Online Game: Starting with an SSS-Level Plundering Talent

John followed the group and quickly entered the dense mountain forest.

The area was filled with thick trees, and danger lurked everywhere.

Everyone quieted down, gripping their weapons tightly, staying alert to their surroundings.

John also took out his longbow, nocking an arrow, prepared to defend at any moment.

He wasn't particularly skilled with the bow, but he had the basic techniques down.

"Be careful, don't disturb the giant-horned deer here. We'll hunt them on the way back," Cena whispered, scanning the surroundings. He moved with ease, clearly familiar with the area, and led the group deeper into the forest.

They soon encountered a small group of giant-horned deer—seven in total—but they didn't initiate an attack.

Although giant-horned deer were generally gentle, they would retaliate if provoked. With seven of them, the group wasn't confident they could take them down without injury.

Cena decided to check the traps first and hunt the tusked wild boars and demon wolves to obtain their cores.

Eeeee...

A distant, blood-curdling scream echoed through the forest.

It was the tusked wild boar!

The group's eyes lit up; the trap they had set earlier had been triggered.

"Anason, go scout ahead," Cena ordered.

A young man from the group stepped forward, nimble and agile. He swiftly navigated through the dense forest and soon disappeared from sight.

Moments later, a sharp, clear bird call rang through the woods.

It was a signal from Anason, indicating that it was safe.

The group breathed a sigh of relief and quickened their pace.

Eeeee...

The screeching of the wild boar grew louder as they approached. In one of the traps, a massive boar was impaled by sharp, barbed spikes. It was deeply lodged, its body covered in blood, and upon noticing the group, it let out an ear-piercing scream.

"Quick, finish it off before it attracts other boars," Cena ordered, holding his spear firmly and thrusting it into the boar's pit.

Tusked wild boars typically appeared in pairs, so its companion was likely nearby.

The air was filled with the harsh cries of the boar.

The wild boar tried to avoid the group's attacks, repeatedly attempting to leap out of the pit, but each time it failed, getting stabbed by the barbed spikes, blood flowing freely.

The group swung their spears wildly, but they couldn't land a fatal blow. Instead, the boar's struggles grew more frantic.

The tusked wild boar's tough hide made it incredibly difficult to kill. Without hitting a vital spot, it was nearly impossible to bring it down. The longer they took, the more dangerous their situation would become.

Cena grew increasingly anxious.

He noticed that John had been pulling his longbow taut, but hadn't yet released an arrow.

Growing impatient, Cena barked, "Kid, are you stunned or what? Attack already!"

John ignored the others, focusing all his attention on the struggling tusked wild boar, waiting for the right moment.

Whoosh!

The bowstring vibrated, and the arrow flew, striking the boar directly in the eye, burying itself deep.

"Graaah!" The tusked wild boar let out a piercing, agonized scream and collapsed into the pit.

"Great shot!" The others exclaimed in surprise.

"Hmph, just a lucky shot," Cena scoffed. He didn't believe John could have aimed so accurately at the struggling boar's eye.

John's expression remained calm as he drew his bow again. The boar's struggles grew weaker, and this time, John shot straight into its other eye with even more precision.

[You have slain a Tusked Wild Boar. The Plunder talent has been triggered. Your base attributes have been restored by 0.0001%.]

A surge of warmth spread through John's body, and he felt his base attributes increase noticeably.

The Plunder talent had activated!

John was surprised. Since arriving in this world, both his talent and base attributes had been sealed, but it seemed that his Plunder talent hadn't been completely suppressed.

Killing one fierce beast had unlocked 0.0001% of his base attributes. While this seemed like a minuscule amount, John's base stats were incredibly high—his four core attributes totaled billions of points.

Unlocking 0.0001% meant that his four core attributes had each increased by over a thousand points, boosting his strength a hundredfold compared to before.

He felt a surge of excitement. He had finally found a way to regain his strength.

If he killed 100,000 fierce beasts, his base attributes should be fully restored.

Next, he would need to figure out how to recover his talent and the laws of this world.

Even if those couldn't be restored, with his base attributes of billions, he could likely dominate this world.

"Such impressive archery. Young man, were you also a powerful hunter before?" A middle-aged man looked at John, astonished.

The other young men also looked at John with admiration.

Young people often idolize the strong.

"Something like that," John nodded. He wasn't a hunter, and the beasts he had previously hunted were not ordinary creatures—they were powerful gods.

Beside him, Cena scowled as he saw the others crowding around John, his face darkening.

He felt that his position was being challenged.

Eeeee...

Suddenly, an enraged scream echoed through the forest. The nearby bushes shook, and a much larger tusked wild boar charged out.

This must have been the companion of the boar that had been trapped, drawn in by its cries.

"Not good, it's a peak-tier beginner beast! Fall back!" Cena's face turned pale as he quickly ordered.

Without the support of the traps, they were no match for the tusked wild boar, let alone a peak-tier beast.

The group immediately retreated without hesitation, firing arrows to slow down the boar's charge.

"Kid, move! We can't handle this!" The middle-aged man saw John frozen in place, thinking he had been stunned, and urgently called out to him.

John ignored the others and notched another arrow, aiming at the charging tusked wild boar.

"Hmph, such ignorance!" Cena, seeing John's actions, couldn't hide a hint of excitement in his eyes.

Whoosh!

A cold gleam shot through the air, striking precisely once again, this time into the boar's other eye.

"Graaah!"

The tusked wild boar let out a pitiful, agonized howl as it reeled in pain, falling to the ground. The arrow was nearly embedded in its skull, and blood poured from the wound.

The group immediately halted their retreat, stunned by the sight.

The tusked wild boar struggled to get back on its feet, blood dripping from the sharp tips of its tusks, making it look even more ferocious.

It roared, locking its remaining eye on John with a deathly glare before charging again.

It was determined to tear this human apart in vengeance for the arrow that had struck it.

John stood his ground, completely unperturbed as the beast charged towards him. He drew his bow again, his focus never wavering.

Whoosh!

The arrow shot out with pinpoint accuracy, burying itself once again in the boar's other eye. The massive force behind the shot drove the arrow even deeper.

Thud!

The tusked wild boar crashed to the ground. Its momentum sent it sliding toward John.

The sharp tusks came within an inch of John's chest, leaving a deep gouge in the earth as it skidded to a stop.

John remained perfectly still, his face unchanged.

[You have slain a Tusked Wild Boar. The Plunder talent has been triggered. Your base attributes have been restored by 0.0001%.]

The prompt flashed, and John felt another surge of heat course through him as his core attributes rose once again.

The power flowing through his body was immense.

"John, your strength is incredible! Two arrows to kill a tusked wild boar—at the peak of his power, even Old Village Head couldn't have done that!" one of the men exclaimed.

The others quickly gathered around him, their faces full of awe.

Cena, meanwhile, had been completely isolated. His face darkened with frustration as he glared at John with resentment.

John sensed the hostility and turned to look at him, a faint, knowing smile playing on his lips.

Cena felt a chill run through him. He quickly masked his toxic expression, replacing it with an awkward smile.

John's presence felt strange—powerful, mysterious.

What bothered him the most was the overwhelming strength John had just demonstrated. It was a direct threat.

He had to find a way to eliminate him.

Cena's mind began to turn with a devious plan.

"Alright, everyone, let's not bother John. We need to clean up the battlefield," he said with a smile.

The others, snapping out of their reverie, quickly took out their daggers and began to dissect the bodies of the two tusked wild boars.

The beasts were full of treasures.

The crystal cores had to be offered as tribute, the tusks were special materials that could be used to craft weapons.

And the meat of the boar was food. Even the barbed spines on its back and the damaged hide were all collected.

"Hey, can I take a look at that?" John noticed that the middle-aged man had taken a crystal core from the tusked wild boar's head and curiously asked.

"Of course." The middle-aged man did not hesitate at all and respectfully handed the crystal core over.

Clearly, in his mind, John had already been regarded as the leader.

[Low-Grade Crystal Core: Can be refined to increase 0.1 points in Constitution and 0.1 points in Strength.]

A description appeared.

John was surprised. This thing could directly increase base attributes.

He looked at the middle-aged man and asked, "Do you know what this thing does?"

"We know. It absorbs and enhances attributes. But we can't keep them for ourselves. Every month, we have to submit a hundred cores, so there's no surplus to use for cultivation." The middle-aged man sighed, looking helpless.

"Alright, we still have a heavy task ahead. Let's continue hunting the beasts." Cena stepped forward and nonchalantly took the crystal core from John's hand.

John sneered. He didn't care about such worthless things.

Cena, wearing a warm smile, said, "I didn't expect you to be so powerful, little brother. This hunt will be all on you."

"Heh, no problem," John said coldly, too lazy to engage with the man.

Cena, however, continued, "How about this? Let's hunt a few intermediate-level beasts, like the Demon Wolves. We only need fifty medium-grade crystal cores to meet the quota."

"Brother Cena, we're still short by fourteen low-grade crystal cores. There's no need to take such a risk." A young man spoke up, offering a reminder.

Cena shot the young man a glare and snapped, "Of course I know. I'm just gathering materials for next month's tribute!"

Saying this, he turned to John and smiled, explaining, "Brother John, we'll need to hunt them eventually. Why not take this opportunity to gather more?"

"Sure," John nodded slightly. He sensed that this guy was up to something, but he didn't call him out on it.

He actually needed to hunt the beasts to restore his power.

"Anason, go and lure the Demon Wolves," Cena looked toward the agile young man and pulled him aside, whispering something to him.

"Brother Cena, this... isn't it a bit too risky?" Anason frowned slightly, his gaze lingering on John in the distance, his expression filled with reluctance.