Chapter 13 Jess and Rosen

"Jess and Rosen, huh… Come with me."

Cole didn't doubt them, and led the two into the outpost, guiding the way.

Zhou Jing looked around, observing the situation inside. The most numerous facilities along the way were training grounds, with hunters instructing batches of young boys in their training, the sounds of shouts echoing.

These youths wore uniform, simple leather armor. The youngest were eight or nine years old, and the oldest seemed to be no more than fourteen.

Seeing Zhou Jing notice these children, Cole introduced:

"They are apprentices who have not yet undergone Alien Blood Enhancement. After they complete the basic courses and their bodies have reached their peak, they will use Alien Blood potions. Those who survive become reserve Empire Hunters, completing their first hunt under the guidance of veteran hunters."

"Where did you find these kids? If they die during enhancement, is that okay?" Zhou Jing asked.

"Some are children sent by dispatched Empire Hunters, some are youths found in the countryside, and some are young people who actively apply to become hunters… including blood relatives sent by various tribes." Cole said casually, "Being a hunter is inherently risky. A batch of people die every year. It depends on luck."

Saying this, he turned his head to look at Zhou Jing and said:

"You were a free hunter before. After you officially enlist, you can also learn the Empire Hunter courses."

Zhou Jing nodded. This was his main reason for coming. Joining the Empire Hunters was much more efficient than asking around for instruction himself.

The two chatted as they walked, soon arriving at the outpost's archives, which also served as the enlistment registry.

"Can you write? If not, I'll record what you say." Cole had someone bring out a blank booklet and placed it on the table.

Zhou Jing took it and saw it was a simple form, requiring information such as origin, past hunting records, preferred weapons, number of Alien Blood Enhancements, enhancement tendencies, and so on.

He picked up a pen and filled it out himself. Having left White Plains City, he had gained a better understanding of the Terra Empire's customs, so he was able to fabricate a background smoothly. He also filled out the form for Ross.

Naturally, the hunter record didn't include his experiences in White Plains City. While Zhou Jing was exploring the map these past two months, he made a point of stopping in several towns, leaving hunter records for "Jess and Rosen" at various hunter taverns, and even participated in a few simple beast subjugations, leaving behind genuine records… though people might not actually send someone to investigate.

Cole took the two sets of information and carefully looked them over, then looked at Zhou Jing with some surprise: "You've undergone a second enhancement?"

"Doesn't it seem like it?"

"It's not that… Most free hunters who enlist are only first-time enhanced. It's rare to see someone with a second enhancement proactively join. You're considered an elite among the Empire Hunters." Cole began to pay more attention to Zhou Jing.

Zhou Jing was curious: "About how many people of each enhancement level are there among the Empire Hunters? Who's the strongest?"

Hearing this, Cole didn't hide anything, as it was information known to many Empire Hunters:

"Currently, the highest level among the Empire Hunters is five enhancements, with two individuals. One of them is the Chief Hunter appointed by the Empire, who is also the current commander of the Empire Hunters.

There are a dozen or so hunters with four enhancements, some stationed here and others dispatched elsewhere. There are fifty or sixty with three enhancements, who are the backbone, generally leading a hunter squad. Second-time enhanced are the elite among the hunters, the main force in subduing alien beasts, while first-time enhanced are the most numerous, probably over a thousand people."

Zhou Jing blinked.

He felt that the scale of the Empire Hunters… was smaller than he imagined.

But when he thought about it carefully, the population of the Alien Beast World wasn't that large to begin with. The Terra Empire's standing army seemed to be only a few tens of thousands of people. The proportion of Empire Hunters with extraordinary combat power in the military force was already very high.

Moreover, most members of the Empire Hunters were dispatched to various places to maintain the safety of towns, with high attrition rates year-round. Enhancement failures caused additional casualties. To be conservative, dozens or hundreds of hunters died every year. It wasn't easy to accumulate to the current scale.

Although the number of people was limited, their combat power was terrifying.

An Alien Blood Warrior could fight against dozens or hundreds of soldiers, like a super soldier. And one or two thousand super soldiers… on a cold weapon battlefield, they would be unstoppable. Facing the tens of thousands of soldiers of the Empire's standing army, they could also destroy them easily.

'Such a huge group of extraordinary power, if they united, wouldn't overthrowing the Terra Empire be a matter of minutes?' Zhou Jing secretly clicked his tongue.

He suddenly realized that the Terra Empire's rule seemed stable, but in reality, it was sitting on a volcano, ready to erupt at any moment.

It could only be said that fortunately, the ancient ideological traditions of the tribal era were still in effect. Most hunters had high moral standards and liked to talk about ideals, only caring about subduing alien beasts and protecting the people. Otherwise, it would have long become a chaotic world… Terra was still useless, unable to control the hunter group, relying mostly on self-awareness.

After thinking through the matter, Zhou Jing didn't show it on his face, and changed the topic, asking:

"By the way, how is the Empire Hunter workshop? I've always heard it's the best, but I haven't seen it yet."

Cole nodded and smiled: "That's right, the Empire Hunters have the largest workshop in the country. The artisans inside are all elites, including master-level alchemists and forgers. They research various new artisan techniques and new Alien Blood potion recipes, and the latest results are prioritized for us."

Zhou Jing smiled: "That's great. I've always wanted to undergo a third Alien Blood Enhancement, but I haven't come across a suitable potion. I hope there will be something here."

"...You plan to undergo a third enhancement?"

Cole's eyes suddenly lit up, as if he were a professor hearing that a student wanted to pursue a doctorate.

Even with the most generous resource supply, only a small number of Empire Hunters were willing to risk death to continue Alien Blood Enhancement.

Each time was a gamble, entrusting life to ethereal luck. Once or twice was fine, but after winning a few times, they unconsciously became timid. Not everyone had this courage.

Those who dared to continue strengthening were either strong-willed and brave…

...Or gamblers.

Cole was a hunter who had undergone two enhancements, but he didn't dare to continue. At this moment, he couldn't help but feel a slight respect for Zhou Jing—for those who dared to continue walking on the Alien Blood path, whether they succeeded or failed in the end, hunters looked at them differently.

The identity registration went smoothly. After filling it out, it was handed over to others for a simple review. Cole then took Zhou Jing to one of the training grounds for a practical test.

Seeing was believing. This was a necessary part of joining the Empire Hunters. Hunter tests didn't involve anything fancy; they were all practical.

The two stood still in the training ground, separated by a distance.

"You have a second enhancement, and I have a second enhancement. Let's fight and let me see your level."

Cole smiled, and with a backhand, drew the special longsword from his back. The blade was longer than usual, about 1.7 meters, and curved, very suitable for cutting giant creatures.

It looked like a two-handed weapon, but he lifted it steadily with one hand.

"Pick a weapon. You also like to use swords, right? What kind of sword?" Cole gestured to the weapon rack to the side.

Zhou Jing looked at Cole's skilled sword-wielding posture, and his eyes lit up, excited to see a worthy opponent.

Oh, a katana user!

He had finally met a swordsman, and he wanted to clash with him.

He walked to the weapon rack, took a look, and drew a longsword of the same type, casually twirling it a few times, wielding it as easily as an arm.

Because his sword skill aptitude had increased, the speed of cultivation had returned to its original efficiency. In the two months of opening the map, [Weapon Mastery-Swordsmanship] had successfully risen to Lv5, and his proficiency had greatly improved.

Moreover, the increase in physical fitness and resistance aptitude slightly improved the cultivation speed of various hunter breathing techniques. Over these two months, he was only a step away from leveling up.

Seeing the natural and skilled aura that Zhou Jing exuded after picking up the sword, Cole's expression became more serious.

Although he had received systematic training, he didn't underestimate the free hunters who had learned on their own. Underestimating the enemy was a great taboo, and veteran hunters rarely made this mistake.

The shouts in the training ground weakened, and the hunters and apprentices who were training turned curious gazes to the two people confronting each other in the corner of the training ground.

"Who is that person? I don't think I've seen him before."

"He should be a new hunter. I wonder what his level is."

Everyone talked in low voices.

Cole observed Zhou Jing's posture, looking for flaws. Seeing that Zhou Jing showed no signs of attacking, he wasn't polite either, and stomped on the ground, charging forward.

*Teng!*

The long blade thrust forward, the cold light of the tip trembling, like a meteor streaking across.

Zhou Jing blinked, and instead of retreating, he advanced, sliding forward, one hand holding the hilt, the other against the back of the blade, smoothly drawing a crescent moon.

The thrusting longsword was blocked by the blade, drawing a string of sparks and a short, sharp metallic screech.

Zhou Jing shook his wrist, easily deflecting Cole's weapon, and narrowed his eyes.

Slow, too slow.

Light, too light.

Both were second-time enhanced, but Cole's speed and strength were too weak in his eyes, without any pressure.

Reaching the second tier of physical fitness, the attributes seemed not much different, but the special qualities brought about made the physical fitness completely different, creating a clear gap with the first tier, greatly enhancing agility and flexibility.

Cole's movements seemed to be in slow motion in Zhou Jing's eyes.

Jason's attributes were already higher than normal second-time enhanced hunters, and with the special qualities, he was now even more at ease.

Feeling Cole's strength, Zhou Jing had a good idea of the situation. He didn't use his explosive physical fitness to directly overwhelm him, but instead controlled his strength and speed to Cole's level, simply fighting him with swordsmanship.

One reason was to save the other party some face. On the other hand, he also wanted to fight a swordsmanship master for a longer time… It wasn't easy to find someone to clash with, so he wanted to enjoy it.

Dust flew in the training ground, and the two of them exchanged blows, their swords flashing. The continuous cold light was dodged by the two of them, missing and scraping past their bodies.

The sword light swirled into a ball, and the whistling sound of the air being cut and the clear sound of the clashing intertwined.

Various sword techniques such as chopping, slashing, thrusting, and parrying bloomed in the hands of the two, dazzling and incredibly precise.

The two's superb swordsmanship made the apprentices in the field dizzy, and they all stopped their training and gathered around to watch.

The hunters who were guiding the apprentices didn't stop them… they also wanted to watch.

After seemingly fighting on par for a while, Cole keenly realized that Zhou Jing was holding back, and his expression changed slightly.

As a veteran hunter, he could sense whether the opponent was holding back.

'This person seems to be deliberately controlling his strength, simply sparring with me with swordsmanship… But his swordsmanship alone is not below mine, ruthless, tricky, skilled, and precise. Without more than ten or twenty years of training, it's impossible to reach this level. It seems he is also a veteran hunter with many battles under his belt…'

Cole thought, and his competitive spirit rose. He suddenly jumped back, withdrawing from the battle.

"Not fighting anymore?" Zhou Jing saw this and prepared to stop.

Cole shook his head, raised his sword, pointed it at Zhou Jing's nose, and said in a deep voice, "I can see that you're holding back. Come on, go all out, don't worry about anything."

After saying that, Cole didn't wait for a reply and directly made a charging motion. Then, he shattered the ground with a bang and attacked fiercely.

The sword came before the person, slashing horizontally!

This strike, whether in terms of strength, speed, or sword tendons, was a high-level display, steady and swift, as if it could cut through all obstacles in front of him.

In the face of this strike, opponents of the same level had to avoid its sharpness. Cole had strong confidence.

However, a black shadow, too fast for him to react to, suddenly crashed into his vision.

Immediately afterward, a cold light flashed from bottom to top.

*Clang!*

A great force suddenly burst along the longsword, exploding with a shaking force.

Cole's fingers couldn't hold the weapon, and the longsword flew out of his hand, spinning into the sky and landing in the ground not far away.

In front of him, Zhou Jing maintained the upward-picking posture, the blade still trembling slightly, emitting a lingering hum.

Empty-handed, Cole was stunned.

In that instant, Zhou Jing suddenly started, his muscles twisting, and the enhanced body after advancement burst out with explosive acceleration, driving the longsword to slash out with a whoosh, the high speed turning into an extremely heavy force, directly knocking Cole's weapon away.

This strike was fast and heavy!

Moreover, the timing was grasped so precisely and wonderfully that even Cole, who was skilled in swordsmanship, unconsciously felt the beauty of swordsmanship.

Cole looked at his scraped palm, then looked at the relaxed Zhou Jing, and fell into silence.

Was he instantly defeated?

After a few seconds of愣住, Cole couldn't help but ask:

"Are you really a second-time enhanced?"

"Yes." Zhou Jing shrugged.

"...Impressive."

Cole was full of emotion, not being a sore loser, and secretly admired him.

To have such strength at the second-time enhanced level…

Only after experiencing too many life-and-death battles could one temper the body to such a level, right?

Hunters always admired the strong, and Cole was in awe.

Seeing Zhou Jing秒杀 (instantly defeat) Cole, the surrounding hunters and apprentices showed surprise.

Cole was not an unknown figure; he was also one of the top experts among the Empire Hunters. Except for the few with three or more enhancements, he was the best of the remaining hunters.

Being able to defeat Cole was equivalent to being the top expert among the second-time enhanced Empire Hunters.

'This time, it seems a very powerful newcomer has arrived...'

Everyone looked at Zhou Jing, with this thought flashing through their minds.

"With your strength, you can be assigned to an elite team as soon as you officially enlist." Cole praised, and said, "Commander Kleeber will definitely value you."

Kleeber was the current Chief Hunter and commander of the Empire Hunters.

Zhou Jing smiled. He was also curious about the attributes of the most enhanced Alien Blood Warrior in existence.

At this time, Cole turned to look at Ross and said, "Your partner also needs to be tested… By the way, why doesn't he say anything?"

Zhou Jing remained calm:

"He's actually my apprentice. In a hunt, his throat was poisoned by an alien beast, and his head was also injured and confused. He only has some combat instincts left and has lost the ability to hunt alone, but he can still cooperate with me, so I keep him by my side."

"I see." Cole patted Ross's shoulder with respect, agreeing, "We must not abandon any hunter who is injured while subduing alien beasts."

Ross lowered his head and looked at the hand on his shoulder, quietly reaching for the dagger in his chest.

"Cough!" Zhou Jing quickly elbowed his waist, stopping Ross's behavior of drawing his sword, and motioned, "Go, show him a trick."

Hearing this, Ross gave up on the idea of ​​drawing his sword and giving Cole a hard time. He walked to a grindstone in the training ground without hesitation and slammed his head into it.

*Crack!*

Cracks appeared in the stone.

Ross expressionlessly wiped away the white ash from his forehead.

"What the hell!" Cole was startled.

Genuine hunters had tough bodies, but how could they use their heads as weapons at will? Didn't it hurt their skulls?

A ruthless person!

"W-won't his head break from hitting it like that?" Cole couldn't help but ask.

Zhou Jing coughed, maintaining a straight face and trying to explain, "Because his head is not working well, his head is working well."

...That was quite philosophical.

Cole wiped his sweat, not understanding but feeling impressed.

Anyway, hitting a boulder with his head was fine, so he must have the level of a first enhancement. He didn't dare to let Ross continue to show off, fearing that he would have to collect the corpse for the person later, turning a joyous event into a funeral, with a funeral feast on the spot.

The group left the training ground, and Cole took Zhou Jing to an empty, simple residence.

"This is your temporary residence. After you complete the last test, which is to hunt under our supervision, showing your hunter level, you can officially become an Empire Hunter… And with your strength, you don't need to be led by a veteran hunter like the reserve hunters. Just wait for Commander Kleeber to come back and let him arrange it. The commander is out hunting and will be back in two days."

Cole turned back to explain.

Zhou Jing was looking at the room and turned back to look at him when he heard this, asking, "What level of alien beast does the hunting test usually require to subdue?"

"It varies from person to person, and it also depends on what kind of alien beasts have been appearing recently…" Cole rubbed his chin, pondered, and said, "But the Empire Hunter team cleaned up the surrounding area some time ago. There don't seem to be any powerful alien beasts. With your conditions, they might have you go to the arena to find an opponent."

"Arena?" Zhou Jing raised his eyebrows.

"Hmm? Don't you know?"

Cole was stunned, and then realized that Zhou Jing wasn't from the capital, so it wasn't surprising. He explained:

"The Empire Hunter team will capture alien beasts alive whenever possible and bring them back for beast tamers to raise. Otherwise, where would there be a stable supply of materials for the workshop to research various Alien Blood potion recipes? And the arena is a supporting facility, allowing some inexperienced Empire Hunters to train in actual combat… and also earn some money. We also need funds and extra income."

Speaking of this, Cole's expression became a little subtle.

Was it collecting ticket money from ordinary people watching the show…

Zhou Jing's expression was complicated. In an environment where alien beasts threatened humans, the appearance of such a bloody facility for hunters to fight alien beasts for entertainment felt quite subtle and shouldn't exist.

He had visited many towns, but only the capital had such facilities… And it seemed that only here was there large-scale breeding of alien beasts.

"It is said that the Empire is researching how to tame some farmed alien beasts and turn them into mounts for the army and the Empire Hunters. There have already been some results. Our commander is an alien beast knight." Cole said casually.

"Well, that's a feasible plan…"

Zhou Jing couldn't help but think of the Earth Bone people taming the Saber Tooth Dragon.

It seemed that there was a [Pet Function] in the existing auxiliary functions?

Well, since the capital had such conditions, maybe he could try this function next time he used a new apostle.

Cole said some more things to note, then left.

After all, this world was somewhat primitive, and the various rules and regulations were not strict and perfect. He could already move freely in the Empire Hunter outpost… but he couldn't enter the capital for the time being.

Zhou Jing tidied up the bed and could see the magnificent outline of the capital, Tarn City, in the distance through the window.

He looked in the direction of the capital, his eyes flashing slightly.

'It shouldn't be a problem to mix into the Empire Hunters. Now that I'm at the foot of the capital, I can find a chance to contact the core of the Terra Empire's power… Let's observe the situation first and see how to use the information Root kindly gave me.'

...

At the same time, in the capital's palace, in a room somewhere in the castle.

Roman stood by the window, silently overlooking the densely packed city, as if stepping on the capital under his feet.

He was an ordinary-looking fat middle-aged man, wearing smooth silk brocade clothes, with jewels on his clothes. He looked like a fat man who indulged in pleasure, but he had a kind of inexplicable temperament that made people feel restrained in front of him.

On the table behind him were a few secret letters. Two confidants stood in front of the table, bowing their heads without speaking.

After a long time, Roman said in a low voice:

"Root is dead. I don't know what he revealed, and I don't know who kidnapped him… Is this the report you gave me after investigating for a month?"

The two confidants trembled slightly and quickly replied:

"Sir, there are really no clues. We have investigated all the Alien Blood Warriors in White Plains City, as well as all the hunters who left White Plains City, and even the warriors of the Root tribe. No one matches the description. We still don't know who the murderer is."

"We also followed your instructions to investigate the so-called Wood family, but there is no such tribe bloodline. It's really not that we didn't try hard, but there's no way to investigate!"

Since Root's death, a large number of spies had been investigating the identity of the murderer.

After a large number of Frost Wood Village villagers moved to White Plains City, some spies even sneaked into Jason's grave at midnight, only to find that the corpse inside had no problems and had not been swapped.

No matter how hard they investigated, they couldn't find the "dead" person.

Hearing this, Roman turned to look at the two.

The two, who had been explaining endlessly, were swept by his half-smiling eyes and immediately felt a chill down their spines, immediately shutting their mouths.

Roman didn't fly into a rage, but smiled and comforted them:

"Okay, okay, I never doubt your ability to handle things. It seems that this murderer is really mysterious and difficult to find."

His tone was amiable, but the two didn't dare to reply at all.

Roman rubbed his thumb ring and said again: "If you can't find it, continue to look slowly, no hurry… Let's put this matter aside for the time being. How is the investigation of that force going?"

One of the confidants quickly replied: "Sir, we have found their lair, but it seems to have been abandoned. There is no one there, and we don't know where they went."

Hearing this, Roman showed a meaningful expression, muttering to himself: "That group of people mysteriously cut off contact with me, and then mysteriously disappeared, with all kinds of strange abilities… Hmm… hehe."

The two confidants looked at each other, not daring to reply, not knowing what Roman was thinking.

After a while, Roman waved his hand and ordered:

"Continue to investigate the identity of the murderer and the whereabouts of the mysterious force. Also, send some people to secretly contact the various tribal leaders, telling them that the plan may change at any time, so pay more attention. Also, pay attention to the movements of the royal family. Their actions have been a bit strange in recent years. Someone should be guiding them behind the scenes, and perhaps they have noticed something…

The court is still discussing the selection of the new lord of White Plains City. Let the servants eavesdrop. I want to know the thoughts of every minister… The position of lord of White Plains City must be given to the new partner I found in the Root tribe. Root is dead, which saves the trouble of using the new partner to get rid of him."

After giving a series of instructions, Roman let the two confidants retreat.

The two were relieved and quickly left.

Roman withdrew his gaze and picked up a few secret letters from the table, rubbing his fingers slightly.

The flame of the candlestick next to him seemed to be taken by an invisible force and turned into a fire snake, landing on the secret letters in his hand.

*Whoosh!*

It burned, and went out, all in an instant.

The secret letters turned to ashes in the blink of an eye.

Roman's fingers were unscathed. He put his hands back into his sleeves and continued to look out at the city outside the window, wondering what he was thinking.