"There are too many!"

Yu Changsheng sighed.

The number of Demon Beasts had swelled from about a hundred at the start to several hundred now. There were even more in other directions, affecting more than half of the Ten Thousand Beasts Secret Realm.

Even from here, he could faintly hear the agonizing screams of servant disciples being torn apart and eaten by the Demon Beasts.

Although these Demon Beasts were all Tier One, their fearless charges caused Yu Changsheng immense trouble. If not for the Red Snake King’s poisonous, fiery mist clearing out an area, they might have all died in the encirclement moments ago.

AWOOOO!

Just as Yu Changsheng was lost in thought, a massive roar suddenly echoed from the mountain forest.

His expression changed slightly as he turned to look. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

He saw a colossal black bear leading dozens of Demon Beasts, rapidly breaking through the poison mist and charging toward them. The strongest among them had reached Tier One Peak.

And on its back stood a tall monkey with thick, dark fur. With its shaggy head and a pair of scarlet eyes, it looked like a wild man.

"A Wild Mountain Monkey!"

Not far away, Wang Qizheng’s face turned grim. He recognized the monkey’s origin.

He had been forced by this very monkey to use a Scattered Demon Essence Pill. But he never would have expected the pill to agitate the monkey troop, triggering the Beast Tide.

’But this Tier One Peak Wild Mountain Monkey should have been hit by the Scattered Demon Essence Pill. It should be lying on the ground, unable to move. How does it have the strength to be active? And it even chased me all the way here!’

What he didn’t know was that this Wild Mountain Monkey had eaten many Spirit Fruits since it was young. Moreover, as one of the overlords of the Ten Thousand Beasts Secret Realm, it had many loyal Demon Beasts under its command. The moment it was poisoned, they had sought out all sorts of Spirit Fruits for it, forcibly alleviating the symptoms.

After that, it used its Talent Skill, Earth’s Favor, to rapidly recover its strength.

Even if it wasn’t back to its peak, it now possessed eighty percent of its power.

When enemies meet, their eyes blaze with hatred.

The Wild Mountain Monkey had identified them all as enemies, whether it was Wang Qizheng or Yu Changsheng’s group.

"ROAR! ROAR! ROAR!" The Wild Mountain Monkey beat its chest, its eyes bloodshot, and leaped off the black bear’s back.

BANG! Its fists slammed violently onto the ground.

The next moment, sharp spikes shot out from the ground, piercing the surrounding trees and sending clumps of grass flying.

Yu Changsheng’s face fell, and he quickly directed the Red Snake King to slither away and evade.

This move was the Wild Mountain Monkey’s Earth Spike, an exceptionally powerful Talent Magic.

Each attack could be channeled into the ground, summoning incredibly hard Earth Spikes with an effective range of several hundred meters. It was even harder to deal with than an ordinary Peak Qi Refining Cultivator.

"Dammit!" Yu Changsheng cursed under his breath, quickly separating from the Red Snake King to dodge the Earth Spike attack.

Beside him, Zhuang Yan wasn’t as fast to react. An Earth Spike grazed his thigh, drawing blood and nearly causing him to fall.

Fortunately, the Red Snake King coiled its tail around him and flung him high into the air, saving him from certain death.

’A Tier One Peak Demon Beast has appeared, and the selection still isn’t over?’

Yu Changsheng didn’t know how many had died, but the difficulty of the selection had undoubtedly surpassed the capabilities of the servant disciples.

Even if all three thousand servant disciples joined forces, they would be no match for this massive Beast Tide.

He looked into the distance, his Divine Sense scanning a thousand meters out. In this vicinity alone, there were already close to a thousand Demon Beasts.

Even he was finding it difficult to escape, let alone the others.

’I have to maintain my condition. If I get thrown off, it’s all over.’

’Besides, if I’m having a hard time, that guy is doing even worse than me.’

Yu Changsheng popped a few Qi Recovery Pills and glanced to the side.

He saw Wang Qizheng bearing the brunt of the Wild Mountain Monkey’s attacks. A black bear and a dozen other Demon Beasts surrounded him, sticking to him relentlessly.

Relying on Shadow Flash, he had dodged danger several times, but he still couldn’t shake the Wild Mountain Monkey’s pursuit.

’That Escape Technique is really something. If I get the chance, I might as well send him on his way.’

A thought stirred in Yu Changsheng’s mind.

Although he had a Body Technique like the Wind Travel Skill, he lacked an Escape Technique that allowed for blinking. It was a type of skill that almost no servant disciple possessed, and even few Outer Disciples knew it. He had no idea how the other guy had obtained it.

The more Yu Changsheng watched, the more tempted he became. He coveted the Cultivation Technique, and several times he considered either launching a fireball or having the Red Snake King intercept him.

But he knew that a rash attack wouldn’t kill him. It would only make the man distance himself, escaping a hundred meters away in an instant.

At a distance of one hundred meters, it would be difficult to land a hit with his current strength. Even if he locked on with his Divine Sense, he wouldn’t be able to catch up using his Wind Travel Skill.

’Wait. I have to wait for the perfect opportunity.’

Yu Changsheng glanced at the Wild Mountain Monkey, then darted to the side.

He didn’t need to worry about the Red Snake King. The only one struggling to keep up was Zhuang Yan, who had nearly died under the Demon Beasts’ attacks several times.

After they had run for about three kilometers, there were no longer any traces of other servant disciples in the area.

Yu Changsheng scanned his Talisman Jade with his Divine Sense. Because many servant disciples had died, their Talisman Jades were lost and their contributions reset to zero. Many new names had appeared on the leaderboard.

The competition had turned from a deathmatch into a survival game. If the Demon Beast pack hadn’t been enraged, and they had just focused on hunting individual beasts, this selection could have ended smoothly.

But now?

Yu Changsheng secretly shook his head, a chill creeping into his heart.

’The higher-ups of the Wanxiang Sect really don’t see servant disciples as human. So many casualties, and they still haven’t stopped it. Don’t tell me they’re going to wait until only a hundred people are left alive.’

Yu Changsheng took a deep breath and leaped over a boulder. A basin appeared up ahead.

He focused his Divine Sense forward. After observing the area, he suddenly recalled Golden Core True Master Mu Chengping’s Fireball Skill, and an idea struck him.

’This is actually a good place to launch a fireball.’

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The Earth Spikes appeared again, forcing Wang Qizheng to flee in a sorry state.

This time, the Earth Spikes were less powerful, but there were many of them. They instantly covered the edge of the basin, forming a high wall as if to block Wang Qizheng’s path.

Wang Qizheng sneered at this. It’s not like he couldn’t fly. Trying to block him with this was wishful thinking.

But just then, Yu Changsheng’s eyes lit up. He raised his finger and aimed at him.

At the same time, he poured his essence into the Fireball Skill. In the blink of an eye, nearly ten thousand points of essence pushed the Magic to the stage of Minor Achievement!

In an instant, Yu Changsheng comprehended a new level of the fireball. A speck of fire bloomed at his fingertip.

This was nearly ten thousand points of essence. He had staked a huge amount on this. If he missed or it failed...

’Success or failure hinges on this one move!’

Yu Changsheng narrowed his eyes and then released the gathered Magical Power.

The speck of fire shot out with a WHOOSH.

When Wang Qizheng noticed it, he didn’t think much of it. After all, the previous fireballs had been nothing special. They were a bit bigger, but their power and speed posed no threat to his life.

But as the fireball crossed the hundred-meter distance and appeared before his eyes, Wang Qizheng sensed that something was wrong.

Because the fireball was growing larger—and it seemed to be getting a little too big!!!

"Oh no!" Wang Qizheng exclaimed, trying to activate his Escape Technique.

Behind him, the black bear skidded to a halt, and the Wild Mountain Monkey scrambled back in terror.

But it was all too late.

The next second, a scorching light flared, as brilliant as the sun rising over the horizon.

BOOM—!