The City Patrol guards were extremely proficient. In just roughly ten minutes, they had skinned and butchered the massive wolf, methodically storing the parts in black bags prepared in advance.
The bags had blue patterns woven into their surfaces, and wisps of cold air drifted out whenever they were opened.
The surrounding students whispered their complaints to each other.
"The first line of defensive fortifications is ten kilometers outside the city, and there are even City Patrol guards patrolling the area in between. This Gluttonous Wolf is only a 1st-tier Mutant; there's no way it could have slipped through so many layers of defense."
"This was definitely done on purpose just to scare us."
The guy speaking pushed up his glasses, which bore a visible crack across the lens. He analyzed the situation with perfect logic, yet he only drew a round of mockery in response.
"Anyone can talk big in hindsight. I wonder who it was that nearly buried their head in the dirt just a few minutes ago."
The bespectacled boy flushed bright red and weakly defended himself, "What do you know? Gluttonous Wolves rely primarily on their sense of smell. I was just trying to mask my scent."
The crowd erupted in laughter. After enduring that sudden scare, the tension among the students had eased considerably, and their relationships had become much more harmonious. This was mainly because they realized that everyone was just as terrified as the rest; no one was truly braver than anyone else.
"The people who went outside the city previously never mentioned that Mutants would suddenly jump out and scare them. Did they really keep it that much of a secret?"
Once everything was packed up, the group reorganized and set off once more. Fortunately, the rest of the journey was uneventful.
As time ticked by, the greyish-white fog gradually darkened towards black, and visibility dropped lower and lower, to the point where they could only see two or three people ahead of or behind them.
"Halt!"
Hu Xiang's powerful voice easily pierced through the fog, ringing clearly in everyone's ears.
"Prepare to set up camp," he shouted in a deep voice. The students, who had been holding their breath in nervous anticipation, finally let out a collective sigh of relief.
The City Patrol guards had already sprung into action. Reaching into their backpacks, they pulled out white crystalline pillars and arranged them in a hexagonal formation surrounding the entire group.
At his explicit command, they twisted the dials at the base of the pillars.
Hum—
White light streamed through the crystalline pillars like flowing tassels. They quickly linked together, forming a milky-white energy shield that enveloped the entire group, causing the fog trapped within the perimeter to rapidly dissipate.
"So these are the Camp Pillars... It's my first time seeing how they deploy..."
The students murmured amongst themselves, feeling as though the knowledge from their textbooks had finally come to life before their eyes.
The energy shield continued to expand outward, eventually carving out a rather spacious area. Small tents were swiftly erected within the perimeter.
In the center of the camp, the City Patrol guards in charge of logistics had already set up metal braziers. Taking out small crimson crystalline blocks, they sparked flames from within them and began roasting the meat they had harvested from the beast earlier. The fat sizzled enticingly over the fire.
Having walked for the better part of the day while maintaining a high level of mental focus, the physical toll had been significant. Everyone was already starving, and the moment the mouthwatering aroma hit them, their eyes lit up with ravenous hunger.
"These cuts will be quite nourishing for you," Hu Xiang said, pulling out a black iron dagger. He sliced off a piece of the roasted meat and casually tossed it to Zhou Zong.
"Thank you, Captain," Zhou Zong replied, secretly feeling quite smug despite his humble facade.
The others curled their lips downwards, their faces green with envy and jealousy.
Pretending not to notice, Hu Xiang sliced off another chunk. After a moment of thought, he casually tossed it out amidst the eager stares of the crowd.
To the utter astonishment of everyone—Su Chen included—the large chunk of roast meat landed perfectly in Su Chen's hands.
The crowd was not surprised that Hu Xiang had given Zhou Zong special treatment; after all, his father was a prominent figure in the city.
But what was so special about this Su Chen that Hu Xiang would view him in a different light?
During the Gluttonous Wolf's attack, this guy had blatantly cowered behind Bai Fengxi. He seemed like a total coward.
Hu Xiang took note of the students' subtle exchanges of glances and sighed inwardly. This was this little guy's last meal; letting him eat comfortably was the least he could do to assuage the guilt gnawing at his own conscience.
Slicing off another piece for himself, Hu Xiang stuffed it into his mouth. The others finally received their portions from the City Patrol guards and eagerly scarfed them down.
'This tastes pretty good...' Su Chen had just taken a bite. The meat was tender and succulent, and more importantly, he felt a warm, soothing sensation spreading throughout his body.
'Why does this feel exactly like drinking a Blood-Activating Potion...'
After taking two more bites and noting the changes in his body, a thought struck Su Chen.
'Could it be that the primary ingredients for Blood-Activating Potions are derived from these Mutants? No wonder these City Patrol guards didn't even leave the bones behind; they probably hold significant value as well...'
Realizing the benefits, Su Chen naturally wouldn't hold back. He began devouring the meat with gusto, constantly stuffing his mouth until his hands were slick with grease. His ravenous display drew more than a few sidelong glances.
"This brother right here... he certainly eats... enthusiastically..." someone muttered with a sigh.
"Liu Liang, we're all classmates here. What's with that tone?" Zhou Zong chided, faux-displeased. "Even though our classmate Su Chen is a refugee, everyone has a different way of eating. There's no need to mock him for it."
The guy named Liu Liang looked completely bewildered. 'Mock him? I was just making an observation, wasn't I?'
Wait... Refugee?
"A refugee?" Shen Ying'er, who was sitting nearby, turned over in astonishment. "He's a refugee? How could Teacher Jiang He ever take an interest in..."
"Oh, you guys didn't know...?" Zhou Zong feigned surprise, acting as if he had let it slip by accident.
Su Chen simply glanced up at him. When a student died outside the city, it seemed that an extremely detailed investigation report would be required.
He continued stuffing his mouth, seemingly intent only on eating. For a moment, a slightly awkward silence descended upon the group.
Realizing that Zhou Zong was singling Su Chen out, no one else dared to chime in. However, the vast majority of the students didn't really care about Su Chen's status as a refugee.
Unlike Zhou Zong, they weren't from wealthy, prominent families. Their backgrounds were merely average, neither affluent nor impoverished, so they didn't feel any ingrained superiority over refugees. They were mostly just surprised.
Only a small handful looked at Su Chen with a degree of alienation and distance in their eyes.
Seeing Su Chen completely ignore him only made Zhou Zong more irritated. Heeding his father's warning, he had been holding himself back ever since they left the city gates. He had finally seized this opportunity to subtly put Su Chen in his place, only to feel as though he had punched a pile of cotton.
"Alright, time to assign night watch duties," Hu Xiang said, standing up and cutting off any potential squabbles. "The primary watch will be handled by the City Patrol guards, but each guard will be paired with one student. The watch is split into three rotating shifts."
This was a core part of the practical experience, and the students weren't surprised, as they had been briefed about it beforehand.
The arrangements were quickly finalized. The three shifts, each consisting of 15 people, would stand guard on high alert within a 50 to 100-meter radius around the camp, looking out for one another.
Su Chen was assigned to the first shift.
"...Your top priority is anticipating danger. Even if your partner dies right in front of you, you are not to intervene..."
Su Chen's partner was a veteran sentry whose greying temples bespoke his years of service. He instructed Su Chen to call him 'Old Zhao' as he calmly relayed the watch rules in a slow, steady voice.
The others had already gone back to rest, while Su Chen and Old Zhao stepped beyond the barrier, splitting up and heading toward their respective watchpoints.
The fog was flowing much faster now, accompanied by the mournful howling of the wind.
In this Night Mist, the glow lamp strapped to Old Zhao's back only cast light for a mere meter or two; beyond that was an impenetrable abyss of blackness.
"This spot should do..." Old Zhao used a specialized positioning device flashing with coordinates to anchor their location. He shot a curious glance at Su Chen and asked, "Are you really a refugee?"
"Yeah," Su Chen admitted candidly.
"Impressive..." Old Zhao sighed in admiration. Recalling what had happened earlier that day, he couldn't help but advise, "That Zhou Zong seems to have it out for you because of this Jiang He woman. It's not easy for you to get into the academy, so just endure it and let it pass."
"Jiang He?" Su Chen blinked in confusion. "Do you mean Bai Fengxi?"
These City Patrol guards were highly disciplined and hadn't purposely gossiped during the march. They had only caught snippets of conversation during dinner.
Old Zhao had likely misunderstood Shen Ying'er's unfinished sentence and assumed that Bai Fengxi was this 'Jiang He' person.
"That girl is named Bai Fengxi?" Old Zhao asked, puzzled. "But that other girl... the one with the very prominent features... she said 'how could Jiang He ever take an interest in you'..."
"Jiang He is a teacher at the academy," Su Chen clarified.
"A teacher?" Old Zhao froze, suddenly realizing something as his gaze shifted rapidly as he continued to stare at Su Chen.
"Yeah, she's the one who pulled strings to get me enrolled into the academy," Su Chen explained helplessly, seeing the old man's conflicted expression.
Old Zhao held his tongue for a long time, trying to reconcile this new information with his previous advice, before finally uttering a single word: "Impressive..."
Su Chen chuckled but didn't say anything more.
Keeping watch was incredibly tedious, so the two of them ended up chatting idly to pass the time.
...
Meanwhile, another cluster of glowing lights advanced through the darkness.
"...The City Patrol's camp shouldn't be too far ahead..." One of the figures was quite skinny and held a similar positioning device to check their bearing. "According to the intel, that guy has been assigned to guard the southeast corner of the camp."
"Until 10:00 PM, he'll be completely alone in that sector. That gives us a three-minute window to grab him and pull him out."
"Fuck, it's terrifying out here at night..." The second figure, whose features were squished together on a rather plump face, complained bitterly. "Having the two of us brave this godforsaken weather just to deal with a lowly refugee..."
"Can it," the skinny man holding the positioner snapped with a frown. "This kid is tied to the deaths of Old Ghost and Da Zhuang. We need to handle this flawlessly."
"It's currently 8:00 PM. We still have two hours. Don't get too close yet, otherwise we might alert those City Patrol guards."
...
"...You're asking about Ruins?" Old Zhao sighed wistfully. "Those things seem to have been left behind a long, long time ago. They're filled with all sorts of incredible loot—weapons, materials, technology, and even information regarding professions. Almost everything originated from those Ruins..."
"But they're incredibly dangerous too. Six or seven years ago, I was temporarily drafted to secure a newly excavated Ruin. You wouldn't believe it—an absolute behemoth of a corpse, larger than a mountain... And the Mutants inside were so strong, every single one of them possessed the combat prowess of a Professional..."
Su Chen listened intently, absorbing the valuable information.
Suddenly, the positioning device in Old Zhao's hands began vibrating in a peculiar, rhythmic sequence.
His expression shifted faintly as his brows furrowed deeply. He fell silent, only speaking up again after a brief pause: "Su Chen, it looks like there's a situation. I need to go check it out..."
"If I don't return within three minutes, report it immediately."
"Shouldn't I go with you?" Su Chen couldn't help but ask.
"Follow orders," Old Zhao replied gravely without further explanation. Leaving the glow lamp with Su Chen, he cautiously slipped into the darkness alone.
...
A short while later.
"Old Zhao..." A voice suddenly rang out right in front of him. Startled, Old Zhao squinted for a better look. Returning the secret signal, he finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Captain? What are you doing here?"
Hu Xiang's expression was incredibly complicated, and he didn't respond immediately. Thinking nothing of it, Old Zhao turned to head back. "I'll be heading back to my post now, so that kid Su Chen doesn't get jumpy and alert the whole camp."
"Su Chen is already dead..." Hu Xiang sighed helplessly.
"De... Dead?" Old Zhao stopped in his tracks and turned back in shock, asking nervously, "What happened? What got him?"
He initially thought it was some monster lurking in the darkness, but when Hu Xiang remained silent for a long time, the awful realization finally hit him. "Captain... it was you?"
Taking a deep breath, Hu Xiang shook his head slowly. "It was a Mist Nightmare. You fought back with everything you had, but it was no use. I arrived a step too late, and could only manage to save you. Do you understand?"
"Captain... how could you..." Old Zhao's expression twisted into one of profound disappointment. A long moment passed before he finally hung his head in defeat. "I understand."
...
Su Chen stared into the distant darkness, hesitating for a moment. This was his first time outside the city walls, so it was wiser to follow the rules, especially since he was only a 1st-tier Professional.
However, a split second later, Su Chen's eyes snapped toward a specific direction, his gaze filling with alarm and suspicion.
Within his hazy mental perception, he detected two individuals sneaking toward his exact location.
His perception range was suppressed to a meager three to four meters, which essentially meant that the intruders were already right on top of him.
'Why would two people appear out of nowhere?' Su Chen's heart skipped a beat, his vigilance instantly maxing out.
In his perception, the pair abruptly split up, attempting to flank him from both sides.
'They're coming for me?' A cold glint flashed in Su Chen's eyes.
Who sent them? Zhou Zong? Qi Chuan? Or perhaps... Jiang He?