The blatant betrayal left Veterinarian Meng red-faced.
Ye Zhongming, observing the woman’s reaction and Captain Wang’s sudden intensity, had a thought: Could she be from…
Just then, a beast’s roar shattered the silence, freezing the room.
Captain Wang’s expression changed. He grabbed the woman, tucked her under his arm, and barked at his team: “Move!”
The ten of them bolted outside, mounted their battle beasts, and vanished into the rain.
Close behind, Veterinarian Meng and the five Thorn Fortress members also rushed out, heading toward the source of the roar.
The room was left with only the original three groups. The twenty-some hesitated briefly before trailing after the others.
“They took Xiaohua!” a young man from the seven-person team cried out, frantic. He had been one of the few who treated the woman kindly.
“Shut up! I saw it!”
“The Ghost-Eyed Sand Fox and the mutated buckthorns are symbiotic. Even Jinxiu’s squad can’t guarantee a kill. If we follow, we might still have a chance!”
The elderly woman spoke, her tone grim.
The leader nodded. He’d been thinking the same. He wouldn’t give up unless absolutely forced to. Following might still yield an opportunity.
But whether it was Jinxiu’s squad, Veterinarian Meng, or the Thorn Fortress brothers, none were foes he could afford to provoke. Even the Riding Wind Team, which had just left, outmatched them. Who knew how many more evolved would converge at the site? With their meager strength, just getting close was risky.
His gaze fell on Ye Zhongming.
This was someone who could kill a level-five boar—likely a five-star evolved. If he joined them, their strength would increase significantly, improving their odds.
He clasped his fists toward Ye Zhongming, but before he could speak, the King of Cloud Peak beat him to it.
“Let’s go together. Everyone’s here for the same reason. If we succeed, it’s luck; if not, it’s fate. Working together improves our chances. If we get it, I’ll take a third.”
The burly man blinked, then grinned.
He hadn’t expected Ye Zhongming to agree so readily, saving him the trouble of persuasion. Asking for a third was fair—among their remaining six, two were five-star, and so was Ye Zhongming.
Without further discussion, they hurried toward the roar.
Ye Zhongming followed silently, intent on uncovering the truth. Aside from nearly confirming the identity of the woman called Xiaohua, he’d also gleaned another clue from the scattered words.
Perhaps these people could lead him to his target faster.
The night was dark, and the earlier passage of Jinxiu’s squad had alerted nearby mutated creatures. Ye Zhongming discreetly eliminated several threats, but the low-level Baowen Team noticed nothing.
About ten minutes later, they emerged from the woods to a lakeshore. Between two mutated buckthorn trees stood a small fox-like creature with eight eyes on its face—the Ghost-Eyed Sand Fox.
The fox was ramming against a translucent energy barrier. Two corpses lay nearby, their glowing green indicators suggesting they were at least mid-tier evolved.
“The Jin brothers! That’s their signature Energy Arena! No wonder the Ghost-Eyed Sand Fox roared—it’s trapped and desperate.”
The burly leader, though weak, knew the area well. He identified the corpses and the cause of the disturbance.
Clearly, the Jin brothers had overestimated themselves, thinking two six-star evolved could take down a level-seven Ghost-Eyed Sand Fox. Instead, they’d died together.
“The Energy Arena is one-way—nothing gets out unless it’s broken. It lasts thirty minutes, so there are maybe ten left. Wonder who’ll make a move now.”
The speaker was the leader of the Riding Wind Team from earlier.
By now, over a hundred evolved had gathered along the lakeshore, the strongest closest, the weaker keeping their distance.
Ye Zhongming studied the fox briefly before focusing on the two mutated buckthorns. His sharp senses confirmed both were level seven, though their magic crystals were well hidden.
Three level sevens…
Were these people braving the stormy night just to hunt them?
“Someone’s going in! It’s Ordinary!”
The burly leader pointed as a squad charged across the sandy stretch between the lake and woods, entering the Energy Arena.
Their levels were decent: two seven-stars, four six-stars, and ten five-stars. Among the crowd, they stood out like Jinxiu’s ten-man squad.
The battle erupted instantly.
While others watched nervously, Ye Zhongming shook his head inwardly.
Three level-seven symbiotic creatures were terrifying, especially with their complementary abilities. Two seven-star evolved stood no chance, and the lower-ranked members were just cannon fodder.
Sure enough, within minutes, Ordinary was overwhelmed. The Ghost-Eyed Sand Fox mercilessly tore out their throats one by one.
The evolved’ faces paled, but no one else stepped forward.
A minute later, someone began calling everyone to gather.
Reluctantly, the crowd complied. Ye Zhongming saw it was Captain Wang.
“You’ve all seen it. The Ghost-Eyed Sand Fox and the two mutated buckthorns are all level seven. None of us can take them alone. The Energy Arena will collapse soon, and if they escape, finding them again will be near impossible.”
Captain Wang scanned the crowd. “We’re all here for the bounty, but it’s not easy money. Rather than everyone walking away empty-handed, let’s team up. We’ll split the reward based on contribution. It won’t be as much as soloing it, but it’s better than nothing. We’ll go to Pin Palace together to claim it!”
“What if we die?” someone shouted.
“Then your team gets your share!” Captain Wang snapped. “Let’s be honest—us seven-stars will carry the fight. The rest just need to block escape routes.”
The offer was tempting. The bounty was substantial—even a small cut could net a five-star evolution potion.
“Our region’s remote. We missed Cloud Peak’s bounty last time. Are we really going to pass up Pin Palace’s too?”
That sealed the deal. Soon, everyone agreed. There was no intricate plan—Captain Wang just assigned positions based on strength.
No sooner had they taken their places when the Energy Arena flickered out.
The three level-seven creatures charged forth!