Although she was terrified Zou Feng would shoot her in the back with the same piercing red light she’d just witnessed, Qin Fengwu couldn’t just stand there frozen.

So, after making absolutely sure that Zou Feng had no intention of attacking, Qin Fengwu finally moved, turning to leave on tiptoe.

"Wait!"

As if he’d just thought of something, Zou Feng suddenly called out to her.

Qin Fengwu flinched in fright. She quickly turned around, forcing a pained smile. "Brother Zou... is... is there anything else you need?"

"The mutated species in this Alternate Space... they can’t all be on the same level as the ones we just saw, can they?"

"Are there any stronger ones? Any worth more points?"

The monthly exam was too short and the Alternate Space was too vast. Zou Feng couldn’t be certain he would run into Kong Shuo.

Failing to eliminate Kong Shuo meant he wouldn’t make it onto the potential ranking, which in turn meant he wouldn’t get an investment from the ancestor, Leng Jing.

Therefore, Zou Feng had to have a backup plan.

As long as he fought his way into the top one hundred in the monthly exam, even if he didn’t make the potential ranking, he could still earn enough points to trade for the Immortal Fate he needed to forge his ideal Spirit Body.

Being asked such a question by Zou Feng, Qin Fengwu, a seasoned veteran of the Outer Sect, immediately replied, "Yes, yes there are!"

"These Alien Races and mutated species sometimes undergo further mutation within the Alternate Space, giving rise to kings of their respective clans..."

Zou Feng cut in, "So you’re saying the Tree-men have a Tree King, and the Frogmen have a Frog King, right?"

"Theoretically, yes. But there isn’t always just one king-level variant. It’s not unheard of for the same clan to produce three or four of them at once."

The existence of more powerful Alien Races didn’t surprise Zou Feng.

After all, those small fry from before didn’t live up to the Token’s description of this place, which mentioned Alien Races that were "approaching the Spiritual Energy Realm."

And what did "approaching the Spiritual Energy Realm" mean?

In the system used by the Martial Artists of Great Yan, it meant someone like Su Qingyu: a seasoned First Grade, just a hair’s breadth from the Spiritual Energy Realm.

If he were to encounter such a being, even with his current strength, Zou Feng would have to put in some effort. An instant kill would be unlikely.

"How many points do you get for killing a king-level?"

"I... I’m not exactly sure about the specific scoring criteria for the monthly exam, but a king-level Alien Race should be worth at least three hundred points."

’Three hundred points is a pretty substantial amount.’

Qin Fengwu clearly saw what Zou Feng was planning. She continued, "Brother Zou, are you thinking of hunting king-level Alien Races?"

Zou Feng nodded.

"That might be a bit difficult... Er, not that you aren’t strong enough, Brother Zou, but these king-level Alien Races often possess considerable Spiritual Wisdom. They won’t show themselves easily unless they lose their minds for some reason."

"The senior brothers and sisters who aim for high scores in the monthly exam usually prepare special methods beforehand to bait out the king-levels."

Zou Feng asked, "Special methods? For instance?"

"For instance, what the Purple Cloud Association used on you, Brother Zou... If I’m not mistaken, it should be Taisui Incense..."

’Actually, I knew something was up.’ After all, the way those Alien Races had acted just now was anything but normal.

"If that’s the case, doesn’t that mean I just need to wander around to draw out plenty of Alien Races, maybe even a king-level one?"

But to his surprise, Qin Fengwu shook her head. "The scent of Taisui Incense doesn’t last long. Its effect should be minimal by now..."

"But don’t worry too much, Brother Zou. The Alien Races we’ve seen so far are common varieties that show up in every monthly exam."

"Tree-men are drawn to fresh blood. As for Frogmen, they can’t help but lash out with their tongues when they see a creature that’s constantly twitching."

"And Snake People... they have a weakness for beautiful Female Cultivators."

"These are all weaknesses that can be exploited... methods to draw out the king-level variants..."

’She really is a seasoned veteran of the Outer Sect. She knows her stuff.’

Originally, Zou Feng had planned to let Qin Fengwu go after getting his answers, with no intention of teaming up whatsoever.

But now, it seemed that having a seasoned veteran like her around—someone who could answer his questions about the basic knowledge he lacked and offer new lines of thinking—would clearly help him avoid a lot of trouble in this Alternate Space.

"Senior Sister Qin, I’m now starting to think that your earlier suggestion to team up was a great idea!" Zou Feng said with a faint smile.

From Zou Feng’s expression, however, Qin Fengwu caught a whiff of something ominous.

"So... is it too late to change my mind?" Qin Fengwu asked, her smile more painful to look at than tears.

"Don’t worry, I won’t have you working for free. When the monthly exam is over, you can have your pick: points or a share of the Immortal Fate. It’s your call!"

"Can I choose neither? I have a sinking feeling that Brother Zou plans to use me as bait..."

***

「Three hours later.」

The Outer Sect’s monthly exam was in full swing.

Though all the participants were being tested in the same Alternate Space, the gap in ability between Cultivators of the same Realm could be absurdly wide.

Some participants were just trying to lie low and survive until the exam ended, not daring to engage any Alien Race, or at best, picking off ones that had been separated from the pack.

Others formed small, efficient teams of three to five, killing Alien Races while maximizing their own safety and still earning a decent amount of points.

However, if one wanted to break into the top one hundred on the leaderboard, splitting points among a team like this was obviously not a realistic path.

Still, it served as valuable combat practice. In future campaigns into the Outer Realm, this kind of teamwork would greatly increase their chances of survival.

But the true powerhouses in the Alternate Space were all lone wolves.

Acting alone, they were a walking calamity for every Alien Race in the entire Alternate Space.

For these powerhouses, the only real difficulty in the exam was finding more Alien Races to kill—or better yet, finding the king-level variants.