Chapter 25: Junior Hunter? Entering the Bounty Zone!

There was only one spot remaining.

Su Cheng frowned. Among the seven people already present, he was the only Junior Hunter. If the final arrival wasn't a Senior Hunter, he wouldn't be able to join this bounty mission.

Just then, a tall, ice-cold beauty approached from a distance.

"Holy shit, am I seeing things? Is that... is that Rebecca?!"

Rebecca was wearing a grey, form-fitting combat suit, looking both cold, elegant, and filled with a sense of raw power. She was completely different from Remi’s sultry charm. She carried herself with an aloof air, like a flower atop a high, unreachable peak.

"It really is Rebecca. Don't tell me she's here to join this bounty too?"

"Damn, she’s a powerhouse, ranked in the top ten among Senior Hunters."

Chen Ze swallowed hard, his eyes greedily scanning Rebecca. "With her here, the difficulty of this bounty just dropped. She’s so beautiful, and that figure is so alluring... but too bad she’s so cold; no man can ever get close to her!"

The icy beauty Rebecca looked straight ahead, ignoring everyone as she walked to the recruitment station to register. Su Cheng only glanced at her once before looking away. An icy goddess? All he saw was a cheap, flashy woman who would gladly throw herself at any wealthy man.

Remi shot a playful look at the frigid Rebecca before turning her attention back to Su Cheng. *Not even interested in that tart?* Seeing that Su Cheng didn't look like he wanted to devour Rebecca with his eyes like Chen Ze and the others, Remi became even more intrigued. In this screwed-up world, a normal man having no interest in a top-tier beauty was rarer than a billionaire from the old world claiming he had no interest in money.

"Alright, everyone, come over here," the recruiter called out. "I’ve uploaded the coordinates for this bounty to your Hunter cards. The objective is to clear all Raiders within the 2BSB administrative district and eliminate all threats. The bodies of the Raiders and all recovered items are to be collected by designated personnel; you are not permitted to take anything."

Su Cheng raised an eyebrow. That meant they were just being used as hired muscle. It seemed the waste processing plant had its eyes on something inside.

The recruiter looked at Su Cheng. "You are the only Junior Hunter here. Abandoning the mission midway will be treated as forfeiting the bounty, and all your current points will be deducted. You know how hard it is for Junior Hunters to accumulate points, so think carefully."

Su Cheng nodded.

"Fine, that’s settled. You may proceed."

The group immediately headed toward the 2BSB administrative district using their respective modes of transport. Su Cheng tapped the metal node behind his ear and walked toward his motorcycle.

***

Yang Siqi was wearing a pink-and-white JK uniform, chewing on a lollipop with her delicate brows furrowed. "What do you need?"

"Help me check the surveillance for the 2BSB administrative district in the North District of the Waste City."

Yang Siqi looked surprised. "Oh? Are you actually a Hunter?"

Su Cheng nodded. "Yeah. Do you know about this bounty?"

"I heard about it." Yang Siqi tapped her head with a white pencil. "A group of Raiders suddenly broke into that place and killed everyone in that sector. Two days passed before the Waste City even found out. That’s an administrative district! Plenty of wealthy people live there. For something that big to go unnoticed for two days—it’s suspicious! The surveillance inside has all been dismantled by the Raiders; I can't help you with that."

Su Cheng frowned. Things seemed more complicated than he had imagined.

"It’s Raider territory now, and the surrounding area has been sealed off by those HPC dogs. You guys are likely the vanguard—the scouts," Yang Siqi said, pulling up the surveillance for the surrounding area for Su Cheng to see. "Look, even the HPC dogs haven't gone inside; they’re just guarding the perimeter. Be careful. I don’t want my partner to kick the bucket so soon."

Su Cheng nodded. "Got it. Thanks."

Scouts, huh? Whatever. It didn't matter. His goal was the points!

"Right, stay in touch. Through the neural interface, I can influence their electronic systems at close range. I’ll be online all day today."

"Copy that."

Soon, they arrived at the 2BSB administrative district. The site was a high-end commercial complex. The first and second floors were a large supermarket, with luxury residences above, spanning seven stories in total. Everything was currently locked down. From the outside, there wasn't a soul in sight, and the area was riddled with signs of explosions and combat. There were bloodstains on the ground outside, but the bodies had already been cleared away.

After verifying his identity, Su Cheng entered the entrance of the administrative district’s supermarket, where the other hunters were already gathering. Inside, the floor was covered in severed limbs! There wasn't a single complete corpse to be found.

Chen Ze said coldly, "Kid, stay close later. Don't die too quickly. A Junior Hunter actually dared to join in."

"Hahaha, exactly. See those bodies on the ground? You might end up just like them."

The group mocked Su Cheng as he arrived. Remi walked over to his side. "Stay close to me later. I’ll protect you."

Su Cheng didn't respond, choosing to stay on the edge of the group.

"We need a leader, otherwise we might all die in here," Remi said, scanning the group before her eyes landed on Rebecca. "Why don't you lead us to complete this bounty?"

On the surface, Rebecca was the strongest, and no one would object to her leading. Rebecca gave Remi and the others a faint look, crossing her arms over her chest. "Not interested."

Remi grinned playfully. "Then listen to me. This bounty clearly isn't simple; we’re just being used to clear the path. I need to understand everyone’s capabilities, excluding Rebecca and this handsome guy here." She looked at Su Cheng. "He is under my protection."

Chen Ze cast a jealous look at Su Cheng before smiling sycophantically at Remi. "I have a C-grade detection-type prosthetic eye. I can detect targets within a 20-meter range. With me here, no one will be able to ambush us!"

"I’ve upgraded a full set of D-grade mechanical prosthetics and have a C-type energy-release rifle."

The man with dual pistols pulled out two submachine guns covered in stickers. "I’ve modified my hands with D-grade mechanical prosthetics. Combined with these two guns—a C-type kinetic submachine gun I call 'Shoot' and a D-type energy-release submachine gun I call 'Ah'—I can provide close-range suppressing fire!"

"I’ve specialized my right prosthetic arm. It has a micro plasma cannon inside that can deliver a lethal blow!"

Everyone revealed their prosthetic abilities. They were all quite impressive! Among Intermediate Hunters, aside from Chen Ze, the others were all top-tier in combat capability. Everyone looked at Su Cheng, waiting to see him make a fool of himself. A dirt-poor Junior Hunter was just like a novice in a starter village—completely useless.

Chen Ze teased, "This is a team bounty. Someone isn't really going to stay silent, are they? Don't worry, no one will laugh at you."

"I said he doesn't need to," Remi’s expression suddenly changed, and she gave Chen Ze a cold, sidelong glare. For an instant, an aura of authority made everyone’s hearts tighten! Chen Ze’s expression stiffened, and he let out an awkward, sheepish laugh.

Rebecca suddenly said coolly, "We're here for a bounty. Keep it together."

The group fell silent and followed Remi as she carefully made her way into the supermarket.

*Bang!*

Suddenly, a massive gunshot rang out. The hunter who had modified his full set of D-grade mechanical prosthetics was instantly shot in the head! Bio-fluid and brain matter splattered across the faces of Chen Ze and the others.

"Damn it! Chen Ze, is your detection eye a piece of junk? Didn't you say no one could ambush us?!"