Li Cunxu sneered, "You're truly naive. Don't you know that according to alliance law, fugitives who have committed major crimes and are on the death warrant have no human rights? Those who capture them can handle their belongings at will, even kill them."
In turbulent times, severe laws are necessary.
Though the world may seem peaceful now, humanity is actually standing on the edge of a cliff, one misstep away from falling into an endless abyss. It's all thanks to the Old President holding the line at the forefront.
Therefore, criminals who disrupt the stability of human society will face the harshest crackdown.
After reporting the incident and sending Zhang Chiqian away, Li Cunxu returned to Zhang Chiqian's small hut.
The box of gold and silver jewelry was so full that not even one more gold necklace could fit. Li Cunxu suspected that Zhang Chiqian had collected more gold than this.
Li Cunxu dug three feet deep and found three more boxes buried under the other three corners of the house, two of which were filled with gold jewelry.
"Is scavenging really this profitable? I almost want to try it myself."
But he was just thinking about it. Without the Gold-Seeking Eyes, he wouldn't have such gains from scavenging.
Li Cunxu left no corner unchecked, even dismantling the hut. On the beam, he found a painting.
It depicted a raging sea and storm.
"Nothing special."
"Wait, Zhang Chiqian hid this painting so carefully. It must be significant."
"He poisoned his friend to steal a painting. Could it be this one?"
"What's so special about this painting?"
Li Cunxu examined it several times but found nothing unusual.
"Could it be painted by a famous artist? I don't see the artist's seal or name."
Suddenly, Li Cunxu thought of a possibility.
"Could it be..."
He immediately tested his theory, closing his eyes and meditating, recalling the Raging Sea and Storm Diagram.
When he opened his eyes, he exclaimed in delight, "It is indeed a Visualization Chart, containing the Vast Sea Meditation Method."
Even the cheapest Visualization Chart costs tens of millions. All of Zhang Chiqian's gold, if converted to money, wouldn't be enough to buy one.
"No wonder Zhang Chiqian killed for this painting."
In truth, the greatest gain from Zhang Chiqian wasn't the gold or the Visualization Chart, but an old book inscribed with the words 'Path of Extremes.'
This old book was a martial arts manual, recording the Supreme Fist Art of warriors: the Supreme Path Divine Fist.
This was what Li Cunxu had come for.
Before Li Anle left, Li Cunxu wanted to give her a gift she would love. Noticing her interest in martial arts, he remembered that a Supreme Fist Art manual, the Supreme Path Divine Fist, was hidden in the No. 4 garbage dump.
In a past life's game, a player had used a Serendipity item and, guided by it, found this Supreme Path Divine Fist in Zhang Chiqian's hut. When word spread among other players, it sparked a treasure-hunting frenzy in the garbage dump. At that time, Li Cunxu had also joined in and was quite familiar with the incident.
As for how he knew about Zhang Chiqian's criminal history?
In the game, Zhang Chiqian discovered that the shabby book the player had bought from his house was the Supreme Path Divine Fist. He then secretly poisoned the player to death and reclaimed the manual. The player didn't know it was Zhang Chiqian who did it, but he had a habit of marking traceable imprints on items that could be dropped, to prevent them from being lost or stolen.
Although the player tracked that the Supreme Path Divine Fist had returned to Zhang Chiqian's house, he naturally knew that Zhang Chiqian was the one who poisoned him. Filled with rage but helpless, he realized that while "Divine Taming" offered high freedom, it also provided strong protection for NPCs. Otherwise, players could easily eliminate NPCs, disrupting the game's storyline. Thus, the player couldn't kill Zhang Chiqian or steal back the Supreme Path Divine Fist.
Unable to swallow his anger, the player offered a hefty bounty, promising one million in real currency to anyone who could retrieve the Supreme Path Divine Fist for him.
Li Cunxu also joined the hunt, but he was a step behind. By the time he arrived at Zhang Chiqian's cabin, another player had already identified Zhang Chiqian as a wanted criminal based on a newly painted name on the wall. They reported him to the authorities, had him arrested, and reclaimed the Supreme Path Divine Fist.
Missing out on the million, Li Cunxu was beside himself with regret, wondering how he could have forgotten.
As for why Li Cunxu hadn't recalled this earlier, it was partly due to the distant memory and partly because the Supreme Path Divine Fist didn't seem significant in his mind.
The wealthy player who offered the million to retrieve the Supreme Path Divine Fist mistakenly believed that the Martial Artist was a hidden class. He switched to become a Martial Artist, only to waste a year of his time before switching back to being a Beast Tamer.
In "Divine Taming," the Martial Artist isn't a hidden class but rather a bottom-tier profession.
As for why players didn't dual-class as Beast Tamers and Martial Artists, it's because dual-classing in the game incurs a double experience penalty.
Leveling up in "Divine Taming" is slow, and the experience required increases exponentially at higher levels. With a double experience penalty, the character would essentially be ruined.
"Returning with a full haul," Li Cunxu said happily, carrying four jewelry boxes, two paintings, and a copy of the Supreme Path Divine Fist, he cheerfully returned to the ranch.
Back at the ranch, Li Anle was still sulking by the stream.
Li Cunxu didn't bother with her, knowing that a little girl in a huff wouldn't listen to explanations. After putting away his items, he opened a somewhat familiar painting of a tiger playing with a cat and examined it closely.
After a while, Li Cunxu suddenly moved, grabbing the edges of the painting and tearing it apart. From the hidden layer of the painting, a thin treasure map fell out.
"It's just this trickery!" Li Cunxu picked up the treasure map, looked at it, and said in utter disappointment. He tore the map into pieces and threw it into the trash, thinking it was another stroke of luck.
This treasure map wasn't a real one but a trap designed to lure people to their doom. The location marked on the map was an ancient tomb inhabited only by out-of-control Grave Ghouls that drained the life force of intruders, with no actual treasure to be found. Someone had deliberately replicated many such paintings with hidden layers to lure people in and feed the Grave Ghouls.
Players who fell for the trap posted the tomb's location on the forum, leaving comments to deceive others into falling for it as well.
"Come to this ancient tomb! Great rewards, see the treasures I can't even hold!"
"What are you shouting about upstairs? If you bring them here, the treasures will be taken away."
"Second floor is so selfish. The tomb can only be entered once per person. Isn't it good to let our fellow players get some benefits?"
"Exactly, everyone come quickly."
Li Cunxu knew all this because he had also fallen for the trap. After escaping, he magnanimously gave likes to the first few comments.
Li Cunxu took the Supreme Path Divine Fist to comfort his sister.
"Here, I risked my life to get you the supreme martial art, the Supreme Path Divine Fist."
Indeed, it was a life-threatening situation. The other party was over sixty years old and wielded a dangerous kitchen knife, famously known as the Tetanus Blade.
Li Anle didn't have time to sulk and anxiously asked, "Life-threatening? Brother, are you hurt? Let me see."
"I'm fine."
Li Anle carefully checked him over and, after confirming that Li Cunxu was unharmed, finally set her worries aside.