Chapter 102: Discovery

The hunting operation went even more smoothly than Fang Mu had anticipated.

After all, he had no intention of actually alarming that massive pack of Sawtooth Hyenas. Once the Sawtooth Hyenas at the front had been hunted down, he began to circle the perimeter of the pack, picking off the stragglers.

When he focused entirely on the hunt, the terrifying lethality of a Gunfighter—provided they had enough distance and genetic origin energy—was displayed to its fullest extent.

One shot, one Sawtooth Hyena. Every bullet found its mark; he was precise and lethal.

In just one day, including the forty-eight he had taken in the morning, he had killed a total of 123 Sawtooth Hyenas.

At 150,000 per head... that was 18.45 million!

Earning nearly 20 million a day... this rate of profit was more exaggerated than robbery; it was simply terrifying.

Of course, if he truly wanted to liquidate all of them, he couldn't cash out in a single day. It would take at least two weeks or so.

But regardless, with his spatial equipment, in terms of earning money, there were likely very few people within the entire First-Star Battlefield who could outdo him.

As night fell, Fang Mu began to feel a hint of fatigue. Although the Origin Energy Refining Scripture granted him an incredibly fast recovery rate for his genetic origin energy, a sense of exhaustion was inevitable.

Eventually, he moved away from the Sawtooth Hyena pack, found a safe spot, and retrieved a tent from his spatial equipment to set up camp.

***

In the blink of an eye, three days passed.

By now, Fang Mu had ventured deep into the Qianyou Wasteland, where no one else was likely to come. This was quite comfortable.

In three days, he had killed nearly four hundred Sawtooth Hyenas. Fang Mu had circled halfway around the pack, effectively reaching the direct opposite side from where he had fought on the first day.

Ahead of him was a dense forest. Fang Mu knew this forest was called the "Cangxi Jungle."

The Cangxi Jungle bordered the Qianyou Wasteland, but people rarely went there because the forest lacked high-value battlefield creatures. It was mostly inhabited by Black-Iron grade creatures like Mole Beasts and Black Jade Insects.

However, the terrain was incredibly complex, filled with dense shrubs and thorny plants that made walking difficult. On top of that, it was teeming with venomous insects. Although they were only Black-Iron grade, being bitten would cause unbearable itching and pain; even if not immediately fatal, it was extremely miserable.

If one happened to encounter highly toxic ones and couldn't leave the dense forest in time, a life-threatening situation wasn't entirely impossible.

Therefore, evolutionaries of any level rarely ventured there.

Consequently, Fang Mu merely took a look and had no intention of going in.

He took his heavy sniper rifle from his spatial equipment and found a high point. He began to look toward the Sawtooth Hyenas, calculating how many he might attract if he opened fire there.

He had been conducting such sniper operations for three days now, and he was quite experienced.

After a brief scan, a smile appeared on his face. Good, there were about thirty-two Sawtooth Hyenas within a two-to-three-kilometer radius where they could hear the sound.

Gripping the rifle, he let out a soft breath, but he didn't pull the trigger right away.

Although he felt it was unlikely, he subconsciously checked his surroundings to ensure that no one was nearby while he fought. It was almost an instinctive behavior, as he didn't actually believe anyone would be in this place.

However, an unexpected situation arose.

"Hm?"

After that subconscious glance, Fang Mu froze. He had happened to spot a group of people on the flat wasteland about seven or eight kilometers to the southeast.

The group consisted of over a dozen people wearing black trench coats—much like the attire he was wearing.

And they were clearly heading in his direction!

Fang Mu was momentarily stunned. He furrowed his brows slightly, raised his heavy sniper rifle, and aimed at the group.

Through the scope, more detailed conditions appeared.

And upon seeing those details, Fang Mu’s frown deepened.

He clearly saw that in the center of the group, there were two people dressed differently from the rest. They were covered in wounds, being escorted by several men in black. They were tightly bound with metal chains held by the men behind them. They stumbled forward, hair disheveled, looking utterly wretched, yet they were being pushed to keep moving.

Ever since Fang Mu had advanced to the Bronze stage, his eyesight had improved significantly. Now, combined with the thirty-two-times scope on his sniper rifle, he could clearly see the appearance of the two men.

They were strangers, their faces deathly pale, covered in numerous injuries. One of them even had his right leg dragging on the ground, clearly broken. Yet, even so, they were pushed forward by the men in black, given no time for rest or treatment.

So cruel?

Fang Mu instinctively frowned, then tried to see who these men in black were.

The scope moved, scanning face after face. They were all men, but all strangers—he had never seen them before.

Until the scope landed on the person in the lead...

Fang Mu’s gaze suddenly locked. The scope fixed on the leader.

The figure was tall and robust, wearing a black trench coat stretched tight over his muscular frame. His face was as rugged as rock, and his fierce gaze gave him an inherent air of a bandit.

Wasn't this one of the leaders of the Greedy Wolf group who had ambushed Lin Chuyin that day?!

When Fang Mu had asked Lin Chuyin to point out who posed the greatest threat to him, he had seen all four of Greedy Wolf's Gold-stage evolutionaries through the lens.

And the largest one, though he didn't know his name, had left an extremely deep impression on him.

"People from Greedy Wolf?"

Fang Mu’s brow furrowed tightly.

But hadn't it been said that Greedy Wolf had been destroyed? That their core members had left the battlefield city, likely heading to other battlefields?

How had they appeared here again?

Fang Mu was somewhat dazed.

But a moment later, realizing that the Greedy Wolf group was indeed heading this way, he didn't dare to hesitate. He rolled over, hiding behind the high ground, his brows locked in a knot.

What were the people from Greedy Wolf doing here?

And led by a Gold-stage fighter?

Who were those two captives?

Fang Mu pondered, but soon regained his composure. Regardless, he had to leave this place first.

This was a wasteland with no cover. Once the other party got close, there was a high probability they would discover him. And based on his understanding of the Greedy Wolf group, if they discovered him, regardless of whether he had provoked them, they would likely attack.

Scanning the area, Fang Mu finally set his sights on the dense forest.

The forest was thick with trees; hiding inside, he shouldn't be discovered.

He would hide first and figure out the rest later.

Thinking this, he peeked over again. He found that the group had entered a lower-lying area where he couldn't see them, which meant they certainly couldn't see him either.

Fang Mu didn't hesitate. He packed up his heavy sniper, turned, and dashed toward the forest behind him.

Minutes later, Fang Mu had slipped into the forest.

He didn't go deep, but found a large, leafy tree near the edge. With a leap, he climbed to the top, took out his sniper rifle, and aimed toward the direction of the Greedy Wolf group.

At first, he couldn't see anyone, but ten minutes later, the group reappeared in his field of vision. By now, they were only four or five kilometers away.

They were still approaching.

Fang Mu frowned, his curiosity growing. What were they doing here? Passing through? Or...

Thoughts raced through his mind. Another ten minutes passed, and the group had walked within a one-kilometer radius of Fang Mu.

Fang Mu held his breath.

He knew the senses of a Gold-stage evolutionary. Fortunately, this wasn't a closed space like a glacial crevice; the wind was blowing, and the leaves rustled. As long as he didn't make any abnormal sounds—like the clanging of metal or a cough—the probability of them discovering him shouldn't be high.

But just then, he noticed that the Greedy Wolf group had stopped.

They had stopped at the junction between the dense forest and the Qianyou Wasteland.

The two captives were shoved to the ground. At the same time, Fang Mu saw the burly Gold-stage Heavy Blade user take out a communicator and begin speaking to someone.

Were they contacting someone? Who could it be?

As Fang Mu wondered, the call ended. The Heavy Blade user signaled for the others to rest in place, clearly waiting for someone to arrive.

Fang Mu’s eyes flickered rapidly. A Gold-stage Heavy Blade user from Greedy Wolf leading a team to capture people and waiting here for someone... Given his status, if he had to wait, then the person he was waiting for...

"Could it be... Chen Ting?"

A guess surfaced in Fang Mu’s mind.

Chen Ting! The leader of Greedy Wolf!

Having a Gold-stage Heavy Blade commander wait here—only the leader would warrant such treatment.

But... "Wasn't Chen Ting wanted by the battlefield authorities? Is he still remotely controlling Greedy Wolf?"

Fang Mu frowned.

Just then, his ears twitched as he heard movement. He looked down sharply and saw a group of people emerging from the forest about five hundred meters in front of him.

There were only five or six of them, led by a thin young man.

Although he was looking from above and only saw a side profile, Fang Mu recognized him instantly...

It was indeed Chen Ting!

The arrival of Chen Ting and the men in black behind him caused the Greedy Wolf group to stand up respectfully and greet him.

"Leader..."

Separated by nearly a kilometer, Fang Mu’s heightened senses still allowed him to hear a little. It was very faint and intermittent. He heard the first "Leader" clearly, but everything else was lost.

Through the scope, he saw that the two captives, upon seeing Chen Ting, had their expressions change drastically. Then, they gritted their teeth, displaying a look of defiance.

When Chen Ting smiled and squatted beside them, seemingly saying something, one of them spat at him.

However, before the spit could land, a black-clad Berserker nearby kicked him in the face. Several bloody teeth flew out, and the man was sent flying sideways, falling to the ground in a wretched state.

Chen Ting seemed to sigh, stood up, and shook his head lightly. After saying a few more words and tilting his head, the men in black behind him walked over, hauled the two men up, and pushed them into the forest.

Chen Ting exchanged a few words with the Heavy Blade user, who wore a simple, honest smile and nodded heavily before leading his men away.

Chen Ting then followed the men in black who were escorting the captives into the forest.

Before long, the Heavy Blade user and his men had moved far away, and Chen Ting had also disappeared into the dense forest.

Fang Mu sat on the tree branch, his brow slightly furrowed. A moment later, he exhaled, watched the Heavy Blade user and his team depart, and took a long look at the spot where Chen Ting had entered the forest. Then, he turned, silently climbed down the tree, and skirted the edge of the forest, heading far away.

He had no intention of following them.

Last time, a single Gold-stage Berserker had nearly killed him. If not for luck, he likely would have died there.

Now? Not being discovered was a matter of luck. If he were caught, he wouldn't have that kind of luck again. That would be pure suicide.

A chill ran down his spine. He felt a lingering fear.

If the Gold-stage group hadn't happened to come by, and if he hadn't happened to discover them... he had been planning to hunt Sawtooth Hyenas just one kilometer away!

If the sound of gunfire had rung out, he would almost certainly have been discovered by Chen Ting and his group in the forest. If they had found him and he hadn't noticed in time, and he had used his spatial equipment...

Fang Mu swallowed hard. The consequences were enough to make his scalp tingle.

Fortunately, fortunately...

Fang Mu’s breathing was slightly rapid. After walking slowly for a kilometer, he picked up his pace.

Only after running three or four kilometers did he finally let out a long breath and stop.

He looked back toward the forest; it was silent.

Fang Mu stood there in thought for a while, then exhaled, reached into his spatial equipment, and pulled out his communicator.

After staring at it for a moment, he finally dialed a number.

It rang twice before someone picked up.

"Did the sun rise in the west today? You’re actually initiating contact with me?"

Lin Chuyin’s voice came through, tinged with surprise. Judging by the sound, she didn't seem as weak as she had been a few days ago, though her voice still lacked significant vigor.

Fang Mu was silent for a moment. Ignoring her jest, he said in a low, calm voice: "I found Chen Ting."

"What?!"

On the other end of the line, Lin Chuyin’s voice rose sharply.

"Where?!"

The next moment, her voice became serious as never before.