When the hodgepodge world of anime meets the shadow king

"Hey, Liu Zhikang!"

Standing on the towering, snow-capped summit of Mount Everest, Kitahara Xiao quickly turned around, waved vigorously at Liu Zhikang, who was walking towards him slowly and firmly, and greeted him loudly.

His clear voice seemed to penetrate the layers of clouds and mist, echoing in the silent and cold world.

Liu Zhikang smiled and waved his arms enthusiastically in response to Kitahara Xiao's greeting, while continuing to move forward with steady steps.

The strong mountain air currents were like naughty children, playing with the strands of hair on his forehead and making them fly in the air in disarray.

The two met

"So, what's the matter with you following me? Could it be that there is a research institute of yours under Mount Everest?" Kitahara Akira said half-jokingly after taking a photo of the top of Mount Everest.

He didn't believe that this was a coincidence. Who the hell could meet someone by chance on Mount Everest?

Liu Zhikang, who was originally smiling, gradually froze his smile upon hearing this.

"......" Feeling something was wrong, Kitahara Xiao looked at him silently.

"You really hid something under Mount Everest?"

"Ahem, that's not important." Liu Zhikang smiled awkwardly. "Mr. Beiyuan, someone wants to see you."

"See me? Who?" Kitahara Xiao patted the snowflakes stuck on his clothes.

Liu Zhikang did not speak. He slowly stretched out his hand and silently took out a coin-sized disc-shaped mechanical device from his pocket.

He gently pressed a button on the disc. In an instant, a dazzling light suddenly shot out from the small hole and rushed straight into the sky. Even in the daytime, this light was as dazzling as the brightest star in the night sky, which made people look sideways.

Then, an amazing scene happened. As the light continued to extend and spread, an illusory yet clearly visible virtual screen appeared out of thin air in mid-air.

"Hello, President Kitahara." On the screen, a white-haired old man sitting in a wheelchair and covered with a thin blanket greeted Kitahara Xiao.

He patted the blanket covering himself apologetically. "I'm sorry, as you can see, I can't meet you in person."

"Who are you?" Kitahara Xiao asked, stroking his chin.

"I am the leader of the 'Hunting Group'. As for the name?" The old man shook his head. "That kind of thing is no longer important."

"Hunting Group? What is that?"

Since he was traveling back to his hometown, Kitahara Akira did not investigate the details of the country as carefully as he did when he went to the UK.

"The Hunting Group is..." The old man opened his mouth slowly, but as soon as the words came out of his mouth, he suddenly started coughing violently, "Cough... cough cough cough!" The sudden cough instantly broke the originally quiet atmosphere around him.

"Let me do it," Liu Zhikang took the initiative to introduce himself to Bei Yuanxiao.

The hunting group is actually a relatively small organization. If the logistics personnel are not included, the entire hunting group has only 8 people.

However, don’t underestimate the power of just eight people! Each of them has a unique and heartbreaking story that brought them together.

The reason why these 8 people chose to join the hunting group was because they or people who were important to them had been harmed and victimized by monsters.

Those painful memories lingered in their hearts like nightmares, driving them to keep moving forward, vowing revenge on those evil monsters.

In a sense, the Hunting Group is like a gathering place for a group of avengers. Everyone holds the same hatred and goals, supporting each other and fighting side by side.

"How do you know so much about this?" Kitahara Xiao looked at Liu Zhikang suspiciously. "Aren't you an official?"

"I used to be the captain of the hunting team." Liu Zhikang spoke after a moment of silence, but Kitahara Xiao could hear a hint of sadness in his tone.

Kitahara Xiao patted Liu Zhikang's arm and looked at the old man who had recovered on the screen.

"So, what do you want from me?"

The old man, whose face was red from coughing, looked at Kitahara Akira seriously.

"President Kitahara, I hope... you can recruit the hunting team."

"Crunch..." Liu Zhikang's hands clenched slightly, making a sound. It can be seen that he was not in a good mood.

Beiyuan Xiao glanced at him, then looked at the old man with amusement, "Why? From Liu Zhikang's description just now, you can be self-sufficient, right? Why do you want me to recruit you?"

This is the first time I have seen him come to me on his own initiative.

"Why?" Kitahara Akira asked

"Alas..." The old man sighed, his already aged face looking even more haggard.

"You know the background of the hunting team members. Their mental condition...is not very good."

Since almost all members of the hunting group have suffered the tragic experience of having their families destroyed and loved ones killed because of the monsters' rampages, they are filled with endless hatred and anger towards monsters in their hearts.

Therefore, whenever they engaged in a fierce battle with monsters, the rage for revenge would instantly devour their sanity like a burning flame, causing them to fall into a state of near madness.

Driven by this extreme emotion, the members of the hunting group often forget their own safety and move forward regardless of everything. Even if their bodies are already scarred and exhausted, the strong desire for revenge in their hearts still supports them to continue to persevere and never retreat.

Over time, this continuous high-intensity combat and overly suppressed negative emotions gradually had a serious impact on the mental health of the hunting team members.

Some of them began to show symptoms such as anxiety and depression, and some even developed extreme violent tendencies.

They were supposed to be messengers of justice, but now they are struggling in the dark abyss of their hearts.

"The most important thing is that I am dying," the old man added calmly.

"The funds for the hunting group's activities are all maintained by my business. I have no children. After a few years, when I die, the company will fall completely into the hands of the shareholders. They will not waste money on such a business with almost no return."

“Besides, there is official pressure.”

The old man paused

"You know the national conditions of China. The government will not tolerate this kind of civilian armed forces."

As he said this, he looked at Liu Zhikang and said with a smile, "Although Xiao Liu has been trying to get along with the authorities after he left the hunting group, this is not a solution."

"President Kitahara" the old man looked at Kitahara Akira sincerely and said, "The hunting group has always been able to operate in the shadows."

"I know that the Hero Association is far superior to us in terms of power and resources, so I hope you can accept these young people and let them... live a better life."

"In this era...there is no place for them anymore"

(Damn it, I posted it at noon and only saw in the afternoon that it failed the review. I just revised it again)