The afternoon sun had drifted slightly west, and December's chill was already in the air.
Outside a forward outpost deep in the Wilderness Zone near Antu City, ten very young faces appeared.
Most looked visibly exhausted, and all were stained with blood. Clearly, they had fought Ferocious Beasts not long ago.
After the soldiers guarding the gate checked them, the group filed into the camp.
When they reached the rest area set aside for them, Li Biao dropped onto the ground without a shred of dignity. Finding it less comfortable than he had hoped, he leaned back and lay flat.
"When are we finally going to finish clearing out these damned Ferocious Beasts—"
Beside him, Jiang Hao and Su Zhining were a little more mindful of appearances. Exhausted as they were, they found places to sit and lean back. They wanted to agree with their old classmate, but were too tired even to speak.
Hearing Li Biao's wail, Ding Muzhi, who was also lying on his back, chimed in. "Exactly. If these Ferocious Beasts had just wandered around the Wilderness Zone, no one would've gone out of their way to bother them. But they had to gather in packs and bring a purge down on themselves. Aren't they just dying faster?"
Li Biao sighed. "I thought this would be a free handout, but it turns out we've been worked like dogs—"
"Is it possible," Ding Muzhi joked, "that dogs aren't nearly as tired as we are?"
Li Biao curled his lip and ignored the joke. "The missions have gotten so much harder... Wonder if the university will give us some extra points afterward."
Watching the two bicker, Chen Mochuan felt himself relax for some reason.
Their group of ten had been here for three days.
Just as Li Cheng and