It wasn’t until dawn that the rain finally began to lessen. At that early hour, the Neo-Demon Kennelist district was quiet. There were no cries of neo-demons; everything was silent.
It was at this time that footsteps rang out to break the silence. The sound of water splashing in the puddles could be heard, and an unfamiliar smell arrived that caused the silence to end.
It was a young man of a little over twenty years of age. He wore clothing that only elite members of the Tribe could wear, a long green leather robe, trimmed with what looked like silk or satin. It gleamed beneath the morning sunlight, causing the young man to look quite extraordinary despite his relatively low Cultivation base.
At the moment, he was frowning as he endured the unpleasant odor in the area. He held an umbrella in his hand as he hurried toward a distant courtyard.
“Wu Ali has gone too far this time. When my father was alive, people of his bloodline would always be completely courteous and respectful when they saw me. But now….” The young man clenched his jaw in fury as he walked along.
This was Wu Chen1 of the Crow Scout Tribe, a member of one of the Tribe’s three great bloodlines. The three great bloodlines were where the successive generations of Greatfathers came from. Barring unforeseen circumstances, the future Greatfathers would be selected from such descendants.
Wu Chen, of course, was just such a person. His father’s name had rocked the five Tribes of the Crow Divinity years ago. Unfortunately, he had died a few years ago while outside of the Tribe, and the resulting legal matters had still not been settled. As a result, his bloodline lost its position as the most powerful. As for Wu Chen, his previous prestige was now nothing but an illusion; it was impossible to conceal the sore straits he was in.
Because of the law of the jungle in the Cultivation world, any bloodlines without a powerful expert, no matter how prestigious, would become a target. This was the truth even in the Crow Scout Tribe.
Over the past years, Wu Chen had fallen far from his previously high position. This was something he couldn’t accept in his pride, but really, there was little he could do about it. He was forced to endure the scoffing of his rivals and the increasing level of disrespect shown to him by fellow Tribe members. There was no way for him to do anything about it except to follow the wishes of his older sister and lower his head.
However, he could not remain reconciled to such a situation. In his mind, his sister’s choice was the wrong one. He had just made a breakthrough in his Cultivation base, and was now in the eighth level of Qi Condensation. He was now willing to pay any price to acquire a level 3 neo-demon, even secretly borrow large amounts of Spirit Crystals from other Tribes.
“With a level 3 neo-demon, all the members of my generation in the Tribe will have no choice but to pay attention to me. All the rest of them have rank 3s, I can’t be left behind!” He clenched his jaw and ignored the pain in his heart. Choosing not to think about how he would possibly pay back his debt, he strode forward.
His plan was to find rank 3 Dragoneer Shui Mu, which was the only way he would be able to acquire a cheap, level 3 neo-demon.
All members of the Crow Scout Tribe would receive a level 1 neo-demon after reaching a certain level of Cultivation base and making a contribution to the Tribe. The higher one’s Cultivation base, and the better the contribution, then the greater the compensation would be.
Members of the three great bloodlines were even more special. They could acquire a level 1 neo-demon at no cost. Furthermore, the higher their Cultivation base climbed, the better neo-demons they could get, all for free.
The key was to be powerful; there really was no limitation. However, if one wanted to acquire a very expensive neo-demon, then, of course, a contribution would have to be made.
As for Wu Chen, he could acquire level 2 neo-demons for free. If he wanted a level 3, he would have to pay some Spirit Crystals.
All of the Neo-Demon Kennelists, including Meng Hao, were part of the Crow Scout Tribe. Their job in the Tribe was to raise the neo-demons; that didn’t mean they actually owned them.
In principle, anyone could come with a command medallion and take the neo-demons away. That was just in principle, though. In actuality, there was an unwritten rule that prevented that from happening. Neo-Demon Kennelists were actually low-level Dragoneers whose rank was determined by the highest level neo-demon they could raise.
Because of that, and because of the respect for Dragoneers, who were not to be offended, all Tribes in the Western Desert ended up having the same custom. Dragoneers had the right to decide whether or not to give the neo-demons they raised to others.
Furthermore, Dragoneers also had the first right to buy any of the neo-demons they raised.