Survival of the fittest
A boar beast charges at Zheng Cang. He swiftly dodges to the side and stabs its eye.
The boar squeal and runs away, prying the sword off Zheng Cang's hand.
!!
"Tch, it isn't deep enough." Zheng Cang gives chase and kicks the boar and then it collides with the tree head-on, pushing the blade through the skull.
"Woah! As expected of captain!" Says a subordinate.
Zheng Cang glares at his subordinate's sarcastic comment and they back off.
He goes to the boar and pulls his sword out. "Harvest it." He says.
"Yes, boss."
Zheng Cang clicks his tongue. At this rate, he won't be able to be in the top 3, He isn't sure whether he should target the strong groups even with immense numbers.
...
At that moment, Zheng Cang whistles. Every subordinate gathered.
"At this rate, we will not emerge victorious. We will need to go after one of the best groups." Says Zheng Cang. "What do you think?"
The ex-rogue cultivator named Jing Tailong says "I advise against it. Have you seen them fight with your own eyes?"
Zheng Cang shakes his head.
"Trust me, even 20 of me cannot handle those geniuses and this is coming from my 9 years of rogue activity; I know who to avoid best." Says Tailong.
Zheng Cang clicks his tongue. "Alright, let's do this instead. We will actively hunt for groups, except the top ones, and steal their cores, if we meet a low-level mob that each of you is confident to kill, swiftly kill it. Otherwise, ignore it. We need to get as many beast cores as possible."
"Yes!"
"Boss, what about you?" The exile, called Jun Hai, says.
"Zhou Lei and Fu Cai's group, I will find them and crush their meridians. Jun Hai and Tailong, both of you follow me." Zheng Cang says.
"You want to cripple them? I don't think that bastard instructor will stand still."
Zheng Cang smirks. "Don't worry, I have something given by my family..."
Zheng Cang sweeps out a blue talisman and a few stones from his robe, they send out waves of Qi and glow immensely.
!!!
"Haha...what a fucking rich family." Says Tailong.
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"Huff huff..." Kai Fei is the only one panting out of the trio.
He Zhou carve the core out of the wolf as if second nature.
...
"What is it?" Kai Fei asks me when he notices I am staring into the forest behind me.
...
"No, nothing. Let's go."
He Zhou glanced in the direction I stare.
We proceed and slew about 4 more beasts.
I realise time is almost up as the sky darkens into an array of orange.
Suddenly, the ground below us rumbles.
?!
*BOOOM!!*
Behind us, a giant long green serpent leaps out of the ground.
"What... That's a grade 2...serpent?" Kai Fei mumbles.
He Zhou and I stay unfazed, we expected this.
When I step up, He Zhou retreats and takes Kai Fei, running away.
I take a deep breath. I can't expose my true strength so the problem is... How much of my strength should I reveal?
I jump away as the serpent dives into the ground.
At that moment, I was reminded of Li Xing and then the sect arts.
...
A light glow engulfs my sword as I jump at the serpent, slashing it into two parts instantly.
!!
He Zhou raises her brow. "Isn't that the sect sword martial arts, Dragon Breath?"
"Yes, the first stage, I'm half-step into mastery," I say.
"We shouldn't have been taught that martial arts yet."
"I learnt it from observing senior Li Xing."
"What..." He Zhou widens her eye.
...
She frowns. "So you are a genius holding back your strength."
"...In a way."
"I see."
He Zhou stands up, brushes the dust off her robes and glances behind me.
"Show yourself." She says.
...
"Wow." Says Zheng Cang. "Are both of you trained practitioners?"
He jumps down from the tree branch, many others did too. Some hid in the bush but the majority hid in the trees.
Looking around, there are about twenty people who revealed themselves. However, I can detect about ten more around us.
"Still, Fu Cai is in the first stage of Qi Condensation while Zhou Lei is in the third stage. Our group have eleven people in the third stage and seven in the second stage." Says Zheng Cang.
Why is Zheng Cang blabbering bullshit?
"What do you suggest?" He Zhou asks.
Is he stalling for time?
"Give us all of your beast cores and we will leave you alone-"
!!!
Both He Zhou and I immediately attack Zheng Cang the moment we feel a fluctuation of Qi in the air.
Two of his subordinates rush in front. A man with short brown hair and eyes clashes swords with me.
"The name is Jing Tailong-"
Before the man could finish his words, I easily overpower him and throws him away.
!!!!
*BOOOM!*
He smashes through three trees behind Zheng Cang.
"What!? Activate it now!" Zheng Cang shouts.
"No! That's a-"
*Ching!*
He Zhou was interrupted as one of Zheng Cang's subordinates attacked her. She quickly parries the disciple and slashes deep across his chest.
A man behind Zheng Cang takes out a slip of talisman that sends the entire atmosphere into massive Qi fluctuations.
?!
...
But nothing happened. Soon, the rumbling disappears.
"What?" Zheng Cang mumbles.
"Seriously, Gaoming didn't even notice this," I say.
!!
Everyone's attention shoots to me standing on a tree branch above Zheng Cang. In my hand holds 9 suspicious stones with writings on them and 6 blue talismans.
"How did you..."
I smirk. "Now then, Zheng Cang, brace yourself."
I disappear and reappear behind Zheng Cang, a quick punch shoots at Zheng Cang's back.
!!!
He was shot to the ground and dragged across the muddy floor from the momentum.
"ARGHH!!!!" Zheng Cang screams in pain as he wiggles around the mud.
"Oh? Did I break something?" I ask.
I turn my attention back to the rest.
"Y-You hid your strength?!" Another man cries out.
"Nope, I am still in the first stage of Qi Condensation," I reply.
"Are you kidding me..."
He Zhou has her jaws wide open. Her eyes are glued to the situation.