午夜福利1000集国

John glanced at the man who had attacked him, who was being tended to by some of the other members of the guild. He was quite battered and bruised, with a broken nose and several fractured ribs. The man glanced at John, his gaze trembling as he quickly averted it. 

"Boss, your hair?" one female asked, noticing Zuri\'s changed hair color. She had always had it black, but had changed it to her natural blonde when she had revealed herself to John. 

John glanced at Zuri\'s hair.

\'She most likely changed it to distance herself from Furi, and make it harder to recognize her. I suppose that\'s not really necessary anymore.\'

"Listen up," Zuri said out loud, ignoring the comment about her hair. "This is John, and as of right now, he is a Shadow" she said, gesturing to John.

Some of the members nodded at John, welcoming him, while others looked at him with skepticism, curiosity, and one with agitation; the injured man. 

"How can he become a Shadow already?" the man asked, his voice mumbly due to his yet to be healed facial injuries. "He hasn\'t taken the test. He hasn\'t earned a ranking."

Zuri shot a displeased look at the man, who quickly shut up. 

"He will take the test tomorrow," Zuri said, "but I\'m sure you\'ve all seen enough to know that he will pass with flying colors, and that the test is nothing more than a formality for him."

Most of the others nodded their heads, agreeing with Zuri. She nodded back, satisfied with their acceptance of the unusual situation. 

"Has Shadow Four returned from her mission yet?" Zuri asked.

"No," one of the hooded members replied, shaking their head. The voice belonged to a woman, who seemed to have some concern in her voice. "And we have not heard anything from her yet either. She should have sent her nightly communication by now, but…"

The woman pushed her hood back, revealing a relatively pretty face belonging to a woman who appeared to be in her mid twenties. She had long brown hair, tied into a ponytail, which fell down to her shoulders. She had a soft face and gentle features, quite the opposite one would expect from an assassin.

John raised an eyebrow.

\'That face has no doubt been used to let guards down around her before she strikes,\' he thought.

Her gentle face was scrunched up in concern, clearly worried for this Shadow Four that was mentioned. 

A frown appeared on Zuri\'s face as she fell silent for a moment, then glanced at John next to her. 

"I was going to take us on a relatively easy hunt," she said, "but this development is quite concerning. Are you okay with me bumping up the difficulty a bit?" 

"If you can handle it, I can handle it," John shrugged nonchalantly, indicating that she shouldn\'t hold herself back for his sake.

"Watch your tone around the boss," one of the hooded members said, a male voice filled with displeasure. "Who are you to compare yourself to her? Learn your place-"

His voice cut off as he noticed a sharp stare from Zuri. John glanced around the room at the others, many who had a look of disapproval on their faces. 

\'They all clearly have a very high opinion of Zuri,\' he thought, noticing their quick reaction to come to her defense, even if she didn\'t need it. Even John\'s offhand comment was taken as an insult to her by them, which actually made him feel approval towards these guild members.

They clearly respected Zuri a great deal, and those who respected their leaders were usually relatively good people, so long as the leader was as well. If they were rebellious and callous towards their leaders\' commands and reputation, he would have had a lower opinion of the bunch.

"It\'s fine," Zuri said, indicating she did not find John\'s words insulting. The others still had frown\'s on their faces, but remained silent as Zuri had already voiced her opinion on the matter. 

"Since Shadow Four has yet to send her nightly communication, I will go myself to assess the situation," she said. The others nodded, and one of the men stood up and began to walk over to Zuri. 

The man was one of the unhooded people in the room, and appeared to be in his mid twenties. He had a rugged yet handsome face, with a trim beard, short black hair, and piercing gray eyes. He had a cultivation in the Half-Step World Expansion Realm, which seemed like he would step into the Early World Expansion Realm at any moment.

Based on his appearance and cultivation, John figured the man was most likely in his thirties or forties, which was not bad at all for his cultivation. 

He thought of Zeras, who had been the youngest World Expansion cultivator on the Divine Martial Continent in a long time, and Zeras had accomplished that in his sixties. This man would most likely beat Zeras\' cultivation time to reach the World Expansion Realm, which was just another reminder to John of the higher level this world was when compared to his homeworld.

\'Zuri who is most likely in her thirties or maybe forty and already in the World Expansion Realm, and this man who is almost similar in speed. I wonder how much faster I would have cultivated had I grown up here instead?\' John wondered.

"I am ready when you are," the man said firmly. From what John could tell, the man was the second strongest in the room. 

Zuri shook her head lightly at the man. 

"I am not taking you with me this time, Shadow Two," she said. 

"What? You cannot go alone on such a dangerous mission," the man rebuked.

"I won\'t be alone," Zuri said, gesturing to John next to her. The man frowned, glancing at John with a scrutinous look. He sighed a moment later.

"Do not let her down," he said to John, indicating that he would not argue with Zuri. "If you return and she does not, I will hunt you down myself."

"Noted," John said calmly, silently approving of the man\'s attitude. He was protective of his leader, as he should be. 

"I will send notice once I have an update on the situation," Zuri said, walking across the room. "I do not wish to delay any longer. John, with me."

John nodded and followed behind. The two entered a room which was filled with dozens of pitch-black robes, and Zuri instructed him to find one that fit. John found one that was a good match, and put it on. He nodded his head in approval, as the robe was made of very high quality material that was both light and durable. 

"Let\'s go," Zuri said, returning to the main chamber and then walking to the room they had first entered. John followed and the two found the man holding the statue there, sitting in meditation. Zuri touched the statue while holding John\'s arm, returning them instantly to the room above on the city streets. 

They blended into the shadows, slipping out of the city though a hidden tunnel on the end opposite the city entrance, and blended into the darkness of the night unnoticed.