The lizards on the scene all raised their heads, flicking their tongues.

They smelled the thick stench of their companions’ blood in the air, and the potent scent of the humans.

"HISS~"

The lead Gobi Desert Giant Lizard issued a warning.

But the other, mostly younger Gobi Desert Giant Lizards hesitated.

The Gobi Desert Giant Lizard leader strode forward on all fours, advancing on the group. Seeing this, its kin fell in line behind it.

They ran with surprising speed, especially over short distances. Their sprints betrayed a quickness that didn’t match their massive bodies.

Their powerful limbs pounded against the Gobi Desert floor, creating a dull THUD THUD THUD.

With necks outstretched and centers of gravity lowered, they were ready to pounce and tear into their prey.

Five or six Gobi Desert Giant Lizards broke off, fanning out to approach the group from the flanks in an encircling maneuver.

The Gobi Desert Giant Lizards closed in, their massive jaws gaping wide.

"BANG!"

At point-blank range, the third volley from the Giant Crossbows was fired.

The three closest Gobi Desert Giant Lizards were sent flying, while a Crossbow Arrow grazed the side of another, ripping away its hide to expose the bloody muscle beneath.

"Kill!" Du Yu roared, thrusting his Long Spear. The weapon plunged directly into the shoulder of the Gobi Desert Giant Lizard leader, the powerful impact forcing him back three steps.

He then dug his right foot into the ground, halting his retreat.

The spear shaft, still embedded in the lizard, bent into a sharp arc.

"Up!" The veins on Du Yu’s arms bulged violently.

With sheer force, he heaved it up and flipped it onto its back!

He pulled his Long Spear free and plunged it into a vulnerable gap on the lizard’s underbelly.

The lizard leader trembled violently, its four legs spasming wildly. Its tail went rigid, and urine gushed out.

With a vicious twist of the spearhead, the lizard leader went still.

The group of students behind him looked at him as if he were Superman.

"BOOM~"

"Hold the line!" a student shouted.

The lizards had already crashed into the formations on both sides. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

The spear wall was first. The sharp Long Spears shattered on impact, but at the moment the lizards’ charge slowed, the shield wall surged forward to meet them.

The huge shields pressed against the lizards’ bodies, slowing their attack.

However, due to the lizards’ unique anatomy, it was difficult to gain leverage with standard shields. Fortunately, the shields had been specially modified for this fight. Their bases were widened and thickened to add weight and lower their center of gravity.

Even so, the lizards’ charge nearly overturned several shield squads. For a moment, the situation was precarious, with close calls everywhere.

Seeing this, Du Yu immediately rushed to provide support. He circled behind the lizards, his Long Spear a blur of sweeps, jabs, and thrusts. His attacks were mainly to harass them, keeping the lizards so occupied that they couldn’t focus their assault.

In an instant, the lizard formation fell into chaos.

"Get out of the way! Move!"

Cao Biansheng roared.

The students holding shields at the front quickly dodged to either side, exposing the lizard behind them.

Before the lizard could even react to the humans’ retreat, a massive Crossbow Arrow descended with the force of a thunderbolt, pinning it to the ground.

The thick Crossbow Arrow had pierced its neck, holding it down like a sword of divine punishment. Its front claws scrabbled uselessly, carving shallow marks into the coarse, dry sand.

Three minutes later, the battle was over.

The remaining lizards fled in panic.

Their leader was dead, and their ranks had suffered heavy casualties. They had no will to fight anymore.

"Kill." Du Yu gave chase, Long Spear in hand. His running speed was no slower than the lizards’. He focused his attacks on their hind legs; once a leg was injured, a lizard couldn’t run fast, making it easy for the teams behind to catch up.

"HISS~"

The cornered lizards fought with the ferocity of trapped beasts. Cut off and separated, they became the ultimate test for each of the smaller squads.

"Stab it in the rear!"

"Quick, be careful."

"Don’t let it break through."

"Shields, where are the shields!"

On a nearby hill, Luo Gang remarked with a sigh, "And just like that, it’s over."

"Mhm, not bad," Qin Ziwen nodded.

This battle took less time than expected, and there were almost no casualties.

Both he and Luo Gang had their attention fixed on Du Yu in the distance, who was single-handedly hunting down the lizards.

Luo Gang’s heart pounded with excitement. "So this is the power of an Extraordinary Being."

Qin Ziwen corrected him, "It’s not being Extraordinary that’s so powerful. It’s *him*."

’If this were an ordinary person with little training, they could never perform at Du Yu’s level, even if they became Extraordinary.’

’It’s the combination of his superb Combat Skill and Extraordinary physique that creates a result greater than the sum of its parts.’

Luo Gang pondered, then nodded, "Indeed."

[Completed Hunting Celestial List Level 1 Task · Hunt Adult Gobi Desert Giant Lizard]

[Reward Acquired: Building Card—Level 1 Blacksmith Shop x1, 1 Point]

’Looking at the reward, Qin Ziwen felt a sense of relief. He had finally collected four Level 1 Blacksmith Shop Cards. He could upgrade the Blacksmith Shop to level four, then use an Ordinary Building Enhancement Card to boost it straight to level five.’

’If I’m not aiming for a level-six building, I can use an Upgrade Card right now and get a level-four Advanced Building immediately!’

’Synthesizing a level-four Advanced Building normally would require a full eight of the same Advanced Building Card.’

Qin Ziwen’s thoughts churned until Du Yu approached, holding the Card dropped by the Gobi Desert Giant Lizard leader. "My lord."

Looking at the Card in Du Yu’s hand, a flash of joy appeared in Qin Ziwen’s eyes.

’It was another Ordinary Building Enhancement Card.’

He calculated inwardly. ’Now I have three Farmland Cards, too.’

’If I get one more, I can use an Enhancement Card to raise it straight to level five.’

With the lizard colony eliminated, the altar they had occupied was now in their hands.

Luo Gang said, "You deserve the lion’s share of the credit for eliminating this colony. So, how about this: from now on, we split any Cards this altar produces fifty-fifty."

"Sounds good to me," Qin Ziwen readily agreed.

With the battle over, everyone began to clean up the field. They had to butcher the lizards for their meat and hides. The fired Crossbow Arrows also needed to be retrieved. Damaged ones would be taken back for repairs, while the intact ones had to be wiped clean of blood and filth.

But most of the fired Crossbow Arrows were more or less damaged and needed to be repaired and reforged.

Fortunately, Crossbow Arrows weren’t technically difficult to make. The core components were just the arrowhead and a sturdy shaft.

"Captain, we just tested it on the lizard’s corpse. With a Strong Bow, at a distance of thirty paces, it can penetrate about thirty centimeters deep into the flesh." Cao Biansheng walked over, holding a traded Strong Bow in his hand.

Qin Ziwen mused, "At that depth, if you could place the shot correctly, you could probably hit the heart."

Cao Biansheng shook his head. "The heart is hard to shoot. Its heart is inside the chest cavity. Unless you can flip it over onto its back, it’s hard to get a good shot from the front."

But then he added, "However, if we had a dozen or so Strong Bows shooting from the front, we could probably turn it into a pincushion. Then, if we just delay it a bit, it would bleed to death."

...

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