Chapter 7: To Catch a Snow White Predator (Part 2) [Revised]
Spirit Beasts, AKA Yao, refers to an animal, plant, or object that has through either chance or machination formed a Manastone, referred to as a Neidan.
By swallowing the essence of the sun and moon, also known as Spiritual Energy, the being is able to slowly accumulate strength within its neidan which in turn refines their flesh and soul.
Now normally, these things possess intelligence comparable to that of a human child, only obtaining true wisdom upon achieving the Spirit Manifestation stage and gaining a human form, but there are obviously some exceptions. Namely those that consume humans or other beings possessing wisdom.
Conversely, these are called Demonic Beasts, and are characterized by their red-eyes. And it just so happens that there exists a rare species of Demonic Beast in the Bear Yao family, known as the Snow-White Predator, that resemble extremely large polar bears.
I encountered a whole tribe of them back when I was campaigning for the Sanguine Church in the Frozen Blacklands, and they are known to possess an innate ability that influences the environment to cause natural disasters.
Sigh, I got lost in thought again, the captain is staring at me. I flash her a smile, and I see her smile back, albeit a bit awkwardly.
"So do you know anything?" the captain asked again, with a bit more force in her voice.
"You know, I think I just might...
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That was pretty easy. Once I told her that I may have seen the animal she was looking for, she was ecstatic and immediately left to tell her crew something.
Whew, now that she's gone I can finally begin planning. The fact that there is a demonic beast changes things immensely, since it means that my agreement with the idiot dumpling was a lot more complicated than I initially assumed.
When the idiot dumpling mentioned protecting humanity from Spirit Beasts, my assumption was that he was afraid of a Beast Kingdom forming, and thus wanted me to strategically eliminate potentially powerful Spirit Beasts Rambo-style. As for what a Beast Kingdom is, it's exactly what it sounds like.
However, if the beasts I'm facing are Demonic Beasts then my worry should not be a Beast Kingdom, but rather a Beast Tide.
So goal number five needs to be modified a bit. Rather than tracking down Spirit Beasts, I need to head to a largely populated area and gather allies *cough* meat shields *cough* to prepare for a wave of Demonic Beasts, thus making goal numbers three and five a much higher priority. Which brings me back full circle to my current predicament, which is a rather powerful Demonic Beast.
Now, considering the fact that it still uses its beast form and that it didn't actively hunt the Captain's crew, it's safe to assume that it is at most at the Astral Aura stage. Tony is probably dead now, since Demonic Beasts won't often leave their prey alive.
Hmm. Well, I should probably steer clear of the evil polar bear for a while, at least until I regain Spirit Manifestation cultivation. After all, the North Pole is rather underpopulated and killing the demonic beast brings little in terms of benefit for me. However, the captain seems a bit too gungho about this beast, so I should find a good opportunity to slip away.
But first, I need to finish learning the Great Red Robe technique. I thought about it for a while, and I've come to the conclusion that I really have no choice but to pick this technique. Regardless of how crappy its combat parameters are, I just can't give up the other benefits. And since my goals have somewhat changed and I can now recruit slav- *cough*, sorry comrades, I can instead take support roles instead.
My plan is perfect!
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(Told from a Third-Person POV)
"...in conclusion, even if the man is lying the place where Tony disappeared is still a good place to begin searching," said Captain Molotov, although she could tell that her crew did not buy it.
"What did I expect," she thought to herself, unconsciously comparing the current rag tag group of sailors she met at a bar to the battle-hardened and experienced professionals she worked with previously.
If it had not been for one of the locals tipping off Interpol of their location, she would still be working with them and not this random lot.
It was fine when she had Tony with her, since even if the man was somewhat unruly he still kept the sailors in line, but now that he was gone the balance of the ship was breaking apart.
"Ah'm jusht sayin," slurred Avery, the drunkard of a second mate who saw Tony's disappearance as a chance to challenge her authority, "we ain't seen a lick of dis beastie shince we shet shail, and ah'm shtarting to wunder whedder or nut dis whole mishun is a busht!"
"Well, Avery, since you seem so vocal of my decisions on this matter, then why don't you tell us about your amazing plan?" Said Raquel, although her tone made it clear that she was just a second away from losing her proverbial sh*t.
"Shince you asked sho nicely, ah'm goin to tell yer," said Avery, ignoring the looks of warning the other sailors were flashing at him. "Ah say we do wut ah shaid before, and jusht poach some random beastie and paint its eyes red. Dat skinny sonuvabitch won't know nothin! Besides..."
Avery's next few words were caught in his throat, as Raquel had suddenly grabbed him by the neck and slammed him against a wall, the contrast between her 165 centimeter and his 190 centimeter height only giving more credibility to her skills and experience. She leaned in close and whispered into Avery's ear:
"I'll say it once and I'll say it as many times as I need to for you to get it through your thick f*cking skull Avery, but when you work for me it means you're representing my reputation. And I always deliver the goods, the REAL goods, so you better shut the f*ck up with your bullsh*t ideas and do what I tell you, or I'll slit your throat and feed your corpse to the fishes. Are we f*cking clear?"
She could see the anger and humiliation in Avery's eyes, but as her pale grey orbs stared into them she could see fear as well.
He slowly but reluctantly nodded, and she held her grip on his neck until he had fallen to his knees, then slowly let go and stood up, staring at her rag-tag band.
As her eyes slowly made their across the room, none of them could keep her gaze for more than a second before turning away.
"Any more objections?" She said in a low voice, although due to the intense fear that gripped the rest of the crew's hearts it felt like thunder in their ears. "No? Then let's get to work."
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Poached_Salmon
Poached_Salmon Wanted to give more character to Raquel, since she's going to be a semi-relevant character later on in the series, probably as a support or someone with connections. Please give feedback, all criticism is good criticism
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