📖 Chapter 1337 - Great Hunt

16 May, 2024

“After all, even the Desire Lord wants to see Tongue’s Desire City give birth to a ninth Gluttony Lord.” Finishing his words, Master Middlesea flashed Wang Baole a smile.

“That’s strange. If the Desire Lord really wants to see a ninth Gluttony Lord rise up, why not just feed a bunch of cultivators to a random mincemeat acolyte? After all, even if they weren’t all that powerful in the beginning, they should still be able to break through. In that case, how come there are still only eight Gluttony Lords?” Wang Baole raised his eyebrows.

This time, the one who answered him wasn’t Master Middlesea, but a different mincemeat acolyte.

“Although mincemeat acolytes can benefit a lot from devouring each other… there is a limit to it.

“A Dharma body one hundred zhang tall is the hallmark of a Gluttony Lord. But after ninety-nine zhang, it’s extremely difficult to advance any further. Therefore, devouring should only be done at the critical moment of breakthrough, using the surge in power to condense a Gluttony Crystal.”

The old man among Zhou Huo’s mincemeat acolyte followers came over, smiling at Wang Baole as he continued to explain.

“Otherwise, it would be impossible for us to laugh with each other like this. Although our title as mincemeat acolytes is proof of our strength, we have to be careful not to become someone else’s food.” Shaking his head emotionally, the old man glanced at Wang Baole again and suddenly spoke again.

“Also… Master Middlesea said that there were only two situations where mincemeat acolytes can kill each other, but there’s actually a third. That is… during the Great Hunt.”

“The Great Hunt!” When Master Middlesea heard that, his expression changed drastically, and he whipped his head around to look at the old man.

“Back then, the eight Gluttony Lords put an end to the Great Hunt. Don’t tell me…”

“That’s right. According to my sources, the Great Hunt will be held again.” The old man nodded slightly. Wang Baole’s eyes flickered with a strange light as he listened to the two people talking.

As Master Middlesea’s expression shifted again and again, the old man quickly explained the details of the Great Hunt to Wang Baole.

In the past, the Great Hunt was an annual event in Tongue’s Desire City that even surpassed the Gluttony Festival in popularity. With the blessing of the Desire Lord, all participants would go to the world below to hunt ancient beasts and obtain ingredients for delicacies.

“This world is actually divided into three levels. We all live in the second layer, the World Realm. The god of this world is slumbering in the first layer, and the third layer at the bottom contains countless hibernating humans and beasts.

“That’s where the Ancients come from. However, compared to the Ancients you see here in the second layer, the people there are unawakened and have no spiritual intelligence. They’re basically no different from walking dead. At the same time, a great number of monstrous beasts have been born over the years, so that place is extremely dangerous.

“But even though those ancient beasts are dangerous, they also make for incredible ingredients. Even those golden tentacles were originally discovered in the world below; it’s just that the Desire Lord decided to take ownership of them, and gave them the power of unlimited regeneration.

“Aside from the dangerous beasts, the more pressing danger comes from the other cultivators of Tongue’s Desire City. Gluttony Lords don’t participate in the Great Hunt, so mincemeat acolytes are already the strongest people there. Here in Tongue’s Desire City, we’re not allowed to devour each other, but down in the world below, that rule no longer applies.

“As for the Gluttony Lords, their share of authority will also depend on how much their followers gain from the world below. However, the rewards are unpredictable, and in many cases the powers under the Gluttony Lords were disproportionately weakened. That’s why they eventually put a stop to it.

“It’s already been many years since the last Great Hunt. But now, it seems that the eight Gluttony Lords aren’t stopping it anymore. Another Great Hunt is going to be held, and we mincemeat acolytes will probably face great danger this time.”

After the old man explained the history of the Great Hunt to Wang Baole, another voice suddenly echoed in everyone’s ears.

“The reason the Great Hunt is being held again is because the Desire Lord has the feeling that a ninth Gluttony Lord is about to appear in Tongue’s Desire City. This Gluttony Lord will most likely advance during the Great Hunt this time, and many of us think that it’s being specifically held for Shen Ludao.”

Along with these words, a middle-aged man in a long purple robe appeared. This man was dignified without seeming angry, and his features were very similar to the mountain of meat that was Zhou Huo. As he walked around the banquet hall, everyone felt their law of tongue’s desire vibrate. From this resonance, the identity of the newcomer was obvious.

“Greetings, Gluttony Lord!” Master Middlesea, the old man, and the two other mincemeat acolytes immediately gave their greetings, and the other cultivators in the banquet hall also bowed their heads.

Wang Baole, too, cupped his fists in greeting. He could tell that the person who had arrived was just a clone; obviously, Zhou Huo’s true body was too big for the banquet hall, so it made sense that he would send a clone instead.

But even though this was just a clone, the resonance of the law of tongue’s desire made it give off an incredible pressure. Of course, Wang Baole was unaffected.

“I’ve summoned you all here precisely to talk about this matter.” After Zhou Huo arrived, he glanced at Wang Baole’s group, then at the other two mincemeat acolytes who were quickly walking over.

“The Great Hunt will start in a month. When you guys head to the world below, survival should be your top priority. As for you, Master Icespirit… you have to be careful of Shen Ludao. After your performance at the altar earlier, he’s marked you as his prey.” Zhou Huo took a deep look at Wang Baole.

“Me, prey?” Wang Baole just smiled, eyes flickering with light.

Seemingly seeing through Wang Baole’s thoughts, Zhou Huo narrowed his eyes. However, he didn’t continue speaking. Instead, he walked to the front of the banquet hall and officially started the banquet.

With all the beautiful and handsome servants serving gourmet delicacies one after another, the aura of desire quickly filled the banquet hall. Compared to the chaotic streets of Tongue’s Desire City, the aura of desire gathered in Zhou Huo’s mansion was no less shocking.

Intangible black mist wreathed the mansion, so dense that even the cultivators rampaging in the streets didn’t dare to come close.

That was because… if they approached, their bodies would instantly be contaminated and wither away.

Only those who cultivated the law of tongue’s desire, along with their followers, could possibly come to this place. Anyone else would be doomed to a miserable death.

This was the power of desire.

The banquet didn’t last long. As the chaos of the Gluttony Festival outside gradually subsided, and the darkness of night completely filled the vault of heaven, the banquet, too, came to an end.

Everyone left one after another. As Wang Baole headed out along with the female manager, Zhou Huo suddenly spoke.

“Thanks for the gift.”

“As long as you like it.” Wang Baole replied with a smile. The gift he’d brought was 40% of his stock of Ice Spirit Water.

Zhou Huo looked at Wang Baole meaningfully, and after a moment of thought, he continued speaking.

“I don’t care where you come from. Even if you’ve cultivated the law of joy, it doesn’t matter. Of course, this also means I won’t help you against enemies from outside Tongue’s Desire City.

“However, if the Desire Lord’s feeling is about you, and you become the city’s ninth Gluttony Lord, then… you will become a representative of the law of tongue’s desire. Your enemies will be the enemies of the entire Tongue’s Desire City.” With that, Zhou Huo said nothing more.

Wang Baole’s expression didn’t change at all. He just cupped his fist and turned and left.

But as he walked out of Zhou Huo’s mansion, unbeknownst to the female manager, a flicker of interest flashed through Wang Baole’s eyes.

‘The ninth Gluttony Lord…’