"I must kill Yan Luo!"

Svein roared, clutching his severed arm, then coughed violently twice.

If the secret compartment's opening weren't so small, preventing Yan Luo from planting a larger bomb inside, he would have been blown to pieces.

Even so, Svein still had half of his arm blown to bits, inevitably leading to bacterial infection.

Svein had already begun to run a slight fever, his mind foggy, but even so, he needed to gather his team to discuss the matter of hunting down Yan Luo.

The item their boss wanted was likely in Yan Luo's hands, and to acquire it, they first needed to deal with Yan Luo.

Svein harbored a deep hatred for Yan Luo; all he wanted now was to set out, catch up with Yan Luo, and kill him.

For a Hunter, losing their dominant hand was even more tormenting than death itself.

Dying is just losing a worthless life, but losing a dominant hand means that even with a prosthetic, they couldn't regain their pre-injury combat strength, and the functioning of the Engravings might become misaligned, resulting in the neural systems being reverse-hacked by programs loaded onto the prosthetics, turning them into a cyber psychotic.

Technological advancement in the field of prosthetics had stopped over a decade ago; each year's new releases were mere color changes with added superficial features like music playback or a fake flower popping out from fingertips.

These things have absolutely no use in increasing a Hunter's combat effectiveness!

Svein gnashed his teeth, wishing he could skin Yan Luo alive and pull out his tendons.

Just then, Svein's body shook.

The team member at the checkpoint signaled to him that Yan Luo had entered the Abyss.

"Go!"

Svein abruptly stood up, leading the team towards the Crimson Abyss.

Despite his injuries being unhealed, and even the prosthetics couldn't be installed, Svein knew that the only chance to deal with Yan Luo was to strike now.

Their actions could never see the light of day; they had to proceed in secret.

If they were to attack Yan Luo after he had entered Red Two, even their boss wouldn't protect them. Rather, their boss would target them quickly, ensuring they couldn't say a word.

The law and order of the United Government envelop everyone like a lid, the entire Blue Star was a terrarium constructed by the United Government.

Within this terrarium, people could do as they pleased, as long as they didn't cross the lines drawn by the United Government.

Crossing the line would result in terribly severe punishment.

Hunter fights within the Abyss were tacitly permitted by law; unless reported, no one would investigate a Hunter's death in the Abyss.

If they wanted to kill and loot, it had to be done within the Abyss.

Though they didn't know which path Yan Luo would take, his ultimate destination must be Red Two Entrance. As long as they kept watch near the entrance, they would definitely encounter Yan Luo.

The current issue was that they had to intercept Yan Luo before he reached the Red Two Entrance.

Svein led his "Far Field Sword" Squad towards the Crimson Abyss. During registration, even though the union staff saw that Svein's right hand had been blown off, they didn't attempt to dissuade him.

Seeing Svein's temperamental attitude, they knew he was out for revenge.

The Far Field Sword Squad only had five people; one armored vehicle could fit them all.

Upon entering the Abyss, Svein harshly ordered, "Drive directly to the Red Two Entrance, don't let the demons delay us!"

He couldn't help but touch his wound as he spoke.

The pain radiating from the wound only fueled his hatred for Yan Luo, as he began fantasizing about how to torture Yan Luo once captured.

The Hunters of Far Field Sword were ruthless mercenaries who cared only for money, and those with any conscience couldn't have joined the squad.

They knew they were about to ambush Yan Luo, and merely thinking of the generous rewards promised by their boss made their bodies heat up with excitement.

After all, what was the life of a stranger worth, anyway?

......

Yan Luo wasn't in a hurry to return to Red Two; having made it this far, he thought he might as well go on another Abyss hunt.

Although he carried a few very important items, he clearly knew that the Abyssal Believers would likely send people to block him.

Not only at Crimson No.3, Yan Luo figured Crimson No.2 would also have some of the Abyssal Believers' men.

His entry into the Abyss from Crimson No.3 might have reached the ears of the Abyssal Believers, prompting them to dispatch people to intercept him at Crimson No.2.

They didn't know which path he would take to return to Red Two; they only needed to know he was certain to return, and that was enough.

Ironically, the one place the Abyssal Believers couldn't monitor him was in the Abyss itself.

Inside the Abyss, unless by chance he encountered agents sent by the Abyssal Believers, Yan Luo didn't need to worry about his movements being leaked.

As the saying goes, "a thief takes advantage of time, but there's no way to preemptively guard forever."

As long as Yan Luo delayed his return to Red Two, the vigilance of the Abyssal Believers' men would gradually relax.

By then, whether he slipped by unnoticed or fought against the Abyssal Believers' men, the choice would be in Yan Luo's hands.

The longer the delay, the more initiative he would have in his grasp!

Thus, Yan Luo surprisingly initiated another Abyss hunt, catching everyone off guard.

......

"You want me to intercept and kill Yan Luo?"

Ma Liang glared at Shi Tianming, pointing at himself, "Do I look like someone capable of intercepting and killing Yan Luo?"

Although few had witnessed Yan Luo at his full strength, even when he was an ordinary person, he could take down a lethal-grade demon in a one-for-one exchange. Now he had grown many times more powerful, and given his demonstration of casually punching with 3.5 tons of force during an interview, many believed Yan Luo was at least close to peak Sequence Four, approaching Sequence Three strength.

Ma Liang was fortunate to become a Sequence Four, bearing three Engravings upon himself, but he didn't believe he could contend with Yan Luo.

Many assessed Yan Luo as a 'born Hunter,' and some even suspected the Purple Fox Squad had met their end at his hands.

Even though the three members of Purple Fox Squad were weaklings, they were armed.

Even Sequence Three Engravers feared firearms, and yet Yan Luo could take on three armed Engravers, which was testament to his strength.

Bear in mind, at that time, Yan Luo had only just discovered his ability to absorb demon blood to strengthen his body; he wasn't even particularly powerful then—let alone now?

Ma Liang thought, even if there were three of him combined, they wouldn't stand a chance against Yan Luo. Asking him to intercept and kill Yan Luo was trying to force the impossible.

"Don't worry, you're not going alone," Shi Tianming reassured Ma Liang with a smile. "The boss has called in a team from another Abyss; you just need to guide them."

Ma Liang lapsed into silence, his expression struggling slightly.

A moment later, Ma Liang made his decision, took a deep breath, and pulled Shi Tianming towards the door of his house.

"What are you doing?" Shi Tianming was taken aback and then became extremely angry, "You intend to betray the boss?!"

Ma Liang coldly looked at Shi Tianming, sneering, "I, Ma Liang, may love money, but I won't stoop to such disgraceful acts! Not reporting your deeds is already the pinnacle of benevolence!"

Bam!

The door was slammed shut by Ma Liang forcefully. Shi Tianming involuntarily stepped back, knowing that if he didn't, the door would have smacked him in the nose.

Glaring fiercely at the door, Shi Tianming shouted, "Ma Liang, just you wait! Don't think you can escape; the boss won't let you off!"

Just as he finished, the door swung open.

Sneering, prepared to mock, Shi Tianming found himself met with Ma Liang's furious fist landing squarely on his face.

Immediately after, intense pain erupted in his abdomen; it turned out that Ma Liang had launched a swift kick, hitting Shi Tianming in the stomach.

Staring at Shi Tianming sprawled on the ground, Ma Liang spat at him, "Scram!"

Cradling his aching stomach, Shi Tianming clambered to his feet with difficulty. Glaring at the door, panting heavily, he dared not utter another threat, and supported himself against the wall, leaving Ma Liang's apartment entrance.

After a few steps, Shi Tianming couldn't bear the pain and sat against the wall.

Shi Tianming sent a communication request to his boss, which was quickly connected.

"Sir, Ma Liang refused to lead the way, and he even kicked me out." Shi Tianming reported snitching to the blurry figure on the other side of the communication.

[We'll deal with Ma Liang later; for now, have someone block the Red Two Entrance. Yan Luo must not return to Blue Star; he must be dealt with within the Abyss! Then, retrieve 'that item' from his hands—at all costs!]

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