CR CH76

Chapter 76: The Hunters’ Association

On Federation Day, representatives from the Empire and the Beast Tribe arrived upon invitation.

Broadcasted live across the galaxy, the casualty list for the Blood Chamber Plan was officially announced, accompanied by posthumous honors and preferential treatment for surviving family members. Meanwhile, a new tactical framework targeting grade-conversion missions was placed on the agenda. All of these events sparked heated discussions across the StarNet.

The top three team members from the Blood Special Trial accompanied Special Assistance Team 1 to the Federation Center. During the commendation ceremony, Jiang Tianji stood at the very front, even ahead of Liang Chong. High above on a floating platform sat several head leaders. He neither raised nor lowered his head, keeping his gaze steadily fixed forward.

It was only after exiting the stage and entering a camera blind spot that Jiang Tianji lightly flicked two fingers past his brow, winking in Jiang Yan’s direction.

Jiang Yan faintly withdrew his gaze, the curve at the corner of his lips shifting ever so subtly.

Jiang Tianji’s energy values had not yet stabilized, forcing him to wear an energy suppressor ring as he stood near the back of the crowd, searching for a familiar figure.

He hadn’t seen Ling Kongmiao since this morning’s assembly, and the messages he sent out had vanished like stones dropped into the sea, yielding no response whatsoever.

Finding Ling Kongmiao in the crowd was hardly a difficult task. He sat beside Lu Hengyi with an upright posture. As the Federation Day paid tribute to the martyrs, his dark uniform cast a sharp contrast, surrounding him with an aura as cold as frost.

Jiang Tianji let out an imperceptible sigh. As he walked toward the restroom, he caught sight of Liang Chong following behind him out of the corner of his eye.

Having no desire to deal with him, Jiang Tianji ducked around a corner to throw him off. He then took a detour to a remote restroom near the back door. Just as he was about to step inside, he suddenly caught a glimpse of a dark shadow in the mirror by the entrance—something resembling a human silhouette.

Jiang Tianji’s vigilance spiked. The Federation Day proceedings were far from over, and this location was secluded with no one around.

He quietly took a step back, only to find that the shadow moved.

It drifted slowly along the wall, dispersing like liquid before piecing itself back together into vague, scattered letters, before finally dissolving into an afterimage that vanished down the end of the corridor.

—E07.

Jiang Tianji read out the letters that had just been reflected on the wall in his mind. Looking in the direction where the shadow had disappeared, he saw that the end of the corridor was pitch-black, seemingly a temporarily closed-off area. Hesitating for a brief moment, he ultimately decided to follow it.

As the daylight vanished inside the enclosed space, Jiang Tianji stopped himself from venturing any deeper.

“Come out.”

Half a corner of clothing peeked out from around the bend. Even with camouflage technology equipped, the figure refrained from stepping out of the darkness. Seeing this, Jiang Tianji’s lips twitched, turning away with a total lack of interest.

“Luring me over just to play hide-and-seek?”

The person took a small step forward, speaking in a raspy, specially processed voice that made it impossible to discern gender.

“The chip, underground, the energy you sensed.”

That single sentence made Jiang Tianji halt in his tracks. He turned his head, his eyes turning instantly cold.

“What do you know?”

The person stared at him in the darkness for a long time, zoned out as if seeing the shadow of an old friend through him.

It wasn’t until Jiang Tianji slowly knit his brows that he finally stepped out from the shadows, his face and physique obscured beneath his camouflage.

“I am a former subordinate of your father. You can call me Duan Shu.”

With time running short, Duan Shu glanced at the display on his device and cut straight to the point.

“You possess the ‘Hunter’ gene. Those people are not your kin, but merely marked targets of surveillance. The Hunters’ Association is responsible for destroying dangerous targets and maintaining a degree of order.”

“…” After a brief silence, Jiang Tianji showed no further reaction, his voice remaining cold. “So?”

“You can take a look at the contents inside this when you have time.” Duan Shu tossed a chip to him, whispering, “What happened to your parents back then… isn’t what you imagine. When there’s a chance, I’ll slowly explain it all to you.”

“Internal affairs within the Hunters’ Association are a mess right now. Commander Jiang has done his best to keep you hidden all these years, but you still need to make a choice as soon as possible.”

Duan Shu stated bluntly, “The Hunters’ Association and certain forces already have their eyes on you. Your first Grade-B transition mission was no coincidence, and the mental energy outburst during the amusement park compound mission was also designed to push you into losing control. Yet, someone has always managed to reach your side just in time.”

Jiang Tianji’s eyes flickered slightly, as if recalling something: “Do you know Wen Kuan? The Rank-S mutant from the Blood Chamber accident.”

“Like you, he is a descendant of a Hunter.” Duan Shu paused briefly, whispering, “If he hadn’t been maliciously guided into losing control and suffering from an ability backlash, he would have made an exceptional Hunter.”

“The specific reasons are all in there.” He pointed at the chip in Jiang Tianji’s hand. “You are far luckier than them, but as for the person beside you—don’t trust him too much.”

“I don’t know his motives, but I could have contacted you much earlier. He has been deliberately blocking me.”

When Duan Shu had previously infiltrated the Z01 Base, he had stared from afar at the young man walking alongside his companions, momentarily lost in thought.

Just as he was pondering how to lure the young man to an empty spot, he suddenly felt a intense sense of crisis. Duan Shu immediately ducked into a corner to hide, and several blue blades slammed down right where he had been standing moments prior. The attacker did not reveal himself, seemingly offering nothing more than a warning.

As a Hunter, Duan Shu was acutely aware that he was being targeted. A spine-chilling coldness crept up his back. From an unseen position, a pair of deep eyes was staring intently at him.

Duan Shu was a veteran Rank-S Hunter. Sensing that the opponent was a tough nut to crack, he weighed his options and had no choice but to retreat temporarily.

As he successfully withdrew from Z01 Base, he glanced back. Atop a tower not far away stood a quiet figure, his iconic silver-white hair flowing like silk in the wind, watching him leave without the slightest attempt to conceal himself.

Hunters possessed excellent vision, and Duan Shu’s sensory trait magnified certain details. At the end of his gaze was a pair of blue eyes shifting from light to deep shade. The instant he saw them clearly, his hand involuntarily raised itself, pressing the dagger in his grip tight against his own throat. The sharp tip threatened to puncture his flesh at any moment.

Cold sweat slid down his temples. As part of the combat branch, this was Duan Shu’s first time encountering a mental-type user with such a capability. But before he could think further, the other party withdrew the ability first.

Ling Kongmiao remained standing there with a indifferent look in his eyes. Duan Shu knew he was warning him not to approach, and after a brief standoff, he ultimately turned and left.

“He indeed saved you, but more often than not, he tacitly allowed those events to happen.”

Duan Shu glanced toward a certain spot, his voice suddenly dropping low and his speaking pace picking up drastically.

“We will meet again.” Without lingering any longer, he vanished around the corner in a flash.

Jiang Tianji seemed to sense something and remained standing on the spot without moving.

“What are you doing here?” A familiar voice came from behind him.

Jiang Tianji felt the hairs on his back stand distinctly on end. He turned around, meeting Ling Kongmiao’s gaze, which seemed to see through everything.

“Nothing,” Jiang Tianji avoided his eyes. “It’s my first time here, so I was a bit curious.”

Unexpectedly, Ling Kongmiao didn’t press further, the corners of his mouth curling into a cold arc.

“Don’t wander around.”

As Jiang Tianji lowered his head, Ling Kongmiao’s gaze swept past him, pinpointing a specific location with absolute precision.

“And don’t touch things you shouldn’t touch.”

Just as the atmosphere was growing icy, a tail with its sharp spikes retracted wrapped around his calf, gradually extending toward his knee and thigh.

Ling Kongmiao lowered his eyes, meeting Jiang Tianji’s innocent gaze—acting so poorly that it made one wonder if he was simply too lazy to fake it.

“Sorry, Officer. I just awakened recently, so I’m not very good at controlling it.”

Without a trace of embarrassment on his face, he stepped even closer. His gaze darkened as it fell upon his own scale mark, seeming to ponder something before quickly returning to normal.

“So… can I touch this?”