, but only eight thousand spirit stones!”

...

“Dragon Blood Divine Iron, a sacred metal! Fixed price: one hundred thousand spirit stones.”

From the street stalls, many warriors shouted their prices, selling all manner of things. Luo Hao paused at one such stall, where the vendor was a middle-aged man—the very one who had just announced the sale of Dragon Blood Divine Iron.

“Young brother, is there something you’re interested in?” The middle-aged man smiled broadly upon seeing a customer approach.

Luo Hao glanced at him coolly. “I heard you wanted to sell some Dragon Blood Divine Iron. I’d like to take a look.”

The man eyed Luo Hao skeptically—his plain clothes did little to inspire confidence. After a moment’s hesitation, he thought, some people always like to hide pearls under straw.

With a brief pause, the man produced a dark brown lump of iron from his pocket, roughly palm-sized like a stone.

He then looked proudly at Luo Hao and said, “Young brother, this is the ancestral Dragon Blood Divine Iron of my family. I’m selling it because I urgently need spirit stones.”

Luo Hao took the so-called Dragon Blood Divine Iron in his hand; instantly, a heavy weight settled in his palm. Secretly, he circulated his dragon force into his eyes. After a moment’s scrutiny, he quietly returned the iron to the stall owner.

“Farewell,” he said without looking back and strode away.

Behind him, the middle-aged man called out, “Young brother, I feel we have a connection. How about selling it to you for thirty thousand spirit stones instead of a hundred thousand?”

Having already gone some distance, Luo Hao pursed his lips. “Damn it—a lump of mysterious heavy iron stained with unknown demon beast blood, and yet they want to rip me off.”

Dragon Blood Divine Iron is a sacred metal infused with the blood of dragons, ranked among the very best of all sacred metals. There was no way such a treasure would be casually sold at a street stall in Yuantian Old City.

“Hey, Old Sun is trying to trick naive newcomers with your Dragon Blood Divine Iron again! You’re embarrassing us all!” A squat, shifty-eyed vendor beside the stall jeered lewdly.

“Buzz off, Fat Liu. It’s those fools who don’t know good metal.” The middle-aged man ignored him and stared after Luo Hao thoughtfully. “Strange, that young man looks eerily familiar.”

“Ha! Old Sun, who aren’t you familiar with? Even the little courtesan from the Wind and Moon Residence, Peach Blossom, you know well enough. Too bad she has a tiger at home!” Fat Liu chuckled, joining in the whispered banter.

Suddenly, Old Sun furrowed his brow and his expression changed sharply. Forgetting his quarrel with Fat Liu, he hastily packed up his stall and vanished quickly.

“Three Earth-grade Xuanhuang Pills, seven thousand spirit stones.” As Luo Hao wandered the street, the cry of a vendor caught his attention, causing a gleam to flash in his eyes.

The Xuanhuang Pill’s greatest benefit was to increase the chance of breaking into the Blood Convergence Realm. Of course, there were even more potent pills—Blood Nourishing Pills, Blood Condensing Pills, True Yang Pills—all aiding breakthrough to that realm.

“Seven thousand spirit stones! Why don’t you just steal them?” Luo Hao muttered silently. Seven thousand spirit stones was no small sum; ordinary wandering cultivators could hardly afford it.

Yet he knew well that three Xuanhuang Pills alone could never be worth seven thousand spirit stones. But the vendor was selling three Earth-grade Xuanhuang Pills.

Pills were graded into Heaven, Earth, Xuan, and Yellow, with Heaven being the highest and Yellow the lowest. Even the lowest grade, once categorized, commanded a price multiple times higher.

After weighing the options, Luo Hao approached. The vendor was a one-armed old man who greeted him with a smile. “Young sir, three Earth-grade Xuanhuang Pills for seven thousand spirit stones—no bargaining. You can buy them one by one, but each costs three thousand.”

Despite the old man’s friendly demeanor, Luo Hao could clearly sense a strong murderous aura emanating from him—an energy born of years surviving among slaughter.

“Heh, sir, do I look wealthy to you?” Luo Hao smiled awkwardly as he glanced at the porcelain jar at the old man’s feet.

Upon hearing this, the old man’s expression soured slightly. “In that case, young sir, please wait or come back when you have enough spirit stones.”

“Don’t be hasty, sir. I don’t have that many spirit stones, but might I barter instead?” The old man was momentarily stunned before replying, “Young sir, barter is possible, but Earth-grade Xuanhuang Pills are valuable. Unless you can offer the horn of a third-tier Demon Beast, the Battle Shade Rhino. But with your cultivation level...”

The old man’s implication was clear. He had already discerned Luo Hao’s qi-spirit cultivation before he even reached the stall.

“The horn of a third-tier Battle Shade Rhino!” Luo Hao mentally dismissed the old man’s insinuation. He had once encountered a second-tier Battle Shade Rhino in the Blood Spirit Secret Realm, which three Blood Convergence Realm warriors had struggled to kill.

“Fine, ten days. Give me ten days, and I will bring the Battle Shade Rhino’s horn.” Luo Hao needed the Xuanhuang Pills badly, and their value indeed matched that of a third-tier Battle Shade Rhino’s horn. The old man was not exorbitant in his demands.

“Seven days. That’s the most I can wait. If you truly want these pills, you might consider checking the bounty tasks in the city center. Various factions post rewards there; completing them could earn you seven thousand spirit stones immediately.”

“Oh? Such a thing exists?” Luo Hao’s interest was piqued, and he left the old man’s stall promptly.

After Luo Hao departed, the old man packed up his goods, vowing not to return within seven days.

“Dragon Eagle Egg, seventy thousand spirit stones, fixed price! Come and see!” Suddenly, a man’s hawking voice rang out from another stall, drawing a dense crowd around the small booth.

“Dragon Eagle Egg? Could it really be? The Dragon Eagle is said to be a blood descendant of the Ancient Heavenly Dragon Eagle!”

“Impossible! If there were Dragon Eagle Eggs, they’d have been sold at the auction house long ago. Why would they appear here?”

“Indeed.”

Many warriors nearby were skeptical but intrigued. The Ancient Heavenly Dragon Eagle was a terrifying entity rumored to have once vied with the Kunpeng for the title of Demon Master in the Age of Antiquity. Though the Kunpeng ultimately won, the legend alone testified to the Dragon Eagle’s fearsome nature.

As a scion of such an ancient giant, a fully grown Dragon Eagle was an apex beast among ferocious creatures—provided it could reach full maturity.

“Show us proof! If it’s truly a Dragon Eagle Egg, I’ll pay handsomely.”

“Yes, bring it out. If it’s authentic, I’ll bid as well.” The name alone stirred fierce competition among many warriors.

“Everyone, behold!” Without a word, the vendor flipped his palm, revealing an egg as large as an ostrich’s.

Luo Hao’s expression shifted sharply. The Dragon Eagle Egg’s shell bore dark golden lines, ancient and weathered, yet sharp and majestic—like dragon scales but not entirely.

“Hiss, it really is a Dragon Eagle Egg!”

Though the attending warriors varied in cultivation, all had been tempered in blood and fire, developing keen discernment.

“It’s really a Dragon Eagle Egg! Once the chick inside grows, it’ll be an apex calamity-tier powerhouse.” Many warriors’ hearts burned with excitement. A calamity-tier bodyguard was enough to dominate the entire northwest region.

“Ha ha ha! To think someone in Yuantian Old City is selling a Dragon Eagle Egg—truly heaven-sent for our Thunder Terrace Sect!” Suddenly, a hearty laugh erupted, turning the crowd’s faces pale as they spun around.

“Little Thunder King of Thunder Terrace Sect!”

A man appeared, thick-browed and fierce-eyed, in his twenties, towering over eight feet tall with muscles like rugged mountains.

Among the crowd, Luo Hao’s expression became unsettled. From the man’s body issued a faint oppressive and dangerous aura—a sensation Luo Hao had only felt once before from a peer of similar age.

“Indeed, that’s Little Thunder King of Thunder Terrace Sect. Rumor has it that even in the Qi-Spirit Realm, he tore apart a second-tier Demon Beast with his bare hands. Now, even Heavenly Gang Realm warriors dare not challenge him,” many recalled with awe.

“Hmph, Lei Gang, don’t think this Dragon Eagle Egg belongs to your Thunder Terrace Sect!” A clear, cold voice pierced the crowd like a sword.

Lei Gang—Little Thunder King’s true name—was seldom addressed directly anymore.

Soon, at the far end of the street, a young warrior appeared, a sword strapped to his back, flashing like a blade of pure light.

His eyebrows were sharp, his eyes starry, lips thin, and his white robe fluttered as if moved by an unseen breeze. Luo Hao felt as if this man was not a mere person but a peerless sword incarnate.

Luo Hao was no stranger to swordsmen—Xue Yue and Yue Jingfeng of the Infinite Sword Sect were formidable—but compared to this man, both seemed immature.

“Jiang Jianli, the Sword Wielder!” Another young expert had arrived, prompting gasps from the crowd. Such rare appearances of top young warriors together were unusual; the allure of the Dragon Eagle Egg was indeed extraordinary.

Silently, Luo Hao withdrew. He knew the contest for the Dragon Eagle Egg would surely be between Little Thunder King and Jiang Jianli.

Though he coveted the egg himself, he understood that his penniless state left him no chance against these two.

As he continued forward, shouts of bidding and surging spirit energy rose behind him, but these no longer concerned Luo Hao.

At the heart of Yuantian Old City stood a three-zhang-tall crystal stele. At its apex, three blood-red characters burned like fresh wounds: “Bounty Order!”

Luo Hao’s gaze swept over the stele, reading:

“Bounty One: Ghost Shadow, late-stage Heavenly Gang Realm, practices Soul-blood Sacrifice Technique; once massacred an entire city. Crime unparalleled. Reward: two hundred thousand spirit stones for capture.”

“Bounty Two: Ruthless Blade, Heavenly Gang Realm, madly wields blade; kills without mercy. Reward: two hundred thousand spirit stones for capture.”

...

As his eyes descended, Luo Hao’s expression froze.

“Bounty Ten: Former disciple of Tianhai Sect, Luo Hao, peak Qi-Spirit Realm. Several days ago, massacred the Ten Thousand Demons Sect, the Western Yue Hills, and many scattered human cultivators in Tian Cang Mountains. Ruthless and merciless. Reward: thirty thousand spirit stones for capture, dead or alive.

“Anyone who delivers his corpse to the Ten Thousand Demons Sect or Western Yue Hills will receive, in addition to thirty thousand spirit stones, a top-tier cultivation technique.”

Luo Hao stared at the stele, his gaze hardening. After a long moment, he sneered bitterly, “Well done, Ten Thousand Demons Sect, well done, Western Yue Hills. Let’s see how you plan to hunt me down.”

In that instant, a deadly intent flashed fiercely through Luo Hao’s frost-laden eyes.