Luo Chen's return to the Zhang family's courtyard did not go unnoticed. He made no effort to conceal his presence, and the ladies sensed his arrival. They came out to greet him, but Zhang Jiadi was nowhere to be seen. Luo Chen was told the man had been assigned to an escort mission and had gone to the front line. He said, "I remember he just finished a mission not long ago. Why take on another one so soon? The gap between missions for star-ranked demon hunters shouldn't be this short, right?"

Zhang Jiadi was only an Initiate, so his understanding of the Society was limited. Luo Chen, however, had learned much more during his time on Winding Island. Adept Xiao Buhuan had explained many details to him. Within the Society, Qi Refinement and Initiates usually took missions at intervals of about half a year. Adepts had longer gaps, often once every three to five years. In wartime, the frequency increased. Of course, some cultivators also chose to take on extra missions to raise their star rank more quickly. Clearly, it was not wartime now, and Zhang Jiadi did not seem like someone obsessed with advancing his rank.

Wen Xiu sighed and stroked her belly. "Old Zhang is doing this for the child."

It seemed the man had planned to complete several years' worth of missions in one stretch. That way, he could free up time later to care for Wen Xiu and the child. He was a man who valued loyalty and responsibility.

Luo Chen nodded, beckoned to Heavenjade, and went straight back to his room. After he entered, Heavenjade followed. He sat down calmly and asked, "How did it go?"

Heavenjade perked up. "All taken care of. I didn't take any merchant ships—I just flew at full speed the whole way, so I saved more than half the time on the round trip. Lately, word about what happened on Coldlight Island has already started spreading around the outer regions of the Society. It shouldn't be long before it reaches Dragon Abyss City."

"Good job," Luo Chen said approvingly. "Thanks for the hard work."

Then, he took the opportunity to examine Heavenjade's condition. Her cultivation had fallen far from its peak and had only just returned to the early stage of the Golden Core Realm. At the same time, however, her foundation was now much more solid. In that sense, the injuries she suffered in the last battle were indeed a blessing in disguise. Once the hidden damage was fully healed, her level would soar, and her future cultivation would also progress more smoothly. He withdrew his divine consciousness with satisfaction.

"The next few days shouldn't be as hectic as before. I'm heading to the Hidden Dragon Mountain Range tomorrow to check a few things out; you can come with me."

Heavenjade blinked in slight confusion, but then understood. It seemed that he had passed the assessment and was now a star-ranked demon hunter. That was why he was preparing to settle in the Hidden Dragon Mountain Range. At last, they would have a good place to stay.

***

The next morning, Luo Chen set out with Heavenjade. They left through the west gate of Dragon Abyss and flew forward at a steady pace. In the distance, mountains rose, and below them stretched a vast marshland.

The Hidden Dragon Mountains took their name from the Stone Dragon. Dragon Abyss Immortal City, on the other hand, was named for the great marsh nearby. The city faced the sea on one side and the Dragon Abyss Marsh on the other.

Luo Chen let his divine consciousness drift across the marsh. It passed over scattered structures below, and a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes. Most who lived there had low cultivation. They were mainly Qi Refinement cultivators and Initiates, with very few Adepts. These were the true rogue cultivators. They had joined the Society but had not qualified as demon hunters. They feared the harsh demands placed on star-ranked demon hunters and also could not afford the high cost of renting cave residences in the Hidden Dragon Mountain Range. For that reason, they could only choose to cultivate in the barren Dragon Abyss Marsh.

In fact, these people formed the core of the Society. Their numbers were impossible to count; they were in the tens of thousands, and they continued to increase as the war intensified.

"As long as the base is big enough, the number of star-ranked demon hunters will keep growing, and the high-tier cultivators will have more to harvest," Luo Chen muttered. Without slowing down, he led Heavenjade straight toward the towering mountains.

***

On a mountain peak, Heavenjade stood to the side, while Luo Chen sat cross-legged beside her. With his keen eyesight, he surveyed the mountains and valleys. After a while, he withdrew his gaze and stood up. "Let's try somewhere else."

Heavenjade asked in confusion, "This place won't work either? The vacant cave residences here all seem packed with spirit energy."

Luo Chen replied calmly, "They seem so, yes. But looks can be deceiving. All that abundant spirit energy is just surface-level and won't hold up for more than a couple of years. Not what I'm looking for."

Heavenjade pondered his words, but she did not really get it. She even began doubting herself; why was it that she couldn't see through these things, while her master could do it easily? What she did not know was that feats like discerning spirit veins and the large-scale flow of energy was not something that ordinary people could do. Few could achieve such a feat. Luo Chen had only reached this level thanks to years of studying formations and his Spirit Eyes. The Divine Seal Compass in his hand also played a major role, with the third-tier Spirit-Seeking Formation. He was thus able to verify the third-tier cave residences Xiao Buhuan had mentioned.

Unfortunately, after spending most of the day carefully examining them, he gained very little. Or rather, Xiao Buhuan's standing was not particularly high. As a five-star demon hunter, the cave residences he knew were mostly low-grade to mid-grade third-tier. They might have been excellent to him, but they did not meet Luo Chen's standards.

Over the next two days, Luo Chen visited several places that seemed to gather spirit energy well. Each time, he came away disappointed. At last, he stood on a lush green peak, ignoring the gazes of the surrounding rogue cultivators, and put away his Divine Seal Compass. "Let's head back."

Heavenjade asked, confused, "None of them work? I just used the method you taught me to check, and the spirit vein beneath this mountain seems quite solid, at least mid-grade third-tier."

Luo Chen shook his head. She was not wrong, but a mid-grade third-tier vein still fell short of his standard. Still, the trip was not in vain. At least he had confirmed what Xiao Buhuan said—the spirit veins in the Hidden Dragon Mountain Range had indeed been damaged. Although there were several fourth-tier veins, they were independent and not connected to others. Even the low-tier veins beneath them were inconsistent and difficult to judge accurately.

"Looks like all the good stuff is still tightly controlled by the Society. If I want a top-grade third-tier spirit vein, I'll have to go through the Angler... Hmm... the Angler..."

Muttering this name, Luo Chen flew away from the Hidden Dragon Mountain Range under the watchful eyes of the rogue cultivators. Only after he was gone did the rogue cultivators start talking among themselves.

"So the Society's got another Adept and he even has an Adept attendant following him. He must've been pretty impressive before he ended up a rogue cultivator." 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

"So what if he was? He's been hanging around the Hidden Dragon Mountain Range for days and still hasn't settled on a place. Looks like he's short on funds."

"Who isn't? My lease is almost up, and I'm running out of spirit stones. No way I can afford next year's rent. I'll probably have to take on another mission."

"Why bother with missions? It's faster to go to the first defensive line and hunt demonic beasts."

"We'll see. What about you? I've heard you complain about your own cave residence, that the spirit energy flow keeps interrupting and it messes with your cultivation, all that. Aren't you planning to move to a better one?"

"Easier said than done. The good places are all taken."

"Hehe, when your lease runs out, just go and grab one. As long as you pay the rent, the Society won't come after you."

"Isn't that... a bit inappropriate?"

"Oh no, whatever are we going to do now. Shut up, you know you want it!"

The discussion among the rogue cultivators gradually shifted away from Luo Chen to other topics. They seemed quite eager to discuss anything else, but when it came to the quality of their own cave residences, most of them spoke vaguely and even downplayed it. They were clearly afraid of being targeted!