Thousands of miscellaneous disciples surged into the dense forest, resembling fish entering the sea, quickly disappearing without a trace.

Outside the assessment area, Liu Hong stood with a group of elders, his cold gaze fixed on the direction Zhao Heng had left, his eyes filled with frost.

"Heh… you little brat, I don't believe you'll make it out alive this time!"

Although Zhao Heng was only a disciple at the Body Refining stage, he had escaped Liu Hong's traps several times and even caused him some trouble. Liu Hong, who was naturally cautious, felt an inexplicable sense of threat from Zhao Heng. This made him determined to eliminate him at all costs.

This time, however, Liu Hong was confident that his preparations were thorough enough. Even if Zhao Heng was a ninth-level Body Refining martial artist, death would be inevitable for him!

At that moment, the miscellaneous disciples who had just entered the assessment area began to act according to their plans.

Some called out to their friends to team up.

Others quickly broke away from the main group and acted alone.

Then, there were those who stayed still, quietly plotting something.

Zhao Heng belonged to the second group. He moved quickly, leaving the main group behind, and found a hidden spot where he quickly checked his belongings and equipped himself.

Weapons: A dagger and a dark steel leopard-head knife.

Armor: In addition to the oak shield on his back, he also had a red undershirt, which he was too embarrassed to mention.

Special items: Fifty pounds of lime powder, two bottles of hallucinatory powder, two bottles of corpse-dissolving powder, one Thunderbolt Pearl, and some dried food.

Moreover, Zhao Heng had made a trip to the Merit Hall earlier that morning to buy several items suitable for use in the wild.

Although these items were expensive and drained his savings, Zhao Heng believed they would prove useful.

After equipping himself fully, Zhao Heng did not act immediately.

He first lay flat on the ground, listening intently to the surrounding sounds. Then, he touched a large tree and surveyed the area.

As expected, Zhao Heng noticed subtle movements in the surrounding forest. It seemed that more than one person was quietly approaching his direction.

These people were forming a half-surrounding pattern, closing in on his location, clearly having been following him.

Fortunately, Zhao Heng had already prepared mentally for this.

He immediately set off, heading deeper into the forest.

This forest was a designated area set by the sect, spreading out in a fan-like shape. The deeper one went, the larger the area became, and the less likely they were to encounter other people.

The people following Zhao Heng clearly noticed his movements. They did not rush, continuing to track him deeper into the forest, maintaining a certain distance.

Both sides proceeded deeper into the forest for a couple of hours. Zhao Heng kept moving, never stopping.

Among the dozen or so figures trailing behind him, the two leading disciples exchanged a glance.

One of them, a short and stocky man with dark skin, couldn't help but curse under his breath.

"Dammit, this kid entered the patrol zone. He’s neither picking herbs nor hunting spirit beasts, just running forward. Does he suspect us?"

The tall, thin young man with an eagle nose and long eyebrows furrowed his brow and replied, "It shouldn’t be. He’s alone. If he had noticed us, he would have panicked and fled by now.

He’s probably trying to enter the deeper part of the assessment area, a place where no one has been, to collect herbs."

"When should we act?" the stocky man asked.

"Let’s wait a bit longer. The deeper he goes, the less likely he is to encounter other participants or patrols, making it easier for us to act!"

"Alright, we’ll wait. I heard this kid only has the cultivation of the sixth level of the Body Refining stage.

We, the elite of the mining area, can easily kill him with just one of us!"

The young man with the eagle nose spoke softly, "Don’t underestimate him. If we fail in the task given by Elder Liu, none of us will have a good outcome."

"Understood!"

Meanwhile, Zhao Heng, who was hastening through the forest ahead, was fully aware of the group following him, though his gaze remained calm.

Through careful observation, he noted that they were numerous and each of them had excellent martial skills.

Originally, Zhao Heng had considered trying to shake them off, but he realized that doing so would only draw attention and cause them to close in on him all at once, which could be even worse.

"It looks like I'll have to go with Plan B," he muttered to himself.

As they ventured deeper into the assessment area, the dense forest around them occasionally echoed with the growls of spirit beasts.

Clearly, they had entered the territory where spirit beasts were active. The spirit beasts in the assessment area were captured by the sect, and the highest-level ones were only at the peak of the first rank.

But for a miscellaneous disciple with only the Body Refining cultivation, these spirit beasts were already a significant threat.

Once in this dangerous zone, Zhao Heng's actions began to change.

He started heading straight for areas that seemed perilous—dense shrubs, murky swamps, and dark caves—places that appeared to be full of danger. His reckless behavior left the group of disciples trailing him utterly baffled, as they thought he was clearly seeking death.

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

Yet, oddly, Zhao Heng managed to pass through these perilous regions without a scratch.

But strangely, as the group of disciples followed Zhao Heng’s trail, spirit beasts began to emerge from the dark corners of these regions and launched savage attacks on them.

Wild boars from the thickets, snakes and insects from the swamp, and lizards from the caves—all these spirit beasts, startled by the disciples’ movements, suddenly attacked.

The surprise attacks caught the disciples off guard.

Fortunately, the group was powerful, and with many members, especially the two leaders, who were both at the ninth level of the Body Refining stage, they were able to fend off and kill the spirit beasts that attacked.

However, as time passed, Zhao Heng’s path became more treacherous, and the attacks on the disciples grew more frequent.

A few of them were injured, and one was severely wounded and lost the ability to move.

The group hadn’t caught Zhao Heng, but they had slain a large number of spirit beasts, accumulating quite a few points.

Meanwhile, Zhao Heng, who was still ahead, continued charging through various dangerous places like a headless fly, seemingly unaware of the perils around him.

At this point, the eagle-nosed young man leading the group and the stocky, dark-skinned man were both wearing grim expressions.

"This bastard, how is he so lucky? These spirit beasts haven’t ambushed him even once," the stocky man grumbled, nearly fuming with anger.

The eagle-nosed man, equally puzzled, shook his head. "If it happened once or twice, it could be luck. But for him to survive so many close calls... there’s something strange about it."

"Is he using the spirit beasts to deal with us? How is he doing it?"

"Who cares how he’s doing it? We just need to take him down. Otherwise, we don’t know what other tricks he might pull!" the stocky man growled fiercely.

The eagle-nosed young man hesitated for a moment before nodding in agreement.

He subtly signaled to the dozen or so miscellaneous disciples with a cultivation level above the sixth stage of Body Refining, who had been following them closely.

With a single command, the group quickly began chasing after Zhao Heng, who had just crossed over a dirt mound, speeding up to catch up with him.

As the group hastened their pursuit, Zhao Heng, who had sensed their approach, remained unfazed. His footsteps did not falter; instead, he turned slightly to observe his pursuers from the corner of his eye.

He was aware that they were closing in, but he had already anticipated this move. With his preparations and understanding of the forest’s dangers, he knew he had a good chance of dealing with them, even if they caught up.

As the forest grew denser and the sounds of spirit beasts became louder, Zhao Heng finally reached a small clearing, his expression calm as he prepared to face what would come next.

The disciples following him, meanwhile, had entered a state of heightened alertness. They had no intention of letting Zhao Heng escape again, and their leader, the eagle-nosed youth, ordered them to surround the clearing.

"Don't let him escape! Close in!" he barked, his voice sharp as he prepared for the final assault.

Zhao Heng glanced around quickly, noting the tightening circle of his pursuers. He could feel the tension rising as they closed in on him.

The stocky man with dark skin sneered, his hand tightening around his weapon. "This time, there’s no way out for you, brat."

With no more room to retreat, Zhao Heng finally made his move. His body shifted, like a shadow weaving through the trees, as he darted toward the densest part of the forest, where the terrain was most treacherous.

The group of disciples, taken by surprise at his sudden burst of speed, hesitated for a moment before chasing after him.

But this hesitation gave Zhao Heng the precious seconds he needed to set his plan into motion.

The moment the disciples entered the dense part of the forest, Zhao Heng activated a hidden mechanism. He had prepared for this very moment, knowing that he would be pursued.

Suddenly, the ground beneath the disciples' feet began to shift. Sharp spikes of wood shot up from the earth, creating an almost impenetrable barrier around them.

The disciples cursed and attempted to jump back, but the traps were carefully placed, making it impossible to avoid them without injury.

Several of them were caught by the spikes, their cries of pain filling the air. Others scrambled to help, but the dense forest and hidden traps made it difficult to move quickly.

Zhao Heng, however, used the chaos to his advantage. He dashed forward, disappearing deeper into the forest.

Back at the clearing, the eagle-nosed young man and the stocky man cursed loudly as their group was caught in the trap.

"How could this happen?" the stocky man gritted his teeth, his face dark with frustration. "That brat set this up deliberately!"

The eagle-nosed man’s eyes narrowed as he watched Zhao Heng disappear. "No matter how many tricks he has, he won’t be able to run forever. We’ll catch him sooner or later."

With a final look toward the trapped disciples, the eagle-nosed man turned and led the group forward, though now with more caution. They had learned their lesson, but Zhao Heng’s cunning had made the chase far more difficult than they had anticipated.

The scene unfolded like a carefully orchestrated drama. Zhao Heng, standing alone amidst a gathering of wild beasts, suddenly threw the now half-burned dark red wooden stick towards the slope. It was as if he had predicted the movements of the beasts down to the smallest detail.

The bright blue flames from the stick lit up the night sky in a dazzling arc, its intense light momentarily blinding. The beasts, who had been hesitating around Zhao Heng due to the repelling scent of the Beast Repellent Liquid, could no longer restrain themselves.

With a deafening roar, they surged forward in a frenzy, charging towards the slope at full speed.

The eagle-nosed youth and the others, hidden on the slope, had not yet recovered from the shock of Zhao Heng’s boldness. Their eyes widened as the wild beasts, now in a blind rage, came straight toward them.

"Shit! He actually threw it toward us!" the stocky man cursed, eyes wide with fear.

The beasts were closing in fast, and the once-safe slope was now a target for the enraged creatures.

The eagle-nosed youth, realizing the gravity of the situation, immediately shouted, "Retreat! Get out of here now!"

But it was too late. The first wave of beasts had already reached the base of the slope, their fangs bared and eyes bloodshot, ready to tear into anything in their path.

Zhao Heng, who had thrown the burning stick, was unfazed by the chaos he had triggered. He calmly picked up his skewer of chicken and continued to roast it by the fire, as though he had nothing to fear.

But his calmness masked a deeper plan, one that was about to unfold with the beasts' attack.

As the first wave of beasts reached the base of the slope, they collided with a hidden barrier of blue flames, erupting around the hilltop. The fire Zhao Heng had set was not just a distraction; it was a trap.

The surrounding trees had been lined with a special type of flammable powder mixed with the blood essence of powerful beasts. Once the blue flames made contact, it set off a massive chain reaction that engulfed the entire area.

The beasts that had followed the scent of blood were not just met with a group of humans; they were also caught in a fiery storm. Screams and roars filled the air as the beasts, disoriented and trapped in the flames, struggled in vain.

From the slope, the eagle-nosed youth and the others could only watch in stunned disbelief as the scene before them unfolded.

Zhao Heng had played them all. What seemed like a reckless attempt at cooking had instead been a trap, drawing the beasts directly into a deadly confrontation.

"How could this be…?" The eagle-nosed youth’s voice was barely a whisper, as he watched the flames consume the beasts and their path towards the slope.

Zhao Heng, who had been so calm, now stood up from the fire, wiped his hands, and turned to face them. A sinister smile tugged at his lips.

The battle was over before it had even begun. The beasts, once wild and untamed, were now caught in the traps Zhao Heng had set. The fire, combined with the cunning use of the Beast Repellent Liquid, had turned the tide in his favor.

As the remaining survivors of the beast charge fled in panic, Zhao Heng approached the still-burning fire. His eyes gleamed with satisfaction. This was no accident. He had prepared for everything, every detail, every move.

Turning toward the slope where the others were hiding, Zhao Heng spoke, his voice cold and confident, "You can come out now. It’s over."

The eagle-nosed youth and the stocky man, still shell-shocked from the events, finally gathered their wits and emerged from the shadows, their eyes filled with a mixture of anger and awe.

"You... this was all planned?" the eagle-nosed youth asked, his voice trembling slightly.

Zhao Heng smirked. "You think I didn’t know you were following me?"

The tension between them thickened. The battle wasn’t over yet. Even though Zhao Heng had won this round, the true test of his resolve and strength was yet to come.

[--------------------------------------------]

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