After meeting, we went to my room. The guys brought quite a lot of beer and snacks. We sat for a long time and only went to sleep after midnight. They mostly told me about the Mingzhu preliminary campus: about the competitions with the Summoning department, the ranking battles, and the Three-Step Pagoda. They were simple people, all from the common folk, having earned the right to study at one of the best universities through their own hard work. Initially, they thought I was from a clan or that one of my relatives was a big shot, but after thinking it over, they realized I wouldn't have become a hunter in that case. I fed them the story about the accelerated cultivation zone I told Le Ri, though I said I discovered it while scouting. The guys were impressed and lamented that they hadn't found anything like it.
We got pretty drunk and passed out right on the floor. Only the girls somehow managed to crawl onto the bed during the night—all three of them—and somehow fit there, tangling in unthinkable ways.
My apartment became our headquarters and gathering point. Everyone wanted to earn money, as resources at the Intermediate level cost significantly more. A few days later, we decided to return to the boars; they paid well: fifty thousand yuan for Servants and two hundred for a Leader.
We prepared for several days, bought everything necessary, and set out.
Around Shanghai lived several types of monsters: Bone Tigers, Demonic Boars, and Horned Vipers. There were many other types, of course, but these were the dominant species in this area. This was due to the high-ranking Commanders living near Shanghai. These monsters couldn't be killed because they weren't very aggressive and didn't leave their territories, unintentionally shielding the city from other Commanders.
In summer, species like Demonic Boars significantly increase their numbers; new piglets are already growing, with litters ranging from five to ten. Many die early, but the fact remains: this monster species triples its population by early July.
The Hunter's Union issues such tasks annually—for Demonic Boars in summer and for Tritons in winter. In all cases, hunter teams receive a reward for each individual killed; evidence in the form of monster tusks must be provided. Valuable trophies like bones, tusks, claws, and hides can also be harvested from killed monsters.
Our team set out hunting with the new roster. Many of us possessed movement magic, but no one spent spiritual strength without need. Periodically, I conducted scouting, checking blind spots and suspicious places. It was in one such moment that I spotted our first prey.
"Three boars ahead, all Servants."
"Can you make them freeze in place?"
"They're Servants, so I'll use Pacification. They won't consider us a threat until magic hits them."
"Let's do that."
When we approached the monsters, they didn't even pay attention to us. One area-of-effect Spirit spell was enough. While the piggies lay peacefully, Xu Li Rin used an Intermediate spell: Ice Chains. Two ice chains wrapped around two piglets, freezing them through and crushing their bones. While the ice chains were binding their victims, Park Chu Ho's lightning snake hit the third monster, followed by Sun Wei's Fire Burst finishing it off. These were very young boars, low Servants likely from a new litter. I didn't know why they were spending Intermediate spells on them but decided not to be a know-it-all.
Exterminating these youngsters was no trouble for our team. After cutting out the tusks, we continued our search. Killing eight more piglets throughout the day, we stopped for the night. We divided the watches; I was paired with Hou Xu. Sitting with her near our sleeping comrades, we talked.
"Why did you even become a hunter? You're an Intermediate Magician in the preliminary campus; you'll get enough resources and time in the Three-Step Pagoda anyway. Yet even before starting your studies, you're rushing into battle with monsters—you became a hunter back at the Basic level. Why do you need this if you can get everything anyway?"
After thinking for a moment, I replied:
"Honestly? I don't know myself. I was always told to do this and that, and then you'll surely achieve success. And I did it because everyone did. But when I awakened magic, it was like a revelation. Human resources are not limited. A person can achieve much, even starting from the bottom; they can become anyone. But in this world, an ordinary person's life is limited by the safe zone. But there is a big BUT. I am no longer just a person!"
"Then what are you?" the girl asked, slightly frightened.
"I am a magician!"
Calming down, the girl said: "Well, I'm a magician too, so what?"
"Then tell me, what is the limit of your capabilities?"
"That's easy: first tier of Intermediate Light and second tier of Basic Healing."
"Not now—in ten or fifteen years."
"I don't even know. I hope to become an Advanced Magician!" she said, raising her right hand as if making a promise to herself.
"See? Advanced level!" I fell silent. "And that's only the beginning of a magician's path."
"What do you mean? Very few can become an Advanced Magician."
"Personally, I plan to become one in about two years."
"But how?"
"Resources!"
"What resources?" the girl looked at me in surprise.
"Look," I explained. "To become an Advanced Magician requires about two hundred million, plus time. I'm a Spirit magician, and the highest market price is for souls. But let's not get into that. Say I reach the Advanced level—what then?"
"What do you mean? Work."
"Why?"
"Well, everyone works. An Advanced Magician earns a lot; everyone values and respects them."
"And what if I become a Super Magician?"
"Well, those are extremely wealthy. The elite of the elite. But how will you become one without a clan?"
"Resources. A strong enough Advanced team is sufficient to obtain them. In truth, there aren't that few Super Magicians, but they are all raised by either organizations or clans. Independent self-made talents are very rare. Don't laugh at what I'm about to say, please... I plan to become a Super Magician and create my own clan. With its own rules and traditions—a clan that becomes a family for everyone who joins it."
"A beautiful goal," she thought. "If you become an Advanced Magician in two years, I'll join your future clan. No, better: I'll help you create it."
We were silent...
"Where will your clan be based?"
"I don't know yet."
"Haven't chosen yet? I thought Shanghai..."
"You don't understand. It won't be Shanghai or any other city. I will create my own city. I'll win territory from the monsters! Land rich in natural resources that will be a new home for a new clan. A beautiful, blooming city built from scratch. I'll invite everyone ready to build something new, not just parasitize on the old. What is a magician's main duty?"
"To protect people from monsters?"
"Exactly! We are those who can take, not just wait for someone to give!"
The girl was silent for a couple of minutes.
"What if it doesn't work?" she asked.
"How are Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor, and the founder of the Mu Clan similar?"
"Both were strong magicians?"
"Not just strong magicians—they were Forbidden Curse magicians with Heavenly Seeds. That's the level I'm striving for. Then I can create something. To stand at the origins of a new world—a world that won't fear a scary monster arriving and destroying everyone at the snap of its fingers, because someone who can snap their fingers back and erase the monster will stand in its way! I want my children and descendants not to live in fear. For that, I must create a clan that doesn't just protect the new city but also raises such magicians."
The girl was silent for a long time, as was I. Then, suddenly yawning loudly, she asked:
"I'm curious. How did you come up with this? I've never seen anyone reason like this before."
"You see, everyone awakens magic at sixteen, not having thought much about complex things before. But to me, it's surprising how a person, having been deprived of something great until a certain moment, doesn't try to use it once it's in their hands. Magic has no boundaries, and your ceiling depends only on you."
"Not everyone can even break through to Intermediate, despite cultivating for years."
"Yes, but that only means they didn't use everything. In my hometown, Intermediate level is considered an honorable peak, and Advanced an unreachable ideal. But what stops them from moving elsewhere? For example, if I were an Earth magician, I'd go to the fortress city of Ding, because the caves under that city have a huge amount of resources for Earth magicians... Do you want to go to Parthenon? You're a Spirit magician."
"No, they just gather and train such magicians there; it's not a place with high resource concentration. I'd go to former Spirit Stone mining sites; maybe I'd manage to get some."
"Yes, that would cost a fortune..."
"Let's do it!"
"Do what?"
"Well, you said it would cost a fortune. At the third tier, I'll have a spell—Expanded Perception. It allows sensing all nearby magical phenomena; I'm sure it'll find Spirit Stones too."
The girl sat there stunned. She looked at me with a firm, direct gaze and said:
"At the induction for freshmen, Principal Xiao always says that Mingzhu University raises magicians who change the world. Until now, I didn't understand what he meant. Tell me, Li Kai, if you create all this, what will happen to the rest of the world? At the level you're striving for, you'll become a global figure."
"In truth, I'm an egoist and a sociopath. I don't want to build world peace or set other impossible goals. I want to build my home and be able to protect my family. And for that, I could kill anyone."
"Thank you for telling me everything honestly instead of brushing me off with a few standard phrases. I even somehow stopped being afraid of today's hunt."
"Thanks for listening. Sorry, I wanted to share this with someone for a long time; I even feel somehow relieved!"
We sat like that until morning, discussing small things like what to name the new city and where it's best to build it.