The Mech Touch

After Captain Gheri had completed the tour through the LMC store, Ves and his family had seen enough.

The store only represented a part of the Larkinson Clan's interests on Ocanon VI, after all. The Larkinsons stationed on the planet also engaged in other important activities.

"You should pay a visit to the base where our local branch is housed." The Swordmaiden officer suggested to Ves. "Our fellow clansmen and I would love to demonstrate our strength to you. We have made good progress as of late. Our Monster Slayers have also become stronger."

"I will be sure to visit the branch in the evening." Ves promised as he shook the woman's strong and calloused hand.

President Oscar Tarich eventually led the recent arrivals away from the LMC store and straight to the center of Tixe City.

The traffic became lighter as they started to approach the district where all of the government institutions were located.

Ordinary hunters had little reason to visit these places under normal circumstances. The only place that attracted more traffic than usual was the head office of the Hunting Association!

It was not a tall structure, but it occupied a larger block. Several sprawling structures along with underground construction enabled the local branch of this notable organization to lead and coordinate a lot of different tasks.

Although it sounded contradictory, it took a huge amount of effort to preserve the natural state of Ocanon VI. Its hunting grounds were not able to replenish the losses from frequent hunts. Careful management was essential to keeping the prey populations at sustainable levels.

However, the rising onset of E energy radiation-induced mutations had caused the workers of the Hunting Association to become a lot more stressed.

Ves could feel the frenetic activity around him as he stepped through the main entrance of the central building.

Few workers looked relaxed and content as they moved between departments. Even with the arrival of additional support, the changes produced by the rapidly strengthening exobeasts were straining everyone's ability to keep the hunting grounds under control.

However, E energy radiation did not only bring disaster.

It also granted blessings to the many hunters who recently found out that there were additional benefits to hunting down these dangerous prey!

"As you can see, our Association is doing the utmost to preserve the safety of this planet without compromising its viability as a hunting preserve." President Tarich said as he led the Larkinsons through the hall and up the stairs to another floor. "Aside from taking direct action, we rely heavily on the hunters to put down mutating exobeasts long before they can grow out of control."

"Hunters like to tackle a challenge, but many of them shouldn't be willing to provoke dangerous beasts that have developed a lot of powerful surprises. How can you persuade them to eliminate the targets that are much more troublesome than others?" Ves curiously asked.

"Our Hunting Association is not short on wealth, professor. The most straightforward means to motivate the hunters into action is to attract them with cash rewards. We have instituted a virtual mission board where any hunter or hunting team can apply to complete one of our missions if they qualify. Your clansmen have been particularly enthusiastic about completing them, and we are grateful to your Larkinsons because of that. I think they have accepted the missions more because we are able to guide them directly to their prey, thereby saving them valuable time in tracking them down themselves."

"That sounds about right."

The Hunting Association indeed relied on a lot of money to solve problems before they became too powerful to suppress. Why do all of the dirty work when there was a city full of hunters that were more than willing to take action?

"Recently, that has changed." President Tarich continued to explain as they passed through several doors that led into the more secure sections of the main building. "As I have already explained, the central headquarters of our Hunting Association has published the Hunter's Code. Though it was initially met with skeptical reactions, the early adopters quickly began to outpace the more cautious hunters. Now, virtually every hunter on this planet as well as many other ones have enthusiastically embraced the new code."

They briefly stopped before a guarded checkpoint. Once the group passed through the thick and sturdy gate, they entered a library of sorts where a lot of texts had been printed into old-fashioned books.

There were several reasons why the Hunting Association had resorted to such a primitive method of information storage, though that was not important at the moment.

The branch president sped up his steps and picked up a thick black tome that exuded small but concentrated energy that immediately caused Ves and the others to see it in a different light!

"This book...!"

"The Hunter's Code is not a secret text." Tarich said. "Anyone can access it on the galactic net as long as they are registered hunters. It is impossible to prevent it from falling in the hands of others, but it is too difficult for non-hunters to make use of our code. What I have in my hands is the only physical copy of the Hunter's Code that the Huntsman has directly materialized using his own willpower."

"Wow!"

"So awesome!"

The children all looked eager to touch the big and heavy tome.

Ves did not show a strong reaction because he already guessed this answer. He had come into contact with the willpower of a powerful god pilot a few times before.

The book radiated the power of a distinctly different god pilot.

Whereas the Destroyer of Worlds possessed a will that evoked the threat of total annihilation, the influence of the Huntsman gave Ves the sense that everything in the cosmos could be divided between predator and prey!

To be honest, Ves recognized a few parallels between the Huntsman and Cynthia Larkinson.

They both shared a similar perspective about predation, though they utilized different angles to shape their domains.

Ves wondered whether there was any family relation between the two. Could the Huntsman be a distant relative?

Nah.

What a silly thought.

In any case, the black tome was absolutely remarkable. Even if its contents were exactly the same as the virtual editions of the Hunter's Code, this one was special because it possessed the remnant will of a god pilot!

Ves figured that any hunter that studied the Hunter's Code through this empowered tome would make much more progress than normal!

It was like the Monster Slayer in the form of a book.

The principles were similar, but the black tome probably offered a lot more effective guidance than a swordsman mech.

Once Oscar Tarich presented the sacred book to the Larkinsons, he reverently placed it on a flat table.

"You are permitted to peruse it as you wish for the remainder of the hour. I will have to ask you to leave once your time is up. Another hunter has reserved the following timeslot. You can continue to study the virtual edition of the Hunter's Code after you have left."

"I understand. I am grateful for the opportunity to study this book in person."

The branch president did not need to explain that this was an extremely coveted privilege. It was a dream for hunters to come into direct contact with a relic that was entirely made by the God Kingdom of their greatest idol!

Though Ves did not really appreciate the remarkable book as much as other people, he still handled it with great respect.

No matter what, the heavy tome contained an active trace of the Huntsman's willpower!

Though it was unlikely that the Huntsman actively paid attention to the hundreds of identical black tomes that he had sent to all of the branches of the Hunter's Association, who knew whether he paid attention just as Ves made a disrespectful remark?

"Can I see? Can I see?" Andraste asked as she walked up and pressed against his father's body.

"Me too!" Marvaine said as he reached out so that his father could lift him above the table.

Though Ves did not think it was suitable for them to come in touch with this cultivation method, they needed to get exposed to texts like these. He did not want them to get fooled by dubious cultivation mantras posted on the galactic net.

"I will let you read this as long as you promise not to practice it." He told his children. "If you want to grow stronger, I can offer you plenty of other ways to promote your evolution. Andraste, are you still practicing the method that I have taught?"

"Yes, papa." The red-headed girl rolled her eyes. "You don't have to ask. I know what is important. Becoming a potentate is still my biggest goal!"

"Good girl." Ves said as he patted Andraste's head. "Now let's see what this Hunter's Code is all about."

Even though reading a big book was not exactly a typical holiday activity, none of the Larkinsons issued any complaints.

The opening sentence was a direct quote of the Huntsman.

[Never forget that the hunter can always turn into the hunted and vice versa. Even the greatest of hunters can fall prey one day.]

"Well, that is intense." Ves muttered.

This sentence exposed the Huntsman's belief that there were always bigger fish in the ocean.

Nobody was truly weak, and nobody was truly strong.

"Let's continue."

Ves began to flip the pages at a speed that was too fast for his children to keep up with his reading pace.

Though his kids were good learners, they were too young and lacked a comprehensive understanding of cultivation science.

Though the Hunter's Code was meant to be read by hunters who had no background in cultivation, Ves found it a lot easier to comprehend the mantra and the many associated techniques of this interesting new cultivation framework.

"What an impressive method."

Ves grew more and more appreciative of the Hunter's Code. Whoever composed this comprehensive cultivation method absolutely knew what they were doing.

While he was not able to judge whether the Hunter's Code was as good as the Metal God Method, he felt that it should not be any worse.

After fifteen minutes of going through the mantra and the extensive explanations on its various components, Ves gained a broad understanding of what he had just read.

According to his own understanding, the Hunter's Code was a combination between a qi cultivation method and a body cultivation method.

It sought to strengthen its practitioners in a holistic manner. There was a definite focus on combat, survival and hunting activities.

What makes the Hunter's Code different from many other hunting methods was the primary means of growth.

Qj cultivators mainly made progress by absorbing the power of heaven and thinking really hard on artistic conceptions.

Body cultivators mainly grew stronger by absorbing a lot of valuable resources and tempering their growing physiques.

The Hunter's Code mashed both of these approaches together into a mantra that attempted to shape the mentality of hunters while also encouraging them to strengthen their bodies by eating a lot of flesh!

The cultivation method imposed a lot of demands on its practitioners. Those who wanted to follow the Hunter's Code pretty much had to center their entire lifestyle around hunting. There was simply not enough room for any other obsessions.

However, there was one strong advantage that made the Hunter's Code extremely compelling for many people.

"Pretty much any healthy individual can practice this method."

This was remarkable work. If Ves interpreted it correctly, the Hunter's Code could easily be practiced by any human as long as they properly followed all of the instructions!

There was no demand for talent or affinities. There was no need to buy expensive augmentations or ingredients.

Even third-raters could overtake the progress of first-raters as long as they were earnest enough about following the Hunter's Code!

This was because the primary means of growth of its practitioners was to devour the strength of the prey of their own kills!

The Hunter's Code taught every hunter a large amount of rituals that enabled them to derive far more benefits from their defeated prey than normal!

The black tome even contained a ritual that directly sacrificed a kill to the Huntsman!