Chapter 304: The Tianji Council

During their feast, Ye Tianlang and the other team leaders questioned Zhang Lie about just why he was so strong. Zhang Lie generously told them what he told Xia Na, but unlike before, he didn't offer any of the remaining team leaders a place in his team.

"Thank you for this feast, everyone. I had a really good time," Zhang Lie thanked the other team leaders as he stood up and patted his stomach.

"No, no, don't thank us!" Old Hong patted Zhang Lie on the shoulder, but the moment he touched Zhang Lie, he felt a frightening force that seemed to strike at his very soul.

He yelped and snatched his hand back in pain.

Zhang Lie stepped ten paces aside. "Ah, sorry, I've consumed so many gene fragments today that I'm a little unused to my strength at present."

He had only intended to move a little distance away, but his strength had ended up propelling him quite a bit farther.

𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"It's been a long time since I've had such a satisfying feast as well. We owe this feast to your arrival, Deputy Leader Zhang!"

"Ah, shut it, you bootlicker!"

"Right, it's all thanks to you, Deputy Leader Zhang. If Troop Leader Zhou were here, I'm sure he wouldn't have permitted such a feast."

The various team leaders grew bolder and more uninhibited owing to their alcohol consumption, and Zhang Lie much preferred this candor and honesty to their original reserved and aloof demeanor.

After the feast, the troops began to clean up. The forest was an important region for resource acquisition for all the hunters of Qi, and they had to be responsible for maintaining it in good condition.

They disposed of the remaining inedible parts of the lifeforms' carcasses, then packed up the rest of the meat. Unlike in the first realm of the dimensional world, hunters who didn't participate in the hunt would still be able to obtain a modest number of fragments from consuming the lifeforms' meat.

As the troops cleaned up, a wave of hunters walked out of the northern gate, led by a man in his thirties. He wore armor specially crafted in Qi, with a black, triangular emblem by his chest on which was embroidered the words "Tianji Council".

.

His thirty or so subordinates wore much the same outfit, though with a different color, and had haughty expressions on their faces. The Tianji Council possessed the greatest authority in Qi after the governor himself; in some sense, they possessed even greater authority.

As the supervisory council of Qi, they were able to strip the governor of his power with a unanimous vote, and they also oversaw law and order within Qi. They reported their findings to the respective council leaders and negotiated a solution to whatever issue they identified. If neither party could agree on a resolution, the matter would be brought to the governor himself.

In practical terms, no one wanted to mess with the supervisory council, because they caused trouble no matter where they went.

By the gates of Qi, Wang Po was very happy that he had finally found the woman of his dreams whom he had met during a chance encounter. She was a member of the special forces! No wonder he had been hard-pressed to find any information on her despite his status on the supervisory council.

He had missed the opportunity to greet her and introduce himself last time around, so he certainly couldn't waste this opportunity now. Wang Po smiled as he considered how to make the best impression on her that he could.

As they walked out of the gates to Qi, Wang Po asked again, "Are you sure you saw her in the northwestern forests?"

"Absolutely. I saw Miss Xia Na and another team leader bring their troops into the forest following a young hunter!"

"A young hunter? Who?"

"I'm not sure. His face was unfamiliar to me—perhaps he's part of her mission."

"In that case, let's head over. Stand at attention, lads— if I succeed, I'll reward all of you handsomely!"

"Yes, Captain!" his subordinates chorused.

At the same time, Zhang Lie and the others, who had just packed up, received news that members of the Tianji Council were heading in their direction from the northern gates.

"What's going on?" Zhou Ming frowned in disbelief. Their campfire was done on Zhang Lie's whims; it hadn't been planned beforehand, and it hadn't lasted a very long time either. Could someone have ratted them out to the Tianji Council?

Surely not, but in that case, how could they have known about the campfire? After all, nighttime in the second realm was more dangerous than in the first realm, and under usual circumstances, traveling beyond the city limits at night was strictly prohibited to hunters.

The Tianji Council had to be aware of this point, so the only reason they were at the northern gates now had to be because of them.