The blade flashed as it was drawn, killing the creature in a single strike. The Abyssfang Beast’s claw was severed completely, its obsidian bone claw clattering to the ground—unnervingly sharp. Blade narrowly avoided disaster, and Hawkeye finally let out a relieved sigh. Meanwhile, the female healer on the team showed little reaction, hiding her right hand behind her back.
Xue Ji exchanged a glance with her, but the woman remained silent, offering only a nod in response. In that critical moment, only Xue Ji and the healer had reacted effectively. Though Xue Ji hadn’t seen what the woman was holding, one thing was certain—she was the team’s failsafe for this decapitation mission. Even Blade had only mentioned her healing ability during introductions, leaving out her codename entirely. In the end, they resorted to calling her “Soraka.”
Blade: “Thanks for that.”
Xue Ji patted his shoulder and picked up the bone claw. “No need. Consider this my payment for saving your life.”
Blade tensed as she grabbed it, about to warn her about the acidic fluid coating the claw—until he saw Xue Ji summon a stream of water to rinse it clean.
Blade: “I can have someone forge this into a weapon for you later.”
Xue Ji: “We’ll talk about that after we get back.”
Soraka finally spoke up, her voice calm. “Rest time’s over. We’re close to the target.”
While the others checked their gear, Soraka sidled up to Xue Ji. “Your ability isn’t just hydrokinesis, is it? What was that earlier?”
Xue Ji brushed her off with a claim of dual-awakening.
Soraka chuckled. “I’ve never seen an ability manifest with magic circles. You must read a lot of novels, little sister. But if you’ve got secrets, I won’t pry.” With that, she walked away, retreating into silence.
Hawkeye nudged Xue Ji. “Impressive. You actually got Soraka to talk.” Xue Ji watched the healer’s retreating figure, lost in thought.
After inspecting their equipment, the team realized Blade’s combat suit had suffered corrosive damage. They adjusted their formation, sending Soraka and Blade ahead to scout.
Aboveground, the trapped Abyssfang Beasts lay in heaps. On the surface, everything seemed to be going according to plan—only the regular troops at the innermost ring of the encirclement had taken casualties. None of the students were injured yet.
From a nearby rooftop, Vice Officer Chen Shijie observed the battlefield. The lack of major setbacks eased the vice officer’s nerves, but Chen’s grim expression puzzled him.
“Commander Chen, the situation isn’t dire. Why the tension?”
“You need more field experience. The fact that this feels too easy should’ve set off alarms in your head!”
“I—I just—”
“In less than an hour, we’ve already got multiple injuries, and the students are reaching their mental limits. Prepare to enact the contingency plan.”
Asking students to fight was unreasonable to begin with. These kids had trained for only three days—most had never even killed a chicken. The stench of blood and rotting flesh, the gore splattered across the ground—it was a miracle any of them were holding their own without vomiting.
Class Five was performing relatively well, especially Shen Dai. She’d adapted swiftly, losing herself in the fight. Her pyrokinetic ability, Inferno, made her ideal for this battle—her area-of-effect attacks and energy-restoring flames gave her unparalleled endurance. She was practically a one-woman platoon.
Most students present had elemental abilities, but few matched Shen Dai’s combat prowess. Among the four A-rankers, the two elementalists specialized in defense, while Ding Zhen’s power was utterly unsuited for this fight—he’d been excluded from the roster entirely.
The only A-rank combatant was a physical enhancer, and he was too terrified to step forward.
The battle quickly turned against them. The beasts’ relentless assaults forced the encircling troops into a precarious position. With rotations growing more frequent and the perimeter stretching thinner, this farce of a fight would’ve ended in disaster—if not for Chen’s contingency.
Five unnamed operatives, like Soraka, stood ready behind Chen. Some were already itching to intervene. Just as Chen was about to give the order, the beasts suddenly halted their assault. A grating shriek echoed from underground, sending the creatures into a panicked retreat.
Chen’s voice was grave. “They’ve found the leader. The real fight starts now.”
The vice officer volunteered to lead the mop-up operation below.
Chen watched him go, conflicted.
Underground, in a cavern hollowed out by the Abyssfang Beasts, Xue Ji’s team faced the pack’s alpha. They’d already cut down its remaining guards. From the darkness emerged a humanoid figure over two meters tall—lanky limbs shrouded in thick fur, a long tail dragging behind it, moving soundlessly.
Thermal imaging through their goggles outlined its silhouette.
Blade shouted: “Alpha sighted! Fall back—hold formation!”
The alpha gave them no time. It lunged at Blade, its whip-like arm striking with crushing force. Blade dodged and retreated, but the blow still sent him flying ten meters.
Hawkeye fired armor-piercing incendiary rounds, activating Death’s Eye—yet he found no weak points.
“No vulnerabilities?! Impossible!”
Xue Ji yanked Hawkeye back, hurling him to safety. Blood Rite activated as darkness coiled around her right arm like bandages. Once again, her aura shifted—crimson eyes gleaming, black hair whipping in an unseen wind.
Unshackled, Xue Ji fought with frenzied abandon. A chain materialized in her grip. She darted behind the alpha, yanking the chain taut to trip it mid-charge. The links morphed into a clawed gauntlet, and she drove it into the beast’s eye—ripping out a fist-sized orb, veins and flesh trailing.
Without pause, she summoned a massive sword and brought it down. The blunt edge failed to pierce the alpha’s hide, but the impact forced a geyser of blood from its facial wound, blasting Xue Ji backward.
The alpha’s agonized shriek nearly brought the cavern down.
Xue Ji vaporized the black blood coating her with shadows, her killing intent surging. She hurled a spear into the alpha’s throat, then wrenched it free in a spray of gore.
The beast scrambled away on all fours—until Xue Ji stomped on its tail. Her scythe arced toward its neck.