Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio

After successfully completing the mission, Goode not only brought back a large number of crystal coins using the Magical Teleportation Formation, but he also brought back the representatives of several large merchant associations from Bavaria. At the same time, the Magical Beast Territory became a holy land sought by many of the youngsters in Bavaria.

“Hey, are you heading to the Magical Beast Territory?”

“Of course, how could we not go? I just joined a team of adventurers and we are setting off tomorrow!”

“Hehe, my father said that our entire family is going to the Magical Beast Territory together to hunt and ski in the next couple of days, and we will pick up a few premium magical staffs while we are there!”

…

Everyone in Bavaria was talking about the faraway Magical Beast Territory.

Some said that there were Essence Crystals and magical staffs everywhere in the Magical Beast Territory, that it was a holy land for Spellcasters. Some said that the territory was covered in crystal coins, and was a land of treasure and riches for the merchants. Some said that there were gorgeous people and scenic views, that it was the most beautiful place on the continent, perfect for hunting and holidaying…

Chasing their respective dreams, many people started their journey toward the faraway Magical Beast Territory.

The Magical Beast Territory was a considerable distance away. There were many threats on the journey there, as people had to pass through a boundless wasteland along the way. For safety, many people hastily set up teams of adventurers, forming partnerships as they headed toward the Magical Beast Territory. Some joined a merchant team or a team of soldiers and traveled in groups. There were also influential families who called upon their friends, forming their own defense teams before setting off on their journeys.

The news that the Magical Beast Territory was selling a large number of magical staffs for a low price, as well as selling Dragon Bone Magical Staffs at a high price in Bavaria not only quickly spread throughout the Banto Empire but spread throughout the entire Tailun Continent. Even though the Magical Beast Territory was far and out of the way, Goode had not been back for too long when the large merchant associations got wind of the news through their respective channels of information.

Even though the traffic conditions on the continent were relatively poor, large merchant associations and influential families could quickly ascertain the situation on the continent with Magical Communication Devices that could transmit information from thousands of miles away!

The merchant teams that had joined forces to resist the Beast Taming Grounds soon sensed that something was off after receiving the news about Yang Ling purchasing Magical Beast Essence Crystals, Magical Beast Eggs, and Magical Beasts at a high price, then selling premium magical staffs at a low price. It was clear that the development of the situation had far exceeded their expectations.

Despite continuously purchased a large amount of Magical Beast-related resources at a high price, not only did Yang Ling’s capital chain not break, it indeed developed at a much faster rate! Faced with Yang Ling’s advantage, Magical Beast-related resource sales would no longer yield them any profit. There was no longer any reason behind toughing it out!

After finding out that large merchant associations from Bavaria had rushed to Wissen Town using Magical Teleportation Formations and were in negotiations with Yang Ling, they knew that their resistance had failed. It was a complete failure!

Not only would they not get any benefits by competing with the leader Yang Ling, but their actions would also prove to have a fatal influence on their other projects in the Magical Beast Territory.

The merchants viewed profit as more important than anything else, and soon, the Aragon Merchant Team that had sensed this undesirable situation soon visited Yang Ling. They got straight to the point after a few formalities.

“Sir, as a sign of respect, the Aragon Merchant Team will no longer participate in the buying and selling of any Magical Beast-related resources in your territory!” Arismede paused before continuing, “But may I ask that you make the Aragon Merchant Team responsible for the sale of all of the magical staffs manufactured by the Beast Taming Ground?”

After consulting with Kalimantan, the person in charge of the merchant team, Arismede had come up with a plan. He was prepared to give up the unprofitable business of Magical Beast-related resources. He hoped to engage in a new collaboration with Yang Ling and obtain the right to sell the magical staffs.

“Sir Arismede, I am sorry, but you’ve come too late!” Seeing the rapid shift in Arismede’s stance, Yang Ling did not change his expression. He smiled faintly, “The magical staffs of the territory will be sold in sectors in the future, and I’ve already handed over the rights for sales in large cities like Montson and Bavaria to the big merchant associations like the Boulade Merchant Association. All that’s left is…”

“I came too late?” Arismede immediately understood what was going on when he saw Yang Ling’s faint smile. He deliberated for a moment before ceasing all hesitation, immediately arriving at an agreement to sell the magical staffs at the Delar Empire and the other territories in the west.

Even though the economic might of the Delar Empire and the other territories in the west were relatively lacking, it was much better than having nothing at all. Also, as long as he arrived at a settlement with Yang Ling and continued to work with him, there would naturally be more opportunities in the future.

The Aragon Merchant Team had acted quickly, but the rest of the merchant associations had not been slow either. Arismede had just left when the representatives of the other large merchant associations arrived, one after the other. They all agreed on abandoning the buying and selling of Magical Beast-related resources and hoped to increase the strength of their partnership in other projects instead.

Just like that, the first economic crisis to hit the Magical Beast Territory had dissipated in an instant, and the combined resistance of the large merchant associations dissolved without Yang Ling having to do anything! Not only did Yang Ling successfully monopolize the buying and selling of Magical Beast-related resources in his territory, but he also managed to further solidify his influence as a leader by interfacing with the more exceptional merchant teams.

After dealing with the resistance of the merchant associations and getting the various large-scale projects up and running smoothly, the setting up of the Hunter Association would officially be Yang Ling’s next course of action.

Almost everything was prepared, with only one critical component left!

During this period, after increasing the status of the hunters by inflating the price of Magical Beast-related resources, as well as supplying a range of facilities based on information about Magical Beasts to the relevant services, Yang Ling had successfully obtained the respect and support of various adventurers. He had posted a notice meant to recruit a hundred hunters but received the applications of almost two thousand adventurers in an instant. There were even applications submitted by troops!

Everything was in place, and coupled with the large number of crystal coins he had recouped through his various projects, the conditions for the setting up a Hunter Association were fully ripe. All that was left to do was perfect the organizational structure and operational model of the association.

Three heads are better than one. In order to quickly perfect the organizational structure and operational model of the association, Yang Ling gathered everyone for a discussion at night, after having confirmed the details of the collaboration between the various large merchant associations.

“Sir, I suggest adopting what the rest of the associations are doing and appoint you as the chairman. You can manage the association as you wish!”

“Setting up a council of elders like the Troop Association is also a decent idea. Sir, you would be the Chief Elder, while the rest of the managing elders would be responsible for the specific details!”

…

After whispering to each other, the people voiced their opinions one by one. Some suggested looking at the organizational structure of the Association of Assassins, while others thought that adopting the approach of the Troop Association would be more suitable. All of them had their own opinions.

“Goode, what do you think?” Yang Ling’s expression did not change after hearing the opinions of the people, then asked the opinion of the only tactician he had beside him.

“Sir, I think that using the model of the Troop Association is more suitable!” After a pause, Goode continued, “Since this is an association, we would naturally have to set up branches in other places in the future in order to develop our strength. We might meet with some resistance if you are to act as the Chairman. But a council of elders is different, it could, to some extent, alleviate the skepticism of various factions!”

Goode spoke succinctly. Most of the people understood him after mulling over his words for some time. After all, no king or leader would welcome a faction that they could not control. This was also an important reason why the Association of Assassins was unable to act in public.

Unlike the Association of Assassins, the Troop Association used a system of a council of elders. Even though the Chief Elder had absolute authority in name, he had to obtain the agreement of the various other managing elders in order to come to a decision for most of their affairs. Absorbing people with high influence into the council of elders had been effective in staving off the suspicions the local factions had about the expansion of the Troop Association.

To some extent, the Hunter Association was fundamentally similar to the Troop Association. The principle difference between them was that their main focuses were on different things. Troops made most of their income from protecting the merchants who were traveling between lands, as well as through various missions, and they acted mostly around large cities. Hunters, on the other hand, made a living by capturing Magical Beasts or Magical Beast Eggs, acting mostly in natural environments like forests, marshes, or rivers.

Considering the issue from all angles, adopting the approach used by the Troop Association would be undoubtedly beneficial to the rapid expansion of the Hunter Associations’ influence and strength! Soon, after a round of discussion, Goode’s suggestion was accepted by everyone present.

After deciding on the framework, the group continued their discussion on the operational model and institutions of the Hunter Association.

Some suggested that they focus on the Beast Taming Ground and make the Hunter Association a hub for the activity of all hunters. They would supply services for the storage, rearing, and trade of Magical Beasts.

Some suggested that they selectively supply hunters with information on Magical Beasts such as their habits, resting places, preferred diets, and weaknesses after collecting a fee.

…

“Not bad! These suggestions are all great but unfortunately, all of you missed out on an important factor!” Yang Ling deliberated for a moment after nodding his head in satisfaction. He then continued, “In order to increase the hunters’ sense of belonging to this association, in order to increase the pride the hunters have, we need to screen and split the hunters joining the association into levels and help them improve in various aspects of their ability!”

Screen and split the hunters joining the association into levels? The people engaged in a discussion when they heard Yang Ling say this. On the Tailun Continent, only troop teams were split into levels. There were no instances of every individual troop being sorted into a level based on their ability. Yang Ling believed that it would be alluring to the many wandering adventurers if they could be tested by the association and provided with specialized training for a small fee.

After taking a sip of rum, Yang Ling said slowly, “Actually, there’s a simple way to differentiate between the abilities of the hunters. We can measure them using the abilities of Magical Beasts of varying levels. A one-star hunter would correspond to a level-one Magical Beast, a two-star hunter to a level-two Magical Beast, so on and so forth, a nine-star hunter to a level-nine Magical Beast…”

Since the specialty of a hunter related to how they dealt with Magical Beasts, then it was natural to use the abilities of Magical Beasts of varying levels to measure their strength. Embroidering a star on their shirt would signify that the person was a one-star hunter with the weakest abilities, two stars meant that they were a two-star hunter whose abilities were a notch higher, so on and so forth.

Above nine stars, they could add a crescent moon and call them Moon-Star Hunters, their abilities equivalent to Level-Surpassing Magical Beasts. Even higher than that, the crescent moon could be swapped out with a full moon, and they would be called Full Moon Hunters!

This way, not only would Yang Ling be able to rapidly improve their abilities by encouraging the hunters that joined the association to use the level system as well as the Summoning Magic and Magic Hunting Cards, but he would also be able to strengthen their sense of belonging and loyalty to the association. Through that, he would be able to nurture a faction belonging to him.