"By decision of the Military, all Quasi-Martial Artists who survived this assessment have passed and will become full-fledged martial artists.
"But you saw what happened this time. You saw what you will face after becoming martial artists!
"Monstrous beasts run rampant, attacking Quasi-Martial Artists right under our noses and even treating us humans as advanced nutritional supplements to feed their young.
"Becoming a martial artist is only the beginning. Fighting off monstrous beasts is the lifelong duty of every one of us!
"Otherwise, things like this will keep happening. Are you willing to see your parents, your brothers and sisters, and your loved ones carried off by monstrous beasts to become food?"
After gathering all the surviving Quasi-Martial Artists who had taken the assessment, the officer Iron Monkey also reported what had happened to his superiors.
"No!"
The newly minted martial artists were still shaken. Even from a great distance, the perilous battle they had just witnessed left their hearts in turmoil for a long time.
Was that an advanced monstrous beast?
Would they have to face monstrous beasts of that level in the future?
"Remember, this is a world where the weak are prey to the strong. If we cannot protect humanity, then our parents, brothers and sisters, and children can only end up as food for monstrous beasts!
"Just now, Zhang Junbao, who took the assessment alongside you, was also a Quasi-Martial Artist. He stepped forward for his companions and fought a desperate battle against the Intermediate Beast General Black-Crowned Golden Eagle and even the Advanced Beast General Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle. Though he was unfortunately captured in the end, he saved you with his own life.
"If he hadn't stalled them, dozens of you, perhaps even a hundred or more, might have died beneath the claws of those two monstrous beasts!
"Remember Zhang Junbao. That is the name of a hero!
"I hereby declare that Zhang Junbao has passed the Quasi-Warrior Assessment and become a full-fledged martial artist. The Intermediate Beast General Black-Crowned Golden Eagle that was killed will also be counted among his accomplishments!"
An uproar swept through the martial artists. Only now did they learn that the two advanced monstrous beasts in the battle just now had been held off by a Quasi-Martial Artist just like them, preventing a massacre before the human powerhouses arrived.
In the small building where the three leading figures had gathered earlier, they met again. Their earlier high spirits were gone, replaced by grave expressions.
"The Limits Dojo has sent a Wargod and an Advanced Warlord-level Spirit Reader to rescue him, but the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle flies too fast, and we don't know exactly where its nest is.
"Zhang Junbao wasn't a full-fledged martial artist before, so he wasn't carrying a tactical watch with a tracking function.
"The search and rescue will be very difficult!"
Zhuge Tao sighed helplessly. This was the most he could do.
"The Military has also sent a Wargod to search, and we've notified all outposts near the Wilderness Zone to report immediately if they find any trace of the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle."
"The Thunder Dojo has likewise sent an Advanced Warlord squad to search and rescue him. As soon as any nearby squad finds a trace, they'll notify a Wargod to go there immediately.
"This time, Zhang Junbao was captured because he saved Bai Zhan of our Thunder Dojo. If he'd been alone, he could have escaped. He is a genius belonging to all humanity, and we'll do everything we can to assist in the rescue," said Lei Ming, the Thunder Dojo's director.
"Saving Bai Zhan was Junbao's decision. None of us expected these monstrous beasts to be so brazen as to fly hundreds of kilometers to hunt humans here. We still know too little about monstrous beasts," Zhuge Tao said.
"I'll send someone to inform Zhang Junbao's family. That Black-Crowned Golden Eagle counts as his spoils of war, so let's leave it to his family.
"I hear he has a younger sister. If she wants to follow the path of a martial artist, we'll do everything we can to train her. That will be some compensation for Zhang Junbao."
For the first time, Zhuge Tao bitterly hated the fact that he wasn't a Wargod. A gifted human martial artist had been carried off by a monstrous beast right before his eyes, and he had been powerless to stop it.
The dojos' and the Military's search-and-rescue personnel had already set out, while Zhang Junbao was still in the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's claws.
The cold brought on by the high-speed flight and altitude woke him. By now, he could no longer see any sign of a human Base City.
This Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle isn't taking me back to its nest, is it? How long was I unconscious?
As Zhang Junbao wondered, a cluster of high-rises appeared before him. It looked like a former human commercial district, and the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle was flying straight toward the tallest building in its center.
Looks like we're almost there. I have to get ready and find a chance to escape after we land. The Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle is a bird. As long as I hide somewhere cramped, I should be able to escape its pursuit. No matter what, I have to survive!
He had only been in this world for a little over a month, and he hadn't expected to encounter such a crisis.
In the Wilderness Zone occupied by monstrous beasts, many advanced monstrous beasts favored human buildings. These structures offered shelter from wind and rain, and were safer and more clearly divided into levels than the open wilderness.
So there were certainly plenty of monstrous beasts in this old commercial district.
Suddenly, Zhang Junbao felt something splash onto his face. He sniffed, and a potent stench of blood exploded in his nose.
It's injured?
That's right. It must have been badly wounded by human powerhouses. Otherwise, it wouldn't be in such a hurry to get back!
While Zhang Junbao was considering his options, the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle didn't enter the high-rise through the existing balcony. Instead, it crashed straight into the wall.
Because of its breakneck speed and powerful physique, the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle smashed a gaping hole in the wall of the long-neglected building.
The Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle tumbled across the floor, knocking over a great pile of office desks and chairs before finally getting wedged against a load-bearing wall and coming to a stop.
Zhang Junbao was thrown about until his head spun, but fortunately, the impact had freed him from the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's claws-or rather, the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle no longer had the strength to hold on to him.
"Yoo...
"Yoo..."
Several mournful cries came from the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle.
Seeing that the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle had not moved for a long time, Zhang Junbao propped up his battered body and went over to see what was happening.
Only then did he discover that the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle was more severely injured than he had imagined. It had endured attacks from three human Advanced Warlords in succession and forced itself to bear its wounds as it fled back.
Zhuge Tao's spear had punched a bloody hole in its neck. Later, it had taken a direct blow from the Thunder Dojo's director, tearing the wound wide open and nearly severing its entire neck.
The back of its head was a mangled mess of blood and flesh. Iron Monkey's fist must not have been so easy to withstand, either.
It had crashed into the high-rise because its injuries were so severe that it could no longer control its body.
A tiger fallen onto the plains was bullied by dogs; a bird of prey stripped of its feathers was worse than a chicken!
Once on the ground, a wicked impulse rose in Zhang Junbao's heart. He got up and walked over to the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle.
Facing the monstrous beast that had once been so ferocious, Zhang Junbao felt not the slightest fear. He knew that once the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle recovered, he wouldn't stand a chance.
Strike while it's down and take its life!
Zhang Junbao's fists hammered the wound on the back of the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's head like bullets from a machine gun. At a time like this, he couldn't afford to worry about anything else. Either it died or he did, and he absolutely could not let the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle catch its breath.
Fortunately, the back of the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's head had already been wounded, its flesh torn open to expose the skull beneath the protection of its feathers and skin. Otherwise, Zhang Junbao wouldn't even have been able to break through its defenses.
Now, that wound was the key to Zhang Junbao breaking through!
He paid no attention to the torn flesh of his hands or the blood pouring from his already injured shoulder. Zhang Junbao knew that monstrous beasts were tenacious and recovered faster than he did. If he stopped to rest and regain his strength, the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle might recover its ability to fight as well.
Under Zhang Junbao's frenzied assault, the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's struggles grew weaker and weaker, until at last its head could only hang limply.
Did its final cries seem to be calling for something?
"Yoo."
"Yoo, yoo."
While Zhang Junbao wondered, a clearer, higher-pitched cry rang out.
Zhang Junbao turned to look and saw two young Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagles with long, swordlike beaks. A full meter tall, they were covered in down and trailed long, multicolored tail feathers. They couldn't fly yet, and when they noticed the commotion here, they came running over with a birdlike gait.
Not far behind them, a giant nest stood in the very center of the floor. This was the Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle's lair.
After the two young Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagles appeared, they ignored the adult Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagle lying to one side. Instead, their eyes gleamed with greed as they stared at Zhang Junbao and charged at him, moving as fast as a human Intermediate Warrior.
Perhaps, as far as they knew, this was another piece of food their mother had brought back.
Zhang Junbao also saw the greed in the young Sword-Beaked Dragon Eagles' eyes. He had no time to reflect on the greatness of their mother, nor to lament how unlucky he was.
What lay before him was a struggle for survival, the same for both sides.
Survive. That was Zhang Junbao's only thought at that moment!