Chapter 530 - 349: Largely Similar Habits

Chapter 530: Chapter 349: Largely Similar Habits

After leaving the teahouse, Lin Li was about to head to the restaurant that bought his oysters to sell another batch of pearls. Just then, he noticed many burly, armed men on horseback.

"Make way! Don’t block the road!"

"HYAH!"

Pedestrians scattered to the sides of the street, afraid of being trampled as the riders galloped past.

The armed men galloped past Lin Li in groups of two or three, some in teams of four or five, and one group was even a dozen strong.

These armed men on horseback, all racing toward the city gates, were clearly not ordinary people.

"So many people are going treasure hunting today!" a waiter remarked in surprise, watching the groups depart.

Hearing the waiter’s comment, Lin Li turned to him and asked, puzzled, "What treasure hunt?"

"You don’t know about the treasure hunt, sir?"

"No, I don’t."

"Well, a few days ago, a merchant caravan passing Bibo Lake outside the city spotted a Mutant Beast on the shore—a White-Scaled Drilling Rat."

"Once word got out, countless Cultivators formed Treasure Hunting Squads and headed to the area around Bibo Lake to search for the White-Scaled Drilling Rat’s den."

The waiter’s explanation didn’t clarify for Lin Li what finding a White-Scaled Drilling Rat had to do with treasure hunting, so he pressed for more details. The waiter then elaborated on the creature.

After this, Lin Li finally understood what the treasure hunt was all about.

The White-Scaled Drilling Rat is a herbivorous Mutant Beast. It’s less aggressive than other Mutant Beasts, generally not very strong, and poses little threat to humans.

The creature’s meat is a bit sour and unpalatable, so no one bothers hunting it for food.

Normally, no one would bother with a Mutant Beast that was unpalatable and posed little threat.

However, many years ago, a weaker Cultivator, only at the peak of Tier One, was hunting Mutant Beasts in the wild when he stumbled upon a White-Scaled Drilling Rat’s den.

Inside the den, he discovered a considerable amount of Spirit Stone ore of various sizes.

The Cultivator cleaned out all the Spirit Stone ore from the den and sold it back in the city. His haul was worth about five hundred Spirit Stones, and he became rich overnight.

After some research, people learned that when a White-Scaled Drilling Rat burrows, it sometimes stumbles upon underground veins of Spirit Stone ore.

When they find this ore, they hoard it in their dens for future use.

Because of this habit, any reported sighting of a White-Scaled Drilling Rat immediately triggers a frenzy, with hordes of Cultivators descending on the area to hunt for treasure.

After hearing the full story, Lin Li couldn’t help but think to himself.

’Squirrels on Blue Star like to hoard food in their nests for a rainy day.’

’And here in the Spirit Realm, the White-Scaled Drilling Rat likes to hoard Spirit Stone ore in its den.’

’Different species, but their behavior is pretty much the same... How interesting.’

...

Bibo Lake was located about twenty kilometers east of Dongwu City.

Squads of Cultivators on horseback streamed out of Dongwu City’s gates, galloping nonstop toward their destination.

As far as the eye could see, everyone was in a group, except for one person in a black training suit heading to the destination on foot.

After learning that finding a White-Scaled Drilling Rat’s den could lead to a haul of Spirit Stone ore, Lin Li thought it over and decided to join in on the excitement.

After getting a clear idea of Bibo Lake’s general location, he immediately left the city and set out on foot.

Even though Lin Li knew the general location of Bibo Lake, the landscape outside Dongwu City was nothing but a vast, sprawling wilderness.

There weren’t any signposts on the road, so it would be easy to get lost. He figured it was better to find a group to follow.

So, Lin Li picked a three-man squad to act as his guide, trailing them from a safe distance.

"Boss, some guy has been following us ever since we left the city," the long-haired man said to his companions, glancing back at the figure behind them. "You don’t think he’s planning to cause trouble, do you?"

"He’s all alone. If he’s really looking for trouble, then he can’t blame us for what happens next..." the bald-headed leader replied nonchalantly after a quick look back.

"You’re right, Boss, but it’s still damn annoying having this guy tailing us," the short-haired man chimed in.

The bald leader thought for a moment. It was true. Anyone would feel uneasy being followed like this out in the wilderness, and it was natural to feel some resentment.

"WHOA..."

Pulling on his reins, the bald leader brought his horse to a halt.

When his two companions saw this, they immediately pulled on their reins as well, stopping their own mounts.

Lin Li, who was using the three-man squad as his guide, kept his distance as he followed them from afar.

When he saw them suddenly stop, Lin Li also slowed his pace and came to a halt, watching from a distance and waiting for his "guide" squad to start moving again.

"Shit..." The long-haired man cursed when he saw Lin Li stop and watch them from afar. "Boss, the guy stopped too. Looks like he’s planning to tail us the whole way."

"It’s bad enough he’s not on a horse, but he isn’t even carrying a weapon," the short-haired man said. "Is he trying to get himself killed, following us like this?"

The bald leader stared at Lin Li, who stood his ground in the distance. Seeing how young he was and that he was unarmed, he wasn’t particularly worried about him being a threat.

Still, being followed like this was unsettling. If they didn’t deal with it, how could they enjoy the treasure hunt?

"Let’s go have a chat with this guy," the bald leader said.

With a flick of his reins, he urged his mount toward Lin Li, who was still watching from a distance.

Seeing this, his two men immediately spurred their own mounts to follow their boss.

"Hm?" Lin Li saw his "guide" squad riding toward him. He didn’t turn to leave. Instead, he stood his ground, curious to see what they wanted.

"WHOA..."

The bald leader came to a stop six or seven meters in front of Lin Li, pulling his mount to a halt. His men fanned out to his left and right, stopping a short distance away.

From the formation the three men took, it was clear they had combat experience.

"Hey, you! Why have you been following us?" Before the bald leader could speak, the long-haired man, already incensed at being followed, was the first to question Lin Li, his tone hostile.

Seeing their unfriendly attitude, Lin Li wasn’t about to show them any friendliness in return.

"I happen to be heading in this direction, and you just happen to be in front of me. How is that ’following’ you?"

Hearing Lin Li’s explanation, the long-haired man said angrily, "That’s just a lame excuse."

Lin Li shrugged, feigning indifference. "If that’s what you want to believe, there’s nothing I can do about it."

"You..." For a moment, the long-haired man was at a loss for how to deal with Lin Li’s indifferent attitude.

He had expected the guy to argue when confronted. He never imagined he’d offer just one flimsy excuse and then clam up, which left him feeling all wound up with no outlet for his anger.

"Fine. Since you’re not following us, you go first," the short-haired man said, seeing his companion’s face flush with anger.

"I’m a little tired from all this running. I think I’ll rest for a bit and go later," Lin Li said, raising a hand to wipe away imaginary sweat from his forehead.

The short-haired man was rendered speechless by Lin Li’s blatant act, and a fresh wave of anger surged within him.

The bald leader, who had been silent until now, saw that Lin Li had his two companions fuming.

He knew he had to step in. Otherwise, his two men were about to attack the young man.

...