Chương 233: Beast Hunting Operation

Just as everyone was speculating, Zhao Rui, who had emerged from seclusion on Mount Qingcheng, also heard the news.

"I'm afraid this beast didn't come from the Great Zhou. If it were from the Great Zhou, the war wouldn't have turned out this way with just the beast's strength."

Zhao Rui pondered for a moment, then looked at Master Weichen and said.

"Without satellites now, relying solely on ground-based radar has limited surveillance capabilities, and missile accuracy and guidance will be greatly affected, I'm afraid—" Master Weichen paused for a moment, and although he didn't say anything, his meaning was already very clear.

The battles to come will be much tougher.

"If this giant dragon has nothing to do with the Great Zhou, then after this battle, the Great Zhou should reconsider its attitude towards us, since the Great Shang is still watching us with predatory eyes."

"What you say makes sense. Alas, in these chaotic times, even we cultivators cannot live in peace."

"Drinking tea, drinking tea, a rare moment of peace."

Master Weichen flicked his sleeve, picked up a teacup, and gestured for Zhao Rui to taste the new tea before him.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Rui smiled, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and found the tea to be mellow and smooth, neither bitter nor astringent—truly excellent tea.

"Reporting to the sect leader, General Wang summons you to the capital!"

Just then, a Taoist priest walked over quickly, bowed to Master Weichen, and said...

"Going to the capital? Why would they invite an old Taoist like me to the capital? Did they say what it's about?"

Wei Chen was taken aback and asked curiously.

"They didn't say that on the phone, only that the sect leader must come to the capital as soon as possible."

"Okay, got it!"

Wei Chen waved his hand, signaling the Taoist to leave, then stroked his beard and pondered, "It seems that the authorities have realized that in the end, they still have to rely on the power of martial arts to fight against the Great Zhou."

"That's a good thing. In such a chaotic world, strength reigns supreme. Whether we do it willingly or unwillingly, we will eventually step into the limelight."

Wei Chen smiled calmly, as if he had expected this all along. Previously, although the cooperation between the government and various factions had been good, the decision-making power remained in the hands of the government.

In the end, all the different schools and sects in the martial arts world are no different from thugs.

Ultimately, the top experts of these sects are not "native" people of Earth.

However, the situation has changed now, especially with the drastically different outcomes of the coastal defense battle and the Pacific blocking battle. It is likely that the authorities will have to reassess the weight of various martial arts factions.

The coastal defense battle suffered relatively minor losses, thanks to the presence of the Dharma Master who restrained the high-level alien beasts; at least most of the strength was preserved.

They also repelled the attack of the strange beasts.

On the contrary, the Pacific War, which deployed the most modern weapons such as warships, ended up in a very messy situation.

The difference lies in the high-level alien beasts, which is the high-end combat power. Without anyone to restrain the high-end combat power, it is too difficult to break through their defenses by relying solely on heavy firepower.

High-end combat power can sometimes be far more deterrent than one might imagine.

"The official compromise and the Great Zhou's concession were within my expectations, but this celestial beast is truly a surprise to me."

According to ancient legends, the Twenty-Eight Subduing Dragon Palms was created by a wise and virtuous man who encountered a real dragon, observed its form, imitated its posture, and captured its spirit.

"Could it be that after the Ruins of Return returned, this divine dragon also entered Earth?"

"Or perhaps, this celestial beast is a divine dragon?"

Wei Chen paused slightly, a hint of worry in his eyes.

What immense power must a divine dragon possess to soar through the universe and roam freely?

If this force is controllable, there's nothing wrong with it; but if it's uncontrollable, wouldn't that be dangerous?

"It's alright. There's no limit to martial arts. If there truly is a divine dragon, wouldn't it open a door for us martial artists to glimpse even higher levels of martial arts?"

Zhao Rui's gaze was intense, his eyes filled with fighting spirit.

Divine Dragon?

It's more likely to be a strange beast.

Seeing Zhao Rui's magnanimity, Wei Chen couldn't help but smile. Although he didn't know how strong Zhao Rui was now, he was at least a master of the Domain Realm.

With Zhao Rui in charge, Qingcheng Mountain is as stable as Mount Tai.

The two didn't talk much. Wei Chen hurriedly packed up and set off for the capital.

The following week, the Great Zhou army vanished without a trace; neither radar nor dispatched ships detected any evidence of them.

The mysterious dragon-shaped divine weapon that appeared before has not reappeared.

The atmosphere of panic that had been building was finally eased.

Meanwhile, the leaders of various sects, led by Shaolin, returned to their respective sects from the capital.

This trip to the capital can be considered as gaining genuine official recognition, and granting some top sects partial power to participate in political decision-making.

Most importantly, the leaders of each sect were also awarded specific honorary titles.

This is certainly a good thing for many sects.

From now on, at least in terms of status, these martial arts masters from the Guixu Song Realm have been completely integrated into the Blue Star Central Plains system.

Spring is here, flowers are blooming, and the wind and waves are calm!

The long-awaited peace lasted for nearly half a year after the Great Zhou fleet withdrew.

Until a group of strange beasts suddenly appeared on the surface of the East China Sea, wantonly hunting various marine fish.

The military immediately dispatched experts to the relevant sea area to conduct an investigation.

These strange beasts were not a group of beasts controlled by humans, but rather a group of beasts that gradually drifted over with the ocean currents after the return of the Ruins.

Although these strange beasts did not directly attack the Central Plains, their existence seriously affected the survival of coastal fisheries.

Thus, a grand beast-hunting operation, jointly organized by the Martial Arts Association and various martial arts sects, was launched in many coastal waters.

This hunting operation met certain standards in terms of both official recognition and the generousness of the prize money.

Individuals or teams that hunt down the most powerful beasts will earn the title of King of Beasts and receive an exclusive bonus of 100 million coins.

Below the title of King of Beasts, there are also titles such as Master Beast Hunter and Divine Beast Hunter.

Each has a matching reward amount.

Such a large-scale event attracted the interest of martial arts organizations, universities, and martial artists from all over the country.

In an instant, the entire surface of the East China Sea was filled with the surging of true energy, and the sounds of battle rose and fell.

These strange beasts, the most powerful of which are comparable to the Grandmaster realm, and the weakest are only at the level of ordinary martial arts level seven or eight.

Compared to the current strength of the Central Plains people, they are no longer considered a threat.

Soon, the coastal waters were cleared.

However, at these times, due to limited strength, no matter how many kills one takes, there is no sense of accomplishment.

As a result, more high-level martial artists began to venture into the deep sea to hunt even more powerful alien beasts.

As the hunting of exotic beasts continues, a TV program featuring the meat of these beasts as cooking ingredients is also in full swing.

The meat of many hunted exotic animals was categorized and labeled with cooking methods, taste, texture, and meat quality.

People discovered that the higher the level of the mythical beast, the higher the nutritional content of its meat and the more abundant its true energy.

For a time, some heretical cultivators even created several cultivation techniques that used the true energy extracted from the flesh of strange beasts to aid in their practice.

One beast dies, and a hundred studies follow!

Besides eating and absorbing true energy, there are even gladiator-style programs that feature battles between exotic beasts and human-beast duels.

In no time, the entire Central Plains was swept up in a vigorous craze for researching gameplay involving exotic beasts; it would be no exaggeration to say that a hundred flowers were blooming.

The emergence of any new thing will bring about social change, whether for better or worse, and it takes time.

For some time afterward, the entire Central Plains of China was engaged in vigorous research on exotic beasts.

People began to classify the strange beasts.

They are divided into three levels: low-level, mid-level, and high-level. Each level has five grades, such as low-level grade one and mid-level grade two.

The classification is mainly based on body size, destructive power, and the degree of superpowers. Although there is no official standard, after a period of information integration, it has been classified in a fairly reasonable manner.

As humanity's research into mythical beasts advances, the frequency of appearances of higher-level mythical beasts is also gradually increasing over time.

Previously, it would often take ten days to half a month to see a mid-level, powerful alien beast that was tens of meters tall.

Almost every day now, a mid-level alien beast emerges from the sea, either to be hunted down by humans or to wreak havoc on the sea before disappearing.

Throughout the sea, the level of strange beasts has been on the rise.

Scientists, through big data analysis, have concluded that the strange beasts of the Guixu Ocean have gradually spread to the rest of the world with the drift of ocean currents.

In other words, from now on, mythical beasts will no longer be exclusive to a particular region, such as America or the vicinity of the East Japanese islands.

Instead, strange beasts could appear in any corner, and their distribution has become decentralized and randomized.

As the level of the beast increases, the level required to hunt it also gradually increases.

At first, they were just ordinary low-level beasts, then mid-level beasts, then mid-level beast kings, and later even high-level beasts appeared.

High-level exotic beasts correspond to the Dharma Aspect True Persons in martial arts, who are the backbone or even the top forces of various sects.

How could an ordinary martial artist possibly fight against him?

The appearance of this high-level beast directly killed more than fifty coastal martial artists. If there hadn't been a Dharma Aspect Grandmaster nearby, who knows how many more martial artists it would have killed before it was willing to leave.

This bloody scene was broadcast live across the entire network by the live streaming platform, instantly reminding people of the days when they were ravaged and dominated by high-level alien beasts.

At this time, less than a year had passed since the east coast was ravaged by strange beasts.

It was originally thought that this brutal slaughter would awaken the martial artists.

Unexpectedly, some martial artists who usually kept a low profile or unaffiliated Dharma masters, especially some experts from the Song Dynasty who came without any sect or school, unexpectedly sensed a glimmer of opportunity.

They leaped out.

Not only did they take the initiative to kill high-level alien beasts, but they also actively participated in the recording of various live broadcast programs.

Their exceptional skills and unconventional personalities made them stand out and appear particularly unique at this time.

Suddenly, these unorthodox martial arts masters became highly sought-after figures in society and martial arts celebrities in the entertainment industry.

With the "rise" of unorthodox masters, even those who had once disappeared have reappeared.

They brazenly entered the public eye as martial arts masters.

These people were all highly skilled in martial arts, comparable to the elders and leaders of various sects.

Their appearance shocked everyone present, instantly overshadowing the previously prominent unorthodox masters.

Beasts that would normally require thousands of moves to defeat were slain in just over a hundred moves by them.

Such a remarkable record is bound to inspire astonishment and admiration.

These people's behavior was entirely within the official framework, causing the sect's high-ranking members to frown deeply.

I was at a loss as to how to deal with them.

If it were just these dozen or so heretical experts, they wouldn't be a cause for concern.

But behind them were at least dozens of Dharma Aspect experts, some of whom were important figures whose strength had even reached the Domain level.

They are in no way inferior to the elders of the major sects, but most of their learning tends to be short-sighted and their foundation is not as profound as that of the elders of the various sects.

A prolonged battle would inevitably lead to defeat.

Even so, this is still the strength of a Domain Realm expert, a peerless master admired by the world.

Under their leadership, the heretical masters have become a force capable of rivaling the martial arts world of the Central Plains.

Perhaps they've developed some kind of tacit understanding!

The appearance of the heretical master did not trigger a strong reaction from the various sects of the martial arts world.

Society as a whole continues to move steadily and orderly toward hunting down exotic beasts and protecting the sea frontier.

The appearance of strange beasts, the commencement of hunting operations, and the emergence of various martial arts masters have ushered in an atmosphere where martial arts are revered throughout society.

In martial arts competitions, there will naturally be winners and losers.

People naturally ranked the experts they knew.

They introduced various rankings, such as the Top Ten Masters of the Dharma Aspects and the Top Ten Masters of the Young Generation's Soaring Dragon List.

Wherever there are people, there is a world of its own; wherever there is a world of its own, there is conflict.

As a result, the internet is filled with arguments all day long about who is better and who is the best in the world.

Later, a website conducted a special evaluation and vote, and finally selected the top ten masters of Dharma.

The first place was none other than Abbot Huiwu of Shaolin Temple. He rarely made a move, but his Zen skills were profound and masterful. It is said that he had mastered twelve Shaolin martial arts techniques.

He is the person who has studied the most complex and extensively and is proficient in the most in the last two hundred years.

It's easy to imagine how formidable his strength is.

The second-ranked master is Master Puyuan, the head of the Emei Sect. He possesses the Emei Nine Yang Skill, which combines the extremes of Yang with the potential for Yin, resulting in extremely profound skill.

He also practiced the Emei Divine Sword Technique and the Demon-Subduing Sword Technique. He once killed thirteen demonic sect masters in the Guixu Song Realm.

As for those ranked fourth and below, they were all occupied by the leaders or elders of Taoist sects such as Qingcheng, Dong, and Kunlun.

Only after that do the masters of various unorthodox and heterodox sects appear.

This can be seen as a way of giving everyone some face.

"Have you heard? Young Master Muyang is preparing to challenge that eight-clawed behemoth in the deep sea. If he succeeds, I'm sure no one can predict who will be number one."

On this day, a message instantly went viral online, especially on the official website of Operation Beast Hunt.

This Muyang Langjun is a master of the evil path. Since appearing in the world, he has killed a high-level flying beast in one fell swoop during a beast hunting operation.

Thus, they ranked first in the entire hunting operation.

This time, he is going to challenge an even more powerful beast, which naturally attracts everyone's attention.