"Bang!" A loud bang suddenly echoed across the plain. A wild boar, three meters tall and nearly five meters long, crashed to the ground. Kevin's figure drifted down from the air, landing steadily on his feet.
He looked at the fallen wild boar before him, carefully observing its physical characteristics and comparing them with known information in his mind. This was a large mountain boar, known for its massive size and violent temper. The meat from its loins and thighs was considered some of the finest pork in the world. Kevin didn't kill it; he simply knocked it unconscious.
Gawain, who was following behind, witnessed this scene and remained silent. He realized that following Kevin to learn might have been a wrong decision, as there was a fundamental difference in their fighting styles. Undoubtedly, Kevin was a typical simple and brutal fighter, skilled in crushing opponents with overwhelming strength and speed. Moreover, Kevin indeed possessed the advantage and ability to do all of this. In contrast, Gawain was not suited for this fighting style.
However, he wasn't without gains either. Kevin's observational skills, dodging techniques, and ability to find weaknesses in combat were all worth learning from. After all, fighting wild beasts was very different from fighting people.
"You're not going to kill it?" Gawain asked curiously. In his view, Kevin needed to obtain materials, and this wild boar looked like a creature containing usable materials.
Kevin shook his head. "It's not our target. There's no need to waste too much time here." Actually, the main reason was that the monster density in this Mystic Realm was simply too high. They had set off in the morning and walked until noon. In just half a day, they had encountered three monster attacks. Though three times might not sound like much, these monsters were all considered dangerous outside. Judging from this, the monster density here was quite astonishing.
Therefore, Kevin had to abandon the idea of obtaining materials. If he had to stop and dissect every monster he repelled to get materials, even ten days might not be enough to reach their destination. Furthermore, how to transport and move the acquired materials was also a big problem. Within this Mystic Realm, the environment was completely different from the outside world. Various powerful monsters that could challenge Kevin appeared in droves, and those with massive sizes were countless. So, Kevin had to make a choice.
The two continued forward. Soon, night fell. In a place like this, traveling at night was clearly not wise. They found a good spot and lit a bonfire.
"Can you... still hear those sounds?" Gawain asked, casually bringing up a topic.
Hearing this, Kevin nodded while eating the dry rations he carried with him. "I can hear them. About once every hour. They're really persistent." However, since it was resentment at work, there obviously weren't emotions like patience or impatience.
"Howl!" A wolf howl came from the distance. This wasn't originally something to be alarmed about, but while they didn't want to provoke these wolves, the wolf pack had set their sights on them.
In the middle of the night, Gawain, who was guarding the bonfire, opened his eyes. He saw scarlet pupils glinting in the surrounding darkness; the wolf pack had surrounded them. Almost simultaneously, Kevin also opened his eyes.
He looked at the two-handed knight's greatsword that Gawain had materialized again in his hand and said, "I'll leave it to you."
Gawain nodded, gripping the sword and charging toward the wolf pack in the darkness. Kevin watched Gawain's battle. For Gawain, the darkness was not an obstacle. As someone who called himself a knight, his swordsmanship was naturally not to be underestimated.
The two-handed greatsword in his hands seemed to become a natural extension of his arm. Facing the pouncing wolves, he thrust like lightning, piercing through the head of one with a single sword stroke. Next, he crouched down and, using the force of drawing his sword, sent another pouncing wolf flying with the sword hilt—its head was directly dented. Then, with an upward slash, he cut open the belly of yet another wolf. Finally, he swung the greatsword widely, instantly cleaving through the surrounding grass, branches, and some of the wolf pack. The moment Gawain clashed with the pack, seven wolves fell.
Seeing this, the remaining wolf pack immediately realized they had encountered a tough opponent. With a howl, all the wolves retreated without hesitation, leaving behind a ground covered in wolf corpses. Gawain walked back, the weapon in his hand already gone. Apart from the specks of blood on him, he showed almost no sign of being harried by the wolves.
"Impressive. You rest now. I'll keep watch for the second half of the night," Kevin said.
In the early morning, the two continued on their way. Before long, they encountered new enemies. A strange-looking bear-like creature appeared before them. Its body shape was not the usual heavy and massive, but rather slightly elongated, looking as if it had suffered from hunger. Strangely, a forearm-length wooden stick was stuck in its hind leg, the stick penetrating its body. Judging from the smooth surface of the stick and its sharply whittled tip, this was clearly a man-made object.
Kevin didn't hesitate, knocking the injured lean bear unconscious with a punch, then carefully examined the wooden stick in its leg and decisively pulled it out. When the wooden stick was pulled out, the bear's body twitched twice from the pain.
Kevin looked at the wooden stick in his hand, confirming it was a man-made item.
"Are there other people here?" Gawain asked doubtfully. Logically, there should only be the four Hunters who entered this Mystic Realm, and the villagers couldn't leave here.
"Not necessarily. It could also be a magical beast with high intelligence," Kevin replied directly. Though magical beasts possessing human-like intelligence, or even intelligence far surpassing humans, were not numerous, they were not unheard of.
"They're here." As soon as he finished speaking, Kevin felt movement coming from a distance. He slightly narrowed his eyes, looking warily into the distance. Gawain also materialized his greatsword in his hand.
Kevin activated "En" to scan, instantly knowing the general outline of the approaching creatures. If nothing unexpected happened, it should be a group of long-armed monkeys. However, as his Nen swept over them, the monkeys that were rapidly leaping toward them suddenly stopped, then turned and fled without hesitation.
This sudden change left Kevin somewhat confused. "They ran?"
These monkeys could detect his "En." To be precise, they could sense the Nen Kevin extended and judged the danger based on it, which was why they fled without hesitation. That's right, the creatures here were different from the wild beasts outside. Many creatures inherently possessed the ability to control their own Nen, and some innate abilities were even Nen abilities that evolved naturally—products of the combination of body and organs. The more powerful and potent the creature, the more obvious the Nen it emitted. For these creatures, the "En" Kevin released was undoubtedly a powerful signal of threat.
"I didn't expect 'En' to have this kind of use."
"Can 'En' be used like that?" Gawain asked with a puzzled look. He had already learned Nen ability. Though he couldn't skillfully use every advanced technique yet, he at least knew how to learn and try. It was just that his "En" could only expand outward like a sphere, unable to be projected like Kevin's.
Hearing Gawain's question, Kevin turned his head and explained, "You could say it's my talent. Normally, 'En' expands outward in a circular shape." Gawain nodded. This explanation made much more sense.
Approaching noon, the two finally reached their destination. Ahead was a dense forest where maple leaves were like fire, orange-red maple leaves dancing in the wind. The Red Finch resided in this dense forest.
"Be careful. The creatures in here are several levels more dangerous than what we've encountered before," Kevin reminded. Gawain had previously learned about the habits of the Red Finch and nodded upon hearing this.
As soon as Kevin approached the edge of the dense forest, several fiery red streaks of light instantly flashed out. Kevin crossed his arms, and the sound of metal colliding rang out. His Nen condensed into a hexagonal barrier, successfully blocking this round of attacks. Immediately after, several more red streaks of light attacked, targeting various parts of Kevin's body. Fortunately, the barrier would automatically expand when attacked. A series of collision sounds rang out, but none truly hit Kevin's body. He leaped backward, putting distance between himself and the edge of the dense forest, escaping the Red Finch's attack range.
"Did you see clearly?" Kevin turned and asked.
Gawain's brows were tightly furrowed as he stared ahead, finally sighing helplessly and shaking his head. "Too fast. I could only barely catch a glimpse of them the moment they attacked you." Clearly, Gawain could still help with the relatively weaker beasts they encountered along the way, but facing the Red Finch, he felt somewhat powerless. The Red Finch's speed was simply too fast.
Kevin nodded, checking the areas on his body that had been struck. The skin in these areas was slightly red, as if brushed by a high-temperature object, and a burning, stinging sensation came in waves. Though he had blocked the direct attacks using the Nen barrier, the high temperature of the Red Finch still bypassed the Nen and affected his physical body.
The Red Finch was extremely fast; trying to catch them out of thin air was almost impossible, just as documented in the literature. Currently, there were two ways to capture a Red Finch. The first method was to use a specially made net. The moment the Red Finch charged, block its attack direction with the net, and the Red Finch would fall into the trap itself. The specially made net could trap the Red Finch, preventing it from quickly breaking free and escaping after attacking. Another method was to take the hit head-on.
Though the Red Finch was fast, the moment it collided with a target, even if blocked, it would need to readjust its posture before it could escape. This brief moment of adjustment was the Red Finch's weakness. If one had enough confidence, they could seize it in that instant. Once caught, the Red Finch's threat level would significantly decrease; it would be no different from an ordinary bird. Because the Red Finch needed to perform a launching motion to generate a temperature as hot as fire due to its physical structure. If its body couldn't move, it would lose its ability to threaten.
However, Kevin did not carry a specially made net. The village no longer had such tools long ago, unless he was willing to spend time making one from scratch. Therefore, Kevin directly chose the second method. He had just tested the Red Finch's attack; now it was time to respond.
After adjusting his state, Kevin entered the dense forest again.
"Whoosh!" Several red streaks of light shot out simultaneously. The moment he was hit, Kevin's right hand shot out fiercely, targeting the Red Finch flying toward his abdomen. However, his grab missed.
Even though the Red Finch had this momentary weakness, it wasn't something anyone could easily seize. More red streaks of light followed. Kevin quickly leaped backward, creating distance. Though his Nen ability could form a barrier to block attacks, it couldn't withstand multiple impacts. Furthermore, the high temperature of the Red Finch could penetrate the Nen barrier and cause damage to his skin. At this point, red patches appeared on his body again, as if he had been scalded.
After repeating this twice, Kevin had to stop and summarize his experience. Things were much more difficult than he had imagined. Let alone catching a Red Finch, he hadn't even touched a single feather.
Seeing this, Gawain also wanted to give it a try. He cautiously approached. Kevin's several attempts had allowed Gawain to roughly figure out the Red Finch's attack range. Gawain prepared thoroughly, concentrating his Nen on his sides and front, while reducing the Nen concentration on his back to the weakest. Because the Red Finch could only attack in a straight line, the parts of his body that were easily targeted from the front were key.
As soon as he stepped into the attack range, the Red Finch attacked without hesitation. There was simply no time to dodge. Gawain truly felt the powerlessness when facing the Red Finch. He couldn't even see the Red Finch's figure clearly; he could only see the red streaks of light left in the air and was completely unable to react. Instantly, he was hit. His entire body was thrown backward by the impact, stumbling back several steps before regaining his balance.
He looked at his arm and saw two red and swollen patches there, already starting to blister, as if branded by a hot iron. Given this situation, if Gawain rashly ventured deeper into the maple forest, he would likely lose his life instantly.
"No way—I'm no match for them at all." Gawain stepped back a few paces, sat directly on the ground, and completely abandoned the idea of trying. He knew clearly that this was not an opponent he could provoke at his current stage.
"Brave enough to try, brave enough to give up. That's good," Kevin said with a smile.
Afterward, he stepped into the dense forest again. The attack came instantly. This time, Kevin formed an "En" with a radius of about two meters around himself. This was the most conventional form of "En." Using this form meant Kevin had maximized his detection accuracy. The smaller the range of "En," the more focused he was, and the higher the accuracy. Normally, the balance point between range and accuracy was ten meters, but by reducing the range, the accuracy would increase.
Of course, this also meant that if Kevin was hit, the Nen protecting his body would be extremely limited. Because the expansion of "En" prevented him from using the hexagonal barrier to protect his body, as the essence of "En" was to spread out the Nen covering the body.
"Bang bang bang!" Collision sounds instantly rang out. Kevin quickly swung his hands, attempting to grab each time. Then, he withdrew his Nen without hesitation, leaped backward, and exited the attack range again.
Subsequently, Kevin half-knelt on the ground on the spot. Gawain quickly stepped forward to check his injuries. This time, the Red Finch's attacks were concentrated on Kevin's abdomen, collarbone, and left shoulder. These three areas were already torn open, and the scalding high temperature, the moment it exploded on the wounds, also seared and coagulated the wounds—a sight that made one's scalp tingle. That Kevin wasn't instantly pierced and suffered fatal wounds was already thanks to the toughness of his body.
The pain twisted Kevin's expression severely. "It really hurts, these damn birds." However, a twisted smile appeared on his face. He slowly raised his right hand, opened his palm, and several small, fiery red feathers lay quietly in the center.
Seeing this scene, Gawain swallowed the words he had originally wanted to say to dissuade him.
"Let's treat the wounds first," Gawain said. Kevin nodded, looked at his wounds, and his face instantly became very grim. These were burns; such wounds were extremely difficult to heal.
"Damn it." Kevin took a deep breath, extended his index finger, and Nen wrapped around the fingertip, making it take the shape of a blade.
"Swish!" His finger quickly sliced across the three wounds.
"Mmmph—" Kevin couldn't help letting out a painful groan. His entire face turned red, and sweat poured down like rain. The burned and festering flesh on the three wounds was dug out, instantly turning into three flesh pits.
Kevin immediately took out a bottle of potion, poured it onto the wounds, and then used a syringe to draw the potion and inject it into his body, using both methods simultaneously. Under the effect of the potion, the flesh began to repair at a speed visible to the naked eye. During the rapid healing process, it was both painful and itchy. After all, this wasn't a simple tear or cut, but flesh pits formed by digging out flesh regrowing. This feeling was particularly unbearable.
To be honest, Kevin hadn't suffered such severe injuries in nearly two years, and for a moment, it was somewhat unbearable. Gawain stood beside him, silently watching all of this. He had originally thought Kevin would ask him to do it, but he didn't expect Kevin to be so ruthless to his own body. He knew clearly that the same pain, but inflicting it upon oneself versus having someone else inflict it, was completely different, requiring entirely different willpower. He felt a bit of admiration.
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