Chapter 30

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Chapter 30: The Battle Ahead

Jie Xin knew he couldn’t defeat so many people, so he gave them a fierce scare before quickly fleeing. Mu Xiaofeng and the others understood that this marked a temporary end to the conflict.

The group who had just been there took their injured teammates to bid farewell to Mu Xiaofeng. With the loss of their “king,” their team was effectively out of the exam.

“At least we gained something from this exam,” Ximo said, eyeing Zhang Wenyu with a mix of envy and jealousy. “Zhang Wenyu has opened the Yuan Solution, and I’ll be the next one.”

Although Zhang Wenyu hadn’t suffered much damage, he had used up a lot of Yuan Qi. Meanwhile, Mu Xiaofeng’s injuries were nearly healed, and Ximo’s group had been well-protected with no significant losses.

“I think we should hurry to the treasure vault,” Mu Xiaofeng suggested. “We defeated the guards before, so we should be able to enter the vault again.” The plan was set, but would the journey be smooth?

After a short break, the sky was fully lit, and the sounds of battle could be heard nearby. The first day had been an adjustment period, but now, on the second day, the battles were heating up. With only three days in total, Mu Xiaofeng and his group knew their journey wouldn’t be easy.

As they got closer to the treasure vault, the sounds of battle grew more frequent. The closer they got to the center, the more people they encountered, increasing the chances of conflict.

Mu Xiaofeng took the lead, scouting ahead while giving Zhang Wenyu a chance to rest. As he stepped on the soft ground, he immediately retreated, sensing a trap.

Arrows suddenly flew from both sides, and Mu Xiaofeng realized he had been lured into a baited trap. He quickly dodged the arrows with a roll and leap, evading them easily.

Zhang Wenyu noticed more arrows coming from above, aimed directly at Mu Xiaofeng. Recognizing it as a chain trap, Zhang Wenyu knew Mu Xiaofeng couldn’t dodge them all, but he was still recovering from opening the Yuan Solution.

“Ximo, go save Mu Xiaofeng! He can’t handle all those arrows alone,” Zhang Wenyu called out. Ximo nodded, leaping into action and blocking the arrows with his dual shields while Mu Xiaofeng deflected those in front of him.

As they landed, Mu Xiaofeng felt the ground shake. He knew something bad was about to happen and could have left Ximo behind to escape, but instead, he pushed Ximo back to safety.

Suddenly, the ground around Mu Xiaofeng rose, forming a thick, egg-shaped earth wall that trapped him inside.

“This is an earth elemental protection technique, but it’s being used to trap instead of protect,” Qin Bao Yi remarked, admiring the cleverness of the design.

A man in a vestment stepped forward, raising his staff and shouting, “Earth Spike!”

The surface of the earth wall suddenly sprouted countless spikes, turning it into a deadly hedgehog. Anyone inside would be pierced through.

Zhang Wenyu saw this and yelled, “Damn! Let’s see how you handle this!” He began to gather Yuan Qi in preparation for the Kai Yuan Solution, but Qin Bao Yi stopped him, pointing out the earth hedgehog.

Cracks appeared all over the hedgehog, and with a loud, wall-shattering sound, it exploded. The Earth Elemental user was shocked to see that all the spikes inside had been flattened. Mu Xiaofeng had spun his heavy sword, using a “Sword Cyclone” to cut off the spikes, leaving himself unharmed.

Mu Xiaofeng stopped, resting his sword on his shoulder, and smiled at the Earth Elemental user. “Nice tactic, but if you could have summoned spikes under my feet, I’d be done for.”

The Earth Elemental user sighed, knowing he couldn’t release that much Yuan Qi at once.

Mu Xiaofeng suspected that the Earth Elemental user wasn’t alone, and attacking him might lead to further traps. Just then, the ground in front of him sank, and two Sword and Shield Warriors leaped out to protect the Earth Elemental user. Their battered armor showed they had fought before, meaning Mu Xiaofeng’s group wasn’t their first opponents.

Seeing his teammates, the Earth Elemental user scolded them, “Why did you wait so long? You’ve messed up the plan.”

The taller Sword and Shield Warrior replied gravely, “I couldn’t risk it. Losing more teammates would have been disastrous.”

Mu Xiaofeng noticed they were likely down to fewer than five people, yet they hadn’t retreated. This puzzled him, but he remained cautious.

Mu Xiaofeng complimented them, saying, “That trap was cleverly set. Was it your idea?” He gave a thumbs-up to the Earth Elemental user, trying to buy time for Zhang Wenyu to recover.

The short Sword and Shield Warrior sneered and replied first, “He’s not that smart. Our captain planned this, and he’ll be here to deal with you soon.”

Hearing this, Mu Xiaofeng muttered to himself, hoping the opposing team only had three members.

Just then, a woman’s voice called from the woods, “I’ve told you, we’re working together now. Stop treating them like outsiders. You’re giving away too much.”

Her words made Mu Xiaofeng more alert, realizing he had been too complacent.

A woman dressed in green appeared from the trees, her face partially hidden by leaves, but her perfect figure and the bow in her hand identified her as an Archer Shadow.

Shadow discipline includes Trapology, essential for setting and avoiding traps. Mu Xiaofeng lacked expertise in this area, making him vulnerable compared to Zhang Wenyu’s detection abilities.

Qiao Zi observed the four opponents carefully and whispered, “They don’t have a Sacrificial Brewer, so their recovery isn’t as good as ours. Plus, we outnumber them.”

Mu Xiaofeng smiled, but the Archer Shadow noticed and warned him, “Don’t get too cocky. Think about what I just said.”

Realizing what she meant, Mu Xiaofeng and the others paled. They might be facing more than five opponents, possibly a merger of two teams.

Sure enough, two more people emerged from the woods: a tall, thin man in white robes with a staff—a Wine Sacrifice Priest—and a small girl in red robes, identified as an erudite by the staff and book she carried.

Mu Xiaofeng’s numerical advantage vanished. They understood now why the opponents hadn’t retreated despite their small numbers—they had been buying time for their teammates to return.

“We lost teammates on the first day,” the Archer Shadow explained. “Then we met another team that was also missing people, so we decided to join forces. Fewer teams mean higher chances of others becoming ‘kings.’ It would be irrational to fight to the death.”

With the two teams united, Mu Xiaofeng and his group were now at a disadvantage, forced to confront a stronger opponent.