Scoring X Taking First Place

It was now the afternoon of the second day of the exam on Ancient Beast Island.

Kevin sat alone on a huge rock atop a mountain in the forest, taking advantage of the terrain to overlook the dense Dense Forest of the island.

The scorecards on his body were eye-catching, shimmering like disco balls in the sunlight.

At this moment, he has collected 7 score cards, with a total score of 515 points.

Such a result is enough to ensure he makes it to the final match, so he is very content at this moment.

His hunting desires waned rapidly, and now he mostly wandered aimlessly in any direction or found a place to sit and rest, just like he was doing now.

Based on his position and keen eyesight, he saw two people moving back and forth in a small, dense Dense Forest in the distance, clearly engaged in a battle.

As the second day began, the battles on the island became increasingly frequent. On the first day, everyone was familiarizing themselves with the environment, setting traps, and searching for prey.

Kevin had no intention of participating or getting close; he simply watched quietly as others began to act. By then, he had already finished. It was too fast, and that wasn't a good thing.

Then, Kevin's face showed a hint of annoyance.

"You beast, can't you even tell the difference between prey and prey anymore?" He turned his head.

Unbeknownst to him, a beast resembling a tiger had silently lurked behind him.

Seeing Kevin suddenly turn to face him, the beast roared and pounced on Kevin without hesitation.

Although this beast resembles a tiger in appearance, it is one or two sizes larger than a normal tiger, and the distribution of its stripes is also quite peculiar.

Although the color of the stripes differs from the surrounding environment, the visual effect created by their unique distribution makes it difficult to discern their presence in this tranquil setting.

Moreover, a strange, matte Rock was embedded in the tiger's forehead.

"Hidden Forest Tiger, I didn't expect to run into you here." Kevin recognized the tiger's breed and name at a glance, after all, he had been studying this kind of knowledge.

He's already making career plans for himself.

Plants, animals, and minerals were all subjects of his study.

This Hidden Forest Tiger is extremely aggressive and quite intelligent; its fur can create a certain visual illusion.

As its name suggests, it can easily hide in Dense Forest using its fur, making it one of the most dangerous predators.

They are found in subtropical forests and wild areas, but are few in number and extremely scattered, making them difficult to find and posing a very high risk.

Facing the charging tiger, Kevin dodged to the side and smoothly mounted its back.

"Today I'm going to have Kevin fight the tiger!"

As he spoke, he punched the tiger hard on the forehead.

Although the punch wasn't delivered with full force, it was still incredibly powerful, instantly knocking the tiger to the ground, causing it to roar in pain.

"You're a decent guy, only an 85 out of 100. I wasn't really planning on hunting you down."

Kevin saw the name tag around the tiger's neck, reached out and took it off, then stuck it on himself.

The tiger struggled to bite Kevin, but Kevin grabbed its mouth, leaving it only able to whimper helplessly.

This tiger can only be classified as a powerful wild beast, not a Demonic Beast.

Even without his Nen ability, Kevin's current physical abilities are enough to overwhelm his opponent.

"Since you've come to me of your own accord, let me see if you have any suitable materials on you."

As he spoke, Kevin began to grope the tiger.

Based on his experience, he touched the tiger's forehead directly, where there was a spot that looked like it was inlaid with Rock.

Scientific research indicates that the visual effect produced by the Hidden Forest Tiger's magical fur is not simply due to the distribution of images; the Rock on its forehead must also play a key role.

Sure enough, when Kevin's hand touched the Rock on his forehead, a feeling of surprise welled up inside him.

This is at least a decent C-grade Material.

"Then I won't stand on ceremony. Consider it payment for attacking me." Kevin said, forcefully removing the Rock from the tiger's forehead. The tiger bled a little when the Rock was removed, but was otherwise unharmed.

Research shows that in the future, it will hunt and gather nutrients, as well as search for useful minerals and medicinal materials, to retrieve the necessary substances and embed the same Rock in its forehead.

Kevin's other hand was still groping the tiger's body, thinking that if there were any other usable materials, he would have no choice but to harden his heart and kill the tiger.

However, it was just a powerful beast after all, and the test was used to examinees on the island who did not yet have Nen ability.

"Looks like only the Rock on your forehead has any value. You're lucky, you stupid tiger."

As Kevin spoke, he punched the tiger on the head again, making the tiger dizzy and disoriented.

Kevin got up and let go. The tiger immediately staggered away, and after creating some distance, it slowly backed away from Kevin until it disappeared from sight.

Kevin gazed in the direction the tiger had disappeared, then looked at the matte Rock in his hand, stained with a little blood, and couldn't help but think that if all the wild animals on the island were like this tiger, hunting them would be much more difficult than hunting the examinees.

However, that's not necessarily true. Among so many Hunter x Hunter candidates, there are bound to be one or two who specialize in hunting in the wild.

Such an examination venue is perfect for them; in some ways, hunting wild animals might even be easier than hunting examinees.

After Kevin added another scorecard to his deck, he completely lost interest in hunting and began to wander aimlessly through the forest.

Meanwhile, Gowen was also walking in the forest.

He also had four scorecards stuck to his body, and although there were signs of a fight, he didn't seem to be seriously injured.

Looking at the Number Plate 90 on his chest, Gowen couldn't help but recall the scene that had happened on the ship.

That guy named Donpa is of terrible character, with no sense of Honor or moral bottom line.

Whether he was betrayed, deceived, or framed, or simply because of his loathing for this guy, he was forced into a "justice-defending showdown" with Donpa.

At first, he was no match for the Donpa. Faced with the opponent's rich experience and skillful technique, he was easily toyed with and manipulated.

During the battle, Donpa continued to provoke him with words and actions, his words always precisely targeting his nerves.

Just as he was about to suffer a humiliating defeat, a surge of power suddenly welled up within him.

As he upheld his code of Knight and struggled to suppress his anger while launching an attack, he sensed the energy flowing within him.

Although he was still quite unfamiliar with controlling this energy, this power had significantly enhanced his combat abilities.

With this sudden increase in power, the unsuspecting Donpa was knocked to the ground and knocked unconscious, falling into the second round and being eliminated.

However, ever since then, the faint, lingering energy within him has been troubling Gowen. He has tried to control and train it, but he has never been able to figure out what it is.

He had not received any training in this area; he had only vaguely heard of such legends and wondered if he possessed a different kind of power, like the legends claimed, and had control over the life force hidden within his body.

Until the exam began, he felt the same power emanating from the examiner, and the examiner displayed a power far greater than his own, which was made no attempt to conceal.

This made Gowen realize that the power he possessed was nothing special; he simply hadn't noticed it before, and it had always been hidden beneath the surface of his ordinary life.

Thinking of this, Gowen was filled with excitement. After all, he was still a young man with a dream of becoming Knight; how could he not be excited about such a mysterious and powerful force?

The Number Plate on his body made Gowen realize that perhaps it was because he possessed this power that his score surpassed that of most other test takers.

However, three people scored higher than him.

He remembered these three people; logically, he deduced that they must also possess this power, and perhaps even more so than he did.

Gowen was filled with curiosity and longed to learn from and exchange ideas with them.

But he can only have such an opportunity after he passes the exam.

Therefore, Gowen has been actively hunting.

He adhered to the principle of fair play in the duel, and after winning, he took the opponent's scoreboard.

Suddenly, faint lights flashed in the distant Dense Forest, quite clearly.

Gowen immediately understood that it was the flashing light of the Number Plate, which meant there was a strong opponent ahead, as could be seen from the stacked flashing lights.

Gowen wanted to avoid it, but he was worried about being discovered.

So he quickly stopped and hid behind a tree to peek out.

"It's that gentleman."

Gowen recognized Kevin at a glance, after all, they had met once on the ship and the other had given him some advice, but he was too foolish at the time to understand it.

Moreover, Kevin's scoreboard with 100 points has always been of great interest to him.

Seemingly unaware of Gowen's presence, Kevin left directly from the other side.

Gowen pondered for a moment, then silently followed.

Kevin quickly realized that someone was following him.

It wasn't that his senses were particularly sharp; it was simply that the other party's tracking skills were so poor that the commotion made it seem as if they were openly following him.

After following him for a while, Kevin couldn't stand it anymore and spoke up, "Even if you're going to follow someone, couldn't you at least try to walk quietly? Your footsteps are as loud as an elephant's."

Upon hearing Kevin's complaint, Gowen, who was hiding behind the tree, was taken aback, not expecting to be discovered so quickly.

"So, you want to get the points off me?" Kevin asked, turning around, the Number Plate on his body reflecting a blinding light.

Gowen stepped out from behind the tree, slightly shielding his eyes from the sunlight reflected off the Number Plate, as the light was simply too dazzling.

"No, I meant no offense."

"It's you. Speaking of which, I didn't expect you to make it to the third game." Kevin recognized Gowen as well.

Gowen nodded and said solemnly, "Thank you for your reminder on the ship, but I have failed to live up to your good intentions."

"What? Oh, you mean that? Don't worry about it, but I didn't expect you to be so rigid." Kevin was a little confused by the other person's words.

"I'm so sorry to have followed you, but I do have something I'd like to ask you." Gowen's sincere attitude piqued Kevin's curiosity about what he wanted to ask, though Kevin had probably already guessed.

Sure enough, Gowen continued, "I want to know, what exactly is that power within me? Your scores are higher than mine, so you should have this power too, right?"

As he spoke, he clenched his fist and struck a nearby tree stump, instantly creating a dent.

Kevin gave Gowen a brief explanation, at least telling him what the power he was currently experiencing was, since Gawain had already awakened his Nen Aura on his own.

"I see, the power of body and will, huh?" Gowen said thoughtfully, his radiant expression suggesting he readily accepted the explanation.

"Is this... the power of Knight?"

"What the hell is this, Knight's Power?" Kevin couldn't understand what Gowen was saying at all.

Finally, Gowen stared intently at Kevin, opening his mouth as if to say something, but Kevin interrupted him directly, "Wait, I think I know what you're trying to say, but I don't have the time or energy right now. However, I can point you in the right direction. All Professional Hunter possess this power; you should understand if you look at those examiners."

"Once you pass the exam, you'll naturally have a dedicated teacher to impart this knowledge and experience; it's a privilege of becoming Hunter x Hunter."

After listening, Gowen shut his mouth and nodded. "Thank you for your explanation. I am very grateful. Thank you for your help."

"Alright, let's go. Don't forget we're still competitors."

"I will always remember your great kindness." With that, Gowen left.

Watching Gowen's departing figure, Kevin wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Although Gowen wasn't very strong, his strange attitude and overly polite and serious conversation made Kevin somewhat overwhelmed.

"No wonder he can awaken Nen Aura on his own; he seems to be someone with peculiar ideas," Kevin couldn't help but remark.

Having already earned enough points to secure a place in the top eight, and with everyone avoiding him, and having even hunted down an uncooperative beast and obtained its Number Plate, Kevin simply went straight to the dock, found a comfortable spot to rest, and quietly waited for the exam to end.

The last night passed, and dawn gradually broke. There were less than four hours left until the exam ended.

A figure emerged from the woods.

"Kite, you're here early." Sure enough, Kite was the first to arrive.

Kite walked over, looked at where Kevin was and his surroundings, and then glanced at the scoreboard on Kevin's body.

The scorecards add up to exactly 685 points. Subtracting Kevin's original score, his net score is a whopping 585 points.

"You've been here for quite a while, haven't you? How did you manage to collect so many points so quickly?" Kite was somewhat surprised. His first guess was that Kevin might have given him Nen ability related to reconnaissance and tracking.

Kevin just smiled and said, "Just lucky, nothing special."

Kevin also noticed Kite's Number Plate; the total score was 595 points, which, after subtracting Kite's own score, still amounted to 500 points.

Not long after, Locke arrived.

He had more points than Kite, and if he hadn't lost some points earlier, his actual score would have been even higher than Kevin's.

Locke looked at Kevin, nodded slightly as a greeting, and then walked to the other side to wait alone.

"You know him?" Kite was a little surprised. He hadn't expected that Kevin could make friends under these hunting rules that were like a dark forest.

We've fought each other, so you could say we became friends through a fight.

1

Kite looked at the 95-point Number Plate on Kevin's chest and seemed to understand something.

Two more hours passed, and only one hour remained until the end of the exam.

Broadcasts began playing throughout the island.

Why is no one here?

"Because they're all hiding around here. The exams aren't over yet, are they?" Kite said.

Upon hearing this explanation, Kevin slapped his forehead, instantly realizing, "Right!"

Under such rules, camping out at the final gathering point near the end of the exam and hunting down candidates who arrive as time draws near is a viable strategy.

Everyone was on high alert, so naturally they wouldn't easily show themselves at the last minute; hiding and observing from the sidelines was the normal course of action.

However, some people are different.

For example, Gowen, who is upright and honest, walked out with great confidence.

Upon seeing Kevin, he made a special trip to Kevin and expressed his gratitude with a solemn expression.

This scene made Kite glance at her repeatedly. "Was it also a case of 'becoming friends after a fight'?"

"No, I don't quite understand that either."

Besides them, Basho and Goreinu also came over. They were willing to show themselves mainly because they saw Kevin and Kite there.

The two were filthy, their clothes covered in signs of a fight, and some wounds that had been hastily bandaged with scraps of clothing.

"Looks like you two haven't had an easy three days," Kevin said with a smile.

Basho waved her hand. "It's definitely not as easy as yours. You look like you're here on vacation."

"Fortunately, we met up the next day. We trusted each other and helped each other, making the hunt much easier," Goreinu added from the side.

Judging from their injuries, not all of them were caused by fighting with the examinees; some were clearly marks left from fighting with wild animals.

This indicates that they not only hunted the examinees, but also the wild animals on the island.

Their scores weren't high; excluding their own scores, Basho had 250 points and Goreinu had 270.

A score of 10.00 is indeed low among those present.

Of the four people besides the two of them, Gowen had the lowest score, but even so, Gowen still scored 350 points.

Basho exchanged a glance and Goreinu knew that they might be eliminated, especially since Goreinu only had 250 points, making the situation even more dire.

As time passed, a ship slowly approached.

With less than twenty minutes left before the end of the exam, the candidates began to gather around.

Most of the candidates were injured, and they had score tags of different sizes and values pinned to their bodies. Some candidates didn't even have any score tags.

Basho and Goreinu grew increasingly heavy-hearted as they saw candidates with higher scores than them.

With a crisp sound, the boat docked completely.

Several staff members disembarked from the ship, while the beast-like examiner stood on the ship with his arms crossed.

Soon, the scores were tallied, and the examiners announced the results directly:

"The following people will take the final exam for the general education level."

585-Kevin 49, 510-Lock 105, 500-Kate 8, 340-Gawain 351, 335-Iker 157, 300-Asterland 211, 270-Banana 50, 250-Gorilla 51