Unexpected Discovery

"The second assessment will be held in Hundred Trees Forest."

"The requirements for passing are mainly twofold. First, survive in the forest for three days without voluntarily calling for help or being killed."

"Second, within those three days, hunt a sufficient number of designated prey in Hundred Trees Forest."

"Each person's required prey and quantity will differ. The specifics will depend on the mission you draw!"

Wu Chuansheng explained the many details of the second assessment to Li Yi one by one.

For a moment, Li Yi sank into thought.

Hundred Trees Forest was a famously perilous place in this county. Its terrain was complex, and besides being home to countless fierce beasts and venomous insects, it also held dangerous natural phenomena such as miasma and poisonous fog.

Fortunately, the assessment would take place three days from now. During that time, the newcomers could freely prepare all sorts of supplies to deal with the various situations within Hundred Trees Forest.

Over these three days, his foremost priority was to raise his cultivation and improve every skill he could as much as possible.

Time was the most important thing to him!

With that thought, Li Yi turned his gaze to Wu Chuansheng.

"Brother Wu, I'll be going into seclusion to train hard these next three days. Please help me purchase some supplies."

Wu Chuansheng had just won a large sum of silver through Li Yi and received an additional fee of thanks. He was feeling more pleased with himself than ever.

Hearing Li Yi's words, Wu Chuansheng immediately thumped his chest and said to him, "Don't worry, brother. I'll get it done perfectly!"

Li Yi nodded and listed his requirements one by one.

As an archer, aside from his bow, arrows were the most important thing! Thus, Wu Chuansheng needed to purchase a large number of high-quality arrows for him.

Furthermore, venomous insects and miasma were everywhere in Hundred Trees Forest, so insect repellent and antidote pills were indispensable as well.

Together with three days' worth of dry rations and the like, there was quite a long list of things to buy.

After all, Li Yi's goal was to take first place, so naturally he had to make thorough preparations.

Thinking of this, Li Yi handed the ten taels of silver he had just received to Wu Chuansheng.

"Brother Wu, take this silver and make sure to buy me the best supplies. If it isn't enough, please cover the rest for now. I'll pay you back after the assessment."

The supplies Li Yi had just asked Wu Chuansheng to purchase would cost roughly that much.

And both Li Yi and Wu Chuansheng knew that earning some silver in the future would not be difficult for Li Yi. Thus, neither of them said much more about money.

"Alright. Don't worry, brother, I'll make sure everything is handled properly."

"You focus on training. I'll get going."

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Wu Chuansheng left the tent with the money.

Watching Wu Chuansheng's retreating back, Li Yi sighed softly.

No wonder people said that the poor pursued literature while the rich practiced martial arts. Without some family wealth, one simply could not practice martial arts at all.

Not to mention anything else—just a quiver of twelve high-grade arrows cost one tael of silver!

More than half the money Li Yi had just given Wu Chuansheng would be spent on buying arrows.

After arranging all these matters, Li Yi turned his focus to the Breathing Method, striving to raise his skill realm as soon as possible.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

With three rolls of military drums, the many newcomers participating in the assessment all gathered at the center of the main camp.

Those who were well-informed had already learned the rules of this assessment in advance. Only those dense fools listened with rapt attention as the squad leader announced the rules.

Li Yi paid no attention to it. After organizing his equipment, he turned his gaze to his various skills.

After three days of all-out training, Li Yi's Breathing Method had successfully advanced!

[Gale Breathing Method (Proficient): 35/800]

[Effect: keen ears and sharp eyes, blood and vitality like a wolf]

And after his Breathing Method entered the Proficient realm, Li Yi's body-tempering realm also broke through along with it.

By now, Li Yi was already a Body Tempering First Layer martial artist in the Robust Blood realm!

According to Wu Chuansheng's information, among this batch of newcomers, fewer than ten had reached Body Tempering First Layer in total!

"Now, the newcomers whose names are called, step forward and draw your missions!"

The squad leader's words pulled Li Yi's attention back.

One newcomer after another stepped forward in line, reaching into a wooden box to blindly draw a slip of paper.

The slip recorded the mission they needed to complete.

These missions varied in difficulty, and their suitability for the newcomers varied as well.

Thus, among the newcomers who received their missions, some rejoiced while others worried.

"Li Yi!"

Hearing the squad leader's shout, Li Yi strode forward and grabbed a slip of paper from the wooden box.

"Kill one each of a wolf, bear, tiger, wild boar, and giant python. Bring back the right forepaw or head as proof!"

Hunt five kinds of pythons within three days?

Though this mission was difficult, it was still possible to complete.

It was worth mentioning that the difficulty of a mission would also affect the assessment results.

Easy missions earned fewer points, while difficult missions earned more!

With Li Yi's current strength, the real difficulty of this mission lay in finding those prey!

"Go register with the military clerk."

When the squad leader in charge saw Li Yi's mission, his expression shifted slightly. He then told Li Yi to register his personal information.

Before long, everyone had received their own missions.

"There will be veteran squads patrolling Hundred Trees Forest. If you encounter danger you cannot withstand, you may fire a signal flare to call for help. But once you call for help, your assessment will be considered over."

"Also, the supervisors for this assessment will patrol Hundred Trees Forest as well, to prevent any cheating!"

Li Yi looked up and saw that beside high-ranking camp officers such as Sima Cao Li, the Chief of Household Affairs was chatting merrily with a centurion.

"Everyone is already clear on the relevant matters. I now declare the assessment to begin!"

At the squad leader's command, the many newcomers followed the veterans toward Hundred Trees Forest, a li away.

Beastly roars rang out from time to time within Hundred Trees Forest. Looking down, one could also see scattered remains being gnawed on by insects.

Whenever the wind blew, it carried the sickly sweet stench unique to venomous insects.

Urged on by the veterans, Li Yi stepped into Hundred Trees Forest.

"This forest really is dangerous!"

The moment he entered Hundred Trees Forest, before he had even gone deep inside, Li Yi felt that something had set its sights on him.

A surge of malice had locked firmly onto Li Yi!

"Such intense ferocity... the creature hiding in the dark must be a savage beast!"

Yet as Li Yi sensed that invisible malice, he was delighted.

His mission required him to hunt five fierce beasts. Now that a fierce beast had targeted him, wasn't this the perfect chance to complete one of them?

With that thought, Li Yi hurriedly took the Army-Breaking Bow from his back and held it in his hand.

As a hunter, Li Yi already knew how to search for prey in the mountains and forests. What was more, he also had a skill!

[Scouting and Concealment (Beginner): 170/200]

[Effect: Track trails and recognize paths; conceal one's presence]

After activating [Scouting and Concealment], Li Yi sensed the hidden malice with far greater clarity.

"It's up ahead!"

Li Yi steadied himself, then carried the Army-Breaking Bow as he cautiously moved forward.

As for the other newcomers taking the assessment, they had scattered in all directions the instant they entered Hundred Trees Forest.

After all, this assessment had no rule forbidding them from stealing someone else's prey.

Han Jia, meanwhile, had entered Hundred Trees Forest through another entrance.

Before long, as Li Yi ventured deeper, that malice became increasingly intense.

"Wait, why are there two?"

Suddenly, Li Yi discovered another fresh surge of malice hidden within the first.

During this period of scouting and searching, Li Yi's [Scouting and Concealment] skill experience had risen again.

After rushing several hundred meters, the two malicious presences had become exceptionally intense.

The two presences lay in separate positions, concealed near the mouth of a valley.

Li Yi glanced over from afar. If he entered the valley mouth, he would be caught in a pincer attack, one before and one behind.

Then Li Yi would be trapped in a situation where he could not tend to both front and rear. One careless move, and he might have to pay a sky-high price.

Thinking this, Li Yi slowed his steps slightly.

The Gale Breathing Method emphasized swift movement and sharp eyes and ears.

After identifying the rough locations of those two malicious presences, Li Yi circulated the Breathing Method and observed his surroundings even more carefully.

"This footprint? It's a tiger!"

Several meters away, a massive footprint caught Li Yi's attention.

In no time, Li Yi recognized it as a tiger's footprint.

Among the bushes, several more tiger prints could be vaguely seen, heading deeper into the valley.

Judging by the state of these prints, they should have appeared today.

"These footprints... something's off about them!"

After examining them carefully, some knowledge of hunting surfaced in Li Yi's mind.

"These are man-made tiger tracks! This is a trap set by someone!"

A wealth of hunting techniques emerged in his mind, many of them methods for setting bait and the like flooding into Li Yi's thoughts. At the same time, he gained another skill.

[Hunting (Beginner): 10/200]

[Effects: Tracking Prey and Setting Traps, Hunter's Intimidation]

Looking at the recently forged trap before him, then considering the two concealed presences at the mouth of the valley, a suspicion arose in Li Yi's heart.

This was a trap aimed at him!

They had used the trail of the tiger he needed to hunt to lure him into this valley, then planned to strike together and kill him outright!

Realizing this, Li Yi hurriedly activated his skill, concealing himself within the forest as he quietly crept toward one of the malicious presences.

[Scouting and Concealment], on the verge of reaching the Proficient realm, made Li Yi's hiding nearly flawless.

In less than the time it took to burn an incense stick, Li Yi had reached the vicinity of one of the presences.

There, he saw a man holding a longbow, draped in grass, leaves, and branches, crouching within a thicket.

Li Yi drew a dagger and silently approached the bushes.

Just as the figure sensed that something was wrong, Li Yi pounced forward. His left hand covered the man's mouth while his right slashed hard across his throat.

A spray of hot blood burst forth. The struggling figure in his arms gradually lost strength and collapsed to the ground.

The combination of [Scouting and Concealment] and [Hunting] was exceptionally suited for assassination.

After privately marveling at this for a moment, Li Yi dealt with the bloodstains on himself and began creeping toward the other presence.

A short while later, Li Yi used the same method to kill that person as well.

Once the unseen malice had dissipated, Li Yi finally let out a sigh of relief.

After stealthily assassinating the two men, Li Yi's [Scouting and Concealment] skill also gained a large amount of experience, successfully entering the Proficient realm.

After resting briefly, Li Yi began searching for loot, repeatedly rifling through the two men's clothes and packs.

"Wait, this mark... isn't it something found only in the Qing Kingdom!?"