Star Gate

The captain headed up to ground level after this series of events; Wu Chao and Chen Jian were close on his heels. Yun Yao bid them farewell before making her way deeper into the basement.

Liu Yan glanced at the team doctor and found that Li Hao was also staring at the petite girl.

“Little fellow, is it stressful chatting with big sis?” she murmured with amusement. “Don’t have any extraneous thoughts about that one—older sisters are better.”

“Don’t be mistaken, vice captain!”

“So what if I am, so what if I haven’t?” Liu Yan chuckled. “I’m just giving you a helpful tip! Being a doctor is not a profession for the masses. Ordinary doctors are useless for our injuries and doctors are of immense importance to our team. They have a mission that no one else can complete.”

Curiosity seized Li Hao. “What is it?” In his current state, he was curious about everything and anything. The faster he settled into the rhythm of things, the faster he could catch up to everyone else.

“Stripping supernaturals of their mysterious power!” Although Liu Yan smiled as she answered, her smile was ever-so-slightly tinged with apprehension.

Stripping supernaturals of their mysterious power!

Li Hao pulled up short.

Regular people didn’t seem able to see mysterious power. As for whether or not supernaturals could… maybe, but the theory bore testing since none of the people in front of him were supernaturals. Plainly, it wasn’t easy to take someone else’s power, but Yun Yao could!

Given what Liu Yan said, the doctor was indeed a very important part of the entire team. They hunted supernaturals for their prey’s mysterious power. There was no point for the Demon Hunters’ existence without Yun Yao.

Just look at Liu Yan’s reaction—someone as unbridled and brazen as her showed dread when it came to their doctor! Li Hao committed the detail to memory.

While everyone on the small team seemed to be ordinary mortals, they were anything but. Those who could join the Demon Hunters were the furthest thing from a kind and gentle soul.

“Let’s go, stop looking!” A merry Liu Yan casually kicked Li Hao. “Stay away from that woman, she’s worse than the chief! We can joke around with the chief, but her? Don’t talk to her if you can!”

Li Hao nodded docilely. He was the very image of a well-behaved new recruit, just like how he’d been a year ago when he first entered Classified Affairs. He’d been the perfect department junior who kept his head down and did what he was told.

He was still the same way a year later, but the entire department sang his praises and didn’t have a bad word to say about him. That was enough.

……

Li Hao followed Liu Yan back to her office on the sixth floor. They’d only been in the basement for half an hour, but the previously terrifying office now offered peace of mind.

Bam!

Liu Yan plonked herself in her chair, still giving no heed as to her image. She propped her feet on her desk and indicated for Li Hao to sit wherever he’d like. When he found a comfortable spot, she casually spoke of solemn affairs.

“Chief wants me to give you a brief overview, but I don’t know where to start. All of this is known material to me, so why don’t you ask me yourself. Ask me anything you’d like to know and I’ll answer!”

Li Hao snapped to attention. While he presented a polite front, he would set all that aside in a flash to gain more knowledge. He cut straight to the chase, “Vice captain, how does one become supernatural?”

“There’s two ways!” Liu Yan answered equally frankly. “The first one is being born supernatural! Some people are born with innate ways to absorb mysterious power and don’t need to cultivate or induce the energy into themselves. There’s a naturally forming mysterious foundation inside their bodies that grows with them. These people are hailed as Heaven Favored!”

Heaven Favored!

Li Hao committed the name to memory.

“The second is to conduct the mysterious power into yourself! That’s the typical way to cross over—drawing upon mysterious power, being baptized by it, and having it activate your own abilities. These types of supernaturals are mainstream and the path that most walk! They’re labeled Starlight in their hierarchy of power!

“Mysterious power is as resplendent as the stars. Latter-day supernaturals absorb this energy, so they consider themselves the coming of starlight.”

Starlight!

Li Hao committed another name to memory. Did this mean that there were two main factions in the supernatural hierarchy, based on how one became otherworldly?

“Just these two types?”

Liu Yan nodded. “Strictly speaking, we’re the second type too because we want to cross over via inducting mysterious power into ourselves. We’re not a different category.” Having said that, she thought for a second. “There’s rumors of another way though.”

This sparked Li Hao’s interest. “What is it?”

Liu Yan dimpled beatifically. “It’s said that some powerful supernatural items can change a person’s foundations and propel them into that mysterious territory! It’s a way of setting foot into the occult through external objects.”

Li Hao’s heart skipped a beat! Supernatural items? Like Stellaris and the stone blade?

Liu Long should know, or at the very least guess, that he had these items. But why didn’t the man bring the topic up? Was he secretly making plans, or did he really not care about them?

“This method isn’t mentioned much because it’s nearly impossible!” Liu Yan continued. “First, it requires such a powerful object that it’s beyond the reach of ordinary people. Second, apparently these items come with restrictions. They won’t work for just anyone. I’m not clear on the particulars—chief might know, but you don’t need to be concerned about this.”

Li Hao nodded without a word and changed the topic. “What did he mean before when he talked about finding a mysterious power that matches and directing it into the body?”

“Everyone’s constitution is different and our talents lie in different areas. There are many kinds of supernatural abilities out there. Chief, for instance, is skilled at offense, but he doesn’t know what kind of offense. Lightning? Fire? Ice? Since he doesn’t know himself what attribute he’s suited for, it’s very difficult for him to open his supernatural lock if he absorbs energy that’s a wrong fit!”

“Supernatural lock?”

“It’s what we call the barrier between us and the supernatural! I don’t know if there’s actually something like that in our bodies—chief says that he learned about it from the Night Watchers. They say there’s a lock inside everyone that constrains the mundane and extraordinary. Only when you unlock it can you set foot into the occult.”

Li Hao understood—unlocking their supernatural lock was what everyone strived for!

That was all he had for questions about the supernaturals themselves. He switched to something more relevant to himself. “Vice captain, is there a way for me to cross over if I want to?”

“Yes—inducting mysterious power into yourself. However, it’s probably hard for you to be allotted a share of it at your current state. Maybe we can try to get you some after we kill the one behind the self-immolation cases…” Liu Yan responded candidly. “It depends on how much you contribute to the case! You don’t get more just because you’re weak or talk a good talk. The Demon Hunters take spoils very seriously and divvy up mysterious power based on how much work each person did.”

Li Hao nodded his understanding. “Then is there…”

“Is there a way for you to get stronger?” Liu Yan smiled. “Yes! You can raise your martial strength before you enter the supernatural domain. You’re so weak that there’s still many ways to improve yourself.”

An eager Li Hao looked expectantly at her.

“Number one, keep training hard!” Liu Yan said after considering her response. “Number two, practice a good martial dao method. Your Five Styles is a pretty good one. Elder Yuan was once a Sunderer of Hundreds after all, so it goes without saying how good his method must be. The New Book of Five Styles is also very comprehensive—it can attack, defend, and guard.”

The young man nodded with agreement. This was very true, he could see that even though he’d only learned the ape style.

“Number three, external force!” Liu Yan chuckled. “That’s still mysterious energy at the end of the day. Even if it doesn’t open our supernatural lock when conducted into our bodies, it still enhances our physique. The physical constitution is our foundation! A strong body, mind, and formidable method will naturally make you stronger!”

Mysterious energy! I… I have that! The sword water!

“This naturally isn’t the only type of external force—mysterious energy is only one type. There’s a lot more that can strengthen the body. Perhaps your teacher will know more about this.”

Li Hao blinked. What did she mean by that?

The woman giggled with amusement. “Who knows how many ancient ruins the professor’s explored since he’s the department chair of Ancient Civilizations? The Night Watchers claim most of the findings, but they’ll leave him some to placate his feelings. Treasures are the most numerous in those ruins. With how weak you are, you’ll benefit handsomely if your teacher gives you a few things!”

Li Hao blinked. How dare he ask his teacher for presents? No way!

“Hahaha, don’t be shy! Your teacher isn’t the only one, we have some nice things too!” Liu Yan lowered her voice. “You won’t go wrong if you listen to big sis. So long as you demonstrate enough value and that you’re worth investing in, the chief will respond in kind! Having killed a few supernaturals already and being the law enforcement agency of Silver City, we have a little treasure vault of our own.”

Li Hao blinked rapidly, he understood!

“Big sis Liu, are there any definitive markers to increases in strength other than my own assessment? For example, do any changes occur when one reaches the Slayer of Ten level?”

“Changes?” Liu Yan paused, then smiled. “Yes, but a martial master’s strength is determined in actual combat. There’s a live combat training room toward the rear of the basement. You’ll know what I mean when you give it a try. You’re a Slayer if you can pass the first level—it means you have the strength to wipe out an elite troop of ten at the same time!”

A training room? Li Hao committed another interesting detail to memory. He looked at the woman again, were there no other benefits or help to be received after joining the Demon Hunters?

Liu Yan started, then understood his meaning. She tittered with hilarity. “You don’t seem as honest as you appear, little fellow!”

“For justice!” Li Hao whispered with a pure smile.

For justice!

That stopped Liu Yan’s laughter and she shook her head with a sigh. “You’re a fast learner. I can’t give you anything else because you’ve just joined, but you can take whatever hot weapon you want from my office. Take as many as you want! They’re all legal and you probably need these things the most at the moment. Strengthening oneself isn’t accomplished overnight. Just look at big sis here, this is all I’m good for after training for twenty years…”

Li Hao nodded. Twenty years? When did you start? You look only thirty years old or so, are you actually over forty?

Of course, he didn’t dare ask these questions. These guys revealed ten to twenty years of practice at the drop of a hat, it was damned terrifying! He was well aware of how hard martial training was and how difficult. He’d put in hard effort over the past three years, running through the ape style whenever he had time. A dozen broken hoop rings and numerous painful crashes to the ground counted among his experience.

Time ticked by as the young man asked a few more questions. It wasn’t until Liu Yan brought up that it was meal time that he stopped with reluctance. The more he understood, the more he yearned for the mysteries!

If he couldn’t quickly join the supernatural domain, then he must progress with martial dao. It was always good to be better able to defend himself.

The sword water is an absolute treasure! I need to get more out of it and drink more! Li Hao carefully sensed the coolness around his chest. This might be his only way to shorten the gap between him and the others.

……

Li Hao didn’t do anything for the rest of the day apart from asking questions and listening to answers. He saw no sign of Liu Long after the morning meeting—perhaps the team captain had gone off to make certain preparations.

Law Enforcement didn’t put in an official transfer request, possibly out of concern that they’d alert the enemy ahead of time. Other than the Demon Hunters, only Wang Jie of Classified Affairs knew of the situation.

etvolare’s Thoughts

In other words, Yun Yao’s straight out of a horror movie. Small and cute, she’ll probably laugh as she skins you alive.

Heaven Favored sounds pretty dang pompous though. Betchu those people are all super proud of themselves. Ironically enough, they could be the MC of another novel. The old cultivators trying to squash a budding cultivation system and the MC happens to have a phoenix-dragon-soul-magic-rainbowpoop spirit root that’s an innate constitution for the new system.

Or something like that.