Yuan Ming entered the hall, where a stern-looking middle-aged man sat, his aura deep and profound, a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Standing next to the middle-aged man were a young man and woman, both dressed in white. The man was handsome, the woman charming, they looked like a pair of wall paintings.

Both were young, but their cultivation was extraordinary, their auras stronger than his own.

“Are you the one who will be testing me?” Yuan Ming’s gaze fell on the middle-aged man as he asked calmly, unaffected by the unique pressure of a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

“Indeed, I am Huan Shi, the vice leader of the Baiye Scatter Alliance. This hunting mission is of great importance. For your safety and the interests of our alliance, we must carefully select our personnel. I hope you understand,” the middle-aged man replied with a polite smile.

“Of course, may I ask what the test is?” Yuan Ming asked.

“The test is simple. This mission requires a certain level of strength. If you can withstand one of the two behind me for a quarter of an hour, you pass. You are not allowed to use any magical tools or talismans,” Huan Shi explained.

“Is that all?” Yuan Ming had expected a difficult test, but it sounded straightforward.

“You, a ninth level Qi Refiner, sure are confident. Let’s see how strong you really are!” The young man in white couldn’t help but retort coldly.

Hearing Yuan Ming’s words, Huan Shi raised an eyebrow and looked at Yuan Ming with interest.

“Follow me!” The young man in white led the way to a side hall.

Seeing that Huan Shi didn’t stop him, Yuan Ming followed.

The side hall was as spacious as the main hall. The thick stone walls were reinforced with restrictions, and the floor was covered with a layer of thick stone. It looked like a room specifically designed for duels.

“You can make the first move,” the young man in white said arrogantly after closing the door.

Without a word, Yuan Ming gathered his Qi and assumed the stance of the Shadowless Step.

……

A quarter of an hour later, the door to the side hall was pushed open, and Yuan Ming walked out slowly. His aura was steady, his clothes were neat and tidy, and his hat was intact.

A few breaths later, the young man in white also came out.

Half of his body was charred, half of his hair was burned off, and his right cheek was swollen. He looked rather embarrassed.

“Senior Brother, are you alright?” The young woman in white hurriedly went up to support him.

The young man in white looked dejected. He opened his mouth to say something, but in the end, he remained silent.

In the side hall, he had been confident in his superior cultivation and had allowed Yuan Ming to make the first move. However, Yuan Ming had stood still and asked if he only needed to last a quarter of an hour, which had infuriated him.

Unable to hold back, he had made the first move. But once Yuan Ming moved, his movements were strange and unpredictable. He simply dodged, and the young man in white couldn’t catch up with him or hit him with his spells. His strange steps always narrowly avoided them.

After more than a quarter of an hour, he had become frustrated and angry. He had even used his magical tool to try to intimidate Yuan Ming.

However, Yuan Ming had suddenly raised his hand, a ball of fire lighting up at his fingertips. It looked like he was trying to cast a fireball spell, but whether he was unskilled or something else, he couldn’t release it. He seemed a bit flustered.

The young man in white naturally didn’t want to miss such a good opportunity. He rushed up to Yuan Ming, intending to deliver a thunderous blow.

However, just as he reached Yuan Ming, the “fireball”, which was larger than a normal fireball, suddenly exploded. He couldn’t avoid it in time and suffered a considerable loss.

Given his proud nature, and the fact that he had used his magical tool first, he naturally didn’t feel like saying anything.

Huan Shi, however, looked calm. He had used his divine sense to monitor the situation in the side hall.

“Did I pass the test?” Yuan Ming looked at Huan Shi and asked.

“Of course, you hid your strength well and easily defeated my foolish disciple. I’m impressed,” Huan Shi said with a smile.

“I just followed the rules set by your alliance and luckily lasted a quarter of an hour,” Yuan Ming replied modestly.

“You are humble in victory, which is even more commendable. I wonder which fortunate cultivator has taken you as a disciple. I’m quite envious,” Huan Shi sighed, probing for information.

Yuan Ming just responded with a polite smile, not taking the bait.

“Hehe, take this token. Gather at the Ghost Cry Gorge in the Hundred Thousand Mountains in ten days. The specific details of this mission will be explained to you there,” Huan Shi said, handing Yuan Ming a white jade token.

“Ten days from now…” Yuan Ming murmured.

This would give him enough time to return to the Biluo Cave and refine the Green Fish Sword into a magical tool, which would greatly enhance his strength.

“Senior Huan Shi, since I passed the test, could you tell me about the target beast? So I can prepare in advance,” Yuan Ming asked after some thought.

“It’s not that our alliance wants to hide it, but we have no choice. If the information about the beast were to leak, our alliance would be at a disadvantage, and the mission might even fail. Don’t worry, all the information about this mission will be disclosed to you at the gathering in Ghost Cry Gorge,” Huan Shi shook his head and replied.

Yuan Ming frowned slightly and said, “Since there’s a reason for it, I won’t ask what the beast is. But could you tell me about its strength?”

“That I can tell you. The target of this hunt is a second-level beast. But don’t worry, the Foundation Establishment experts of our alliance will also be there, and you won’t be the only one recruited for this mission,” Huan Shi said.

Seeing that he couldn’t get any more information, Yuan Ming bid his farewell and left.The sky outside had darkened, and the flow of people in the southern market had become increasingly sparse.

Yuan Ming didn’t go far. He found an inn nearby to stay in and closed his eyes to rest.

Time passed bit by bit, and soon it was past midnight.

He took out the incense burner, as usual, infused it with his mana. The Great Ultimate pattern on the incense burner quickly lit up, and the missing part was quickly filled.

Yuan Ming put away the incense burner and looked out the window towards the headquarters of the White Night Alliance.

“By this time, the selection should be over,” he murmured to himself. He sat cross-legged on the bed, a black light flashed in his brow, and a soul crow flew out, heading towards the White Night Alliance.

Although Huan Shi seemed very confident, Yuan Ming didn’t dare to fully trust him. This hunting mission from the White Night Alliance was a matter of life and death, and he had to investigate it himself.

With the speed of the soul crow, it quickly arrived at the headquarters of the White Night Alliance. The main gate was tightly closed, and the recruitment activity had ended.

Although it was late at night, many rooms in the headquarters were still brightly lit, filled with people, and the sound of lively discussions was endless.

Yuan Ming listened for a moment. They were all talking about trivial matters, unrelated to the hunting mission, so he controlled the soul crow to fly deeper into the headquarters.

The headquarters of the White Night Alliance was not small, with several buildings connected by small paths, spreading out like the veins of a human body, disappearing into the darkness. It was hard to tell where the important figures lived.

The soul crow perched on a tree branch, considering where to go next.

At this moment, the sound of footsteps approached, and a tall woman walked by. It was the white-clothed woman who had stood behind Huan Shi during the test.

She was holding a tray with tea and snacks on it, apparently intending to deliver it somewhere.

Judging from the situation during the day, this white-clothed woman held a high position. The person who could make her personally serve tea must be an important figure in the White Night Alliance, perhaps even Huan Shi.

The soul crow flapped its wings and followed her quietly.

The white-clothed woman soon arrived at a two-story pavilion and pushed the door to enter.

The soul crow also arrived near the pavilion and heard a faint conversation coming from a room on the second floor. One of the voices was Huan Shi’s.

“Finally found him,” Yuan Ming quickly controlled the soul crow to fly over.

Considering that Huan Shi was a Foundation Establishment cultivator with a powerful divine sense, he didn’t let the soul crow get too close. It stopped on a large tree two meters away, hidden in the darkness.

“Is everything arranged?” Huan Shi asked.

“Everything is arranged properly. As of today, we have recruited fifty-five people. According to our previous estimates, even if only sixty percent of them stay, it should be enough to deal with those Golden Flower Poisonous Pythons and find the python king’s nest,” another voice responded, it was the white-clothed youth who had been defeated by him during the day.

“Very good, the gallbladder of the Golden Flower Python King might have transformed into a snake pearl, which is a priceless treasure. We must not lose it,” Huan Shi reminded.

“Master, rest assured, I have been very careful. I only told the recruits that we are hunting a second-level beast. Those who tried to inquire about the specific information of the beast were all fooled by me. There were a few who seemed to be spies from other alliances, but I sent them away,” the white-clothed youth replied.

“Very good,” Huan Shi said.

Back in the inn, a hint of surprise flashed in Yuan Ming’s eyes.

His spying with the soul crow had indeed yielded significant results, revealing the target of the White Night Alliance.

As for the Golden Flower Poisonous Python, he had some understanding of it. It was one of the most difficult types of pythons to deal with in the Hundred Thousand Mountains, and it was also one of the most dangerous beasts that beast tamers generally dared not hunt. The real target of the White Night Alliance was obviously the Golden Flower Python King.

Regardless of the strength of that snake king, just the fact that they needed to gather so many people for the hunt indicated that the mission was not as simple as they had described.

As for the previously mentioned reward of up to five hundred spirit stones, although it seemed tempting, it probably wouldn’t be that easy to get. There would likely be some stringent requirements.

Anyway, with his current strength and familiarity with the terrain of the Hundred Thousand Mountains, as long as he was careful, he should be able to protect himself.

Just then, another voice came from the soul crow. It was the white-clothed youth.

“Master, I know you observed that man with the bamboo hat with your divine sense when I fought him during the day. Were you able to determine his background?”

Yuan Ming was taken aback. He hadn’t expected the conversation to suddenly turn to him. He quickly pricked up his ears to listen carefully.

(End of Chapter)