The scorched ground, blackened by the flames, still radiated a trace of heat. However, neither the earlier flames nor the charred earth had any impact on the students. The power of the Духовные звери was more than enough to handle these ordinary natural disasters effortlessly.
"There shouldn’t be any fire oil in the forest, but who knows what dangerous things might be hiding in there. How about... we destroy all the trees?"
Liu Ziwen thought for a moment and suggested to the group. Many classmates agreed with the proposal. The maliciousness from the fire oil earlier made them wary of entering the opponent’s territory. Who knows what dangers might be lurking in the dense forest?
"Destroy the forest? In theory, when we encounter situations that we believe require special handling, we can ignore the relevant regulations and resort to destruction. Besides, this is... However, I’m more worried about what terrifying things might emerge if we destroy it. How would we deal with that?"
Rubbing his chin, Zhang Cheng said, unlike the first two areas, the enemies in this region suddenly became much more powerful. Even he couldn’t guarantee that he could lead everyone safely away from their full assault. In such a situation, destroying the forest might cause even more trouble...
"Directly entering the forest isn’t a good idea either. If that vine is lurking in the forest, we’re no match for it. Destroying the opponent’s home ground is also an option."
Ци Чэнь looked gravely at the dense forest, always feeling that it harbored great danger. But as for what that danger was, he did not know.
"So, why don’t you consider sending scouts inside to check the situation? Don’t you, Ци Чэнь, have a combat intuition that includes crisis perception? Not to mention you have high-speed Духовные звери like the Gale Wolf. Don’t tell me you’re not confident in dodging the vine’s attack."
Little Husky, lounging on Ah Mu Tree Crown, flicked its tail in discontent, questioning, "Have these guys really become dependent on Dou Yanlan’s laziness? Was something so simple not thought of? After all, they’re acting as a full class, which makes forming a scouting team among the students a trivial matter compared to a smaller squad."
Despite Gale Wolf being cultivated for strong attacks, its innate speed already qualified it for a scout’s role. Not to mention that Ци Чэнь’s combat intuition could substitute for crisis detection. Even if they’re not as skilled as professional scouts, they wouldn’t need such expertise.
Prompted by Фэн Юань’s reminder, the group instantly realized the oversight. Soon, a reconnaissance team was temporarily formed. Ah Mu wanted to follow but was refused by Ци Чэнь, considering the limitations of Ah Mu’s size and mobility couldn’t match their speed.
Although slightly upset with Фэн Юань’s suggestion, Ah Mu merely growled softly without disturbing Little Husky nestled in its tree crown. Flicking its tail, Little Husky told Xiao Ji,
"Try to provide them aerial assistance. If pursued, help divert their attention, but be careful not to cause significant tree destruction."
Glancing at Фэн Юань, Xiao Ji nodded, spread its wings, and made a call. Although unable to accompany Фэн Юань directly, such tasks of drawing enemy fire weren’t something it wanted Фэн Юань to shoulder alone, considering Фэн Юань had a much lower risk of injury compared to itself.
"Are you sure it can go alone? Don’t accidentally let it get hurt."
Ци Чэнь cast an odd glance at Фэн Юань, acknowledging that while the latter often kept Xiao Ji from overly committing to training, it certainly wasn’t due to indifference. Should any mishap occur from Xiao Ji drawing fire, Фэн Юань might not hold back stern measures.
"It won’t happen. I believe the creatures here don’t have that high of attack power. Even if something unexpected were to occur, it isn’t incapable of evasion."
Glancing at the anxious Xiao Ji watching him, Little Husky flicked its tail. Xiao Ji’s anticipation was apparent—it worried he might not consent. Ordinarily, Xiao Ji couldn’t contribute much to fights, but now, given a rare chance, of course, it wouldn’t miss it.
As for injuries? It’s a trial... Getting hurt is inevitable. However, these attacks empowered by the Область данных still struggle to significantly wound Xiao Ji, given the immunity that Божественный зверьs hold against the Область данных isn’t merely for show.
Seeing Фэн Юань not forbidding it, Xiao Ji chirped happily, ready for action at any moment.
Soon, Ци Чэнь led a group with Духовные звери into the forest from the least dangerous area. Though Dou Yanlan was somewhat concerned for Ци Чэнь’s safety, she recognized this as an academy-organized trial with no real threats. Besides, Фэн Юань’s prior comment lingered with her.
Overdependence on herself was not beneficial for Ци Чэнь. If they faced separation due to unexpected events in the wild, he might be in danger. Thinking this way, Dou Yanlan refrained from stopping him.
From time to time, Xiao Ji would suddenly initiate an attack below. However, the vines posed little threat to the hovering Xiao Ji, as long as the aerial space wasn’t overly obstructed. Due to its high speed and difficulty in slower flight, areas with numerous obstacles made it hard for Xiao Ji to maneuver quickly.
This dense forest wasn’t completely impassable, hence Xiao Ji continued circling in the open sky above the forest. Whenever Ци Чэнь encountered vine pursuit below, Xiao Ji utilized the Wind of Death to draw the vines’ attention.
Compared to Ци Чэнь and his team, Xiao Ji in the sky was evidently more threatening, whether with the withering Wind of Death or the terrifying Flame of Death. Both presented greater threats to the vines than Ци Чэнь, since their class wasn’t particularly powerful.
Even as for Ци Чэнь, due to leaving Ah Mu behind, though he could borrow strength from it, his usable power wasn’t that extensive. Unlike Фэн Юань, whose inherent strength far exceeded his beasts, usually, most Укротители зверей with formidable Духовные звери had limited independent combat abilities.
By comparison, the threat posed by Ци Чэнь and his team paled in the eyes of the vines, considering the academy wouldn’t create absurdly strong enemies. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be a trial but rather an irresponsible complication.
"We found many traps inside, but we also discovered the core of the plant. It’s unexpected to find it is a giant fruit. While we couldn’t see clearly, it’s quite certain."
Returning from reconnaissance, Ци Чэнь extracted his phone and showed a video to the group. Seeing the huge, emerald-like fruit with thick vines below, everyone became convinced it was the core of the vine goddess statue. As long as they found the core...
"What’s the issue? How can you be sure it won’t have a protection barrier?"
Little Husky, sprawled on the tree crown, tempered their excitement with cold realism, remarking that forming such a strong barrier across distant areas implied here should be similar.
"This... We can’t be certain. There were many vines around the core when we were there. Approaching might alert them, but if there’s a barrier, what do we do then?"
"Quietly slip past the edges?"
A classmate suggested, attempting to avoid confrontation since their trial goal wasn’t to eliminate all enemies. This approach seemingly posed no significant issue.
Brought up by the classmate, everyone felt it seemed a suitable choice. They’d focused too much on vanquishing the vine creature and were possibly overthinking it.
"No, beneath it is a file cabinet, which, if I’m not mistaken, could hold this area’s corresponding dossier."
Dou Yanlan remarked while rewatching the video, prompting Wu Dingwu’s confusion as he asked her,
"Could the dossier be special? Isn’t it just background information?"
"As it stands, it appears so. However, none of us can guarantee the background information won’t lead to other opportunities. Furthermore, it’s not entirely unsolvable."
Reviewing images captured by Ци Чэнь’s team, Dou Yanlan noted, as in the footage, she spotted a well-guarded Spirit Quality Generator, and a peculiar thought sparked in her mind.

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