23: Chapter 23: The examinees collectively condemn Li Fan!

In a corner of the dense forest.

A sweet spring, clear and bright. Li Fan was lying prone on the bank, drinking from it in big, thirsty gulps.

After drinking his fill, Li Fan plopped down onto the grass beside the spring.

Looking at the nearly sixty thousand points on his token, Li Fan was in an exceptionally good mood.

But then he thought of his current 'infamous reputation'.

He couldn't help feeling a bit depressed again.

A madman?

He was clearly very polite, okay?

It was clearly you all who resisted first, and only then did he take action.

And every time, he held back, stopping at just the right point. He never beat anyone to the point of unconsciousness, unable to continue participating in the assessment.

He was practically a great guy, okay?

But there was no helping it. He truly couldn't control the gossip of others. If they wanted to call him that, so be it.

"It's just a shame. After robbing so many people, I haven't run into a single senior student. Did they even enter the secret realm?"

Li Fan looked up at the distant sunset, frowning as he spoke to himself.

He had encountered quite a few people today.

With such a large base number, he should have run into at least one, right?

Yet, he hadn't encountered a single one.

"Could they be hiding somewhere? Or are they secretly planning something?"

Li Fan couldn't figure it out.

But he didn't dwell on it further.

If he couldn't meet any today, he'd just have to see how his luck was tomorrow.

There were three days in total.

He refused to believe he wouldn't meet a single one.

Afterwards, Li Fan directly took out a camping tent and a bunch of cooking utensils from his space ring, preparing to spend the night on this open ground.

The mountain forests and ravines at night offered poor visibility, not an ideal time for hunting.

Rather than exerting himself, it was better to rest properly and conserve his energy.

"This brat, does he really think he's on vacation here?"

"Hahaha, this Li Fan is truly amusing!"

In the conference room, watching Li Fan start pitching his tent and prepare to barbecue.

All the instructors twitched at the corners of their mouths, unsure what expression to make.

Although many other students weren't actively hunting ferocious beasts either, most were hiding in relatively concealed places, like in trees or caves. Their resting conditions were basically abysmal.

Only Li Fan was bold enough to casually pick a random open spot and set up his tent.

It was as if he was here for a camping trip.

But then again, considering Li Fan's strength, doing this didn't seem unreasonable.

...

Time quickly passed, arriving at the next morning.

Li Fan had slept exceptionally comfortably.

After a simple breakfast.

Li Fan prepared to begin today's journey of battles.

"There seem to be people ahead."

"I smell barbecue. I wonder which squad it is?"

"Let's go check it out."

Not far away, a squad, following the scent, had already crept close.

Intense curiosity made them want to see if it was someone they knew, and if they could pull off a 'job'.

However.

When they clearly saw the figure on the open ground ahead.

The girl in the squad was so frightened she let out a sharp, piercing shriek.

"It's the madman!!!"

That's right.

Their squad had also been one of yesterday's victims.

They remembered Li Fan's face all too well!

And that shout directly exposed their location.

All they heard was a sonic boom.

The next second.

Li Fan appeared behind them as if teleporting, a smile on his face.

"Good morning, everyone," Li Fan smiled amiably.

Their faces darkened, their bodies trembling.

"B-brother, we really have no points left," one of the leading youths said with a tearful face.

The others quickly chimed in,

"Yeah, we really don't have any."

"Brother, please let us go. We truly have no points. If this continues, we'll definitely be eliminated."

While they were pleading.

Unbeknownst to them, their point tokens had already somehow ended up in Li Fan's hand.

Seeing this, despair filled their hearts.

Last night, they had fought ferocious beasts in the dark, finally earning some points. Now, they were about to be back to square one.

But who would have thought.

Li Fan merely glanced at their tokens before tossing them back with a hint of disdain.

That's right.

Their points were pitifully few.

He didn't even have the desire to take them.

"Why are you panicking? I didn't want your points. I just wanted to say good morning, that's all. After all, when acquaintances meet, it's only polite to greet each other."

"You can go."

Li Fan spoke with a smile, his attitude very friendly.

Seeing that Li Fan didn't want their points, they couldn't help but sigh in relief.

Next, they gave Li Fan stiff smiles, then didn't dare linger, turning and running. In an instant, they were gone without a trace.

Li Fan found this quite exasperating.

Was it really necessary?

He was being so friendly, and they were still this scared?

Shrugging helplessly, Li Fan turned and went back to the clearing to start packing up the cooking utensils and tent.

Meanwhile,

The few who had just run away had already begun frantically contacting the allies they had agreed upon yesterday.

"Everyone, come with me! We've found the 'Madman'!"

"That's right, we found the 'Madman'! Assemble! Assemble!"

"Damn! You really found him?!"

"Absolutely true! Our points were almost stolen, but thankfully our strength isn't bad. We fought him for dozens of rounds and managed to escape without being caught by the 'Madman'!"

"Wow! Brothers, let's go together! Let's go get our lost points back!"

"Right! Defeat the Madman! Reclaim our points!"

"If we unite, that madman is definitely no match! Brothers, follow us, let's charge! Kick the madman out of the assessment!"

...

The secret realm was vast.

But there were quite a few Examinees within the dense forest.

With all the calling out left and right, they had incredibly managed to gather nearly a hundred of yesterday's 'victims'.

As the saying goes,

Many hands make light work.

If these squads encountered Li Fan alone, they would absolutely turn tail and run immediately.

But now, with such a large group, their confidence soared.

The large group marched grandly, following the few squad members towards the clearing where Li Fan was.

On the other side.

Li Fan had already finished packing up the tent, cooking utensils, and such.

Moreover, Li Fan had just incidentally tamed a level thirty Exploding Tiger Beast to use as a mount.

He planned to try his luck near that distant high mountain.

Although going by himself would be faster, it would consume stamina.

Having a mount was different.

Not only did it save effort, but the speed wouldn't be much slower than if he went alone.

But just as he was about to leave.

A voice sounded from behind.

"Madman, you old dog, stop right there!"

Li Fan turned to look.

Wasn't this person the leader of the squad he had let go not long ago?

How come after coming back, his demeanor had become so arrogant?

And after a few seconds, Li Fan knew why.

Because immediately after,

Nearly a hundred figures all emerged one after another from behind him, their presence menacing.