Chapter 18: Clearing the Vines

In that flame, there was immense heat that made Wen Wen, who had a vampire constitution, feel a bit uncomfortable. He moved two steps behind Lin Zheyuan.

Beyond that flame, the fire released from the supporters' flamethrowers seemed to be drawn in as well, swirling around the Bloodthirsty Vine and eventually forming a fiery tornado that totally enveloped it.

Within the burning flames, faint death cries could be heard, shrill and piercing.

"Plants can make noise too, huh…" Wen Wen muttered softly behind Lin Zheyuan.

"After all, this is a plant from the Inner World," Lin Zheyuan replied.

During their casual conversation, the numerous tough vines of the Bloodthirsty Vine turned to ashes in the flames. When the fire subsided, the Bloodthirsty Vine that had once pushed Wen Wen to the brink was now just a pile of twisted, dry branches.

"Wow, impressive, Uncle! With such impressive abilities, why didn't you act earlier?" Wen Wen ran towards the ashes in two steps, poking at them with a dagger while exclaiming in admiration to Uncle Gong.

Lin Zheyuan nodded slightly. He had always thought Wen Wen was not serious, but now found him to be rather cautious, as he took the initiative to examine the remains of the Bloodthirsty Vine.

But actually, Wen Wen just wanted to see if there was anything not fully burnt, to find an opportunity to lock it up in a prison. However, he was disappointed, as the Hunters Association had cleaned up very thoroughly, leaving no lingering danger.

Uncle Gong pointed to the scorched marks around the Bloodthirsty Vine and said, "If I had acted from the beginning, the entire annex building would have looked like this, and then it would no longer be usable in the future."

Realizing there was no opportunity to gain something extra, Wen Wen stepped back a bit—this Uncle seemed like a map-cannon superpower user.

"Actually, you don't have to worry about any oversight. We Hunters Association handle things very cleanly, with a complete follow-up mechanism. Monsters defeated by us rarely rise from the ashes," Lin Lu popped over and patted Wen Wen on the shoulder, her impression of Wen Wen improved a lot since he had actively helped this time.

Wen Wen gave a bitter smile. He was worried that the Hunters Association's operations were too thorough. If he casually cooperated with the Hunters Association in the future, even after putting in effort, he might not gain any benefits.

"Thanks for your help this time. The reward for providing the clue will be transferred to your account. We still need to do some follow-up work, so we won't keep you here any longer. We hope to collaborate with you again in the future," Lin Zheyuan said to Wen Wen with a friendly smile.

"Definitely, definitely," Wen Wen responded verbally, while inwardly deciding he wouldn't easily cooperate with the Hunters Association again.

"Are you sure you won't consider joining the Hunters Association? Your abilities are good, and right now the Hunters Association is short of personnel. We could really use your skills, and the compensation should satisfy you."

"I think I'd prefer to stay free."

...

"I reflect on myself thrice a day: Am I a pervert? Am I a pervert? Am I a pervert?"

Reclining on a lounge chair and basking in the sun, Wen Wen occasionally rocked the chair to keep it swaying.

In his hand, he held a bullet, examining it closely.

More than ten days had passed since the last operation, during which Wen Wen had helped the Hunters Association trap another vampire.

As for his earlier intention to cooperate minimally with the Hunters Association…

Since the compensation provided by the Hunters Association was quite generous, and superpowers also need to make a living...

Well, the saying "it's delightful indeed" just says it all.

Because of similar abilities, Wen Wen played a significant role in this roundup, so as a reward, the Hunters Association found Wen Wen a residence, a house with a balcony.

In Furong River City, there are many supernatural cases in a short period of time, so staying here would be much better than wandering around and relying on luck. Therefore, Wen Wen accepted the house and decided to reside in Furong River City for a while.

Of course, the house was still owned by the Hunters Association. Wen Wen could only live there; the Hunters Association wasn't rich enough to just hand over a property.

During this operation, Wen Wen had thought about seizing the opportunity to capture that damned vampire and contain him in the Sanctuary, but ultimately he did not proceed.

Firstly, there were many members of the Hunters Association around, and it was not very convenient to act. It might expose his ownership of the Catastrophe Containment Facility.

Secondly, there was already a beautiful young female vampire in the Sanctuary, and he did not need another stinky old man...

Apart from accommodations and money, the Hunters Association gave Wen Wen another form of compensation: the bullets in his hand.

In total, there were twenty bullets called Demon Hunting Bullets. They could cause additional damage to most supernatural creatures, and their impact was considerable if they hit the target.

Like that time he encountered the Feathered Serpent Monster, every bullet hit its mark, and that creature was almost disabled.

However, these bullets should not be used carelessly, as there were only twenty in total, and they couldn't be purchased. Lin Zheyuan gave these twenty bullets to him just to win Wen Wen over.

A superpower user like Wen Wen, who had strong combat abilities immediately upon awakening, was very rare.

So, under the generous gifts from the Hunters Association, Wen Wen succumbed and agreed to occasionally help them with some tasks.

Wen Wen didn't have a significant aversion to this; even when he was a common person, he often helped the police with cases. Now, helping the Hunters Association deal with monsters was essentially the same thing.

The bullets should have runes inscribed on them. The thing that targeted supernatural beings must be these runes, but the key positions of the runes were covered by metal, making it nearly impossible to replicate them.

Even if Wen Wen was a complete novice, he knew that such mystical items needed to be intact to be effective.

Just by looking, you couldn't tell much. Wen Wen entered the bathroom and sat on the toilet, his figure gradually disappearing.

For safety reasons, whenever Wen Wen entered the Catastrophe Containment Facility, he would choose small places not likely to be under surveillance.

The bathroom was a good choice.

...

Inside the Catastrophe Containment Facility, the female vampire sat on the ground with her back against the railing, stretching her long legs freely. A patch was torn off the left pant leg, revealing her fair skin.

Wen Wen had previously taken that piece of fabric to use as a mask.

She looked askance at Wen Wen, who appeared out of thin air, a hint of disdainful sneer on her lips, but she quickly turned her head away.

For Wen Wen, her feelings were quite strange. Although she abhorred Wen Wen and wished he would drop dead on the spot, she still needed Wen Wen to bring her food, so she didn't want anything to happen to him outside.

Thus, she was quite conflicted.

Meanwhile, Qin Shuang, like an abused child, crouched in the corner, occasionally trembling.

But despite his pitiful appearance, given the opportunity, he would attack Wen Wen at any moment. Turning into an evil spirit, he was a soul driven by malice.

Wen Wen paid no attention to the two prisoners. His target this time was not them, but the runes in Qin Shuang's cell.

The enormous rune that bound him and prevented his escape!