Chapter 1 The Empire's Palace

The Terran Empire's palace was situated within the inner city of the royal capital, a sprawling complex of castles. The main castle stood tallest and most prominent, the administrative core where the king and the Council of Ministers exercised their power. Surrounding it were four subsidiary castles, each with its own function, connected by covered bridges.

A high wall separated the palace from the commoners, heavily guarded, preventing outsiders from entering.

In the mouths of the royal capital's residents, this castle was commonly called the "Golden Fortress." The name's connotation primarily praised the Tarn royal family's golden spirit, but in reality, the palace castle was not golden at all, but rather a slate-blue color, its outer walls adorned with flags bearing the Tarn family crest and imperial insignia.

Having roamed the world of exotic beasts for so long, this was the first time Zhou Jing had set foot in the imperial palace.

He followed Kleeber into the inner city gate, proceeding along the main road known as the "Road of Glory," eventually arriving at the Golden Fortress's gate. Here, under the supervision of the royal capital guards, they temporarily relinquished their weapons before being allowed to enter the Golden Fortress.

It was just past dusk, barely into the night, but the Golden Fortress was brightly lit, and guards who had just changed shifts were diligently patrolling.

The Golden Fortress was heavily guarded. To prevent transcendents from infiltrating, it was defended by a large number of Other-Blood enhanced individuals – royal capital guards, royal family bodyguards.

Usually, an Other-Blood enhanced individual led several ordinary guards as a standard patrol unit, and there were also sentry posts composed entirely of Other-Blood enhanced individuals stationed throughout.

Exotic beast hunters could not wander freely within the Golden Fortress. Zhou Jing and Kleeber followed two teams of royal capital guards all the way to the Hall of the Council of Ministers.

This was not a formal audience, but an emergency meeting. Upon hearing Kleeber's report, King Becky Tarn immediately summoned the Council of Ministers to discuss and summoned Zhou Jing, the person involved, to inquire about the details of the Deep Rock City riot.

As Zhou Jing stepped into the Hall of the Council of Ministers, he found several important officials waiting, many of whom were familiar faces, people he had seen when using Bill's identity, including Roman.

"Your Majesty, esteemed ministers of the Council, this is the imperial hunter Jess. It was he who personally stopped the bandits' atrocities and prevented the Deep Rock City tragedy from occurring."

Kleeber stepped forward to introduce Zhou Jing.

King Becky and the many ministers all looked at Zhou Jing, sizing him up, as this was their first meeting in their understanding.

Zhou Jing also pretended to be meeting everyone for the first time, his gaze sweeping across their faces.

"You have done well," Becky nodded steadily. "I am pleased to see that the ranks of the imperial hunters include heroes like you, possessing a sense of honor and responsibility."

Zhou Jing nodded slightly, his attitude calm, not excited by the king's praise.

Because "Jason" and "Bill" were different, this was a powerful hunter who had experienced countless battles and survived life and death situations. Powerful and steady was the image he needed to portray.

Seeing his unperturbed demeanor, the others were not surprised, for strong individuals all had their quirks.

Becky did not mind and began to inquire about the details of the Deep Rock City riot. Zhou Jing concealed Lynn's existence but reported everything else truthfully.

After listening to the specifics, a hint of astonishment appeared on Becky's face, and he asked:

"These bandits calling themselves the Sons of the Other-Blood have nearly forty Other-Blood warriors. You killed most of them alone?"

Many ministers present also cast suspicious glances.

They had heard the report before, and the most questioned point was precisely this.

Sensing the distrust of the many ministers, Kleeber helped to speak, explaining:

"Everyone, there is no need to doubt Jess's strength. He is a top elite among third-time enhanced hunters. He has only joined the imperial hunters for a little over half a year and has already become one of the top-ranked powerhouses among the imperial hunters. Even fourth-time enhanced hunters are not necessarily sure of victory against him. Most importantly, Jess still has the determination to continue strengthening. I have high hopes for him. Perhaps he can become another fifth-time enhanced hunter after me!"

Upon hearing this, the others could not help but look at Zhou Jing again in surprise.

It was not easy to receive such high praise from Kleeber. They had not expected Kleeber to be so optimistic about this hunter named Jess.

An exotic beast hunter with determination, potential, and the possibility of reaching the fifth enhancement level was held in even greater regard by the crowd.

Eileen Tarn, the royal family's silent bodyguard captain, also cast an interested gaze.

"Heh heh, truly a respectable old hunter. I hope your future enhancements go smoothly, and that the empire gains another fifth-time enhanced mainstay," Roman said politely with a smile.

"I will try my best," Zhou Jing did not say much.

King Becky waved his hand, did not continue this topic, and said in a deep voice:

"Jess, you have rendered a great service. If the Sons of the Other-Blood had succeeded, it would have made other bandits think that committing evil was easy. Fortunately, you thwarted their plot and did not allow things to continue to deteriorate, otherwise, the success of the Sons of the Other-Blood would have attracted more people to imitate."

Saying this, Becky paused, his expression both annoyed and helpless:

"But even if this group of bandits failed, the events in Deep Rock City will still have a negative impact, triggering the ambitions of more people to do evil. Once there is a first time, there will be a second time. Perhaps in the future, more newcomers who obtain Other-Blood power will choose to trample on the law..."

Roman echoed in a timely manner: "Yes, just like Jason of White Plains City back then. That person failed in his assassination of the lord. Although he died, the impact has already been made. Later, the White Plains City lord was kidnapped and killed, precisely because someone imitated him… Once this kind of thing starts, it cannot be undone."

The others nodded in agreement, deeply resonating.

The White Plains City assassination incident back then had caused deep resentment among everyone present.

From the standpoint of those in power, they would never allow their safety to be threatened. Anyone who dared not abide by this rule was an enemy of the ruling class, a rioter.

Although everyone knew that the White Plains City lord was at fault first, they still regarded Jason as a criminal… If the first person uses assassination as a way to resist, more people would think they had this choice when faced with a problem.

These ministers of the Council vaguely understood the principle that preventing the people's mouths was more important than preventing a river, but unfortunately, even if they had the idea of preventing the people from discussing this matter, they could not put it into action. After all, the level of civilization development was limited. Royal power could not manage too far, unlike high-tech civilizations that could seal everyone's mouths at any time.

It was a pity that Jason, the originator of the matter, was already dead, otherwise, he would have been wanted nationwide, to the death. And the mysterious murderer who killed the White Plains City lord afterward, they still had not given up tracking down.

However, what these imperial ministers did not know was that the murderer they were tracking had already come before them, but no one recognized him.

Zhou Jing's expression was calm, as if he had not heard.

They were talking about Jason; what did that have to do with him, Jess?

Becky coughed, quieting the crowd, and slowly said:

"In any case, the Deep Rock City matter will spread sooner or later, so I have decided to hold a public execution, to publicly try and execute the leader of the Sons of the Other-Blood, to let everyone see the fate of bandits, and see the strength of the imperial hunters!"

The others were not surprised. They had already discussed this plan before Zhou Jing arrived.

Since they could not stop the spread of news, they could only reverse the direction of the rumors, emphasizing the bandits' fate and Jason's "heroic" image.

At this time, Becky looked at Zhou Jing, a rare smile appearing on his face: "Jess, you have made a great contribution this time. I will give you corresponding rewards to thank you for your dedication. Do you have any requests of your own?"

Zhou Jing pretended to think for a moment and said, "Nothing else. I don't care about money. This is the duty of an imperial hunter. Compared to that, I would rather personally execute Dutton."

Hearing this, Becky was somewhat surprised, pondered for a few seconds, and did not refuse: "Very well, since he is a criminal you captured with your own hands, you shall deal with him."

After saying that, looking at Zhou Jing's calm appearance, Becky became more fond of him and added:

"You are very good. I will continue to pay attention to you."

Zhou Jing nodded, showing his respect, and kept up his aloof act to the end.

After talking about the matter, this meeting ended. Zhou Jing bid farewell to the king and others and left the Golden Fortress with Kleeber, secretly planning in his heart.

'The king knows that there is someone like me, so standing on the empire's side will make things easier in the future.'

There were many people and eyes this time, so Zhou Jing did not reveal the tribal independence intelligence, and the level of trust was not enough with the king at their first meeting.

Although he did not make trouble by taking advantage of the opportunity, he did gain the king's appreciation and made the king remember him. It would be feasible to ask for a meeting later, unlike before, when he could not establish contact with the king.

He had a channel to reveal the plot of tribal independence and could make trouble when the time was right… Zhou Jing thought to himself.

He had already decided to straddle two boats. Bill would take Roman's dry road, while Jason would naturally take the empire's waterway.

The situation was unclear now, so it was better to hedge his bets on both sides to offset the risk.

Watching Zhou Jing's figure disappear into the distance, Roman withdrew his gaze, his eyes flickering.

A hunter with the potential for a fifth enhancement… What a pity. Although he was worth wooing, this kind of hunter often had firm goals and was difficult to buy or subdue.

Moreover, potential was just something that had not happened. Maybe this person would die suddenly during the next enhancement…

Roman shook his head, temporarily not planning to make deep contact with Jess.

Powerful hunters were important, but in his opinion, that was all they were.

Bill, who could develop Other-Blood potions, was a more worthy target of recruitment. In comparison, a hunter was nothing at all.

Roman had already brewed a plan. He intended to launch a fierce pursuit after Bill finished his closed-door development, and he would definitely bring this exceptionally talented alchemist under his command.

…

A day later, the royal capital posted notices, publicly announcing the Deep Rock City riot.

This news shocked the residents of the royal capital, causing a great stir and quickly becoming the main topic of conversation in the streets and alleys.

Because promoting positive influence required a model, the empire focused on emphasizing Zhou Jing's achievements in the notice, intending to establish a heroic image to shift the world's attention away from the bandits.

The title of "Savior of Deep Rock City" was certified by the empire and placed on Zhou Jing's head.

The name "Jess" quickly spread throughout the city, becoming a celebrity among hunters and being hotly discussed by the residents of the royal capital.

As the empire's notices were sent to other cities, "Jess's" fame gradually spread, and more people learned about the Deep Rock City riot, causing a sensation everywhere.

For Zhou Jing, the most direct manifestation was that the legendary degree increased by the career record [Deep Rock City Riot] was constantly increasing, quickly reaching 5 points, which was equivalent to providing an additional 5% bonus to daily income, and as his reputation increased, there was still room for further improvement.

Zhou Jing did not care about the empire's propaganda. He helped Lynn settle down in the royal capital, occasionally finding Lynn to discuss the remnants of the witchcraft book, and spent the rest of his time at the imperial hunter's garrison, waiting patiently for the public execution of Dutton.

He had roughly learned the imperial hunters' breathing technique, and Zhou Jing had already planned to have Jason undergo a fourth enhancement, but he was not in a hurry, because Bill was placed inside the workshop and was developing a new type of Other-Blood potion, which was already showing signs of progress.

He intended to have Jason use the new Other-Blood potion, and the extent of the enhancement should exceed that of a normal Other-Blood potion.

Since there was someone on the inside, once the research was successful, he would be able to enjoy this benefit first and become the first "new-style enhanced individual"!