The Strongest Talent Tree

As the supervisor for the branch hall’s establishment, Lin Luo was extremely familiar with its interior. He led Feng Hao on a tour, giving him a comprehensive understanding of the Thief God Hall.

At the same time, Feng Hao also told Lin Luo about his upcoming trip to Five States Academy.

After learning that Feng Hao hadn’t officially enrolled, Lin Luo stopped worrying about it.

Unlike the other five major sects, the Thief God Hall had a very low recruitment threshold. Even many ordinary people were able to join.

But one shouldn’t underestimate ordinary people. While they couldn’t match Mages in combat prowess, their abilities in other areas were by no means inferior to those of Mage members.

According to Lin Luo, many of the high-level thieves in the Thief God Hall were ordinary people, and some even held important positions within the Hall.

Because of this, the Thief God Hall had a member base that no other sect could compare to.

...

Before they knew it, the two arrived at the terminal hall. As the central hub for all of Jinzhou’s mission information, the hall was exceptionally lively. Various mission details flickered across the six large screens in the center, providing convenience for the members coming and going.

Feng Hao clicked his tongue in amazement. He couldn’t help but ask in surprise, "You just opened and you already have this many missions?"

"We just established the branch hall. We didn’t just start operations," Lin Luo said casually. Seeing Feng Hao’s confusion, he quickly explained, "Actually, the Thief God Hall has always had operational points in Jinzhou. It’s just that, for various reasons, we couldn’t establish a proper branch hall until now."

Lin Luo paused, then continued, "For the past two years, I’ve been in Jinzhou gathering connections and building our reputation. I went through all sorts of trouble to finally get this branch hall established."

"Was it that difficult?" Feng Hao asked with a frown.

"Much more difficult than you can imagine. We faced all kinds of obstructions and hardships. I won’t go into the details; I couldn’t finish the story in a short time anyway." Lin Luo’s expression turned bitter. He composed himself and said, "Brother Feng, you should familiarize yourself with the [Mission Terminal] first."

Feng Hao nodded, his gaze shifting to the scrolling screen directly in front of him:

[Intermediate Escort Mission: Escort a set of Automatic Mining Machines to Eastern Lishu State. Points: 200]

[Low-level Theft Mission: Steal three stalks of Demon Spirit Grass. Time limit: two days. No specified target. Points: 75]

[Low-level Intel Mission: Investigate the Fengyue Chain Hotel’s plans for the next quarter. Points: 60/80/100 (based on level of secrecy).]

[High-level Commerce Mission: Acquire 100,000 tons of high-quality Magic Iron Ore. Points: 1500]

[Low-level Gathering Mission: Go to Breeze Forest to gather Blood Phosphorus Mushrooms. Points: 8/per mushroom]

[Intermediate Acquisition Mission: Seeking Level 6 Magic Crystals at a high price. Points: 150/per crystal]

[Low-level Artifact Refining Mission: Refine a set of Tier Four Heavy Armor using specified materials. Points: 80]

...

After reading through them all, Feng Hao was left with one feeling: it was all unbelievably diverse and complex.

"Big Brother, the scope of our Thief God Hall’s business seems a bit... broad, doesn’t it?" Feng Hao smacked his lips, looking at Lin Luo with confusion.

Lin Luo said leisurely, "Of course. The Thief God Hall dabbles in all sorts of business. From small tasks like delivering letters and babysitting children to grand schemes like moving heaven and earth or carrying out assassinations, we do whatever comes our way."

"To put it simply, we do what the other sects do, and we do what the other sects don’t do," Lin Luo summarized.

"Alright, I get it now." Feng Hao nodded, stunned.

’I used to think the Thief God Hall was an organization similar to the Thief’s Guild. Now I see how naive that was.’

"In that case, why still use the title ’thief’?" Feng Hao asked, confused.

Lin Luo said, "Because the Thief God Ancestor started out as a thief and eventually founded the Thief God Hall. That’s why the ’thief’ title has been kept to this day."

"I see." Feng Hao came to a realization. ’So there’s some sentimentality behind it.’

Lin Luo checked the time and said, "We’ve pretty much seen everything. Let me take you back to Rongcheng."

"Okay."

Feng Hao nodded and followed him out of the Thief God Hall.

They sped all the way back on a Magic Energy Vehicle, returning to the Miao Medicine Tower in Rongcheng before sunset.

Dropping Feng Hao off at the door, Lin Luo said with a hint of sadness, "After I handle some final wrap-up work, I have to return to the Grand Hall. I’ll come see you in Five States City when I have time. If you run into any trouble, you can go directly to the local branch hall for help."

"Big Brother, you’re leaving?" Feng Hao was reluctant to see him go.

"I’ve been delayed for too long. Those old scoundrels at the Grand Hall are probably getting impatient." Lin Luo smiled faintly. "Right, Brother Feng, after you get to Five States Academy, don’t forget to take on more missions and get promoted to a high-level thief as soon as possible. The old man should be very interested in you. Maybe he can even help you get a [Thief Son] status to play around with."

"Uh... there’s no need for that, is there?" Feng Hao said, taken aback.

"We’re brothers, why be so polite? Alright, I really have to go now." Lin Luo swung a leg handsomely over the Magic Energy Vehicle and waved. "Brother Feng, we’ll meet again."

"We’ll meet again." Feng Hao nodded with a smile, watching Lin Luo leave.

After returning to the Miao Medicine Tower, Feng Hao resumed his potion refining. With Miao Feng helping on the side, his efficiency was quite good.

He also mentioned the matter of setting up a hidden outpost for the Thief God Hall in the Miao Medicine Tower. Miao Feng naturally had no objections. After all, he too would have to leave Rongcheng in another year. The Miao Medicine Tower would just be sitting empty, so it was better to let the Thief God Hall manage it.

「Five days later.」

The Miao Medicine Tower’s pill inventory was more or less ready, and Feng Hao decided to head back to Rongcheng Academy to have a look.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he entered the academy, he saw it was decorated with lanterns and colorful banners. After finding his class advisor, Yue Linglong, and asking, he learned that Zhou Chen and Yang Qingfeng had returned from their campaign. Judging by the grand display, their results must have been excellent.

Seeing Feng Hao return at a time like this, Yue Linglong couldn’t help but advise, "Zhou Chen placed in the top ten in this year’s tournament, and Yang Qingfeng made it into the top fifty. The academy’s upper management is very pleased. I think you should probably lay low for a while."

"Do I look like the kind of person who needs to lay low?" Feng Hao said, his eyes filled with disdain.

Yue Linglong shook her head helplessly. She then changed the subject, reminding him, "There are only five days left until the Five States Academy assessment. You’ll have to set off in the next day or two."

"Understood," Feng Hao nodded in response. He had already been planning to leave tomorrow anyway.

"How are you planning to get there?" Yue Linglong asked, her fine brows knitting together slightly.

Feng Hao paused, saying awkwardly, "Uh... I haven’t thought about that yet."

Yue Linglong rolled her eyes at Feng Hao and said irritably, "I really don’t know what to do with you. By the way, aren’t you on good terms with the Xiyue Clan? Xiyue Frost is definitely going too. You should try to find a way to hitch a ride with them."

"That could work." Feng Hao nodded slightly. ’Speaking of which, it’s been a while since I’ve dealt with that old scoundrel, Xiyue Peak.’

After parting ways with Yue Linglong, Feng Hao began searching all over for Xi Yueyao. There was no helping it; that girl did whatever came to mind, and her movements were completely unpredictable.

Fortunately, after searching for half the day, he ran into Tu Xiaoshan.

Seeing Feng Hao, Tu Xiaoshan rushed over in a panic, gasping, "Boss, it’s bad! The class president is fighting with Zhou Chen!"

"What’s going on?" Feng Hao’s expression darkened as he asked urgently.

"Zhou Chen got a good result in the tournament, and he came back acting arrogant as hell. The moment he saw us, he started running his mouth, calling you a coward hiding in your shell, afraid to face him. Of course the class president couldn’t take it, so they started fighting," Tu Xiaoshan explained briefly.

Feng Hao gritted his teeth and let out a cold snort. "Where are they?"

"Boss, follow me." Tu Xiaoshan didn’t dare waste any time and quickly led Feng Hao toward the scene.