Chapter 71: Chapter 71: Entering the Forest

In Xiajiang Village, on a temporarily erected observation platform by the highway, Huai Yongge stood with his hands behind his back. He wore a dark blue uniform and hailed from the special inspector’s office of the Southwestern Province’s Martial Arts Association.

He scanned the chaotic riverbank and the deep, dark forest below, pointing his left hand to the front left.

"What’s the name of that student in the blue and white Combat Suit?"

The assistant recording officer beside him immediately replied, "Inspector Huai, according to the real-time information sent back by the on-site observers, this person is named Fang Chen, an examinee from Class One of Jinchuan Seventh University."

"Fang Chen?" Huai Yongge’s eyes flickered slightly. "Was he also the first one to jump out the window and lead the evacuation from the cliff just now?"

"Yes, Inspector Huai, that was him as well."

"This kid is quite interesting." Huai Yongge nodded. "Just now, when he turned his head and found that his companions behind him had disappeared, he immediately suspected that he was in an Illusion Art. Now he has already begun to meditate, circulating his True Qi to stabilize his Heart Spirit and dispel the illusions."

Company Commander Jia, who was walking over, heard this and smiled. "Heh, Inspector Huai, this student is quite famous among all the universities in Jinchuan City right now. During the dream incident at The Three Greats last time, he was the first to make the correct response. Although the situation later spiraled out of control, he still protected over a dozen classmates and fought his way out."

Huai Yongge raised an eyebrow. "Oh? I’ve heard the briefing on that incident. It seems this student needs to be closely observed."

Just as he finished speaking, his gaze froze. "Hmm? So fast?"

Company Commander Jia was also surprised. "It’s been less than half a minute, right? To think he eliminated the effects of the Illusion Art on his own? With such a profound reserve of True Qi, I’m afraid even the scions of the prominent families in the province were only at this level at his age."

He looked at Huai Yongge. "Inspector Huai, since someone has already seen through it, and this large-scale Illusion Art consumes a massive amount of Spirit Crystals, should we terminate it early? We could save some resources."

Huai Yongge waved his hand, his gaze returning to the majority of the examinees who were still thrashing in the river or standing at a loss on the shore. "There’s no rush. Let’s wait until everyone is ashore and officially steps into the forest area. Notify Xiao Fang and her team. Once all the examinees enter the forest, they must immediately follow the plan and awaken all the slumbering Demon Beasts in her designated area.

"Also, activate all Investigation Crystals. It’s time to get to work."

***

Fang Chen finished his meditation and opened his eyes. On the distant riverbank in his line of sight, he could already see many students climbing ashore dripping wet, their expressions dazed.

He knew clearly that under the influence of the Illusion Art, these people still couldn’t see him for the time being.

Even though he knew this, he still feigned calling out in their direction a few times. As expected, he received no response.

"The fact that I can see my classmates proves I’ve broken free from the Illusion Art," Fang Chen understood.

In truth, seeing through this Illusion Art wasn’t considered difficult; the key was being meticulous.

"As long as one pays close attention to that slight sense of stagnation when circulating True Qi within the body, they can detect the anomaly," Fang Chen pondered.

Previously, he had attributed that slight unsmoothness of his True Qi to a natural stress response under critical circumstances—just like how a person’s heartbeat would accelerate and their Aura would fall into disarray when experiencing extreme fear—and hadn’t thought deeply about it. Now, deliberately concentrating on his Introspection, that bit of disharmony had nowhere to hide.

He looked up again toward the highway. The scene there was still one of ruined walls and permeating smoke.

"Has this layer of the Illusion Art not been lifted yet? Or could it be... that a separate Blinding Technique has been cast over that area?"

The documents he had read previously in the Time Stop Domain hadn’t contained any relevant information, but seeing so many people forming arrays and consuming Spirit Crystals, they were definitely cooking up something.

Fang Chen didn’t delve into it any further. He turned and stepped into the dense forest.

He had already thoroughly explored this area during the Time Stop. At this moment, the forest was relatively quiet. Most of the dangerous Rank One Demon Beasts were prone on the ground, seemingly in a deep slumber, with only some ordinary wild beasts moving about.

His footsteps landed silently. Maintaining his vigilance, he explored forward step by step.

When he encountered a few foolish wild beasts blocking his path, a flash of sword light neatly and cleanly dispatched them.

He advanced like this for a few minutes. Suddenly, the atmosphere of the entire forest changed!

From all directions almost simultaneously, various low growls and shrill roars of beasts echoed. The demonic aura permeating the air instantly grew thick and frenzied!

Fang Chen paused in his steps, his gaze turning sharp. "All the Demon Beasts have been awakened. The exam has officially begun."

***

Deep within the forest, the roars of beasts rose and fell in succession, carrying a heart-palpitating frenzy.

Wang Pan felt as though his arms were about to lose all sensation. Every time his Broadsword—infused with all his strength—collided with the Cyan Flame Wolf’s sharp claws wrapped in pale Flames, it felt like hacking against a red-hot anvil. The counter-shock made his internal organs churn.

He desperately braced his feet against the dirt just to keep from being swatted away by the beast’s claw.

"Wu Jun! Tie down that fox! Don’t let it ambush Ren Lei!" Wang Pan roared, his voice hoarse from overexertion.

From the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Ren Lei’s perilous situation, his heart jumping into his throat.

Wu Jun’s situation was no better. He danced the Longsword in his hand at a blinding speed, trying to seal off that elusive cyan shadow.

"I know! Damn it, this thing is too fast!" he gritted his teeth in response. He thrust his sword toward the Cyan-faced Fox’s waist, but the creature easily dodged it with a twist of its body. Its tail whipped out like a steel whip, forcing him to clumsily draw his sword back to block.

CLANG! The impact numbed the webbing between his thumb and forefinger, nearly knocking the Longsword out of his grasp.

Ren Lei was pale-faced. She tightly gripped the short blade in her hand, her breathing rapid.

Her Combat Suit had just forcefully withstood a vicious strike from the Cyan-faced Fox. The light of the Spiritual Crystal Stone on her chest had visibly dimmed by a large margin.

"My Crystal Stone... It can’t hold on much longer!" she cried out despairingly, her voice choked with sobs.

"Hold on!" Wang Pan bellowed, trying to boost his and his companions’ morale.

Spotting the brief stiffness of the Cyan Flame Wolf after one of its pounces, he abruptly changed his move. He swung his Broadsword upward from below, aiming for the relatively soft wolf belly! This was the only chance to injure this beast that he had figured out after a long period of observation!

However, the Cyan Flame Wolf possessed an extremely strong combat instinct. At the critical moment, it suddenly lowered its head and used its hard skull to smash away the blade. Taking advantage of the momentum, it swiped a claw right at Wang Pan’s wide-open chest!

BANG!

The Spiritual Crystal Stone flashed wildly. Wang Pan only felt a tremendous force hit him as his entire body spun half a circle uncontrollably, nearly crashing to the ground.

A sharp pain radiated from his shoulder blade; he didn’t know if it was a contusion or a fracture.

"This isn’t working... Strength, speed, defense... We’re being completely crushed..." he thought, his heart turning icy cold.

"Wang Pan!" Wu Jun’s eyes widened to the point of tearing when he saw his companion in danger.

No longer caring about his own defense, he channeled what little strength he had left into his legs and dashed forward. He thrust his Longsword straight at the back of the Cyan-faced Fox’s heart, hoping to divert its attention and save his ally!

"Watch out!" Ren Lei screamed a warning.

Unfortunately, it was too late. The Cyan-faced Fox seemed to have eyes on its back. With a graceful leap, it dodged this desperate strike. Instead, taking advantage of the brief window where Wu Jun’s momentum was spent and he had yet to recover, it transformed into a streak of cyan light. Opening its fang-filled maw, it lunged straight for his sword-wielding wrist!

Wu Jun could even smell the foul stench emanating from the beast’s mouth as the shadow of death instantly loomed over him. His mind went entirely blank, leaving only a single thought: "I’m done for!"

Just then, a sudden change occurred!

SWISH—!

A sharp sound of something piercing through the air abruptly rang out!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.