nownovels Chapter 2: The Black Iron Trial!
Chapter 2: The Black Iron Trial!
whoosh-
Arrows shot out.
But this time it all came to nothing.
The rodent that was gnawing on the remains of its own kind was more alert than the one that had died.
After all, there are lessons to be learned from the past.
Even while eating, they don't forget to shake their bodies and move around.
So, upon hearing the strange noise, the rodent attracted by the corpse of its own kind suddenly turned its body.
He dodged the arrows, darted into the bushes, and vanished in an instant...
"pity!"
Silently waiting for the rabbit to run into the tree stump, he got up from the bushes, not feeling too disappointed.
The area he was in was a wasteland, where there were usually not many strong monsters.
So after completing the collection, Shen Mo used the remains of the Gnatifid beast as bait, hoping to try his luck.
After waiting for more than an hour, they finally caught their prey, but Shen Mo failed.
Clearly, his LV5 (veteran) archery skills weren't enough to ensure he hit the bullseye every time...
"We can't waste any more time..."
While eating the nutritional paste, Shen Mo raised his hand to look at his watch.
The old mechanical watch showed that it was past ten o'clock.
But looking up at the distant land shrouded in gloom, Shen Mo still felt a little uneasy.
The world he traveled to was called Fuli, which was plunged into apocalypse due to the invasion of the abyss.
The pollution of magic not only gave rise to a large number of monsters, but also destroyed the ecological environment.
Only a few unpolluted "pure lands" have become the living spaces where humans barely survive.
Based on the degree of magical pollution, the Demon Hunter Association divided the area outside the Pure Land.
Beyond the Pure Land lies Wasteland.
The land here is no longer arable due to the pollution of magic.
Ordinary humans and other living beings cannot survive here for long, otherwise they will be corrupted by the magic.
Next is the Demon Realm, located between the wasteland and the edge of the abyss.
The concentration of magic here is very high, and the pollution and erosion are severe.
There are a great many monsters, and even some demons!
Ordinary people can hardly survive there, and even witchers cannot stay for long.
The final edge of the abyss refers to the area near the entrance to the abyss.
This place is adjacent to the abyss, teeming with monsters, and its ecosystem is completely distorted; the danger is self-evident...
Shen Mo's Black Iron Trial mission was to enter the Demon Realm and hunt down two types of demons!
"We're already here, how can we give up now!"
Taking a deep breath, Shen Mo sheathed his bow, drew his sword, and stepped into the Demon Realm.
The first monster he was to hunt was the Blackscale Fish.
Although it is a Tier 1 monster, it is rarely seen in the wasteland.
They typically inhabit the Blackwater River basin in the Demon Realm.
Hunting Blackscale Fish alone is the most common Black Iron Trial project for Western Witchers of the Divine Alliance.
The throat of the black-scaled fish has keratinous hyperplasia, which is as black as ink and as hard as iron.
This is also the magical essence of the black-scaled fish, which the association calls Black Iron Jade.
Black Iron Jade is one of the mission credentials for the Black Iron Trial.
If one passes the trial, the Black Iron Jade will be crafted into a Black Iron Badge by the Demon Hunter Association, serving as a symbol of identity for newly recruited Demon Hunters...
In the Witcher Guild, Witchers are divided into multiple ranks, including Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Emerald, Diamond, and so on.
Furthermore, each promotion requires undergoing multi-faceted evaluation and completing corresponding trial tasks.
Therefore, the ranking of demon hunters in the Demon Hunter Association is not entirely based on strength.
It's just that powerful witchers are usually not low-level either...
The closer one gets to the Demon Realm, the higher the concentration of magic in the air becomes.
The most obvious manifestation is the increasingly dim light and the growing number of oddly shaped plants...
Some negative emotions also began to sprout in Shen Mo's heart.
This is a sign of magic erosion, but it's not serious.
Shen Mo has undergone his first physical transformation.
Under normal circumstances, staying in the game for more than half a month shouldn't cause any major problems...
Hunting black-scaled fish is not difficult.
After all, they are only first-tier magical beasts, and they are simple-minded and numerous.
Shen Mo had already done his research before coming, and even used some of his skills to enhance his swimming ability in case of any unexpected events.
The main difficulty of this task lies in the Demon Realm itself.
The Demon Realm is a harsh environment, teeming with ferocious monsters, including many second- and even third-tier monsters!
Furthermore, visibility is very low, making compasses and similar devices ineffective, and witchers can easily get lost.
Normally, Iron-rank Witchers need to team up to ensure a certain level of safety.
When soloing in the game, without extensive experience and sufficient vigilance, one can easily encounter danger.
The magic of the Demon Realm constantly influences the minds of demon hunters.
Those who lack willpower and focus will fail in the trials.
Shen Mo guessed that this was done intentionally by the Demon Hunter Association.
The purpose is to select witchers with outstanding willpower.
Before the association was established, witchers were more likely to fall into demonic ways because they could absorb magic to strengthen themselves.
The harm caused to humanity by demons is no less than that caused by monsters, demons, or even demons.
This resulted in Witcher having a very poor reputation and being regarded as an outcast.
Until the association was established, various measures were taken.
Witchers also contributed to protecting the sacred land, which is how they began to integrate into society...
The Demon Realm is dangerous, but Shen Mo has his own trump card.
After reaching ten points in physical attributes, the first sublimation occurs.
Shen Mo then awakened his innate ability of "five senses superpower".
His senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch were all greatly enhanced.
Shen Mo could see the blood bees flapping their wings nearly a hundred times per second from a distance of a hundred meters away in the dark.
You can hear blood ants scurrying and crawling in the mud.
Like a hunting dog, it can track animals over long periods and distances by relying on faint, lingering scents.
It can also detect vibrations within a hundred meters and determine the number of targets and their direction of movement...
Having superhuman senses is undoubtedly a powerful talent.
This is also the source of Shen Mo's confidence to participate in the Black Iron Trial after only a little over a month of transmigration.
Even if you encounter a monster you can't defeat.
With his enhanced senses and level 5 agility, coupled with his mastery of sprinting, he should be able to escape...
Following the information on the map, Shen Mo carefully approached his destination.
Once something seems amiss, they don't investigate or pursue it further; they simply choose to bypass it.
About eight kilometers into the Demon Realm, Shen Mo heard the sound of rushing water.
"Almost there!"
Shen Mo's spirits lifted, but he remained vigilant.
He is currently in a dense jungle.
Dim lighting can easily make people lose their way.
The piles of withered grass and leaves underfoot are also a dangerous natural breeding ground.
With each step he took, he observed everything with his whole being.
With his 10-point physique and superhuman sensory abilities, he could achieve great speed and speed.
It took us a full three hours to get here...
Finally, after walking several hundred meters more.
Shen Mo walked out of the jungle and came to the shallows.
What appeared before him was a river that was twenty or thirty meters wide.
This is not the Blackwater River.
The Blackwater River is still 60 or 70 miles away, encircling several pristine areas in the western part of the Divine Continent Alliance.
Shen Mo only found a tributary of the Blackwater River.
The map in his hand refers to it as the Black Sand River.
The river water was as dark and murky as the Blackwater River.
It flows slowly, as if a terrifying monster dwells within it.
It gives people a suffocating, oppressive, and uncomfortable feeling...