Scheming in the background.

One of the Shang Clan's many new attractions is the beast tent. Known for its fresh and excellent refinement materials, and its beast arena, for when someone wants to either show their skill or to challenge themselves.

Unlike the norm where this tent would be either controlled by one of Shang Yan Fei's sons or a close external elder, the rule of this tent was under Shang's full control.

And in front of the main counter is Xie Ling going through a long list of beasts for his next 'refinement'. His three picks were a Blue-Eared Bear, a Spiked Root Tree, and a Winged Leopard.

The ear of the Blue-Eared Bear is most commonly used for refining the Blue Ear Gu, designed to hear vibrations from a water source kilometers away, even at rank-1. The catch is that it only works for water, any other liquid would have little to no effect.

The Spiked Root Tree grows from soil enriched by the blood of the horned red-belly hawk, it's mainly used in the refining of wood path attack-type Gu.

When making a powerful transformation path combo, most would look to the winged leopard for its powerful legs and wings, giving it the ability to make huge strides with little to no effort. Most beasts when in mid-air make for an easy target, but with the added wings of the leopard, changing direction mid-air is now a viable option in the middle of a fight.

"Another day full of refinement Mr. Xie?" said the cashier with a pleasant undertone.

Xie Ling slowly handed back the list while asking, "I'm looking for people skilled at refinement. Would you tell anyone who visits the establishment, that a job offer for refinement path masters is open, and that the job offers rank-4 Gu worms as payment?"

The cashier with a routine smile, replied, "Of course Mr. Xie. May I ask if there is a specific path you want them to specialize in?"

With a shrug of indifference, Xie Ling brought up a question, "How long till I can get my hands on more monkey and ape type beasts?"

A pained expression grew on the cashier's face as he disclosed, "Sadly, that is not possible, as both hot spots for the Bandit Monkey and Mud Ape clans are currently protected by Myriad Beast Kings." Suddenly a look of realization grew on his face before adding, "However, if you're willing to pay a premium, we can then get some of our top trappers and I'm sure they will be more than capable of procuring a few Bandit Monkeys and Mud Apes for your needs."

"Myriad Beast King?", Xie Ling muttered with a questioning look, "If I remember correctly, they had recently been cut down because they were getting too rowdy?"

The cashier gulped while visibly shaking, "Sir, you must believe me, I wouldn't lie about such things."

He then looked left and right tensly, before adding, "I shouldn't be telling you this." - He looked left and right again. - "But truth be told we already have people investigating this matter." - He leaned in - "This entire situation is odd, as far as I know, something like this has never happened before."

Xie Ling brought his hand to his chin, "Odd, I thought for sure I was hiding my intentions perfectly," he muttered while turning his head to look above him, before frowning, "It would seem that because it can't hinder my work here, it's instead slowing my progress through other means."

A faint memory of when he hunted his first bear came to mind. It was like any other day, put down some bait, hide in the tree, and pounce. But that day, however, didn't go to plan, the bait he used, had been tampered with by a rival hunter. His future brother in arms - a wise man whose patience left others in the dust with a mind that could take any theory and instantly make a practical way to implement it.

A smile broke out along Xie's face, "This thing can only guess what I want based on what it sees. In other words, I should orchestrate my plans in a way that gets me what I need while also hiding my intentions from it."