As he watched, a subtle chill crept up his spine. The ambient pressure in the plaza wasn’t just from the rowdy crowd. The air itself felt thick, vibrating with a hidden network of sensory arrays. Every time someone stepped within ten paces of the mission board, a faint, imperceptible pulse of spiritual energy would sweep over them.

"Master," Crul’s voice hissed in his mind, dropping to a razor-thin frequency. "The surveillance here is shifting. Two specific auras from the rooftops to our left have just scanned your position twice. They are checking your weight, your spiritual density, and the resonance of that scrap metal on your back."

"Let them look," Ethan thought back, keeping his breathing shallow and erratic, perfectly mimicking an malnourished beggar. "My core is sealed, and my Sword Intent is buried under three layers of mortal filth. To them, I’m just a desperate kid looking for a scrap of bread."

He waited for another long minute, ensuring his aura remained completely flat and uninspired, before finally detaching himself from the stone arch. With a slow, dragging stride and his head lowered to avoid direct eye contact, Ethan walked toward the massive bulletin board.

Ethan stood before the towering bulletin board, his eyes scanning rows of parchment sheets fluttering in the mountain breeze. The tasks posted by the Heavenly Sword Pavilion were meticulously categorized by color and emblem, outlining the brutal ecosystem of the frontier.

The vast majority of the notices fell under hunting and harvesting. Some demanded the complete elimination of a species threatening the local trade roads, requiring only a fang, a claw, or a severed ear as proof of subjugation. Others were far more specific, detail-oriented requests from wealthy merchants or inner disciples who required animals captured alive for domestication, or pristine materials for crafting.

One particular notice caught Ethan’s attention, the ink fresh and bold. It was a request for a beast known as the White-furred Peak Fox. According to the description, these creatures resided at a punishing altitude, nesting near the snow-capped summits of the northern ridges. The reward was steep but strictly conditional: 1,500 low-grade Spirit Stones for an entirely unblemished, intact pelt. The text underneath carried a stern warning—any lacerations, burn marks, or punctures from spiritual weapons would drastically reduce the payout, plummeting to a mere 150 low-grade stones for a badly damaged hide.

Right beside it was a high-volume request for a creature called the Silver-Horned Boar. This beast was a staple for the sector’s restaurants and the outer disciples’ kitchens. The Pavilion was paying 20 low-grade Spirit Stones per kilogram of clean, dressed meat with the entrails already removed. However, if a hunter managed to bring in a complete, intact carcass with the silver horn undamaged, the exchange hub would shell out a flat rate of 2,000 low-grade Spirit Stones on the spot.

In sharp contrast, the pure subjugation missions offered lower financial rewards but carried less logistical baggage. They didn’t care about meat quality or pelt preservation; a hunter just had to kill the target and bring back a single definitive trophy—a broken tusk, a venomous stinger, or a serrated talon—to claim a modest bounty.

Ethan rubbed his chin, his tattered sleeve brushing against the rough parchment as he feigned a look of desperate calculations. To the hidden observers on the rooftops, he looked like a penniless rogue cultivator trying to weigh his hunger against the lethal teeth of the mountain beasts.

"The fox requires too much finesse," Ethan analyzed silently, his mind working with cold precision behind his vacant gaze. "Killing a high-altitude beast without damaging its fur means using precise, localized energy. If I use too much power, I ruin the pelt. If I use too little, I look like a fraud. But the boar... the boar is about raw endurance and physical strength."

"Analysis: The Silver-Horned Boar possesses a dense skeletal structure and a thick hide, Master," Crul’s voice chimed in, perfectly synchronized with his thoughts. "Bringing back a complete carcass weighing several hundred kilograms would perfectly explain a sudden influx of wealth without raising suspicions about your magical attributes. It fits the profile of a desperate, physically resilient laborer."

Ethan reached out his hand, his dirt-stained fingers gripping the edge of the parchment for the Silver-Horned Boar hunt. With a deliberate, sharp tug, he ripped the notice from the board, officially binding himself to the task.

The moment the parchment tore away from the wood, the subtle pressure of the invisible arrays seemed to ease slightly, as if the watchers had logged his choice and moved on. Ethan folded the paper with trembling, dirt-caked hands, preparing to melt back into the crowd.

"Excuse me... little brother?"

A sweet, melodic voice called out from behind him. Ethan turned slowly, his shoulders slouched and his head lowered to maintain his helpless posture.

Standing a few paces away was a mature woman in her late thirties. She was slightly voluptuous, possessing a beautifully rounded, maternal figure with an exceptionally ample bust that strained against her modest fabric, and curved, full hips that drew quiet glances from passing mercenaries. Despite the dust of the frontier town, her face was soft, pretty, and radiated a comforting, mature charm. Standing close behind her were two younger individuals—a teenage girl and a boy who shared her soft features, clearly her children.

"We... we were actually just looking at that exact same notice," the woman said, offering a warm, slightly nervous smile. "The Silver-Horned Boar is a dangerous beast, and my children and I didn’t dare to venture into the lower ridges alone. Would you mind if we formed a temporary group and went together?"

Ethan didn’t answer immediately. He let a flicker of cautious confusion pass over his face, playing the part of a suspicious rogue cultivator.

"We can split the bounty right down the middle," she continued quickly, misinterpreting his silence as hesitation. "If we manage to bring back the complete carcass for those two thousand stones, my family will take one thousand, and you can keep the other thousand for yourself. What do you say?"

-------------------

From this moment forward, to avoid confusion regarding cultivation ranks, I will include this footer with the current established levels.

Note: These are only the ranks mentioned so far to avoid spoilers.

Body Refinement Realm

Skin Refinement / Bone Refinement / Organ Refinement

Spiritual Gathering Realm

Spiritual Perception / Spiritual Mist / Spiritual Condensation

Spiritual Core Realm

Core Solidification / Core Awakening / Spiritual Collapse (Half-step Spiritual Core)

Spiritual Soul Realm 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Spiritual Soul Awakening / Soul Nourishing / Soul-Core Fusion

Golden Core Realm

Prime Fusion / Core Perfection / Core Destruction

Spiritual Sea Realm

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??

Dao Manifestation Realm

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??

Spiritual Transcendence

Stage 1 ?? / Stage 2 ?? / Stage 3 ??