Chapter 57 Snake Island Building <TOC> Chapter 59 Under the Dunes
Translator: SumTLMan
The winter was long, and their stomachs were empty.
Patrolling the Dead Sea in the heavy snowfall, the Ridge Spine Hunter, Hunter Sea, was lost in thought.
The Ridge Spine Hunter clan was inherently well-balanced, possessing not only considerable strength but also excellent skills, and their body durability was commendable. Among lifeforms of the same class, they were highly competitive.
However, even well-balanced creatures faced an unavoidable dilemma.
Their consumption was exceptionally high.
Ridge Spine Hunters needed to ingest large amounts of Light Seeds and also search for quality bones as supplementary food. They needed to temper their bodies to enhance their resistance to blows and speed, expand their energy storage limits, and improve their [Light Prism Exoskeleton] techniques and proficiency to ensure swift and precise transitions between attack and defense postures.
Additionally, mental training was indispensable… Many Ridge Spine Hunters had mastered multiple languages and body languages.
Even the lazy Hunter Sea was forced to learn four languages, including the human lingua franca and panda language.
Just as their mother had said.
“Because we continuously strengthen and hone ourselves, we are strong. Strength does not come naturally.”
At that time, Hunter Sea couldn’t help but retort: “But we are naturally stronger than lower-class lifeforms. As long as we can hunt them, why do we need to train?”
Then their mother beat them until they howled in pain.
“Fool!”
“Idiot!”
“Lacking ambition!”
“How could I have a child like you!!”
Their mother rebuked Hunter Sea for their complacent attitude, telling them: “The reason why the Ridge Spine Hunter clan can stand out now and possess commendable bodies is because our ancestors, generation after generation, worked hard, continuously improving and evolving. From the weakest Bone Fish, they grew into what you are today, enjoying the fruits of their labor!”
“If you don’t strive for progress, you will inevitably become weaker and eventually become prey for other strong lifeforms!”
Hunter Sea meekly admitted their mistake and quickly said they would work hard to train.
In truth, they didn’t believe it.
The hardships of the Ridge Spine Hunter clan had been endured by their ancestors; now they couldn’t enjoy the benefits?
After all, the world was mostly populated by weak Light Absorber species.
As long as they didn’t provoke those strong individuals and ate lower-class creatures, life should be easy.
After their mother passed away, Hunter Sea began to eat lower-class Light Absorber species according to their own ideas, with their diet including D-Class Bubble Fish and D-Class Light Absorbers, and the highest prey they targeted were C-Class Long-Necked Crocodiles.
But the actual situation was somewhat different from what Hunter Sea had imagined.
Bubble Fish could create many bubbles containing Dead Light, with reflective surfaces, making it impossible to discern what was inside.
These bubbles rapidly drifted in all directions, making the Bubble Fish’s location extremely elusive, difficult to determine which bubble they were hiding in. Touching a bubble would cause it to burst, resulting in some damage and an uncomfortable numbness.
Although Bubble Fish were D-Class lifeforms, they caused Hunter Sea a lot of trouble.
Lower class Light Absorbers, on the other hand, were easier to catch.
When Hunter Sea caught them, they would gobble them up in one bite, but eighty to ninety percent of the lower class Lignt Absorber’s energy would dissipate. Catching a bunch didn’t necessarily yield a single Light Seed because these lifeforms were essentially energy entities that would quickly revert to Dead Light under external forces, then regenerate.
Hunter Sea even attempted to dive to the seabed to hunt E-Class Warrior Crabs.
Only then did they understand why middle to high-class Light Absorbers seldom entered the seabed.
The Dead Sea seabed had too many impurities. Absorbing the poor-quality Dead Light from there would affect their body, making them feel groggy, as if iron and stone had been injected into their entire body. Not only did their minds become dull and their reactions slower, but Hunter Sea also felt oppressed and restless.
Lower-class lifeforms thrived in the seabed, as they didn’t have much thought, their physiological structures were simple, and they were naturally adapted to this turbid and inefficient harsh environment.
Normally, they could get by, but in winter, it was a time of starvation and danger.
They had no choice but to hunt the relatively dangerous Long-Necked Crocodiles——this species was particularly cunning, hiding in the seabed and deliberately entering the territories of other high-class monsters, making Hunter Sea’s hunting path very arduous.
Moreover, there were higher-class hunters whose fierce gazes brought an omnipresent sense of urgency.
The various pressures of survival made Hunter Sea start to regret not listening to their mother.
Now, their hungry stomachs, the beatings, and the injuries were all consequences of past laziness.
Their mother had anticipated this situation.
So she had found a piece of land here early on, where the number of higher-class Light Absorbers was relatively small, the land was desolate and barren, far from the desirable territories. But because of that, no Sea Domain Lord had occupied it, making it sufficient as an emergency winter hunting ground.
However, by a twist of fate, Hunter Sea joined a mysterious organization called the Wasteland Development Company.
Just as their mother had said.
“If you have the ability, go and train and establish your own territory. If not, find a Sea Domain Lord who values you and seek their patronage. At least it will give me peace of mind compared to you living alone.”
Their mother had long foreseen this day.
Sigh.
“I’m sorry, Mom.”
“I’m a wastrel.”
Various thoughts flashed through Hunter Sea’s mind.
The person on their back couldn’t help but shout: “Over, over, Big Brother Hunter Sea, we are going to Grub Grain Town. You’ve flown past, you need to turn around.”
“Is it that cave that looks like a butt?”
“Yes, that’s the one.”
The person on their back, a human named A Jin, was also an employee of the Wasteland Development Company, referred to as a colleague here.
Hunter Sea had no experience with seeking patronage.
Fortunately, their mother had taught them some tricks.
For example, building good relationships with peers of the same class, knowing how to give gifts, and avoiding unnecessary conflicts.
In front of the lord, one must appear diligent, which is more important than working behind the scenes.
There were several humans in the company.
They all looked ordinary, but who knew?
Being noticed by the Chairman, with their class lower than theirs, these people either had special abilities or strong backgrounds.
Human colleagues kept their distance from Hunter Sea, maintaining a tacit distrust and coldness, barely interacting after responding to their words.
Only A Jin was different; he was the first to proactively greet them.
“You’re bigger than me, so I’ll call you Big Brother Hunter Sea. I’m A Jin. If you need anything, feel free to ask me.”
This guy was not ordinary.
It was said that he was the Chairman’s first selected employee, currently responsible for surveying geography for the company and treasure hunting.
To help Hunter Sea become familiar with the job and the surrounding environment quickly, A Jin obtained the Chairman’s permission to act together with them for a while.
Hunter Sea’s body contracted, then slowly descended onto the snowy ground.
“Wait here for a moment.”
A Jin leapt off their back and ran into the cave in Grub Grain Town.
After a while, no one emerged.
Just as Hunter Sea was about to enter to check the situation, A Jin finally reappeared, accompanied by several ragged humans.
Unlike A Jin, these people looked at Hunter Sea with fear and terror, instinctively backing away. Hunter Sea was very familiar with such fearful expressions.
A Jin introduced these humans.
“This is Big Brother Hunter Sea, our company’s new employee. He will be responsible for patrol and defense work this winter.”
“His previous identity was indeed a Winter Beast, but the Chairman said that he is now one of us, so there’s no need to worry.”
“Big Brother Hunter Sea is now our protector! He’s very strong!”
The last sentence was very pleasing to Hunter Sea.
Although he couldn’t defeat enemies of the same class, when encountering isolated C-Class or D-Class creatures, he still had strong dominance.
The townspeople exchanged glances, talking among themselves, seemingly finding it hard to believe.
Hunter Sea then bathed in a layer of radiant light, dispelling the surrounding darkness. He tried his best to maintain his human language standard: “I have been appointed by the Chairman to protect your safety. If any monsters come causing trouble, I will eliminate them.”
“I will guard everything here.”
He hovered in the air, striking a dominant pose.
The locals whispered among themselves again, their expressions varied, seemingly very surprised and hard to understand the matter.
Soon after.
A Jin led Hunter Sea to Mushroom Forest, introducing two Mechanical Light Absorber lifeforms working in the farmland——also company employees, but part of the non-combat group, specializing in cultivating the farmland. However, these two only exchanged a perfunctory greeting before returning to their busy tasks.
The manager of Mushroom Forest, a Bone Man named Sun Zhonglai, was very polite to Hunter Sea, directly taking him to tour the mushroom fields.
“This is Monster Lure Mushroom, one of the company’s important resources. We’ve also produced quite a few new ones. Try some of the previous batch.”
After tasting the mushrooms, Hunter Sea felt completely relaxed, his mind becoming unusually calm and peaceful. He felt his mind becoming exceptionally clear… This situation reminded him of the “Black Sedge.”
Black Sedge was a precious medicinal substance that was hard to come by, capable of allowing Light Absorbers to suppress periodic Dead Light energy disorders in their bodies. It not only reduced physiological damage but also stabilized emotions.
Only specific regions could produce Black Sedge.
This also kept its price high, making it almost indispensable for pregnant Light Absorbers.
“Uncle was secretly cultivating this! He can always earn a large amount of Light Seeds!”
Hunter Sea felt a surge of excitement.
“The stronger the uncle is, the safer I am following him.”
“Mom was right.”
“It’s better to find a hardworking boss than to work hard on my own!”
At this moment, A Jin said: “Big Brother Hunter Sea, there are buried underground relics in the Death Dunes. There might be valuable treasures. Can you help eliminate the Stinging Antlions there?”
“What are Stinging Antlions?”
A Jin described them.
“They are E-Class underground creatures with hard exoskeletons, bulky bodies covered in tough keratin layers and bones.”
Hunter Sea’s appetite immediately surged.
“Ridge Spine Hunters love gnawing on hard bones. If it’s not hard, they won’t gnaw!”
“Leave it to me!”
Chapter 57 Snake Island Building <TOC> Chapter 59 Under the Dunes