Chapter 204: A Frightening Foundation

How could Yan Long fail to be excited? There were seven hunters in the first realm who had obtained peak gene fragments, six of whom belonged to China!

Peak gene fragments were rare even for second-realm hunters, and most would ascend to the third realm as soon as they had capped out their mutated gene capacity. Only a rare few hunters would advance having capped out their superior gene capacity, and even fewer their peak gene capacity.

Most second-realm hunters would be overjoyed just to have any peak gene fragments at all—such was their rarity. However, Zhang Lie and his team had acquired these precious fragments in the first realm! Although the first realm was colloquially known as the newbie realm, and the effect of these gene fragments less intense than in the second and higher realms, even a first-realm peak gene fragment was still a peak gene fragment.

How could Yan Long not be astounded by such good news? It was no wonder that they managed to avoid being assassinated by a team of second- and third-realm hunters. Without a doubt, the hunters of Team Zenith would become pillars of China, because their foundations were more solid than any hunter past or future!

It looked as though he really had to impose severe sanctions on any clan that dared to strike at Team Zenith.

"Good, very good! As expected of one who bears the title of Dragonwolf—in that case, you'd better take the first seven places in the worldwide tournament! Who do you think tried to assassinate you today?"

Zhang Lie laughed. "Who else? Some combination of the Wang, Li, Qin, and Long clans, no doubt."

Su Feng knew a little of the enmity between Zhang Lie and the Wang, Li, and Qin clans after attending his dojo's opening ceremony,but Yan Long was quite amazed at the number and strength of the clans that he had managed to offend. In addition to the He and Qian clans of the capital, there were six major clans in all that considered Zhang Lie an enemy—and he was barely in his twenties!

"That many? Explain the situation at once. We'll do our best to annul these grievances. As for you, focus on winning the championship!"

"Don't worry, Commander Yan. I'll handle my own affairs on my own, and China will certainly have a good showing at this Void Cup."

"You're certain?" Yan Long reaffirmed.

"Yes, Commander! If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now."

"Make sure we don't have to clean up after your mess within the next few days!" Yan Long called out again.

"Yessir!" Indeed, for the hunters of Team Zenith, quiet meditation and cultivation was what was most urgent to them at the moment.

Su Feng sat back down to confer with Yan Long, and the two of them shared a smile.

"What do you think we should do, Yan Long?"

"What, don't you have a plan already?"

"Alright, then—I'll deal with the Wang clan in Ning, as well as the Qin clan. Can I leave the Long clan in Lingnan, as well as the Li clan in the north, to you?"

"Leaving the harder clans to me, eh? I see how it is. Fine, it's settled. I'll have my men reach out immediately." Su Feng nodded, then left Yan Long's suite.

When Zhang Lie returned to Team Zenith's rooms, he found Yun Bing and Chu Feng there waiting for him. Everyone there had been pleasantly chatting away until his entrance.

"Zhang Lie, are you alright? Did you get a scolding from Commander Yan?" Chu Feng joked.

Zhang Lie laughed. "I'm alright. Commander Yan had us stay in our rooms so as to not cause trouble."

"You're the Dragonwolf Zhang Lie, after all, favored to win the tournament! Both your competitors and your enemies will be out for your blood," Yun Bing added.

Fang Yi and Sun Mengmeng immediately protested Yun Bing's words. At some point, they had grown used to young clan heads like Yun Bing and Chu Feng, and they no longer shrunk back in their presence.

"Zhang Lie, will you tell us about these sensational pictures of you returning to the Blacksteel settlement late at night? I know these are the carcasses of moonlight wyrms—we almost died to them because of you!"

"One was a peak-grade lifeform—that's all I'll say on the matter," Zhang Lie replied.

"A peak-grade lifeform!" Chu Feng gasped.

The Yun and Chu clans were both major clans, and they certainly knew just what hunting down a peak-grade lifeform in the first realm implied.

"In that case, you..." Even the usually calm and collected Yun Bing seemed to be at a loss for words.

Although she had sensed the fluctuations in the wyrm's genetic energy for herself way back when, and thought it stronger than a regular superior-grade lifeform, she hadn't suspected that it would actually be a peak-grade lifeform.

The existence of a peak-grade lifeform in the first realm of the dimensional world sounded like pure fiction. It had been widely recognized as fact that the first realm could only harbor at most superior-grade lifeforms, and this revelation upended an entire century's worth of knowledge.

Not only that, Team Zenith had even managed to hunt down the peak-grade lifeform! This meant that every member of Team Zenith had a few peak gene fragments...

"Zhang Lie, won't you let me know the next time you encounter something like this? I'll do anything, even be a common bellhop if need be!" Chu Feng cried out.

If only relationships between Zhang Lie and the Chu clan hadn't been ruined because of his father's decision to remain neutral! Otherwise, there might have been a place for him in the moonlight wyrm's hunt. Peak gene fragments, rare even in the second realm—and Zhang Lie and the rest of Team Zenith had obtained them in the first!

Of course, Yun Bing was feeling much the same way. If only she had been a little more persistent! Perhaps her father would have been more amenable to her pleas then...

Unfortunately, what was done couldn't be undone.

"Right, Zhang Lie, please let us know about something like this the next time around." Yun Bing made the same request that Chu Feng did, surprising the members of Team Zenith. Indeed, they hadn't quite realized just how important the ten peak gene fragments they had obtained were.

"I'll keep that in mind," Zhang Lie replied. It was true that Zhang Lie appreciated Yun Bing and Chu Feng, but in the end, they weren't as close to him as the members of Team Zenith, and he wouldn't dedicate too much effort to helping them out.

In the end, he could only rely on those teammates who were truly and wholly loyal to him. Yun Bing and Chu Feng nodded, understanding the rationale for his noncommittal response and the boundaries that separated them all.

The two of them had come to visit Team Zenith's suite to ask about the hunt and to confirm that Zhang Lie was safe and sound; their objectives achieved, they turned to leave.

"Alright, we'll be taking our leave now. I didn't expect that someone like you would be hurt in an assassination attempt, but I still had to confirm it for myself. I'll see you all soon at the start of the tournament—you won't need it, but good luck."