Early the next morning, the team gathered at the puppet shop on the first floor to discuss matters related to the assessment.

The assessment items that choose two out of four are not much different from the three-star assessment.

However, one of the advanced and ultimate assessment criteria is still very difficult after research.

Li Ming has the blessing of fog balls, and he needs to be actively prepared, especially Chu Ying.

As for the choice tendency, Li Ming is basically confident that he will impact the ultimate, especially the physical fitness test, in addition to reconciliation.

Although Chu Ying has never slackened in her daily training, she basically only has to reconcile and use weapons, and she can try to impact.

Li Ming saw the promotion model of the Hunter Guild from this.

Very few people are all-round and perfect, and the promotion path of ordinary people is to find a way to guide them in what they are best at and practice a certain item to the extreme.

In principle, training is forbidden on the streets of the city, but because of the close proximity to the wall, there are few people living there, and no one will come there to supervise them.

The team then conducted initial training on the rooftop terrace.

As for why not go to the oversized and well-equipped training ground.

The main thing is the long way, the queue, and the supercoin does not let use three factors.

Under Sophia's guidance, Chu Ying practiced the most basic heavy ballista sideways aiming.

But there is no launch link, it is simply aiming and lifting.

Li Ming had seen Chu Ying do similar training, but it had never lasted so long in a single session.

"I'm shaking again."

Sophia, who was sitting on the chair, said indifferently and raised her glass to drink tea.

There were beads of sweat on her cheeks, and her arms were slightly raised.

The muzzle of the blue bear barrel trembled slightly, and it stopped swinging.

Such strict training requirements attracted Li Ming and the cats to pay attention.

Sophia looked sideways, Li Ming and the cats unconsciously sped up their frequency and refocused on their training.

stayed up until the lunch break, Chu Ying collapsed directly to the ground, as if she had lost her mobility.

Bubu was fed with strong walking medicine, and the fatigue was relieved.

"You've made a lot of progress, but you're still a little short of the level of a four-star hunter."

Sophia, who brought lunch, said helplessly.

"So no matter how hard you try in the remaining four days, you can't hope to break through?"

Chu Ying's shoulders drooped, looking a little depressed.

"It's very unlikely, and if you make harmony the ultimate project, it's a little more likely, but I don't recommend it."

"Well, I also want to use weapons as the ultimate project."

"Then it's going to take more effort."

"I will! Teacher! ”

"Very good, after lunch, aim for 4 hours."

"Uh, no problem!"

Chu Ying, who had a bitter face, nodded in approval.

"Teacher, if you have time, can you help guide Li Ming?"

Chu Ying asked tentatively.

"His words don't really need my guidance."

"It's not to guide the use of shield axes, but to assess experience."

"With his own strength, there is a high probability that he will be able to pass."

"Really?"

"Of course, a hunter who can still be alive with a heavy weapon on his back, it shouldn't be too difficult to pass the four-star hunter assessment, and your vision of choosing a partner is really good."

"Actually, it can only be regarded as a chance encounter."

"Let's eat, as long as the feeling of training is still there, you can focus more on it."

After Sophia urged, she brought Li Ming and the cats' lunch to the terrace.

"It's a little little, please don't dislike it."

"Thank you for your hospitality."

Li Ming thanked him.

The two small steaks on the plate, as well as a few broccoli pieces, were not enough for him.

However, if you want to fully satisfy the amount of food, the cost of ingredients in Dondoruma alone will be outrageous.

There was a lot of frozen raw meat stored in the chilled compartment, but considering the follow-up training and coping with the assessment, the team decided that it was better to save some food.

If you don't eat enough, you need to sleep.

After practicing all morning, Li Ming decided to take a nap to relieve fatigue.

I saw each other lying on the terrace and sleeping comfortably.

Chu Ying's eyes sank slightly, changed her direction, and continued to aim at the continuous training of the lift.

Bang~Bang~

A dull thud sounded.

Tiny stone particles, scattered from above the wall.

Li Ming woke up and looked up at the wall.

"I'm getting a little closer to the sound, I'll go up there and take a look."

Sophia got up as she spoke, lifted her skirt and went downstairs.

Dressed in lightweight leather armor and carrying the satchel usual for investigators, he returned to the terrace.

"Teacher Sophia, where are you going?"

Seeing that the other party was dipping the quill pen with ink, Li Ming asked curiously.

"The guild's paid employment, if the Pavilion Mantis is too close to the wall, go and watch the movement."

Sophia explained.

"Isn't it okay to have an airship in the sky?"

Li Ming pointed to the sky.

"Its new market in recent years has created a lot of obstruction for the observation airship."

"I see, can I go check it out?"

"Yes, but you must not cross the city walls, and you must not make any moves that irritate the Pavilion Mantis."

"No problem."

The reason why Li Ming wants to go with him is of course not that he wants to explode.

The Pavilion Mantis is also a seven-star monster, and it can't be provoked at all.

What he wanted was sightings to deduce possible weaknesses and the types of fog balls that would burst.

Plan for future access to fog balls.

Of course, if you find that you have no chance of winning at all, then the idea of firmly not touching it is also a kind of gain.

Sophia grabbed the slightly bulging wall tiles with her bare hands and quickly climbed up the surface of the wall.

Mi Duoduo climbed on Li Ming's back and followed closely behind.

The two of them and the cat soon reached the top of the city wall.

The appearance is messy, and there are no rules at all, and the dark yellow ruin city is presented in front of you.

Although the name has the word "city" in it, the area in front of it is a large ruin piled up with a huge number of building fragments.

Directly in the middle of the wall, there is an open, semi-curved dome, which is the only building that shows any signs of human conception.

Beneath the dome, countless thick I-beams are plunged deep into the rubble-strewn ground.

All steel beams are tied with a viscous golden thread at the end of the beam.

The threads are taut and converge in the center of the semi-arc dome, hanging a huge bell in the air.

"I've been tired of seeing it for a long time, so I'll leave the observation to you."

After Sophia finished speaking, she threw the telescopic monocular to Li Ming.

"Okay, the bell is."

"It was originally installed in the airport tower to tell the time of the residents of the city and the airship, but after it was seized two years ago, it was hung here, the purpose is unknown, and the residents of the city generally call it the worm clock."

Sophia explained.

"Wasn't that two years ago when it was expanding into the city, into the city?"

"That's right, that's when the hive core migrated to the city."

"Was there any major ecological change at that time?"

"No, many scholars have speculated similarly, but no one has been able to come up with conclusive evidence to explain why the Pavilion Mantis built the Worm Clock."

Li Ming stretched the monoculars and looked for sound.

A short time later, a golden figure with four insect legs touching the ground appeared in the observation tube.

This monster resembling a praying mantis is only more than ten meters long.

The appearance is brilliant and golden, and it is very conspicuous and eye-catching.

Two golden threads are tightly wound around a hook-like scythe.

Li Ming said the corresponding characteristics according to what he saw, and Sophia recorded it carefully.

"Still nothing has changed. It's good. ”

For Sophia, a major discovery means a high reward for sightings.

But it also means that danger may be coming.

嚓~嚓~

The sound of rubbing sounded.

At the other end of the worm silk, two thick steel beams tied and dragged slipped out of the shelter of the market.

The praying mantis lowered a pair of hooked sickles and swung them around in front of him.

As the worm silk tightened, one of the steel beams slid close to the ground.

A single hook and sickle rises, and as the forearm swings around, the steel beam begins to spin in mid-air.

Whew~Whew~

Seeing this, Li Ming couldn't help but swallow his saliva, and then lowered his head.

If this "little flying stick" was thrown, he didn't think the city wall was capable of resisting it.

Boom!

There was a crashing sound, and the shock wave and dust dispersed outward.

Most of the steel beams pierced into the ground.

The mantis's purple compound eyes blinked rapidly, looking at the depth of its steel beams.

Then he tightened the worm silk and dragged another steel beam to his side, swinging and tapping.

Boom! Boom!

After two smashes, he saw that the newly pierced steel beam was at the same level as the other depths, and then he stopped.

"Why is it not very big, but it has such terrifying power!"

Midodo asked incredulously.

"It may be due to the characteristics of the beetle species."

Li Ming speculated.

"It's still a steel beam implanted in the ground, and then the worm wire is connected to the worm clock, and the observation is here."

Although Sophia didn't use a telescope, she could already know the situation just by looking at the general situation.

Just as they were about to evacuate, [Hatching Nest Exploration] and [Super Sensory Hearing] suddenly caught a strange sensation.

Li Ming continued to make observations, but did not notice anything abnormal.

Buzz~Buzz~

Suddenly, all the insect filaments that were tied to the steel beams hummed in a slight tremble.

The hanging insect clock began to sway slightly, and the amplitude gradually increased.

While!

The bell hammer collided with the inner wall of the insect bell, and a buzzing rumble began to be transmitted to the outside world.

"It rang."

Seeing this scene, Sophia is also particularly exceptional.

"Haven't you ever sounded before?"

"Yes."

The worm silk tremors calmed down, the worm clock returned to normal, and everything returned to normal.

The eerie ringing of the bell made more investigators rush to the scene.

But apart from this noise, no other anomalies have been detected.

Li Ming also didn't know whether this was good or bad.

Judging from the information collected, there is a high probability that the opponent will explode a power-related fog ball.

The team's hunting may be almost non-existent, and given the current situation of coexistence, the Hunters' Guild will inevitably intervene to stop it.

Since this day, although the time is irregular, the insect clock will inevitably ring once a day.

The adverse effects have not yet been seen, but the crowd that flocked to listen under the wall has greatly boosted the business of the puppet shop.

Sophia, who was too lazy to put up a plaque, not only created a store plaque, but also wiped the window glass clean with a cat.

In the intense preparation assessment, time flies.

Although Li Ming was less stressed, he still did not slack off.

Chu Ying was more miserable, relying on strong pills to continue her life every day, and she was forced to complete all kinds of excessive training content.

On the night of the fourth day, because tomorrow is the date of the assessment.

Li Ming took the rice drum and the bulala, dragged the chilled carriage to the puppet shop, and held a barbecue party.

The cats danced and sang, and Li Ming and Sophia followed to the beat.

Chu Ying, who had eaten barbecue in a hurry, continued to train.

"Teacher Sophia, is Chu Ying's hope great?"

Li Ming asked.

"It's not big, but with this experience, it will reduce the difficulty of subsequent exams."

Sophia told frankly.

"Is there something missing?"

"The side-lift shooting action is still not robust enough, and it is difficult to shoot at a long-range target with the ultimate use of the ballista, do you want to change partners?"

Sophia speculated.

"Not that idea."

"In fact, it is also very common for members to be replaced, I have joined many different squads, and some of them do want me to start from the beginning, but the reality is cruel after all, casualties, loss of courage, doubts about the meaning of hunting, all of which have led to everyone not being able to go to the end."

Sophia sighed.

"Who was the toughest hunter in the Hunter Brigade back then?"

"You know the Hunter Brigade?"

Sophia was a little surprised.

"Yes, when I was in the Sandstone Cave Branch, I heard it mentioned by chance."

"The group that was disbanded less than a month after it was established has even been remembered."

"Is it going to collapse in a month?"

"Yes, the man who called himself the Grand Master back then took a piece of white dragon scales and began to persuade the hunters to join in. As a receptionist, I actually believed him, but as a result, the hunters were seriously injured one after another, and the Hunter Brigade quickly collapsed due to the attack of the Fengshan Dragon halfway, and then the Locklac garrison was abolished, and I was unwilling to accept the guild's deployment, so I became a hunter. ”

Sophia recalled.

"Don't you have the kind of genius who can easily master all hunting weapons?"

"I've never heard of it, but if you talk about the achievements of the members in the hunter's journey, I am considered the highest."

"That's right."

"Let's not talk about it, I'm going to guide Chu Ying's training."

Sophia said, getting up and leaving.

Li Ming recalled the contact during this time.

found that due to the changes in the world, Sophia and the female receptionist who regarded the broken dragon as her first love have become very different.

Early the next morning, Li Ming, who was sleeping on the roof terrace, woke up from a pile of rod-like bones.

Wash up, put on your armor, and jump out of the window.

Chu Ying, who was wearing a water beast suit, quickly pushed the door with Bubu and walked out.

"Isn't Sophia-sensei ready?"

Li Ming asked.

"Her armor is a bit of a hassle to put on."

Chu Ying explained.

After a while, the door of the monster puppet shop was pushed open.

Sophia, dressed in dark blue armor, walked out of the store.

"What is this armor?"

Li Ming felt that the shape was somewhat familiar.

"Broken Dragon Armor. It's been a long time since I've worn you. ”

Sophia looked at her palm, her palm slowly clenched.

"Hehe, thank you for being able to cheer us on."

Chu Ying hurriedly diverted the topic.

"It should be done, the aiming adjustment of the green bear tube is fine, right?"

"Nope."

"Let's go. Li Ming, are you sure you won't change your armor anymore? ”

Sophia couldn't help but ask.

"Yes."

Li Ming gave confirmation.

(End of chapter)