Chapter 126 - 91: Points Trafficker

Chapter 126: Chapter 91: Points TraffickerBefore dawn, Ji Xinghuo rushed back to the gates of Midpoint Fortress. Many bounty hunters had already returned, waiting for daybreak to enter the city. Ji Xinghuo surveyed the scene and noticed most people had come back empty-handed. Even the most experienced bounty hunters might not find suitable prey every day. Sometimes they’d lurk for days on end, quietly observing and scouting, crafting detailed plans that still yielded nothing, or even cost them their lives. There were also bounty hunters with injuries, unable to hide the joy on their faces, clearly having been successful. Suddenly, someone approached. Their face was covered, revealing only their eyes, they whispered in a hushed tone, "Brother, do you have any goods?" Ji Xinghuo hesitated before replying, "I have two tail tips." "Are you selling them?" the other party asked eagerly, a desperate tone in their voice, "I can offer double the bounty price!" Ji Xinghuo immediately understood the other person’s intentions. This person was after Hero Points, offering to buy trophies high above market price from other bounty hunters and submit them to the rewards office in exchange for points. Usually, these were Mutants with money but no real power, who didn’t dare to go out and risk their lives fighting the Beiluo Shimen Clan, but still cared about their image, so they bought Hero Points with money to show off back on Earth. Those who engaged in this kind of business were typically rich offspring; as long as there was demand, there would be a market, even giving rise to a gray industry chain. The official stance was to prohibit this kind of private trophy transaction. Moreover, regulations had been passed that allowed sellers to receive the same amount in bounty and double the points if they voluntarily reported the transaction. The reported buyer would have their bounty revoked, their bounty hunter license removed, and their points reset to zero. However, such practices continued unabated. Buyers were real wealthy individuals who would never appear in person to make the purchase, but would send someone else to do it while concealing their identity, often through multiple intermediaries. Bounty hunters looked down on this deeply. However, faced with the temptation of double or even higher income, some bounty hunters would still sell their trophies privately. After all, to them, Hero Points weren’t a big deal; they had no chance of being listed in the top ranks, so selling some wouldn’t make much of a difference. The truly strong bounty hunters valued their points highly and naturally were not willing to sell. Therefore, point traffickers generally sought to purchase trophies from less renowned bounty hunters, like Ji Xinghuo. "Not selling." Ji Xinghuo shook his head immediately. Sёarᴄh the Novёlƒire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. "I’ll pay triple the price." The other person continued to raise their offer, clearly not short on cash. Ji Xinghuo saw that he wasn’t a real buyer or a bounty hunter, probably just an intermediary for point trafficking, so he ignored him. Seeing Ji Xinghuo unmoved, the person had no choice but to leave. It was still not yet dawn, and he wandered among the returning bounty hunters in the darkness. Ji Xinghuo watched indifferently as the man eventually opened business and made a deal after approaching several hunters. There were a few others like this point trafficker. They must have blended into the crowd and left the city when it had been dark, not going out to hunt, instead hiding somewhere and returning just before dawn. The vast majority of bounty hunters rejected the offers. Some hot-tempered hunters cursed outright, "Get lost!" "Stay the hell away from me." "Beat it! You coward!" Each time he was cursed at, the face-covered point trafficker dared not retort and scurried away dejectedly. Ji Xinghuo shook his head and paid it no more attention. Soon enough, day finally broke, and with the sound of steam engines working, the massive city gates slowly raised. The bounty hunters passed one by one through security checks for identity verification, ensuring no enemies were disguised among them, before being allowed in. Midpoint Fortress had six gates, but only three would open regularly for the hunters to come and go. The first thing bounty hunters did upon entering the city was to hand over their trophies to claim their bounty and points. Those without gains naturally didn’t have to go. Ji Xinghuo noticed that only about a third of the hunters, like himself, headed to the rewards office in Second Level city zone. On the way, everyone seemed content, in high spirits. "Brother Shi, with such a big smile, you must have had a great haul last night," a bounty hunter asked. "Not much," replied the asked hunter, trying to appear modest, "Just three tentacles, I was lucky to stumble upon them." "Including the bounty from Gorak’s Alien Species, you’ve made about a hundred thousand, right? Impressive!" "Hahaha, not bad," he responded with pride, then shot back a question, "How about your haul?" "Just average, a couple of scalps and four or five tail tips." The smile on the hunter’s face stiffened, and after a few seconds, he cursed, "You damn dog, turns out you just wanted to show off..." "Hahaha, exactly!" Ji Xinghuo on the side let out a laugh, drawing the attention of the two men. The one called Brother Shi sized up Ji Xinghuo and asked curiously, "This brother looks unfamiliar, haven’t seen you before." "I’ve just arrived at Midpoint Fortress," Ji Xinghuo replied as they walked. "Looks like you’ve had some gains last night, too?" "Yeah," Ji Xinghuo nodded, "Not bad." Brother Shi saw that he wasn’t very talkative, so he didn’t pry further. First, it was because they were not well-acquainted, and it would be impolite to ask more; Second, Ji Xinghuo had already said he was new here, so even having gains was quite good, but there certainly wouldn’t be much. Back when they had first arrived, they risked their lives several times just to get a couple of tail tips. Only after many life-threatening situations and improved strength did their harvest gradually increase. They soon arrived at the rewards office. Yesterday, when Ji Xinghuo came to handle his qualification certificate, there weren’t many people in the hall. Today, however, it was bustling, with hundreds of bounty hunters carrying their spoils of battle, lining up to collect their bounties. Many bounty hunters knew each other and were greeting one another, discussing last night’s events. Ji Xinghuo stood alone in line, waiting his turn. Suddenly, a conversation caught his attention. "There was a big commotion near Watchtower 135 last night; from a distance, I saw a Legendary Dagon, leading a large group searching for something, and a few patrol teams were dispatched," a bounty hunter said with lingering fear, "Luckily, I reacted quickly and slipped away." "I noticed it too but didn’t know what was going on," someone else confirmed the situation. "Same at the Eastern Sector 13 campsite." A bounty hunter in line spoke up: "I had scoped out a sentry post and was about to strike when they were suddenly called away. I quietly followed them and overheard their orders—it seemed an entire patrol team had been wiped out..." "No wonder the patrol teams suddenly became more frequent." "I was lying in wait at Highlands 40 last night and saw patrol teams pass by more frequently than usual, but as the night deepened, they all stopped coming out." "This is clearly different from the usual situation; there must have been some incident." The bounty hunters were chatting incessantly, corroborating each other’s stories, and quickly piecing together the events, getting closer to the truth. "Could someone really have taken out a patrol team?" "That seems to be the case." "And it must be more than one patrol team, at least three or more," a seasoned bounty hunter analyzed, "The Beiluo Shimen Clan wouldn’t easily change their defense plan. If a Legendary Dagon has been deployed, it’s certainly because of unexpected casualties." The bounty hunters exchanged glances, and someone shook their head: "Whoever it is, they’ve got guts to lay hands on a patrol team." "The bolder the artist, the bigger the performance," someone joked. "To wipe out an entire patrol team and escape before reinforcements could arrive, it has to be at least a Super Mutant, and one of the strong fighters on the rankings," the person beside them added. "How do you know it was a single person’s doing? It could have been a whole team!" "That’s also a possibility..." A bounty hunter concluded, "Last night was the first surprise attack, and the Beiluo Shimen Clan were caught off guard, leading to our greatest gains. The following attacks on patrol teams won’t be as easy; the enemy will definitely set up ambushes. If that bounty hunter dares to strike again, it’s going to be dangerous." Everyone nodded in agreement. The Beiluo Shimen Clan weren’t brainless monsters, and were abundant in power players; they would certainly have strategies to counter the bounty hunters on their side. Incidents like this had happened before, ending either in withdrawal or annihilation. Ji Xinghuo listened in silence throughout. The bounty hunters were experienced, and he could pick up useful tidbits from their conversation that could aid him. The line was moving quickly, and bounty hunters one by one handed over their spoils and received their bounties. Most were only rewarded a few tens of thousands, with not many exceeding one hundred thousand. However, bounties were just one part of the income; hunting the Beiluo Shimen Clan and the Alien Species, as well as the enemy’s Weapon Equipment, all accounted for a considerable income. The one who gained the most was a bounty hunter ranked seventh on this month’s points leaderboard. He was a Super Shadow Blade, who brought out over twenty battle trophies and exchanged them for nearly a million in rewards. Finally, it was Ji Xinghuo’s turn. He took a heavy bag from his backpack, blood dripping from it, and the staff’s face couldn’t help but change when they received it. The bounty hunters behind him were also drawn to look, their eyes revealing doubt. "So many?" When the staff dumped the contents of the bag, over a hundred bloodied body parts covered most of the counter. "Holy shit!" "There are really this many!" "Hiss..." All the bounty hunters present widened their eyes, and a gasp slipped from someone, shocked by the multitude of trophies. Not only were there many trophies on the counter, but they were of high quality as well. There were nearly twenty scalps of Dagon people alone, and several plant cores from vine spirits, making up a significant portion. The bounty hunters, looking at the unfamiliar Ji Xinghuo, first thought the trophies might have been purchased. A more careful consideration told them it was impossible. There weren’t many bounty hunters willing to sell their trophies, and it would take several days to accumulate enough to sell at a high price, yet the organs on the counter were very fresh, obviously freshly severed not long ago. Moreover, bringing in purchased trophies so openly would surely trigger an investigation. Those rich kids who bought points with money would only submit a few trophies at a time, and only dared to do so when the rewards office was scarcely occupied. Ji Xinghuo’s actions completely differed from those people. "I’ve got it!" A bounty hunter suddenly exclaimed, looking at Ji Xinghuo with eagerness in his eyes, "Brother, the one who took out several patrol teams last night was you, right?"