Harder to Bear Than Death

"Damn it!" Lin Mu clenched his fists, a look of stifled grievance in his eyes.

"Don't feel so bad. There'll be chances to kill him later!"

"And besides, a person dying isn't always the most painful thing!" Qian Mu wore a faint smile.

Lin Mu narrowed his eyes slightly and looked at him. "What do you mean by that?"

"Don't forget where this is! The Training Camp. Do you really think getting eliminated this early just means having your Points reset to zero?" Qian Mu asked in return.

"There are other punishments?" Lin Mu asked.

"Not tangible punishments, but ones that will make Duan Wenchang suffer even more than tangible punishment!" Qian Mu said.

Lin Mu narrowed his eyes slightly.

He truly wanted to know what Duan Wenchang would have to face.

About ten minutes after Lin Mu and Qian Mu left, several figures arrived at this spot.

When they saw the corpses scattered across the ground, their expressions changed somewhat.

But they did not meddle in the matter. They went straight to Duan Wenchang, grabbed him, and ran outside.

Before long, they reached the outskirts of the forest.

Duan Wenchang was thrown onto the ground.

Quite a few gazes fell on him, their eyes filled with surprise.

They all knew Duan Wenchang.

A member of the Duan Family, with fairly good talent.

He could rank among the top ten in the entire Training Camp.

But how long had it even been?

He had actually been eliminated.

"Am I seeing this right?! He's actually the first one to be eliminated!"

"He actively called for help. Looks like he ran into something!"

"Anyone who could force him into such a state definitely isn't weak. It should be one of those few!"

"Interesting. Who would've thought he'd be dead last this year!"

"..."

The group discussed it animatedly.

As they chatted, a figure came before Duan Wenchang. His eyes were cold, and he held a sign in his hand, which he directly hung around Duan Wenchang's neck.

"Elimination time: two hours and thirty-seven minutes."

The moment he saw this, Duan Wenchang's face changed drastically.

He knew perfectly well that the other party wanted everyone to know his elimination time.

"This is one of the punishments! And since you were the first to be eliminated, you must stand in the most conspicuous spot!" the man said coldly.

Duan Wenchang's face turned the color of pig liver.

He was a member of the Duan Family.

Doing this was no different from parading him through the streets for public humiliation.

"Can I wear a Mask?" Duan Wenchang asked.

"Ridiculous! The first person to be eliminated still has the nerve to make demands!" the man barked.

He suddenly raised his leg, and a fierce gust of wind burst forth.

Duan Wenchang was kicked flying, landing directly at the entrance to the forest.

He stood there alone, his expression utterly unsightly.

Before long, someone encountered danger and was eliminated.

When they left the forest, they looked at Duan Wenchang with strange expressions.

Two hours and thirty-seven minutes?!

Even faster than them!

He was a member of the Duan Family, yet this was all he had?

For a time, they felt much better.

Even if someone mocked them, they could still say—

Even members of the Duan Family were only at this level. What did it matter that they had been eliminated?

Naturally, Duan Wenchang knew what they were thinking.

The sense of grievance in his heart reached its limit.

As a member of the Duan Family, when had he ever suffered such humiliation?

If Lin Mu saw what he looked like, he would probably be unable to stop himself from laughing.

This truly felt worse than killing him.

Because for the next several days, Duan Wenchang would have to stand like this!

On Lin Mu's side, he followed Qian Mu deeper into the forest.

Along the way, they slew quite a few Fierce Beasts and encountered several groups fighting over Banners, but they did not snatch any.

Because under the rules of this game, the later it went on, the easier it became to take first place.

They only needed to defeat a few people holding many Banners, and the number of Banners in their hands would naturally become the highest.

After walking for more than thirty li, the two arrived at a Mountain Stream.

The scenery here was beautiful, with dark-red weeds and low trees growing all around.

The ground was also relatively hard; clearly, this was a place rich in iron ore.

"I looked through the map of this place. The Iron-Metal Beast should be nearby!" Qian Mu said.

"You could even find a map of a place like this?" Lin Mu said.

"Our family may not be some great and powerful clan, but we do have some means. Otherwise, we couldn't have raised me to where I am today!" Qian Mu said.

Lin Mu nodded.

The two headed forward, but before long, they saw several figures staring ahead warily.

When those people saw Lin Mu and Qian Mu, they hurriedly gestured for them not to come any closer.

The two were somewhat puzzled and walked over.

"What's going on?"

"Can't you see for yourselves?" someone whispered.

The two turned their eyes forward.

They saw a massive python, dark red all over, coiled beside a Banner. Its eyes were scarlet, its body covered in scales—it looked like nothing pleasant to provoke.

"Crimson Demon Snake!" Lin Mu narrowed his eyes slightly.

This was a Fierce Beast with a Blood Qi Value of around 7.0. Its combat strength was astonishing; Martial Artists with the same Blood Qi Value would not even dare approach it.

"What do you think?" Lin Mu glanced to the side.

"Kill it," Qian Mu said.

Lin Mu nodded slightly, gripping his longblade as he charged at the giant python.

Seeing this, the expressions of those few people changed abruptly.

That was a Fierce Beast with a Blood Qi Value of 7.0.

How many people in the entire Training Camp had a Blood Qi Value above 7.0?

Yet under their watchful eyes, the longblade in Lin Mu's hand flashed.

In almost a single exchange, the giant python was slain by Lin Mu.

Seeing this, the eyes of everyone present filled with shock.

They had never expected someone to kill the giant python so easily.

"Holy shit! One slash, instant kill! Who is this guy?!"

"He seems to be Lin Mu. I think he was first place when he entered the camp!"

"Lin Mu! So it's him! No wonder!"

"..."

The group discussed it among themselves, their gazes toward Lin Mu gaining several shades of awe.

Lin Mu wiped the blood from his longblade and walked forward.

Qian Mu followed close behind.

The others looked at one another. He had killed the giant python, yet he had not taken the Banner?

Was this what a true big shot was like?

"They probably have other business. They'll start fighting over Banners later on!"

"So what do we do with this Banner? Take it or not?"

"Take it! Why wouldn't we?"

"..."

After hesitating for a moment, the group immediately made their decision.

The figure walked over to the Banner and snatched it down.

"Are you really sure that on the final day of the competition, these Banners will send out signals?" Lin Mu asked.

"Of course! Those are the rules. It's been this way every year!" Qian Mu explained.

Lin Mu nodded slightly.

If that was the case, there was indeed no need to fight over the Banners now.

After searching this area for more than ten minutes, they came to a stop.

Because a figure in the distance had caught their attention.

It was a Fierce Beast covered entirely in jet-black fur, with small scales scattered across the surface of its skin. About two meters tall, it somewhat resembled an ape.

Streams of savage aura surged from its body. Compared to the Crimson Blood Demon Python from before, it was stronger by far more than just a little.