Hunting I

Bang!

A huge pig head fell to the ground.

"Uncle Guan, was that the right way to use my blade?" Cao Bing sheathed his weapon, turned around, and asked Guan Yong confidently.

"Very good. You're improving quickly!" Guan Yong clapped and laughed. "Hunt a few more beasts. As your experience grows, I believe your strength will definitely double."

"Really?" Cao Bing's eyes lit up.

"Really." Guan Yong sighed. Cao Bing had progressed far too quickly. Guan Yong had only demonstrated a few times himself, yet Cao Bing had already grasped the key points and mastered them rapidly.

Whoosh!

A piercing sound tore through the air, and the figure of a bird fell in response, smashing heavily into the ground.

"Iron-feather Eagle?" Startled by the sound, Cao Bing hurriedly looked up and instantly recognized the monster that had been shot down.

"That thing's so big. It must be Beast General Level, right?" Cao Bing exclaimed.

"It's a Junior Beast General Level." Song Shengnan smiled. "Hurry up and butcher it. A Beast General Level Iron-feather Eagle is covered in treasures, especially those iron feathers. They're worth a fortune."

"Uncle Yan really is incredible. In just an instant, he killed a Beast General Level monster." Cao Bing marveled.

"Of course. Among Martial Artists, aside from Mental Masters, archers like your Uncle Yan are the hardest to deal with when it comes to killing power." Song Shengnan spoke to Cao Bing with obvious pride.

"Besides, your Uncle Yan is one of the elites among archers. That makes him even more troublesome. Unless someone is more than one level above him, they usually wouldn't dare provoke him. A Junior Beast General like that only takes one arrow."

"My skills are nothing. A Mental Master of the same level could kill me in fewer than ten moves." Yan Ying walked to the Iron-feather Eagle, drew his dagger, and said indifferently as he butchered it.

"Captain, you said Mental Masters! We can't afford to provoke people like that!"

Fang Ye, who had been observing the surroundings ever since they entered the ruins, suddenly cut in. This "Old Fang" was exceedingly familiar with analyzing monsters and the environment.

"Captain, I found traces of a Flame Crystal Leopard on the ground ahead. Damn, I didn't expect such a high-level monster to be here." Fang Ye patted the dirt off himself and said with a grin.

"An Advanced Beast General Flame Crystal Leopard?" Xie Hongxin's eyes lit up. The others' eyes also gleamed, and even Zheng Ke, who had barely made his presence known, slightly parted his lips.

However, Yan Ying decisively waved a hand, cutting off their interest. "No need to provoke it!"

"We came this time to train Cao Bing and help him better integrate into our team. The Flame Crystal Leopard's level is too high. It isn't suitable." Yan Ying spoke calmly.

"Captain, I can protect him when the time comes. As long as you and Zheng Ke quickly shoot the Flame Crystal Leopard dead, there won't be a problem." Xie Hongxin said eagerly.

"You?" Yan Ying shot him a fierce glare. "Can you stop a Flame Crystal Leopard?"

"Let's go." Yan Ying butchered quickly, and with Song Shengnan helping, they finished cutting up the car-sized Iron-feather Eagle before long.

"Fine." Seeing that Yan Ying disagreed, Xie Hongxin could only let it go.

"Captain, there seems to be a Bloodthirsty Tank to the front left. A large number of Horned Wild Boars and Iron-haired Wild Boars are gathered in an abandoned school." Fang Ye added.

"A Bloodthirsty Tank? That would make a decent opponent." Yan Ying nodded, then asked Fang Ye, "How many Beast Soldier Level monsters are there?"

"It's hard to determine the exact situation, but judging from what I can identify around the perimeter and the amount of food remains, I estimate around three to four hundred." Fang Ye replied with a calm expression.

"Heh! Damn, this is a big job!" Xie Hongxin said, rolling his shoulders and producing a series of crackling bone pops.

"That'll do." Yan Ying pondered for a moment, then nodded.

"Zheng Ke, find a sniping position. Xie Hongxin and Song Shengnan, lie in wait around the perimeter and prepare for a forced kill. Old Fang, stay by my side. Cao Bing, follow Guan Yong and look for chances to finish them off." The instant Yan Ying made his decision, he had already formed a battle plan, perfectly assigning everyone in the team.

Zheng Ke said nothing and turned to leave, heading off to find high ground. Xie Hongxin and Song Shengnan nodded at Cao Bing before leaving together.

"Let's go, kid. Stay close to me later." Guan Yong smiled at Cao Bing.

"Got it, Uncle Guan." Cao Bing nodded firmly.

He wasn't an idiot. There were several hundred Beast Soldier Level monsters. If Cao Bing carelessly got trapped among them, even with strength close to that of an Advanced Warrior, he would probably be trampled into pulp in an instant.

After leaving their previous position, Cao Bing followed Guan Yong in a wide circle and reached an abandoned residence on the side of the boar herd, where they hid.

"Stay here for now. Wait for the captain's order." Guan Yong said.

"Okay." Cao Bing never doubted Guan Yong's words. When it came to wilderness hunting techniques, they were far superior to him. Cao Bing knew that much.

"Zheng Ke, are you in position?" Captain Yan Ying's voice came through the earpiece.

"I'm here." Zheng Ke's reply was concise.

"Can you locate the Beast General Level monsters?"

"Searching now. I found a Junior Beast General Level Bloodthirsty Tank in the first classroom by the second-floor stairwell corner." Zheng Ke said.

"Good. Keep looking." Yan Ying said calmly.

After that, the earpiece fell silent again. Only after a while did Zheng Ke speak once more.

"Captain, I found a second Bloodthirsty Tank. It's by the corner of the third-floor restroom. The angle is bad. I wouldn't have spotted it if it hadn't moved. Its strength is hard to judge."

"Good. That's enough." Yan Ying said. "I'll deal with that one. You take out the Junior Beast General. Old Xie, Sheng Nan, once the herd is thrown into chaos, prepare to charge in and kill. Guan Yong, look for an opportunity." Yan Ying's voice vanished again, and shortly afterward, a single word came through the earpiece: "Kill."

The entire herd instantly descended into chaos.

An arrow shot through the wall in an instant, pinning the Bloodthirsty Tank of unknown level to the ground before it could make the slightest sound.

The other Bloodthirsty Tank let out a pained roar, then violently smashed through the wall and fell from the second floor. After that, it made no further sound.

With that, the entire herd naturally went completely berserk. Some fled in all directions, while others charged about wildly as though trying to find the enemies who had ambushed them. In the blink of an eye, the school, already reduced to ruins, was ravaged even further by the monsters.

"Go! Prioritize the Advanced Beast Soldiers. The low- and mid-level ones aren't worth much and will only waste backpack space." Yan Ying issued orders through the earpiece, while the arrows in his hand never stopped. Every arrow took the life of a wild boar.

At the same time, Xie Hongxin and Song Shengnan charged out. The two worked together with perfect coordination. Xie Hongxin was like a mountain; every monster that rushed at him was blocked, then slain by Song Shengnan behind him.

"Let's go too!" Without looking back, Guan Yong spoke to Cao Bing and was the first to slip out.