"So, what is the name of the herbs you need to collect?" Ryker asked Ina, who replied instantly,
"Light Orchid," Ryker nodded, before he took out a book and gave it to Ina.
"This book should contain information of the herbs you need to find," Ryker explained, Ina giving him a hug to convert her gratitude. She immediately skimmed through the pages before stopping at one page.
"Light Orchid, can be found in a clearing inside a forest, where light can hit the ground," she read out loud before looking around for such places. Meanwhile, Ryker walked behind her, not planning to help her unless she is in mortal danger.
After all, cultivators refined themselves through constant danger and challenges. If he keep on protecting Ina, she would not be able to stand on her own, at least without his help.
So, he keep following her, while looked at his own mission.
"I need to kill a group of White-Marked Hound that had been terrorizing the nearby farmlands," he read as he followed Ina.
He raised his brows. While White-Marked Hounds is a Genesis Beast, they are just Tier 1, not a threat to someone like him. Even if the mission grade is low, he should be able to get some challenging missions.
He keep on reading, thinking he might been missing something, "They are lead by a One-Marked Hound," he nodded, understanding the reason for him getting the mission.
One-Marked Hound is a low-rank Tier 2 Genesis Beast. While it is a Tier 2 Genesis Beast, it is one of the weaker one something someone like him, a newbie who just entered the Genesis Formation realm could handle, or so the Branch Leader thought.
Which show how much he cared for giving him a relatively easy mission. However, the old man clearly did not know his full strength, which can equal a 6th Stage Genesis Formation master.
As he thought of his mission, he heard a voice calling out to him.
"Ryker, I'm done with my mission," she showed him all 5 Light Orchid, all in good shape.
"Put it inside your storage ring and then we can go to my mission," he said, Ina doing as she was told. After she was done putting the herbs away, the two make their way to the nearest farmland to complete Ryker's mission.
-x-
"They should be around here," Ryker exclaimed, as he looked around for paw prints. The Genesis Beast are said to travel in packs, searching for weak and helpless prey. Regular mortal are high in that list. The fact that any human is equivalent to a tonic to Genesis Beast make it slightly understandable.
"Maybe they head deeper into the forest," Ina suggested, as she also help him looked for markings telling them of the beast whereabouts.
"Maybe. We going to be here for another half an hour before we head deeper," Ryker said. The two head towards the highest vantage point, which is the tallest tree in the area.
On top of the tree, they keep watch, their eyes scanning the horizon for any sign of beast prowling around.
-x-
Half an hour and they still did not see the sign. They began to head deeper when they heard a loud howling voice, the hounds soon bark to one another or so it seem.
The two exchanged glances before they ran into the forest, not planning on letting the Genesis Beast escape.
-x-
"Looks like the plan work. Let's watch which side will win in the end," the guard exclaimed, glee filled his voice.
"Hhmm, we should watch from a safe distance. After all, we don't want the two to escape," Eldest Brother pointed out, the guard nodding at his words. The two followed the couple, intending to not let them off.
-x-
"They should be around here," Ryker said, his eyes scanning the area. It did not take long for him to hear the rustling of leaves, as well as the crunching of dead leaves, the beast unable to keep their presence silent.
They must have notice this as the hounds changed from their regular approach to howling loudly, likely wanting to break the others, turning them into easy picking.
However, Ina thrust Ryker to keep her safe, while Ryker thrust Ina to have his back. He looked at them some more before using Soul Sense to detect the numbers of beast is the area.
As he did so, he send a Soul Strike toward one of the Beast's Soul. The agonizing pain cause them to stop, forcing the other to come to a stop. As they check on their injured member, Ryker cursed himself for not studying other Soul Technqiue. If he did so, he would be able to kill one of the Genesis Beast, giving them greater chance to win.
Without saying a word to one another, both Ryker and Ina head towards the location of the Genesis Beast. The hounds must have recognize the plan as instead of scattering, they surrounded the Genesis Beast.
With them being surrounded despite the beast possessing the number advantage, they circled their injured members, ready to fight them to the death.
Ryker took out his sword as Ina took her spears. The brunette charged towards the strongest Tier I Genesis Beast while Ryker head towards the strongest. The simultaneous attack give the pack a headache, as they wondered who should they attack first.
With the hounds not paying attention in the first few seconds in the battlefield, the two were able to kill three hounds, leaving two behind by changing targets continuously.
With only the strongest remained, Ryker stare at the sole Tier 2 Genesis Beast before he clashed with the Genesis Beast. While the One-Marked Hound did not possess claws at the same level of cat, they can cover their arms with qi, blocking his slash.
As the two rumbled, slowly, Ryker began to gain the advantage. While the One-Marked Hound is decently strong, it could not compare to the true capabilities of his full strength. The hound beast keep on getting pushed, slowly wittling down it strength.
The One-Marked Hound let out a whimper, a cry for help. Unfortunately, no one could help the beast as the remaining survivor find themselves being fully occupied by Ina, her spear leaving cuts and jabs on her body.
Realizing nothing could save him now, the beast tried to escape, but failed as Ryker keep on hounding him, sending strike after strike. As the hound slowly being tired out, Ryker took the opportunity to stab the beast, his sword piercing it.
His sword pierced through the beast, killing it slowly.