NOVEL WEB Chapter 9: Honorary Guest Elder
However, as Kent faced the dense list of spirit beast tasks on the screen, he couldn't help but feel a little overwhelmed.
After thinking for a moment, he had initially planned to keep a low profile in the beginning, but his brief display of strength earlier had already attracted the attention of quite a few people.
He remembered what Zhou Yun had mentioned: the underground black market was explicitly banned by the City Lord's Mansion due to its numerous illegal activities.
Once discovered, the consequences would likely be unimaginable.
Yet, the black market had existed for a long time, with many shady figures, even some criminal elements, hiding within it, which indicated that it was tied to enormous financial interests.
Although none of this directly concerned him, it did suggest that the black market was risky and should be approached with caution.
If he became too high-profile now, not only would it draw the attention of those with ulterior motives, but even the shady elements within the black market might take notice of him, and that would lead to trouble.
After some consideration, Kent decided to take on one last major task, then withdraw.
A strategic retreat! Keep the credit and fame to himself!
He quickly made his choice on the screen.
Soon after:
"Hire a spirit beast master to evolve three Silver-tier Imperial Beast Spiked Back Earth Dragons for the Gao family. Deadline: Half a month. Reward: 500,000 credit points. Necessary items will be provided."
"The reward looks quite generous. I might even be able to take the items provided for the task."
"Alright, it's settled."
Kent walked up to Lu Jia and said, "Please check if Task No. 1 in Area C, Row 2 requires on-site service?"
Lu Jia glanced at the task and his eyes flashed with surprise as he quickly understood.
Could it be... Mr. Eight God was considering taking this task?
This task, both in terms of reward and difficulty, was one of the highest on the board. Released for more than half a month, it had attracted the attention of many spirit beast masters, but no one had been confident enough to take it on.
Additionally, although there were many families named Gao in the city, the most famous and influential one was the Gao family, located near the Shenglong Lake in the eastern part of the city.
The Gao family was one of the ten major families in Micro-light City, not only immensely wealthy but also having connections with the City Lord's Mansion. They even had a formal mercenary group, the "King Hunters," consisting of 2,000 members, with a widely-known reputation.
Thus, completing this task would undoubtedly attract the Gao family's attention, possibly leading to a high-paying offer to become their official spirit beast master.
However, failing the task and causing harm to the beasts would have consequences that even the most seasoned masters would find difficult to bear.
Lu Jia thought about all this and then responded, "It's not an on-site task. The three Earth Dragons are kept here, and the beast's owner has provided six bottles of advanced evolution fluid and thirty bottles of advanced nutrition fluid. Mr. Eight God, would you like to take the task?"
Kent was immediately tempted. So many high-value items, if he could keep them for Garfield's upgrade, he could make him invincible!
Not to mention the 500,000 credit points as a reward!
If he completed this task, Kent would be considered a wealthy man in Saint Stone High.
"Yes, I'll take it," Kent said firmly.
"Then, please deposit 5,000 credit points as collateral. If the task fails, the deposit will be forfeited. Any items consumed during the task will be at your own expense."
"I understand," Kent nodded, showing no sign of hesitation.
Five minutes later.
Led by the maid Xiao Wei, Kent arrived at three large iron cages.
Roar!
Just the roar alone shook the ground!
Luckily, the underground black market was protected by mysterious extraordinary forces that blocked out all energy and sound.
Otherwise, this roar alone could have caused a massive commotion above, causing customers to scatter.
Kent felt a slight ringing in his ears. Once he recovered, he focused his gaze on the three Spiked Back Earth Dragons.
Each cage contained a vicious creature, roughly ten meters long, resembling a lizard but with a crocodile-like tail.
Their backs were covered in thick skin, with hundreds of sharp spines growing out, each tip sharp as a dagger, capable of piercing steel.
"Mr. Eight God, these three beasts are already Silver-tier level 37 Lord-class monsters. It was very difficult to successfully contract them, but their tempers are still extremely volatile. Even with the beast's owner present, one misstep could lead to injury or even death," Xiao Wei reminded.
"Please be careful."
Kent nodded nonchalantly and, with a flicker of golden light in his eyes, the data for the Spiked Back Earth Dragons instantly appeared before him.
Beast Name: Spiked Back Earth Dragon
Beast Tier: Silver High
Level: 37 (Lord-class)
Age: 6 and a half years
Experience: 72,000/75,000
Experience Pool: 72,000
Abilities:
Roar WaveTail SweepTear Through Gold and StoneSpiked Projectile
Strengths: Thick skin, hard to kill. Giant size, like a tank. Powerful charge, unstoppable.
Weaknesses: Sensitive to strong light, easily angered, difficult to control…
Note: The Spiked Back Earth Dragon is easily angered and has a rough mind. It can be easily confused by the system, allowing for potential evolution into a divine pet. As the Earth Dragon is already an adult and Silver-tier High, only a little help is required for its evolution. If desired, the user can consume 50 drops of their own blood or 500 drops from any contracted beast.
Silver High?
Kent noticed this. It seemed that within each tier, there were subdivisions based on the beast's species, with considerable differences in strength.
For example, a Silver-tier level 10 frogman and a Silver-tier level 10 Earth Dragon would have a vast difference in strength, with the Earth Dragon being the superior.
This difference was due to species characteristics.
"Mr. Eight God, do you think you can handle this?" Xiao Wei asked, both hopeful and worried, having developed some affection for Kent.
Kent gave a mysterious smile and responded, "It's doable."
Then, the scene shifted.
"Evolve, you fools, under heaven's pity."
Kent tossed an advanced evolution fluid into each of the Earth Dragons. As their experience pools surged by 30,000, surpassing the 100,000 mark, they met the evolution requirements. With a sharp shout, Kent commanded, "If not now, then when?"
With a sudden surge, the three Earth Dragons' bodies rapidly expanded, their skin tearing, only to heal almost immediately. Within five or six breaths, their bodies had grown by over half, almost bursting out of their large iron cages. The iron bars, thick as a man's arm, bent visibly under the force.
The evolution complete, three beams of golden light shot from their mouths, releasing the terrifying aura of a Golden-tier beast.
Then—
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The sound of sharp spikes being launched echoed through the space!
The spikes, as large as bamboo shoots, shot off their backs like mini-missiles, piercing the iron bars and continuing to crash into the solid steel and concrete walls, leaving deep half-meter craters.
The immense noise immediately attracted the attention of the management.
"What's going on here?" A figure wearing a "Spin Knife" mask hurried over, his voice stern.
Xiao Wei, sensing the heavy aura emanating from the Spin Knife figure, shivered slightly and explained, "Master Spin Knife, the Earth Dragons evolved, and in their frantic rage, they released their newly acquired power."
"What? Earth Dragon evolution?!" Spin Knife exclaimed in shock. "Beast evolutions are a slow process, requiring feeding with nutrition fluids, increasing strength, and stabilizing their growth before attempting evolution. The success rate is only two or three percent. But now… all three evolved successfully at once!"
"Can someone tell me why?!" Spin Knife looked around.
"I… I don't know. You should ask Mr. Eight God," Xiao Wei stammered.
Spin Knife's gaze turned to Kent, his eyes filled with suspicion. His tone softened slightly, "Spirit Beast Master Eight God, greetings. I'm Spin Knife, a member of the Beast Department. Could you explain what happened just now?"
Kent frowned slightly, a glint of displeasure flashing in his eyes. Shrugging his shoulders, he coldly replied, "Sorry, I'm just here to complete the task, not to explain. Please show some respect."
Spin Knife instantly realized his mistake. He had overstepped his bounds. According to the rules, they had no right to interrogate others.
Furthermore, this young man, Mr. Eight God, was likely of significant background, especially given his extraordinary spirit beast skills. How could Spin Knife afford to offend him?
"Spin Knife, what's going on? I was drinking tea when I suddenly heard those loud bangs!"
An old, slightly hunched figure appeared, walking hurriedly towards them. It was Master Ye Yan, a level 5 Spirit Beast Master who oversaw the Beast Department in the underground black market.
Spin Knife nodded slightly in respect and, after a deep breath, briefly explained the situation.
Master Ye Yan's cloudy old eyes widened with disbelief.
"This... this is too... too incredible! In my thirty years in this business, I've never seen anything like this."
After a stunned mutter, Master Ye Yan looked at Kent with a touch of respect in his voice.
"Master Eight God, please allow me to address you as such. Although this is your first time in the black market, given your skill as a spirit beast master, you've already reached the level of a 5th or even 6th-tier spirit beast master."
Kent nodded but didn't deny it.
Ye Yan took a moment to size Kent up, his expression shifting as he made up his mind.
After a long pause, Master Ye Yan spoke decisively, "I sincerely request that you join our underground black market's Beast Department as an Elder."