Bo City's barrier hummed faintly that morning, its blue runes shimmering like frost in the sunlight. Near the eastern gate, a group of armored mages stood in formation—stern faces, worn boots, weapons strapped across their backs.
This was the City Demon Hunting Team.
Unlike the amateur Hunter squads Mo Fan joined, these were the city's official defenders.
They were stronger. Faster. Hardened.
And extremely selective.
Lu Jun arrived quietly.
His White Tiger Pendant flickered beneath his shirt, responding faintly to the ambient demon energy lingering beyond the walls. The officers noticed him immediately—his posture, calm eyes, and steady breathing drew attention without effort.
A woman with short hair and a scar across her cheek stepped forward.
"You're the new examinee?"
Lu Jun nodded. "Yes."
She scanned a clipboard. "Lu Jun. Water. Novice Tier."
There was a pause.
Her eyes flicked up again.
Lu Jun didn't answer. The less he revealed, the better.
Behind her, a few older hunters muttered.
Lu Mei vouched for him as an intermediate mage she had much say especially when it was her little brother "Lu Jun will be great and he has a very powerful sword"
The officer lowered the clipboard. "Fine. You're with Team Silver Fang today. Basic scouting and Minion-level cleanup."
Basic scouting.
Minion-level cleanup.
Lu Jun knew the chapter. He remembered it from the book—the first test where he and his new squad nearly faced an Evolving Minion that wiped out half a team.
This time, he was ready.
The group marched beyond the barrier, boots crunching over dead leaves. The forest was still recovering from winter; frost clung to roots and branches, and the air smelled of damp stone and distant blood.
Lu Jun scanned the ground with calm focus.
"Tracks?" one hunter asked.
"Three," Lu Jun answered quietly. "One Lesser Minion, one Standard Minion… one heavier."
The older hunter blinked. "You can tell at a glance?"
"It's not hard."
But it was.
Tracking required experience.
Lu Jun simply remembered from the novel where each beast roamed—and compared it with Xu Mang's lectures about monster categories.
The officer whistled softly. "Promising kid. Keep your guard up."
They followed the tracks through a narrow ravine. The deeper they went, the colder it became. A faint echo of howling drifted through the canyon walls.
Then—
A shadow leapt from the rocks.
A White-Eyed Stone Monkey—a Great Minion tier monster.
Fast. Agile.
Powerful enough to kill three novice mages if they were careless.
The officers tensed.
"Great Minion—brace!!"
But Lu Jun stepped forward with a calm expression, fingers sliding across the air.
Seven metal stars lit instantly.
A faint golden sheen surrounded his fingertips.
The officer's eyes widened. "Already forming Metal at that speed? That's—"
The monkey screeched and lunged.
Lu Jun didn't move.
His fingers snapped together—
Metal—Severing Edge!
SHHHRANG!
A razor-thin blade of metal energy sliced through the air.
The monkey twisted midair—but too late.
The blade grazed across its shoulder, carving a deep wound.
Not fatal.
But enough to cripple a Great Minion.
The officers exchanged startled glances.
A few muttered curses.
"A SWORD? At Novice?"
"That wasn't normal…"
"No, that was textbook precision… but impossibly high potency."
Lu Jun lowered his hand slowly.
"I'll finish it."
The hunters fell in behind him, respecting the unspoken rule:
Whoever injures the monster gets the right to end it.
Lu Jun raised his hand again—
—but something moved in the shadows above.
A second monkey.
Then a third.
Three Great Minions in one territory.
The officer cursed. "Damn it—Evolving Minion clutch!"
A cluster of Great Minions could evolve, using each other to push past limits. If they fused or enraged together… the team would be overwhelmed.
Before Lu Jun could react, the officer shouted:
"Fall back—now! Don't engage all three!"
But the monkeys didn't wait.
They screeched and launched themselves in unison—
And the air suddenly stilled.
A gust of icy wind swept over the ravine.
A massive presence pressed down from the treetops.
The monkeys froze midair, instincts screaming at them.
Something watched them.
Something colder.
Something stronger.
Something that didn't belong to this forest.
Far above, perched on a high branch, Xu Mang crossed one leg over the other, Lightning stars glowing faintly between his fingers.
The Frost Star Wolf stood beside him like a snow-white general, its fur releasing small drifts of Extreme Dust cold.
Lu Jun blinked once.
"You followed me," he said calmly.
Xu Mang smirked. "No. I followed the noise."
One of the monkeys snarled up at him.
Xu Mang raised two fingers.
A thin bolt of lightning—small, barely louder than a spark—shot downward.
CRACK.
The bolt struck the rock near the monkeys, not killing them, but freezing them in pure instinctual terror. The Frost Star Wolf stepped forward, its icy aura hammering down like a wave.
Great Minions or not—
Antarctic Ice was their natural predator.
The monkeys scrambled back in blind fear, fleeing into the forest, abandoning territory and pride.
The hunting officer stared, stunned. "What… what was that wolf…?"
Xu Mang didn't answer. He simply hopped off the branch and landed beside Lu Jun.
"You okay?" he asked.
Lu Jun nodded. "I had it handled."
Xu Mang smiled faintly. "I know."
They turned to leave.
Behind them, the officers whispered:
"That boy… his wolf… what level was that pressure?"
"I don't know… but it was above a Warrior. That cold alone…"
"That wasn't a normal beast. That was… something from the polar regions."
Xu Mang ignored them. He could already sense the next threat deeper in the forest. It wasn't urgent—not yet—but enough to require preparation.
He looked at Lu Jun.
"Your Metal is sharper," Xu Mang said.
"You've gotten stronger too," Lu Jun replied.
Wolfie padded ahead, tail swaying, releasing little bursts of frost that melted on the ground.
"And Mo Fan?" Xu Mang asked.
Lu Jun smirked. "He just passed his Hunter exam."
"Good." Xu Mang stretched his arm. "Let's test this area. Plenty of Minion-level trash to warm up with."
Lu Jun watched as Xu Mang walked deeper into the wilderness, Lightning forming around him calmly, not violently. Controlled. Deadly.
The Frost Star Wolf leapt onto a rock and howled softly—
a cold note cutting through the forest, signaling the start of a hunt.
And the monsters lurking beyond the trees felt it.
The Antarctic-born ice.
The lightning of a prodigy.
Two transmigrators reshaping destiny.
This forest would not be the same after today.