It was night, and the group settled in their current location to pass the night.
Early the next morning, everyone, still groggy from sleep, stepped out of their tents and began washing up.
Qin Shou and Long Xia crouched to one side, brushing their teeth.
"Long Xia, you said it was Hong Cong's Skeleton Giant Lizard that attracted the Sha Po Wolves—what's going on here?" Qin Shou asked casually.
Long Xia spat out the rinsing water and replied, "Yesterday, Hong Cong released the Skeleton Giant Lizard to scout ahead. Who would've thought it unintentionally attracted the Sha Po Wolf group?
From what I observed, those Sha Po Wolves seemed to be targeting the Skeleton Giant Lizard specifically.
I don't know the exact reason why, though."
Qin Shou nodded slightly. The Skeleton Giant Lizards and Sha Po Wolves weren't natural enemies, so such a situation likely pointed to some other cause.
Once everyone was done washing up, Lin Xiaomei pulled out the map, and the group proceeded toward the Black Ape Beast's nest.
On the way, Skeleton Giant Lizards—once rare sights—now appeared before them one after another.
"Bang!"
In the dense forest, a massive pit suddenly burst forth a five-meter-long Skeleton Giant Lizard.
Catching the scent of humans, the lizard let out a shrill cry and charged unhesitatingly toward its target.
"Hah!"
From the roadside, another Skeleton Giant Lizard suddenly lunged out of the underbrush, baring its grotesque jagged teeth with drool flying everywhere—utterly repulsive.
"Hmph!"
In an instant, Hong Cong let out a cold scoff. The Space Gate burst open, releasing a beast far larger than the incoming Skeleton Giant Lizard.
"Crunch…"
In one swift encounter, the smaller Skeleton Giant Lizard had its spine snapped by Hong Cong's cultivated beast and was dragged into the Space Gate.
"That's already the fifth Skeleton Giant Lizard we've run into. Just what on earth is happening here?" Lin Xiaomei said with a serious expression.
Qin Shou fell into deep thought.
Generally speaking, Skeleton Giant Lizards lived in the Earth's Core World and rarely emerged onto the surface.
The Earth's Core World is a maze-like realm, teeming with monsters that serve as food sources for the Skeleton Giant Lizards.
For some reason, the lizards have been venturing onto the surface to look for food, disrupting the food chain in this region.
The Sha Po Wolf group, facing similar scarcity, now has to roam extensively to find sustenance.
This may be the reason behind the Sha Po Wolves' hostility toward the Skeleton Giant Lizards.
If this trend continues, starving monster hordes will inevitably trigger a massive Beast Tide, storming West City in search of food!
Considering this possibility, Qin Shou immediately raised his hand and messaged Principal Yu Shusheng, reporting the developments.
Soon after, Yu Shusheng replied.
[Student Qin Shou, you've handled this well. We will dispatch personnel to investigate the anomalies outside West City. If there's danger, don't act recklessly—return to the city quickly.]
Upon receiving the response, Qin Shou felt reassured.
He resolved that after earning a few rounds of Synthesis Points, he would disguise himself and infiltrate the Sha Po Wolf group, sabotaging them from within for the sake of West City's hundreds of thousands of residents.
Indeed, Qin Shou considered himself a selfless hero of the times!
He hoped the wolves would welcome him back with the most delicious monster meat…
…
"Once we've crossed these mountains, we'll reach the Black Ape Beast's nest," Lin Xiaomei said, holding the map and smiling gently.
"Haha, we're finally close to the Black Ape Beast's nest. This journey hasn't been easy," Long Xia said with a laugh.
Ye Ning nodded. "Yeah, I heard the bounty for the Black Ape Beast is as high as three hundred thousand Federation Coins.
Plus, with all the monsters we've hunted along the way, this trip will earn us a fortune."
Hong Cong added, "The Federation Coins are secondary. The real purpose of venturing outside the city is to hone our battle skills."
Long Xia glanced at Hong Cong and said, "You're not interested in Federation Coins? Then why not go pilot a Mecha instead—why fuss with raising beasts?"
Hong Cong glared at Long Xia. A Mecha? That's not something just anyone can afford!
While the Mecha's initial price was exorbitant, if his family gritted their teeth, they could manage to buy one.
But the astronomical costs of ongoing maintenance and upgrades—without a gold mine at home, there was no way to sustain it.
A Mecha was like an endless money pit!
In all of West City, there were only about one or two hundred students with the resources to enroll in Mechanical School.
Among the three major schools, Mechanical School had by far the smallest student body.
On the side, Qin Shou ignored their bickering.
He looked at Lin Xiaomei and asked, "If I'm not mistaken, up ahead should be the Winged Dragon group's territory. You're not planning to take a detour?"
Lin Xiaomei smiled. "Don't worry, we've already prepared for that."
As she spoke, she retrieved a purple cloak from her Space Wristwatch and casually draped it over herself.
"I did some research. Due to the way their eyes are structured, Winged Dragons are mostly colorblind and usually have difficulty noticing purple objects.
Wearing purple cloaks will allow us to blend into the Winged Dragon group's territory."
At this point, Long Xia pulled out two purple cloaks and handed one to Qin Shou.
"Lao Qin, here—it's what I got for you."
Qin Shou raised the purple raincoat in his hand, his mouth twitching.
Thanks a lot, huh!
With their purple cloaks on, the group continued their journey.
Moments later, the group formally entered the Winged Dragon group's territory.
"Hah…"
Above them, Winged Dragons of different sizes hovered in the sky.
Just as Lin Xiaomei had said, these Winged Dragons treated them as invisible and remained oblivious to their presence.
Unlike typical monsters, Winged Dragons rely on their keen eyesight to hunt rather than tracking prey by scent.
This time, the team encountered no mishaps, leaving Qin Shou feeling oddly unaccustomed.
Several hours later, the group finally emerged from the Winged Dragon group's territory.
Long Xia exhaled lightly with relief and said, "Didn't expect this trick to actually work. Lin Xiaomei, where did you learn about this?"
Lin Xiaomei's face remained composed as she answered, "Old Wang's 'Fifty-Six Point Nine Weird Facts About Monsters.'"
Long Xia: "…"
What kind of serious person reads that stuff?
"Okay, the Black Ape Beast is just ahead, but it's getting late today. How about we rest for the night and set off tomorrow morning?"
Ye Ning suggested.
Lin Xiaomei nodded. "Sounds good."
"No objections here," Long Xia said.
Qin Shou glanced at Hong Cong, who had been silent, and nodded. "I don't have any objections either."
…
The night was captivating.
After a quick dinner, everyone returned to their tents.
Inside his tent, Qin Shou reassured his parents about his safety and resumed cultivating his Star Power.
In the dead of night.
The barrier outside the tents fluctuated slightly, unnoticed by anyone.
"Dear Master, they've slipped away quietly."
Big Big Wolf scratched at the tent, prompting Qin Shou to wake from his cultivation state.
He stepped out of his tent and headed to Hong Cong's tent.
Sure enough, the tent was already empty.
Hong Cong was missing.
Ye Ning was also gone.
Recalling their odd behavior earlier, Qin Shou shook his head with a chuckle.
Those two wanted to hog the Black Ape Beast for themselves!
Ye Ning's Bronze Taotie ranked only at Dangerous Seven Stars, far from a match for the Black Ape Beast.
Hong Cong's Skeleton Giant Lizard might be able to go fifty-fifty against the Black Ape Beast, but no amount of Federation Coins was enough to justify such risk.
What was going through the minds of these two rookies?
Could it be…
He glanced at Lin Xiaomei's tent, then shook his head.
That couldn't be it.
If they wanted to showcase their prowess, they'd have done it in front of Lin Xiaomei—not in secret behind her back.
Then there was only one possibility.