Practical Assessment

Around seven o'clock in the morning, Su You and the other five were already fully armed, standing in a row.

Xing Huaiguo scanned the six of them and said in a deep voice:

"Today is the day of your practical assessment. You must hunt an elementary commander-level monster by midnight tonight. If you exceed this time, your assessment will be considered a failure.

I will not interfere with any of your choices or actions today, unless one of you encounters a life-threatening situation, in which case I will step in to save you. However, that will also mean that person has failed the assessment. Do you understand?"

"Understood."

Xing Huaiguo nodded slightly: "Begin your operation!"

Su You and the others exchanged glances and walked directly onto the rooftop, each taking out a pair of binoculars to carefully observe every street below. This was the easiest way to find monsters in the city.

"Don't even mention areas with too many soldier-level monsters; it's best to choose targets with only two or three soldier-level followers," Su You said while observing.

During these twenty-plus days of combat, Su You had served as both the team's vanguard and its commander. Furthermore, the other five had all been saved by him at some point. Although he held no official title, he was effectively the captain of this squad.

The six of them observed for a full ten minutes, ruling out one target after another.

"Look over here, there are five Tiger Mastiff Dogs!" Elena suddenly exclaimed, pointing to a street below.

Su You and the other five quickly moved over, peering down through their binoculars. They soon spotted five streamlined, spotted Tiger Mastiff Dogs on a certain street, one of which had significantly denser spots than the other four.

"It's an elementary commander-level."

"The other four are all advanced soldier-level."

"Su, should we do it?"

"Alright, that's the one. Let's move out!"

At Su You's command, the six-member squad immediately left the rooftop, carefully crossed several streets, and arrived at a street corner near the Tiger Mastiff Dogs, no more than sixty or seventy meters away. Xing Huaiguo followed them silently.

Su You peeked through a gap in the wall at the five Tiger Mastiff Dogs not far away, then whispered:

"Leave the commander-level Tiger Mastiff Dog to me. You all need to take out the remaining four as quickly as possible, then Garava and Dai Xueyang, guard both sides. Just block it and prevent it from escaping."

As for Colin, Elena, and Duoniya, their physical fitness was still at the intermediate warrior level. They could manage against advanced soldier-level monsters, but they wouldn't be able to withstand a single blow from a commander-level monster.

Therefore, Su You assigned them the task of occupying the high ground to keep a lookout for other monsters.

This assessment task was considered quite difficult even among previous trainees; it was usually an experience reserved for teams that included a spirit reader.

As for Su You's team, they were granted the same "treatment" as teams with spirit readers precisely because of the mastery-level footwork Su You had previously demonstrated.

"Move!" Su You drew his two long swords and dashed out like a bolt of lightning, charging toward the commander-level Tiger Mastiff Dog. The other five followed closely, rushing toward the remaining four.

"Roar--" All five Tiger Mastiff Dogs let out angry roars, simultaneously lunging fiercely at the humans before them.

Su You's footwork was unpredictable; he used Lingbo Microsteps from the very start. Facing a commander-level monster, he dared not take it lightly for even a second.

It sounds like a long process, but in reality, not even a second had passed for Su You.

When he was two or three meters away from the Tiger Mastiff Dog, Su You swung his right-hand Baihong Sword while his left hand, lagging half a beat behind, thrust upward directly toward the beast's left eye.

The commander-level Tiger Mastiff Dog was much faster than Su You. It swiped a claw and batted away the swinging sword, but the second sword caught it off guard.

In a panic, the Tiger Mastiff Dog lowered its head slightly, and the sword struck its skull, though it only penetrated about half a centimeter.

Although the Tiger Mastiff Dog was in pain, its reaction was extremely fast. It lunged forward, its blood-red maw snapping toward Su You.

Su You quickly retracted his left-hand sword and took a diagonal step back to create distance. At the same time, he tilted his body slightly and instantly swung his right-hand sword in an upward diagonal slash, grazing the Tiger Mastiff Dog's left front leg.

However, the defense of a commander-level monster was very strong; Su You's strike only cut through the fur, causing very limited damage to the beast.

The Tiger Mastiff Dog landed on the ground, ignoring the small wound on its front leg, and turned around, roaring as it charged at Su You.

Su You utilized Lingbo Microsteps, refusing to engage the Tiger Mastiff Dog head-on, instead wearing it down bit by bit. After all, in terms of raw strength, Su You only had about six thousand kilograms of force, while the Tiger Mastiff Dog had at least ten thousand. Trying to overpower it would be suicide.

He held his swords in both hands, his footwork varying in speed, leaving a trail of wounds on the Tiger Mastiff Dog. Although none were fatal, he would definitely be able to grind the beast down over time.

On the other side, Dai Xueyang and the others had already finished their fight. Duoniya, Colin, and Elena occupied a high vantage point, monitoring the movements of monsters on the surrounding streets.

Dai Xueyang and Garava each took one side of the street, ready at any moment to intercept the commander-level Tiger Mastiff Dog.

A commander-level monster possessed a certain degree of intelligence. Once the Tiger Mastiff Dog noticed that its subordinates were all dead, it intended to flee.

The human in front of it was simply too slippery. It had exerted its full strength, yet hadn't even touched the corner of his clothes. If it didn't run now, was it just waiting to die?

The Tiger Mastiff Dog's offensive slowed for a moment, then it lunged fiercely at Su You.

"It's trying to escape!"

Su You's eyes lit up. He instantly realized the Tiger Mastiff Dog's intention and charged directly toward it.

When he was about five or six meters away from the Tiger Mastiff Dog, Su You's speed surged, and he threw himself backward into a slide.

More than ten days ago, Su You had mastered the first level of the Dripping Water Sword, achieving a 1.2x force output. This didn't just mean his strength was 1.2 times greater; his speed could also reach 1.2 times his original capacity.

Because of Su You's sudden acceleration, he slid beneath the Tiger Mastiff Dog just as it reached the highest point of its leap.

Su You unleashed the power of both swords, starting from beneath the Tiger Mastiff Dog's neck and slicing all the way along its soft underbelly to its hind legs.

The Tiger Mastiff Dog crashed to the ground due to its momentum, blood gushing from its entire abdomen as its body twitched uncontrollably.

This sliding strike was truly terrifying!

Su You held his swords in both hands and walked cautiously toward the Tiger Mastiff Dog. Many newcomers had died from a monster's final death throes; this was something he had to guard against.

Reaching the Tiger Mastiff Dog's side, Su You thrust his right-hand sword directly into its throat. At that moment, the Tiger Mastiff Dog, which had been lying on the ground, suddenly lunged up to bite Su You.

Su You stepped back half a pace while his left-hand sword instantly accelerated. Affected by its injuries, the Tiger Mastiff Dog couldn't react in time, and the sword plunged directly into its mouth.

PS: I've signed the contract!