My Journey to Immortality Begins with Hunting
Chapter 186 – The Sacred Fire Palace’s Fifth Rank Elder, Blood Gold, Slipping Quietly into Northriver - Part 3

Chapter 186 – The Sacred Fire Palace’s Fifth Rank Elder, Blood Gold, Slipping Quietly into Northriver - Part 3

Early spring.

The Red Ant Guild arrived as usual, led by the familiar Steward Wei. Li Yuan simply clapped his hands in greeting, said nothing else, and gestured for a maid to bring out a small box of gold as payment.

Steward Wei chuckled. “Patriarch Li, it’s the same as always. Without blood gold, I can’t show you the sixth rank catalog.”

Smiling, Li Yuan placed a pouch of blood gold on the table. Steward Wei blinked in surprise, picked up a piece to examine it, and then gave Li Yuan a curious look. Still, he didn’t bother asking idle questions. Instead, he silently took out a small booklet from his robe. “Here’s our sixth rank product catalog.”

Li Yuan returned his smile. “I don’t suppose I can see the fifth rank listings?”

Steward Wei quickly explained, “One needs to be a distinguished guest of our merchant guild to see that. Only with a personal invitation from our president, a special token, can you view the fifth rank catalog.”

Li Yuan wasn’t surprised. After all, these catalogs contained valuable information in their own right. Accepting the booklet, he flipped through it carefully. It was divided into several sections.

The first was sixth rank demonic beast meat, trading at about 20 taels of blood gold for 15 kg.

The second was sixth rank skills, a single manual costing anywhere from 100 to 300 taels of blood gold.

The third was sixth rank weapons. The basic ones cost around 30 taels of blood gold, and the better ones went for as high as 100.

The fourth was sixth rank puppets, which were extremely expensive, even more so than weapons.

Reading on, Li Yuan pondered how best to put this newfound blood gold to use.

Even the cheapest sixth rank puppets cost 600 taels of blood gold. Most averaged around 1,000, and the catalog even offered custom orders with prices matching their complexity. One eye-catching entry at the bottom advertised a fully customized top-tier sixth rank puppet for 3,000 taels of blood gold.

Li Yuan’s pupils constricted slightly. This reminded him of Tang Nian.

After skimming through the listings, he said, “I’ll take the sixth rank skill manual Gold Luo Canine Training.”

He weighed out one hundred 40 taels of blood gold and pushed it toward Steward Wei. Having thought it through carefully, he decided that improving his own beast taming ability was the best next step.

That same day, Li Yuan rode out to the Martial Lodge. When he arrived, disciples greeted him from all sides as he walked forward. Before he even reached his destination, people were calling out.

“Patriarch is here!”

“Tang Nian, your godfather’s here!”

It felt reminiscent of schoolchildren warning each other that the teacher was coming and to put their contraband away. Li Yuan was caught between amusement and exasperation as he made his way to Tang Nian’s lodgings.

Stepping inside, he found a few female disciples who smelled strongly of wine. Right in the center of them was a girl dressed in a striking scarlet robe, her dark hair loose. She was leaning back, guzzling from a wine jar. There was no mistaking his goddaughter.

Seeing him, Tang Nian straightened up. They locked eyes, creating an awkward pause. Suddenly, she ran a hand through her damp hair, tilting her head flirtatiously and drawling, “Oh, Godfather...”

Li Yuan glanced at the disciples surrounding her, but they fled en masse. Tang Nian tried to stop them, to no avail.

He closed the courtyard door behind him and took a seat next to her. This girl was 16 years old now. She had grown in ways he hadn’t entirely expected. Though brash, she carried herself with a wild, carefree aura, as if ready to sing and dance after a few drinks.

Her cheeks were flushed, and she swayed unsteadily. Her boots were kicked aside, leaving only a pair of fair feet swinging in the cool air. Li Yuan gave a small cough. Tang Nian, of all things, propped a foot on his leg and teased, “Godfather, have a drink...”

“It’s still early spring,” he chided gently. “Aren’t you cold? Put your shoes back on.”

Tang Nian swirled around, giggling. “When I was small, you wouldn’t let me drink. But now I’m grown. I can do as I like, can’t I? When I drink, it blurs the edges of the world, makes everyone feel closer...and that makes me happy. Why wouldn’t you let me drink sooner?”

At that, Li Yuan’s mind flashed back to the scene of Tang Qiu’s last moments. Perhaps that memory had led her to try alcohol, wanting to see for herself what it was like.

He thought a moment, then said, “In that case, I’ll share a drink with you.”

He picked up a wine jar, poured a cup, and finished it in one go. Tang Nian snatched the jar, poured herself another cup, and downed it. Then it was his turn again. One jar emptied, then a second, then a third.

Before long, Tang Nian slumped backward, still humming a tune. The faceless puppet behind her caught her in both arms. Rolling her head to the side, she promptly fell asleep.

Li Yuan gently slipped her boots back on and patted her hair. Then he gave two light taps on the puppet’s shoulder, though whether it understood or not was unclear, and said, “Take good care of her.”

He’d been swamped by his own affairs lately, only visiting her a handful of times each year since bringing her to the Martial Lodge. This time, he had a particular motive for coming; after all, he hadn’t expected sixth rank puppets to be so staggeringly expensive.

Still, seeing her with companions, enjoying life in her own way, he decided it was better for her to stay. It was far preferable to bringing her back to the estate, where she’d just brood with him in solitude. She should have her own world, her own friends, and that was enough for him.

Just as he was about to leave, Tang Nian spoke up in a sultry tone, “Godfather... Father...”

Li Yuan paused.

She continued, “Over the years, I’ve tried getting puppet materials for sixth rank projects through the Purejade Merchant Association, but they never have what I need. It’s maddening. Finally, I found someone who might help, but they only accept payment in blood gold. Father, do you have any? I’ll pay you back someday, I promise.”

“I’m afraid I’m quite poor,” Li Yuan said. “No blood gold on hand.”

Blinking, Tang Nian eyed him doubtfully. Then, she kicked off a boot again, curling her snowy toes and cradling her chin in one hand. Her voice was sultry as she asked, “Godfather...don’t you think I’m beautiful?”

Li Yuan gave her a wry look. “You can thank your parents for your looks; it has nothing to do with you.”

Tang Nian’s face went blank. However, since she’d brought up blood gold, Li Yuan walked back over and said, “Blood gold is for sixth rank use only, and all major factions keep it under strict control. Of course you can’t get your hands on any. But lately I’ve been thinking about ways to earn some blood gold myself.”

He glanced at the girl across from him. Dressed in red, cheeks flushed with drink, she looked every bit the rebellious enchantress.

“You want to earn blood gold?” Li Yuan said. “I can take you with me, on one condition.”

Tang Nian propped her chin in her hand and asked coquettishly, “What’s the condition?”

“Change out of that red dress, and cut your hair short.”

Tang Nian froze. She sat up straight, her slender brows knitting together. “Seriously? Godfather, I’m practically a grown woman.”

“You’re only 16 and already thinking about luring men?”

She hastily waved her hands, giggling. “Please, as if I’d be interested in anyone. There’s only you in my eyes, Godfather.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Li Yuan snapped. “Tomorrow, wear something else. Cut your hair shorter, and then...” He paused. “Look into how to make a sixth rank puppet.”

Tang Nian’s eyes lit up. Hopping down from her puppet’s broad hands, she replied, “Yes!”

˙·٠✧🐗➶➴🏹✧٠·˙

The Gold Luo Canine Taming skill wasn’t complicated for Li Yuan. He was already a fully fledged sixth rank martial artist, and he had a strong grasp of beast taming. Within half a month, a new entry appeared in his status window.

NEW! Basic Gold Luo Canine Taming (1/10)

A quick glance at his 9.008 stat points, and he immediately allocated 309 of them, maxing out the skill to full in the blink of an eye.

Master Gold Luo Canine Taming (160/160)

In that instant, countless memories flooded his mind. It was as though he’d spent arduous months or even years refining his skills step by step, only to achieve a sudden epiphany at the end. Within that epiphany, a faceless stranger guided him further along the path, revealing something beyond the final threshold.

When he opened his eyes again, he felt a new level of clarity. He was now able to command ninth rank birds. He could also tame up to three sixth rank demonic beasts. Originally, his limit had been seven ordinary birds for basic reconnaissance, perhaps nine ninth rank beasts, seven eighth rank, and five seventh rank. Now, on top of that, he could link with three ninth rank birds and three sixth rank demonic beasts.

He already had the ninth rank birds ready to go. Obtaining such creatures was well within his reach these days. The ones he’d bought were known as chameleon parakeets—small avian beasts whose feathers changed color to blend into their surroundings. Around green foliage, they turned green; over fallen leaves, yellow. Their combat power was modest, but their camouflage in the wild was exceptional, making them stealthy killers among ninth rank demonic beasts.

They’d never appear in busy settlements. Instead, they were found in the tropical rainforests of the south, where beast hunters sometimes captured them to sell. Leveraging his many connections, Li Yuan purchased three. In only half a day, he formed a spiritual bond with all three and sent them off to roam freely. Such ninth rank demon birds were more than capable of crossing the Eternal Rest River on their own.

˙·٠✧🐗➶➴🏹✧٠·˙

A few days later.

At dawn, the petite Xiao Zhu and the curvier Xiao Mei crawled out of Li Yuan’s bed with yawns. Supporting themselves against the wall, they shuffled away.

Li Yuan casually looped a transparent thread around Xiao Zhu as she left. After washing up and eating, he sat before a dressing mirror and took out a gray rouge compact, calmly applying it to his features. Before long, the mirror reflected a plain, unfamiliar face.

He stood, chose a fine long blade comparable in quality to his Dragon-Fanged Spear, then put on a conical straw hat. Today, he planned to cross the river to Northriver Prefecture for a closer look. Having made all the necessary preparations, he tugged the thousand-mile thread that linked him to Xiao Zhu.

In an instant, Li Yuan felt himself rushing through a cold, dark tunnel, and in the next breath, he was standing north of the Eternal Rest River in some unknown residence.

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