"Welcome to the Core City of Truth." The familiar prompt sounded again. Mike didn't immediately enter the Tower of Truth for exploration; instead, he headed to Wolf's Den.
"Hello, I'm here to submit a mission." It was the same sweet-voiced receptionist, warmly greeting Mike, "Okay, scanning your Lone Wolf identifier, please wait..."
"Mission: Investigate Arthas Bloodscribe. Please select the form of completion: provide clues, capture alive, or kill."
"Kill. A Lone Wolf mark was left at the scene."
"Verifying..."
Mike wasn't worried about the verification failing. According to the Lone Wolf faction's guidelines, as long as a Lone Wolf mark is left upon completion of a mission, it is guaranteed to be recognized. Wolf's Den has special methods for verification.
"Verification complete, issuing your mission reward now!"
"Mission rating: S-grade, completion: 100%, you have earned 2000 Lone Wolf points, and your Lone Wolf tier has been upgraded to [Gold]!"
Beyond the division of combat power, the Lone Wolf organization also has an internal tier system: Bronze - Silver - Gold - Platinum - Diamond - Star. Whether there are higher tiers, Mike is not yet aware.
After completing this mission, Mike moved directly from Bronze to Gold, skipping an entire tier!
Mike's Lone Wolf badge now sported a dark gold trim, understated yet luxurious.
"Here is your mission reward, 100,000 gold coins, please accept it."
The receptionist, noticing Mike's first promotion, couldn't help but add, "The internal tier of Lone Wolf carries significant value. As a Gold Lone Wolf, even though you're just a tier one Battle Soldier, you'll enjoy the privileges of a Battle General at official functions."
"Your stipend has been increased from 30,000 USD per month to 90,000 USD."
"At the Wolf's Den internal store, you can enjoy a 2% discount, and you currently have 2000 points available."
"If you later upgrade your combat tier, your Lone Wolf tier will automatically drop one tier." That is, if Mike upgrades from Battle Soldier to Battle General, his tier will automatically drop to Silver.
Listening to the introduction, Mike nodded slowly, hearing about these details for the first time. Ordinary missions do not reward Lone Wolf points!
Clearly, Arthas Bloodscribe's special status played a role, and the higher-ups at Wolf's Den likely already knew that Arthas was the son of the fourth demon cult Leader!
All things considered, Mike scored big on this mission! 100,000 gold coins, equivalent to 100 million USD. For the current Mike, this was not a small amount, but rather a moderate sum.
The most valuable asset was the 2000 points, equivalent to purchasing power of 200,000 gold coins! And being promoted to a Gold Lone Wolf, Mike would enjoy many conveniences in the future.
"Also, you have now entered the [Battle Soldiers—Gold List], ranked 9812 globally."
"You can enter a pseudonym or your ID on your Lone Wolf badge for commemoration."
Global rank 9812, huh? Mike nodded, indicating his understanding.
He then asked, "I have information on a demon cult traitor related to Arthas Bloodscribe's father, can you report it upwards for me?" Mike hadn't forgotten the high-level list of the fourth demon cult he carried.
This list needed to be submitted as soon as possible; those traitors to humanity must be brought to justice swiftly! Mike wasn't greedy for money; these people remaining within humanity were always a threat and needed to be reported early.
If left unchecked, who could predict the consequences they might cause!
The receptionist, seemingly unaware of the severity, smiled back, "You can register the report right here; there's no need to trouble the higher-ups, and the corresponding rewards will be issued as usual. Unless it involves high-level demon cult members, even Battle Chiefs can be reported here."
Clearly, she was unaware of the true identity of Arthas Bloodscribe's father. He was the fourth demon cult Leader, a former Battle Lord of humanity! Otherwise, she would have done as Mike suggested.
Mike insisted on his point, repeating, "Please help me escalate this information; someone should handle it."
"Okay, please wait."
The receptionist submitted the information in the system, assigning it to a higher-level Battle Chief in charge.
Tick-tock, tick-tock—time passed slowly, the decorative clock on the wall moving sluggishly.
A minute had passed since the message was submitted.
"Sir, the information you provided may not be sufficient to attract the attention of the higher-ups, could you possibly reveal more..."
Her words were cut off by a loud noise!
Boom—
The doors of Wolf's Den were violently kicked open, a gust of wind rushed in, destroying nearby tables and chairs, creating a mess. Several patrons were blown away, tumbling across the floor, looking up in anger.
"Who dares..."
Their words stuck in their throats, unable to continue.
The culprit who kicked open the doors of Wolf's Den was a burly figure, tall and imposing, striding into Wolf's Den. On his shoulder, he carried a massive Lone Wolf badge, shimmering with the light of stars!
Someone exclaimed, "Battle Lord tier, Star Lone Wolf!"
"Nine linked stars above, it's the nine-star Lone Wolf, the first on the Star List, Maxen Stoneheart!"
Someone recognized the newcomer's identity, immediately drawing everyone's attention.
Maxen Stoneheart walked up to the bar, ignoring all the stares, and looked directly at Mike, his voice booming.
"Kid, was it you who reported this information?"
The receptionist beside him trembled slightly, unable to form a complete sentence, only managing to nod, "Yes... it was him..."
She never expected that the information Mike asked her to report would bring Maxen Stoneheart here! Her superior was just a Battle Chief, and Maxen Stoneheart was her superior's superior's superior.
How did she manage to draw the attention of this legendary figure?
It wasn't her fault for being flustered; the labels on Maxen Stoneheart were simply too overwhelming: [Battle Lord tier—Star List] no.1, nine-tier Battle Lord, SS-tier talent, godson of a supreme being... Each label, taken alone, was as heavy as a mountain.
Maxen Stoneheart, who had collected all these terrifying labels, said, "Kid, falsely reporting information is a serious crime, think carefully before you speak!"
Maxen didn't believe that this tier one Battle Soldier before him could provide any useful information. However, since he had killed Arthas Bloodscribe, perhaps he did have something valuable to report. That's why Maxen Stoneheart made the trip.
"Do you want me to speak now?"
Facing Maxen Stoneheart, Mike didn't show the fear others did; instead, he appeared quite composed.
Maxen was momentarily taken aback, not expecting the young man to take control of the situation. Then, he laughed heartily, "Good kid, you almost had me fooled. This isn't the place to talk."
"Come on, let's go inside."
Saying this, Maxen Stoneheart led Mike further inside.
They arrived at a secluded office deep within Wolf's Den.
"Sit down. The content we discuss here, except for the supreme being, no one can eavesdrop."
Maxen Stoneheart sat on the sofa, occupying it completely, and looked at Mike, "Now, let's talk about Terenas Bloodscribe, shall we? Or would you prefer to call him—the fourth demon cult Leader?"