First Kill a Chicken

"Changqing? Hmm... your qualifications aren't very good." In Longcheng Lower City, at the Night Banquet Bar, the bartender looked at the personal resume in front of him, then at the young man who wasn't very old, and hesitated slightly.

"Not great, but it meets the requirements."

This made the bartender's expression even more conflicted. It wasn't that the bar was hiring staff, no, it couldn't be said that they weren't hiring, but the people they were hiring weren't employees, but people to do other big things.

The resume on the bartender's table looked like the resume of a complete slacker. If you had to point out something outstanding, there was nothing at all, but if you said it was completely useless, that wouldn't be true either. Generally, people entering this line of work wouldn't find teammates, and slackers wouldn't look for other slackers.

"Mainly, there wasn't enough time, otherwise the resume could have been even more impressive."

"Would you like a drink?" The bartender clicked his tongue inwardly. They're not even pretending anymore, these young people nowadays...

Zheng Yichen nodded: "Then the one with the lowest alcohol content."

The bartender served the young man in front of him a glass of fruit wine and continued reading the rest of the resume: "Since you found your way here, you also know that we are just an agency here. If something happens outside the bar, the Night Banquet Bar has nothing to do with it."

"Of course." Zheng Yichen tasted the fruit wine in front of him, his eyes lit up. Although there was a faint smell of alcohol, the fruit flavor was more intense, even better than some beverages.

Seeing Zheng Yichen's reaction, the bartender took out a form: "Fill this out and you're done. However, I still need to remind you additionally that adults must be responsible for their own choices. You can use this identity later to show off to your classmates and relatives, but with this identity, even if you actively distance yourself from some anomalies, those anomalies will approach you when you're not paying attention!"

The young man in front of him, though young, was no longer a child. If he just wanted this identity because he thought the 'Hunter' identity was cool, then only the person involved would regret it.

'Hunter' is just a common term, including 'Demon Hunter' and 'Anomaly Exterminator'. Anyway, these kinds of beings usually work for money. Their scope is not much different from normal mercenaries, except that ordinary mercenaries can't handle powerful anomalies, but these people can.

Demon Hunters are not the kind who are often stiffed on payments or stabbed to death with pitchforks...

"My relationship with my classmates is average, and I have no relatives." Zheng Yichen quickly filled out the form in his hand.

The bartender looked at Zheng Yichen with some sympathy: "In that case, you should live a good life even more, instead of actively seeking out anomalies."

Zheng Yichen looked up and smiled at the bartender's advice, then handed over the form in his hand: "It's because I found that I am more suited to dealing with anomalies that I actively seek them out."

The bartender put away the filled-out form and took out a camera to take a picture of Zheng Yichen. The background didn't need to be too strict, as the photo only needed the young man's headshot. It didn't matter how fancy the background was, as long as the headshot was clear. Often, people would add a photo with a monster in the background afterward because they wanted to look cool.

"Within the next week, you need to bring proof." The bartender said, placing the form and Zheng Yichen's resume together. His gaze swept over a part of the experience on the resume, and his tone became a bit teasing: "Even a Mutated Chicken."

Do I also need to ask if the chicken can play ball? Zheng Yichen nodded and finished the rest of the fruit wine in one gulp. He couldn't waste what he paid for. As for the bartender's joke, he had no intention of refuting it. He was well aware of how much exaggeration was in his resume.

Leaving the noisy Night Banquet Bar, the city at night was shrouded in mist.

Longcheng got its name from this. The situation in the upper city was still somewhat alright, but in the lower city, the mist phenomenon became particularly severe at night. The streetlights were special fog lights, and even so, when viewed from a distance, the pedestrians seen were still somewhat indistinct dark figures.

Returning home, Zheng Yichen took off his jacket and went to the bathroom. He lifted his undershirt in front of the mirror and looked at the faint marks on his chest, nodding with satisfaction.

This world had anomalies, and he himself had an anomaly, a 'Withering Syndrome' that was not a normal illness. This strange illness made his growth process quite difficult. If he hadn't been one of the vast number of Transmigrators, he would have likely died young from childhood.

He didn't understand why things had shrunk after transmigrating. At that time, the most concerning thing was the 'strange illness' that had appeared on him. Later, he realized that it was also an anomaly.

The advantage of his age also allowed him to smoothly integrate into this world. In a modern society, a child, even one with no traceable background, could still easily integrate. He could also get along well in the orphanage.

Although his mind was already that of an adult, he didn't develop any new awkward personality traits due to his own issues. He was still himself. While it was difficult, he ultimately grew up in this world and left the orphanage.

Growing up again wasn't the difficult part; the difficulty always lay in the abnormality he carried.

When he was young, it wasn't too severe, with his skin just showing some wrinkles. As he aged, the problem became increasingly serious. Even with diligent exercise, the effects weren't very significant, but at least exercising was more useful than taking medicine.

Taking medicine was less effective than eating a couple more steamed buns.

This abnormality didn't make Zheng Yichen feel weak, nor did it affect his exercise efficiency. It only caused his skin to develop more severe wrinkles. Touching those wrinkles felt like touching dead tree bark. Initially, the wrinkles were only on his torso, and he could hide them by wearing loose clothing.

As the symptoms worsened, they gradually spread to his limbs, which was unbearable.

The turning point came when he got involved in an abnormal incident. He had found a new job in Longcheng, not a glamorous one, just feeding chickens.

This world had many anomalies, and even chicken farms encountered them. While he was feeding the chickens, one hen's head exploded, sprouting over a dozen blood vessel-like tentacles that began to ravenously devour its companions, not even sparing freshly laid eggs!

He was at a safe distance at the time. Facing that suddenly mutated hen, Zheng Yichen felt an impulse from deep within, like a starving person seeing roast chicken.

Driven by this impulse, he charged forward with his strong physique.

It was just a chicken, even with tentacles, it was still a chicken. He won. However, the chicken farm owner was very displeased. Why engage in close combat when a gun could have solved the problem?

The chicken had mutated, but it was still confined to a cage. The cage was sturdy enough that a mutated chicken couldn't break out immediately, giving the staff time to retrieve a weapon and shoot it.

Zheng Yichen, however, chose the most reckless approach.

The chicken farm owner's words felt very real to Zheng Yichen. He supposed so; this world wasn't ancient times. When encountering such mutated creatures, one should always use the most secure method. Approaching would lead to injury, while shooting from a distance would be safe. At the very least, a crossbow could be used.

Those were much easier to obtain than guns. The chicken farm owner had a gun, and among the safety equipment in the farm, besides fire extinguishers, there were crossbows. However, they were locked and connected to the local police station. In emergencies, authorization could be obtained directly from the farm owner. In more urgent situations, authorization could be bypassed, but personal photos would need to be recorded via facial recognition.

In any case, weapons could be retrieved instantly to deal with unexpected situations.

He didn't lose his job because of this. At the time, he was the first to charge forward. Although a bit reckless, as long as one wasn't extremely unlucky, no one would be casually killed by a mutated chicken.

Not to mention Zheng Yichen was strong, healthy, and brave. The chicken farm owner's main request was that next time, prioritize ranged weapons. It didn't matter if other chickens were accidentally injured, as long as no people were harmed. As for the mutated chicken that ate its companions?

That wasn't important. A mutated chicken was worth much more on the market, one was worth a hundred!

Many schools were eager to acquire such specimens for teachers and students. Some people intended to buy them to eat. Mutated creatures were still creatures; their individual forms had simply undergone some changes. It wasn't like they turned from flesh to stone after mutating. As long as they were processed properly, they were still a "delicacy."

As long as the mutated chicken could be captured, the ordinary chickens that died became irrelevant.

And Zheng Yichen, having achieved his first kill of a mutated creature, also discovered changes within himself. After being exposed to the mutated hen's blood, he didn't feel anything at the time. He didn't even notice the blood diminishing or fading. It was only when he returned to his lodging and showered that he noticed these issues, and that his "withered disease" had somewhat improved.

It was much more effective than his daily exercise. Unfortunately, the mutated hen had been taken away, so he didn't have a chance to test a certain unspeakable impulse.

That mutated hen also became the first entry on his resume. He had defeated an anomalous creature with his own abilities, so why not list it?

Others hadn't even personally killed such a chicken. Afterward, he continued his job while searching for other anomalies. He didn't find many large ones, and he couldn't afford to provoke them.

The small ones, most of them are ordinary people. As long as they have courage, some personal strength that crosses the line, and aren't unlucky, they can basically take them down.

Even the more troublesome ones are like an alligator on land fighting a human with a knife. It's not that they can't be beaten, the key is that not many people have the courage to fight. Facing them directly is different from watching them on video. Lions and tigers look cute on video, but facing them in reality is another matter.

Originally, if he took off his clothes, his body would be exposed like withered bark. But now, apart from a few traces, he is basically in the same state as he was a few years ago, with no obvious problems.

All of this was exchanged for the tragic deaths of a large number of mutated small animals at his hands.

He could be sure that his 'strange illness' was not a real disease, but something similar to a Golden Finger. Although it brought him a lot of trouble when he came to this world, he also worked hard to exercise his body to resist it, and his physique has always been very good.

Golden Finger plus self-discipline training brought on by pressure, it's like double happiness, right?

What he regretted was that this Golden Finger was not a 'system' or anything like that, but a special ability. This world has special powers, and anything related to special powers is within the scope of abnormality, specifically 'abnormal'.

These are similar to Earth, but not Earth. Special powers are not a secret. They won't be sent to some research institute just because they have some special characteristics. The method of slicing and researching them at every turn is outdated. Unless a corpse is sent, this has little to do with him.

Those have nothing to do with him. He found a way to alleviate, and even completely eliminate, his 'withered disease'. It has something to do with those abnormal creatures. Therefore, after accumulating enough 'qualifications', he eagerly went to the Night Banquet Bar to register his identity.

After he brings the proof there, he can officially receive the 'Hunter' certificate. At that time, he can get a lot of free information without having to run around miserably to find mutated creatures that are not easy to find in the city.

Chicken farm? Mutated chickens are also the property of the chicken farm owner. If you encounter one and kill it in time, you can get a bonus, but it is still the chicken farm owner's property, not related to the employees. The same rule applies to other farms.

Zheng Yichen encountered that kind of thing three times at the chicken farm, but each time he only got a little bit of blood on him. He finally quit his job there and started formal amateur 'hunting'.

It was in formal amateur hunting that he gained a clearer understanding and knowledge of his 'illness'.

Now, those mutated small animals are no longer enough for him, but his 'withered disease' has not been eradicated. It is obviously unrealistic to rely on bullying small animals to become the Ten Mile Slope Sword God. It is like leveling up in a game; eventually, you have to leave the novice village.

Then go out into the world.

He patted his chest. He had to admit that exercise was addictive. Before, it was for survival. Now it's a habit. He feels uncomfortable if he doesn't put pressure on his muscles every day.

He lifted the heavy barbells at home with ease and played with them for more than half an hour. After completing his pre-sleep routine, Zheng Yichen took a cold shower humming a tune and lay on the bed reading a 'Combat Techniques' book bought from a street stall.

He wanted to find some skilled people to learn from, but he couldn't without access to those circles. As for going to common martial arts schools, they are suitable for strengthening the body, but he has already passed that stage.

Martial arts schools should have true teachings, but true teachings are not like cabbage bought in a market. Zheng Yichen wanted 'quick success'. If the abnormality in his body were not so serious, he could calm down and train for a few years, but he didn't have that much time.

It's better to learn through practical experience in the 'Hunter' circle.

For this reason, he plans to go kill a chicken early tomorrow morning...