Chapter 1188: Encircled Hunt in the East Sea

A whale cloud hung high in the sky, and the moonlight shone down without obstruction.

The cloud giant held up a whale pearl, and the commoners on the ground whispered among themselves.

The Xu, Chi, and Huo families trembled with excitement, while Department Magistrate Xu Wanzheng and Prefecture Commandant Qiu Yue were shaking all over.

The East Sea Whale Emperor personally extended a fin to reward the winners of the Great Hunt? An Demon Emperor—that is a legendary furnace! A furnace! It is the bright moon and the Golden Crow in the sky. For little Huangzhou to attract Liang Qu, the Prince of Huai, to host the competition personally was already unbelievable; what virtue or ability did they have to attract the Demon Emperor to bestow a reward? The spring of their official careers was about to arrive.

The cloud giant handed over the whale pearl in its hand.

"Ten whale pearls, ranging from one to thirty years of age, with increasing effects, to be awarded in order to the tenth to first place winners of the Great Hunt. What does the Prince of Huai think?"

Liang Qu replied respectfully: "Since the Whale Emperor has such elegant interest to add color and brilliance to the Great Hunt, it is truly the blessing of the people of Huangzhou and Yunzhou, the blessing of the hunters, and the fortune of the celebration. I could not ask for more!"

"Good."

The cloud giant nodded, looked down at the earth beneath, and sent a message to all the people, announcing the addition of the rewards.

One stone stirred up a thousand waves.

The wealthy families with insight scrambled to ask: "What does this mean? Is the cloud in the sky the Whale Emperor?"

"Didn't the imperial court issue a notice two years ago? It said the Whale Emperor was traveling through the Huai River and told the people not to be alarmed. It was last year or the year before. It looks like it has traveled to our place!"

"What is the use of a whale pearl?"

"It must be a treasure. If it weren't a treasure, would it be brought out? Never mind what it's actually for, just take it."

"Master, compared to the Whale Emperor and the Prince of Huai, who is greater?"

"Fool, frog in a well. How can the Prince of Huai compare to the Whale Emperor? The Prince of Huai is merely a prince of one region, while the other's title is Emperor. Fireflies and the bright moon! The Prince of Huai and the Whale Emperor are like us compared to Magistrate Xu, compared to the ancestors of the Xu family—no, even greater than that!"

All kinds of discussions emerged one after another, but the most prominent voice was nothing more than who was greater, the Whale Emperor or Liang Qu.

Ranking people and comparing who is higher or lower, and who sits where, is truly a survival instinct engraved in people's bones.

Inside the Heaven-Reaching Water Tower, all the hunters were shocked.

A reward from a furnace!

First the Prince of Huai, then the Whale Emperor.

It's just the annual Great Hunt; why is it so lively this year?

Huo Hongyuan's expression was serious. During the previous breath exchange, he saw latecomers joining the competition. The dust had not yet settled, so he tucked the treasure fish into his waist, climbed out of the water tower, took a deep breath, and continued to catch fish.

The disciples of the Huaiyin Martial Hall were all excited, and those with good luck had already reunited with their classmates.

Guan Congjian rubbed his hands and fists; he was here to fight as well as to compete, and the more rewards, the better.

At midnight, many people were originally unable to hold on and wanted to go back to sleep, but now they had no intention of resting at all.

Liang Qu remained calm, silently pondering the Whale Emperor's purpose for coming here.

Things were vaguely exceeding his control.

However, the Whale Emperor was traveling through the Huai River, had sent a visiting card, and was attracted by such a grand event on the Huai River—it was reasonable and logical—

Long Yao and Long Li's black eyeballs rolled, quietly looking at Liang Qu.

"What are you looking at me for? Want to sneak away?" Liang Qu rubbed their heads. "I said no, so it means no. It's useless to beg your sister Eying. Stay on the mountain and behave yourselves."

"Ouch, my hair is messy, my hair is messy! It's very troublesome to groom."

With the interference of Long Yao and Long Li, Liang Qu leveled his mindset amidst his actions.

On the surface, the Whale Emperor was still a benevolent person traveling the world, so nothing major should happen...

"Indeed, it has been many years since I have seen such a novel thing. The Whale Emperor travels the world; I didn't expect to be attracted here too?"

"Haha, watching mountains and rivers for a long time is also ordinary; it's not even half as good as today's grand occasion."

One question and one answer.

Liang Qu's movements stiffened, the hair on his back stood up again, and his just-calmed state of mind was like a stormy sea.

Everyone was looking at the old man in a bamboo hat who appeared on the mountain peak, and the cloud giant kneeling on one knee to the old man in the bamboo hat.

The two ancestors of the Xu family, the ancestors of the Chi and Huo families, Su Guishan, Yang Dongxiong—a group of Perfected Forms, including the King of Vajra quietly blowing the wind on the side, none of them noticed how this person appeared. In addition to being wary, they saw Liang Qu bow down.

"Qu, pays respects to the Immortal!"

Immortal?

Seeing an Immortal again!?

What kind of day is today, summoning dragons and attracting phoenixes? Is this still the Huangzhou Great Hunt?

On the mountain peak and in the mountain forest, no matter who it was, everyone shuddered, their brains went blank, and relying entirely on instinct, they followed Liang Qu and bowed down.

Things were completely out of control!

This bamboo hat, this straw raincoat, this fishing rod on the shoulder—Liang Qu would absolutely not recognize it wrong.

Southern Frontier Crucible!

The Southern Frontier Furnace ran directly into the territory of the Great Shun?

"Old Man of the Bamboo Hat, how is it?"

"More interesting than fishing. Young people are young people after all; they have more tricks."

"I watched the cloth shadows in Jiangchuan County some days ago. If you have time, Whale Emperor, Old Man of the Bamboo Hat, why don't we watch it together?"

"Good."

Plop!

Cold sweat dripped from his forehead and splashed onto the grass leaves.

The familiar voice, the familiar scene—everyone looked at the mountain peak, at the second adult in wide robes who appeared out of thin air, their hair standing on end. This was already the third time. An absurd thought surged in their hearts, and they turned to look at Liang Qu.

Could it be that this person—it was indeed so.

Liang Qu bowed again.

"Qu, pays respects to the Immortal!"

"Huangzhou, Yunzhou/Xu/Huo pay respects to the Immortal!"

On the mountain, the waists that had not yet straightened up bent down in unison. Even the elders of the three families who had inconvenient legs and feet were helped up, stood respectfully, and the sounds of introductions rang out in one piece.

Things were galloping like a wild donkey on some unknown path!

The three furnaces seen at the beginning of the year were strangely bumping into each other at this moment.

Liang Qu's breathing became manual, and he yielded his seat: "Two Immortals, please take your seats."

"No matter, you sit. We are here to join you, not to spoil the fun." The Great Shun Immortal waved his hand.

The two Immortals hovered in mid-air. No one dared to really sit, so they all accompanied them standing.

In late autumn, the night was cold. Xu Wanzheng's Adam's apple rolled, and he was sweating profusely. He didn't dare to raise his hand to wipe it. His mood was even more nervous than the talents competing in the Heaven-Reaching Water Tower.

Immortal, Immortal, and another Immortal—three furnaces!

What exactly is going on?

The Whale Emperor is from the East Sea, but what about the one wearing the bamboo hat and the one in white? Are they both from the Great Shun?

"Since the Whale Emperor is adding to the stakes, I will also add a bit. The Xuanhuang Plate requires ten great merits. I might as well prepare them for the top winner. For the remaining places, nine, eight, seven, six, in order downwards, totaling ten places." The Great Shun Immortal spoke. "Old Man of the Bamboo Hat, what about you? You can't just join the fun for nothing, right?"

The Old Man of the Bamboo Hat flicked his fishing rod. Liang Qu saw the silver thread fluttering, penetrating the swirling water without any obstruction, and falling into the water tower, releasing ten treasure fish one after another, of various species.

He recognized some of the treasure fish, such as the priceless mermaid, milky white with colorful light, which nourishes the skin and preserves youth; there was the golden gong fish, which tasted extremely delicious; the heavenly eye fish, which increases spiritual sense; and the blood lion fish, which is top-notch for tempering the body.

There were also four or five he didn't recognize, but they were definitely extraordinary and of great value. The key was that every treasure fish was huge, at least twenty jin or more. A twenty-jin blood lion fish, measured by water essence, was at least forty thousand!

The Sea Shopkeeper had traveled north and south and had never sold such a large blood lion.

Compared to the original ox horns, red blood bass, and tiger-head spots, they were simply small miscellaneous fish that even cats wouldn't eat.

"You and the Whale Emperor are both giving rewards to the top winner, which is too utilitarian and boring. I will put ten treasure fish in here. Whoever catches them, they belong to them."

The Whale Emperor had asked for Liang Qu's opinion before listing things. The two Immortals intervened directly in a few words. The cloud giant had a good eye and replaced the two Immortals in notifying the water tower, completely igniting the night and passion of Huangzhou.

Boom!

Layer upon layer of additions: ten whale pearls, ten top-notch treasure fish, and every one of the top ten had great merits!

Even more terrifying, the furnaces were watching the competition!

On weekdays, Perfected Forms were ancestors, and Heavenly Dragons were only in reports, but three furnaces above the Heavenly Dragons appeared.

Huo Hongyuan's heart was shaken. Having just changed his breath, he couldn't help but swim out of the water tower again.

After a little deliberation.

Catch those ten treasure fish first!

No matter what, he was once one of the twenty-eight constellations of Wolf Smoke, born with a martial bone, and was naturally one of the few talents in the world. He also hit the limit threshold of thirty-five years old. Even if the top spot wasn't in his pocket, it was eight or nine out of ten. Get the benefits he could get first.

The treasure fish were too precious. It was inevitable that someone would withdraw from the competition after catching one, and then there would be no chance.

The hunters in the Heaven-Reaching Water Tower were all restless. Hundreds of finless porpoises were simply not enough, and white currents were drawn during the charge.

A lucky hunter saw a mermaid nearby and pounced on it, but was slapped by the treasure fish, fleeing in a panic with a swollen face, which made the commoners laugh out loud.

Top-notch treasure fish were not like ox horns; how could they be so easy to catch?

Among them, the blood lion was the superior of the red-maned lion fish, covered in sharp thorns and highly poisonous. If one was not careful, there was a danger to life.

People laughed heartily at the foot of the mountain, but no one dared to laugh on the mountain.

Afraid of startling the people in heaven.

Liang Qu thought for a while: "Magistrate Xu, first throw in a batch of pig bladders, Xuan water forks, and silver silk nets."

"Understood!"

The cloud giant lowered his head: "Respected Prince of Huai, my Emperor asks, what is the meaning of this move?"

Liang Qu explained the delivery form simply: "That is, through the distribution of limited materials, let them have competitive conflicts with each other."

The cloud giant suddenly realized: "It will indeed be more interesting."

The Great Shun Immortal suddenly spoke: "Cloth shadows, railway tracks—the Prince of Huai has always had strange ideas. It is rare to encounter such a grand event. Besides throwing these things, are there any other means? Bring them all out."

"There is indeed one more idea. Fighting with people is inevitably monotonous." Having had a conversation when reporting to the ancestors earlier, Liang Qu didn't have too many constraints, and he knew that those who could cultivate to the furnace would not be narrow-minded people.

Strength brings confidence, and confidence brings generosity, unless deliberately offended.

"Oh? If not fighting with people, who to fight with?"

"Third Prince!"

The little mirage dragon poked its head out: "Boss! The loyal Third Prince is on standby at all times. What do I need to do? Beat them up?"

"If you make a move, what else can they play?" Liang Qu pointed to the water tower. "From the first to the thirteenth floor, arrange fog beasts according to the principle of more in the lower layers and fewer in the upper layers; weaker strength in the lower layers and stronger strength in the upper layers.

Let the fog beasts move in a fixed territory, and hide most of their bodies. Don't let them be seen at a glance, and don't let them be completely invisible. Once someone breaks in, they will manifest and launch an attack on the intruder, and at the same time chase them within a radius of five times.

If the contestant can eliminate the fog beast, add personal points according to the method of -layer number * layer number * 2. For team cooperation, the one who grabs the beast head gets half, and the remaining points are shared equally. Set the lower layer to the peak of the Four Gates, the eighth layer to the Wolf Smoke of the human bridge, and the top layer—the peak of the Hunting Tiger. What do the Immortals think?"

As soon as these words came out, everyone's eyes lit up.

Is this the brain of a young man?

"Great good!" The Great Shun Immortal agreed happily.

"Third Prince!"

"Understood!"

The dragon claws pressed against the horns, and the little mirage dragon sprayed fog beasts one after another. One after another, they rushed into the water tower and chose their territories.

The new rules resounded again.

The commoners on the ground cheered loudly and shouted for the Prince of Huai.

Most of them were outsiders who couldn't win prizes, and more exciting performances were what they cared about, hoped for, and looked forward to.

Throwing fishing nets, fish forks, and then arranging those fog beasts that would chase and kill.

The Prince of Huai is simply a gaming genius!

Long Yao and Long Li wanted to go down and play even more. They hadn't seen such fun things in several lifetimes, but Liang Qu didn't allow it, so they rested their chins on Long Eying's shoulders and hummed.

"No way, why is it still changing? Is there no fixed number?"

"What is a fog beast? How did it suddenly become dangerous!"

"Damn, damn, damn, so fierce, so fierce!"

More than half of those participating in the Great Hunt were teenagers or twenty-year-old Galloping Horses, all just joining in the fun, feeling that the pressure had doubled. For the Wolf Smoke and Hunting Tiger, it was more challenging, providing an extra means to obtain points.

Sweeping the lower layers might not necessarily be worse than the strong.

In just a quarter of an hour, materials were delivered, dangers increased, and struggles occurred constantly. Many people gathered in the center to grab the Xuan water forks without water resistance, fishing nets that could catch treasure fish, and even pig bladders.

Pig bladders were also artifacts. They were not disposable products; one could go to the bubbles to change breath, and tying them to the body could increase buoyancy, saving physical strength while quickly traveling back and forth between up and down.

Whoever grabbed the props first would be more likely to have a first-mover advantage and catch more fish.

Not to mention the fog beasts. Many people stepped into the territory unprepared and fled in a panic. The scene of riding finless porpoises and rushing around was gone.

Carefully planning for development became difficult to maintain, and in an instant, it was hot and lively, like throwing a string of firecrackers into a horse stable.

The moon set and the sun rose.

The sun, which had taken away the last ray of light in the west, circled around and rose from the east, releasing the first ray of purple light.

Only then did someone realize they hadn't slept all night.

Even if it was a practitioner, not resting for a night was insignificant, but most of the commoners on the ground did not leave and had stayed up all night.

"It's dawn."

Jin Xiaoyu was panting. The environment, fishing, and fog beasts intensified the consumption of physical strength. He sat in a bubble, wanting to have a good sleep, but the water area was too transparent, and there was really no sense of security.

"Must find others to kill the fog beasts; it feels faster than catching treasure fish."

Du Hanwen stared at the looming, semi-transparent flocculent floating object not far away.

"Where did everyone else run to? Forget it, ignore them, sleep first."

Xiong Yiheng looked around, put the treasure fish into the bubble, watched the timer start to jump, lay down, and fell into a deep sleep.

More and more people were eliminated, while others rushed from other places, climbed out of the Huai River, and poured in constantly.

By noon.

The Immortals went to other mountain peaks to observe.

Xu Wanzheng and the ancestors of the three families breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly asked Liang Qu.

"Prince of Huai, are those two Immortals both furnaces of our Great Shun?"

"Not so." Liang Qu shook his head. "The old man in the bamboo hat is the Southern Frontier Furnace, the Southern Frontier Immortal."

Xu Wanzheng was surprised: "The Southern Frontier Immortal also came to watch our Great Hunt?"

"The Immortal lives high in the nine heavens; why not?"

"Yes, yes, yes, I am sitting in a well and watching the sky." Xu Wanzheng couldn't help but wipe his sweat again, sighing that the actions of the Immortals were not something mortals could understand, and hurriedly changed the subject. "Is the Prince of Huai hungry? Shall I prepare some food? And the several Immortals, I don't know—"

"Magistrate Xu, just keep a normal heart. Treat them as normal distinguished guests. Don't seek any treasures. The Immortals have their own generosity; don't be so restrained."

"Understood, understood."

A square table was spread out. Instead of sending food from the foot of the mountain to the mountain, Xu Wanzheng built a platform directly on the mountain peak, letting the chefs cook on the spot.

Mountain delicacies and wild flavors, wine clear and spring fragrant, boiling and bustling.

【Spanning the Great River, Manifesting Like the Sun】

【River Governance Degree: 1.1】

After half a day and a night, the dormant governance degree jumped.

"Not much."

For the same thing, the further it goes, the more desensitized it becomes.

It is so difficult to get now. If it can reach 1.2 by the end of the Great Hunt, Liang Qu will burn high incense.

The sun set behind the western mountains.

The two Immortals returned. The commoners on the ground who had rested for half a day regained their spirits, lively and noisy, with all kinds of small gatherings emerging one after another.

The people on the mountain gradually adapted to the existence of the Immortals and turned their attention back to the Great Hunt.

However, "You are the grand spectacle of the grand entertainment, striving for the great martial arts in the upper garden, but it is a pity that the scene is too small."

The words that suddenly descended from the sky made Xu Wanzheng at a loss.

What does it mean? The Whale Emperor thinks the scene is too small and boring?

Liang Qu said sternly: "First, the time was rushed, limiting the local talents. Second, my ability is limited, and I really cannot create a larger scene. I am truly ashamed to disappoint the Whale Emperor."

"I am not blaming the Prince of Huai, but such a grand event truly makes me happy. It shouldn't stop here. Why not choose another auspicious day and host it grandly in my East Sea, inviting all directions to participate together?"

The fishhook swayed.

"Great good!" The Old Man of the Bamboo Hat responded.

"Feels good." The Great Shun Immortal nodded.

Host it grandly in the East Sea and participate together?

Everyone reacted immediately.

Isn't that the East Sea version of the Great Hunt?

Wait.

With the Whale Emperor taking the lead in organizing the game, what level would the contestants be?

"Great Shun, Southern Frontier, Northern Court, Snow Mountain, Orthodoxy, Martial Saints of overseas countries, Great Demons, Demon Kings, Perfected Forms—all attend the grand event. Rewards include strange stones, creation treasure medicines, and heavenly long Qi—sincerely invite the Prince of Huai to participate in the grand event and coordinate the overall situation. What do you think?"

Everyone's pupils dilated.

Liang Qu bowed:

"That is what I wish for, and I dare not ask for it." ===== CHAPTER 1189 =====