Brown and Brian are part of the squad, and although they have to follow the orders of the one-eyed leader, it feels as though they are treated like delicate flowers, completely protected.

But in reality, when it comes to actual combat, the two of them are no slouches. Brown is at the low tier of Black Iron, and Brian has even reached the middle tier.

If they were in any other association, they would almost be at the level of a squad leader.

"The captain is too strict. We can only move around in such a small area, and the monsters we encounter have no challenge to them," Brian said, somewhat bored, after they had just slain another monster.

While Brown bent down to cut off the monster's ear, he sighed in agreement, "Yeah, it's one thing if there are no strong monsters, but the real issue is that we can't go far. How are we supposed to find Ed?"

Brian chuckled, "Unless he comes to us."

At that moment, Brown stood up from the ground, touched the scar on his face, and snorted.

"Brother, I can't wait any longer. Every time I think about that last battle, I get angrier and angrier. I can't wait to get revenge today!"

"Why don't we try stepping outside the boundary?"

Brown lowered his voice. Since the one-eyed captain wasn't around, maybe they could slip out without him noticing.

Brian immediately countered, "No way. The captain has a strong sense of perception. Don't let your hatred cloud your judgment."

He raised his head and said in a lecturing tone, "We always need to stay calm, like me."

"Even if we can't kill Ed this time, it's fine. When Big Brother Karot gets back, we'll have no trouble taking him down."

After hearing this, Brown sighed.

He could only nod in silence, forcibly pushing his thoughts aside.

Meanwhile, a hundred meters away, Ed and his group had reached the heart of the Nightmare Wasteland!

Ed used his Hunter's senses to move forward, following the faint aura of treasure he had sensed earlier, and looked ahead.

"Look, there's something over there."

Thomas gasped in surprise, "It's a house!"

The group looked ahead and saw several houses, though they were all in ruins, with broken walls and fallen rooftops.

Ed said, "It looks like this used to be a village, abandoned for many years."

Amid the dilapidated houses, there was one larger wooden house, radiating a strong, ominous aura!

This time, because they were so close, Thomas, Alex, and the others could also clearly feel the danger with their Hunter's senses.

"My God!"

The sudden sensation nearly made everyone, except Ed, weak at the knees!

Hunter's senses can reveal things that the naked eye cannot, such as killing intent, traces of blood, and other hidden clues.

At this moment, under the influence of their senses, Alex and the others were shocked to discover that the central house was completely enveloped in thick black mist!

The black mist was so dense that it covered the entire village ruins, even forming a towering black column of energy, reaching several dozen meters in height!

The killing intent was overwhelming!

Alex's legs trembled as he said, "This is the first time in my life I've seen such terrifying killing intent. What could be inside there?!"

Lucas was also shaking all over, barely able to speak clearly, "I... I'm so weak in the legs I can't even move…"

At this moment, Ed furrowed his brows. Normally, ordinary monsters could only emit killing intent proportional to their size.

But the killing intent before them was not only far greater than anything a typical monster could produce, it was a hundred times more intense!

However, in addition to the overwhelming black mist, there was also a faint golden light inside.

"That golden light must be the aura of the treasure I sensed," Ed thought to himself.

"Although this black mist is incredibly intimidating, in fact, it's been here for months. The owner of the aura hasn't appeared for several months."

As Ed continued to sense carefully, he thought, even if the aura's owner were still around, he was confident that he could face them in battle.

At that moment, Thomas asked, "Ed, are you seriously planning to go in there?"

Thomas's face was filled with concern, clearly afraid that Ed might be taking a dangerous risk.

Ed nodded, "That's right."

Thomas immediately became respectful, and Alex and Lucas also looked on in shock.

Ed said calmly, "The aura was left here a long time ago. The monster may not even be around anymore. I want to go in and see if I can retrieve the treasure."

"Is there anyone willing to come with me?"

Ed looked at the three of them.

Alex and Lucas immediately and instinctively took a step back, every fiber of their being resisting the idea.

They didn't want to die! Entering that wooden house would be like walking straight into death!

After a brief internal struggle, Thomas gathered his courage and stepped forward.

"Ed, I'll go in with you. No matter what happens, at least I can help you out."

Seeing this, Alex said, "Ed, my brother and I will wait outside the house and guard. If any monsters show up while you're inside, we'll warn you as soon as we can!"

Ed nodded and said nothing more, "Alright, then we'll do it that way."

With that, the four of them slowly made their way toward the abandoned village.

And just beside the village, hanging from a tall dead tree, was a recording stone.

The Viewing Arena.

Since both Ed and the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association, two of the main attractions, had suddenly disappeared, the audience had been left with nothing to do but watch the other, more boring contestants.

Many of the spectators, bored out of their minds, had even started chatting idly among themselves.

Uncle Du and the others were no different. Viktor, rubbing his hands together excitedly, said,

"Lord Ed is so powerful, and he's collected so many spoils. I'm really happy for him!"

"But Uncle Du, what do you think Ed and the others are doing right now?" Viktor asked, looking at Uncle Du for advice.

Uncle Du gently stroked his chin and said confidently, "They're probably on their way back to the starting point. If I were him, I'd definitely be leaving the arena by now."

"After securing such a great rank, staying inside would serve no purpose."

Viktor nodded, agreeing, "That makes sense... if it were me, I'd stop while I was ahead too."

Iris also nodded in agreement. She was happy for Ed because he was so impressive.

But Phirna, who had been listening nearby, seized the opportunity to speak up, "Iris, you're smiling pretty brightly."

Iris immediately stopped smiling and frowned. "What are you talking about? And how is my mood any of your business?"

Phirna looked at the screen, where the normal contestants were featured, and said,

"Look at this, the content they're showing now is so incredibly boring. But once my uncle comes on, everything is going to change! He'll absolutely shine on the stage!"

"I believe the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association will have even more exciting battles coming up!"

"And your friend... I admit, he did steal a bit of my uncle's spotlight, but the home field advantage still belongs to my uncle and the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association!"

Iris snorted coldly and didn't bother to argue with her.

As long as Ed made it out safely, that was all that mattered.

Just then, on the black screen, the secondary screen suddenly switched. It shifted to a scene of an abandoned village!

All the bored spectators' expressions changed.

"Huh? Did they switch the feed?"

"They did, they did! Look, there's a house on the secondary screen!"

"I know what this is. This is a village in the Nightmare Wasteland. People lived there decades ago, but it's been abandoned for years."

"If I'm not mistaken, the village is located in the most dangerous center of the Nightmare Wasteland. Who would dare come here??"

The audience was shocked, discussing among themselves. If this had been the main screen, no one would have been particularly amazed.

But the secondary screen represented an individual Hunter!

For someone to dare enter the heart of the Nightmare Wasteland was truly unbelievable!

"Look! There's someone approaching!"

"Wait, isn't that... Ed's team?!"

Soon, Ed and his group appeared on the screen, moving steadily toward a wooden house.

Instantly, the audience sat up, finally having something to watch!

At the commentary desk, Jason, who had been relaxed, now tensed up. His eyes widened slightly as he said,

"The long-awaited Ed's team has returned to our view, and this time, they've arrived at… the most dangerous part of the Nightmare Wasteland!"

"It is said that many years ago, this place was a peaceful village, but one day, it was suddenly attacked by hordes of monsters. The entire village was massacred! Very few managed to escape…"

"Later, the Nightmare Wasteland was sealed off, and this place has since been considered the most dangerous area!"

As Jason spoke, the audience grew even more interested.

But Uncle Du and the others, on the other hand, had shocked expressions on their faces. Soon, their moods turned tense!

Uncle Du's eyes widened, "How could this be? I thought after Mr. Ed got such rich spoils, he'd be planning to leave the wasteland, but why is he heading deeper in?"

Viktor gasped, "No way, according to the commentator, this place is so sinister?"

Iris was even more anxious, "He didn't choose to leave?!"

This time, even Phirna, who had been listening nearby, was shocked by Ed's actions.

"What!? This place... isn't this where only the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association would dare to go?"

"This kid, why is he here?! And he got here before my uncle did!"

Phirna, who had a massive ego and was always trying to compete with Iris, was now feeling completely unbalanced by this scene.

Her teeth clenched, and her hands tightened into fists.

"Iris, don't get too cocky. Your friend might die here!"

Iris's expression changed, and she turned to her. "What's there to be proud of? I'm just worried about my friend's safety. What about you? All you know how to do is argue!"

"And stop being so self-important. Why do you think the Moon Eclipse Demon Hunter Association is the only one that can come here?"

"I think the reason they haven't arrived yet is because they're afraid! They probably never intended to go to the center of the Wasteland at all!"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.