"That's right, Master Redbeard!" the bald proprietor gurgled, speaking to Wen Wen.
"This old inn is under Master Redbeard's protection, and your Hunter Association implicitly permits its existence. Do not do anything irrational."
Wen Wen was not angered by the bald proprietor's threat. Instead, he asked curiously, "I am very curious about this Master Redbeard. Can you tell me more about him?"
Since the bald proprietor could use Master Redbeard to threaten Wen Wen, it implied that Master Redbeard had a certain reputation in the vicinity. If Wen Wen wanted to learn about him, he could only rely on the bald proprietor for now.
While Wanderers had high authority, they only received comprehensive information about supernatural events when they accepted a mission.
Wen Wen had a premonition that this Master Redbeard might be very useful to him.
The bald proprietor possessed at least two supernatural items and referred to the other party as "Master"...
Perhaps Master Redbeard was the artisan Wen Wen had been searching for, one capable of crafting supernatural weapons!
And since Master Redbeard was willing to shelter this den of iniquity, he surely wasn't a good person. Wen Wen could capture him and send him to the Containment Facility.
The Containment Facility had been lacking artisan monsters for a long time, with numerous monster materials filling several warehouses.
The spirituality of supernatural materials would dissipate over time. While it might take several years for a single material to weaken noticeably, the cumulative loss from so many materials piled together was something Wen Wen found extremely displeasing.
Wen Wen had searched extensively through the Wanderer terminal but had not found any artisan monsters that suited his needs. He hadn't expected to stumble upon a clue while apprehending Guo Shengye!
It was truly a case of searching high and low for something only to find it unexpectedly!
Seeing the way Wen Wen looked at him, like a starved jackal, the bald proprietor felt a sense of foreboding. He might have said the wrong thing.
However, to protect his inn, the bald proprietor could only choose to exaggerate Master Redbeard's reputation in an attempt to make Wen Wen fearful and hesitant to act recklessly.
So, he took a deep breath and began introducing Master Redbeard to Wen Wen.
"Master Redbeard is also known as the Demon Artifact Forger. All the old inns across the cities of Haibei Province are his properties. He holds absolute authority in the underground world of Haibei Province..."
Even with the bald proprietor's embellishments, Wen Wen listened patiently, all the while drinking the proprietor's most expensive wine.
After listening, Wen Wen summarized it himself. It was as he had guessed: this Master Redbeard was indeed an artisan, or perhaps a monster, skilled in forging supernatural artifacts.
Several years ago, he had forged several demon artifacts, which caused over ten murders across Haibei Province. The local Hunter Association could do nothing about him, so Redbeard was hunted by Wanderers.
However, the Hunter Association's attempts to apprehend him had all ended in failure, which earned Master Redbeard a great reputation in the underground world.
After all, most other monsters as ostentatious as Redbeard had already become the weapons of demon hunters...
For some reason, the Hunter Association's pursuit of Redbeard suddenly ceased, and Redbeard himself seemed to have started cultivating a more restrained lifestyle, no longer forging demon artifacts that harmed the populace.
Afterward, he began opening old inns in various places, providing shelter to those with nowhere else to go. In return, he collected fees to support his continued weapon forging.
While listening, Wen Wen also checked the Wanderer terminal but found no information related to Redbeard.
This meant that Master Redbeard was no longer on the Hunter Association's wanted list.
What kind of abilities did he possess that caused the Hunter Association to abandon their pursuit? This made Wen Wen extremely curious.
After the bald proprietor finished speaking, he looked intently at Wen Wen's face, hoping to see fear and trepidation. Instead, Wen Wen's lips curved higher and higher, appearing almost ferocious.
"Interesting, truly interesting."
As Wen Wen grinned menacingly, his black hair behind his head began to grow wildly, and an ominous aura emanated from him.
The bald proprietor's heart skipped a beat. Was this a demon hunter or a vengeful spirit from the inner world?
Those black hairs wrapped around the bald proprietor's limbs, rendering him immobile and at Wen Wen's mercy.
During this, a tough barrier appeared on his body, but it was instantly shattered in Wen Wen's grasp.
Then, amidst the bald proprietor's humiliated expression, Wen Wen began to rummage through him, ultimately finding four supernatural items with different functions.
Besides the wooden hammer and defensive bracelet he had seen before, there was a supernatural handgun and a snuff bottle.
Wen Wen, in front of the bald proprietor, picked up the four items and studied them.
All four items bore a crest resembling red flames. When inverted, the flames looked like a large red beard, indicating they were crafted by the same hand.
Furthermore, these items were all exquisitely made, even better than those Wen Wen had personally crafted.
Well, to be precise, without the power boost from the Disaster Prison Overseer, Wen Wen's supernatural items would have been nothing but junk.
Even with the Disaster Prison Overseer's power, the items Wen Wen created were too direct, failing to unleash the full potential of the materials and their unique properties.
In terms of materials, these items used materials containing a portion of a monster's power, consistent with the Containment Facility's reserves. If Wen Wen captured this Master Redbeard, he could transform all those materials into usable items!
However, before capturing Master Redbeard, Wen Wen needed to understand why the Hunter Association had stopped pursuing him. If he couldn't clarify this, he certainly wouldn't act rashly.
Therefore, he switched to his vampire form and activated his hypnosis ability, his eyes emitting a captivating red glow, causing the bald proprietor's gaze to become unfocused.
Tao Qingqing was now a disaster-level vampire, and her hypnosis ability could affect supernaturals.
However, using hypnosis on supernaturals did not allow for complete control like it did with ordinary people. Obtaining information required appropriate guidance.
Fortunately, the bald proprietor had already been scared witless by Wen Wen. He answered all of Wen Wen's questions truthfully. Only after Wen Wen finished questioning did he realize something was amiss with his state.
Wen Wen pondered the information about Master Redbeard while sipping his wine.
"So that's how it is. This Master Redbeard has a means to restrain the Hunter Association. The Association could forcibly apprehend him, but it would lead to undesirable consequences."
"Furthermore, every year in December, Redbeard gifts the Hunter Association a batch of supernatural items in exchange for his safety."
"Most importantly, after negotiating with the Association, this Redbeard has been hiding in Baoya City and has not caused any more deaths... at least, not any publicly acknowledged murders."
"It seems that getting him into the Containment Facility will be difficult, but I must at least meet him."
After draining the last drop of wine from the bottle, Wen Wen stood up and lightly patted his cheeks.
"Then the next target is... Master Redbeard!"