Chapter 22: The Third Blessing

"Zhu Shi, what are you thinking about?"

Seeing me lost in thought for a while, Agent Kong asked curiously.

"It's nothing," I replied, snapping back to reality and shaking my head. "I was just thinking about that doomsday prophecy circulating in Luoshan, since we were on the topic of the frequent occurrence of strange incidents."

"You mean that... prophecy that the world will end within ten years, and that all life and matter will be annihilated in a great catastrophe?" Agent Kong paused for a few seconds before recalling it. "That’s just fear-mongering. It’s true that the global situation is a bit strange right now, but calling it the end of the world is taking it too far."

Agent Kong’s attitude is the same as most people in Luoshan, and I feel the same way.

The doomsday prophecy didn't just appear in the last few years. From ancient times to the present, alarmist claims that "the world will end at such-and-such time" have never ceased. Some predicted the King of Terror would descend in 1999 and destroy the world; others predicted the end in 2012. But now it is 2023, and every "doomsday" has proven to be nothing more than just another ordinary day.

Strange phenomena have entered periods of high activity before in history. In the long run, the threat these events pose to human civilization is not necessarily more severe than global environmental issues like global warming or the melting of the Arctic ice caps.

Those who propose these prophecies always love to exaggerate the negatives, whether they are mystics or scientists. Of course, this cannot be blamed on them. When a person notices signs of trouble, it is their responsibility to get those around them to take it as seriously as possible.

The problem is that the source of this "doomsday prophecy" is unknown. We don't know who started it, and there is no intuitive evidence to bolster its credibility.

However, I do not underestimate the trend of these frequent strange phenomena. The sands of time, when they fall upon an individual, become a mountain. Even if this trend is not enough to shake the world for everyone, it is easy enough to shake the world for me and those around me.

"I don't know if the world will end in ten years, but if I can't finish the job my superiors gave me, my own doomsday will arrive in ten days," Agent Kong sighed.

"You mean that search mission?"

Agent Kong often shares the experience he has gathered from investigating strange incidents, which helped me a lot when I first became a monster hunter, so I wanted to return the favor: "If there’s anything I can help with, I can provide assistance."

"That won't be necessary, as the job doesn't sound very respectable," he said, shaking his head, then complained: "I really don't know which genius came up with this idea—they want me to impersonate a police officer and accuse a little girl who doesn't even look fourteen of being a serial killer, going door-to-door to investigate her whereabouts."

"Do you know? One of the houses I visited today was that of Zhuang Cheng. When I handed him the girl's photo, his expression was as if he were asking if I was talking in my sleep."

"If I remember correctly, that girl is the only known survivor of soul-loss syndrome in the world, right?" I racked my brain to search for information I had heard. "I remember her name is, it’s..."

"Her name is 'Ma Zao'. 'Ma' as in trouble, 'Zao' as in early," Agent Kong took over. "It happened yesterday morning. Immediately after she woke up in the hospital, she vanished without a trace."

"I know she is very important. If I could, I would want to find her too. But is it necessary to go to such lengths? The higher-ups directly accused her of being a serial killer, completely disregarding her human rights." I felt that something was very wrong. "And if you need to find someone, why not ask the public security department? They are much better at this than us in Luoshan."

"The higher-ups seem to be in a great hurry, and accusing the girl of being a serial killer was a 'act first, report later' decision. They are still negotiating with the public security department, trying to pin the suspicion on her, but the department hasn't budged." Agent Kong sighed. "As for asking them for help... you know, the relationship between Luoshan and the official authorities is becoming increasingly strained. Perhaps in the near future, a full-scale conflict will break out."

Many monster hunters in Luoshan are arrogant and conceited, believing that power is the primary factor determining class, and thus believing that they should be the ruling class. They are completely out of place in modern society.

Nominally, Luoshan is a "Monster Hunter Department" under the command of official authorities, but in reality, it is nothing of the sort. To the general public (if they even know about us), we are probably just an evil, violent organization drifting outside of society.

Such a conflict is bound to break out sooner or later.

In fact, the fact that society has been able to keep this landmine buried until now and let it develop to this point makes me want to ask, "Is this reasonable?"

"Anyway, let's not talk about that..." Agent Kong took out a tablet. "I’ve found you the combat footage of the fallen monster hunter. The official authorities have been thinking about how to deal with monster hunters using thermal weapons. They found the fallen monster hunter before we did a short while ago and dispatched a team to engage him. And this is the result."

I took the tablet and looked down to watch.

The conflict took place in a bamboo forest on the outskirts of the city, and a drone captured the whole process from an overhead perspective.

The bamboo forest in the footage was illuminated by several flares as if it were broad daylight, and a strange, misshapen monster appeared in the corner of the frame.

The monster looked like a demon from an oil painting, with a hideous, sheep-like head and a massive body over two meters tall. Its skin was a dark red, and it wore no clothing or ornaments, with black fur covering its wrists, ankles, and private parts.

This devil-like creature was the fallen monster hunter.

Naturally, he was not a demon, but a human with the ability to transform.

In the bamboo forest was a well-trained, modern team. Not only were they fully armed with live ammunition, but they also brought combat vehicles equipped with heavy firepower.

After the fallen monster hunter appeared in plain sight, they immediately raised their weapons and launched a fierce offensive against the enemy from different angles. The natural scenery instantly turned into a battlefield; the hail of bullets was like a destructive storm, crushing and grinding through large swaths of the bamboo forest while completely enveloping the fallen monster hunter.

But it was all in vain. The fallen monster hunter didn't even make a dodging movement; he assumed a sprinter's starting stance as if no one were around, and then, like an arrow released from a bow, his body turned into a blurred shadow and shot forward.

The net of fire was instantly torn apart with ease by this terrifying shadow. It wasn't just guns and artillery that were ineffective; flamethrowers, sonic weapons, and other special devices were also useless against him. The fallen monster hunter moved through the bamboo forest as if there were no one there, slaughtering indiscriminately; the whole scene was like mowing grass.

This was no longer a battle; it was merely a one-sided mechanical operation by the fallen monster hunter.

Soon after, the combat footage ended.

"...What do you think?" Agent Kong asked, appearing calm.

"It’s about the same as the information I got when I fought him last time," I stated my conclusion. "He is at least at the 'Zhu' level, and he is a very well-rounded physical reinforcement type. Even among all the monster hunters in Luoshan, he counts as a top-tier expert. Defeating him with thermal weapons is not impossible, but this level of firepower is nowhere near enough."

In novels and manga, physical reinforcement abilities feel very ordinary, as if they were a standard skill for cannon fodder.

But from a warrior's perspective, "physical reinforcement" can be called a top-tier ability. A powerful physique means powerful attack, defense, and mobility. Some physical reinforcement abilities also increase the user's sensory perception, recovery, and immunity, granting them powerful reconnaissance and higher survival rates, as well as resistance to toxins and curses.

And what about other abilities? Take the ability to manipulate fire, for instance.

Summoning fire out of thin air does have spectacular visual effects and considerable lethality. However, it cannot provide the user with defense, which means the margin for error in battle is extremely low; it is very likely that a single gunshot from an ordinary person from behind could kill them on the spot. It cannot provide the user with mobility, meaning they can only operate at the speed of an ordinary person, and they will become passive when encountering fast and flexible enemies—the saying "the only thing that cannot be defeated is speed" is not just empty talk.

Not to mention the lack of reconnaissance and other flaws. Many fire-ability users even accidentally burn themselves with their own flames, or trigger explosions at close range that engulf them, or fill their environment with thick smoke, leading to their own suffocation. Such cases of death or injury are so frequent that they have been collected into a black comedy compilation by an internal Luoshan magazine.

In fact, it’s not just fire abilities; because of their "high attack, low defense" nature, many special abilities make the user more like a mortal holding a special weapon than a true monster hunter. And since they are mortals, there are countless ways to defeat them.

What determines how much water a bucket can hold is always the shortest stave.

A mortal, even one who can stop time, becomes just as fragile as any other mortal when faced with ambushes, poison, and other such means.

Don't be fooled by the fact that the modern combat team in the footage had no way to fight back against the fallen monster hunter; if they were facing those other special ability users, there would be no telling how many ways there were to put them to death.

"Then what about you?" Agent Kong put away his tablet. "If you were to face this fallen monster hunter, what are your odds of winning?"

"I cannot precisely calculate the exact percentage," I said conservatively. "I can only say that if I were to fight him with my current cultivation, the outcome is unknown. It wouldn't be strange whether he dies or I do."

"Then what if it were a top-tier 'Cheng' level monster hunter? Or..."

Before Agent Kong could finish his sentence, I suddenly sensed a powerful surge of mana and instinctively stood up.

I turned to look into the distance.

There were two surges of mana appearing in the distance, clashing with each other.

I recognized one of them—it was the mana fluctuation of the fallen monster hunter.

The other was a stranger; I felt as if it were a raging flame.

The momentum of the flames completely overwhelmed the former in an instant.