Hunter of Mysterious Creature

Chapter 840 - 88: Ascetic Monk

"That’s a good idea." Sun Hang nodded, "In those big cities inland, there are many rich second-generation who love thrills. You might consider them as your target customers. These people have lots of money and aren’t afraid of death. They’ve already played all sorts of things the real world has to offer, and their excitement threshold is quite high... You could bring a car full of such guys to the Gobi Desert, letting them enjoy the feeling of being chased by a deadly sandstorm while their adrenaline spikes. It should be quite profitable."

Ya Qiaoxi looked at Sun Hang with some astonishment. She hadn’t expected that her casual joke would lead Sun Hang to seriously propose a detailed plan, and judging by his tone, he seemed to have truly considered such things.

"I’ve given my idea, just consider it stock for creativity." Sun Hang reached out and patted Ya Qiaoxi’s shoulder, "Mr. Ya, if you get rich, don’t forget about me, okay?"

"Ha... actually, people were doing this several years ago." Ya Qiaoxi said with a bitter smile, "A three-day, two-night tour of the uninhabited area of the Hexi Corridor, with a route from Dragon City to Yumen and then to several ruined towns within twenty kilometers of Yumen that have been thoroughly scavenged by Hunters. The package included food, lodging, and personal safety assurance, costing 130,000 per person. Guess what happened later?"

"What happened?"

"That ’travel agency’ lasted less than three months before a big boss from inland took them down completely." Ya Qiaoxi shrugged, "Initially, the business was good, and they made a lot of money. But those guys were blinded by the stacks of money, and soon, they took anyone willing to pay into the Hexi Corridor without even checking basic personal information. As bad luck would have it, they ended up with the only son of that big boss joining the tour..."

"Oh boy." Hearing this, Sun Hang could almost predict how the story would unfold.

"The big boss’s family had billions waiting for this kid to return and inherit. But the kid fell in love with thrill-seeking—doing almost every extreme sport there was to do inland, like free climbing, wingsuit flying, and mountain biking. When he was looking for new entertainment, he happened to see the ad for this travel agency online. He practically paid the tour fee immediately and secretly ran to Dragon City, hiding it from his father," Ya Qiaoxi said.

"And then something happened, right?"

"Yes... On their way to Yumen, they encountered a deadly sandstorm, and maybe they couldn’t find shelter in the stone forest in time. The entire tour group, including two guides, six mercenaries, and eleven tourists, went missing. The rescue team searched for over four months and couldn’t find any trace of them—in fact, based on our experience, if someone goes missing in the uninhabited area for more than a month, you can basically presume they’re dead." Ya Qiaoxi sighed.

Just as she was about to continue, a figure suddenly flashed in front, blocking the vehicle’s path.

"Holy crap!" Ya Qiaoxi cursed, slamming on the brakes and bringing the car to a stop just under five meters from the figure.

"Is it a human?" Ya Qiaoxi’s first reaction was to put her hand on the holster at her waist.

"It’s not something strange, nor is it an infected. I can’t sense any strange memetic signals from him." Sun Hang shook his head and looked at Xue Yue.

Xue Yue tilted his head, stared at the figure for a couple of seconds, and then said, "It’s not something strange... but it’s very odd."

"What’s odd?" Candle Dragon immediately asked.

"He seems... to have no negative emotions at all."

Blocking the road was a human male, approximately 1.75 meters tall. His face was covered in dust, making it challenging to discern his exact age with a scruffy beard and wrinkled, sun-darkened skin.

He wore a ragged cloak made from a piece of coarse, tawny canvas. The edges were heavily worn, with patches layered at places like the shoulders and elbows. The fabric’s fibers were embedded with tiny particles of dust and sand.

On his head was a hat woven from vines, as dilapidated as the cloak. As he moved, sand trickled from the hat.

His left hand was raised in front of his chest, forming a gesture common in Buddhism called the "single palm salute," while his right hand held a wooden staff, full of cracks, with a copper ring covered in green rust at the top.

"If he’s human, why is he here?" Ya Qiaoxi squinted, scrutinizing the figure with suspicion, "He doesn’t look like a mercenary..."

"What do you think he looks like?" Sun Hang asked.

"A bit like a monk." Candle Dragon said, "During the Great Tang Empire, Huaxia monks from the Central Plains would pass through the Hexi Corridor, taking the Western Regions route to India to seek Buddhist scriptures. The most famous among these monks is Xuanzang, the historical figure who inspired the main character in Journey to the West. His attire resembles those devout monks who arduously trekked the deserts of the Hexi Corridor back then."

"The Golden Age of Tang was over a thousand years ago... You’re not about to tell me this guy is a time traveler, are you?" Sun Hang rolled his eyes.

"I’m just describing the impression he gives me." Candle Dragon replied seriously, "Honestly, there’s indeed a profound historical aura about him, as if he’s walked through thousands of years to stand before us."