Standing across were two men and a woman, and one of them was Chang Shoushang.

"Senior, you..."

Li Pu knew that Chang Shoushang and Jiang Guiju were acquainted, but he didn't realize Chang would be involved this time.

"He's not here because of me."

Jiang Guiju explained briefly and then waved at several summoned beasts nearby.

Aside from the three people, there were also four summoned beasts here.

Among them, Li Pu recognized one.

It was Jiang Guiju's Thorn Mouse.

[Crunch!]

[Thorn!]

Following her wave, the Thorn Mouse and a peculiar-looking little creature scurried over.

The reason it was considered peculiar is because the summoned beast was an egg—an enormous egg as tall as a knee.

Yet, expecting it to be simply an egg was not entirely accurate.

There were two holes below the body of the egg, from which emerged a pair of fluffy, large feet.

Furthermore, there was a crack around the middle of the eggshell; the eerie darkness inside made it impossible to see what was within, only revealing two twinkling blue eyes shaped like stars.

Li Pu had seen illustrations of this summoned beast; it seemed to be called an Eggshell Beast.

Its most distinctive feature was its eggshell.

Every time it rebirths, the crack on the egg grows larger, gradually revealing its form until the shell fully separates.

Due to the presence of the eggshell, the species has a peculiar trait as well.

No one can accurately identify the species inside until it breaks free from the shell.

While the shell remains, it possesses steadfast attributes as a summoned beast.

Once the shell completely falls off, its type will then depend on the body itself.

It's rather rare for a summoned beast to change type simply via a regular rebirth.

That was Jiang Guiju's first summoned beast, and it had certainly caused her much trouble initially.

At its 0 evolutionary phase, it was merely an egg, rolling back and forth.

During its rebirth, it even made her incubate it with her own body for a whole week.

Now, at its 1st evolutionary phase and LV27, it finally demonstrated superior combat abilities.

As for the other two summoned beasts, one was a long-necked goose with a mouth as wide as a shovel, and the other a mechanical dog with a flat head.

No one knew if they belonged to the senior or the older cousin.

"Let me introduce my cousin."

"Chang Shilian."

Chang Shoushang walked over and pointed at the senior.

At this moment, the long-haired senior seemed absent-minded, her entire demeanor exuding an aura of despair, which made Li Pu a bit worried.

He had a faint feeling she might burst into tears or scream in agony any second.

"Don't tell me everyone of your generation goes to Xidu University."

Nonetheless, Li Pu had other thoughts he wanted to voice.

"Haha, of course not."

Chang Shoushang mistook the remark for a query and waved it off with a laugh: "Not just the younger generation."

"My little uncle, Chang Liuji."

"He's 29 years old this year, a fourth-year student."

Li Pu: "..."

Indeed, some matters are better left unexplored, the more they tie in, the deeper they drag you.

"Guiju, is this the younger brother from your assistant class?"

At that moment, the senior approached.

"Mhm, why don't you all get acquainted?"

Jiang Guiju nodded and began introductions on both sides.

"Hang Xing, third-year combat system, serving as our team scout this time, also a good friend of mine."

"Li Pu, first-year cultivation system, here to gain insight, a junior from my assistant class."

Hang Xing certainly lived up to the reputation of a student specializing in reconnaissance; after shaking hands with Li Pu, he started scrutinizing with care.

"Li Pu... I've heard this name before."

"But Guiju, can you be sure he can keep up with our pace?"

He wasn't targeting Li Pu specifically, merely voicing his concern.

After all, a freshman has only been a summoner for a month; no matter how skilled, surviving in the East Wilderness Ridge is still a bit ambitious.

"It's okay, I'll handle any issues."

Jiang Guiju waved her hand, gesturing for him not to worry.

The so-called "here to gain insight" was merely a pretext.

Originally, when she extended the invitation, she had indeed thought this way, but her perspective had shifted now.

Leaving other factors aside, based on the few tricks Li Pu displayed during the monthly exam, surviving in East Wilderness Ridge was not a problem.

Moreover, he now had two summoned beasts; combat effectiveness was certainly not an issue.

However, Bubu's presence hadn't been noticed by the others yet.

What they saw was just that peculiar scarecrow wearing a strange beast-skin scarf and hat.

"Alright, your decision stands."

"How about briefing him on vital matters, and then we hit the road?"

Hang Xing nodded, setting aside his doubts.

Next, Jiang Guiju took the lead in the briefing, with Chang Shoushang and Hang Xing supplementing the information.

Chang Shilian remained lost in thought, squatting on the ground drawing circles, not participating.

Through their introduction, Li Pu gained a preliminary understanding of the East Wilderness Ridge.

Due to its geographic conditions, magical beasts here mostly possess earth or wind attributes.

For the scarecrow, this meant a considerable advantage in the realm of attribute magnetic fields, since both earth and wind are countered by wood.

Conversely, Bubu with 5 fire and 5 water was not well-suited for this area.

Earth counters water, offering it no benefits.

However, Li Pu hadn't planned to involve this little creature in combat, given she had only just been summoned, currently still at LV1.

There were two main points to note.

Firstly, due to the relatively harsh survival conditions, the magical beasts in East Wilderness Ridge are more formidable than those in South Forest of the same rank and pedigree.

Social magical beasts exhibit strong unity and collaboration.

While solitary magical beasts not only face a barren environment but also the encroachment of social magical beasts; surviving requires exceptional combat strength.

In simple terms, these magical beasts are not easy to deal with; occasionally, they might demonstrate power beyond what is indicated by the wristwatch feedback.

Secondly, aside from the variable hilly terrain, East Wilderness Ridge possesses a highly hazardous environment.

That is the labyrinthine Stone Forest Maze.

Externally, these Stone Forest Mazes appear unremarkable—merely some stalagmite-like rock soil or large stone slabs.

However, due to some peculiar factors, such as the bizarre magnetic fields between stones or magical beasts proficient in illusion techniques.

Once entered, one risks losing their way or encountering hallucinations with phantom enemies.

"Senior, what is our objective for this trip?"

Having listened to the general briefing, Li Pu inquired.

Surely the trip to East Wilderness Ridge wasn't purely for sightseeing.

"Our objective this time is actually related to this term's 'Material Collection'."

"Different from first and second-year, the third-year requires gathering designated materials."

"But don't worry; we won't put you two in danger."

"When the time comes, just wait outside."

Looking at Li Pu and Chang Shoushang, Jiang Guiju assured them.

...

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