Chapter One Hundred Eleven: Fishing and Waiting for the Pig

Zhou Shu had volunteered for the search operation. After all, the technical team was already well-staffed, and having spent the first day teaching them his own unique tips and tricks, his presence there was no longer strictly necessary. He figured he might as well head out and wander around.

Having allocated some points, he was left with only 0.29 units of origin energy, just enough to summon his powered exoskeleton armor twice. It was frustratingly close to being enough for three summons—a detail that would drive anyone with obsessive-compulsive tendencies mad.

Although all his physical attributes had surpassed 2 points, making the combat bonus provided by the exoskeleton increasingly negligible and its mechanical structure even a hindrance to his agility, he had to admit that the armor’s firepower and protective capabilities were still formidable. Once he managed to max out all his attributes, however, the "powered" aspect of the exoskeleton would truly become redundant; he could output just as much damage with heavy weaponry while maintaining far greater mobility.

But that was for the future. For now, he needed to be out here. This was the lair of the Ascension Society, after all; he refused to believe there wasn't a single monster to be found. He was severely lacking in energy, and in a place like this, he might just strike "pay dirt" with a single swing of his metaphorical shovel.

Professional teams were handling the search for the Ascension Society's base. While he had used that as his excuse to get out, he had no intention of joining their crowded efforts. Instead, he was hunting mutants for energy. If he happened to stumble upon the lair by accident, that would just be a bonus.

Although he had departed from the military base, he hadn't taken a military vehicle. Instead, he had opted for one of the "private cars" the base used for picking up personnel. With a backpack slung over his shoulder, he stepped out of the car, checking his phone as he walked, peering around openly for clues. No one would find his behavior the least bit suspicious. At his age, wandering around with a backpack—even if he didn't look like a local—would just make people assume he was a tourist rather than an operative on a reconnaissance mission. It was an advantage derived from his age and demeanor.

Beyond that, Zhou Shu had another intent. By appearing as a "college student" traveling alone, he looked like a total stranger to the area. This would not only attract the attention of shady vendors selling fake souvenirs, but, more importantly, it would attract the monsters.

This was a small town, and everyone knew everyone. If this were indeed the lair of the Ascension Society, they would surely avoid targeting locals to keep a low profile—or at least keep such incidents to an absolute minimum. A rabbit doesn't eat the grass near its own burrow; if every other area was lush and green while your own patch was barren, it would be far too conspicuous.

Tourists were different. They were strangers, especially those traveling alone. This place wasn't exactly a scenic tourist destination filled with historical architecture; there were few buildings and even fewer security cameras. Once you left the town, you were met with deserts, Gobi plains, desolate zones, and snow-capped mountains. These were the true "sights." There was also the thrilling "Gate of Hell." Every year, these places attracted countless thrill-seekers who came to "court death." If you tried to warn them away from dangerous spots, they’d get angry with you. They *wanted* to go where it was dangerous. If it wasn't dangerous, they wouldn't go!

Zhou Shu was currently playing the part of a thrill-seeking young tourist, looking like the perfect, "tender and delicious" target.

He rented a shared bicycle and focused on weaving through narrow alleys, using his "Anomaly Detection" whenever he sensed something off. His scanning range was impressive now; with a mental attribute exceeding 3.7, he could scan in a straight line for 37 meters, or, if configured like radar, cover a large circle with a diameter of 74 meters. At 0.1 units of mental energy per scan, he could safely scan 30 times, which was more than enough if he was careful.

That wasn't even counting his "zero-cost" attribute scanning, which reached a range of 3.7 meters—a respectable distance. If he didn't want to waste energy on broad sweeps, he could just scan for attributes, which consumed significantly less energy; he could do it a dozen or so times before needing 0.1 units of mental energy. If he detected abnormal attributes and the person wasn't a fellow Demon Hunter he recognized from the base, there was an 80% chance they were trouble.

He scanned several suspicious locations but found nothing. Looking around, he realized the cameras were to blame. Though few, they were present, and they were repaired with incredible speed. With no other choice, he checked the news online to see where incidents were most frequent or where people had gone missing, and he headed there.

As it turned out, the places he visited were full of familiar faces! They were all Demon Hunters from across the country. To them, what ordinary people called "bizarre occurrences" were just another day at the office. They knew how these sensitive areas operated, so they were camping out, keeping a low profile. Because these "danger zones" were crowded with people who refused to leave even when the police tried to clear them out, the scene was a chaotic mess. Seeing his colleagues, Zhou Shu turned right around and left.

They had already held a meeting and concluded that even if they encountered suspected Ascension Society mutants, they shouldn't engage immediately; they needed to play the long game. Engaging prematurely would inevitably leave traces. If the Ascension Society grew suspicious, the entire operation would be ruined.

However, Zhou Shu was desperate to increase his strength and accumulate energy, so he disregarded those concerns. Of course, he wasn't undisciplined; he had his own methods. Other people’s battles left behind evidence, but he could leave absolutely none. In front of others, he could only extract about 60% of the energy, but if he were alone, he could drain every last drop and leave the mutant to "vanish" from this world. It was better than even the most potent corpse-dissolving acid! If the "person" disappeared entirely, there would be no traces left behind.

And so, he pedaled his shared bicycle for over ten kilometers. Reaching an intersection, he unceremoniously shoved the bike into a nearby ditch, then stood by the side of the road with his backpack, holding a sign that read "Need a ride." Since he couldn't find them actively, he would just have to wait for the prey to come to him—a bit of "fishing" to see if any pigs would deliver themselves to his door.

As he was thinking, an RV pulled up. The window rolled down and a young woman poked her head out, her eyes lighting up as she looked him over. "Hey handsome, need a ride?"

At her shout, the back window of the RV also opened, and two more young women leaned out. "Where? Where’s the handsome guy?"

"Whoa, he really is a looker!"

They were quite pretty, to be fair. Unfortunately, Zhou Shu performed a quick, low-range attribute scan and found their physical stats were perfectly normal—no different from the girls in his class.

He politely declined. "It’s not quite right for me, I think I’ll wait a bit longer."

His refusal only made the women more enthusiastic.

"Ooh, playing hard to get, are we?"

"It’s fine, it’s fine, come on in!"

"Exactly, we aren't going to eat you. Just get in!"

As it turns out, being a creep knows no gender. Especially when one party tries to retreat, the other suddenly becomes aggressive, revealing their true colors. These women were just interested in his looks!

It took quite a bit of persuasion for Zhou Shu to finally get rid of them, and he went back to waiting for his "pig." Several more cars passed by—men drove right on by without stopping, but whenever a woman was driving, the car would immediately pull over, the window would roll down, and they’d ask if he needed a ride. This damn superficial world; it was such a hassle. And every single one of them was perfectly normal.

*Just send me someone with a problem,* he thought. *If someone sketchy shows up, I’ll hop in and be gone!*

"Hey kid, need a ride? It's free!"

Suddenly, a car pulled over. A scruffy, bearded man rolled down the window and spoke. For some reason, Zhou Shu’s spirits lifted instantly.

"Thanks, thanks! Someone else offered me a ride earlier, but they weren't going my way, so they dropped me off..."

While stalling for time, he checked the attribute data of the two people inside the off-road vehicle. Their attributes were inhuman, all exceeding 1. Not only were their attributes abnormal, but the very scent of the vehicle was wrong. Even without actively triggering his "Anomaly Detection," Zhou Shu could tell these two were trouble.

The pig had arrived.