On the outskirts of Shrek Academy.
Xiao Zi leaned against a large tree, looking around to make sure no one had followed him before finally letting out a long breath.
The moment he left Shrek, even the air became sweet. Compared with the bizarre relationships among the new Shrek Seven Devils, his mood was a boundless blue sky without the slightest trace of gloom.
"Shrek..." His lips curved slightly, his expression mocking and cold. "Not only do they want to catch a white wolf empty-handed, but I also have to get stabbed in the back by Xuan Zi, the Holy Spirit Cult's Grand Elder. Better to live apart from the flock and build my strength step by step."
The only reason he still stayed at Shrek was the Golden Tree's essence. Once he achieved his goal, he could leave this temporary inn and head into a wider world.
He had requested a long leave for this trip. Staying in his dormitory would inevitably arouse suspicion. After all, there were people proficient in spatial laws. If Dragon God Douluo Mu En detected him and discovered the secret of Swallowed Star, he would be in trouble.
That was why he absolutely could not make this journey through space and time in his dormitory. He had to take leave and depart from Shrek Academy.
After confirming once more that no one was around, Xiao Zi contacted Babata through his Smart Communication Watch to open a spatial passage, descending into Swallowed Star for the second time.
Jiangnan City.
Yi'an District.
Mingyue Residential Area.
The magnificent crystal chandelier refracted dazzling light. The moment Xiao Zi landed, he slipped into a brief daze.
Though the place was not all that familiar, it gave him a sense of warmth, as though he had belonged here from birth rather than on the Douluo Continent.
Qian Renxue used Out-of-Body Soul. Looking at the local life and customs so different from those of the Douluo Continent, she could not help letting out a long sigh of admiration and envy.
She had once become the Angel God, ranking among the Divine Realm's eighteen great chief gods. Only now, upon seeing the sights of Swallowed Star, did she understand how insignificant she was-a firefly beside the radiant moon.
Once she finished looking around, Xiao Zi took a car to the Limit Martial Arts School.
The school's head, Wu Da, came out personally to greet him and said with a smile, "Following that person's instructions, we'll arrange for you to join a squad of War General Level martial artists. That will give you better training while ensuring your safety. The squad is called the Fire Hammer Squad."
Xiao Zi nodded slightly. This was precisely the squad Luo Feng had joined back then, leaving Jiangnan Base City to hunt monsters in the Wilderness Zone. In those days when monsters ran rampant, operating out in the wild had been extremely dangerous, with a high chance of never returning.
Now that the monster catastrophe had ended, the Wilderness Zone that once covered the earth had been reclaimed, leaving only a handful of areas for martial artists to train in.
The Fire Hammer Squad Xiao Zi was about to join was much like the one from Luo Feng's time, led by a War General Level martial artist.
"Li Lezi." Chen Jianfeng clapped him on the shoulder and laughed heartily. "I'm the Fire Hammer Squad's deputy captain. From now on, I'll watch your back. But let me get the unpleasant words out first: this is your own training, after all. You can't always count on the others to help. If you can't adapt after your first mission, we'll have no choice but to kick you out!"
Although the monster catastrophe had ended, many wild monsters remained in the Wilderness Zone to keep martial artists from growing lazy. It faithfully recreated the scenes of those years, allowing martial artists to understand the hardships their predecessors had endured.
The risks came with it, making every squad walk the edge between life and death. Having even one burden on a team could have a tremendous impact.
"Brother Chen, I understand." Xiao Zi smiled and nodded.
Afterward, he used Chen Jianfeng's name to buy weapons and equipment at half price, including combat clothing, a shield, throwing knives, and more, for a total of fifteen million in Huaxia Currency. With tools such as a backpack and a Communication Watch added in, his equipment was complete.
After spending a day settling in at Mingyue Residential Area, Xiao Zi met up with the Fire Hammer Squad the following day and took a train to the Wilderness Zone to train.
Since ancient times, the Wilderness Zone had been synonymous with a forbidden land of death. It teemed with all manner of monsters-insidious, strange, savage, and vicious, to name but a few. With bad luck, an almost invincible creature might even spawn.
After traveling several hundred kilometers, the train stopped at a station.
During the journey, Xiao Zi got to know the captain, Gao Liang. He was a descendant of Gao Feng, the captain of Luo Feng's Fire Hammer Squad back then, and had inherited his ancestor's title, "Twin Wind Hammers."
They rested briefly at the Supply Base to prepare for entering the Wilderness Zone. Chen Jianfeng showed Xiao Zi around, calling out to someone along the way, "Mountain-Splitting Tiger, when did you get so lousy? You actually got injured!"
Zhang Zelong, the Tiger Tooth Squad's captain, turned around. Ignoring the mockery, he instead aimed his barbs at Xiao Zi. "Chen Cannon, you're an elite squad yourselves. Why bring a rookie along? Aren't you afraid he'll drag you all to your deaths?"
Chen Jianfeng refused to back down. "The Fire Hammer Squad is doing just fine. We certainly won't die before your Tiger Tooth Squad..."
The two sides traded a heated barrage of insults, until Zhang Zelong finally dared not say another word. He feared Gao Liang of the Fire Hammer Squad and did not dare quarrel further with the other members, lest word reach their captain's ears and leave him with more trouble than he could swallow.
At dusk, the six fully armed members of the Fire Hammer Squad left the Supply Base and entered the Wilderness Zone, officially beginning their wilderness survival journey.
Captain Gao Liang said, "We'll follow this highway. We should reach our destination in about three days... County-Level City 0201."
Hearing this, Xiao Zi instinctively looked ahead. Abandoned vehicles littered the long, winding highway, and blackened bloodstains covered the ground. Some had been left only recently.
It seemed that even though the monster catastrophe was over, martial artists still risked dying in here. He could not count on others to rescue him.
Roar-
They had barely taken a few steps before a beast's roar came from either side of the road. It was a One-Horned Wild Boar, one rank above the lowest tier of monsters. The Fire Hammer Squad's other five members were all relaxed; only Xiao Zi's nerves were stretched taut. He checked its information through the panel Babata had given him and only breathed easier after confirming that he could handle it.
This was his first battle since entering the Wilderness Zone. Even Qian Renxue in his Sea of Consciousness was nervous. Compared with those raised in captivity in Jiangnan City, the monsters here were far fiercer and more cunning.
During his time studying at Shrek, Xiao Zi had not neglected tempering his body while increasing his soul power. Relying on the Destruction Scepter and his spiritual force, with the Fire Hammer Squad assisting from the sidelines, he finally killed the One-Horned Wild Boar.
After cutting off its most valuable part, the single horn, Xiao Zi returned to the squad. He saw approval on his teammates' faces rather than their initial disdain and concern.
Having earned the Fire Hammer Squad's initial approval, he continued onward with the others. They encountered an F-class monster, and this time, one of the members took action himself, easily killing it through experience and teaching Xiao Zi a great deal about actual combat.
Three days later, the Fire Hammer Squad finally reached County-Level City 0201. Beneath its sprawling high-rises lay the monsters' favorite habitat, with a far greater concentration of them than along the desolate highway.
The Fire Hammer Squad's targets were Beast General-level monsters, equivalent to War General Level martial artists. Through everyone's combined efforts, the mission was successfully completed.
They returned fully laden.