Treasure-hunting: Into the Unknown

"What if I don't join the Shura College?" Zachary asked.

"Then you must surrender the Hundred-Treasure Beast to us," Tracy replied firmly.

"What if I refuse to give it to you?" Zachary prodded.

"Then I can't guarantee what will happen to you next," Tracy answered, honestly.

"Oh? Really? Then I'd like to see what the Shura College will do to me!" Zachary exclaimed. He was the kind of person who could be persuaded by reason but not by force. As the Shura College was so desperate to obtain the Hundred-Treasure Beast, he would not give it up so easily.

"Harley, are you not going to give it careful thought? Now your situation is very precarious. If you don't handle it well, you will endanger the other nine disciples of the Celestial College. I'm not threatening you. But, you can't defeat the Shura College on your own." Tracy's eyebrows furrowed as she tried to reason with him.

"Is that all that you want to tell me? If there is nothing else, I will leave," Zachary retorted with a smirk before turning around and walking away.

Tracy could not help but shake her head when she saw Zachary depart. She knew that if he refused her request, his situation would become even more tricky and worrying. The Shura College could take coercive measures to force him to surrender the Hundred-Treasure Beast at any time.

"I see. I will report this to the college," Tracy mumbled as she nodded and left.

Zachary returned to the farmhouse. During his conversation with Tracy earlier, he understood that if he refused to relinquish the Hundred-Treasure Beast to the Shura College, they would pursue the matter further. Even if the college did not do anything to him directly, they would cause trouble for Queenie and the others. He didn't want anyone to get hurt because of him. So he decided to speak to the others as soon as possible.

As soon as he entered the farmhouse, Zachary saw that Queenie and the others had already gathered. The moment he stepped into the yard, everyone surrounded him.

"Oh, Harley, here you are! You are a hero now. Congratulations! I am so happy for you," Nelson said to him with excitement. He seemed happier than Zachary.

"So what?" Alger snorted. His voice was filled with jealousy.

"What did Master Tracy say to you? Did she try to recruit you for the Shura College?" Queenie asked as she glanced at Zachary. She believed that the Shura College would not sit by and do nothing now that he had successfully subdued the Hundred-Treasure Beast and become the hero who saved the disciples of the college. She genuinely thought that they would have other intentions.

"You are right," Zachary replied with a calm smile.

As soon as Queenie and others heard his answer, their eyes opened widen with astonishment. They had n

sense of unease coursed through him as Anne had been silent all this while.

"Don't worry. I will present the rewards to you at a later time. Right now, I want to share some good news with you," Anne said.

"Good news?" Zachary asked with raised eyebrows. He stared at Anne expectantly.

"I've convinced Tania to accept you as her disciple," Anne said softly. Yet the information contained in her words was astonishing.

"Really? I thought she would rather beat me to death instead of taking me as her disciple! Why did she change her mind, by the way?" Zachary exclaimed in surprise. He almost jumped with joy upon hearing this thrilling news. Considering that, not long ago, Tania had said that she would never take him as her disciple, not even if she died.

"It's none of your business. You don't need to know this. However, to be her disciple, you have to go through three trials," Anne added as she blinked her beautiful eyes.

"If a beauty like her is willing to take me as her disciple, I am amenable to her conditions!" Zachary swore confidently. If he could be Tania's disciple, then he would have two masters. As his first master, Anne had taught him a lot. It would be hard to estimate how much more achievement he would get if he had one more master as powerful as Tania. Most importantly, Tania existed in reality, which meant that he could have someone to rely on in the future. Besides, only Tania knew about Lewis' whereabouts. If Zachary wanted to learn of his location, he could use this chance to ask Tania.

"Don't be so happy now. The three trials given by her are not easy to pass. At least with your current strength, you will be unable to pass them effortlessly. What's worse, you may put your life in danger," Anne warned as she shook her head thoughtfully. She seemed to have some misgivings about this situation.