The Speedrun Begins with Choosing Hunter

"Our honored guests, this way, please."

A young servant appeared from behind the vermilion-lacquered gate, his face a mask of flattery upon seeing Lu Yu and Lu Shanshan at the door.

Lu Yu, as usual, wore a playful grin.

"It’s been quite a while since I’ve last seen Sister Jiang."

Lu Shanshan, long since numb to her improper brother’s antics, stepped straight over the threshold and into the residence.

The young servant, of course, dared not respond. He simply led the two politely past a series of pavilions and waterside terraces, finally arriving at an elegant gazebo.

Although Huanglong Prefecture was in the Northern Territory, this place felt like a Jiangnan water village.

The babbling brook beneath the gazebo enveloped them in a cool moisture, dispelling the sweltering heat of summer.

Residences designed like this were a rare sight in the Northern Territory.

Before long, a woman who stood a full six feet tall, dressed in a short, practical tunic and with her hair tied back in a neat, high ponytail, strode into the gazebo.

Seeing the woman appear, Lu Shanshan curtsied gracefully. "Sister Jiang."

The woman was not soft like the ladies of great houses. Instead, she offered a brisk fist-and-palm salute. "Sister Lu."

Lu Yu began, "Sister Jiang, a day without you feels like three autumns. Seeing you today, you are as beautiful as ever—"

The woman, surnamed Jiang, gave Lu Yu no chance to continue his praise, lifting her right foot and kicking out.

Lu Yu simply tilted his waist to the right, just barely dodging the kick.

Lu Yu was now an Entering Martial Artist, one who had only broken through after reaching the absolute limit of Blood Refining. Yet this woman’s casual kick had managed to graze the corner of his robes. Her strength was clearly extraordinary.

Lu Shanshan decisively ignored her classless brother. "Sister Jiang, what brings you to Huanglong Prefecture?"

The woman surnamed Jiang made no effort to hide the truth. "I came for the Divine Mansion."

Hearing her words, Lu Yu’s playful grin remained, but his heart tightened.

The power backing this woman was anything but simple.

’In all of Huanglong Prefecture, the one who can make me wary is not that foolish old man from the Seven Star Sect, but this woman right before me.’

Strictly speaking, this woman surnamed Jiang wasn’t from Lingzhou, but from Jiangnan, which explained the residence’s design.

It was only because her father was on good terms with his father, the Lord General, that she had lived in the Lingzhou General’s Mansion for a few years.

The woman’s name was Jiang Yan. Though her name suggested charm and grace, she possessed a sharp, military-honed edge.

But then again, considering who her grandfather was, it all made perfect sense.

Jiang Yan’s grandfather was the retired Minister of War, Jiang Taizhen. Her father was General Wei Yuan, a proper third-rank officer in the Northern Garrison Army, a rank even higher than his own father’s, a subordinate third-rank General.

’She’s someone I have to treat with caution.’

’A prestigious military dynasty like the Jiangs is far more illustrious than a family like ours, whose highest rank is merely a General.’

’If my father hadn’t used Jiang Yan’s father to get a connection to the old Minister, he never would have secured the position of General so quickly.’

Jiang Yan asked, "Has your father made any arrangements?"

For once, Lu Yu spoke with a serious expression. "Father has ordered my sister and I to find the Shenfu Sect Master, Murong Tian. Only the blood of Murong Tian can open the Divine Mansion."

Surprise flashed in Jiang Yan’s eyes.

She had left Lingzhou for the Northern Garrison Army two years ago. She had only returned this time on her father’s orders, specifically to come to Huanglong Prefecture and search for the Divine Mansion with the Lu Family.

But she had never expected the Divine Mansion to be linked to a single person’s blood.

Such things were truly rare.

Lu Yu said, "This is all according to my father. Every word is true."

Jiang Yan replied, "If the Lord General said it, then I naturally believe it."

Her coming here had been decided after her father met with the Lord General in the Northern Garrison Army; she naturally had no reason to doubt him.

Lu Yu’s fawning expression returned. "With Sister Jiang taking action, securing the Divine Mansion will be a certainty."

Jiang Yan’s eyes narrowed. "You’d better speak to me the way you did in the Northern Garrison Army. Otherwise, I really might not be able to stop myself from cutting you down."

"I’ll follow... the Centurion’s orders."

Lu Yu had a look of resignation on his face.

Lu Shanshan looked at them curiously. She had originally thought Lu Yu and Jiang Yan weren’t well acquainted, since Lu Yu was just an illegitimate son and had barely ever met Jiang Yan in Lingzhou.

It seemed now that the two must have had plenty of opportunities to meet while in the Northern Garrison Army.

In fact, Lu Yu had performed quite well in the Northern Garrison Army, earning the rank of Centurion on the back of solid military achievements.

Otherwise, given his previous status in the Lu Family, why would his father, the General, have given him such a cushy assignment in Huanglong Prefecture?

He and Jiang Yan were both Centurions, and they happened to be stationed in the same area, so of course they would have interacted frequently.

After the three of them discussed the details of the search for Murong Tian a while longer, Lu Yu and his sister Lu Shanshan finally left the Jiang Mansion.

...

Not long after the two of them had left, a plain-looking man emerged from a corner by the Jiang Mansion’s courtyard wall.

It was none other than Bai Yuan, in disguise.

Bai Yuan’s original appearance could only be described as refined, but his current disguise gave him a face that would be impossible to pick out of a crowd.

The reason he was here, of course, was to spy on Lu Yu and gather intelligence.

’I can’t believe he’s the son of the Lingzhou General!’

Bai Yuan frowned.

Relying on the almost freakish hearing his ’Demon-Seeking’ ability granted him, he had overheard the conversation of the three people inside, despite being hundreds of meters and several rooms away.

Jiang Yan had actually been very discreet, but alas, Bai Yuan had a cheat...

’I’d long suspected Lu Yu’s identity wasn’t simple, but I never imagined he was the biological son of General Lu Xiao.’

’Should I find a chance to cut Lu Yu down? I’d earn enhancement points, and the Lord General would get to experience the pain of losing a son. A win-win.’

In the end, however, he decided to hold back for now.

’Based on my understanding of Lu Yu, I’m not confident I can kill him in a single strike.’

His figure vanished into the street.

An hour later, he arrived at the Yongfu Inn.

As he entered the inn, Hu Ben’s eye-catchingly massive frame was seated in a corner. A few small side dishes for drinking were laid out on the table.

Hu Ben was tipping back a large bowl, drinking heartily and looking utterly content.

Bai Yuan walked to the seat opposite Hu Ben, picked up a slice of soy-braised beef, and began to eat.

Although they hadn’t lacked living supplies in the Hundred Thousand Mountains, their provisions could hardly be called abundant, and wine was impossible to find.

Hu Ben hadn’t seen a drop of wine in a month, which was why he was now drinking so heavily.

He set down his wine bowl.

"Bai... Shui, where did you go just now?"

Bai Yuan’s reputation was too great at the moment, so after disguising himself, he had also changed his name to Bai Shui.

"I ran into an acquaintance."

Bai Yuan said lightly.

Seeing that Bai Yuan didn’t want to elaborate, Hu Ben didn’t press the matter and went back to downing eighteen large bowls of wine by himself.

Now that Bai Yuan was the Shenfu Sect Master, all he had to do was follow orders.

Another reason Hu Ben was only willing to be the Commander of the Gang Camp was that he didn’t like to use his brain too much.

As a camp’s Commander, all you had to do was lead your brothers to charge and kill. But if you became a Vice Commander, there were far too many headaches.

Just look at Liu Li—after he became Vice Commander, his hair wasn’t as thick as it used to be.

Hu Ben’s ancestors for three generations had all been bald; he had no desire to suffer the same fate.

Bai Yuan ate his food and sipped his wine.

Martial practitioners didn’t have the ability of Fasting, so of course they needed to eat. At most, they could endure hunger better than ordinary people.

’I don’t want to get too many factions involved in opening up my trade routes.’

’After all, the current Divine Mansion Sect isn’t yet ready to operate in the open.’

Otherwise, the Lingzhou Army currently stationed on the Thirteen Peaks of the Divine Mansion Sect would certainly not pass up the military merits being handed to them on a silver platter.

Many factions had come to Huanglong Prefecture, but few could actually afford to support the Divine Mansion Sect.

’The Lu Family and the Seven Star Sect have the resources, but I don’t want too much contact with them for the time being.’

’I’ll have to settle for the next best thing...’

After some deliberation, Bai Yuan finally set his sights on the Changhe Gang of Lingzhou.

The Changhe Gang was considered a decent power in Lingzhou. Although their Gang Leader wasn’t a Zhigan realm expert, he was still formidable, and their connections were extensive. They dared to do any kind of business.

’They’re the perfect partners for cooperation.’

...

The Changhe Gang’s base in Huanglong Prefecture was, of course, in the East City. Their business dealings were unrestricted; martial arts halls, restaurants, brothels, casinos... if it made money, they did it.

At the rate the Changhe Gang operated, it wouldn’t be long before their enterprises covered all of Huanglong Prefecture.

In truth, for the major sects, these lucrative avenues in the eyes of the secular world were no longer worthy of their notice.

Only Spirit Medicine, demon beast meat, and Cultivation Techniques were the real currency.

Only a sect that could control these three businesses could be considered a sect with a deep foundation.

But these three businesses had long been monopolized by the largest powers, leaving not even a chance for the Changhe Gang to get involved.

The vast Changhe Gang didn’t even have a single Alchemy Master.

They could only buy high-grade Spirit Medicine with money, which was practically the same as working for factions like the Seven Star Sect.

A tall man and a short man appeared at the entrance of the Changhe Martial Arts Hall, which belonged to the Changhe Gang.

A guard at the hall stood up to block their way. "What’s your business here?"

The short man said, "Tell your Hall Master to come out. We have business."

The guard scoffed. "Who the hell do you think you are? You think you’re worthy of meeting the Hall Master?"

The tall man didn’t indulge him. With a pair of hands larger than cattail fans, he grabbed the guard and tossed him aside as easily as if he were a baby chick.

Just like that, the two men swaggered into the Changhe Martial Arts Hall.

The Master of the Changhe Martial Arts Hall, Nie Dao, who had been drinking tea inside, heard the commotion, shot to his feet, and pushed the door open.

The first thing he saw was the floor covered with his wailing disciples, along with a tall man and a short man.

"Who are you?"

Nie Dao was able to become a Martial Arts Hall Master because he had ample experience in the Jianghu. He could tell at a glance that these two were no ordinary men, so he didn’t immediately make a move.

The short man spoke. "We’ve come to do business with the Changhe Gang."

Nie Dao frowned. "Business?"

He had assumed they were enemies of the Changhe Gang coming to cause trouble, not to do business.

’Who beats people up before proposing business?’

Still, Nie Dao remained patient. "If that’s the case, then please, come inside."

He led the two intruders into the main hall.

After the three were seated, Nie Dao finally spoke slowly. "I wonder, what sort of business do you two have in mind?"

He was truly curious what kind of business would warrant them making such a huge scene.

The short man smiled faintly. "I can provide you with Spirit Medicine."

Hearing the words "Spirit Medicine," Nie Dao shot to his feet, staring intently at the short man.

After a long moment, he finally spoke. "Brother, are you serious?!"