The Cost of Growth

The arrival of their allies, especially the arrival of their "ship," was good news for everyone in the know.

It meant that most of those preparing to leave had more time to gather, harvest, and trade for local resources, then demonize and professionalize them in preparation for bringing them back home.

The Ancient Divine Beast, their top-priority target? Well, no one mentioned it anymore. They could forget about it for the next half year or so.

The Red Star People's frenzied retaliation also let the Eastern Kingdom people breathe a sigh of relief, though for some, it was terrible news.

Just as these Hunters had started to slack off, another batch of new avengers arrived. The surviving remnants of the Aus were in for a treat.

"Another minister got taken out? Good. He deserved it."

A full minister and a deputy minister from the Hunter Department had been betrayed by their subordinates, then caught red-handed by the Red Star People, who had nowhere else to vent their fury. After paying a certain price, they made him the second minister to be hunted down. His corpse now hung from the central pole of the camp.

He had been one hell of a bastard. As the leader of the former hunters, the blood debt on his hands was beyond counting.

For Lu PingAn's team, however, this was undoubtedly good news. The Red Star People were fulfilling their duties as allies and intended to remain until the Eastern Kingdom's God's Ark arrived.

It was said that quite a few of them were doing so out of gratitude toward those who had saved them. It was clearly a gesture of goodwill.

Allies were just allies when you had never met them.

But when you received unexpected support in a foreign land, that favor naturally