Astral Apostle

Chapter 139: Empire Hunter; Undercurrents (3)

“You’re not fighting anymore?” Zhou Jing was about to stop.

Cole shook his head and pointed the knife at the tip of Zhou Jing’s nose. He said in a deep voice, “I can tell that you’re holding back. Come, use your full strength. There’s no need to worry about anything.”

With that, Cole did not wait for an answer. He directly made a charging gesture, then stomped on the ground and attacked.

The saber was in front of him, slashing horizontally!

Be it strength, speed, or technique, this strike was executed at a high level. It was steady and fast as if it could cut through all obstacles in front of him.

In front of this blade, opponents of the same level would have to avoid it. Cole was very confident.

However, a black shadow that was so fast that he could barely react suddenly entered his line of sight.

Then, a cold light flashed from below.

Clang!!

A powerful force suddenly exploded along with his long saber, producing a vibrating force.

Cole actually lost his grip on the weapon. The long saber flew out of his hand and spun into the sky before stabbing into the ground not far away.

In front of him, Zhou Jing maintained his upward posture. The blade was still vibrating slightly, emitting a buzzing sound.

Cole, who had been disarmed, was left stunned.

In that instant, Zhou Jing suddenly moved. All the muscles in his body twisted, and he burst out with the full explosive acceleration of a Second Order Physical Fitness body, causing the saber to slash out with a whistle. The high speed turned into an extremely heavy force, directly sending Cole’s weapon flying.

This saber was fast and heavy!

Moreover, the timing he grasped was even more precise and exquisite. Even Cole, who was good at using blades, could not help but feel the beauty of his saber technique used.

Cole looked at the torn webbing of his palm, then at the relaxed Zhou Jing, and fell silent.

Did he just die instantly?

After being stunned for a few seconds, Cole could not help but speak.

“Have you really only done two enhancements?”

“That’s right.” Zhou Jing shrugged in response.

“… Impressive.”

Cole sighed. There was no such thing as a sore loser. He was impressed.

To have such strength at the second enhancement…

Only by experiencing too many battles at the edge of life and death could he temper his body to such a level.

Hunters had always admired the strong, and Cole was naturally filled with respect towards his colleague.

Seeing Zhou Jing insta-kill Cole, the surrounding hunters and apprentices were all surprised.

Cole wasn’t a nobody. He was also one of the few experts among the Empire’s hunters. Other than those who had been strengthened thrice or more, he was the best among the remaining hunters.

Being able to defeat Cole was equivalent to being a top-notch expert among the Empire’s hunters.

“Seems like we have a very powerful newcomer this time…”

Everyone looked at Zhou Jing with this thought flashing through their minds.

“With your strength, you can be officially enlisted into the elite team,” Cole praised. “Commander Keriber will definitely think highly of you.”

Keriber was the current Chief Hunter, the commander of the Imperial Hunters.

Zhou Jing smiled. He was also curious about the attributes of the most powerful Mutant Blood Warrior.

At this moment, Cole turned to look at Ross and said, “Your partner is also going to be tested… Speaking of which, why hasn’t he said anything?”

Zhou Jing’s expression did not change as he lied through his teeth.

“He’s actually my apprentice. During a hunt, his throat was infected by a mutant beast’s poison, and his head was also damaged. He only has some combat instincts left, and he has already lost the ability to hunt alone. However, he can still cooperate with me, so I brought him along.”

“I see.” Cole patted Ross’s shoulder with admiration and agreed, “We can’t abandon any hunter who is injured in order to suppress the mutant beasts.”

Ross looked down at the palm on his shoulder and quietly reached for the dagger in his pocket.

“Cough!” Zhou Jing hurriedly elbowed him in the waist to stop Ross from pulling out his weapon. He pursed his lips and said, “Go, show something for him.”

Hearing this, Ross gave up on his plan to draw his dagger and give Cole a vicious blow. Without hesitation, he walked to a millstone on the training ground and slammed his head into it.

Crack!

The stone cracked.

Ross expressionlessly wiped the white dust from his forehead.

“What the hell!” Cole was shocked.

A proper hunter’s body was tough, but who would casually use their head as a weapon? Their head would hurt!

What a ruthless person!

“Won’t… won’t his head be damaged if he hit it like this?” Cole could not help but ask.

Zhou Jing coughed and tried his best to explain with a tense expression, “It’s precisely because his brain doesn’t work that this move works.”

…That made sense.

Cole wiped his sweat. He didn’t understand, but it felt awesome.

In any case, for him to hit his head against the rock like that and still be alright, he would definitely have undergone at least one enhancement. He didn’t dare to let Ross continue showing off, afraid that he would have to collect Ross’ corpse later. He had no wish to turn the joyous event into a funeral.

The group left the training ground. Cole brought Zhou Jing to a simple empty residence.

“This will be your temporary residence. When you complete the last test, which is to carry out a hunt under our supervision and show your hunter skills, you can officially become an Imperial Hunter… And with your strength, you don’t need to be led by an older hunter like the reserve hunters. You might as well wait for Commander Keriber to return and let him arrange it. The commander is out hunting, and he will be back in two days.”

Cole explained.

Zhou Jing was busy sizing up the room. When he heard this, he turned to look at him and asked, “What risk level of mutant beast do we usually hunt in the hunting test?”

“It varies from person to person. In addition, it also depends on whether there are any mutated beasts recently…” Cole touched his chin and pondered for a moment before saying,” But some time ago, the Empire’s Hunter Team just cleaned up the surroundings. There don’t seem to be any powerful mutated beasts. With your conditions, they might let you go to the Bestial Battle Arena to find an opponent.”