Monster Hunter, start with a wife!

"Shut up."

Old Gao let out a cold shout.

The two lowered their heads and fell silent instantly, their fear almost overflowing.

Old Gao let out a soft snort:

"You people know nothing about the truth of this world, yet you think you can win power by altering human genes. It's ridiculous."

Liang Ye's shoulders slumped, and his voice carried a hint of weakness:

"I... am merely following orders."

"Heh." Old Gao snorted coldly, then turned to look at Cheng Zhuo beside him. The coldness in his eyes instantly melted into a smile as he greeted him:

"My good disciple, come and sit down."

Cheng Zhuo sat down beside him as instructed, glancing at the tea that had been brewed on the table. He then took the initiative to fill the teapot for his master and listened to his instructions.

"At my current level, it's actually impossible for me to pass on an S-level disciple."

Old Gao patted Cheng Zhuo on the shoulder, his lips slightly upturned, his eyes full of satisfaction.

When she turned to look at Liang Ye, the corners of her mouth suddenly pressed down again:

"You should know how difficult it is for our ancient martial arts lineage to be passed down."

Liang Ye nodded slightly:

"I've heard a little about it. It's said that the highest record so far is six apprentices, but most of the time it's two or three."

"Therefore, harming my disciple is tantamount to destroying my lineage!" Old Gao's voice suddenly turned cold and deep, killing intent seeping out from between his teeth:

Do you understand this principle?

"I understand."

Although Liang Ye was kneeling, his tone was neither humble nor arrogant, "I humbly request that you grant me a quick death, sir."

"I originally brought you here so that my disciple could kill you all and vent his anger, but..." Old Gao paused:

"I suddenly changed my mind."

Upon hearing this, Liang Ye hurriedly knelt forward two steps, his face showing anxiety:

"Killing someone is just a matter of beheading them. What happened between me and Brother Cheng was just a misunderstanding. Why do you have to lower yourself and torture us like this..."

Old Gao raised his hand to interrupt, downed his tea in one gulp, and said loudly:

"Don't worry, my Illusion Heart Card isn't so cheap that it's used repeatedly by people like you. I won't kill you."

"Then you..." Seeing Lao Gao say this, Liang Ye became even more uncertain.

A hint of reminiscence flashed in Lao Gao's eyes, as if he had thought of something, and he commanded:

"Those evolutionist idiots, even if we kill you, there will be more people to rise up. I have no intention of getting involved in that dirty politics and ethnic struggles."

He leaned forward, his narrowed eyes flashing with a cold light:

"I have only one request for you: return to your post and do what you were doing. But there's one condition: any conspiracy, not even touching a single hair on my disciple's head, will not be tolerated! Can you do that?"

Liang Ye nodded almost immediately, his head hitting the ground with a loud thud.

"Yes, yes, yes!"

Old Gao turned to look at Cheng Zhuo, his tone softening:

"My dear disciple, do you have any other ideas?"

Cheng Zhuo refilled the cup with tea and handed it to Lao Gao, saying, "It's all up to Master to decide."

"Fine." Old Gao waved his hand. "Get lost."

Liang Ye and his adjutant exchanged a glance, both seeing the relief of surviving a disaster in each other's eyes.

The two tried to stand up, but their knees were numb and trembling. They staggered several times before regaining their balance, but after taking only a few steps, Liang Ye stopped again.

"Mr. Gao, there's someone else who might be in a bit of trouble..."

"Who?"

"Luo Qiyang, the illegitimate son of City Lord Luo De!" Liang Ye replied.

"Luo Qiyang?" Cheng Zhuo was slightly taken aback.

"What?" Lao Gao looked at Cheng Zhuo. "Did he offend you too?"

"Logically speaking... he should be dead."

Cheng Zhuo's brows furrowed instantly, and he recounted everything that had happened in the Novice Ruins.

"He possesses an artifact that grants him immortality; it should be able to withstand two or three life-threatening crises," Liang Ye quickly explained.

"I reckon he's holding a grudge against Brother Cheng because of this incident. This time, a batch of 'Advanced Source Cores' will be produced at the Nanling Ruins, and he deliberately spread the news to lure Brother Cheng deeper into the ruins..."

"What is his cultivation level?" Old Gao asked.

Liang Ye replied: "Third tier."

Old Gao's brows furrowed instantly, his tone full of surprise:

"My disciple and I reached level three so quickly in the Novice Ruins?"

"He must have come into contact with the Grim Reaper's secret treasure at some point and sacrificed his lifespan," Liang Ye explained.

"I was once entrusted by the city lord to give him special training. This kid has a stubborn streak and is always jealous of his sister Rosa. He is single-mindedly trying to prove to the city lord that he is no worse than Rosa."

Old Gao curled his lip, "Fine, I'll go kill him."

"Master!"

Cheng Zhuo hurriedly pulled Lao Gao back:

"I'll handle this myself; I can't let you deal with everything."

"He's a third-tier cultivator, are you confident?" Old Gao asked with a hint of surprise.

Without the slightest hesitation, Cheng Zhuo raised her chin slightly and said, "Yes."

"Good!" Old Gao showed a very satisfied expression:

"As expected of my eldest disciple!"

Liang Ye watched from the side, his eyelids twitching. He thought to himself, "You chose this yourself. You won't blame me if you die, will you?"

He hesitated for a moment.

He wasn't afraid of death, but this Mr. Gao's methods were truly terrifying.

That card could allow a person to experience over a hundred kinds of torture and psychological torment in just three minutes.

Three minutes felt like several years had passed.

That wasn't entirely due to the power of the cards; the key was Mr. Gao's mental control over them.

Liang Ye initially thought that the eighth rank was just a rumor spread by those ignorant fools, but after experiencing it himself, he was quite certain—

This Mr. Gao is far superior to the seventh-level Venerable he had ever met.

"Then... I'll take my leave now."

Liang Ye nodded and withdrew.

Their steps were hurried, as if they didn't want to stop for even a moment.

Seeing Liang Ye leave, Lao Gao smiled and looked at Cheng Zhuo:

"Are you really confident you can handle a Tier 3 opponent?"

"have."

"Alright then." Old Gao shrugged.

"Anyway, the young master will be bringing his mecha in with him. Why don't you go in with him a few days later? The young master has ways to protect himself, but each one is very precious. Try not to let him use them."

"I understand, disciple."

Protecting the rich is everyone's responsibility.

"However... Master, who are the Evolutionists you just mentioned? They seem to make you somewhat wary?"

"I wouldn't call it fear," Old Gao scoffed.

"At most, they're disgusting. Those people are even more insane than the Shadow Society. To be precise, they can't even be considered human."

He sat back on the sofa and patiently explained:

"Initially, they were just a few biologists who created genetic hybrids. They mixed the genes of alien beasts into human bodies to create half-beasts. These people are not vulnerable to attacks from the Void Realm, and like the alien beasts, they grow and reproduce extremely quickly."

"Is that even human?" Cheng Zhuo couldn't quite understand.

"That's the attitude of the opponents," Old Gao said, shaking his head.

"Humans use cards and source power, but they are still human. How can those orcs still be considered human? But do you know that their power has grown extremely fast? Last year, Tianji City counted that in just ten years since the orcs appeared, their numbers have already reached no less than ten million."

Cheng Zhuo was taken aback. "So many!"

"If it weren't for the large number of mentally unstable orcs that have emerged in the last two years, this number would probably be even higher!"

Old Gao picked up his teacup, took a sip, and clicked his tongue in admiration:

"Think about it, those refugees in the wilderness, living hand to mouth, scavenging for food in garbage dumps on the outskirts of the city every day, constantly at risk of being torn apart by low-level beasts, and then suddenly you tell them that half-beast transformation can make them invulnerable to weapons, and even allow them to directly advance to the third or fourth tier. If you were in their shoes, wouldn't you be tempted?"