9: Chapter 9: Everyone else is only level 1, and you're already at the first job advancement?

The outskirts of Heifeng Camp, the level 1-5 monster buffer zone.

On the edge of a foul-smelling swamp, the atmosphere was tense to the extreme.

Zhao Tai stared fixedly at the level 3 Demonized Wasteland Wolf panting heavily five meters ahead of him.

The bandage on his forehead was already soaked with sweat, and his fingers gripping the sword were turning slightly white from the excessive force.

“Wang Meng, get up there! Don't let it pounce!”

Zhao Tai gritted his teeth and growled, quickly taking half a step back.

“Li Yuan, give me a shield! Chen Cong, prepare Fireball to cut off its movement!”

This was their team's third battle since entering the buffer zone, and it was also the most dangerous one.

A level 3 Demonized Wasteland Wolf.

Before this, they had relied on their five-person group to barely grind down two level 1 Carrion Rats.

But facing this Wasteland Wolf with its extremely high agility and staggering attack power, the entire team had almost been broken apart.

“Roar!”

The Wasteland Wolf's hind legs suddenly exerted force, and it pounced toward the Shield Guard Wang Meng at the very front, bringing with it a gust of stench.

Wang Meng's face turned pale as he death-gripped his half-body iron shield, his feet plowing two deep furrows into the muddy ground.

“Wang Meng, hold on! You can't give up! For our future!!!”

“Bang!”

A dull thud rang out.

Wang Meng let out a muffled groan, a trace of blood leaking from the corner of his mouth as a red number “-22” floated above his head.

His health bar instantly dropped by nearly half, and his shield was severely deformed from the impact.

“It's staggered! Chen Cong, fire!”

Zhao Tai's eyes lit up as he captured this fleeting opportunity.

A fireball the size of a human head whistled through the air and slammed into the Wasteland Wolf's back.

“Boom!”

Firelight exploded, and the Wasteland Wolf let out a pained howl. A large patch of its fur was scorched, and its movements showed a clear stutter.

Now's the time!

The mana of the rare class [Thunder Swordsman] circulated frantically through his meridians.

Dazzling blue electric arcs flickered across his Fine Grade longsword.

Zhao Tai roared loudly!

“So what if it's a level 3 monster?!!”

“We're not pushovers!!”

“Taste this strike that concentrates all our power!”

“Thunder Thrust!!!”

He pushed off with his legs, shooting forward like an arrow released from a bow.

The longsword accurately followed the wound opened by the fireball, stabbing deep into the Wasteland Wolf's spine!

“Sizzle—”

Electricity overflowed everywhere. The smell of burning fur mixed with blood rose into the air.

“-45!” (Weak Point Critical Hit)

The Wasteland Wolf's massive body twitched violently a few times, the crimson in its eyes gradually fading, until it finally crashed to the ground and dissipated into points of light.

A damaged wolf pelt was left on the ground.

“We did it!!”

The five were overjoyed!

Then they began panting heavily, all collapsing on the ground from exhaustion.

A faint white light flashed over them, and the team's experience bar jumped up a small notch.

“Captain... I did it...”

Shield Guard Wang Meng tossed aside his scrap-metal shield and clenched his fists, his voice trembling.

“Just a little more, and my defense would have been torn open.”

“Good! You did great!”

“As long as we stand united, nothing is invincible!”

Zhao Tai stood up using his sword for support and lightly patted his shoulder, encouraging him.

He quickly opened his attribute panel and looked at the obvious jump in his experience bar, laughing toward the sky.

“As expected of a level 3 monster! Killing it while two levels below gave a huge chunk of experience! My experience bar is already at twelve percent!”

Hearing this, the four team members slumped on the ground also showed expressions of joy.

“Tai-ge is mighty! The timing of that sword strike was perfect!”

The mage Chen Cong hurriedly approached, giving a thumbs up and shamelessly flattering him.

“If not for Tai-ge's final Thunder Thrust, we'd all have been finished here today.”

“Of course!”

The priest Li Yuan chimed in, her eyes full of admiration and pride.

“We killed a monster above our level! Out of the thousands of freshmen in Shimmering City, how many teams would dare to go head-to-head with a level 3 demonic creature?”

Zhao Tai was floating from the praise. He tidied his somewhat messy hair and gave a modest smile.

“It's thanks to everyone's hard work. As long as we are of one mind, nothing is invincible!!”

“Hahaha! The captain is right!”

The five of them laughed together!

That laughter was filled with pride and satisfaction!

Zhao Tai suddenly stopped.

“If we keep this speed up, I can reach level 2 tonight!”

He gripped his longsword, his eyes burning as he looked ahead.

“This City Siege Hunt lasts for a week. Before it ends, we will definitely reach level 3! We might even have a chance to touch the threshold of level 4!”

“Level 3?!”

Wang Meng sucked in a breath of cold air, his face full of shock.

“Tai-ge, the highest record for previous City Siege Hunts in Shimmering City was only reaching level 3, right?”

“If we can reach level 3, we'll definitely rank in the top hundred of the city and get the qualification for the Tianfu University exam!”

“Does that even need to be said? With Tai-ge here, anything is possible!”

Hearing his teammates' flattery, the gloom in Zhao Tai's heart was swept away.

The humiliation of being scolded by Lin Mo this morning without being able to talk back seemed to be diluted at this moment.

He snorted coldly and kicked the materials on the ground into his backpack.

“That Su Xiaoli is indeed a freak with a Mythical Grade class, I'll admit that. But so what?”

“That kid Lin Mo is destined to be stepped on by me!”

Zhao Tai licked his dry lips, a flash of satisfaction in his eyes.

“I'd like to see how many days that trash who awakened as a Blank Slate Warrior can survive in the wild without a woman as a protective umbrella.”

Chen Cong immediately followed up:

“Tai-ge, why even mention that trash? It's bad luck!”

“He's a Blank Slate Warrior, and his talent is that joke of a Block for 10 damage.”

“I bet he's currently holding that crappy iron sword the camp issued, shivering in some tree hole!”

“Exactly!” Li Yuan giggled, her tone full of disdain. “Just now when we dealt with that level 3 Wasteland Wolf, even Wang Meng with a shield had a close call. If Lin Mo ran into it, he'd probably be bitten in half in one go, right?”

“Hahahaha—”

The group shared a knowing laugh.

Belittling the former genius gave them an indescribable sense of superiority and satisfaction.

Zhao Tai touched the scar on his forehead that was still faintly throbbing, his eyes cold.

“No rush. Once we all become level 3 powerhouses, I will thoroughly grind all of his pride into the dirt!!”

“I'll let him know that he's inferior to every single one of us!”

...

On the other side.

“What?!!!”

In front of Lin Mo, Qin Lan's clear voice echoed through the wilderness.

“It's not enough that you reached level 30 on the first day! You want to do your First Class Advancement now???”

Her face was shocked and distorted.

She was completely dumbfounded.

“Hey, hey, hey... don't make that kind of joke.”

“It's not funny... it's not funny at all!”

She took several steps back, the finger she was pointing at Lin Mo trembling incessantly.

Stop right there!

Please stop doing things that aren't human!

If you do anything more ridiculous, I'm calling the police!!