Five figures shot forward, Battle Qi blazing around them, and instantly surrounded Azklos from five directions.

Seeing the bodies of two students on the ground, the five instructors’ faces turned cold.

"A Six-armed Snake Demon."

"Two students are dead."

"Damn you, Abyss vermin! How dare you enter our world. I’m going to chop off your head and suppress it under the gates of Beast Fighting City for all eternity."

Surrounded, Azklos sneered and spoke with indifference in the common tongue of the Mythical World. "Blue Star humans, you dare to boast before the great Lord Azklos? You’re seeking death."

"I will slowly crush each of your skulls and let you feel what true power is."

In its Perception, the Tier of these five humans was only Bronze Upper, lower than the Tier it possessed at its peak. Although its current Tier had only recovered to Bronze Middle due to the World Barrier’s suppression, its Legendary Lord bloodline and the might of a Demon Lord meant it could easily kill human Combat Professionals of the same Tier.

"Hmph! It’s not like I haven’t killed a Six-armed Snake Demon before."

"Exactly. Acting as if we’re a bunch of provincials who’ve never seen the world."

"Enough nonsense. Let’s get it."

With those words, even more powerful auras erupted from the five instructors as Battle Qi circulated through their bodies. As their qi meridians fused, bronze-colored chains, seemingly tangible, emerged from them.

CRACK!

Phantom chains of Battle Qi linked together, forming a net dozens of meters wide that instantly spread an invisible suppressive force. Under this special combined power, the black Magic Energy flames burning fiercely on Azklos dimmed.

Azklos’s expression changed dramatically. "A Battle Array of Battle Qi! You’re not ordinary human Professionals!"

"You’ll know once you’re dead!"

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

The battle erupted in an instant. The five Combat Professional instructors moved with surging Battle Qi. Combined with the suppression of the will-fused Battle Array, the once-arrogant Azklos was quickly forced onto the defensive.

BOOM!

Suddenly, a dazzling black Demonic Qi erupted, forming an expanding ball of fiery light. Amidst the roaring wind, a black streak of light shot out, appearing dozens of meters away in a flash. It was Azklos.

Now, however, it looked disheveled, completely stripped of its previous arrogance. It vanished into the depths of the Fierce Beast Mountain Range without a second glance.

"That demon brat is definitely a noble! It must have a lot of life-saving trump cards to negate the Battle Array’s suppression. Otherwise, we would have beheaded it just now."

"Let’s give chase! Chen, you were just injured. Stay behind and collect the bodies of those two students!"

"Notify the others. This is a Six-armed Snake Demon of noble blood. It’s strong and may have inherited bloodline Talents."

After a brief exchange, four of the instructors transformed into streaks of light and gave chase, leaving the injured Instructor Chen behind.

Looking at the two student bodies that had been blown away by the battle’s aftershocks, Instructor Chen shook his head slightly. He walked over and stored their bodies in his Space Equipment.

These instructors, all veterans returned from military service, had seen death countless times and were long accustomed to it. This held true even though these two were genius graduates from the top ten military academies, cultivated with great effort. A genius only enjoyed more resources and a faster initial Cultivation speed; it didn’t grant them immortality.

Moreover, the Human Alliance had always taken a very methodical approach to cultivating the new generation of Professional Talents. Basic resources and Skills were provided to allow students to start their journey faster and more systematically. However, to obtain rarer resources and more powerful Skills, they had to demonstrate sufficient strength to earn them. This was to instill a diligent and enterprising habit in the race’s geniuses, rather than letting them rest on their laurels and stagnate. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Additionally, to prevent students from becoming sheltered "hothouse flowers" who were useless in practice and only good on paper, the military had established training grounds like the Fierce Beast Mountain Range. Here, these genius students could fight and shed blood. The Federation military department maintained tight control over the general direction of these zones. Students who preferred stability and had average talent could remain in Beast Fighting City for their daily Cultivation, enjoying the higher Energy Concentration. More talented and adventurous students could venture into the more dangerous depths of the Fierce Beast Mountain Range to hone their skills and improve. To ensure the military academy students didn’t lack real-world social experience, social Adventurer Groups were also introduced, making the atmosphere in Beast Fighting City freer and wilder. Overall, the trials were divided into several controllable intensity levels, each with a specific purpose. The choice of whether to participate and which danger level to attempt was left to the students. They enjoyed the rewards themselves, but they must also bear the costs.

This included the current sudden incident involving the Demon Worship Sect members who had snuck in. The Federation military department had estimated the risks and, through the Beast Fighting City officials, had opened channels for students to participate.

Unfortunately, the two students who died had terrible luck. Not only did they ignore the requirement to form a team of at least five and operate alongside instructors, but they also ran into the strongest combatant: a Six-armed Demon Lord. Otherwise, with their Bronze Lower combat power, they could have escaped unharmed even if they had encountered Demon Worshiper elites and were outmatched. This situation could only be described as terrible luck—a twist of fate.

***

While Azklos was being hunted down, Fang Zhou, however, was having much better luck. He had found another Demon Worshiper using his map.

In a great rift valley, the rock walls glowed with an eerie dark red. Fang Zhou’s Mage boots crushed a Mutated Centipede, the crisp crack of its carapace echoing through the canyon. Before and behind him, his Undead Legion advanced with a strange rhythm. The Bone Shields of the Corpse Warriors clashed, creating a beat like a death knell. In the Quivers of the Corpse Shooters, Poisoned Bone Arrows rustled with every step. At the very front, a Corrupt Hatred cleaved through obstructing Crystal Clusters with its Giant Axe. The scattered purple crystal fragments were torn to powder by a swarm of Skeleton Bats before they even hit the ground.

Southeast, three kilometers. Found you.

Fang Zhou’s Soul Eagle Eye vision penetrated the rock layers. He then glanced at his personal terminal. The Magic Energy Satellite provided by the Beast Fighting City military was transmitting data in real-time. The flickering black dot on the light screen perfectly matched the foul stench of blood in the air.

He suddenly halted, and the Undead Army instantly froze. A Rock Rat gnawing on lichen froze in place—not out of Fear, but because the Rotting Aura had melted it into putrid ooze.

In the valley, a Troll Descendant stood four meters tall, its frame even more massive than Qin Hui’s after burning his blood essence. Black light flowed over its body, radiating a terrifying pressure. Looking at Fang Zhou standing amidst the Undead Army, the Troll Descendant flashed a ferocious smile. "My luck’s good today! I, Durak, just shook off a few human experts and stumbled upon a Federation genius."

"Later, I’m going to crush every bone in your body, just like I did to that genius yesterday." As Durak described the scene from last night, his expression became utterly savage.

Fang Zhou tightened his grip on his Soul Shattering Magic Ball, his voice laced with ice. "So, a student has already died by your hand."

"What? Are you scared?" Durak laughed viciously, the four-meter-long War Axe in his hand pulsing with black light. "Undead insect!"

Durak’s roar sent loose stones clattering down. The scarlet Air Blade from his sweeping War Axe severed three Corpse Warriors at the waist. Before the splattering bone fragments could even hit the ground, they were captured by the Skeleton Armory Fang Zhou had summoned and reformed in mid-air into twelve Serrated Boomerangs.

The instant the Troll swung its axe to block, Fang Zhou had already teleported deep into the Undead Army. The toxic fog of his Rotting Aura coalesced into a vortex at his feet.

"Taste some Corrosive Poison."

With a flick of his Magic Ball, an Earth-Surging Poison Spring erupted beneath Durak’s feet. The Troll Descendant’s shins were instantly corroded to the bone, but he only laughed maniacally and pounded his chest.

"Pain! More pain!"

The Frenzy Bloodline made his muscles swell. Corrosive blood, gushing from the wound, transformed into an Acid Arrow Rain. A fierce wind stirred up by his War Axe deflected the volley of bone arrows from the Corpse Shooters. Yet, under Fang Zhou’s Soul Link, the arrows precisely altered their course, landing within the range of a pre-set Poison Cloud Skill.

The Poisoned Bone Arrows absorbed the toxic mist, swelled, and then exploded, unleashing a downpour of purple-black toxic spikes.