Chapter 1188: The Whale Pearl and the Great Hunt

The whale clouds hung high in the sky, and the moonlight shone down without obstruction.

The cloud giants held up the whale pearls, and the commoners on the ground whispered to one another.

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

The Whale Emperor of the East Sea had personally extended its fins to reward the winners of the Great Hunt? An Demon Emperor—that was a legendary furnace, a furnace! It was the bright moon and the Golden Crow in the sky. For little Huangzhou to attract Liang Qu, this Prince of Huai, to personally host the competition was already inconceivable; what virtue or ability did they have to attract a reward bestowed by a Demon Emperor? 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 through first place winners of the Great Hunt. I wonder, Prince of Huai, what do you think?"

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

"Good."

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

One stone stirred up a thousand waves.

The insightful wealthy families 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 touring the Huai River and told the people not to be alarmed. It was last year or the year before. It looks like it has toured all the way to us!"

"What use are whale pearls?"

"They must be treasures. If they weren't treasures, they wouldn't be brought out. Regardless of what they are actually for, just taking them is the right thing to do."

"Master, between this Whale Emperor and the Prince of Huai, who is greater?"

"You fool, you frog at the bottom of 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. It's like fireflies compared to the bright moon! The Prince of Huai and the Whale Emperor are like us compared to Magistrate Xu or the ancestor of the Xu family—no, even greater than that!"

All kinds of discussions emerged one after another, but the main voice was simply about who was greater, the Whale Emperor or Liang Qu.

Ranking people and competing for status and seating is truly a survival instinct engraved in human 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 was just the annual Great Hunt, so why was it so lively this year?

Huo Zhao Hongyuan's expression was serious. During his 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 catching fish.

The disciples of the Huaiyin Martial Hall were all excited, and some lucky ones had already reunited with their classmates.

Guan 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 about to reach their limit 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 spiraling out of control.

However, the Whale Emperor was touring 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 pitch-black eyeballs rolled around, secretly looking at Liang Qu.

"What are you looking at me for? Want to sneak off?" Liang Qu rubbed their heads. "I said no, so it means no. Begging your sister Long Eying won't work either. Stay on the mountain and behave yourselves."

"Oh, my hair is messy, my hair is messy! It's very troublesome to fix!"

With the distraction of Long Yao and Long Li, Liang Qu managed to calm his mindset.

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

"It has indeed been many years since I have seen such a novel event. The Whale Emperor is touring the world; I never thought you would be attracted here as well?"

"Haha, watching the mountains and rivers for a long time is ordinary; it cannot compare to the grand occasion of today."

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 looked at the old man in a bamboo hat who had appeared on the mountaintop, and the cloud giant kneeling on one knee before him.

The two ancestors of the Xu family, the ancestors of the Chi and Huo families, Su Guishan, Yang Yang Dongxiong—a group of Perfected Form experts, including the King Kong Ming Wang who was quietly blowing in the wind on the side, none of them noticed how this person had appeared. Out of fear, they saw Liang Qu bow down.

"Qu, pays respects to the Immortal!"

Immortal?

An Immortal again!?

What kind of day is it today? Inviting dragons and phoenixes—is this still the Huangzhou Great Hunt?

On the mountaintop and in the mountain forest, no matter who they were, everyone shivered, their minds went blank, and purely by 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 them wrong.

The Southern Frontier Furnace!

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

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

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

"Some time ago, I saw the shadow play in Jiangchuan County. If you have time, Whale Emperor, Old Man of the Bamboo Hat, why don't we watch it together?"

"Good."

Plop!

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

A familiar voice, a familiar scene. Everyone looked at the mountaintop at the second wide-robed adult who had 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 just as expected.

Liang Qu bowed again.

"Qu, pays respects to the Immortal!"

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

On the mountaintop, waists that had not yet straightened up bent down in unison. Even the elderly of the three families who had inconvenient legs were helped up, stood respectfully, and the sounds of introductions rang out in a chorus.

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

The three furnaces seen at the beginning of the year were meeting strangely 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 floated in mid-air, and no one dared to really sit, so they all accompanied them standing.

In late autumn, the night was cold. Xu Xu Wanxing's Adam's apple rolled, and he was drenched in sweat. He did not dare to raise his hand to wipe it, and his mood was even more nervous than the talents competing in the Heaven-Reaching Water Tower.

An Immortal, an Immortal, and another Immortal—three furnaces!

What exactly was going on?

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

"Since the Whale Emperor is adding to the stakes, I will add a share as well. The Xuanhuang Plaque requires ten great merits, so I might as well prepare them for the first place winner. For the remaining places, nine, eight, seven, six, and so on, 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 line sway, penetrate the swirling water without any obstruction, and fall into the water tower, releasing ten treasure fish one after another, each of a different variety.

He recognized some of the treasure fish, such as the priceless mermaid, which was milky white with colorful light and could nourish the skin and maintain youth; there was the Golden Gong Fish, which tasted delicious; the Heaven's Eye Fish, which could increase spiritual energy; and the Blood Lion Fish, which was top-tier for tempering the body.

There were also four or five that he did not recognize, but they were definitely extraordinary and valuable. The key was that every treasure fish was huge, at least twenty jin or more. A twenty-jin Blood Lion Fish, measured in water essence, was worth at least forty thousand!

The Sea Proprietor had traveled north and south and had never sold such a large Blood Lion.

In comparison, the original ox horns, red blood perch, and tiger-headed spots were simply small trash fish that even cats wouldn't eat.

"Since you and the Whale Emperor are both giving rewards to the first place winner, it is too utilitarian and boring. I will just put ten treasure fish in here; whoever catches them, they belong to them."

The Whale Emperor had asked for Liang Qu's opinion beforehand. The two Immortals intervened directly with a few words. The cloud giant was very perceptive and acted on behalf of the two Immortals to inform the water tower, completely igniting the night and passion of Huangzhou.

Boom!

Layer upon layer of additions: ten whale pearls, ten top-tier treasure fish, and every one of the top ten would receive great merit!

Even more terrifying was that the furnaces were watching the competition!

On ordinary days, Perfected Form experts were ancestors, and Heavenly Dragons were only seen in reports, but now, three furnaces above the Heavenly Dragons had appeared.

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

He pondered for a moment.

Catch those ten treasure fish first!

Regardless, he was once one of the twenty-eight constellations of the Wolf Smoke, born with a martial bone, and was naturally one of the few talents in the world. He was also stuck at the limit threshold of thirty-five years old. First place was not necessarily in his pocket, but it was eight or nine out of ten. He had to get the benefits he could get first.

The treasure fish were too precious. It was inevitable that someone would withdraw from the competition immediately 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 they drew white streams as they charged.

Some lucky hunters saw a mermaid nearby and pounced on it, only to be slapped in the face by the treasure fish, fleeing with swollen faces, which made the commoners laugh out loud.

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

Among them, that Blood Lion was a superior version of the Red-Maned Lion Fish, covered in sharp spines and highly poisonous. If one was not careful, there would be a danger to life.

The people at the foot of the mountain were laughing heartily, but no one on the mountain dared to laugh.

Fear of startling the people in heaven.

Liang Qu thought for a moment: "Magistrate Xu, first throw in a batch of pig bladders, mysterious 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 form of the deployment simply: "It is to create competitive conflict between each other through the distribution of limited materials."

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

The Great Shun Immortal suddenly spoke: "Shadow plays, railway tracks—the Prince of Huai has always had strange and ingenious ideas. It is rare to encounter such a grand event. Besides throwing these things in, do you have any other methods? Bring them all out."

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

Strength brings self-confidence, and self-confidence brings generosity, unless it is intentional offense.

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

"Third Prince!"

The little Mirage Dragon popped his head out: "Boss! The loyal Third Prince is on standby at all times. What do I need to do? Beat them up?"

"If you take action, what will they have left to play with?" Liang Qu pointed his finger at the water tower. "From the first to the thirteenth floor, arrange fog beasts according to the quantity: many on the bottom floor, few on the top floor; weak strength on the bottom floor, strong strength on the top floor.

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

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

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's eyes lit up.

Is this the brain of a young man?

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

"Third Prince!"

"Understood!"

The dragon claws pressed against the horns, and the little Mirage Dragon sprayed out fog beasts with a whoosh. One by one, they surged into the sky and merged into the water tower to choose their territories.

The new rules rang out again.

The commoners on the ground cheered loudly, shouting for the Prince of Huai.

Most of them were outsiders who couldn't win prizes, and more brilliant 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 pursue 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 had never seen such a fun thing in all their lives, but Liang Qu did not allow it, so they rested their chins on Long Long Eying's shoulders and hummed and hawed.

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

"What are fog beasts? 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 Horse experts who were just joining the fun, and they only felt their pressure doubled. For the Wolf Smoke and Hunting Tiger experts, it was more challenging and provided an extra means to obtain points.

Sweeping the bottom floor might not necessarily be worse than the strong.

In just a short quarter of an hour, material deployment and increased danger led to constant fighting. Many people gathered in the center to snatch the mysterious water forks without water resistance, fishing nets that could catch treasure fish, and even pig bladders.

Pig bladders were also divine 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 moving up and down quickly.

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

Needless to say, the fog beasts. Many people were caught off guard and stepped into their territories, fleeing in a sorry state. The scene of riding finless porpoises and charging around was gone.

Cautiously planning for development became difficult to maintain. In an instant, it was bustling with noise and excitement, 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 some people realize they hadn't slept for a whole night.

Even for practitioners, not resting for a night was insignificant, but most of the commoners on the ground had not left and had stayed up all night.

"It's dawn."

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

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

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

"Where did everyone else run off 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 over from other places, climbed out of the Huai River, and kept pouring in.

By noon.

The Immortals went to other mountaintops to observe.

Xu Xu Wanxing 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 a furnace from the Southern Frontier, an Immortal of the Southern Frontier."

Xu Xu Wanxing was surprised: "An Immortal of the Southern Frontier also came to watch our Great Hunt?"

"Immortals reside in the nine heavens; why not?"

"Yes, yes, yes, I am a frog in a well." Xu Xu Wanxing couldn't help but wipe his sweat again, sighing that the actions of 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 wonder—"

"Magistrate Xu, just keep a normal heart. Treat them as normal distinguished guests. Don't seek any treasures. 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 top, Xu Xu Wanxing built a platform directly on the mountaintop and let the cooks stir-fry and make it on the spot.

Mountain delicacies and wild flavors, clear wine and fragrant springs, the atmosphere was lively.

【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 people become.

It is so difficult to get it 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, and it was lively and noisy, with all kinds of small markets emerging one after another.

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

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

The words suddenly falling from the sky left Xu Xu Wanxing at a loss.

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

Liang Qu said solemnly: "Firstly, the time was rushed, limiting the local talents. Secondly, my ability is limited, and I really cannot create a larger scene. It is truly shameful to disappoint the Whale Emperor."

"I am not blaming the Prince of Huai, it is just that such a grand event truly makes me happy, and it should not stop here. Why not choose another auspicious day and host it grandly in my East Sea, inviting all parties to participate together?"

The fishing hook swayed.

"Very 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.

If the Whale Emperor takes the lead in organizing the game, what level will the contestants be?

"Great Shun, Southern Frontier, Northern Court, Snow Mountain, Orthodoxy, Martial Saints of overseas countries, Great Demons, Demon Kings, Perfected Form—all attending the grand event, with rewards of strange stones, creation treasure medicines, and heaven and earth long-lasting energy—sincerely inviting 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:

"It is what I wish for, I dare not ask for it."