Chapter 174: Treasure Hunter

Du Zhengyi's chair turned around. He faced Luo Qi, leaning back deep into the chair, his two long legs crossed. "Do you want to hear it?"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Luo Qi shouted.

His juice bottle flew up and tapped him on the head. He rubbed his head, waiting eagerly for Du Zhengyi to continue.

"Qiongqi is actually just a legend; it was only because we had these fierce beasts that we attached such a name to them," Du Zhengyi said. "I think when humans first saw them, they must have been terribly frightened, and in their inability to describe them, they thought of the Qiongqi they had imagined."

Luo Qi understood a little. "You mean Qiongqi haven't always existed? In other words, Qiongqi is actually just a legendary story, not a beast that escaped from the hands of the Ancient Mages. Even the infinitely powerful Ancient Mages never actually used these beasts?"

Du Zhengyi nodded, pondering for a moment. "Qiongqi—that is to say, the Scavengers currently used by Qionglin—appeared during the Middle Ages. Not many people paid attention to this matter, so I only remember the approximate time it occurred. To describe it in human time, it happened roughly between the Five Dynasties period and the early Song Dynasty. The landmark event of the Qiongqi's appearance was later called the Kongsang Mountain Qiongqi Case."

"Did the Qiongqi really appear at Kongsang Mountain?" Luo Qi asked.

Du Zhengyi thought for a while, seemingly trying to find some uncertainties in this Qionglin event he hadn't paid much attention to; he was a cautious person. Finally, he said, "I remember it was indeed Kongsang Mountain, but it is also possible that Kongsang Mountain refers to that general area. Because once the Qiongqi appeared, they began a massacre; they swept through many villages and caused severe chaos in the Kongsang Mountain area."

Luo Qi could imagine the scene. He had once been face-to-face with a Qiongqi. At first glance, the Qiongqi did look terrifying, but that was only because he had never seen such a thing before. Luo Qi could also feel that the thing completely defied the basic common sense of biology; it simply didn't look like a creature that should exist in the natural world. However, initial horror can always be overcome; in the end, a Qiongqi is just a beast. Since it is a beast, it is not invulnerable to blades and guns, and it can be killed. But the most terrifying aspect of a beast like the Qiongqi remains its violation of the norm; it is an existence capable of causing the natural world to lose its balance.

In other words, Qiongqi are more sensitive in their reactions than all other beasts; they are more agile than cheetahs, have more power in their pounce than tigers, and they are even more diligent in their work than most beasts that dominate the top of the food chain. Qionglin calls them Scavengers because they truly tear apart every creature that passes before them. They have been doing this efficient killing work for nearly a thousand years and never tire of it.

Therefore, when a Qiongqi appeared before humans, even though it was just a beast that could neither breathe fire nor spit Lightning Technique, it was still something the subjects of the Great Song could not handle. Even now, if a considerable number of Qiongqi appeared in human streets, Luo Qi wouldn't dare say that humans would have a complete chance of winning. After all, humans have discussed this extensively in movies like *Jurassic Park*, and the conclusions were not too optimistic.

While Luo Qi was lost in thought, Du Zhengyi continued, "Back then, Qionglin paid a heavy price when they first started investigating. The Mages at the time did not expect a beast with such reaction speed, so the initial battles resulted in heavy losses; the Qiongqi's reaction speed could completely suppress the Mages."

Luo Qi nodded, still feeling lingering fear about this. His own reaction speed could only be considered middle-to-low among Mages; in front of a Qiongqi, there would be absolutely no possibility of even running away.

"However, a pattern soon emerged. It is said that although the Qiongqi at that time were skilled at killing, they were able to choose their targets with a preference. They seemed to prefer killing humans, and their killing of Mages appeared very cautious. Qionglin soon realized they should send Mind Mages to investigate this matter. The Mind Mages couldn't figure out why the Qiongqi tended to attack humans; the only explanation was that they seemed to prefer the taste of humans—in other words, a preference like some people liking pork and others liking mutton. But during the investigation, the Mind Mages discovered the presence of a Mage's Yajian inside the Qiongqi's mind. This is what Wen Lin mentioned: the evil spirit that accompanies the fierce beast. In fact, this just indicates that someone was clearly using the Qiongqi as a Psychic Beast, but their skill was not refined; they failed to fully control the Qiongqi. Perhaps this person's energy was insufficient, their Telepathy level was too low, and so on. In short, an incompetent Mage obtained a deadly weapon," Du Zhengyi said. His words made Luo Qi shudder.

"Was that person caught later?" Luo Qi asked.

"It is said that during the capture, they accidentally killed him," Du Zhengyi said. His eyes lowered, as if he were calculating what the outcome would be if he were the one doing it. Finally, he shook his head. "If the opponent could command a Qiongqi Legion, catching him would not be an easy task. Even wanting to eliminate him would not be very easy."

"So, the question of how he actually broke the Qiongqi Seal has just become an unsolved mystery?" Luo Qi had some very ominous thoughts.

"Qionglin's subsequent investigation said that he once boasted to others that he had created the Qiongqi himself," Du Zhengyi said calmly.

"Brother, from your professional perspective, do you think such a possibility exists?" Luo Qi asked.

"I don't know. The Magic of the Ancient Mages was magnificent and vast, unimaginable today, and most of it has been lost. Sometimes, every few hundred years, a type of Magic technique or two will see a revival," Du Zhengyi said. "What is worth pondering is that after the investigation, it was discovered that the Mage was a Treasure Hunter."

"A Treasure Hunter is capable of discovering ancient Magic," Luo Qi said, looking into Du Zhengyi's eyes. "But it is also very possible that he broke the Seal in the ruins of an Ancient Mage."

"There is another possibility. That is, both are true: he unlocked the Seal's Magic and created the ancient fierce beast," Du Zhengyi said, shaking his head. "The specifics of what happened can no longer be clarified. Qionglin found nothing; they only received this batch of Qiongqi through psychic means. They brought the controlled Qiongqi back to Qionglin; they didn't want to kill them all, and they couldn't release them, so they simply used them to guard the house. That is how this fierce beast has been allowed to breed until now."

"So Wen Lin's worry is actually very reasonable. How could the Lotus Burners give up such a good tool? A super beast that naturally likes to attack humans! So they really are looking for the Seal in Kongsang Mountain," Luo Qi said worriedly, already too anxious to sit still.

"Luo Qi, you should be able to guess that Qionglin back then had already dug three feet deep into Kongsang Mountain," Du Zhengyi said. "I don't think the Lotus Burners can find anything. Regardless of what that Treasure Hunter discovered back then, that thing is definitely no longer in Kongsang Mountain."