63. The Blazing Soul of the Hunt

"Junior, I've already gotten the contact information for my grandfather's old comrade. Apparently, he's still working in the hunting crew... Let's skip the meal, since we're classmates after all."

That evening, Chen Shang received a call from the senior. After a brief conversation, Chen Shang obtained the number of a current hunter from the Cangyan Star Poaching Crew. He recorded the number in his address book and dialed without hesitation.

A busy tone sounded from the other end, and the call was disconnected.

"Could it be fake?" Chen Shang frowned, doubting everything for a moment. He sighed, tossing his phone aside, wondering if the senior was just playing with him.

At that moment, his phone rang; the man had called back.

Chen Shang’s gloomy mood vanished instantly. He hurriedly picked up the phone and said, "Hello, are you a hunter from Cangyan Star?"

"Yes, yes!" The voice was hoarse and low, but brimming with excitement. "Sorry, I was hunting a Cangbao Dragon just now. My teammates and I were betting whether we could make it to the five-minute mark!"

"I see! Sorry about that," Chen Shang apologized, feeling embarrassed.

The 'X-minute mark' was hunters’ jargon, meaning to bring down the prey within X minutes.

For reference, even a five-man special forces team, working in perfect coordination, would need over ten minutes to eliminate a Cangbao Dragon.

"No worries! Your call delayed me by two seconds, but I still managed to squeeze in at four minutes and fifty-eight seconds," the other laughed heartily. "That guy owes me a drink tonight, hahahaha!"

"That's impressive," Chen Shang remarked.

The sound of sharpening blades came through the phone. The man asked casually, "Kid, who gave you my number?"

Though Chen Shang had put on his Invisibility Glasses to steady his tone, his voice was unmistakably that of an adolescent. Being called "kid" was inevitable.

He cleared his throat and replied earnestly, "It was your old comrade’s grandson. I’m contacting you because I’d like your crew to help me with a commission."

"..." The man was silent for several seconds before responding, "Was it that old guy who used to wield the blade? Didn’t think he still kept our numbers..."

"As for the commission, tell me about it."

Ever since the hunting profession had been suppressed, most hunters had switched to working as mercenaries or bodyguards for big companies. Even the Cangyan Star Poaching Crew had to take mercenary jobs to make a living.

"Here’s my commission," Chen Shang opened his notebook and read aloud:

"I want to hire a border hunter from your crew to team up with me for the 'Grand Arena Tournament' three months from now!"

"Grand Arena Tournament?" The man echoed in confusion.

"Can’t take it?" Chen Shang asked.

After three seconds of silence, the man shouted away from the phone, "Yayuliya, what’s the Grand Arena Tournament?"

..."After a moment of conversation, the man returned to the call. "You mean the tournament with a ninety-five percent mortality rate?"

"Exactly, the preliminaries start in three months," Chen Shang said. "I have a way to win, but I need to hire one of you. As payment, I’ll give you half the prize money."

"Why should we believe you?" the man asked, reasonably.

After all, the prize for the Grand Arena Tournament was enormous, and there had even been teams who betrayed each other in the finals for the winnings.

More so, a teenager appeared out of nowhere claiming he could win the championship—it was suspicious to say the least.

Chen Shang yawned and smiled confidently. "Instead of doubting each other over the phone, why don’t we meet in person?"

"Name a time," the man said bluntly.

"Tomorrow at three in the afternoon, east entrance of the underground district," Chen Shang replied.

"No problem."

...

After school the next day, Chen Shang boarded the train and arrived at the appointed place.

A middle-aged man in a deep red coat and cowboy hat sat at a roadside table, sipping coffee. Chen Shang approached and took the seat opposite, speaking in a low voice:

"May the Cangyan Star forever shine on the wilderness."

The man tilted his hat, eyeing the bespectacled high schooler with suspicion. "You’re the client?"

Judging by his tone, he hadn’t expected the client to be a kid, though Chen Shang radiated an inexplicable maturity.

"Let me remind you," Chen Shang said, to ease the man’s doubts, "Judging by appearances is the most foolish thing in this city."

"True," the man nodded, handing some rusted coins to the waiter.

"But we’re hunters, not actors. No way we’re joining a talent show."

"Then why did you bother to meet me?" Chen Shang sighed.

"We just wanted to see who you really are," the man finished his coffee and prepared to leave. "Even if you have a way to win, you’ve come to the wrong people. We only take hunting commissions."

"What are you talking about?" Chen Shang tapped the table, smiling. "What I’m offering is a hunting commission."

The man narrowed his eyes and paused.

"I want to hire you to hunt a Devourer Dragon," Chen Shang continued.

"Devourer Dragon?! That’s the beast that nearly destroyed Night Axis City! Isn’t it extinct?" The man was visibly shaken.

Chen Shang shook his head, smiling. "Unfortunately, Radiant Bird Corporation secretly gathered its genes and bred a clone."

"Where is it now?!" The man leaned in, his eyes blazing.

"I have an uncle working at Radiant Bird. He shared a little insider news," Chen Shang lied with perfect composure. "Three months from now, during the Grand Arena Tournament, Radiant Bird will release the Devourer Dragon for the finals."

"Those maniacs!" the man growled. "So many hunters died to kill it last time, and now those bastards want to resurrect it?"

"So, will you take the job?" Chen Shang smiled meaningfully. "Even though the clone isn’t as dangerous as the original you hunted, it’s still formidable."

The man slapped the table, his eyes burning like a man who suddenly discovered he could rise again after years of impotence.

He took out his phone and reported to his teammates, then said,

"We accept the commission!"

"Excellent," Chen Shang applauded. "Now let me take you to meet another teammate."

"Another teammate?" the man asked, puzzled. "Aren’t you hiring two of us?"

"No, I have someone better in mind," Chen Shang said. "She’s here in the underground district. Follow me."