Chapter 55: Precision Sneak Attack
“Ah…”
On the two hunters’ escape route, two Ironthread Snakes suddenly leapt down from the branches above them and bit directly at their necks.
The two Beast Tamers whose beasts reacted the fastest tried to come to their aid, but their beasts were entangled with Zhu Yu and Inkband, so they missed the chance to save their owners.
Although the paralysis venom was not instantly lethal, the Ironthread Snakes that attacked them had been specially bred by Zhou Ming.
Beast Tamers whose physical constitutions were not much stronger than ordinary people only held on for a few seconds before collapsing to the ground, unable to move.
“Bang, bang.”
The Blood Hunter Type-1 Handgun finally found a use.
When the beasts’ masters died, the two beasts entangled with Zhu Yu and Inkband died immediately as well.
With the targets clear, Zhou Ming’s figure walked slowly out of the smoke. He retracted Inkband and Zhu Yu to his shoulder and left with his pack of snakes.
He did not pick up the pile of spoils left on the ground; the backpack behind him was reserved for the Wyvern.
In less than a minute, Zhou Ming had resolved the fight.
It was not that Zhou Ming was exceptionally powerful, but purely the advantage of seizing the initiative.
The ambush tactic that had just appeared had once been used by a country called White-Headed Eagle in Zhou Ming’s previous life.
They seized the initiative by getting information from the radar sensory domain, confirmed which targets to attack and in what order.
Relying on the stealth techniques from Mad Python Martial Way and using powder to hide his scent, Zhou Ming slowly closed in through the dense jungle.
He used the Thunder Type-2 Revolver to take out the strongest leader, because of the gun’s accuracy and because he could not get too close; large-bodied beasts made the best targets.
When he dealt with the strongest hunter leader, the roar of gunfire drew the attention of the others. He then sent out the Ironthread Snakes that had taken the Blood Ignition Potion to ambush the nearby snipers and gunners who had no beasts to protect them.
Smoke grenades blocked vision, leaving the remaining two unable to effectively counterattack; without clear information they could only flee.
As for the Ironthread Snakes that ambushed them, Zhou Ming had arranged them all around; whichever direction they ran, they would be ambushed.
Zhou Ming had disliked White-Headed Eagle in his previous life too, but he had to admit—their tactics were brilliant.
A surgical-knife tactic: precise.
However, in this world Zhou Ming could only use it against Apprentice Beast Tamers; after all, the weaknesses of Apprentice Beast Tamers were too obvious.
Previously, Zhou Ming had been simply ambushed and then subjected to rapid suppressive fire, and it had nearly prevented him from reacting. He still had not forgotten that suffocating aura of death.
After the first successful use of the surgical-knife tactic, Zhou Ming became more and more proficient with it in subsequent operations.
Like pulling out nails, the hidden hunters were taken out by Zhou Ming one by one with pinpoint accuracy.
But Zhou Ming also had limits: the bullets for the Thunder Type-2 Revolver and the endurance of his right arm.
Even with healing potions, Zhou Ming’s physical constitution had improved by only about ten percent, and his arm still needed recovery time.
And the hunters who survived in the wild were not fools. After Zhou Ming cleared the third hunting squad, the other hidden hunters realized someone was clearing the field.
Some began to cooperate, others started fleeing toward where the Scorpion-Lion was located.
“It seems we’ll have to wait for the Scorpion-Lion before we can finish this.”
Sitting in the embrace of a large tree, Zhou Ming retracted the single-barrel monocular and briefly assessed the reconnaissance he had just completed.
Because of Zhou Ming’s sharp clearing action, the remaining hunters sensed his danger; a united hunting squad of thirteen men appeared in his sight.
Nine Beast Tamers and four firearm users were stationed in an open area—already beyond what Zhou Ming could handle alone.
He climbed down from the leafy tree and did not stay there waiting dazedly for the Scorpion-Lion’s support; instead he headed back into the dense forest behind him.
The sniper rifle, heavy machine gun, ammunition—spoils left by the cleared hunters—were all taken back by Zhou Ming.
These items were his way to make up for his lack of means.
He placed the spoils under the embracing tree, then climbed back up the ten-meter-high tree. While replenishing his strength with simple rations, he watched the distant hunter camp through the single-barrel monocular.
As time passed and the sky slowly darkened, the united hunting squad in Zhou Ming’s sight did not withdraw; it seemed the Wyvern’s temptation was too great and no one wanted to give up.
“So soon?”
Sensing the silent approach beneath the tree, the Scorpion-Lion asked with a slight smile.
“How did you know I could find you?”
Under the moonlight, the Scorpion-Lion rode out from the shadow where branches hid him.
“Heh heh, Scorpion-Lion was not only powerful, his sense of smell was sharp too. Reading more had some benefits after all.”
Agile-bodied, Zhou Ming took only two or three breaths to reach the ground.
“You don’t seem to have finished your task.”
The Scorpion-Lion had long since seen the united hunting squad not far away, but he did not act immediately; he came to Zhou Ming first.
“You planning a one-man raid on the camp? I can be your cheerleader.”
“What’s your plan to deal with them?”
The Scorpion-Lion did not take Zhou Ming’s teasing; if he had that kind of strength, he would not be looking for help.
Getting to the point, Zhou Ming stopped joking and earnestly relayed the intelligence he had gathered.
“They’re afraid of being ambushed, so they chose an open spot, but that also exposed their information.”
“Nine Beast Tamers and four firearm users—the Beast Tamers are needless to mention; your Scorpion-Lion could slaughter their beasts without difficulty.”
“What worries me are the four firearm users. In an open area, if they have a heavy machine gun and a heavy sniper rifle with armor-piercing rounds, even your Scorpion-Lion couldn’t withstand that kind of firepower.”
After decades of Alliance development, firearm manufacturing had reached a peak; Scorpion-Lion naturally did not underestimate firearms’ power.
With martial ways and mutations producing rare medicinal materials, guns with extreme recoil yet terrifying power had become possible.
“What do you have in mind?”
“A night raid to harass them.”
Zhou Ming had already planned how to deal with the camp; he had not been idly sitting in the tree for half a day.
“Tonight I’ll use these guns to sporadically fire at their camp. If someone rushes out, you handle them. But most likely they won’t do that.”
“Actually, it would be best to attract the attention of the ferocious beasts around the Wyvern; if they attack the camp, that would be ideal.”
Hearing Zhou Ming say this, the Scorpion-Lion immediately recalled the previous beast riot and gave Zhou Ming a cold look.
“Fine, let’s talk about other things.”
Under the Scorpion-Lion’s gaze, Zhou Ming returned to the main topic.