Doomsday: Grinding EXP Through Hunting

"Xiao Wen? You're out of seclusion!" Recognizing the person who entered, Tang Tang cheered and, along with Taohua and Xiao Liu, went to greet Tang Wen.

"Yeah, I got tired from seclusion, so I came back to rest."

Tang Wen forced a smile at his sister.

"Mm-hmm, come inside. Oh my, how long has it been since you changed your clothes?"

Tang Tang wrinkled her nose in disgust and turned to call out:

"Cuilian! Come and give him a haircut. You all give him a bath and clean him up."

"Yes, miss!"

The three women happily agreed.

Tang Wen touched his lips and chin; his beard had grown out.

Focusing solely on martial arts in the secret chamber had indeed left him in a disheveled state. It was time to clean up.

Hair washing, haircut, shave, bath, foot soak, and massage.

After enjoying the full-service treatment, Tang Tang walked in carrying a large pot of freshly cooked donkey meat.

"Smells amazing!"

The fragrant donkey meat, sprinkled with green scallions, was incredibly enticing.

On the table, there were also plump garlic cloves peeled by Xiao Liu with her delicate fingers.

It was unclear how the young girl managed it, but there wasn't a single scratch or nick on the garlic cloves; each one was perfectly intact.

It wasn't mealtime, and Tang Wen thought having a pot of donkey meat was already the top-tier treatment for returning home.

Unexpectedly, more dishes were continuously brought to the table:

Grilled pork chops, beggar's chicken, roasted lamb, beef with potatoes, shredded potatoes with lard, cold radish salad...

The variety was dazzling, and Tang Wen was stunned.

When his sister came in, he said somewhat dazedly, "What's the occasion today? Even the General—no! Even the Queen's family wouldn't dare to eat like this!"

Tang Tang shot him a look: "Stop talking nonsense. This time, going to that Mountain Chasing City, thousands of miles away, who knows when we'll be back! The next meal, who knows when it will be! Xiao Liu, go get the wine, get that beer!"

Xiao Liu agreed and walked out.

Tang Wen was puzzled: "What Mountain Chasing City? What do you mean by 'who knows when the next meal will be'?"

His sister turned sharply: "You don't know?!"

"Miss Tang! Commander Tang Wen! Are you home?" A woman's pleasant voice sounded outside the door.

"No need to shout! This is my home, just come in with me." The voice of the woman behind was slightly hoarse and quite blunt.

It was Zhou Bing.

The sound of the door being pushed open was heard.

Xiao Liu, who had gone to get the wine, also called out at this moment: "Miss, sir, Commander Zhou is back! And General Zhao, Young Mistress Bai, and the others."

Inside the room, Tang Tang instinctively glanced at the table full of dishes: Sister Bing didn't mention it. Have the others eaten? With so many dishes, will there be enough?

Tang Wen suppressed his confusion and opened the door with a sense of foreboding.

A large group of people stood there: the Queen, Zhou Bing, General Zhao, Qian Sanduo, Qian Dong, and three beautiful women.

Tang Wen took a moment to remember; it was Bai Youruo and her companions.

"Your Majesty, everyone, what's with such a grand gathering?"

"Please, come inside!" Tang Tang pulled her brother, who was blocking the doorway, aside and called out, then turned to tell Xiao Liu and the other two women to fetch chairs and utensils.

"Tang Wen, the food at home is quite good, huh?" General Zhao said with a smile, picking up a clean pair of chopsticks and taking a bite of beef, then praised, "Not bad, this meat is much better than the canteen's. Oh! There's wine too, perfect."

Tang Wen sat down next to Zhou Bing in a daze, his heart pounding: So many people coming over must mean something big is happening!

But he didn't ask. Instead, he kept urging everyone to eat and drink.

From time to time, he picked up his chopsticks to serve Zhou Bing meat and vegetables, exuding warmth and attentiveness, but he didn't ask a single word about their purpose for coming.

"I say, kid, aren't you curious why we're here?" After everyone had eaten their fill, the tableware was cleared, and tea was served, General Zhao was the first to speak.

Tang Wen thought to himself, it's definitely not good news.

He said, "I know!"

"Oh? You know?"

Tang Wen nodded: "You're here to congratulate me, right?

Under the Queen's guidance, teaching, and unreserved instruction,

I've mastered the final move of the Mountain-Cracking Cannon Fist, the 'Mountain Blasting Cannon'!

It's definitely worth celebrating."

He smiled at Zhou Bing: "The Queen taught me so well!"

In the presence of outsiders, the Queen always maintained a cold and aloof demeanor.

Today, after entering, she had only told everyone to sit wherever they liked and hadn't said much else.

But upon hearing Tang Wen's praise, she couldn't help but offer a few modest words.

Her opening successfully steered the conversation off track.

General Zhao had no choice but to get straight to the point: "Tang Wen, there's a mission for you in the camp."

Tang Wen was about to dodge the issue by saying he needed to go into seclusion and avoid the matter altogether!

But Bai Youruo spoke up directly: "This matter arose because of me, so I'll explain.

My Bai family is willing to offer three bottles of Marrow Protection Fluid,

a cultivation method above the King level, the Mental Meditation Technique,

five factories, and form an alliance with your Flame Camp.

And, we request Commander Tang Wen's assistance."

Such generous terms!

Tang Wen was speechless.

As for the Marrow Protection Fluid, with his Experience Panel, he didn't care much.

An alliance? He wasn't interested either.

But, a cultivation method?

Tang Wen's heart stirred. He hadn't told anyone about his awakening of the Darkness Ability.

The camp didn't have any cultivation methods related to darkness.

He was currently worrying about how to proceed with his training.

After some thought, Tang Wen calmly declined: "Such generous terms must mean the task is extremely difficult. I'm afraid I'm not up to it!"

Bai Youruo: "Indeed, it's difficult! But it doesn't require risking your life. You just need to enter Mountain Chasing City, retrieve something, and the matter will be settled."

"What thing?"

At this point, there was no need to hide it anymore.

Bai Youruo stated plainly:

"A map!

There are many mineral deposits beneath the northwestern desert.

Our Bai family's Exploration Team has been exploring this land for ten years.

We've identified several large mineral veins."

Hearing this, Tang Wen frowned: After ten years of exploration, the Bai family doesn't have the map?

Instead, it's in the hands of Mountain Chasing City?

Isn't that ridiculous?

He asked bluntly: "Did your Bai family lose the map?"

"Commander Tang Wen, let me finish. We have the map of the mineral veins.

But the exploration has been ongoing. From the discovery of the first mineral vein, my Bai family began establishing a foothold in Mountain Chasing City.

However, without the presence of absolute top-tier experts, everything has been conducted in secret."

This explanation sounded much more reasonable.

The Tri-Alliance City was indeed powerful, but the Bai family alone probably couldn't take on the entire Mountain Chasing City.

Bai Youruo continued: "A few months ago, we received news.

A mine was found near Mountain Chasing City!

A silver-gold mine! And samples were sent.

At the time, the extent of the deposit and the richness of the silver and gold content hadn't been confirmed, so the map wasn't included."

A month later, the specific range of the silver-gold mine had been determined, and it was preliminarily assessed to be a medium to large-scale vein.

However, after the exploration team sent the map back to the Bai family's stronghold in Mountain Chasing City, they went missing.

I led two Transcendents to retrieve the map, but the news leaked, and we were ambushed halfway."

A large silver-gold mine held significant interests.

It could determine whether the Bai family would go to war with Mountain Chasing City.

It would influence the surrounding situation and affect the lives of tens of thousands of people!

Indeed, it was no small matter.

General Zhao asked, "But Young Mistress Bai also mentioned that the attackers came from within your own ranks?

How can you be sure it wasn't people from Mountain Chasing City who got the news, stole the map, and set up the ambush?"

Bai Youruo sighed, "At the time, I recognized one of the ambushers.

It was because he showed mercy that I managed to escape.

Otherwise, with just me, Bai Xue, and Bai Ying—three Martial Masters—

even if our two Transcendent guards fought desperately,

how could we have survived an ambush by three Transcendents and five first-class Martial Masters?"

In fact, not only did the three of them survive,

but they also didn't suffer any serious injuries.

Bai Youruo laid everything out plainly, advising caution and adaptability once they entered Mountain Chasing City.

She wasn't sure what the current situation was at the Bai family's stronghold in the city.

Had they betrayed her, or had they aligned with another branch of the Bai family?

Next, Bai Youruo spoke at length about the mine and the situation in Mountain Chasing City.

She made her plans clear: if they could obtain the silver-gold mine map, that would be ideal.

If not, she still intended to cooperate with Flame Camp, but she needed Tang Wen to accompany her back to White Stone City.

Tang Wen fell silent. The presence of a master with Darkness Ability in Mountain Chasing City meant there was a corresponding Cultivation Method.

Even if it was just for the Cultivation Method, he would have to go there eventually.

Rather than going alone and fumbling around later,

boarding the Bai family's ship now might be a better opportunity.

Moreover, since this Young Mistress Bai was in such a hurry, perhaps he could negotiate for more benefits?

(End of Chapter)