Surely they would be undefeatable? That was what every member of Team Zenith was thinking—yes, they would be undefeatable! As far as they knew, the only one who had access to such potions and information was Zhang Lie and Zhang Lie alone.

Just the existence of basic limit fragments alone had thrown them for a loop, let alone that of mutated or even superior limit fragments.

"Well? What are all of you waiting for? The faster you find all those herbs, the sooner you'll be able to get another breakthrough!"

"Right, we'd better get those herbs as quickly as we can!" The hunters of Team Zenith left the inn jubilantly, excited for their impending powerup.

Once everyone was gone, it was again time for Zhang Lie to focus on his own affairs. He had successfully consumed Potion #3 and broken through, so his next step would be to reach his new superior gene capacity. Zhang Lie left the Blacksteel settlement and headed in the direction of the Desert of Silence. 

Meanwhile, the hunters of Team Zenith had split up into three small groups to maximize the efficiency of their search. As a result, quite a few hunters reported sighting the hunters of Team Zenith around the vicinity of the Blacksteel settlement, which were immediately followed by one or two pained howls from the lifeforms nearby.

"What are the hunters of Team Zenith doing? Why are they still slaughtering superior-grade lifeforms like crazy? Haven't they already reached their gene capacity?"

"They must be hunting for superior-grade soulshards, of course! What else could they be doing here?"

Many hunters began commenting on their sudden appearance and disappearance.

Within the Night Forest, Fang Yi thrust his spear forward, devouring the superior-grade wolf-type lifeform in front of him. At the same time, Sun Mengmeng shot an arrow up into the canopy, seemingly causing the forest itself to shudder. Moments later, a devastating howl could be heard from the distance. Fang Yi and Sun Mengmeng ran off clutching a few herbs in their hands.

Although they were tired, the process of acquiring these herbs felt extremely rewarding.

The other members had also collected quite a fair number of herbs on their own; given their rate of progress, they would likely be able to acquire everything on the list before the end of the two-month deadline.

Meanwhile, deep within the Desert of Silence, a figure gave off huge waves of genetic energy amidst a violent sandstorm. Howls and thumps could be heard from the sand, but within moments, as the dazzling show of genetic energy ended, countless superior-grade lifeforms fell to the ground.

Zhang Lie walked out of the pile of carcasses and began skinning his kills. Moments later, the scent of roasted meat drifted through the desert.

[For consuming the flesh of a superior-grade dragon salamander, you received one superior gene fragment. Current total: 101]

[For consuming the flesh of a superior-grade dragon salamander, you received one superior gene fragment. Current total: 108]

[...one superior gene fragment. Current total: 116]

[...one superior gene fragment. Current total: 121]

The three different lifeforms he had killed sufficed to raise his superior gene fragments by twenty. After breaking through, Zhang Lie's entire body had gotten an upgrade, including his digestive abilities. Zhang Lie had a sumptuous feast, patted his stomach and headed even deeper into the desert. His traces were quickly covered up by the roaring wind.

Late at night, the members of Team Zenith gathered once more. They looked somewhat exhausted, but their eyes were all shining brightly. They had spent the entire day killing lifeforms, most of which were superior-grade.

"We've managed to get a few dozen of the herbs on just the first day alone! If we work harder, we might even be able to finish within two weeks!" Sun Xiaowu waved his hands in excitement.

"Not necessarily. We did well today, but I suspect there won't be any useful herbs left in the vicinity of the Blacksteel settlement. We'll have to head out further, and it'll cost us more time and put us in more danger. From tomorrow onwards, I think we should work in three-member teams so that we can prioritize our safety," Fang Yi announced.

"Indeed, but given our current strength, there's not much that we have to worry about. Instead, I think we need to plan out our search more carefully—that'll surely save us quite a bit of time," Yang Ze suggested.

The hunters began discussing the optimal plan of attack after their experience that day: it seemed as though the task that Zhang Lie had laid out for them would be far harder than it seemed at first glance. Even Sun Xiaowu, who was initially quite excited, suddenly felt burdened by the immensity of the task.

As their conversation drew to a close, Zhang Lie suddenly entered the room.

"Well? Did you find anything good today?"

"Captain, this task's crazy difficult! Do we really have to acquire thousands of herbs?" Sun Xiaowu complained.

"You can reduce the quantities you need by a third, but if I fail to brew it correctly, I won't have enough potions for all of you," Zhang Lie replied.

"The brewing process can fail?!"

"Of course—what makes you think it can't?" Zhang Lie retorted.

Everyone grew silent. Indeed, obtaining enough ingredients for ten potions would be the safest option. Zhang Lie's eyes glinted as he looked at the crowd, because he knew that only this sort of pressure would cause them to speed up their search; this was, in some sense, a part of their training as well.

"Well, we're Team Zenith. Of course we'll be able to get all these herbs within two months!" Sun Mengmeng shouted, trying to raise everyone's spirits.

"Right, it's only been a day, hasn't it? I'm sure we'll be able to acquire the remaining herbs in no time!"

Everyone slowly regained their confidence.

The next day, the hunters of Team Zenith continued searching for more herbs as Zhang Lie hunted down more superior-grade lifeforms. His body drenched, Zhang Lie stepped out of the Mo river with a giant cuttlefish in one hand and a sprig of herbs in the other, giving off a strong fragrance that covered up even the pungent odor of the cuttlefish.

"Surprisingly difficult to deal with," Zhang Lie murmured, dumping the superior-grade cuttlefish's body unceremoniously onto the sands as he focused on the deepsea vine in his other hand. He had come to the Mo river in search of both the superior-grade cuttlefish and for an ingredient to be used in the scale-weakening potion.

This auxiliary ingredient would allow the poisons from each of the three main herbs to better combine with each other, and was invaluable for raising the success rate of the concoction. Because it was available in the dimensional world, he didn't request that the Thousand-Treasure Pavilion search for it.

He glanced at the cuttlefish's body as he stored the vine in his potbellied-toad pouch, but just as he was doing so, a fluctuation in genetic energy came from behind him.

Zhang Lie narrowed his eyes and activated his galewolf soulshard, dashing away in the blink of an eye. When he turned back, he felt the sea wind on his face.

"Hand me the deepsea vine! I'm willing to exchange points for it," a long-haired youth approached, calling out to Zhang Lie.

His face was expressionless. Genetic energy surrounded his body, and the sword buckled to his waist was particularly eye-catching. It came with a gold-alloyed sheath on which a jewel was embedded, and it shone with a curious sparkle in the sun. He had on a suit of light blue armor, and was staring fervently at the vine in Zhang Lie's hands.

"It's not for sale." Zhang Lie rejected him instantly, given his poor attitude.

"I recommend that you sell it to me, or I'll snatch it from you if I have to." The other party seemed to need the vine urgently. His hand moved to his sword.

"Are you threatening me?" Zhang Lie raised an eyebrow. It seemed as though all his encounters lately were with those who wanted to steal or snatch something from him, as though he were an easy target.

"I promise I'll give you a good price."

"And I told you, I won't sell!"

Genetic energy began to rise from the youth's body, and the sound of an ocean wave could be heard from a distance.

Water-attuned genetic energy? Before Zhang Lie could think too much about it, the youth suddenly pulled out an ancient longsword gleaming with light.

Zhang Lie's eyes widened at the craftsmanship of the sword, but before he could admire it further, the youth was already charging toward him.