Meeting

Although there were many Iron-Armored Savage Bulls, only two or three could attack Guan Ning at once.

As the number of monster corpses grew, Guan Ning could occasionally use the fallen bodies to find openings and dodge the herd's charges.

"Pfft!"

Blood sprayed like water from a faucet. In just a short while, thirty or forty of the hundred-plus Iron-Armored Savage Bulls had died. Led by the two remaining Junior War General-level Iron-Armored Savage Bulls, the rest fled.

The noise of the battle and the thick smell of blood attracted many monsters, including quite a few Beast General-level ones. But when they saw the Iron-Armored Savage Bull leader and Guan Ning, they hurried away.

Beast General-level monsters had a certain degree of intelligence. They knew the city's tyrant, the Iron-Armored Savage Bull, very well, as well as Guan Ning, who often harassed them. Neither was someone they could take on, so they wisely avoided trouble.

Beast General-level monsters could keep themselves in check, but Beast Soldier-level monsters weren't necessarily so restrained. Guan Ning welcomed any that came his way.

He processed the Iron-Armored Savage Bull's materials while killing any monsters that came close.

The most valuable materials on an Iron-Armored Savage Bull were its horns and scales.

But the Intermediate Beast General-level Iron-Armored Savage Bull was enormous. Once Guan Ning had packed its scales and horns, there wasn't much room left in his backpack. With no other choice, he picked through the rest and chose the horns of nine high-level Beast Soldier monsters. His backpack was now full.

"This..."

As Guan Ning prepared to leave, he couldn't help eyeing the meat on the Iron-Armored Savage Bull.

Monster meat was rich in nutrients and energy, and it greatly helped improve physical fitness.

Guan Ning had passed the Quasi-Warrior Assessment at seventeen, partly through hard work and partly because he had eaten monster meat regularly for years. But monster meat was incredibly expensive in the Base City, beyond the means of ordinary people.

Guan Ning had always eaten meat from domesticated Beast Soldier-level monsters. For him, it no longer had much effect.

He had finished the monster meat at home before leaving, and that had been one reason he'd come to the Wilderness Area. He'd even made preparations for it. The Iron-Armored Savage Bull before him was perfect: nutritious, chewy, and delicious.

No sooner said than done. He emptied his backpack and took out the plastic wrap he'd prepared. Made from monster materials, it could preserve the meat and mask its bloody smell. A single roll cost as much as 100,000 Huaxia Currency.

Luckily, it could be reused. Otherwise, Guan Ning couldn't have afforded something so extravagant.

He cut the meat from the Iron-Armored Savage Bull with the Qingming Sword, then used a dagger to slice it into neat, square chunks. He wrapped them in plastic and packed them into his backpack.

"That's enough."

The backpack was made from monster materials, so it was light, durable, and spacious. Thirty kilograms of monster meat would meet all his training needs before he went to the Elite Training Camp.

There was still a little space left in the backpack, enough for only the Iron-Armored Savage Bull leader's horns and scales. He had to leave the horns from the high-level Beast Soldier monsters behind.

"Those were worth at least 200,000. What a waste. Wait..."

Guan Ning pulled a transparent cord from his clothes. It was one of the two tail tendons from a Twin-Tailed Civet he'd hunted on his first day.

Ever since he'd gotten it, he'd set it up across windows and balconies whenever he practiced his swordsmanship in the Wilderness Area. If a monster approached, the cord would alert him. It had made things much easier.

He threaded the horns onto the tendon and wrapped it around himself. It looked a little awkward, but didn't get in the way much.

Besides, if there was danger, he could always throw them away.

And so, dressed in a blue-green combat suit, carrying the Qingming Sword and a bulging backpack, with horns strapped to his body, Guan Ning set off.

Back at the Supply Base, Guan Ning took stock of what he'd gained during this time.

He'd thought he could master the first layer in five or six days, but it had taken him nearly half a month. Throughout that time, he'd encountered at least five monster herds every day, honing his swordsmanship and training his footwork.

The long hours, the frequent battles, and the intense pressure had finally let him briefly break through to the "Perfect-Level" during his fight with the Iron-Armored Savage Bull.

Over the past half month, Guan Ning had killed five or six hundred monsters and fought countless more. His real combat experience had increased tremendously, especially his experience dealing with groups, as had his astonishing composure and judgment!

It was precisely because of that composure and judgment that, in a split-second between life and death, he'd grasped a defensive method described in the manual and seized that narrow chance to survive.

The method involved using muscle vibrations to spread an impact throughout the body, from a single point to the whole. It increased his defensive power, much like wearing a Force Battle Suit.

Improved defense also meant improved survivability. For Guan Ning, it was a qualitative leap.

Then there was the money. He'd sold more than five hundred high-level Beast Soldier monsters to Cui You of the HR Alliance for an average of 8,000 each, earning a total of five million. That was nearly ten percent above market price, but Cui You still made a profit. Merchants didn't do business at a loss.

As for the Twin-Tailed Tiger Cat, the Iron-Armored Savage Bull, and the Sword-Master Wild Boar he'd hunted a few days earlier—all three Beast General-level monsters—Guan Ning planned to sell them to the Limit Martial Hall. That would raise his rank to Junior War General and increase his contribution points.

"Brother Wang, how much do you think these are worth?"

Guan Ning found the person in charge of the Limit Martial Hall at the Supply Base and dumped a pile of monster materials on the ground.

"The Twin-Tailed Tiger Cat's claws and pelt, and the Sword-Master Wild Boar's spikes. They're all Elementary Beast General-level. That's fourteen million Huaxia Currency and seven thousand contribution points."

"Whoa, what's this? The horns and scales of an Intermediate Beast General-level Iron-Armored Savage Bull. That's twenty-six million Huaxia Currency and thirteen thousand contribution points."

"That makes forty million Huaxia Currency and twenty thousand contribution points in total."

Guan Ning nodded slightly.

If he sold these monster materials to the HR Alliance, he could get around sixty million. At the Limit General Hall, he could only get two-thirds of that—forty million, two million less. But he'd gained 20,000 contribution points. If he earned those points purely through donations, he'd have to donate a full 200 million.

In other words...

By selling monster materials to the Limit Martial Hall, he'd lose ten million to get 10,000 contribution points. That was ten times more cost-effective than donating! Clearly, the Limit Martial Hall wanted everyone to earn contribution points by hunting monsters. Donating to the Limit Dojo for contribution points was basically a shortcut, which was why it took 10,000 Huaxia Currency to earn just one point. There was a punitive element to it.

"Guan Ning, you're earning money faster than some warrior teams!"

The middle-aged man Guan Ning called Brother Wang had initially seemed fairly unfazed. After all, a genius who'd made it into the Elite Training Camp was expected to hunt Elementary Beast General-level monsters.

But when he saw the Iron-Armored Savage Bull, he was taken aback. An Intermediate Beast General-level Iron-Armored Savage Bull had defense comparable to a high-level Beast General monster. Ordinary people weren't capable of taking one down, so he couldn't help regarding Guan Ning more highly.

"Brother Wang, you're flattering me. I nearly died taking down that Iron-Armored Savage Bull. It was just luck, luck..."

Guan Ning gave a wry smile. Just thinking about what had happened made him break out in a cold sweat.

"All right, the money and contribution points have been transferred. Your rank has also been raised to Junior War General."

Though he'd been talking the whole time, Brother Wang hadn't stopped working. He quickly got everything done.

"Beep."

Guan Ning looked down at his Communication Watch. The Limit Martial Hall's warrior profile appeared before him:

Name: Guan Ning

Gender: Male

Address: Jiangnan Base City, Huaxia Nation

Warrior Certificate Number: 423656205703010001

Rank: War General Level (Junior)

Contribution Points: 20,000 (One-Star)

Currency Balance: 46,751,683.

At 10,000 contribution points, a person reached One-Star.

At 100,000 contribution points, a person reached Two-Star.

At one million contribution points, a person reached Three-Star.

At ten million contribution points, a person reached Four-Star.

At fifty million contribution points, a person reached the legendary Five-Star! Reaching Five-Star was almost impossible. The difficulty was simply too great.

After leaving Brother Wang, Guan Ning returned to the villa assigned to him. He browsed the Martial Artist Forum for a while, then washed up and went to bed.

For the past half month, he'd stayed at the Supply Base every night, but he'd trained every day and hadn't had a proper rest.

Now that everything was taken care of and he was returning to the Base City the next day, he deserved a good night's sleep. You had to balance work and rest.

When he returned to the Base City the next day, Uncle Zhong, Aunt Xue, and Aunt Qian were waiting for him at the entrance to the neighborhood.

"You! You went to the Wilderness Area without telling us. I could've arranged for you to join a warrior team. How could you go alone?"

"I'm telling you, the Wilderness Area is so dangerous, and you went alone. You must have a death wish!"

"Are you hurt? Let me have a look."

The moment they saw Guan Ning, a stream of scolding and concern poured from their mouths. His heart warmed.

"Don't worry, I'm fine. I'll tell you next time... As for dinner, I'll have to pass. I still need to clean the house!"

They invited Guan Ning over for a meal to welcome him back, but he politely declined.

When he got home, he first let his parents know he was back, then started cleaning. The house had only been empty for half a month, so there wasn't much dust, but his habits from his previous life as a forensic examiner made him uneasy.

What habits did forensic examiners have? Their homes and workplaces didn't have to be spotless, but they did have to be clean and tidy. It was a necessity of the job, not some kind of obsession with cleanliness.

After cleaning, Guan Ning cooked a huge meal with Savage Bull meat. It tasted so incredible that he couldn't stop thinking about it.

Once he'd satisfied his appetite, Guan Ning went to the Training Room and watched the second layer.

Afterward, Guan Ning was deeply shaken. The thirty-six sword moves in the second layer displayed the words "strange" and "dangerous" to the fullest.

He also understood why he needed to reach the "Mastery-Level" in swordsmanship to learn the second layer. Its moves were simply too strange and unpredictable. One careless mistake could injure him; before he could hurt anyone else, he might hurt himself. Only at the "Mastery-Level" could he ensure he wouldn't injure himself.