"Zhang Shi, don't forget our bet earlier. Whoever has the highest score will be the victor!"
Seeing the crowd heading up the mountain, 'Brother Yu' turned to Zhang Xuan and sneered coldly. Then, he led Senior Feng up the mountain as well.
"Let's go too!"
Seeing that the crowd had left, Zhang Xuan turned to Luo Xuan, Ruohuan gongzi, and the others behind him and said.
Master teachers like Hong Shi weren't qualified to enter the freshmen examination, so they could only watch from the outside. As such, they could only rely on themselves for the rest.
"Un!"
Luo Xuan and the others nodded.
"Let's head over there!"
Knowing that everyone was following his lead, Zhang Xuan took a look at the surroundings, and his eyes eventually fell on a narrow valley. Thus, he led the way.
The master teachers from the Miryu Empire also followed closely behind him.
Not only was Leiyuan Peak steep, it occupied a vast expanse of land. There were countless ravines, boulders, and vegetation... Thirty thousand people might be a huge number, but compared to the sheer size of the mountain, it seemed insignificant.
The passageway that Zhang Xuan had chosen was sparsely populated, and there weren't too many people around.
Even the weakest among the group was at Clarifying Turbidity realm pinnacle. Traveling at an incredible speed, it only took them ten minutes to enter the forest.
The lush vegetation obscured the sun, and the entire mountain range emanated a chilling aura.
The mountain forest was completely silent, without the slightest sound. It was hard to tell if the people who had entered earlier had chased away the animals, birds, or if they knew that so many master teachers were going to hunt them down, so they chose to hide in advance.
"Zhang Shi, where do we go?"
After walking for a while, Luo Xuan and the others couldn't help but feel anxious, let alone a spirit beast, they didn't even see a strand of beast fur.
"Leiyuan Peak is vast. As long as a spirit beast hides, it won't be easy to find it. However, there's no need to worry. I am a beast tamer, so I have already found some clues …"
Zhang Xuan chuckled.
Putting aside his identity as a master teacher, he was also a beast tamer who was proficient in the Beast Language. Even though the forest seemed empty, it couldn't escape the eyes of a beast tamer.
Not to mention, he had the Eye of Insight as well.
If he really wanted to find it, no matter how well he hid, he would not be able to escape.
After walking for a while more, Zhang Xuan suddenly stopped. He called for everyone to be silent, and with a flick of his wrist, a long sword appeared in his hand.
Huala!
Zhang Xuan flicked his wrist, and a streak of sword qi slashed down on the steep cliff before him.
Just as everyone was wondering why the stone was being split apart, they heard a loud boom and the stone shattered. Following that, a gray figure rushed out.
Transcendent Mortal 4-dan pinnacle spirit beast... Howling Wind Wolf!
He didn't expect this guy to be hiding in the rocks.
"I'll leave it to you guys. I'll go ahead and take a look!"
Knowing that a spirit beast of this level wouldn't pose much of a threat to Luo Xuan and the others, Zhang Xuan didn't make a move. Instead, he leaped forward.
This valley was slanted upwards. Although there were steep rocks everywhere, there was also dense vegetation. His feet tapped back and forth on the tree branches, and in a short while, he had traveled seven to eight kilometers.
Hu!
Zhang Xuan came to a halt and frowned.
"Is this the mark of a herd of beasts?"
Even though there weren't many marks on the ground, through his Eye of Insight, he could easily tell that a herd of beasts had passed by not too long ago.
"Blueback Ferocious Bear, Steelfang Panther, Southern Yellow Tiger, Golden Arm Ape … There are at least a dozen different kinds of spirit beasts in this herd, and they are all at Consonant Spirit realm, known for their speed!"
After a moment of observation, Zhang Xuan came to a conclusion.
Different kinds of spirit beasts would leave different marks as well. With a single glance, Zhang Xuan was able to recognize at least a dozen of them.
These spirit beasts were usually hostile toward one another, but for them to be walking together at this moment, it was likely that just as Elder Mi had said, they had already banded together to hunt down the humans.
"Zhang Shi …"
Just as Zhang Xuan was about to continue observing the spirit beasts, Luo Xuan and the others suddenly caught up to him.
A Clarifying Turbidity realm pinnacle spirit beast was indeed nothing to them, and they were able to kill it easily.
However, there were simply too many people in their group, and killing one or two of such spirit beasts was no different from trying to put out a fire with a cup of water.
"Un. Everyone, lower your voices. Let's do something big!"
Zhang Xuan said with a smile.
Since there were at least a dozen Transcendent Mortal 5-dan spirit beasts passing by, it was only right for them to find a way to eliminate them.
As long as they killed all of them, they should be able to accumulate sufficient points.
If it were any other team or alliance, even if they knew that there were more than a dozen Consonant Spirit realm spirit beasts ahead of them, they wouldn't dare to charge in recklessly. However, Zhang Xuan was different. His cultivation had already reached Transcendent Mortal 5-dan pinnacle, and as long as he willed it, he would be able to slaughter all of them single-handedly.
"Do something big?"
Everyone was perplexed.
"Un. Based on my observation, there should be a group of Consonant Spirit realm spirit beasts passing by. As long as we kill them, we should be able to accumulate sufficient points …" Zhang Xuan chuckled.
"Consonant Spirit realm spirit beasts?"
Everyone's eyes glowed in excitement.
Given that a Consonant Spirit realm primary stage spirit beast was worth ten points, they should be able to accumulate sufficient points for five of them.
As for whether there would be any danger, didn't Zhang Shi have a half 9-dan tamed beast? If there was any danger, it would be more than enough to make a move …
"Follow me!"
Paying no heed to the thoughts of the crowd, Zhang Xuan immediately dashed forward, following the traces left behind by the spirit beasts.
"Something is wrong …"
A moment later, he came to a halt.
Ruohuan gongzi walked up and asked, "What's wrong?"
"There are traces of a formation up ahead, but there aren't any signs of a battle …"
Zhang Xuan frowned.
"What do you mean?" The crowd was perplexed.
"There are traces of a formation up ahead. In other words … someone has been lying in ambush here! Since there aren't any signs of a battle, it can only mean that the spirit beasts didn't fall for the trap! "
Zhang Xuan explained.
"Spirit beasts are naturally sensitive to spiritual energy. Perhaps, they have noticed the formation and chose to hide!"
Luo Xuan interjected.
Spirit beasts were far more sensitive to smell and touch than humans, so it shouldn't be surprising for them to notice the formation ahead of time!
"This is a grade-5 Green Firmament Beguilement Formation! Even a Consonant Spirit realm master teacher wouldn't be able to notice it if he were to pass by … "
Zhang Xuan shook his head.
It wasn't that easy.
Even though the other party had removed the formation, there were still traces of it. With Zhang Xuan's eye of discernment, he should have been able to determine the type and tier of the formation.
The Green Firmament Beguilement Formation was known for its concealment ability. Without using the Eye of Insight, it would be difficult for even him to notice it, needless to say, a bunch of spirit beasts!
He didn't believe that a bunch of Consonant Spirit realm spirit beasts would possess a sharper eye of discernment than his.
"Then what's going on?"
Hearing the words' Green Firmament Formation ', the crowd frowned.
"I have no idea either … Let's follow them to take a look!"
Zhang Xuan also had no idea what was going on, but there was nothing for him to worry about. Judging from the traces, it seemed like the spirit beasts had left not too long ago. As long as they continued to follow them, they should be able to find out what was going on.
"Alright!"
Knowing that Zhang Xuan was right, the crowd followed behind him.
As Zhang Xuan proceeded forward, he continued searching for traces of his tracks. Ten minutes later, he came to a halt once more.
Seeing Zhang Xuan's expression, Ruohuan gongzi walked up to him and asked, "What's wrong this time?"
"Someone passed by here earlier and used the Scarlet Blood Pill as bait, but … the spirit beasts didn't fall for it and left stealthily …"
Taking a deep breath, Zhang Xuan said.
"Scarlet Blood Pill?"
"Un. It's a grade-5 pill. Consonant Spirit realm spirit beasts aren't able to resist it at all …" Zhang Xuan was getting more and more perplexed.
If it had been any other item, the spirit beasts might still have been able to resist it. However, the Scarlet Blood Pill could nourish one's bloodline, and it was extremely beneficial to spirit beasts. Yet, it was still able to resist the temptation.
Unlike humans, spirit beasts didn't possess the intelligence of humans. If they knew that it was a trap, there wouldn't be so many tamed beasts tamed by humans.
It could be said that it was a coincidence that it was able to avoid the formation once, but now, it was even able to resist the temptation of the Scarlet Blood Pill.
"More importantly, the person who set up the formation and the person who used the Scarlet Blood Pill to lure the spirit beasts have disappeared!"
Zhang Xuan continued.
"Disappeared? Could it be that … they were killed by them? "
Luo Xuan narrowed his eyes.
To be able to take out a grade-5 formation and a grade-5 pinnacle pill, there was no way that they would be an easy opponent. If so many of them had been killed, it was unlikely that they would have been able to stand against them.
"No! If it was a battle, there would surely be traces left behind. Putting aside a bunch of Consonant Spirit realm spirit beasts, even a Transcendent Mortal 8-dan or 9-dan cultivator would find it hard to kill a group of master teachers in a single breath! "
Zhang Xuan shook his head.
Those who were qualified to participate in the examination were all elites among the master teachers. They had a bright future ahead of them, so there was no one who didn't have some means to protect themselves.
Putting aside a dozen Consonant Spirit realm spirit beasts, even if there were several Transcendent Mortal 8-dan or 9-dan spirit beasts, it would still be impossible for them to kill a group of master teachers without leaving any traces behind.
"Then …" Everyone was perplexed.
"If I'm not mistaken, those people must have noticed the spirit beasts and secretly followed them …" Zhang Xuan revealed his deduction.
"Followed them?"
"Un. Otherwise, the formation wouldn't have been dismantled so cleanly, and the pills have been taken away. There isn't a single trace on the ground at all!" Zhang Xuan said.
"Discovered the spirit beasts? That can't be right. Since the spirit beasts noticed them, they must have left discreetly. Wouldn't it be dangerous for them to continue following them? "
Ruohuan gongzi remarked as he thought of the crux of the matter.
"That's the reason why I'm perplexed!" Zhang Xuan nodded.
Since the spirit beasts were able to notice the formation and the traps laid by humans in advance, they should have left discreetly so as to escape unnoticed.
But now, not only did the first group notice them, the second group noticed them as well … It was as if the spirit beasts were intentionally leaving their tracks for others to find.
This was indeed a matter worth pondering over.
"Let's continue pursuing them …"
Knowing that it was impossible for them to find the answer here, Zhang Xuan pinpointed the marks left behind by the spirit beasts and continued pursuing them.
The crowd quickly followed suit.
Soon, an hour later, they had circled around the mountain, and they had already noticed several ambushes. There were even signs of battle.
However, the marks were extremely simple. Most likely, the spirit beasts had retreated after encountering the spirit beasts.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
