"Spotted Snake."
The words formed automatically in his mind as Ye Tian studied the two-meter serpent coiled five meters ahead. Thick as a man's torso, scales glinting with deadly promise. These creatures weren't particularly dangerous by trial standards—any competent Martial Apprentice could handle one—but their constriction strength could crush even warriors wielding four to five hundred pounds of force if they allowed themselves to be entangled.
Whoosh!
The spotted snake struck like a released crossbow bolt, fangs gleaming with venom as it launched toward his position.
Ye Tian didn't dodge. His speed talent made evasion trivially easy, but why waste energy on unnecessary movement?
BOOM!
Steel flashed in morning light. The serpent's body froze mid-strike, momentum carrying it forward before gravity claimed victory. It crashed to earth, thrashing weakly for several heartbeats before death claimed another beast.
Examining his handiwork, Ye Tian noted the precise seven-inch cut that had severed the creature's spine. His intermediate knife talent had guided the blade with supernatural accuracy—no wasted motion, perfect targeting, instantaneous lethality.
"Too weak."
Disappointment colored his assessment as he harvested the snake's eyes—proof of kill worth exactly one point in the trial's scoring system.
These spotted snakes were supposedly descended from a genuine fierce beast that had once dominated this territory. According to teacher gossip during transport, several Elite Martial Artists had joined forces to eliminate the original giant serpent, then systematically cleared all other major threats to create this "safe" training ground.
Whether that story held truth or not, the descendants were pathetically weak compared to their legendary ancestor.
Day One - Evening
Most of the day had evaporated like morning mist, shadows lengthening as sunset approached. Time to assess progress.
Ye Tian opened his leather pack and conducted careful inventory. Various beast parts, claws, teeth, and organs filled the container—twenty-three points worth of materials by his calculations.
Decent haul for average students, but nowhere near competitive levels. The top three positions required hundreds of points, and even tenth place demanded significantly more than his current collection.
Night hunting was suicide for most participants. Human vision deteriorated drastically after dark, while nocturnal predators gained overwhelming advantage. Better to find secure shelter and wait for dawn.
Tree branches offered relative safety. Beast spotted snakes occasionally climbed to higher elevations, but remained easily detectable with proper vigilance. His enhanced reflexes and speed could handle any serpentine encounter.
Nothing eventful occurred during the night hours.
Day Two - Morning
Roasted rabbit provided adequate breakfast fuel after he'd trapped and cooked the creature over carefully managed flames. Protein would sustain his energy for extended hunting sessions.
Time to venture deeper into the wilderness core.
Peripheral areas contained only inferior beasts worth minimal points. The trial's inner regions housed more dangerous creatures—each kill potentially worth five to six points compared to the single-point garbage littering the outer zones.
Risk versus reward demanded calculated aggression.
"Help!"
"Someone save us!"
Desperate voices pierced the forest silence, accompanied by savage wolf howls that made his blood freeze.
"Wolf pack encounter."
Strategic analysis kicked into overdrive. Wolves were valuable prey—especially Toothed Wolves worth ten points each. Far more profitable than hunting scattered weak beasts individually.
He sprinted toward the commotion, not from altruistic motives but pure economic calculation.
An clearing opened before him, revealing carnage in progress. Roughly twelve Toothed Wolves circled seven or eight students in a slowly tightening death spiral. Several corpses already decorated the ground—testament to the pack's efficiency.
"Zhang Bao!"
Recognition sparked as he identified one of the survivors. His former classmate looked terrible—blood streaked across torn clothing, face pale with exhaustion and terror. Zhang Bao wielded an empty bow like a club, clearly at his absolute limit.
The situation was predictably hopeless.
Zhang Bao's group had been foolishly optimistic from the beginning. Inferior talents attempting dangerous trials through numerical advantage—a strategy that worked until encountering genuinely threatening opposition. Then numbers became liabilities rather than assets.
Ye Tian had known their fate was sealed before the trial even began, but social courtesy prevented explicit warnings about inevitable failure.
Drawing his composite bow, he nocked an arrow and targeted the nearest Toothed Wolf.
Thunk!
The projectile punched into the beast's flank, missing vital organs but inflicting significant damage. Blood darkened the creature's gray fur.
"AROOOOO!"
The pack detected his presence immediately, several wolves peeling away from their original prey to address this new threat.
"Ye Tian!" Zhang Bao's voice cracked with desperate hope, then plummeted into despair as recognition dawned. "Run! These Toothed Wolves will kill you! You're not strong enough!"
Warmth bloomed in his chest at Zhang Bao's genuine concern. The pudgy young man was trying to save his life even while facing his own death. Such loyalty deserved reciprocation.
But revealing his true capabilities would raise uncomfortable questions.
"Better keep things modest."
Toothed Wolves possessed strength comparable to Martial Apprentices wielding four to five hundred pounds of force. Direct confrontation would expose abilities far beyond his supposed level.
Instead, he activated roughly 1.5 times normal speed and drew upon his intermediate knife talent's precision. Enough power to win decisively, but not so much as to appear superhuman.
The first wolf lunged with killing intent, claws extended and fangs bared.
Slash!
His blade found the creature's throat with surgical accuracy, severing major arteries in a spray of crimson. The beast collapsed instantly, life draining onto forest soil.
Every subsequent attack played out identically. The wolves moved like they were trapped in thick syrup while he danced between them with supernatural grace. His knife found vital points with mechanical precision—necks, hearts, major vessels—each strike delivering instantaneous death.
Within minutes, twelve Toothed Wolf corpses littered the clearing. Ye Tian stood amidst the carnage, clothing stained with enemy blood but otherwise uninjured.
"Are you alright?"
He sheathed his weapon and approached the survivors.
"We're... fine..."
Zhang Bao's pupils had dilated to black circles, throat working convulsively as he struggled to process what he'd witnessed.
"I killed these wolves, so I'll claim the teeth. Any objections?"
The question was purely ceremonial—these people owed him their lives.
"No objections!"
Multiple heads shook frantically. They weren't suicidal enough to demand shares of bounty from someone who'd single-handedly slaughtered an entire wolf pack.
Toothed Wolf fangs served as proof of kill, but he only needed the two largest front teeth from each creature. Twelve sets of trophy fangs filled a substantial portion of his pack—fortunately, his three hundred pounds of strength made the additional weight manageable.
"Some advice," he offered while securing his prizes. "Leave this place immediately. Your current strength won't earn beast blood rewards, and there's only one life per person. Future opportunities will arise—don't waste your existence on impossible odds."
He prepared to depart, but Zhang Bao's expression shifted dramatically.
"Ye Tian, wait! With your abilities and those wolf fangs, beast blood is definitely achievable. But if you want higher rankings..." Zhang Bao hesitated, then pushed forward. "I have information. Not sure if I should share it."
"Speak."
Curiosity overrode caution.
"A pseudo-fierce beast Spotted Snake has appeared in the deeper wilderness. First Academy students are organizing a hunting expedition. That creature is worth five hundred points!"
The revelation hit like lightning to his nervous system.
"Pseudo-fierce beast Spotted Snake!"
Complete shock flooded through him, followed immediately by predatory hunger.
Five hundred points guaranteed first place victory. No other combination of kills could compete with that massive bounty.
The hunt was about to become far more interesting.
[End of Chapter 9]