Ambushed by Brigands

After completing his quest, David headed back with Lewis.

Their steps were noticeably lighter on the return trip.

"My god, I've got a D-rank magic beast on my back! It's unbelievable, this is our spoils of war!" Lewis exclaimed excitedly, still feeling it was unreal.

Although he had only provided a weapon at the end, the sense of participation was as if he had slain the beast himself - a tremendous achievement.

A magic beast, tied to the legends of cultivators, had been defeated just like that. He was dying to announce it to the whole world!

As they passed the map's marked spectral lynx site, it drew more shocked cheers and applause.

"Amazing, someone actually hunted a spectral lynx, and it was even a mutated magic beast level one!"

"Looks like that guy wasn't lying. This really is where spectral lynxes appear!"

This further emboldened the rookie adventurers stubbornly holding this area, dreaming that they too could hunt a spectral lynx!

Lewis walked by swaggeringly with his head held high, extremely proud.

David kept a vigilant eye out for potential dangers, carefully maintaining caution.

Though the occasional passing beast would eye them greedily smelling the blood on him, they kept their distance cautiously.

"Phew!" After two kilometers, they were less than 10 km from the Adventure Base!

David finally breathed a sigh of relief. The most perilous stretch was past. This close to the outskirts, it was unlikely any powerful magic beasts would appear. The adventurer presence grew thicker instead.

This place was very safe!

But just as he thought that, four figures suddenly appeared in a clearing up ahead.

Seeing their appearance, David's expression immediately became solemn.

The leader leaned against a tree with his hands in his pockets, an icy smile on his face. The scars made him seem dangerous.

The other three lolled about looking bored, absently chewing on blades of grass.

"Well, well, a spectral lynx. Rare in these parts. Lucky brats," the scar-faced leader stared fixedly at Lewis' prey, speaking lightly.

"Of course, we got this venturing deep into the forest. A mutated, rare D-rank magic beast, haha!" Lewis forced out a casual laugh.

"Then you got real lucky unlike us, stuck here waiting fruitlessly!" The man under the tree lamented with a shake of his head.

David detected their ill intent from the tone and grew increasingly wary, frowning.

These men were positioned to surround the clearing.

Once David passed the first one, they would be trapped at a severe disadvantage.

"What are your quests?" David asked, feigning casualness while discreetly reaching for his weapon.

"Ha, kid? Don't joke around. You're out working this young? What's your quest, to be bait?" One behind them mocked and laughed without answering directly.

"A kid can hunt a spectral lynx while some people have caught nothing!" David disdainfully shook his head.

As they neared the encirclement, he halted and said to Lewis, "Let's take another path, don't want to disturb their hunt."

Lewis was puzzled but also sensed something amiss and tensely followed along.

"No need to leave. Haven't you realized? You are the prey," the scar-faced leader suddenly cackled.

"Will you hand over that lynx voluntarily or make us get rough?" another threatened.

David and Lewis were dumbfounded. They hadn't expected such outright aggression!

"Hey, what joke is this? We hunted this fair and square with blood and sweat!" Lewis argued loudly.

Hum, thud!

But the moment he finished speaking, the four switched into combat mode. Powerful auras burst out from each one, exuding tremendous pressure.

"Level 4 Initiation, Level 4 Initiation, Level 5 Initiation..." David's eyes widened as he sensed their rank information contained within the auras.

They openly unleashed their full strength, clearly intending to intimidate.

"You're just gonna rob us openly?" David was also furious. His eyes darkened as he pushed out his own aura.

Hum hum!

Spirit power surged through his veins. Strength filled his entire body as a unique aura forcefully pushed back.

"Oh? Level 1 Initiation? Impressive, to reach this at such a young age. No wonder you dare enter the forest, you do have some ability. I admire that!" The scar-faced man was slightly surprised.

Though only an initiate, David's aura was extremely robust, brimming with inborn kingly might.

"See if you've got what it takes to steal my prey!" David was raring to go, the spirit energy within making him even more confident.

"Hahaha, the impulsiveness of youth!" The scar-faced man laughed as he slowly closed in.

David frowned slightly. His right hand was almost touching his sword hilt, waiting to draw!

As the man approached, he finally struck out, slashing backhanded at the scarred face!

Boom!

The sword gleamed swift and fierce, its momentum like a rainbow!

Buzz!

But this blow only sliced through air. In the follow through after the powerful swing, David inevitably lost his balance briefly.

Thud!

Seizing this opening, the scar-faced man struck like thunder. Without even drawing his blade, he simply rapped David's chest with the hilt.

Tremendous force instantly spread from that point. Even with his spirit-strengthened body, David still felt a splitting pain as if he would crack apart.

Crash!

In an instant he was blasted back four or five meters, falling to the ground.

Before he could get up, the scar-faced man was already upon him, sword tip held to his throat.

"Kid, not bad reflexes, but you're still not qualified to cross ranks and challenge me!" the man condescended from above.

Lewis had also realized things were bad. The moment they started fighting, he turned and ran.

Buzz buzz buzz!

Suddenly, a flying dagger sliced through the air behind him in a strange trajectory, accurately lacerating his calf.

"Argh!" Lewis let out an agonized cry, immediately tripping and falling. His calf was slashed by the spinning dagger's edge, instantly drenched in blood as he was unable to stand.

"Hey hey, didn't I warn you not to run?" The man who threw the dagger laughed cruelly.

He walked up to Lewis and finally yanked the embedded dagger out despite Lewis' terrified expression, splattering blood that even pulled out a chunk of flesh!

"Ahh, ahhh!!" Lewis screamed in pain.

No one cared for his agony. They took the spectral lynx off his back.

"Not bad. A mutated D-rank should fetch a good price. Brothers, this haul alone makes today worthwhile!" The dagger man said.

"Can't do that. It's still peak hunting time. Look at the time - those idiots will be back soon. Everyone keep watch!" the scar-faced man ordered.

Turned out they were a band that specifically ambushed rookie adventurers in the forest!

"Can we leave now?" David deeply sighed and asked.

"Of course, we only seek money, not lives," the scar-faced man replied wickedly.

David didn't say anything, finally relieved they weren't truly lawless since they seemed to fear the Adventure Association's rules to some degree.

If it was just stealing prey, there would be ways to avoid risks later.

But killing would bring huge trouble from certain authorities even for them.

"Can you still walk?" David went to Lewis and held out a hand.

"Y-Yeah, I'm fine!" Lewis gritted his teeth and took David's hand to shakily stand, limping as he started moving.

They didn't speak another word for the rest of the trip, losing their earlier vigor.

"Four-man group, I'll remember you!" David silently memorized their appearances. He would have revenge someday!

Evening, at the Adventure Association entrance in District D.

"David, you're back too. How was today's haul?" Emma bounded up first, a bright smile on her face as she leaned in closely to ask.

Despite his earlier setback, David wasn't discouraged. He just gave a wry smile and shrugged.

"Nothing!"

"Hahaha, I knew it, Leah, see, I knew it! We all got tricked!" Emma slapped David's shoulder and guffawed loudly.

David was slightly astonished. Glancing around at them, he also broke into a smile.

"You all failed too?"

"Yeah, that jerk actually sold us a fake map. With more hunters than prey, how could we finish the quests!" Just thinking about Rupert from this morning made Emma's teeth itch with anger.

Not only did they spend 100 silver on a bogus map, all their quests had failed without exception, and they still had to pay deposits!

Sniff sniff!

Suddenly, Christina, who had been quietly standing aside, gave a little twitch of her fair nose as if catching an unusual scent.

She moved closer, following the smell until her nose touched David's clothes directly.

"Big brother, you're hurt?" Her eyes widened slightly as she asked.

"It's nothing." David didn't explain further.

"David, you're injured!!" Hearing this, Leah grew extremely worried. Seeing the claw marks and dried blood on David's arm, she was at a loss.

"I'm fine, I got off easy. This guy is more seriously hurt..." David gave a wry smile, not wanting them to worry for him. He pointed instead to Lewis following behind.

"Hi, I'm Lewis," Lewis had been eavesdropping for a while. Hearing David introduce him, he awkwardly held out a hand to greet everyone.

"Who's this guy? He looks so weak!" Emma said suspiciously.

Lewis felt very awkward being scrutinized warily by everyone.

"A fellow adventurer I teamed up with midway," David explained.

"How did you both get hurt like this?" Leah crouched down to examine Lewis' injuries.

She felt his wounds seemed different from David's for some reason.

"This looks intentional," Leah judged.

"It's complicated..." David smiled wryly.

He recounted his experiences, from discovering the spectral lynx to having his prey stolen...

As they talked, they decided to first head back to the inn to rest up. Clara and Leah went to the nearby open market to buy some bandages, medicine and supplies.

"Damn, how infuriating! There are people like this?" Emma said angrily.

"Big brother, let's stay together from now on. I can protect you!" Christina suggested.

"Sorry for dragging you into this, kid!" Lewis said guiltily. His face was full of remorse. "I'm too weak, couldn't even resist..."

They sat at a table in the inn. Lewis' leg still throbbed faintly.

"That bastard, the one who used daggers...I'll definitely have my revenge!" He clenched his fist tightly, veins popping up.

He seemed to recall something, his gaze turning determined. "Kid, want revenge? I'm signing up for the Adventure Association's public training. Wanna join?"

"Public training?" David repeated blankly.

"Yup, it's a basic training open to everyone, meant to help newbie adventurers grow," Lewis explained. "It also contains a lot of Initiation level content!"

"There's training like that?" David's eyes lit up.

They lacked proper training right now. Though there were some channels to gain cultivation knowledge, nothing could compare to professional training and guidance!