Chapter 2194: Cat Owl

Lu Ye hadn't visited the War Merits Pavilion frequently, but he was already quite familiar with the place. The spacious hall was bustling. After the recent major battle, all surviving cultivators had reaped rewards, naturally leading a large number of them to exchange for supplies.

Lu Ye looked around and eventually spotted a table in the most secluded corner. Someone was behind it, seemingly idle, slumped over the desk and sleeping. It was surprisingly inconspicuous, as if they were trying to avoid being seen. No wonder he hadn't noticed this spot on his previous visits.

He walked over and gently tapped the tabletop. The figure slumped over the table immediately straightened up. It was a short-haired young girl with a doll-like face, appearing naive, her eyes still heavy with sleep, and a trace of drool at the corner of her mouth.

She was startled for a moment before coming to her senses, quickly exclaiming, "I wasn't sleeping, I wasn't sleeping! I was just... resting my eyes for a bit."

"Hawk?" Lu Ye asked, frowning.

"Is this 'Hawk' dependable? This doll-faced girl's cultivation isn't high; by the stellar realm's classification, she should only be at the Moon Bloom Realm."

"Yes!" The girl wiped away her drool with her sleeve, then looked at Lu Ye with a mix of surprise and uncertainty. "Senior Brother, are you...?"

Lu Ye paused for a moment before finally saying, "I'm here to join the Hawks."

"Ah, so that's it!" The girl looked pleased, sitting up straight and trying to adopt a competent posture, though the effect was minimal. "Since Senior Brother wishes to join the Hawks, you should know the rules: the Hawks do not recruit anyone with less than twelve Dao Force."

Lu Ye then took out his Dao weapon short hammer and placed it on the table.

The girl timidly said, "Senior Brother, my cultivation isn't high enough to assess the quality of your Dao weapon."

"Then how will you determine if I possess twelve Dao Force?"

"This!" The girl immediately took out a crystal ball-like object from her storage ring and placed it on the table. The crystal ball was almost as large as her head. "Senior Brother, just hold your Dao weapon and channel your Dao Force into it. If you possess twelve Dao Force, I'll be able to tell."

It was Lu Ye's first time seeing such a device. From her explanation, it was clearly an artifact capable of detecting the amount of Dao Force, which he found quite novel. It seemed there were always strange and unusual trinkets within this vast cosmos.

He picked up the Dao weapon short hammer again, gently placed it on the crystal ball, and slowly channeled his Dao Force. The originally pure crystal ball immediately changed color, with faint strands of golden light shimmering within it.

The girl watched intently, muttering to herself, though it was unclear what she was saying. Lu Ye now understood the crystal ball's detection principle: the strength of Dao Force would be displayed very intuitively within it, allowing even the Moon Bloom Realm girl to clearly ascertain the tested individual's power level.

"Fourteen Dao Force!" The girl stared at Lu Ye with a shocked expression. "Senior Brother possesses a high-grade Dao weapon! My apologies for my presumption."

Dao weapons are inherently valuable, and high-grade Dao weapons even more so. Moreover, cultivators wielding high-grade Dao weapons may not necessarily be able to unleash their full power; only those who are sufficiently compatible can. The girl had genuinely never witnessed fourteen Dao Force firsthand.

Lu Ye put away his Dao weapon short hammer. "Is that sufficient?"

"Absolutely! The Hawks welcome Senior Brother's addition!" The girl looked very pleased, and Lu Ye suspected she would receive some reward for recruiting him.

"Before that, however, Senior Brother, please choose a codename for yourself. Of course, using your real name or an alias is also acceptable," the girl said, taking out a token-like object. Carved on the token was a majestic eagle soaring with outstretched wings, appearing remarkably lifelike.

Lu Ye thought for a moment. "Let's use a codename. What do others' codenames typically look like?"

"They generally include the word 'Eagle'."

"Black Eagle?" Lu Ye suggested casually.

The girl held the token, her divine sense flowing through it as if checking. Then, she looked at Lu Ye apologetically. "Senior Brother, 'Black Eagle' is already taken."

"White Eagle..."

"Taken."

"Gray Eagle!"

"Also taken..."

"Red Eagle, Blue Eagle, Purple Eagle, Black-and-White Eagle, Rainbow Eagle..."

"Senior Brother, all the color-themed 'Eagle' names are taken."

Of course. The Hawk organization had been established for many years. Even with strict recruitment standards, they must have inducted numerous members. With each person requiring a codename, these color-themed 'Eagle' names were certainly taken long ago.

"Furious Eagle, War Eagle, Majestic Eagle, Lustful Eagle..."

"Senior Brother, could you try to think of more?"

This is such a hassle just to come up with a codename!

"Owl!" If that didn't work, Li Taibai would have to make a grand appearance.

"Oh?" The girl's face lit up with surprise and delight. "That one isn't taken!"

"Then that's the one," Lu Ye said, not wanting to fuss over the matter any further.

"Alright, I'll register you," the girl said, processing the token, then curiously asked, "What kind of eagle is an owl?"

"An eagle with a cat's head."

The girl thought seriously for a moment. "Isn't that a monster?"

A moment later, the girl took out another similar token and handed it to Lu Ye. "Senior Brother, this is the Hawk Token. Please refine it with your essence blood. All missions within the organization will be issued through the Hawk Token. Furthermore, any communication with the Night Owls during a mission must also be conducted via this Hawk Token!"

The Night Owls are the intelligence agency operating under the Hawk organization. They boast a massive number of members, and any Alliance Guard can be affiliated with them. If they discover an enemy possessing a Dao artifact, they can report it, and a Hawk member will then undertake the mission to hunt and eliminate them. If the hunt is successful, the Night Owl who reported the intelligence also receives a portion of the Hawks' spoils, typically ten percent of the total. In other words, if Lu Ye were to seize a high-grade Dao artifact in an operation and exchange it for eight hundred Dao Bones, eighty of those would go to the Night Owls. This is a customary rule, acknowledging the significant risks Night Owl members undertake when gathering intelligence and monitoring enemies.

"Senior Brother, please keep your Hawk Token safe. I wish you fruitful returns and safe journeys on every mission."

Lu Ye put away the token and nodded slightly.

After leaving the War Merits Pavilion, he returned to his own residence. Following the girl's earlier instructions, he refined the Hawk Token with his essence blood. After a quick check, Lu Ye immediately saw a mission list within the token. The list enumerated individual missions; there weren't many, fewer than ten in total. Lu Ye noticed that the text for these missions was all red, conveying a sense of danger and bloodshed. Upon closer inspection, he finally understood the reason for the color: the targets of these missions all possessed fourteen Dao Force. Such targets were not something ordinary individuals could handle. Even if Yan Hong personally intervened, success wouldn't be guaranteed.

Each mission detailed the target's appearance, Dao weapon type, and their most recent areas of activity, with updates available at any time. As Lu Ye examined these missions, other tasks continually appeared below, only to vanish almost as soon as they materialized. These tasks that suddenly appeared and disappeared were not marked with red text. Were these snatched up by others? He harbored a vague suspicion. The missions he was viewing remained available, clearly because their targets were too powerful for anyone to take them on, whereas other tasks were easily snatched up. Lu Ye tried to claim one, but couldn't manage to. He grumbled inwardly, "Just how fast are these Hawk members?"

A moment later, Lu Ye abandoned the idea of competing for tasks and turned his attention to the missions that had accumulated over the years, casually accepting one of them. The next moment, he felt that his Hawk Token could send external messages. A thought struck him, and he roughly understood the implications.

On Firwood Battle Star, a bloody aura permeated a secluded mountain cave, where a figure sat cross-legged, healing their wounds. Suddenly, the figure sensed something, raising a hand to touch a token at their waist. He initially thought a friend was contacting him, but quickly realized his mistake: the active token wasn't his Alliance Guard Token, but a Night Owl Token! A Hawk had accepted a mission!

He immediately realized this because, just a few days prior, he had reported information regarding the whereabouts of a suspected insectoid with fourteen Dao Force. His injuries had also been inflicted by that very insectoid. Had he not been fortunate enough at the time, he would likely be dead by now! In fact, Night Owls were generally reluctant to report such intelligence, as few Hawks dared to accept such high-risk missions, rendering the reports seemingly meaningless. He had merely done it on a whim; who would have thought a Hawk would actually contact him?

Hawks brave enough to accept such missions must be owners of high-grade Dao artifacts, and generally, they hailed from prominent noble families. Immersing his consciousness, he sent out a message: "How should I address you?"

The other party quickly replied: "Owl!"

Owl... Who was this? He pondered for a moment, realizing he didn't recognize the codename. However, he was only affiliated with the Night Owls and didn't know much about the Hawks' internal structure, so he didn't dwell on it. He immediately and dutifully communicated with "Owl" for a while.

Moments later, on Bluewater Battle Star, Lu Ye emerged from his residence and soared into the high sky. He had already informed Kang Xing and the other two beforehand, so there was no need for further goodbyes. As for Crane Wing Camp, there was no need to elaborate; he had only been temporarily assigned there and was not a permanent member of the Guardian Army.

Holding a star map, he identified the most convenient route and headed directly towards his destination. After transiting through three wormholes over several days, Lu Ye arrived at the outskirts of Firwood Battle Star. Instead of entering Firwood Battle Star, he arranged to meet the Night Owl outside. They quickly met and confirmed their identities. The Night Owl had no codename, revealing himself as Chen Sheng, a cultivator of eight Dao Force.

Immediately, Lu Ye entered the combat zone under his guidance. Less than half a day later, they arrived at a specific location. Chen Sheng pointed to the remnants of a battlefield and said, "I encountered that insectoid here a few days ago. Three of my companions died, and had another team not come to assist, I would probably be dead as well." Recalling that day's encounter, Chen Sheng felt a chill down his spine. There were five of them against a single opponent, yet in the ensuing battle, his side was slaughtered like livestock, quickly sustaining heavy casualties.