Cub of a superior illusion demon?

"I see."

Ten minutes later, sitting on the bed in the hotel room, Xu Qianqian learned all the details from Su Ming, and her expression turned grave.

"I didn't expect this to involve a suspected Greater Phantasmal Demon. This is really troublesome."

Xu Qianqian bit her finger, her expression as uncertain as Su Ming's had been when he first learned of it.

There was no helping it. Anything related to Greater Phantasmal Demons was no small matter. Even a large family like the Xu Family couldn't ignore the threat posed by a Greater Phantasmal Demon.

Those were magical creatures that at least required four-star Hunters and four-star Sorcerers to deal with.

And that was just to deal with them. Whether they could successfully hunt them down was another matter entirely.

Such beings were beyond the reach of not only students like Su Ming and Xu Qianqian who hadn't even graduated yet, but also most professional Hunters and Sorcerers.

Therefore, if a Greater Phantasmal Demon were to come from the Spirit Fiend Abyss into the mortal world and appear in the human world, even a Base City would have to be vigilant and take it seriously.

That level of Phantasmal Demon posed too great a threat to humanity.

Of course...

"I haven't confirmed whether a Greater Phantasmal Demon has actually appeared," Su Ming said to Xu Qianqian. "I'm just guessing. There are still several doubts in this guess. The reason I called you over was to ask what you think."

Su Ming didn't presumptuously assume that his deduction was necessarily correct.

Even though the deduction was supported by a certain amount of evidence, Su Ming didn't want to blindly jump to a conclusion.

He called Xu Qianqian over because he wanted to ask for her opinion.

This young miss of the Xu Family might be a bit clueless when it came to social interactions, but she was very knowledgeable and had a wide range of knowledge. She might have different ideas.

Sure enough...

"Your deduction makes some sense, but I think there might be some discrepancies."

Xu Qianqian thought for a long time before giving her own thoughts.

"For one thing, if a Greater Phantasmal Demon really appeared in Longyao City, this Base City wouldn't be so quiet. There would have been a major incident already."

That statement wasn't without reason.

"That's what I think too," Su Ming nodded in agreement. "Phantasmal Demons all feed on blood, and their essence and power are concentrated in their blood. Ordinary lesser Phantasmal Demons will cause quite a few homicides to hunt for blood once they come to the mortal world. If it were a Greater Phantasmal Demon, it would inevitably cause a disaster because of the blood."

The power of a Greater Phantasmal Demon was disproportionate to that of a lesser Phantasmal Demon and couldn't be compared.

In contrast, the Greater Phantasmal Demon's need for blood was much higher than that of a lesser Phantasmal Demon.

To put it in simpler terms, a Greater Phantasmal Demon had a much bigger appetite than a lesser Phantasmal Demon, and it needed much more nutrition. In addition, they were already evolved individuals, and in order to continue improving and evolving to the next level, their thirst for blood was far beyond the reach of lesser Phantasmal Demons.

"If it was really a Greater Phantasmal Demon appearing in the world, and it appeared directly in the Base City, it wouldn't be able to remain indifferent with tens of millions of 'delicacies' in front of it, and it wouldn't be able to resist taking action," Su Ming said. "And with their need for blood, it would be absolutely impossible for them to appear without causing thousands of casualties."

This was the point that Su Ming and Xu Qianqian found suspicious.

"If that suspicious group was really chasing a Greater Phantasmal Demon, then that Greater Phantasmal Demon couldn't have avoided causing a huge murder case in Longyao City, even if it was just to fill its stomach," Xu Qianqian said. "Besides, I don't think a Greater Phantasmal Demon would be chased around by a group of suspicious Hunters and Sorcerers."

Indeed.

Although the Hunters and Sorcerers in that suspicious group were all professional-level, according to Su Ming and Xu Qianqian's observations, they both believed that the Hunters and Sorcerers in that group were at most three-star.

For example, the leader of the group should be a three-star Hunter, and it was unlikely that he was above four-star.

Four-star and above Hunters were all famous figures, and even the higher-ups of the Base City needed to treat them with caution.

It was unlikely that such beings would be casually ordered around by a higher-up of a Base City, chasing after an unknown mysterious Phantasmal Demon.

Considering this, the highest star rating in that suspicious group was probably only three-star.

One, two, and three-star Hunters and Sorcerers were called lower-level professionals in the industry. It wouldn't be very difficult for the higher-ups of the Base City to employ, subdue, or even cultivate professionals of this level.

Four, five, and six-star Hunters and Sorcerers were called upper-level professionals in the industry. Their numbers were much smaller than those of lower-level professionals, and their strength was much stronger. It would definitely be extremely difficult for the higher-ups of the Base City to casually employ, subdue, or cultivate them.

As for seven-star Hunters and Sorcerers, they were equivalent to the Hunter King and Sorcerer Master.

This level of existence was extremely rare in the human world. Most Base Cities didn't even have a seven-star Hunter or Sorcerer.

Like Longyao City, the highest star rating in this Base City was six-star.

The same was true for the neighboring Qilan City and QH City. The highest star rating was only six-star.

Only Yinze City, which had a population of more than 90 million and ranked first among the four major coastal Base Cities, had a seven-star Hunter.

Under such circumstances, it wasn't impossible for a higher-up in a Base City like Longyao City, where the highest star rating was only six-star, to have an upper-level professional as a private soldier, but the possibility wasn't very high.

If a Hunter or Sorcerer of this level really appeared, the Base City would have regarded them as the backbone of the city's defense long ago.

Faced with the threat posed by Phantasmal Demons, humans didn't have much leeway. Once a family or force produced an upper-level professional, they would unite and demand that the other party officially register as a professional Hunter or professional Sorcerer, so that they could contribute to the Base City and even all of humanity.

Therefore, even if a higher-up in a Base City really cultivated an upper-level professional, the other higher-ups in the Base City would definitely not allow him to use them as a private soldier.

And under the banner of united righteousness, even the most powerful family would have to compromise.

In view of this, it would undoubtedly be very difficult for an upper-level professional to become someone's private soldier.

All of these situations were telling Su Ming and Xu Qianqian that it was unlikely that there would be a four-star professional in that suspicious group.

The problem was...

"If there are no four-star professionals in that suspicious group, then they won't be able to chase after a Greater Phantasmal Demon even if they wanted to."

Su Ming cut straight to the point.

"That's right." Xu Qianqian deeply agreed, "Without a Greater professional taking action, if lower-level professionals want to hunt a Greater Phantasmal Demon, they'd need to deploy at least a group of a hundred people."

Within that group of a hundred, at least one-tenth would have to be three-star professionals, three-tenths would have to be two-star professionals, and the rest would have to be capable one-star professionals, for them to even have a chance of hunting a Greater Phantasmal Demon.

That's how terrifying Greater Phantasmal Demons are.

Considering all of this, the mysterious entity being hunted by the suspicious group is unlikely to be a Greater Phantasmal Demon.

However...

"If they're hunting a cub of a Greater Phantasmal Demon, then everything makes sense."

Xu Qianqian suddenly dropped this bombshell.

"A cub of a Greater Phantasmal Demon?"

Su Ming was stunned.

"Yes." Xu Qianqian nodded, saying, "Phantasmal Demons are different from us humans; they have many ways of reproducing."

"Some reproduce asexually, some reproduce by splitting off unwanted parts of their bodies, some can reproduce through special powers, and some can even reproduce through infection."

Xu Qianqian explained.

"Naturally, the results of these various methods of reproduction are also different."

"For example, with split reproduction, because the resulting life form is made from discarded, unwanted parts of the body, these Phantasmal Demons are often much weaker than the parent."

"The same goes for reproduction through special powers; the amount of power the parent consumes during reproduction directly determines the potential and strength of the offspring."

"As for methods like infection, it goes without saying that they usually only produce lower-level individuals of the parent that serves as the source of infection. For example, a Greater Phantasmal Demon can only produce Lesser Phantasmal Demons as offspring through infection."

Here, Xu Qianqian paused, then slowly described a certain situation.

"And in the Spirit Fiend Abyss, where all sorts of reproduction methods exist, there are also examples of Greater Phantasmal Demons giving birth to cubs that are also Greater Phantasmal Demons."

"For example, some individuals among Greater Phantasmal Demons that are incredibly powerful have ways to give birth to cubs that are also Greater Phantasmal Demons."

"Moreover, some Greater Phantasmal Demons, before they die, might use all the blood and power in their bodies to reproduce, allowing their offspring to inherit all of their power. These offspring are Greater Phantasmal Demons from birth."

Xu Qianqian's words caused Su Ming's expression to gradually sink.

He already guessed what Xu Qianqian wanted to say.

And Xu Qianqian's next words confirmed his thoughts.

"If a cub of a Greater Phantasmal Demon came to the present world and was discovered, everyone would be ecstatic."

Xu Qianqian said.

"Because it's a cub, even if it's a Greater Phantasmal Demon, its power will be greatly reduced before it's fully developed."

Such a Phantasmal Demon cub, in the eyes of humans, is simply a huge treasure.

Its body materials can be used to forge powerful weapons, create powerful items, and refine potent elixirs.

The Phantasmal Demon Elixir refined from its blood would give a human a chance to directly possess the bloodline of a Greater Phantasmal Demon, not only granting them terrifying power but also ensuring that their descendants would have outstanding bloodlines and be able to rise above others.

Even large families can't ignore such a treasure.

Because maintaining the bloodline, improving the bloodline, and making the bloodline stronger and purer are things that all Hunter families do.

How tempting is a Greater Phantasmal Demon's bloodline to these families?

It's unimaginable!

Which means...

"I suspect that a high-ranking member of Longyao Base City wants to secretly monopolize such a cub of a Greater Phantasmal Demon, so they sent out private soldiers to hunt it down."

That was Xu Qianqian's idea.

Please favorite! Please recommend! Please support!