Sovereign of the Three Realms

Jiang Chen hadn’t notified the bounty issuers yet because he wasn’t sure if Lin Yanyu could handle the mission with the eighty million bounty. Notifying them prematurely could negatively influence Lin Yanyu’s reputation. It was why he asked Assistant Temple Master Gao to notify them tomorrow. Giving Lin Yanyu one day was his absolute limit.

Minutes and seconds flew by. Jiang Chen’s fame reached a new high after news went out that he was the bounty king. Both of his arenas were incredibly busy. Everything went on as usual. His assistants would take on the missions first, and he’d take over whatever they couldn’t handle. His income after a day’s work was rather substantial.

Lin Yanyu didn’t disappoint. He found a lead right before the day was up. He was still lacking a few details, but Jiang Chen could tell that he was on the verge of completing the mission.

“Very well done, Yanyu. I shall grant you the full bounty if you finish this mission by yourself. You shan’t have to split the money with me.” Jiang Chen transmitted words of encouragement. Assistants were supposed to share half of their bounty with the arena lord, but Jiang Chen voluntarily relinquished his half of the bounty to encourage Lin Yanyu.

Next day, Jiang Chen told the assistant temple master to summon Lin Yanyu’s mission issuer. It was one of the lowest rewards among the sovereign missions, but the issuer was incredibly excited nonetheless. He expressed his appreciation to Lin Yanyu and immediately handed over the mission reward.

It was the first sovereign mission to be completed in the current Bounty Arena, and the assistant temple master was also relieved to see the completion of Jiang Chen’s first sovereign mission.

Right after that, he was told to summon the emissary from the Great Yu Skysword Sect.

The Ancient Reformation Pill mission had remained unsolved for over eight hundred years. It was on track to become one of Temple’s unsolvable mysteries. Assistant Temple Master Gao didn’t expect that anyone to solve it. He was skeptical when Jiang Chen accepted the mission, but he soon realized that today might be the turning point for the 800 year old mystery after seeing the young arena lord’s confidence.

This mission was of great significance to the Great Yu Skysword Sect. They’d even stationed emissaries in Pillfire City just for sake of the mission. Throughout the years, they’d participated in every Bounty Arena event and replaced countless emissaries. And yet, their enthusiasm didn’t diminish one bit. One could easily tell how important the mission was to them.

The Great Yu Skysword Sect’s emissary was currently at the Temple out of obligation. The mission had remained unsolved for over eight hundred years, so they didn’t expect anyone to solve it this time either. They were in utter disbelief when they was told to enter the premises by the assistant temple master.

“Assistant Temple Master Gao, are you certain that you’re not mistaken? Is it really… our mission?”

“Elder Lu, your mission is one of the top ten missions in our Temple. In terms of age, it’s definitely within top three. How could I be mistaken?” The assistant temple master smiled wryly.

The beardless elder named Elder Lu scratched his nose in an awkward manner. “Does that mean that someone is finally able to complete our mission? Who is it? Is it Pill King Blue Phoenix?” He asked in an excited manner.

The elder was incredibly curious, but the assistant temple master didn’t divulge anything. “Won’t you know after you enter? By the way, have you prepared the spirit stones?”

“Of course. Our sect master places much importance to this mission and demands a report every year. How could we not have the reward at the ready?” the elder immediately responded.

The assistant temple master didn’t tease him any further. “Come with me.”

The elder was nervous, surprised, and at a loss for what to do. This mission was simply too important to their sect. In fact, their sect master had just given them even more saint spirit stones and was prepared to increase the bounty to 800 million. Fortunately, someone accepted the mission before the bounty was increased. Maybe we’ll be able to save the 300 million saint spirit stones after all? It wasn’t long before Elder Lu was brought to Jiang Chen’s arena. 

The elder was full of skepticism. “Assistant Temple Master Gao, this is…?”

“Make no mistake. We’ve reached our destination.” The assistant temple master answered bluntly.

“We have?” the elder was flabbergasted. “But… he’s so young?”

“Arena Lord Shao, the person you seek is before you. According on the temple’s rules, we shall only act as mediator. Any further discussion regarding the mission will be up to the concerned parties. We shan’t have a hand in your matters.”

The assistant temple master swept his arms and left after he was done speaking. The Temple was doing a very good job in this matter. Many important secrets were exchanged in bounty missions that concerned parties would like to keep confidential. Even more so when pill recipes were involved. Naturally, the temple knew that it wasn’t their place to be involved.

Elder Lu had a wide grin on his face as he rubbed his fair and chubby hands together. “Let me introduce myself. My surname is Lu, and I’m an elder from the Great Yu Skysword Sect. You may address me as Elder Lu, or Ole Lu.”

“Shao Yuan.” 

“I know, I know. I’ve done some research on every single arena lord in the Bounty Arena. The only person I know very little of is you, Arena Lord Shao. I simply never imagined that it was you who accepted our mission. Youth is not a hindrance to great achievements indeed. I must say I am quite surprised.” Elder Lu was clearly an excellent diplomat. 

Jiang Chen nodded. “Your pill recipe, I’ve completed it.”

“Hehe. Do you mind if we take a look at it first?” 

“Elder Lu, do not take me for a fool. The pill recipe is in my head and isn’t put down in writing yet. I shall only fulfill my side of the deal when I see the reward.” Jiang Chen was in no mood to pay any lip service.

Elder Lu laughed in response. “Of course, of course. The reward is right here with me. 500 million saint spirit stones. I have it with me always. However, the pill recipe…”

“I shall complete it for you. You may check upon its authenticity. I shall bear all responsibilities if there are any mistakes.”

The elder smiled wryly. “The problem is, how are we supposed to find you if the pill recipe is wrong? Forgive me for being blunt, but 500 million is a large sum of spirit stones. We cannot afford to take this lightly.”

“That should be of no concern to you. The Temple will hunt me down if there’s any foul play with the bounty missions.”

Elder Lu continued to hesitate because he was still a little wary. What if it was a scam? 500 million was simply too big of a sum! How was he supposed to explain himself to the sect master if he lost it?

“Can you verify its authenticity right now?” He couldn’t help but ask.

“The mission only asks for the completion of the pill recipe. Nowhere does it say that I have to verify it too. If you wish to go back on your word, we can summon the assistant temple master to mediate this issue right now.” Jiang Chen wasn’t going to play by the elder’s rules. 

Elder Lu smiled wryly. “We most definitely won’t go back on our word! We remain committed to solving this mission. It’s just that the procedure is a little…”

“The procedure is simple. I accept the mission, complete the mission, and take my reward. If you are going to renege on the deal, I shall have to ask the temple to speak to you.”

It was simply fair trade. If Jiang Chen went back on his word, he’d be fined an amount equal to the bounty. It was only natural that the Skysword Sect would have to abide by the same rules as well.  The authenticity of the deal was a matter for future discussion. If it was really a scam, the Temple would deal with it.

In reality, there hadn’t been many cases of scams throughout the five thousand year history of the Bounty Arena.  It was simply too big of a risk. Many attempts were immediately exposed. Even if it wasn’t, the scammers were often hunted down by the full force of the Temple. In some cases, they were even hunted down by the full force of Pillfire City. Moreover, the city would also post arrest warrants of the criminal so that the entire human domain would join on the hunt. Only a fool would ever try to commit a scam in the Bounty Arena. Most people would never try such a thing, unless they sought death.

Elder Lu was likely wary because of Jiang Chen’s age.

“Arena Lord Shao, why don’t we make a deal? If you verify its authenticity now, I… I shall increase the reward a little.” He was prepared to bleed money.

“The verification process is extremely complicated. I can complete the pill recipe, but that doesn’t mean I can refine the pill immediately. You should understand that having a recipe isn’t all there is to refining a pill. A lot of practice and trial and error is needed before I can successfully refine the pill.” Jiang Chen was actually capable of refining the pill now, but since they wanted him to verify it, he might as well exaggerate the difficulty to increase the reward even more. A big fat sheep had delivered itself to his doorstep. Might as well make a good slaughter out of it!

Elder Lu gritted his teeth. “If you verify it, I’m willing to add another 100 million to the bounty.”

Jiang Chen shook his head in response. “Too much labor is required. I00 million isn’t worth the effort.

“200 million.”

Jiang Chen still shook his head. “Nope.”

Elder Lu was on the verge of tears. What kind of person was he? Would it kill him if to accept the 200 million? The 300 million extra he received from his superiors was an unavoidable cost after all.

“300 million for verification. I need not the pill, only proof that the theory is sound.”

The creation of a pill depended on many factors, but the affinity between the ingredients was easy to verify.  Elder Lu was a seasoned expert and knew how to verify the authenticity of a recipe. A finished product wasn’t needed. The recipe wouldn’t be false as long as there was complete affinity between the ingredients.

“Give me another 500 million and I’ll give you verification. One billion, and I’ll refine a complete pill. Deal or no deal, it’s entirely up to you.” Jiang Chen finally disclosed his minimum demand.

The elder nearly fainted. The youth before him was being too cruel. 500 million for a mere verification? The amount of money he received from his superiors was only a mere 300 million! 500 million was clearly beyond his limit! However, his eyes gleamed when he fully comprehended Jiang Chen’s words. “Wait. You said you’d refine the pill if I gave you a billion?”