Dragging his slightly fatigued body, Yan Luo passed through the spatial membrane, returning from the Abyss to the Blue Star.
As soon as his feet were steady, Yan Luo heard a burst of laughter from ahead.
Looking up, he saw a large group of people dressed in exoskeletons approaching the Abyss entrance.
Yan Luo stepped forward, brushed past the group, and caught a glimpse of Li Xinyue among them.
Li Xinyue was chatting and laughing with the people beside her. Noticing Yan Luo, she waved at him with a smile before following the group into the entrance of the Abyss.
Retracting his gaze, Yan Luo headed towards the checkpoint. After a simple inspection at the checkpoint, he quickly walked towards the Trade Union Building.
On the first floor of the union, there is an office to handle the Hunters' gains. If a Hunter doesn't want to find channels to sell their hunts from the Abyss, they can consign them directly in the union hall on the first floor.
"Yo, Yan Luo, returned?"
Before Yan Luo even reached the door, a Hunter he knew greeted him.
Yan Luo looked over, smiling and nodding slightly, "I'm back. This time's harvest is quite good. Besides basic hunts, I also have some intelligence to exchange."
During activities in the Abyss, Hunters might find some demon trails they are not convenient to handle, and since the interval between two Abyss hunts is generally ten days to a month, by the time they return to the Abyss, the demon their clues pointed to might already have been eaten by another demon or hunted by another Hunter.
To avoid this situation, after an Abyss hunt, Hunters will take out the intelligence they know and exchange it with others.
If the Hunter who received the intelligence successfully hunts, then the Hunter who sold the intelligence will receive ten percent of the hunt's proceeds.
This intelligence exchange is conducted under the supervision of the union, with the union's reputation as a guarantee, so the Hunter selling the intelligence need not worry about not receiving their dues.
At the consignment area, Yan Luo first returned the rented collector and then took out the harvest from his hunt.
A number of Hunters gathered around Yan Luo, watching expectantly.
Among the Hunters conducting Abyss hunts, there were ordinary people—after all, not everyone could afford Engraving before becoming a Hunter.
But those who entered the Abyss as ordinary Hunters all joined a team and underwent Engraving after one or two Abyss hunts.
Like Yan Luo, unable to undergo Engraving but still becoming a 'ordinary person' solo Hunter was something Hunters at Crimson No. 2 had never seen before.
This was Yan Luo's first hunt as a solo Hunter, and everyone wanted to see what results he could produce.
Yan Luo first took out his most valuable finds, and upon seeing those two items, people couldn't help but speak out.
"The heart core of a Stone Armor Bear? And the forelimbs of a Blade Mantis? Wow, both things are among the top ten on the danger list!"
"It's one thing finding a Stone Armor Bear, that's somewhat feasible if availible, but aren't Blade Mantises notoriously elusive and adept at hiding? How did you find it?"
"Not only are they adept at hiding, but Blade Mantises are best at jumping out from the dark to chop down prey with a single strike. Even though they are frail, their attack power is astonishing; it's hard to stay alive even in an exoskeleton."
"What? Can a Blade Mantis's forelimbs really cut through steel?"
"Like cutting through butter, right? That's certainly the word on the Blade Mantis!"
Yan Luo did not join their discussion, instead silently taking out material pieces collected from demons.
Compared to the first two eye-catching pieces, the subsequent materials appeared much more common, sourced from ordinary-level demons, though in vast quantities.
Seeing these items, the topic of conversation shifted direction.
"Wow, aside from danger-level demons, he also hunted so many ordinary-level demons."
"His backpack must be completely flat; perhaps he discarded everything he could?"
"Yan Luo's been on this Abyss hunt for nearly five days, and he managed to catch so many prey in those five days?"
Taking out materials from both the Stone Armor Bear and Blade Mantis simultaneously isn't unprecedented—Yan Luo's not the only one who can accomplish such a feat.
But to also produce thirty-seven pieces of ordinary-level material in addition to those two kinds proves Yan Luo's exceptional skill.
Even while hunting the Stone Armor Bear and Blade Mantis, he still found the time to hunt other demons!
Yan Luo, lacking anything besides an exoskeleton and firearms, was merely somewhat stronger physically, yet he managed what many skilled Hunters struggled to do, which was astonishing.
Suddenly, someone began to applaud.
Moments later, the applause grew into a full chorus.
Yan Luo's harvest this hunt did not set any records; many surpassed him at Crimson No. 2, but for an ordinary person, Yan Luo's achievement was considered impressive.
Even those who once doubted him found his displayed results convincing enough to earn their approval now.
After consigning all the materials at the union, Yan Luo walked with a group to the third floor, casually found a place to sit, while those wanting to exchange intelligence with him surrounded him.
Yan Luo lightly tapped his fingers on the table, causing ripples to spread, revealing a map of the Crimson Abyss.
He tapped the area marked 'Red Two Entrance,' and that region of the map enlarged.
This area, called the [Dark Forest], contains most of the forests within the Crimson Abyss.
"In the Dark Forest, I discovered the whereabouts of three dangerous-level demons, two of which I've identified—a Thunderhorn Snake and a Great-Eared Bat. The third remains unidentified, but I can confirm it's a bird, and its flight speed isn't slow."
After finishing, Yan Luo looked at the people around him, spreading his palm open as an invitation for them to discuss among themselves.
People exchanged glances, murmuring softly about who would purchase these pieces of intelligence.
To be honest, any of these demons are challenging to deal with.
The Thunderhorn Snake can continuously unleash high-voltage electricity until exhausted, the Great-Eared Bat has strong perception abilities, so entering within fifty meters results in discovery, and the unidentified demon, an as-yet-confirmed type of bird, flies fast, clearly not easy prey.
Yan Luo paid no attention to their discussions, engrossed in chatting with his classmates.
He had spent five days in the Abyss this time; the university entrance exams had ended two days ago.
Guo Xu and Wang Lingyu's results came out: both had successfully surpassed the scores required for their desired majors.
Unless something unexpected occurs, they will enter Lingquan University two months later.
In general, people in this age seldom leave the city where they were born, as the wilderness is extremely hazardous.
For instance, children born at Crimson No. 2 will be born, educated, and work here; even if they are admitted to a university, they can receive remote teaching here at Crimson No. 2, not needing to leave the town.
However, attending university allows one to expand their connections and enjoy a conducive learning environment.
Thus, during the school season each year, Crimson No. 2 organizes escort teams to lead the town's university students to the cities where they've gained admission, sometimes needing to traverse a significant portion of the eastern domain.
In the chat, Wang Lingyu enthusiastically imagined her university life and mentioned wanting Yan Luo to be her escort for field trips required in her sophomore year.
Yan Luo agreed immediately.
—As long as he's still alive by then!
After much discussion, people finally came to a decision.
Just as they were about to negotiate with Yan Luo, the large screen hanging on the wall suddenly switched to broadcast a news flash.
[Breaking emergency news now—The Bright Silver Abyss expedition team led by 'Iron-Bone' Luke Gostan announced their mission failure today. The entire team nearly wiped out, with leader Luke Gostan killed in the Bright Silver Abyss, and only two people successfully escaping from the Abyss!]
[According to the two survivors, experts from the Abyss Defense Bureau have indicated that Bright Silver Abyss is about to undergo a new expansion, during which all Abysses on Blue Star will be enhanced to some degree. Hunters from all Abysses are urged to remain vigilant and exercise caution while conducting Abyss hunts.]
The entire hall fell silent.
(End of Volume One)