Joining the Heaven Hunting Pavilion

Putting on Xuan Jiu's mask, Su Yu pondered many things. Moments later, he sensed something distinct. Wearing the mask, he looked out at a dead spirit outside. "Dead Spirit: Tengkong Realm." Su Yu paused, startled. A line of text had surfaced before his eyes. He blinked in surprise. Did this mask... come with the function of discerning one's strength? What was this? A variation of a perception jade? It lacked the broad range of a perception jade, however, only displaying information when looking directly at a target. Su Yu quickly took off the mask, feeling a strange sensation. Did this count as a special weapon? He was an Earth armamentsmith himself. Taking a closer look and sensing its craftsmanship, astonishment washed over him once more. Was this an Earth armament? Talk about filthy rich! A white mask was an Earth armament? He quickly summoned the little fur ball and looked at it. This time, the result was different. "Unknown race, unknown strength..." Everything about the little fur ball was unknown! An unknown race? Su Yu felt a strange prick of curiosity. Was it because Xuan Jiu's mask lacked the records, or did even the Heaven Hunting Pavilion know nothing about this race? Surely not! Perhaps Xuan Jiu's mask simply lacked the clearance and didn't contain sufficient records. Someone in the world had to know about the little fur ball's kind, right? As he stared at the little fur ball, it tilted its head and stared back at him curiously. *What are you looking at?* *Think you can hide just by slapping on a white mask?* *Impossible!* *No matter how much you reek, I can always sniff out your sweet scent.* "Don't these Heaven Hunting Pavilion members usually carry a booklet to scribble in?" Su Yu wondered. Not a sub-ranking, but a booklet. He hadn't seen one and wasn't sure if it was missing or had been destroyed. There was only the sub-ranking. That booklet's function was likely similar to the sub-ranking, perhaps one for internal use and the other for external display. Su Yu picked up the sub-ranking. Just as the thought crossed his mind, a ray of white light shot from the white mask onto the scroll. Moments later, the ranking actually morphed, transforming into the booklet Su Yu had seen before. Su Yu blinked. *That works too?* Right then, the page in his hands shifted, and two characters rapidly appeared on its surface: Xuan Jiu! *** At the same time. Heaven Hunting Pavilion. Headquarters Great Hall. At this moment, the Faceless Elders present were far fewer, with only a handful remaining. One of the Faceless Elders shuddered slightly, drew out an illustrated atlas from his robes, and quickly read the updates appearing within. "Xuan Jiu has fallen!" A moment later, the name Xuan Jiu lit up again: "The 1,982nd Xuan Jiu: Real name Su Yu, human race, Lingyun Realm, native of the Great Xia Prefecture..." The elder's expression shifted. Xuan Jiu was dead! That was hardly surprising; Xuan Jiu didn't have long to live in the first place. What surprised him was that Su Yu had actually taken up Xuan Jiu's mask. He had assumed Su Yu would refuse it! *** Meanwhile, Su Yu was filled with suspicion. He took off the mask again, examined it thoroughly, and then put it back on. An instant later, his willpower rippled slightly, transmitting a thought: *Where are you?* *** In the Heaven Hunting Pavilion's hall. The elder felt a jolt of surprise. The kid had uncovered the mask's functions so quickly? Genius truly was genius! This item came with no user manual. When obtained by chance, everything depended on personal exploration. Of course, that so-called chance was deliberately arranged by the Heaven Hunting Pavilion; otherwise, these items were all equipped to self-destruct. "I am at the Heaven Hunting Pavilion!" The elder quickly sent a reply. After a brief pause, he added, "Rest assured, only the directly supervising elder of each division can track this mask's location. The first ten numbers of the Profound Division are under my jurisdiction. Aside from me, no one can view your location—including via your Heaven Hunting Atlas. Being bound to the mask, no one else can track you either!" *** "..." Su Yu went stiff for a moment. He had only tested it because something felt off, relying on his instincts as an Earth armamentsmith to poke around. He never expected someone to actually reply! An elder of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion! The directly supervising elder of the Profound Division! "Profound Division Elder? What is your name, and do you know who I am?" After careful consideration, the Profound Division Elder replied, "Su Yu of the human race!" *Damn it!* Su Yu cursed inwardly. What a trap! As expected, this Heaven Hunting Pavilion was one massive pitfall! Well, he had already guessed as much. There was no way they wouldn't know his identity. "You can see my location?" "I can. Now that you wear this mask, you are Xuan Jiu! Of course, you may abandon it; when you wish to do so, simply destroy the mask. Once you enter the Heaven Hunting Pavilion, you are one of our own. The pavilion will no longer sell information regarding your location to outsiders! Everything else proceeds as normal, without affecting you in the slightest." Su Yu replied quickly, "Why go out of your way to pull me into the Heaven Hunting Pavilion?" "It is not that we insisted on pulling you in specifically. In truth, many geniuses hold an identity within the Heaven Hunting Pavilion. Naturally, you do not know who they are, and even I do not know. I am only privy to the identities of the ten individuals within the top ten of the Profound Division." The elder swiftly explained, "Recruiting geniuses has always been the standard practice of our Heaven Hunting Pavilion." Ignoring that, Su Yu asked, "How should I address you?" "The elders of each division have fixed designations. You may address me as Elder Xuan Jia. After me come Xuan Yi, Xuan Bing, and so on... The Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches are not unique to the human race; they are universal across all races. Ten Heavenly Stems, twelve Earthly Branches. Each division has at most twenty-two elders... though in practice, those seats are never fully occupied." Su Yu understood! Twenty-two per division meant eighty-eight across the four divisions. Add the North and South Towers, and the East and West Pavilions... If every post were filled, it would be terrifying! One had to remember, all elders were late-stage Sun Moons! How many late-stage Sun Moons did the human race possess? Su Yu wasn't entirely certain. From the Great Ming Prefecture, the ones he knew of were Zhu Tiandao, Niu Baidao, Shadow, the commander of the Heavenly Dao Army, and the commander of the Iron Cavalry Guards. If Ye Hongyan counted, that made six. As for the Great Xia Prefecture, Su Yu only knew of Xia Longwu, Marquis Xia, and Chief Hu who might be in that tier. General Zhao didn't seem to be, though it was hard to say. The commander of the Demon Suppression Army didn't seem to be late-stage Sun Moon either, but that was also uncertain. Then there was the second-generation mount in the academy... Those definitively confirmed to be late-stage Sun Moons were only about four. As for Wan Tiansheng, ghost only knew what realm he truly was. Of course, the Great Xia Prefecture likely had more than just those few. The Dragon Martial Guards had hidden shadow guards; Su Yu had met several of them, and all were formidable. There might well be late-stage Sun Moons among them. Even if their numbers matched the Great Ming Prefecture... The Great Xia and Great Ming Prefectures were considered among the strongest. Even if every major prefecture had five or six, the entire Human Realm probably had around two hundred late-stage Sun Moons in total. Perhaps slightly more if one counted the old powerhouses from the era when the prefectures were founded, though most of them were nearing death by now, and many who entered secluded cultivation years ago had already fallen. Yet the elders under the Heaven Hunting Pavilion alone might exceed a hundred! That was staggering! A single race was fundamentally different from an overarching faction. The human race was a supreme race with countless talents, picking the cream of the crop. Yet from what Xuan Jiu had said, the Heaven Hunting Pavilion merely recruited embittered, vengeful outcasts from across the realms. Strictly speaking, there were plenty of mediocre individuals and very few true geniuses. How could so many late-stage Sun Moons emerge from that? Without talent, no amount of resources could force a powerhouse into existence. Take his father, Su Long, for instance. His talent was mediocre; no matter how many resources were piled onto him, reaching the Shanhai Realm was the absolute ceiling, and even then, he would be a weak Shanhai. Could you pile enough resources to push him into the Sun Moon Realm? Thoughts flashing through his mind, Su Yu quickly asked, "Are you the strongest elder in the Profound Division, Elder Xuan Jia?" "Not necessarily!" Xuan Jia replied once more, "You are Xuan Jiu; does that make you weaker than Xuan Eight or Xuan Seven? One cannot judge purely by titles. Some titles are inherited rather than held by the original owner! If other elders have survived from countless years ago, the original ranking might have been based on strength, but today, that is no longer necessarily true!" Su Yu understood! "So by wearing this mask, I have officially joined the Heaven Hunting Pavilion?" "Correct. Even if you remove the mask, you remain a member—unless you shatter it. In that case, the Heaven Hunting Pavilion will forge a new Xuan Jiu mask and await the next successor." "How many people are there in the Profound Division in total?" "I do not know." "..." Su Yu felt the elder was lying through his teeth! Xuan Jia added, "I am only responsible for the ten of you, and I only know your ten identities. The others do not fall under my command, so I genuinely do not know the exact total. However, the numbers in each division are not overly large. First-rank white masks are few, as are second-rank black masks. Third-rank colored masks and fourth-rank half-masks are likely more numerous." He then swiftly followed up, "Now that you are Xuan Jiu, you have access to the identities and locations of ten black masks under your purview. You may view them through your Heaven Hunting Atlas." Su Yu was in no rush to check that. Instead, he asked, "What is White One's status? Why isn't his title based on Heaven, Earth, Profound, or Yellow?" "White One... The four divisions are separate. Above the division elders are four division ministers, who directly oversee their own personnel. Those directly under the Heaven Division Minister are designated with the White prefix. Those under the Earth Division Minister bear the Black prefix. The Profound Division Minister oversees the Colored prefix, and the Yellow Division Minister oversees the..." "Half prefix?" Su Yu interjected. Communicating this way was far simpler than writing. It relied on transmitting intent through willpower into the mask, making exchange exceptionally swift. Because of that, one could effortlessly cut in before the other finished. He understood now. Those prefixed by Heaven, Earth, Profound, or Yellow were governed by the elders. Those like White One answered directly to a minister. So the Yellow Division had to be the Half prefix, right? Xuan Jia was at a loss for words, replying exasperatedly, "No, they are the Gray prefix. Fourth-rank half-masks are actually gray masks; they are simply called half-masks because they cover only half the face." Su Yu asked again, "What is the difference between the four divisions? Is the Profound Division inferior to the Heaven Division?" If it were based on rank and strength, Xuan Jiu was a seventh-stage Shanhai. Surely he wouldn't have been relegated to the Profound Division if it were inferior? "Not at all. While there is a slight disparity in overall strength—the Heaven Division is indeed marginally stronger—the primary distinction lies in operational duties." Xuan Jia was surprisingly patient in his explanations. Had Su Yu been an ordinary Shanhai, the elder wouldn't have bothered. But Su Yu was not ordinary; he was Su Yu. Thus, the first elder of the Profound Division took the time to converse with him. "Externally, the four divisions are collectively known as the Four Divisions of the Heaven Hunting Rankings. The Heaven Division is responsible for gathering aura signatures and intelligence on geniuses; they require greater strength to roam the All-Heavens Battlefield. The Earth Division handles logistics and the transport of materials; for instance, when you traded with us previously, it was Earth Division personnel who delivered the goods. The Profound Division is primarily tasked with garrisoning specific locations—such as the previous Xuan Jiu garrisoning Xinghong Ancient City, which is also perilous. The Yellow Division garrisons the Heaven Hunting headquarters, handling communication and coordination; their duties are safer, and their strength is comparatively lower." This time, Su Yu truly understood! The internal division of labor within the Heaven Hunting Pavilion was remarkably distinct. The first time he encountered the Heaven Hunting Pavilion, they were gathering aura signatures—his own aura had been collected by them back then. Those were Heaven Division personnel! The second time was when he purchased items in Tianmie Ancient City, and someone knocked on his door to make the delivery. Those were Earth Division personnel. The ones garrisoning local branches belonged to the Profound Division. And the ones communicating with him were from the Yellow Division. Additionally, the North and South Towers served as security and assassins, while the East and West Pavilions were scouts—not scouting the All-Heavens Battlefield, but infiltrating the major and minor realms to gather intelligence. Now everything clicked into place. Xuan Jia continued, "Naturally, if manpower is tight, one may take on other duties. For example, garrisoning Xinghong Ancient City: if the city is sealed and materials must be transported, or if someone hires you to protect them or eliminate an opponent... you must take on those tasks as side duties." Su Yu nodded inwardly! Take Xuan Jiu: by day he was a branch shopkeeper, but in critical moments, he could moonlight as a courier or a hired thug. "What benefits do I get by joining the Heaven Hunting Pavilion?" "First, your location will never be sold to others!" "Second, you can purchase items internally that cannot be bought on the outside market. Elders receive a fifty percent discount, white masks pay sixty percent, black masks pay seventy percent, colored masks pay eighty percent, and half-masks pay ninety percent!" Su Yu's heart stirred. *A forty percent discount? Holy crap, that's cheap!* *Now that's a perk I can get behind!* "Third, if your contributions are significant enough, the Heaven Hunting Pavilion can provide asylum. In critical moments, an Invincible will personally intervene on your behalf!" "Fourth, you receive an annual cut of revenue. You earn a one-tenth-of-a-percent commission on the business you conduct. If you broker a massive transaction worth thousands of strands of Heaven and Earth Profound Light, that translates to a reward of several strands..." *A one-tenth-of-a-percent commission? What a rip-off!* "The black masks under your command also yield a one-tenth-of-a-percent cut from their performance, and the black masks oversee colored masks, whose business is also substantial..." Su Yu nodded. That was somewhat acceptable. However, he only commanded ten black masks. "If black masks oversee colored masks, can I view the files on those colored masks?" "No. According to the strict rules and protocols of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion, each member is known only to their direct superior. Otherwise, should internal chaos erupt, the pavilion could easily be uprooted entirely!" Strict compartmentalization! Su Yu nodded. This rule was actually quite reassuring; it meant only one person currently knew his identity—Elder Xuan Jia. "What about Invincibles? Do even the Invincibles not know everyone?" "Correct. Not even Invincibles possess that knowledge. Even division ministers only command information regarding their own division's elders!" Xuan Jia quickly added, "Ministers are not necessarily impartial. For instance, if our Profound Division Minister happened to be an Invincible of the God or Demon race, you would be in grave danger. Therefore, the Heaven Hunting Pavilion will never permit those in power to know all identities, preventing us from being wiped out in one fell swoop!" Su Yu nodded once more. This was indeed a solid safeguard, though it did create a potential issue: what if the directly supervising elder died...? Just as he was thinking this, Xuan Jia said, "Do not worry that my death would sever your connection to the pavilion. If I fall, even if my mask is destroyed, the Heaven Hunting Ranking will automatically generate a new Xuan Jia mask. Once a successor assumes the role, they will automatically gain command over your network and re-establish contact. Of course, if no one takes up the mantle for a prolonged period, that becomes your opportunity..." "Opportunity?" "Indeed. Under normal circumstances, an elder's seat can only be inherited by a late-stage Sun Moon. But if no late-stage Sun Moon assumes the role for a long time, one of the ten direct subordinates under that elder will be chosen to inherit the elder's seat—even if that individual has not reached the seventh stage of the Sun Moon Realm!" So that was how it worked! "What are the benefits and paths to becoming an elder?" "The benefits you will learn once you attain the rank! As for the path: first, accumulating sufficient contribution points is the foundation. Second, possessing sufficient strength. Third, obtaining a recommendation from your direct superior to undergo the assessment at headquarters. Pass it, and you are promoted to elder!" "So I cannot visit headquarters right now?" Xuan Jia scoffed inwardly. *Of course you can't come. Just hearing your tone, it's obvious you harbor ill intentions!* "Correct. Aside from the Yellow Division personnel responsible for intelligence communication, only elders from the other divisions are permitted to visit headquarters." "Are there Invincibles at headquarters?" "..." Xuan Jia was utterly speechless. *What are you plotting?* "Yes!" "Oh!" Su Yu dropped the subject. Forget it; if there were Invincibles there, he wasn't going! Even if they invited him, he wouldn't step foot in the place. Going there was far too dangerous! Communicating with him was proving utterly exhausting. Xuan Jia quickly added, "Furthermore, now that you are Xuan Jiu, you must shoulder the responsibilities of Xuan Jiu! Otherwise, if you fail the performance assessment three consecutive times, your mask will automatically shatter..." There was an assessment too? Su Yu quickly asked, "How are we assessed, and how often?" "Once every three years. After all, members are all powerhouses, and entering secluded cultivation for three years is entirely normal. However, failing the assessment for nine consecutive years is unacceptable!" Su Yu nodded. That was fairly reasonable. "What does the assessment entail?" "For the Profound Division, it primarily revolves around performance! Since you run a branch, you must sell treasures and intelligence. Reach the specified quota, and you pass!" Su Yu asked again, "How many merit points?" "The All-Heavens Battlefield does not operate on merit points; there is no universal currency across all realms. However, the Heaven Hunting Pavilion has its own metric. The pavilion defines one Heaven Hunting point as the value of one drop of first-stage Shanhai blood essence of the weakest caliber. That translates roughly to a thousand merit points in your human race." Su Yu nodded. That sounded about right. A drop of the weakest first-stage Shanhai blood essence went for roughly that price among humans. Buying in bulk might even be slightly cheaper. "For a white mask, the quota for a three-year assessment is one thousand Heaven Hunting points." Su Yu did the math. That was one million merit points. Actually, that wasn't an absurd amount! A drop of the weakest first-stage Sun Moon blood essence was worth roughly ten thousand merit points, or ten Heaven Hunting points. In other words, completing transactions worth a hundred drops of Sun Moon blood essence over three years was enough. That was only about thirty drops a year! Well, when broken down, it was still a decent sum. Xuan Jia added, "If you complete a transaction worth ten thousand Heaven Hunting points in a single go, you will be exempt from assessments for the next thirty years. Quotas can be accumulated, specifically to afford members time for secluded cultivation without the risk of missing deadlines." Not bad at all. In that case, landing a single massive deal would wipe out any assessment worries for decades to come. Wait, why was he even worrying about this? He had never intended to genuinely join the Heaven Hunting Pavilion in the first place! Su Yu cursed inwardly. The Heaven Hunting Pavilion was a pitfall, a massive pit that had swindled so much from him and even sold his intelligence! Su Yu asked bluntly, "Now that I am Xuan Jiu, can I kill other members of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion?" "..." *You don't beat around the bush, do you?!* Xuan Jia was rendered speechless once more, quickly replying, "If both parties are wearing their masks, it is strictly forbidden. If one party is not wearing a mask, or neither is... then do as you please!" "If both are wearing masks and we fight to the death, will the Heaven Hunting Pavilion intervene?" "Yes!" Xuan Jia stated immediately. "If both you and the target are wearing masks and you kill them, both I and the victim's direct superior will sense it. I will know whom you killed, and they will know who murdered their subordinate... When that happens, you will face sanctions." "What kind of sanctions?" "The North and South Towers will dispatch operatives to hunt you down. Do you understand now?" "Understood. And what happens after I kill the operatives from the North and South Towers?" "Even stronger operatives will be sent to kill you!" "And what if I kill them too?" *Are you deliberately being contrary?!* *Why is your mind entirely fixated on killing, killing, killing?!* *Damn you!* Xuan Jia felt like coughing up blood, snapping back, "If you manage to slaughter the Tower Masters of both the North and South Towers, the Heaven Hunting Pavilion won't bother retaliating against you anymore. You can do whatever the hell you want! Do you understand now?!" "Understood. Might makes right in the end!" Su Yu nodded. Now he got it: if he wiped them all out, naturally no one would be left to hunt him down. In other words, before reaching that level, if he wanted to kill someone from the Heaven Hunting Pavilion, it was best not to wear the mask. Message received! Elder Xuan Jia had kindly provided him with excellent guidance on practical methods and loopholes to avoid being hunted by the pavilion. He had taken mental notes on all of it. It seemed this elder wasn't a good person either, covertly instigating him to take off his mask and butcher fellow members! It was a good thing Xuan Jia couldn't read his thoughts, or he truly would have coughed up blood. When had he ever encouraged Su Yu to butcher his own organization?! Something else occurred to Su Yu, and he asked, "Elder Xuan Jia, what race do you belong to?" "No comment!" "Are you a God or a Demon?" "I am not!" Knowing what was on Su Yu's mind, Xuan Jia replied briskly, "Xuan Jiu approached you only under my direct orders. I am neither God nor Demon. If I were, there would have been no need to have Xuan Jiu contact you, because if the Gods or Demons wished to eliminate you, relying on a single tracking instance would be useless. You could simply shatter the mask at any moment." "Hard to say!" Su Yu didn't elaborate. A single tracking instance was plenty; with sufficient preparation, one strike was all it took to finish someone off. Why wait for a second chance? He remained inherently suspicious of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion. "What is the ultimate purpose of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion? Is it purely to make money?" "No. The purpose of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion is to stimulate the latent potential of geniuses, allowing the gifted to become greater geniuses, the mighty to become stronger powerhouses, and fostering the prosperity of the myriad realms..." "Understood. In other words, stirring up trouble, making geniuses butcher each other and powerhouses slaughter one another, so that by killing one genius another grows stronger—acting as an exceptional war profiteer!" "..." Xuan Jia had no retort. It made entirely too much sense; Su Yu was truly sharp, grasping the core essence of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion in an instant. Xuan Jia felt there was nothing left for him to teach. See? The kid had already mastered the concepts! As for Su Yu, this stemmed from his firsthand experience. Just look at what happened in Tianmie Ancient City: the role these bastards played—selling his whereabouts, selling intelligence on Dao Cheng and the others—was entirely designed to give geniuses a clearer picture of their rivals so their clashes would be all the more brutal! All so they could continuously peddle various snippets of intelligence, rare treasures, and specialized services. Without war and slaughter, how else was the Heaven Hunting Pavilion supposed to make a profit? This time was no different. Thanks to Su Yu, they had seized the opportunity to sell intelligence and rake in immense profits! At that thought, Su Yu quickly asked, "The Heaven Hunting Pavilion earned a fortune because of me this time. That counts toward my performance quota, right? Where is my cut?" "..." Xuan Jia was speechless, replying shortly after, "You were not a member of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion at the time. Furthermore, that performance quota has already been claimed by White One. He was the one transmitting news and intelligence from within the city, so the commission belongs to him!" "White One!" Su Yu etched that name into his memory. White One owed him a substantial sum, as those commissions rightfully belonged to him. "Isn't one-tenth of a percent a bit too stingy?" With such a meager cut, Su Yu found himself lacking motivation. "It is by no means meager. Furthermore, for exclusive intelligence, you can negotiate transactions separately. For example, if the news within the ancient city were known only to you and you transmitted it to the pavilion, you could negotiate the price directly. In White One's case, he was not the sole person privy to the information!" Su Yu understood. Many people knew the situation, and figures like Modona possessed sub-rankings, so White One lacked the leverage to dictate terms. "Can you truly promise you won't sell me out, Elder Xuan Jia?" "I will not!" Xuan Jia replied promptly. "Additionally, when I track your location, you will actually sense it. That is a privilege reserved for white masks. When I locate you, your mask will glow. This function exists purely for when there is urgent business or if you go missing—it is meant to find our own people, not to set them up for slaughter!" "Really?" "Truly!" "Then why don't you try tracking me right now, Elder?" "..." Xuan Jia was rendered speechless once again. "Tracking someone consumes a considerable amount of energy. It burns through various treasures, Yuan Qi Liquid, blood essence, Heaven and Earth Profound Light, or Heaven Yuan Qi..." "Go ahead and try tracking me, Elder!" *Damn it!* *I just told you it expends energy!* Xuan Jia was at his wit's end. Standing in the great hall, he glanced at the other elders. Seeing that no one was paying attention, he discreetly channeled a burst of energy into the atlas. Moments later, the light flickered faintly. Target located! A line of text surfaced before his eyes. He quickly transmitted to Su Yu, "You are in Xinghong Ancient City, inside the Heaven Hunting Pavilion branch!" "It's that precise?" Su Yu's mask was indeed glowing faintly. Surprised, he darted out the door and vanished without a trace in the blink of an eye! "Try tracking me one more time, Elder..." "Su Yu!" Xuan Jia was genuinely exasperated. "I explained all this to you only because I respect your astonishing talent. Under normal circumstances, I could have ignored you entirely. Do not push your luck!" "I'm half-dead already, what talent do I have left?" Su Yu shot back flippantly. Well, if the elder refused to track him again, so be it. At least he now knew that he would feel it whenever he was being tracked. Of course, he couldn't rule out the possibility that the elder was deceiving him with falsehoods, or that the white light was simply triggered at the elder's command. "You have plenty of resources; you won't die that quickly. And if you truly perish, perhaps we can collect your corpse. That counts as a benefit too!" "If I die, I turn into a dead spirit! You collect my corpse? Who are you trying to fool!" Xuan Jia was once again left without a retort. There was no arguing against that. Communicating with Su Yu was simply exhausting. The kid held zero reverent awe toward him. Then again, that was only natural. Anyone who had survived a coordinated siege by Invincibles would inevitably lose some awe toward the Sun Moon Realm. Not to mention, this kid was fundamentally audacious to the extreme! Without colossal nerve, who would dare orchestrate such an outrageous scam? *** Xuan Jia severed the connection. Su Yu was left shaking his head. He had actually been hung up on! He still harbored plenty of curiosity regarding the Heaven Hunting Pavilion; for instance, he hadn't even asked about the full inner workings of the Heaven Hunting Ranking. Was this elder lacking in patience? He had only asked a few questions! And the guy just stopped replying! Then again, he now understood the respective roles of the Heaven Hunting Atlas and the mask. The mask was for communicating with direct superiors and subordinates, while the Heaven Hunting Atlas was used to coordinate with the Yellow Division intelligence operatives stationed at headquarters. "Should I shatter this mask?" Su Yu removed the mask. In truth, he was somewhat reluctant. The thing felt remarkably practical: he could contact the Heaven Hunting Pavilion at any moment, and purchases came with a discount—forty percent off! On top of that, it possessed an aura-concealing effect and was an Earth armament in its own right... He was genuinely a bit hesitant to toss it away. Also, what kind of people were the ten black masks under his command? Su Yu quickly pulled out the atlas to check. It was displayed right on the first page. "Xuan Jiu Black 01..." What a designation! One glance was enough to tell this was a black mask subordinate to Xuan Jiu. The number one operative among Xuan Jiu's black masks! Resigned, Su Yu glanced at the accompanying details. The profile was quite succinct. "The 2,685th Xuan Jiu Black 01: Real name: Luordobazhe, Earth Fire Demon race, Lingyun Realm..." The Earth Fire Demon race? A Demon—his sworn enemy! There was actually a Demon under his command! That wasn't the main point, however. What intrigued Su Yu was: what code names did the colored masks under this black mask hold? Xuan Jiu Black 01 Color 02? Did they follow the numbering system all the way down? And the half-masks—or gray masks—commanded by the colored masks would probably be called something like Xuan Jiu Black 01 Color 01 Gray 01... *Holy crap!* Su Yu's mind wandered. He had a feeling that when those black and colored masks went outside, they probably never introduced themselves by code name. It was simply too long to say! Yet this system was undeniably clear-cut, organizing the hierarchy seamlessly. A single glance revealed whose subordinate someone was and who their commanding officer was. Perhaps he himself should technically be addressed as Xuan Jia White Xuan Jiu, signifying that he answered to Elder Xuan Jia. Su Yu's imagination ran wild. He was thoroughly fascinated by the organizational structure of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion. More than anything, he was interested in their wealth! They were obscenely rich! Whatever one needed, they had! Becoming an elder granted access to headquarters, but headquarters housed Invincibles... Still, he would likely make a trip there sooner or later. He wondered if all their treasures were kept at headquarters, or if the branches held their own reserves—though the branch in Xinghong Ancient City had already been cleaned out. Acquiring Xuan Jiu's mask was an unexpected windfall. Su Yu quickly put the matter out of his mind for now. As for the location tracking, he would observe the situation further. His only real concern was whether they could track him silently; otherwise, this identity was exceptionally useful. Just as Su Yu was pondering this, the atlas vibrated. He quickly opened the Heaven Hunting Atlas, where a line of text surfaced. "Xuan Jiu, are you still within Xinghong Ancient City?" This was an inquiry from the Yellow Division. Su Yu quickly replied, "I am!" "Castellan Hei Mo of Xinghong Ancient City has issued a distress request, asking the Heaven Hunting Pavilion to provide him with a substantial supply of Heaven Yuan Qi. Does the branch still have Heaven Yuan Qi in stock? If so, deliver it immediately to the Castellan Manor!" Su Yu was just about to reply that there was none left when he froze... *Deliver it where?* *To the Castellan Manor?!* *Holy... holy crap!* *Does this mean I can enter the Castellan Manor?!* "Hei Mo is extremely powerful; I am concerned he might ambush and kill me!" Su Yu replied cautiously. The Yellow Division operative swiftly responded, "He will not. He is grievously injured. You are currently the only member of the Heaven Hunting Pavilion remaining inside the city. Through you, he can still obtain emergency assistance; if he kills you, he will be left with nothing to do but wait for death!" Su Yu's eyes glinted. *Is that so?* This Heaven Hunting Pavilion identity was turning out to be immensely useful already! He had just been fretting over when Hei Mo would emerge from seclusion to contest control of the ancient city. Now, the opportunity had presented itself to probe the man's condition, even if it carried some risk. "How much does he require?" "A hundred portions of Heaven Yuan Qi!" the other side answered promptly, adding, "Are there any reserves left in the branch?" "None in the branch, but I have some private reserves..." "Then according to protocol, everything Hei Mo pays for this transaction belongs to you. You need only remit ten percent to the pavilion as a service fee!" Understood! Su Yu saw how it worked. It made sense for the Heaven Hunting Pavilion to take a ten percent cut as a platform fee. After all, they had to coordinate clients, dispatch orders to him, and communicate across boundless distances... A ten percent fee was hardly exorbitant. Besides, the prices the Heaven Hunting Pavilion charged were notoriously exorbitant! The price Hei Mo would have to pay was bound to be steep. Su Yu grinned. *Hei Mo, here I come!* It seemed that fellow's injuries were severe indeed; otherwise, he never would have opened the manor gates to let someone from the Heaven Hunting Pavilion inside. The stronger an expert was, the more paranoid they became; when injured, they would never allow an outsider near them. Clearly, he had run out of options! "Splendid. From now on, I am Xuan Jiu!" Any lingering hesitation Su Yu had harbored vanished completely. In this instant, his mind was made up: he was Xuan Jiu, and it was a damn good deal!