After sacrificing three bounty hunters and severely injuring two captains, everyone risked their lives to obtain the Tiger's Heart. How could they just hand it over?
This was impossible.
"Oh, even severely injured, you still talk so tough."
"It's been a long time since I've seen someone so reckless."
A young man, around eighteen years old, wearing a cyan robe and holding a precious sword, spoke leisurely.
The sword he held was inlaid with dazzling jewels, both red and green, making it extremely eye-catching.
It was clear that he was a disciple from a noble family.
However, Ye Chuan didn't care whether he was from a noble family or not and didn't give him any face at all. "Severely injured or not, anyone who doesn't value their life can try."
Pointing at the young man holding the sword floating in the air, he said disdainfully, "You first?"
Then, pointing at the two guards beside him, he said, "Or you, or maybe him?"
At this moment, Zhang Chen walked over to help the unconscious Han Qianye, stammering to persuade Ye Chuan, "He, he is the only son of the elder of the Divine Sword Sect, Jian Wuhen. I think we should avoid provoking him."
Zhang Chen, who originally wanted to join the Divine Sword Sect, had some understanding of their organizational structure.
"To my knowledge, even our Bounty Guild occasionally works for them." Zhang Chen was well aware of the strength of the Divine Sword Sect, one of the four great sects in Central Continent, with vast influence, territory, and wealth far surpassing that of a third-tier sect like the Bounty Guild.
"Since you know where we come from, why don't you obediently hand over the Tiger's Heart and stop provoking our Divine Sword Sect?"
One of Jian Wuhen's guards drew his sharp sword, pointing it at Ye Chuan, accusingly.
Back when Ye Chuan was heading to the Central Continent for a competition, he was intercepted and attacked by dozens of bandits backed by the Divine Sword Sect.
At the Bounty Guild's headquarters, Ye Chuan recognized Ling Shuang as one of those who had ambushed him.
Because the power behind Ling Shuang is the Divine Sword Sect.
"Divine Sword Sect, huh? All the more reason to kill you!" Ye Chuan showed no mercy towards the Divine Sword Sect.
"You arrogant brat!" Jian Wuhen couldn't hold back any longer.
Among his peers, no one dared disrespect him.
In fact, his peers had to be respectful to him.
He was the son of one of the three great elders of the Divine Sword Sect and was destined to inherit the leadership of the sect.
Being treated with such contempt by an injured Ye Chuan, to Jian Wuhen, Ye Chuan was already as good as dead.
Holding his sword, Jian Wuhen, exuding sharp energy, attacked Ye Chuan.
The sword in his hand created terrifying air currents, each capable of shredding his enemies.
Kill!
Ye Chuan remained calm, his gaze resolute, and threw a punch to suppress him!
However, Ye Chuan's attack did not succeed in suppressing him because a barrier appeared around Jian Wuhen.
"That's an air shield barrier." Zhang Chen, who was familiar with the Divine Sword Sect, saw the intricacy.
Jian Wuhen and Ye Chuan continued to struggle, evenly matched.
"Oh?! You actually activated the protective treasure my father gave me. You do have some skill, but against me, your only outcome is death."
The pendant on Jian Wuhen's chest was a Linglong Stone given to him by an elder of the Divine Sword Sect. It could automatically activate an air shield barrier to protect its wearer when harmed.
"The outcome is not certain yet. Break!" Ye Chuan unleashed his inner energy, and instantly, his crow form began to reveal itself.
The black feathered aura started to emanate, enveloping him in what seemed like a shroud of black dust.
Boom!
Their powers clashed again. Even with the air shield barrier, Jian Wuhen could not withstand Ye Chuan's full-force attack.
Crack!
The sound of bones breaking echoed.
Their clash produced a sound like metal being sliced. Seeing this, Ye Chuan intensified his force, directly shattering Jian Wuhen's sword-wielding arm.
"Retreat!" The two guards quickly stepped forward and rescued Jian Wuhen.
"Amazing, to defeat even Jian Wuhen of the Divine Sword Sect. Ye Chuan, what is your background?!" Even Lin Ruomei, witnessing such a battle scene, felt that he possessed unfathomable strength.
Among his peers, she had never seen such power.
Moreover, Ye Chuan appeared to be just eighteen or nineteen years old. If he trained for another three to five years, no one would be able to surpass him.
Zhang Chen had initially planned to earn bounties through the Bounty Guild to join the Divine Sword Sect and learn their sword techniques. Now, he seemed to have no favorable impression of the Divine Sword Sect.
Instead, he became even more curious about Ye Chuan's background.
"Are you really from the Flaming Mountain? That's impossible!" Zhang Chen was skeptical.
As far as he knew, the location of Flaming Mountain was remote and barren, with not a drop of water for miles around. The cultivation resources were extremely scarce. How could such a strong person emerge from there?
This was impossible!
Zhang Chen thought it over and concluded that this was absolutely unbelievable.
"Flaming Mountain is my hometown. There's no need to ask further. Let's head back." Ye Chuan didn't want to elaborate. He didn't want more people to know about his hometown.
After using the blood of the Tiger's Heart to neutralize the poison from the miasma, the group began their journey back.
Half a month had passed.
By this time, most of the bounty hunters from the Bounty Guild had returned to the main base, while a few teams were still on their missions.
The teams that hadn't returned were either unable to come back or were stuck in extremely difficult situations during their missions.
At this time, the Grand Commander of the Bounty Guild was in his office, carefully reviewing some S-level bounty scrolls.
"Permission to report, Grand Commander!"
"I have something to ask. Have Han Qianye and Mad Dog's teams returned?"
"Not yet! Weren't they on a C-level bounty mission?"
"According to the latest intelligence, the mission they were on was in Dragon and Tiger Abyss. Our intelligence was incorrect. That mission was at least B+ level. The two teams that went are probably wiped out."
The person reporting to the Grand Commander stammered, seemingly afraid of being reprimanded. He was the one in charge of recruiting bounty hunters earlier.
Hearing this, the Grand Commander continued to examine the scrolls on his desk, seemingly unbothered.
However, after a couple of seconds, his leisurely demeanor changed to one of shock.
Slap!
"Xiao Jin, what did you just say? A B+ level mission, and you sent them to execute it?! Are you joking?!"
He put down the scrolls and, realizing Xiao Jin's report, slammed his hand on the desk. The guards outside could hear the Grand Commander's roar.
A B+ level mission had been misjudged as a C-level mission, and it had been assigned to a group of novice bounty hunters. This was entirely the Bounty Guild's fault.
A C-level mission, a C+ level mission, a B-level mission, and a B+ level mission – they had essentially jumped three levels. This was a catastrophic mistake by the intelligence department.
"Please punish me, Grand Commander!" Xiao Jin immediately knelt, volunteering to take responsibility.
Not only Xiao Jin, but the Grand Commander of the Bounty Guild also fell into deep self-reproach.