"Sea-dono!" At this moment, both the Blade and the Blossom had just finished off their opponents and swiftly arrived, but their eyes widened in astonishment: three awakened individuals lay dead! Under the shock of the two, they looked towards the Meteor, whose breath was feeble, with bloodstained blade in hand...
"Is this his doing?" The two were incredibly surprised: How could this seemingly youthful student hunter be so powerful?
"Thank you three for your help..." Sea, having narrowly escaped death, gradually regained some color in his face, restoring his former composure.
"...Mr. Meteor, your contribution was outstanding!" Single-handedly, he instantly killed two awakened individuals, creating the conditions for me to take down the third awakened individual!
"Meteor..." Even in the face of praise from their employer, the Blade and the Blossom were not pleased at this moment. In the world of hunters, strength is paramount, and the victor is king! Achieving such a brilliant record, even among the highest-ranked hunters, is rare! This young man's decisiveness, calmness, and strength... seemed to be born for the role of a hunter!
"Duty calls, as long as Sea-dono is unharmed, it's all good." Alden smiled, noticing from the corner of his eye that Sea had concealed the pistol back into his embrace. He had noticed Sea's actions earlier. If not for that... perhaps he would truly have chosen to abandon Sea instead of resisting to the death. Of course, none of that matters now. All the assassins have been killed, and his previous escape behavior can also be seen as a strategy.
"Younger brother Meteor, how are you holding up?" the Blossom asked with concern, looking at Alden's pale-as-paper face. She noticed that his breath was extremely weak, as if he had exhausted all his strength. Perhaps... his ability came with a great cost!
"No problem..." Alden slowly stood up, took a few steps forward, and suddenly his face flushed, and his eyes regained their radiance.
"You've recovered so quickly?" Both the Blade and the Blossom were stunned: His ability backlash had subsided so rapidly?
"I'm afraid he's a top presence among all the Hunter Stars!" "We mustn't easily provoke someone like him!" The two quickly concluded: So young and possessing such formidable abilities, he cannot be provoked easily! However, they did not realize that beneath Alden's seemingly calm demeanor at the moment, there surged a tide of inner joy. "I've struck gold!" They didn't know that the two steps Alden just took had actually absorbed the power of three green spheres! These three green spheres had given him a +17 boost! He understood that his awakening power had broken past a hundred points! For Alden, who had been stuck at 60 awakening power for three years, this was an overwhelming mix of emotions. But right now, more than the breakthrough, what made him most joyful was... absorbing these green light spheres not only boosted his awakening power, but also significantly restored his condition. To a certain extent, this counteracted the side effects of his explosive ability!
Thinking of this, Alden suddenly spoke, "My lord, what do you think? Can we go and see those two people? This time, when the assassins suddenly attacked my lord, I wonder if you can recognize them..." Although Alden said this, he was actually preparing to go and see the gains from those two awakened individuals' bodies!
"This guy... doesn't look like this person just now, does he?" Alden just saw the first corpse and his expression changed slightly. That was the 'servant' who had fired the first shot at Sea. Now, lying on the ground with wide eyes, he was filled with shock and unwillingness. Yet his face was completely different from before!
"His ability... involves to some extent control over bones and flesh, which can change his appearance!" The Blade's voice was somewhat heavy, even tinged with a hint of fear. Because just now, the truly most dangerous move was the shot that this person fired! Despite his ability seeming non-threatening, once the true offensive threat ability was activated, setting off the flow of awakening power, it could easily be sensed and detected by them as awakened individuals. Conversely, his close-range shot, when Sea did not actively activate the awakening shield, was the most perilous! If the Blade hadn't been exceptionally experienced and keenly observed some anomalies in his movements, he might really have been successful!
"Ah... These kinds of characters, unless they are fighting against the alien beasts, are really more dangerous than other level-one awakened ones!" Alden nodded and quietly absorbed a round sphere.
The next moment, Alden couldn't help but sigh in his heart: +7. This increase in value is not low. However, he did not see the red sphere burst. In other words, he could not obtain this guy's ability. That's too bad! This is the most practical and terrifying ability Alden has ever seen so far. He can adjust his bones and flesh to disguise himself as others...
This kind of ability, when truly used, can be said to have no limits. Unfortunately... Alden quickly recovered his emotions and took advantage of the attention drawn by the disguised awakeners to quietly move to the other side. There lay a tall awakened person with many wounds all over his body, the deepest of which revealed his bones. Of course, the most fatal wound was a large cut at his neck. Obviously, he was first depleted by Feihua using his abilities, and finally killed by a dagger.
"Well-coordinated... They are considered strong among level-one awakened ones!" Alden realized: The various reactions and judgments of these two people just now were very accurate and swift, and their ability usage was very proficient. Once they made a move, they killed two awakened ones in a short time, which can be considered as extremely powerful! In Alden's view, among the awakened ones, perhaps the expedition team and the hunters are the strongest in terms of individual strength. Even though these two belong to the same city guild and are familiar with each other, it is only because of their cooperation and tacit understanding that they can demonstrate such formidable strength. But even without considering this aspect, they are still stronger than these assassins! Of course, the assassin who died under Alden's feet at the moment probably doesn't count. To confront two enemies alone and hold out for so long shows his strength. And the feedback he gave Alden also proved this point... +15! Previously, the three of them only added 17 points to Alden!
"If all the previous accumulations can be considered as awakening power... then my current awakening power is probably around 130!" Alden calculated silently in his heart. An awakening power value of 130! Even geniuses like Chen Yuting only have about 110! This made Alden extremely excited.
Awakening is not just as simple as reaching an awakening power value of 100. The higher the accumulation of awakening power value before awakening, the stronger the control over abilities after awakening, and the level of control over awakening power will also reach different levels. Therefore, even geniuses like Chen Yuting, with an awakening power value exceeding one hundred, never stop practicing, but instead work even harder. Their goal is not only to accumulate potential but also to develop for their future.
"However, can I still awaken new abilities?" Alden couldn't help but feel puzzled. Because he had already acquired an ability long before his awakening power exceeded 100. Can someone like him still awaken new abilities? The uncertainty in his heart made him continue to accumulate awakening power.
"I should still be able to, right?" Alden said. He did not feel any fundamental changes in his awakening power, which made him look forward to awakening. He still needs to continue accumulating awakening power and explore his limits.
"I wonder how high the accumulated awakening power before awakening can reach? 150? 200? Or even higher?" Alden's heart is full of doubt and anticipation. He longs to set a new record in human history.
At this moment, another vehicle with awakening power arrives, and the people who get off the car resemble Sea's servants. They quickly and deftly cleaned up the scene and the bodies.
Alden had a thought: "Aren't they reporting to the enforcement bureau..." Sea hired hunters to escort them out of the city for hunting, and this behavior may not be allowed by the enforcement bureau or the military. So even if something happens, they choose their own people to handle it. Moreover, this assassination incident is probably not simple; there are many internal struggles within some big families, and this may be a betrayal by close friends or relatives. If they call the enforcement bureau to handle it, it may alert the enemy, which is not beneficial to Sea. Thus, the assassination incident came to a close.
The group got into Sea's car and returned to the city. "Awakened ones... Humans..." Watching the Titan Elephant still walking in the distance under the sunset, Alden sighed deeply. This time, while on the mission in the wilderness, he has not yet felt the threat of alien beasts, but the life-and-death struggle with humans has played out once again. In fact, if he hadn't had experience in a life-and-death battle with a fugitive a few days ago, even if he had gained his abilities, he might still have died at the hands of assassins.
Alden sighed, "Alas... Whether it's before or after the Cataclysm, it seems that the greatest threat to humanity always comes from within itself." Clearly, the deteriorating situation in the wilderness is escalating, yet humans seem unable to stop their treacherous struggles, making him increasingly pessimistic about the future. Of course, these concerns are too distant for him, and the important thing now is to prepare to settle this mission's payment!
"This time, thank you all!" After thanking the three hunters, Sea turned to Alden and said, "Meteor... young friend." He changed his address and asked curiously, "With such talent and strength, are you really still a student?" Alden calmly responded, "Sea, have you forgotten the rules of the hunters?" The rules of the hunters! Sea was taken aback, then laughed heartily, "These matters usually don't come up, so I really forgot... My apologies."
To think that someone of Sea's standing, who can easily hire three hunters to escort them out of the city, obtain information from the military and expedition teams, and use the wilderness as a hunting ground for entertainment, would apologize to Alden, a mere student? Even if the latter were only a one-star hunter, he didn't deserve such treatment!
However, Alden remained remarkably composed in this situation. It was as if the dagger and Feihua were saying that this was just a matter of course. These guards, not accustomed to dealing with hunters, were unaware of the strict unwritten rules among hunters.
"Hunters always operate under aliases in the world, and any employer cannot freely inquire about their identity, much less reveal their true identity..."
"At the same time, hunters must keep their employer's identity secret and not disclose any mission-related information!"
"The interaction between both parties is limited to the task itself and should not involve each other's families..."
"Anyone who violates these rules will be seen as an enemy of the Hunter's Association!"
This was the first and most important information that Alden learned after becoming a one-star hunter by watching related content about the hunter profession. As an occupation that is not fully embraced by existing laws, the survival of hunters to this day depends on the consensus and understanding within the industry. Those employers who need hunters to complete difficult tasks must also abide by these unspoken rules.
These constraints exist for the safety and benefit of both parties! Although some people have violated these rules in the past, they ultimately did not fare well. Once known by the Hunter's Association, violators would be permanently blacklisted, and their information might even be exposed proactively, leading to targeted missions to eliminate them! Therefore, in recent years, few people have dared to cross this red line. This was one of the reasons why Alden chose this profession: in addition to the considerable income, the danger was limited to himself and would not affect his family. In comparison, law enforcement officers might be threatened by their families, and the expedition team posed a higher risk. For Alden, being a hunter was a much safer occupation. In the future, he could also hold other legitimate jobs, earning dual income. From any perspective, apart from the level of danger, being a hunter was a perfect profession for him.
"It's nothing serious. Sea, you simply made a slip of the tongue..." Alden saw that Sea had no intention of violating the rules, so naturally, he wouldn't dwell on it. After exchanging a few casual pleasantries, Sea and the others left in the car.