A girl was peering through the branches of a giant tree a few kilometers away, sticking out her tongue from time to time, “It’s so scary here. Should I go away? No, I won’t be able to help anyone if I’m further.”
When Lu Yin and Lulu reached the battlefield, there were almost a hundred Sentinel cultivators surrounding the dinosaur beast. The two looked at the creature and exchanged shocked glances. He said gravely, “This thing isn’t simple; it’s faster, hardier, and more experienced. Do you see that shadow of a battle technique in its attacks as well?”
Lulu acknowledged and clenched her fists, “It’s obviously very hard to fight against, so why are these people fighting it to the death?”
Lu Yin looked across the battlefield and finally below the beast’s legs. No matter what the battle situation was, that beast never stepped on a small mound underneath. “There’s something there.”
Lulu grew excited, “Let’s go, too. I want to know how many punches it can take!”
He’d wanted to wait a little longer, reckoning that there were many other experts waiting for an opportunity, but she’d already charged out before he could stop her. Unable to let her just go alone, he followed helplessly while keeping an eye out for others. It seemed strange that almost a hundred Sentinels couldn’t defeat a mutant beast of equal level, but Lulu grew excited as it dodged her first strike. This thing could sense the danger!
The beast howled, its giant tail sweeping in her direction. Lulu dodged easily, but a dozen others were struck, and almost half their bodies were broken apart and they died immediately while others were sent flying with heavy injuries. Lu Yin was astonished by the violent attack; this wasn’t one whit inferior to the five-star Cosmic Palm.
The biggest difference between beasts and humans was imagination. Humans knew how to be creative, while beasts relied on their bodies and innate gifts. The latter were far more powerful under similar conditions, but humans had the ability to change the environment using their own innate gifts and battle techniques.
“Good!” Lulu shouted, vanishing from her place and appearing behind the creature’s back. She raised her right hand and struck out, forcing the beast to turn around and chomp down to force her to give up. But she hadn’t planned to attack in the first place; she was only giving an opportunity for Lu Yin to flash onto its head and strike. He shot down with both palms, one the Three Stacks Shockwave Palm, and the other the twentieth form of the Skybeast Claw. A loud explosion rang out as his hands smashed into its head, dropping it to the ground in an instant. A hundred-meter-tall creature collapsing was a magnificent sight, and the mere shockwaves forced dozens of Sentinels to back off. Everyone was shocked at the sight; they understood the beast’s power, instincts, and defenses. Someone capable of killing it had to be an absolute powerhouse.
Lulu blinked to the mound in the earth and waved her hand, exposing a small, glowing tree. There were several light-yellow fruits hanging from it that seemed quite alluring. As she was puzzled over what they were, the beast roared and exerted all of its strength to get back up.
“Lulu, careful!” Lu Yin barked, and she avoided with the White Flash. Another figure appeared and looked at her in astonishment before reaching towards the tree, but a furious Lulu kicked out with one leg. That figure blocked the attack with his left shoulder, a scene that would have been all too familiar if Meng Yue was around. Sure enough, the figure was sent flying in the next moment.
Lulu snorted and left, grabbing the fruits along the way. Lu Yin felt curious, but didn’t ask more and took to the skies as well. The beast snarled and charged out from underground as he left, intimidating a dozen Sentinels who had run in from hiding into fleeing once more.
“How many did you take?” he asked as they left.
She threw five fruits over, “Ten in total, half each.”
“You didn’t take more?” he grew suspicious.
She answered seriously, “Leave something in everything you do, do not exhaust a natural treasure. That is part of my family’s teachings.”
He nodded and said so more, looking to the dozen people who had suddenly appeared nearby. One of them spoke cheerlessly, “Friend, don’t mind sharing some of what you took.”
“Come on, let’s get this done quick,” Lu Yin remained indifferent, vanishing at the same time as Lulu. All of the aggressors rained down from the sky in the next moment. Many other cultivators grew apprehensive at the sight, and were secretly glad that they didn’t act themselves. Someone capable of defeating that beast with one attack definitely wasn’t simple; those two were some of the strongest in this assessment.
Within the big tree in the distance, the dainty girl sighed, “So powerful, I wonder how he compares to Sister Zora.”
Many Sentinels were still surrounding the beast, and the occasional person managed to snatch some fruits, Most of the dozens of fruits on the small tree were picked off when the beast finally exploded with condensed star energy, forcing everyone to hide. The sun froze once more at this point, and the frost blanketed the ground while the heavens and earth turned dark. Lu Yin and Lulu didn’t stop this time, leaving immediately. After thinking for a while, the girl in the tree followed them.
The Astral Combat Academy’s assessments weren’t simple. Many people could pass through a path filled with extreme climates and powerful beasts, and it incentivized moving around in large teams which was antithetical to the goal of filtering out elites. Everyone watching from the heavens watched with bated breath; the real tests were yet to come.
Even as the frost swept across the ground, the Sentinels didn’t manage to grab all the fruits. They quickly realized something was amiss as the beast changed, growing more irritable and unrestrained than before. It stomped down and crushed the tree, but before the Sentinels could even grow furious, more and more howls rang out from all directions. The earth started to rumble.
“Not good!” Lu Yin’s expression changed and he shot to the ground, “It’s a beast wave, we should hide!”
The two dashed to a mountain peak near them, braving the attacks of hundreds of flying beasts. Blood soon filled the sky as all the flying cultivators were attacked, but the two fortunately used their extreme speed and avoided the attacks easily. They were almost at the peak when a squeal rang out, and Lu Yin turned around to see an adorable young girl with a pale face who was shakily dodging the attacks. He frowned and flashed towards her, “You go ahead.”
Lulu glanced at him and then dashed even quicker to the peak, watching as the girl wailed in the face of an attacking beast. Lu Yin caught her at the crucial moment and carried her towards the mountain. The girl panted heavily and leaned into him, carefully looking on as more and more flying beasts almost covered the entire sky. She was eventually brought to a peak where they entered a recessed cavern with Lulu and covered the entrance.
The sky was filled with flying beasts at this point, and the dark earth had grown even dimmer with bloodstains. Shrieks rang out from everywhere. Lu Yin squinted and looked outside; this was the Astral Combat Academy’s examination, and a good majority of the million candidates would probably be wiped out by these beasts. It was a cruel reality, but conversely, those that survived were absolute elites.
“Th-Thank you,” the girl carefully looked at Lu Yin and spoke softly, a little nervous and uneasy.
Lu Yin looked at her but did not speak, while Lulu glanced between the two before her eyes brightened, “So this is your type.”
“Wait, what?” Lu Yin was confused, but she just giggled.
The girl blushed, “I-I’m Coco, from the Windrift Hall. Nice to meet you.”
Lu Yin nodded, while it was Lulu was shocked, “The Windrift Hall from the Innerverse?”
Coco nodded and pursed her lips like a wounded doe.
Lu Yin looked at Lulu, “You know them?”
“Of course. The Windrift Hall loves saving others and is good at healing. They’re not quite numerous, but they have a great reputation in the Innerverse just like Shamrock Enterprises. But their aims are different; Shamrock Enterprises is looking for profit, but I don’t know about these guys. Maybe they just have nothing to do.”
Coco blinked, “No, we’re training!”
“Training to save others?” Lu Yin was incredulous.
The girl grunted softly, “Master has taught us that the more we save, the greater our fortune, and the longer we may live.”
Lu Yin and Lulu exchanged glances, with the latter unable to let it go, “Your Master’s fooled you well.”