Chapter 8 - Encounter

Red Zones were the most dangerous places for Hunter. It can be said to be their graves. But as the saying goes; great danger comes with great fortune. Even so, most Hunters still could not help but become a moth attracted by fire.

The Dreadful Cavern though called a cavern was very vast, almost as large as a province. It was as dreadful as its name. A place littered with bones from beasts and humanoids from ancient times to the present. A very eerie place covered entirely by sand.

Many people speculate that it was a place where a large scale war transpired and killed most of the participants, but there was no conclusive evidence about this theory. Hunters do not care about such things. They only care whether there were any treasures in the place they could take.

And as a Hunter and Mercenary in his previous life, Reid approved of it.

After several hours of traveling on the periphery of Dreadful cavern, Reid has already killed dozen of Silver Level Beasts and a hundred Bronze Level, increasing his Physique by 320 and Spirit by 250. The increase in strength was quickly grasped and mastered with the Complete Mastery Talent.

He also found out that a Silver Level Beast Core was equivalent to 5,000 Dimensional Points, not 10,000.

Beheading a Bronze Level Arrow-tailed White Snake, Reid opened his Status panel.

Name: Reid Aurus

Age: 21 | Gender: Male

Dimensional Point(s): 10,175,000

Race: Human

Bloodline: Eternal Titan(1%)

Bloodline Ability(s): Destruction Force

Title(s): Son of Luck | Masochist Sadist

Physique: 847.14

Spirit: 1766.82

Luck: 0(+99)

Talent(s): Complete Mastery

Skill(s): Mental Imaging

Ability(s): Isolation Field | Flawless Regeneration | Water Mastery | Gravity Mastery

Looking at his stats, Reid sighed. From the looks of it, he might look strong. But in fact, he was weak. The reason he remained in the periphery of Dreadful Cavern was that he found out that a Gold Level Beast was not something he could deal with.

Gold Level Beasts were very strong, ten times stronger than a Silver Level. He only managed to kill dozen of Silver-Level due to his abnormal abilities such as Destruction Force that could increase his attack power by a hundred times. It was a slap that sting. If not because of his Isolation Field, he might have been killed by a passing Gold Level Beast.

It was the same for Gold Ranked Hunters. When he was strolling in around for the first time, he saw a destructive battle from afar, between a Gold Ranked Hunter and Gold Level Beast. Each attack from them carried a great power that could blow up hills. It was a blow to his confidence, but it made him understand reality more.

With a mind of being low-key, he did not venture deep into the Dreadful Cavern but remain in the periphery to hunt beasts and increased his strength.

Sitting within a skull of an unknown beast, Reid rested for a while as he had been hunting for so long. While eating the food he bought from Dimensional Store, he heard some noise outside. Similar to some novels Reid had read, he looked outside and witnessed a cliché plot of men chasing a beautiful woman because of a relic or an important item.

Of course, since he saw it and as a gentleman, Reid decided to help the beautiful woman.

Reid playfully watched as the woman was chased by a group of people. He could see from her expression that she was not helpless, and have plans. As she stepped on the sandy land, the wind around her suddenly became stronger, blowing the sands upward, blocking all sights.

As the wind picked up the sands, the woman could have run far but decided to hide nearby. And after the sands settled all her traces were erased, creating an illusion that she had disappeared completely out of thin air.

Hiding within one of the thousands of skulls of a large dead beast littered around, she remained focused and vigilant, comprehending the state of being invisible, like an assassin, she could already weaken her presence and blend into the surroundings.

The leader of the group that was chasing her was not an idiot either. After chasing her for a long time, the leader knew where the limit of the woman`s ability. Her Call of Summoner Ability could allow her to summon different kinds of spirits such as elemental spirits, evil spirits, demons to help and assist her in battle.

However, disappearing instantly like teleportation was not one of her abilities. If she had it, she would have already run so far away from them and they would not be able to trace her at all. Looking around, the leader spoke. "Split up and spread out! Go and find her! She should not run far and is hiding nearby. Overturn every rocks and bone you see if needed! If you see her, do not show mercy and kill her! Stealing from us, she must pay the price!"

Listening to the words outside, the woman knew that she must be smart and make the correct decision. She knew that they would not be able to find her for a little while. It was enough for her to take a rest and restore some stamina. Her chaser would surely search for her quietly and not make any loud noise. They were in a Red Zone after all. All beasts that lived in Red Zones were very ferocious and aggressive. Attracting their attention was very easy.

But half a minute later, the woman heard footsteps getting closer, which made her inwardly panic.

'Did they found me?' The woman thought, but after thinking carefully, she knew she was still safe. She suppressed her frantic mind and readied herself for an outbreak. If she was found, she could only attack and run.

As the footsteps drew near, a shadow appeared near her hiding place. They were only separated by a wall made of bone. Suddenly, the shadow moved speedily and looked at the place where she was hiding. When she was ready to attack, an arm hugged her from behind, squeezed her well-rounded chest and another blocked her mouth in case she made a sound.

Miraculously, two of the people chasing her were in front of her, only a meter away, but they ignored her existence as though she did not exist, like an invisible air. Feeling flustered after being restricted by an arm, she heard her savior spoke.

"Don`t worry, they will not find you. You can be at ease because we are invisible to them." Reid spoke as he let go of the woman.

The man looked at his companion and shook his head. "Nothing here."

"Damn! That bitch might have already run far while we are searching here!" Another man complained.

"You are might be right." The other man agreed and suggested. "Let`s go and talk to the Boss."

Releasing the woman, Reid sat at the corner and continue his meal. He took a stick of barbeque and ate it with relish.

Seeing that her chaser had left, the woman signed in relief. Realizing that there was another person behind him, the woman did not let her guard down and looked at her back and saw Reid eating happily. "You took advantage of me, I won`t hold you accountable for saving my life."

Reid glanced at her briefly and spoke indifferently as he ate. "I saved you out of kindness. We do not know each other and we might not see each other again. So there is no need to get to know each other. Since you said we`re even, then this is the end of the matter."

"Humph! " Hearing his words, the woman became upset and silently glared at Reid, after being ignored. She was not even offered a portion of food to eat. As a big beauty, she was entangled by men every day, admiring and licking at her like dogs. Even the people chasing her did not use any strong means when chasing her. But the guy before her treated her indifferently.

'He must be gay' She thought hatefully.

After a while, she could not endure the silence anymore and took the initiative to speak. "Are not going to offer me any food? Does your conscience does not hurt by watching a beauty like me to starve?"

Reid looked at her blankly and said. "I do not know you. Why would I even bother offering you food to eat?"

The woman became red in anger and was about to say some rude words, but her stomach suddenly protested. And her face became redder than ever from embarrassment. She took a deep breath and said in a low voice. "Please share some food with me."

"Isn`t it easy to ask politely?" Reid sighed and hand over some barbeque at the woman. 'This woman is really an opportunist. Her face is thick enough.'

The woman took the plate of barbeque and swallowed after smelling the mouth-watering scent. She spoke subconsciously after she ate. "I`m Lene Blacke. A Silver Rank Hunter. Thank you for the food."

Reid nodded and replied casually. "Reid Aurus. Iron Rank Hunter. Nice to meet you."

"Iron Rank? You are only Iron Rank and you dare to come here? A Red Zone of all places? Are you insane?" Lene asked in disbelief. But after seeing Reid`s Hunter Card, she slowly believed. "You are really daring!"

Reid replied casually like it was not a big thing. "My low rank does not mean I cannot come. If I only have a strength of an Iron Rank, then the Bronze Level Beasts at the entrance have had already feasted on my flesh. And I have just registered at the Hunter Association. If not for their convenient privileges, I will not waste my time on taking a Hunter Test."

After thinking about his words, Lene nodded in agreement and after some thought, she spoke. "Indeed. If you can come this far with your low ranking, then it only means that you are strong. And your situation was not special. There were precedents."

Looking carefully at Lene, Reid observed her Status panel.

Name: Lene Blacke

Age: 20 | Gender: Female

Race: Human

Rank: Silver

Physique: 1547

Spirit: 2766

Luck: 7

Talent(s): High Spirit Affinity

Skill(s): Lock Picking | Tracking | Disguising...

Ability(s): Call of Summoner | Spirit Communication

Lene has a higher physique stat than Reid, but physique was only one of the factors that affect the battle. If the two fought seriously, Reid would definitely win due to his abnormal abilities that could affect others at a conceptual level.

In this world with no aura or subtle energy that could be absorbed by people at the beginning of practice. All Extraordinary relied on their own inherently awakened abilities to fight. But by tempering and strengthening their bodies, using various external means, and when they reached a certain level, they would be able to absorb energy that corresponds to their abilities.

For instance, Lene. If her body reached a certain level, then she would be able to accept Spirit Energy into her body. This path was torturous and long, but it was the only path forward for humans to walk on. And to achieve her current strength, Lene had endured the pain that no normal human could take.

This woman is really a thief... Reid thought inwardly as he saw her learned skills.

"By the way, what are you doing here? Are you also hiding? What did you do?" Lene asked as she ate.

Reid glanced at Lene dully and continue to eat. "Don't treat me as if I'm the same person as you. We are different." He added pointedly after sensing that the movement outside has stopped. "Also, when will you leave? Your pursuers have already left."

"Hmmph! This lady does not need your consent! I will do whatever I want!" Lene snorted in annoyance that she could not beat Reid in words.

Reid looked at her and stood up and walked away without looking back. "Then, I'm gone. This place is all yours."

Although she was indeed a beauty that could make a country fall, he was not that hungry for a sensual relation. He has his own priority and that was his strength. And what he has was still not enough to enjoy life.

Lene was speechless at how Reid ignored her. All men she knew could not wait to have time alone with her, but this weird man could not wait to throw her away. She gritted her teeth in anger and thought that had been was insulted. "Bastard! I will remember you!"

Although Reid had been with many women in his past life, he still could not understand them and he did not bother to understand. He was not a very passionate person after all. And he has secrets to hide. But he did not know that Lene already had a good and bad impression about him, and she was not a person who would surrender easily.

Leaving Lene to fend for herself, Reid resumed his hunt. His quest to reach Obsidian Rank for a year became his goal after a period of hunting.

From the data he gathered, he summarized and graded the strength of each ranking a person should have. Stone Rank only has the strength of an average human with abilities. If Stone Rank has 5 Physique, then Iron Rank has 50 Physique, 500 for Bronze Rank, and 5,000 for Silver. An increase of ten times. Each ranking was a large gap that people need to cross.