Work Was Hard to Find

Although Tang Yue had resolved the problem, Tang Miao had no intention of letting her leave. He kept her by his side for three whole days.

But after those three days, Tang Yue had to leave after all.

She still had a mission to carry out. As for the totem, Tang Yue told Tang Miao that he wasn't strong enough to get involved yet, and that he should focus on cultivating.

Tang Miao agreed. He knew his own limits. Even with the Dark Serpent at his side, there were plenty of rulers who dominated the Demon Beasts' territories in this world. With just one Dark Serpent, he couldn't necessarily roam the world unchecked.

In the days that followed, Tang Miao spent his time cultivating and researching totem-related materials. Unfortunately, there was very little information available.

He'd also tried to communicate with the jade pendant, but it didn't seem to work...

A month passed in the blink of an eye. Once he finished cultivating, it was time to hand the Stardust Magic Tool over to Dongfang Hui.

When he gave it to her, Tang Miao asked in confusion, "Doesn't the Dongfang Family have plenty of Stardust Magic Tools?"

After their brief conversation that day, Dongfang Hui had thought Tang Miao was playing hard to get, trying to catch her attention. But after a month had passed, she realized she might have read too much into it... He hadn't meant anything of the sort!

It was rare for Tang Miao to speak first, so Dongfang Hui replied, "We do, but I don't like relying on my family's resources."

"Oh?"

Tang Miao found it amusing. He hadn't expected this girl to be the type who wanted to make it on her own.

"Being born into the Dongfang Family must be a dream come true for a lot of people."

"That's what other people think," Dongfang Hui said calmly. "If I could choose, I'd rather have been born into an ordinary family."

She didn't seem to want to continue talking about it, so Dongfang Hui changed the subject. "What level are you at now?"

"You're a girl. Why are you so competitive?"

Dongfang Hui gave a soft snort, turned around, and walked off with a sway of her hips, tossing over her shoulder, "Forget it if you don't want to say."

Tang Miao shrugged. She did have a nice, round backside, but her personality wasn't quite to his taste.

After handing over the Stardust Magic Tool, Tang Miao left the school. He'd joined the academy for its resources, and there wasn't much worth learning there anyway.

The resources it offered were pretty meager. Even with his exceptionally fast cultivation, he'd need at least another year or two to break through to the Intermediate Level with so little to work with.

And that was assuming he did nothing but cultivate...

So, if he wanted to improve quickly, he needed money. But to make money, he needed strength... After all, the City Monster Hunting Squad in the Magic Capital only accepted Intermediate Mages.

That was because Demon Beasts weren't the only threat in this world. There were also Anomalies, and the squads had to deal with them too. Those Anomalies were no weaker than Demon Beasts, so anyone below the Intermediate Level would just be dead weight.

Even so, Tang Miao made his way to a small Hunter's Alliance hall.

He could wash dishes, scrub plates, or deliver takeout, sure. But what good was the money from those jobs?

It was a small Hunter's Alliance branch in the Magic Capital, but it was still packed. Nearly a few thousand people came and went through the building, including those leaving and the newcomers.

Looking at the bounty postings in the hall, Tang Miao felt helpless. Every job paid well, and he thought he could handle some of them. Unfortunately, his rank wasn't high enough!

Even though his magical power was strong, he still couldn't get onto a team without a hunter rank.

There were all sorts of recruitment notices, but after searching for a long time, he couldn't find a single one looking for a Beginner Mage... Actually, he hadn't found any bounties with a suitable reward, either.

It wasn't worth risking his life for no money!

After wandering around for a while longer without finding a suitable bounty, he was about to give up and leave when he heard a muscular man shouting in the hall, "Thunderbolt Squad is recruiting one Fire Element Intermediate Mage! We've already accepted the bounty. The reward is 150,000. Bring back the corpse of a General Level Sea Fish Demon. We've already got a lead, and it's been spotted alone..."

"150,000? That's a lot! And they already have the location. Too bad I'm not a Fire Element Mage..."

"A Sea Fish Demon could take seven or eight Intermediate Mages to handle. What good is a high reward?"

"Ah, forget it... Let's go..."

"..."

Tang Miao stood there listening as everyone discussed the bounty, then left one after another. After hesitating for a moment, he walked up to the man and said, "I'm not an Intermediate Mage, but I'm a Lightning Mage. Can I join?"

The muscular man saw the crowd dispersing and was just about to move elsewhere to recruit when Tang Miao approached. Looking at Tang Miao's clean-cut face, he could tell he was a green rookie, probably still a student. Normally, he wouldn't have bothered responding.

But after hearing what Tang Miao said, the man stopped in his tracks. He turned to look at him and asked, "Kid, what did you say? You're a Lightning Mage!?"

Tang Miao nodded, then added, "I've already mastered Lightning Level 2 Magic."

The man shook his head. He'd only been surprised because he hadn't expected a Lightning Mage in the Imperial Capital to be looking for bounty work!

Especially someone as young as Tang Miao—if he said he was a Lightning Mage, he could find work anywhere, couldn't he?

The man paused before saying, "Ahem... You're not messing with me, are you? We're going beyond the safety zone to deal with Demon Beasts. They kill without blinking. This isn't a game."

"I'm not joking. I'm serious."

As he spoke, a star track appeared in Tang Miao's hand, and deep purple lightning gathered in an instant.

"Th-that lightning!?" The muscular man was an old hand who'd been around for years, and he could tell at a glance that the lightning was extraordinary. If he wasn't mistaken, it might even be a Spirit Seed.

At the same time, he found it even harder to understand. Why would someone like this risk his life for a bounty just because he needed money?

"My lightning is an Innate Spirit Seed." Tang Miao didn't mention that his lightning had a Soul Seed Domain. He was a low-key person, after all.

"So, can I join your squad?"

The man hesitated, then said solemnly, "This is extremely dangerous. With your talent, you've got a bright future ahead of you. If you joined any faction and received proper support, you could become a powerhouse in just a few years!"

Seeing a promising young talent, he really didn't want him taking part in such a dangerous bounty. And although the kid's lightning looked powerful, he seemed like a clueless rookie who'd never left the safety zone. If he froze up when he saw a Demon Beast and couldn't cast a spell, wouldn't that put the whole team at risk?

"I'm not interested in joining any faction, and I'm not going to risk my life recklessly. If you're worried I'll be unable to cast a spell when I see a Demon Beast, don't be. I can form a star track in a single thought!"