Su Hao was not the type to sit idle for long. After staying at Chashan Outpost for just three days, he felt an itch to dissect—no, he meant research—something new. The desire was impossible to resist.
So, once again, he bid farewell to Wu Yuntian.
Wu Yuntian asked stoic, "Xiangwu, how long will you be gone this time?"
Su Hao replied uncertainly, "Could be a few months, maybe a year or two at the most."
Wu Yuntian simply nodded. Su Hao was his only remaining attachment, and all he wished for was his son's safety and well-being.
....
Su Hao made his way to Lingyun Town and went straight to Lingyun Warrior Academy, where he sought out Baldy Liu, whom he hadn't seen in a long time.
As Su Hao approached, he called out with a bright smile, "Teacher Liu!"
Baldy Liu's shiny bald head gleamed under the sunlight. He turned around, his eyes widening with recognition. "Ah! This handsome lad looks familiar!" He quickly recalled the boy in front of him—Wu Xiangwu, the one who had become a legend during his time at the academy.
"Xiangwu? It's been three years! I was wondering why I didn't see you at your graduation ceremony a while back," Baldy Liu exclaimed with surprise.
Su Hao scratched his head, embarrassed. "I was away at the time, and by the time I got back, it was already over. I regret missing it."
In truth, he had completely forgotten about the event.
Su Hao quickly added, "Thank you for all your help back then, Teacher Liu. I've successfully advanced to the master level now. If it weren't for your guidance, I'd probably still be stuck at the elite level."
"What?! You've advanced?!" Baldy Liu gasped in surprise.
Su Hao quickly handed over a fine blade he had prepared in advance. "Here, Teacher Liu. I brought this gift for you!"
Knowing Baldy Liu's love for weapons, Su Hao had picked out the most expensive one he could find in Lingyun Town, as a token of appreciation.
Quality aside, it was definitely pricey.
Baldy Liu took the blade and immediately fell in love with it, not even bothering with the usual formalities.
Su Hao then explained the real reason for his visit. "Teacher Liu, I have a question. Do you know how to advance from master to grandmaster?"
To his surprise, Baldy Liu hesitated for a moment before replying, "I don't know the exact method, but I do know the pathway."
Intrigued, Su Hao asked, "What pathway?"
Baldy Liu rubbed his shiny head, smiling wryly. "For humans, there's only one way to learn how to advance to grandmaster."
Su Hao raised an eyebrow. "Only one?"
Baldy Liu nodded. "That's right! High-level master who wish to advance to grandmaster must join the Royal Guards and serve for ten years. After serving for eight years, you become eligible to learn the method to advance."
"Eight years?" Su Hao's voice rose in shock at this revelation.
Baldy Liu explained. "During those ten years, you must be on call at all times, ready to follow the orders of the Grand Nobels and the King in the capital. Only after completing this service will you be given the chance to advance to grandmaster."
Su Hao frowned and asked, "Is there no other way?"
Baldy Liu shook his head. "This is the only way I know of. Every grandmaster, I've ever met gained their status by serving eight years in the Royal Guards." His voice carried a hint of resignation.
He looked at Su Hao with a grin. "I didn't want to join the Royal Guards, which is why I'm still here at the academy."
This was an example of restricted access to advanced knowledge. Only those who proved their loyalty through long-term service were given access.
The news made Su Hao reconsider his desire to advance to grandmaster. Spending ten years as a glorified servant, always at someone's beck and call, wasn't something he was eager to do—at least, not right now.
Just as Su Hao was about to say something else, a deafening boom echoed from the city wall.
"Boom∼ —"
Both Su Hao and Baldy Liu turned toward the source of the noise. In the distance, a massive cloud of dust was rising, and debris was raining down from the sky.
"Boom∼ —"
Before they could make sense of what was happening, another explosion followed, accompanied by the sound of a section of the town wall collapsing.
Baldy Liu's face became grave. He immediately turned to Su Hao and asked, "Are you sure you've advanced to the master level?"
Su Hao nodded.
Baldy Liu glanced at Su Hao's armor and the massive pack on his back before silently nodding. "Wait here for a moment. I'll put on my armor, and then we'll check it out together."
Su Hao expanded his [Radar] and immediately detected a powerful source of blood Qi crashing against the city wall. The intensity of the Qi was almost double Su Hao's own, stronger than the giant eagle he had fought before. It was undoubtedly a grandmaster-level beast, and a high-tier one at that.
Su Hao wasn't sure if he could defeat such a creature. He had only fought one grandmaster-level beast, and he still lacked full confidence in his abilities.
Soon, Baldy Liu returned, now donned in a flashy set of silver and gold armor. Spotless and well-maintained, it made the already burly Liu appear even more imposing.
Looking taller and broader than before, Baldy Liu said, "Let's go. Follow me, but don't act impulsively when we get there."
Su Hao replied, "Understood!"
The two of them quickly made their way toward the source of the dust cloud.
By now, the commotion had died down somewhat, but they could still hear the faint sounds of fighting coming from within the inner city.
As they approached the scene, they were greeted by a landscape of destruction.
Crumbling walls, shattered buildings, and rubble filled the area. Panicked townspeople fled in all directions, screaming and crying in terror.
A section of the 40-meter-high city wall had collapsed, and debris had spilled into the city. Dust filled the air, making it hard to see.
Dust and smoke clouded the air, but through the thick haze, the towering silhouette of a monstrous creature loomed—standing over twenty meters tall.
It was a grotesque fusion of a giant octopus and a Minotaur, with its body cloaked in dark, meticulously arranged scales that gleamed like steel. Two glowing green eyes pierced the murk, set beneath a pair of menacing, ram-like horns that curled upward.
From beneath its massive frame, a tangle of long, writhing tentacles thrashed violently. Each tentacle lashed out with lethal precision, snatching victims from the chaos and hurling them into the creature's unseen, ravenous maw.
The horrifying sound of crunching bones echoed through the destruction, silencing the terrified screams in its wake.
Despite its lumbering appearance, the beast moved with unnerving speed, its multitude of tentacles propelling it through the town like a living storm. Wherever there was a crowd, it surged toward them, unstoppable and merciless.
Anyone below the elite warrior level stood no chance against this creature. Even elite warriors found themselves helpless once they were caught by its tendrils.
"This is bad. It's a grandmaster-level Bearded Beast!" Baldy Liu's face was filled with urgency as he watched more townspeople fall victim to the beast.
Su Hao, observing the Bearded Beast, furrowed his brow. "I've read about Bearded Beasts in books. They're known to be extremely troublesome among grandmaster-level beasts. They like to use their horns to break through city walls and enter human towns to feed. Once they've eaten their fill, they leave. Is this the same creature described in the books?"
Baldy Liu nodded.
Su Hao immediately asked, "Teacher Liu, do you know its weaknesses?"
Baldy Liu glanced at Su Hao and replied, "Xiangwu, don't be reckless. We can't rush in and get ourselves killed. We should wait for the Guards to arrive. The grandmaster-level warriors from Lingyun Town will lead the charge and drive it away."
Su Hao looked at the people being devoured one by one and smiled bitterly. "Don't worry, Teacher Liu. I'm not the reckless type."
Satisfied with Su Hao's response, Baldy Liu continued, "The Bearded Beast's defense is incredibly strong, even grandmaster-level warriors might not be able to cut through its scales. It has two weak points: its underside and its eyes. The underside doesn't have the thick scales for protection, so it's vulnerable to direct attacks. But…"
He hesitated before continuing. "Neither of those areas are easy targets. First, its eyes are too small compared to the rest of its body, making them difficult to hit. Second, its underside is protected by those countless tentacles, which are as hard as steel. Even I might not be able to cut through them. If you get too close, the tentacles will pierce through you before you even have a chance to strike."
Su Hao asked, "What's the typical procedure when a Bearded Beast attacks a town?"
Baldy Liu replied, "In small towns like ours, where there are no Mystical warrior to protect us, we have two options when dealing with a grandmaster-level beast. One is to gather our forces and drive it out, and the other is to wait for it to eat its fill and leave on its own."
Su Hao remained silent.
The Bearded Beast was still feeding, moving closer toward the town center. The terrified townspeople desperately tried to flee, but there was no one to save them. All they could do was hope they ran faster than the others.
At that moment, Lingyun Town's Guards arrived, all of them clad in heavy armor that covered their entire bodies, leaving only their faces exposed.
Each Guard member had a standard-issue long-blade at their waist and carried a long-handled war hammer designed for breaking through Heavy Armor—clearly, they had come prepared.
Captain Hua Hongyi, a grandmaster-level warrior, led three battalions of Guards, who spread out and encircled the Bearded Beast from a distance.
Hua Hongyi was a grandmaster, while the three battalion commanders were top-tier master-level warriors. Each battalion was divided into five companies, and each company had five squads, with five members in each squad.
The company and squad leaders were all master-level warriors, while the regular squad members were high-tier elite warriors.
In total, there were more than 300 men, this was Lingyun Town's core defense force.
Of the town's 200 or so master-level warriors, the Guard comprised the majority. The remaining masters were scattered across the Warrior Academy and various exploration groups.
When Baldy Liu saw the Guards arrive, he immediately approached them with Su Hao and loudly declared, "Liu Changle of the Warrior Academy reporting for duty under Captain Hua's orders!"
As soon as Baldy Liu finished speaking, similar declarations rang out from all directions.
"Mo Fenghua of the Warrior Academy reporting for duty under Captain Hua's orders!"
"Feng Man'er of the Warrior Academy reporting for duty under Captain Hua's orders!"
"Meng Shan, leader of the "The Hunt" exploration team, reporting for duty under Captain Hua's orders!"
"Xiao Yueling of the Red Rock Merchant Association reporting for duty under Captain Hua's orders!"
...
These voices came from the other master-level warriors standing by.
Su Hao glanced around. Should he… follow their lead and report for duty too?