"Oh? Does the Seven Kills Roll hide some other mystery?"
"The one on the jade screen is the public roll. There is another part that isn't displayed—what they call the 'Dark Roll'! However, many people say the public and dark rolls are just rumors," Xiao Fensi said, lowering her voice, "but I know they really exist!"
"And how do you know that?"
"Because I can 'see' a lot of things that others can't!"
"For instance, can you see my true face beneath this mask?"
"Mhm! Otherwise, how would I know you’re a beautiful big sister?"
Xiao Fensi tilted her head with a proud grin. She stood on tiptoe to scan the hall, then suddenly turned serious, pulled Jiang Ying closer, and whispered, "Big sister, look! Xiao Hui is here again!"
"Who is Xiao Hui?"
"Xiao Hui is a hunter who specializes in scouting for other hunters. Because he always wears grey, I call him—Xiao Hui!"
Jiang Ying followed Xiao Fensi’s gaze. Xiao Hui was wearing a brown wooden monkey mask and standing beneath the roll with his arms crossed. His grey robes hung loosely to the floor, making him look just like any other ordinary hunter in the hall.
But the moment he began to move, Jiang Ying immediately noticed he was anything but ordinary.
His footwork was incredibly light, yet his speed was blinding. When he entered the crowd, he seemed to dissolve like mist into a sea of clouds, making him nearly impossible to track. Given Jiang Ying’s current level of cultivation, she found that within an instant, she could no longer sense him at all.
"What is he doing?"
"He’s scouting for hunters for the Dark Roll. Once he finds them, he leads them behind that counter over there and lets Xiao Qing assign them missions. As for what exactly the Dark Roll missions are, I don't know! My brother said maybe it’s an 'Assassination Roll'—you know, put out a bounty, and then—*slaughter*!"
As she said this, she pointed to the counter across the way. Behind it sat two figures in green robes holding jade screens; their movements were stiff, suggesting they were wooden puppets.
"So, does Xiao Qing only handle the Dark Roll?"
"Of course not. You can also go to Xiao Qing to accept 'Public Roll' missions, as long as you don't mind them being fierce!" Xiao Fensi made a face, deliberately pulling a stern expression and letting out a low "Grrr" sound. She continued, "They’ll make you go to the central platform or the side tables to pick up missions yourself first. You only go to them if you have a problem you can’t solve on your own!"
Seeing that Jiang Ying had remained calm and composed throughout, Xiao Fensi grew very curious. "Big sister, why aren't you surprised at all by such terrifying rumors?"
Jiang Ying had heard these legends in her previous life, so she felt no surprise. People were always like this; desire was perpetually intertwined with slaughter. As long as desire remained unsatisfied, the killing would never stop.
Naturally, Jiang Ying wouldn't tell Xiao Fensi these things, so she decided to play along and exaggerate her reaction. "Mhm, I’m surprised! Truly, I’m so surprised that I even forgot to make an expression!"
Xiao Fensi looked thoughtful. "So that’s how it is. You have a very high threshold for shock, don't you!"
Jiang Ying watched Xiao Hui weaving through the crowd and pondered. He must be using some special method to evaluate a cultivator's strength; those who met the requirements would be lured into the Dark Roll. Most cultivators could hardly detect him, yet Xiao Fensi could. She must possess some unique innate ability—perhaps related to a Ghost Spiritual Root. It could be quite dangerous for her, and Jiang Ying wondered if Xiao Hui had noticed her.
Thinking of this, Jiang Ying asked, "Has Xiao Hui ever approached you?"
"Of course not! He hasn't even approached my brother!"
"Has your brother taken missions here before?"
"Of course he has!"
"Then did he make it onto the rankings?"
"Of course he—didn't make it on the list at all!"
Xiao Fensi let out a string of joyful giggles, selling her brother out without a second thought. "The Seven Kills Roll is full of experts. Forget making the list; just earning a title is incredibly difficult! My brother is a total amateur; how could he possibly rank?"
Jiang Ying chuckled. "Xiao Fensi, can't you save a little face for your brother?"
Xiao Fensi blinked her dark, grape-like eyes, her tone firm. "Nope!"
Jiang Ying patted the rabbit ears on Xiao Fensi’s head. "Let's go. This big sister wants to see just how difficult these missions really are."
Xiao Fensi’s eyes went round as saucers, sparkling with excitement. "Big sister, you’ll definitely be much better than my brother!"
They reached the edge of the hall and sat down at an empty table. Xiao Fensi seemed to expertly tap the table a few times.
Nothing happened.
Xiao Fensi pouted. "How is this possible? My brother tapped it just like this and a jade screen rose right from the middle!"
Jiang Ying reached out and lightly pressed a glowing circle. A jade screen rose.
Xiao Fensi gasped in awe. "Big sister is still the best!"
Jiang Ying channeled a bit of her spiritual energy into the screen. What code name should she choose? She was here to make spirit stones.
"Let's go with 'Qian Duoduo' [Money Galore]."
"Seven Kills Roll friendly reminder: The code name 'Qian Duoduo' has already been taken."
It seemed there were plenty of people just as obsessed with money as she was. Money, also known as "Quan."
"Then, let's go with 'Quan Duoduo' [Spring/Wealth Galore]."
—"Seven Kills Roll friendly reminder: The code name 'Quan Duoduo' has already been taken."
!!!
Everyone was just as money-mad as she was!
No, she wouldn't give up on a name that meant "lots of money." She began trying different characters.
Finally, "Quan Lailai" [Money Come-Come]—name registered successfully!
Jiang Ying smiled. Very good, she was satisfied. Any further down that naming path and she’d probably end up as "Quan Duoduo" [Money Chop-Chop]...
What a resonant, fierce, and domineering name.
After naming herself, she browsed the rankings. There was one called "Po Xie" [Evil Breaker] who was climbing the ranks rapidly, having jumped dozens of spots in a few days—it looked like someone grinding missions like a maniac. There was also one named "Nanzhu," who only accepted missions containing the word "slaughter." In just a few days, they had killed hundreds of demonic beasts and currently held the highest kill-intent score on the board.
Truly, a strange and interesting bunch.
She switched back to browsing the missions flashing rapidly across the jade screen. Sure enough, the tasks on the Seven Kills Roll were not easy. There were beast-slaying quests, herb-gathering quests, requests for pills with special properties, and even ghost-hunting missions. These tasks usually offered high rewards in spirit stones, and sometimes, before Jiang Ying could even read what a task was, it would be snatched up by someone else.
"The speed at which these missions are grabbed is just too fast!"
Slaying demonic beasts was indeed a quick way to earn money, but Jiang Ying had just been reborn; her cultivation was low, she had no talismans prepared, and she possessed no powerful magical artifacts. The beast-slaying missions were off-limits. As for the rare herbs and pills, those were not considerations for someone as destitute as she currently was.
She continued scrolling down, and a new mission popped up:
"URGENT! Requirement: 20 Youbing Sparrow stones! Reward: One piece of mid-grade Purple Spirit Wood!"