Chapter 36: Atop the Snowy Mountain

A shrill cry pierced the vast expanse of the snowy mountains, reverberating in all directions and sending the nearby birds scattering in terror. This Black Cliff Finch was considered one of the apex predators in this first-tier wilderness. It opened its beak and struck at Lin Huang, whose gaze had locked with its own. Lin Huang leapt backward, retreating to the center of the cave entrance, his Gray Hawk 17 now loaded with armor-piercing explosive rounds.

He aimed the muzzle at the opening, but did not fire.

The Black Cliff Finch’s hardened beak crashed against the cliffside, smashing loose a chunk of rock and leaving a gaping hole at the top of the cave entrance.

Lin Huang felt the ground tremble beneath his feet, but he kept his composure and did not pull the trigger.

“White, when it draws close, grab its head and drag its eye to the entrance!” Lin Huang had already devised his plan.

For these feathered monsters, the most vulnerable spot was always the eyes. The Black Cliff Finch was massive, its eyes large and unprotected—perfect targets. Still, Lin Huang knew that striking its eye consecutively would be difficult. After the first shot, it would certainly dodge the next. And one armor-piercing explosive round was unlikely to kill it. His only chance was to put all four remaining rounds into the same eye in a single burst, inflicting maximum damage.

Having blown a hole in the entrance, the Black Cliff Finch realized the cave was not as sturdy as it seemed and began pecking repeatedly. Its massive black beak struck the rocky overhang again and again, shattering nearly half the wall. Despite Lin Huang and White retreating deeper inside, the bird could already see them directly from outside.

Emboldened, it attacked even more ferociously.

Suddenly, as it drew close, two crimson tendrils shot from the cave like lassos, wrapping tightly around its neck and slamming its huge head into the cliff wall.

Sensing danger, the Black Cliff Finch struggled furiously.

Lin Huang stepped forward, seizing the moment before the bird could break free. He aimed at its left eye and fired four rapid shots.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Four thunderous blasts echoed across the mountainside.

The Black Cliff Finch’s left eye exploded in a burst of gore, and its body, which had been writhing in agony, went abruptly rigid, then stilled.

The crimson tendrils released their grip, and the enormous body slowly slid down the cliff face.

At that moment, Lin Huang saw Little Black’s prompts appear before his eyes.

[Congratulations, Host. Monster Card Fragment: Black Cliff Finch x1 acquired.]
[Host completed a cross-rank kill; Double Reward Card awarded!]

“No advancement card for a cross-rank kill this time?” Lin Huang remembered the previous two cross-rank kills had both yielded advancement cards.

[Card rewards are issued at random. Receiving advancement cards twice in a row before was merely coincidence.]

“If only I could get a few more advancement cards, I could push both White and Tyrant to the Mythic rank. The Ice King became so powerful after only two mutations. If White and Tyrant could each mutate four times with advancement cards, they’d be unstoppable!”

[The actual combat power of summoned cards is limited by the host. Without strengthening yourself, no matter how rare the cards, your summoned beasts’ power will only grow so much.]

Little Black’s words were a not-so-subtle reminder: the reason your summoned beasts are weak is because you are weak.

Lin Huang ignored Little Black and examined the Double Reward Card he had just received.

On the face of the card, two piles of gold coins were depicted, separated.

Lin Huang raised an eyebrow and flipped it over.

[Double Reward Card: After activation, for one hour, all rewards gained from killing targets will be doubled.]

“This card is nothing special, but if I encounter the right monsters in the future, I can use it to quickly gather card fragments,” Lin Huang mused to himself.

He removed the magazine from his Gray Hawk 17 and saw that it was empty. “Sigh, I didn’t bring enough explosive rounds.”

He reloaded with a regular magazine before stowing the gun away.

Dusk was falling. Lin Huang had White dig the cave deeper before settling in for the night. Because the entrance was too small, he couldn’t summon Sand Butcher and had to rely on White to keep watch.

That night, Lin Huang slept soundly and woke a little after seven.

The previous afternoon had been wasted dealing with the flock of Snow Geese, so he planned to set out early and make up for lost time.

After a light breakfast of dried meat and water, Lin Huang had White lead the way and set off once more.

He was in good shape and, after more than five hours, had climbed over 800 meters. After a brief rest, he set off again before 1 p.m., climbing for another six hours and covering over 900 meters. By then, he had reached an altitude of more than 7,200 meters, only a little more than a thousand meters from the summit.

He spent another night resting before the final push.

It took more than eight hours, but at last, he reached the summit, over 8,800 meters above sea level.

“I made it! I finally reached the top!” Lin Huang shouted out over the vast expanse.

After several days of climbing, he had reached the peak—signifying that he had accomplished most of the assessment.

Just as Lin Huang was basking in his triumph, a voice startled him from behind. “It’s just a mountain, is there really any need to shout?”

Lin Huang turned to see a short-haired youth in a red windbreaker standing behind him. The boy looked to be about his age, perhaps a little taller.

“Who are you?” Lin Huang asked in surprise. “Staff from the Hunter Association?”

“I’m an examinee, just like you,” the boy replied expressionlessly, eyeing Lin Huang up and down. “Were you the one firing a gun down below a couple of days ago?”

“Yes, that was me,” Lin Huang admitted, then asked, puzzled, “But how did you get here faster than me? How did you do it?”

“I arrived on the first day. Riding a Black Cliff Finch here took only two hours.” The youth fixed his gaze on Lin Huang. “If my guess is right, my Black Cliff Finch is now dead—killed by you, isn’t it?”

“You’re a tamer too? Why did you attack me?!” Lin Huang immediately tensed.

“It’s simple. I don’t want anyone but me to pass this assessment. That’s why I stayed here from the start and had the Black Cliff Finch attack anyone trying to climb this mountain, to make you all give up. But since you’ve made it up here, there’s no point in me staying.” With that, the youth paused, then turned toward a tent not far away. His voice drifted back, “I’ll avenge my Black Cliff Finch, but not now. Your blood-beast is well raised, but you’re too weak. You’re not worthy of my attention yet.”

After these words, the boy packed up his tent and, with a wave, a blood-red giant bird appeared out of thin air.

Seeing it, Lin Huang’s eyes flashed with envy. It was a Scarlet Blood Eagle, a powerful Bronze-ranked mutant beast.

The youth leapt onto its back, and with a beat of its wings, the Scarlet Blood Eagle dove off the cliff and disappeared into the clouds below…