Chapter 423 - Ready to Strike

Yang Yan walked through the city at night, where the white moonlight overhead intertwined with the black shadows of the buildings. His vision flickered between light and dark as he moved at high speed. Both sides of the scenery retreated rapidly behind him until the streets were far out of sight.

Cassius tailed the Gate Organization member Yang Yan, and his thoughts raced swiftly. Just as he had guessed before, those dark creatures with the prototypes of the Blue Tear Eye embedded in their bodies were test subjects of the Gate Organization. In fact, the Gate Organization even had a hidden test site in Florence’s District Six. This allowed Cassius to connect all his previously gathered information about the Gate Organization.

The Gate Organization had been closely tied to dark creatures during the second time-travel. When the Wind Elephant Sect suffered the war of annihilation, the actions of the Dead Blood faintly hinted that Xiadu, the leader of the Gate Organization, had been pulling the strings from behind. It became even more evident during the fourth time-travel when the Gate Organization directly cooperated with the Blood Spirit Society.

They had even supplied the Blood Spirit Society with a Berserk Serum that could enrage the Dead Blood, drastically boosting their strength for a short time! This clearly proved how thoroughly the Gate Organization had studied dark creatures, as only extensive experimentation could yield such an augmentative potion.

Combining that with what Cassius had just overheard, it turned out that the Gate Organization had embarked on its dark-creature research quite early on. According to the brief conversation between Yang Yan and Zhu Hun, the Gate Organization even seemed to possess a method of converting normal humans into dark creatures!

This organization had always been keen on researching all sorts of strange things. Apart from the technique of turning humans into dark creatures, they had also conducted experiments on the effects of the Gate Fragments. Reaper Amos had once been one of their test subjects but had narrowly managed to escape and be rescued.

Narrowing his gaze slightly, Cassius continued pondering. Zhu Hun's recent words contained some veiled messages. For instance, he planned to enlist the help of a few old figures from the royal family and the council, and he also mentioned an experimental plan involving dark creatures.

Clearly, two of the three major forces in Florence were already experiencing internal issues, if they were going as far as secretly performing human experiments with the Gate Organization. It was like seeking cooperation with a tiger. No wonder the Hongli Empire collapsed so suddenly in two or three years. Such a downfall stemmed from severe internal issues at the highest levels of the empire.

The swift demise of the Dark Hunter Organization, which was such a massive official force, was likely one of the key factors as well. An even more critical cause was definitely tied to Zhu Hun's plan to locate the source of the sacred spring on behalf of the Gate Organization.

Cassius had studied the Dark Hunter Organization's unique resource, sacred spring water, which contained a special energy yet concealed calamity. All hunters who drank that water inevitably suffered its effects. They experienced beast transformation and ultimately lost control of their minds.

There was a sub-department within the Hunters' Association known as the Treatment Ward that consisted of elite hunters adept in battling other hunters. They were tasked specifically with purging those who had succumbed to beast transformation. They did so to prevent these fallen hunters from becoming like dark creatures and causing widespread slaughter and destruction.

The head of the Treatment Ward was even one of the five Shadow Hunters, reflecting just how vital that institution was. That fact also indicated how severely beast transformations were treated within the Dark Hunter Organization.

If someone were to pour more fuel on this already intense situation and ignite it all at once, it would be like the buildup of scalding magma beneath the earth's crust, violently erupting in one explosive moment and destroying everything.

After all, hunters of the Dark Hunter Organization, regardless of whether they had reached the limit in the number of sacred marks they could bear, still had to replenish themselves with sacred spring water after every battle. Should the source itself be compromised, the entire tree would rot swiftly.

Therefore, the Gate Organization was searching for the sacred spring's source. They also secretly supported Solomon the Thorn in competing for the Shadow Hunter seat so that, if he won, he could infiltrate the source of the sacred spring and perhaps poison it.

Cassius finally pieced everything together completely. In addition, he gained other insights. For instance, he learned how the Gate Organization produced the Blue Tear Eye. Placing the prototype of the Blue Tear Eye inside dark creatures definitely served a purpose; perhaps it was absorbing something? Once the absorption was nearly complete, they would then retrieve each prototype for synthesis.

Cassius also guessed that the Blue Tear Eye was created only during the final days of the Hongli Empire. By the time of the Hongli Federation, resources like the Blue Tear Eye were completely in Xiadu's hands. In the future, it would serve as a method of controlling the Gate Organization's members.

Or, perhaps there were specialized members dedicated to creating the Blue Tear Eye. Meanwhile, the other members remained unaware and only knew the Gate Organization's surface affairs. If it was like this, the Gate Organization clearly did not maintain equal status among all its members, contrary to what they claimed. Some seasoned members surely knew more secrets and would handle specific tasks for their leader, Xiadu.

As he kept thinking, Cassius clarified his thoughts further, even linking experiences from multiple time-travels with his current reality. He immediately thought back to his time in the World of Calamity, suspecting that the Gate Organization had some involvement with it.

Even the so-called "Calamity Tunnel," which had never before appeared in the Dark Hunter Organization's data, had emerged in recent years! Cassius found it hard to believe this was just a coincidence and preferred to assume the worst.

Hu...

A cold wind brushed past his ear as Cassius streaked by at high speed, leaving no trace of a sound. A dark silhouette flickered before him, and the drunk sitting on a roadside bench with a bottle in hand did not react at all.

Black Qi emerged from his body and spread in a thin layer over his skin, producing a rather uncanny effect. It reduced wind resistance, absorbed sound, and concealed his form. It was merely an application of Qi in movement, but it was already comparable to the three types of lower-tier arcane energy.

The Covert Martial Arts system’s benefits were readily evident: its upper limit was very high, but so was its barrier to entry. As for hunters who wielded arcane energy, had it not been for the enhancement of sacred marks which significantly amplified their energy, their strength would have paled in comparison to Covert Martial Arts.

If a Covert Martial Arts Practitioner was comparable to a heavily armored tank, then both the hunters of the Dark Hunter Organization and the Black Rain Manor’s marked-ones were mere glass cannons.

However, all these comparisons were relative. For example, to Cassius, even an ordinary Covert Martial Arts Practitioner was a glass cannon. No, calling them glass cannons might be a bit extreme. It seemed more accurate to describe them as possessing high attack yet low defense.

After all, the basic framework of Covert Martial Arts included tempering the body. Anyone who advanced to a high-level combat artist possessed a body that was as robust as an elephant. It's just that Cassius was even more terrifying since he wielded the strength of a rampaging tyrannosaur.

He had already restored his body's combat strength to that of a veteran combat artist, and returning to his peak was just around the corner. Once he could reach the source of the sacred spring to drink his fill and complete his platinum sacred marks, Cassius planned to utilize the Dark Hunter Organization to its full strength, using its massive arena to repeatedly test the Gate Organization's hidden trump cards. He needed to understand his enemy.

In this instance, the test site in District Six was an opportunity.

Yang Yan made his way through the complex alleyways of the residential area, and Cassius followed at a distance. Various brick and wooden buildings formed cubes, resembling uneven stacks of pale yellow blocks. A lingering scent of soap filled the air, mingling with the pungent smell of damp clothes.

He took one step forward, and the view suddenly opened up. A wide river flowed next to numerous residential buildings. The bright moonlight descended, casting a hazy glimmer across the water's surface.

Yang Yan followed the river until he reached a very secluded corner of the residential district. There were only two or three scattered houses here; the rest was woodland. The terrain was uneven, featuring rock walls and small hills that were unsuitable for construction. Thus, the area had never been designated for urban use.

Yang Yan walked straight into the area, weaving around in circles. Cassius followed closely behind. He relied on the forest trees and the dim surroundings to conceal himself.

Suddenly, Yang Yan stopped somewhere ahead of him. There was a noise like something heavy being moved, and then all fell silent. Cassius waited in place for half a minute before peeking out. It was dark up ahead, yet his keen eyes, which had tracked Yang Yan's silhouette among the shifting shadows of trees earlier, still looked for any sign.

Cassius quickly shifted his vantage point several times, confirming that Yang Yan had indeed vanished. Only then did he move forward and stop beside a large tree. Moss and dead leaves lay beneath the roots, entwined with thick vines. In the gaps sat a rock half the size of a man, weathered by time and covered in slick green moss. Cassius glanced at it, then used both hands to effortlessly lift it.

He found a sturdy wooden plank covering a tunnel. He stared at it briefly, then put the rock back. He then turned and slipped away in silence, heading toward the central garden. It was enough to know where the test site was located.

It was not the right moment to confront the Gate Organization head-on, even if they would realize he had carried out the slaughter in the central garden in the next day or two. The Gate Organization was still responding calmly. If he acted rashly now, it would mean ripping off the façade prematurely.

Cassius had yet to return to his peak strength and needed more time to develop. For now, his priority was to bring the mission's target back first.

The Dark Hunter Organization's headquarters was still shining with bright lights at around nine-thirty, and many hunters had gathered in public areas to chat and drink. After all, an unexpected development had occurred in the first stage of the Shadow Hunter seat competition.

Solomon the Thorn and Lion King Soss had both had their missions annulled, forcing them to return to headquarters in frustration and embarrassment. Meanwhile, Claire the Siren and another previously unremarkable competitor, White Aster, had completed their missions first. This left many hunters who had placed bets utterly dumbfounded. All they could do was pay up with looks of utter disbelief.

Another reason was that hunters patrolling Florence at night discovered a sudden riot among dark creatures, prompting the Hunters' Association to issue a warning. Scouts reported that dark creatures from three entire districts had converged on some location in District Four, practically forming a beast wave. The Dark Hunter Organization pinpointed the site, which turned out to be the central garden.

The place resembled a scene out of hell, though not for humans, but for the dark creatures themselves. The stench of blood on the plaza soared into the sky, with severed limbs and pools of blood everywhere. The corpses of dark creatures were piled into a small mountain in one corner to the west. Based on their count, hundreds of dark creatures had perished that night. They included numerous Wild Beasts and even some Savage Beasts!

According to the scouts, they had even discovered dark creatures that rivaled Dark Gold Hunters, like the Laughing Nightmare that Lion King Soss had targeted, and the green hag that Solomon the Thorn had hunted. No wonder their missions had been nullified!

Their targets had been taken out in advance by some mysterious expert. Naturally, their mission tasks would have to start over from scratch. A few Dark Gold Hunters on decent terms with Solomon the Thorn and Lion King Soss had tried asking about it, only to be tossed out of their residences by the two, who were wearing dark scowls. Still, the incidents indirectly confirmed the credibility of the rumors.

There was an officially established tavern in the Hunters' Association compound. Hunters who had been roused by the warning and could not get back to sleep gathered there to brag and joke around. Their mugs of malt beer never stopped flowing.

Bang.

A large, hairy hand slammed a mug down onto the table. Dark-yellow beer sloshed out from inside as the unruly brawny man let out a satisfied belch and burst into hearty laughter. Several of his drinking buddies around him began teasing him.

"Henry, you're so happy about winning the bet—next round's on you..."

"Hahaha, who would have thought that the first to finish the assessment mission wouldn't be either Solomon the Thorn or Lion King Soss? Henry actually bet on Claire the Siren and made a tidy profit!

Heh

, lucky him."

"That's not all. Henry never got along with Soss and also disliked Solomon. He's thrilled to see the two of them fall on hard times." The group of drinking companions talked animatedly as they drank.

Before long, a middle-aged hunter walked in from outside, looking excited. He wore the look of someone eager to spill some news.

"What? Solomon and Soss's targets were conveniently killed by White Aster?! That whole mountain of dark-creature corpses was also his handiwork..."

"Seriously?"

"It's definitely true! Claire said so herself."

"Wow, that's amazing."

"That kid was hiding his real skills? I heard he'd always been a Black Copper Hunter.

Tsk, tsk...

Both Solomon and Soss got overshadowed..."

The tavern grew even noisier, but none of it concerned Cassius. After handing in his mission target, the ghoul, he had already returned to his residence. The veteran hunters chose not to disturb Cassius at this time, obviously believing that he needed rest.

Cassius was glad to have a break and began preparing to enter the World of Calamity. He had interrogated the ghoul on his way back, but unfortunately, the dark creature's intelligence had fallen short of even a lizard-man. It was only driven by base carnivorous urges. No explanation could be found for the spiral pattern at the butcher house. He could only vaguely attribute it to the Gate Organization.

Cassius did not want to dwell on it. He sped up his plans in the real world, as his exploration of the World of Calamity had also reached a crucial juncture. Cassius and the other two had already scoured many areas in the southwestern corner of the Pale Lands the previous day.

They had also discovered a rocky mountainous terrain filled with bizarre stone formations. Barring any surprises, the Howling Canyon would be found within this region. The unusual geological formations, Soul Jades that could nourish Qi, and the remnants of generations of combat artists who died there... all of it made Cassius eager to proceed.