Hunter 141: The Contestants Gather

"How should I address you?"

Wang Ye greeted Lin Jiu from outside the door. Anyone who could attract the attention of the Grandmaster himself was certainly no ordinary person.

"Red. Daoist Wang Ye, I've heard of your reputation for a long time."

Lin Jiu replied with a smile.

"What do you mean by that? I'm just a humble mountain hermit. This is my first time stepping outside the mountain gates. Where would I have earned a reputation?"

Wang Ye smiled wryly.

"It's all the same, even if I anticipated hearing about you ahead of time." Lin Jiu signaled to him not to worry about such details.

"Brother Red, you are something..."

Wang Ye thought about the earlier scene with the girl buying a string of beads nearby. This conversation wouldn't go smoothly, but his curiosity had gotten the better of him.

"I should probably report to the back mountain. Brother Red, care to join me?"

Wang Ye lazily suggested.

"No thanks, I don't know anyone there."

Lin Jiu's acquaintances in this world were either from Quanxing or led by Village Chief Ma from Biyou Village. Plus, between a gathering of minor characters and the main protagonist team, it wasn't hard to choose.

"Alright then, I'll head off first!"

Wang Ye waved and bid farewell, heading toward the back mountain.

A while later, Zhang Chulan came out looking dejected. Seeing him, Xu Si and the others realized that they would need to win the Raten Taishō competition to obtain the information they wanted regarding the inheritance of the Grandmaster's title.

"Let's head to the back mountain for the gathering!"

The group moved quickly to the cliffside, where ropes were strung across as pathways. Each different person demonstrated their unique abilities to cross the cliff, like the Eight Immortals crossing the sea.

Despite a small incident, with Jia Zhengliang stepping in, everything was fine. Lin Jiu crossed the ropes and glanced back at Zhang Chulan, who was clinging to the rope and slowly wriggling across. His display of weakness was far too convincing.

"I nearly killed one of the Ten Elders earlier; wasn't that a bit too much?" Lin Jiu mused, stroking his chin, wondering if he should learn from Zhang Chulan.

The purple-haired person who had flown over with an eagle earlier was, unsurprisingly, a member of the Beast Taming faction. This made Lin Jiu think of Lao Meng, the Outcast from the Northwest, who controlled bacteria-sized creatures. It was the same faction, but the difference between people was truly vast.

"Who would've thought there'd be a place like this in the back mountain of Longhu Mountain... What's with this amusement park atmosphere?"

Zhang Chulan was shocked at the sight of the massive building ahead.

"Besides us contestants, there are plenty of spectators here for the Raten Taishō. For them, it's just entertainment."

Lin Jiu understood the atmosphere. After all, they were here to enjoy themselves.

"Hello, everyone from Express Delivery Company! Feng Baobao, do you remember me? Feng Xingtong, the guy you scared so much that I didn't even dare to move! Hahaha..."

Feng Xingtong waved and laughed as he approached Zhang Chulan and his group from afar.

Beside him, Feng Shayin couldn't bear it and said, "You still have the face to mention that!"

"You two are participating in the Raten Taishō too?"

Zhang Chulan couldn't help but feel troubled.

Feng Xingtong, seeing Zhang Chulan's concern, smiled and said, "Don't worry, we're not aiming for the Grandmaster's title or the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art. My dad just became one of the Ten Elders, so he sent us here to represent the family."

Zhang Chulan: You think I'm worried about you being a threat? I'm just realizing how tough this competition is going to be!

Feng Xingtong continued, "You're the main character this time! Everyone in the Outcast world is talking about how you've never even entered Longhu Mountain's gates but are already proficient in the Golden Light Incantation and Lightning Techniques! And you're a descendant of the former Qi Flow Master... Everyone wants to meet you!"

Zhang Chulan: "..."

"Sect Leader!"

"Just the two of you?"

Lin Jiu had been staying out of the conversation when two familiar faces approached. It was Zhong Yuanhe and Gu Jingjing. It seemed only the two of them had come, while the others didn't make it. Among the five of them, Li Laiquan and Wang Mingjian had already aged out of the competition.

"Yeah, we're fully aware of our abilities, so the others didn't want to come and embarrass themselves. We just wanted to broaden our horizons." Zhong Yuanhe replied.

"Huh? Aren't you Brother Zhong Yuanhe?"

Feng Xingtong looked at Zhong Yuanhe in surprise.

"Oh? Young Master Feng remembers me!"

Zhong Yuanhe hadn't expected that the son of one of the Ten Elders would still remember him.

"Of course! Brother Zhong was one of the few who didn't accept my father's invitation, so naturally, I remember!"

Feng Xingtong remarked, thinking of the way he had addressed someone earlier.

Turning to Lin Jiu, Feng Xingtong asked, "And you, Brother, seem quite charismatic to have recruited Brother Zhong to your side. How should I address you?"

"Re."

Lin Jiu responded gracefully. Look at this young master from the Feng family—he immediately recognized Lin Jiu's charisma.

Zhong Yuanhe: What the hell…

The contestants had already begun gathering, so the group moved towards the crowd, chatting along the way. Zhong Yuanhe and Gu Jingjing didn't walk with them, as they felt too much pressure around Lin Jiu.

"Those guys we just passed were disciples of Maoshan... The one dressed like a comedian is Xiao Xiao... Bai Shixue, a total money-grubber..."

Feng Xingtong continued introducing the various Outcast gathered at the scene to Zhang Chulan.

Lin Jiu followed behind the group, scanning the crowd. He identified five other contractors and was certain there were more, likely better at hiding.

Those entering the Raten Taishō were either exceptionally strong or completely clueless about their abilities. Out of the eight spots required for the mission, nearly half were already out of reach.

Among this large group, only a few contractors would likely stand out. The competition for the remaining slots was fierce, but nobody foolish would be entering such a dangerous tournament without solid abilities.

Meanwhile, Zhang Chulan enthusiastically greeted Zhang Lingyu, "Little Master Uncle, we meet again!"

Zhang Lingyu: "..."

"What is it about me that this guy dislikes?"

Zhang Chulan muttered to himself as he watched Zhang Lingyu ignore him and walk away, feeling frustrated and annoyed.

"By the way, you know a lot of these Outcast!"

Zhang Chulan couldn't help but praise Feng Xingtong.

Feng Xingtong laughed, "My strength might not be much, but I'm excellent at gathering information!"

"Yeah, right! You only gather useless info! Collecting information without distinguishing between what's important and what's not is a rookie mistake!"

A voice came from behind. It was Cang Long, munching on a chicken leg and taunting Feng Xingtong.

"You fat bastard, you're here too! If you're so good, then tell me who the person behind me is!"

Feng Xingtong proudly pointed to Zhang Chulan, smiling.

"I've already said, I only collect info on important people. Small fries don't interest me!"

Cang Long said dismissively.

The next moment, Feng Xingtong slapped him with the truth, "You're seriously out of touch! The person behind me is none other than the famous Zhang Chulan! Important enough for you?"

"What the hell! Zhang Chulan!"

Cang Long couldn't believe he hadn't recognized Zhang Chulan, who was the reason for this grand event.

"Whoa, Zhang Chulan? Now that's worth paying attention to... Hm?"

Cang Long suddenly noticed two people whispering nearby.

Seeing Cang Long's attention turn their way, Lin Jiu finished his conversation with Feng Baobao and moved off to the side to keep a distance.