Chapter 80: Hunter's Intuition

That's right, it's just rare.

According to Lord Han, the last time this type of Ghost was seen in Gu Yue Cun was three years ago, so Lord Han didn't go into detail with Fang Yue about these two types of Ghosts at the time.

"Transfer-type Ghost?"

Xiao Hou was a bit confused: "What Deputy Captain Ye means is, the Ghost that was originally going to possess me, he transferred it onto something else?"

"Correct."

"Was it that horse?"

"Correct!"

Xiao Hou's scalp went numb; he never imagined that by sheer accident, he had saved his own life.

Fang Yue deliberated for a moment, then placed a 【Ghost-Detecting Talisman】 on Xiao Hou, and sure enough, there was no reaction at all.

After confirming it was safe, both of them relaxed.

Fang Yue looked around and asked, "Do you still remember the way back?"

Once out in the wild, Fang Yue was completely blind—his surroundings were utterly unfamiliar—so he could only rely on Xiao Hou.

Only then did Xiao Hou carefully survey the surroundings, and his face immediately lit up with joy.

"Deputy Captain Ye, our position here isn't far from the Hunting Zone."

That's great!

First link up with the Guard Team at the Hunting Zone, report the situation to Lin Ling, then join forces to kill the Ghost—that's the most reliable plan.

Immediately, Fang Yue had Xiao Hou lead the way.

In no time, they reached the edge of the Hunting Zone, but six corpses were lying on the ground.

Fang Yue and Xiao Hou's expressions shifted slightly.

After a moment's hesitation, Fang Yue stepped forward to examine them closely.

These six corpses had multiple claw-like wounds on their bodies; the fatal wounds were all chests pierced through with bloody holes, expressions savage, blood pooling everywhere.

"They died not long ago!"

"Deputy Captain Ye, it might have been that Horse Ghost!"

Xiao Hou reminded him from the side, but Fang Yue saw more than that.

For instance… these people hadn't been completely powerless; after a fierce struggle, they were killed in a single strike by some technique, chests pierced through.

Moreover…

Fang Yue stared at one of the corpses' faces—the face still locked in a savage expression was stained with black blood.

That wasn't his blood; it was the Ghost's blood!

Xiao Hou said with a complicated expression, "This is Captain Jin! Just a few days ago he was drinking with me, and now today he's already…"

So he was a Captain—no wonder he could wound the Ghost.

Fang Yue pondered briefly and felt this Ghost's strength couldn't be too great.

"Deputy Captain Ye? Let's hurry inside, that Horse Ghost is sure to kill more people! With your strength, you could definitely cut it down easily!"

Xiao Hou urged anxiously, but Fang Yue didn't move an inch.

He was hesitating.

Should he notify Lin Ling to handle it?

Or charge in recklessly for a Ghost kill?

You have to understand, nighttime is my home turf.

It's still daytime right now…

While Fang Yue was hesitating, a message suddenly lit up on his friends list—the sender was… Jing Yan.

"Ye Ge! Ghost present, team in danger, return at once!"

……

A few minutes earlier.

Jing Yan was weaving through the Hunting Zone, using the skills he'd learned from the Blood Hunter to set down one new trap after another.

He also went to the old trap spots the Blood Hunter had pointed out, checking whether any prey had been caught.

Every so often, Jing Yan would look up at the sky.

In the sky, an eagle circled above his head for a moment before flying off elsewhere, seemingly checking on his safety.

That was the special attention of another veteran Hunter in the Hunting Zone.

"Once I get my hands on the Blood Hunter's Blood Eagle, hunting will be a breeze."

A Hunter without a baby—how can that even be called a Hunter?

But eagles really are hard to get; dogs are easier to obtain, though that's only for Hunters with real strength.

For an apprentice of a Blood Hunter like him, before completing his training, he shouldn't even think about having a pet.

Outside the game, his Jingse Studio had already made a name for itself—his career was truly on the rise.

The reception work was handled by other dedicated staff at the studio, which was why he had the leisure to come back and keep playing the game.

Arriving at the spot again and setting down a trap, Jing Yan suddenly felt a surge of joy.

"System Notice: Congratulations to the player on using 【Primary Simple Trap】 multiple times—practice makes perfect. Reward: Taming +0.1."

Unlike other players who fought tooth and nail to squeeze into the Guard Team, life-skill players had their own ways of growing stronger.

The Hunter class relied on setting traps and hunting to raise basic attributes.

Naturally, attribute growth wasn't as fast as those in the Guard Team, but the gains from a life class weren't limited to attributes—there was also the distribution of spoils after a hunt, and exchanging a certain number of submitted spoils for Yang Lifespan.

Basically, the first batch of players to enter Gu Yue Cun all chose similar life classes.

They relied on helping NPCs with odd jobs, doing quests, and raising favorability.

Only after mastering the technique and taking on tasks that grant Yang Shou can one form a cycle, allowing survival in the village.

Otherwise, one day's Yang Shou is utterly insufficient.

Gu Yue Cun is relatively better—last night's disturbance rewarded every surviving player in the village with three extra days of Yang Shou, greatly extending the buffer time.

Players in other villages fared far worse.

Based on Jing Yan's own observation, many forums this morning were already flooded with curses calling the game garbage; these people all died instantly after their single day of Yang Shou ran out and they found no way to replenish it.

To re-enter the game, they must wait twenty-four hours—the sense of frustration goes without saying.

But these are minor issues.

Jing Yan believed that, given the game's quality, no other game on the market would match it for one or two years; even if the bones were hard to chew, there would still be a market.

Seeing a person and a dog suddenly appear ahead, Jing Yan suppressed his thoughts and moved closer to greet them.

"Qiu Ge, how was your haul?"

"Ah, nothing much—just small stuff. I wonder when I'll ever see a Ghost Hunter again."

"Ghost Hunter?"

"Oh, you're a refugee—you probably haven't seen one."

Qiu Ge sent his eagle flying farther into the sky to hunt, then continued casually.

"A Ghost Hunter is prey with a body several times larger than normal animals, carrying a strange bloodline."

"These Ghost Hunters are rare finds—I last saw one three years ago, when your master, the Blood Hunter, brought back a three-meter-tall Giant Deer Ghost Hunter; the whole village was thrilled."

"After the Giant Deer was divided and eaten by the entire village, the Guard Team's numbers surged, everyone grew strong and robust, their Qi and Blood abundant. Our village's large Guard Team size is partly due to this. Too bad none of them could break through Martial Dao and enter the Post-Heaven Realm."

"Ghost Hunters like the Giant Deer merely replenish Qi and Blood—they're a great boon for those still cultivating crude Martial Arts. But to step into Martial Dao, one must rely on personal fortune."

Jing Yan's heart stirred—hearing this, eating Ghost Hunters could increase base attributes?

Speaking of which, the prey his Blood Hunter master demanded be turned in included several types whose names clearly indicated rarity; their meat likely benefited martial cultivators too.

Jing Yan's mind raced—he silently noted this, thinking his studio could produce a special feature on the Hunter Chapter Prey Detailed Explanation.

But with only this much information, the feature would still be insufficient.

Jing Yan immediately wanted to ask more, but Qiu Ge's hunting dog suddenly barked.

"Shh!"

Qiu Ge's expression changed instantly—he crouched, clamping the dog's muzzle shut to silence it, his gaze fixed with intense tension on the direction of the barking.

Jing Yan stared closely and saw only a horse slowly walking through the woods, its movements slightly stiff, giving an unsettling, unnatural impression.

"Wild horse? Should we capture it—"

"Shh!"

Qiu Ge shot Jing Yan a sharp look and whispered: "I'll count to three, then we split up—you go left, I go right—head straight for the Guard Team and call for help. Understood?"

(End of Chapter)