Chapter 136: The Trials of Xyl (Part-1)

Rows of green tents, defensive watchtowers, and automated turrets marked the perimeter, and even from a distance, Lin Fang could sense faint mana fluctuations coming from the barriers encircling the encampment. The place was under heavy protection for sure.

As they stepped out of the cab, Xuenyi turned to him, her expression more serious than usual. “This is where I leave you,” she said, unclasping a small silver pocket watch from her belt. Handing it to him, she firmly said. “If you face any danger or emergency, press the button inside. I’ll come immediately to your rescue, no matter where you are.”

Lin Fang accepted the pocket watch and bowed slightly. “Thank you, Ms. Leng. I’ll make sure not to trouble you unless it’s necessary.”

She smirked faintly. “I hope you wouldn’t either. Still, I have to tell you… survival is more important than anything…” Her voice softened just a bit as she added. “Best of luck, Lin Fang.”

With that, she gestured to the cab driver. “Take me back to the city. Hotel Embargo.”

Lin Fang stood still, watching as the vehicle drove off and disappeared down the dusty mountain road. Once it was out of his sight, he turned toward the iron-reinforced entrance gate of the restricted zone, which looked like a wide archway guarded by several military officers and scanning drones. Walking up, he presented the identification pass he had received from the Association earlier.

The guard glanced at it, then nodded. “An unlicensed. Proceed to scanning.”

Lin Fang stepped forward as a specialized drone swept over his body with a faint blue light. A mechanical voice announced from the drone: “No explosives detected. No prohibited mana devices detected.”

The scanner paused at his hand, checking for any dimensional rings, but registered nothing and moved on.

A secondary ring-scan unit analyzed his backpack he brought with him, verifying its contents, which contained four sets of clothes, a Torchlight, energy bars, a few noodle packets, a portable gas stove loaded with a butane gas cylinder, a couple of vessels, an empty water bottle, and sunglasses.

“Outside food is not allowed, Cadet number 23,” said the operator as he took away those food packets and energy bars. “You may now proceed, Mr. Lin.”

Lin Fang nodded and stepped past the security gate after repacking the things inside his backpack. These are just some things he packed for the sake of fooling these officials. Whatever he needed was available in his inventory. Luckily for him, they only took away the food packets and not the stove. That means he can cook for himself even if he is under strict surveillance. As dimensional rings were prohibited in the trials, he couldn’t take out things of his inventory and behave as if he was taking them from a dimensional ring.

But unlike in the hunter examination, This Trial was conducted in open terrain, across hundreds of square kilometers, where mana beasts, rival participants, and hidden ruins posed equal threats. Hence, despite their claimed strict surveillance, it is still limited, and that was a hope for Lin Fang to have access to his inventory.

After scanning his identification card at the terminal, the guard’s expression immediately shifted to a formal one. “Cadet No. 23,” he said crisply, “please proceed to Camp 2 for the initial briefing.”

Lin Fang gave a polite nod. “Understood.”

He adjusted the strap of his bag, glanced at the faintly glowing barrier field up ahead, and muttered under his breath as he walked to the gate, “Alright then… let’s see what this trial really has in store.”

With that, Lin Fang stepped inside, the gate sealing shut behind him with a metallic thud.

Meanwhile, an open field stretched ahead in the form of a rest zone, with a vast expanse of training camps, roaming armored trucks, and empty monster stables on the side.

As he walked deeper through the rest zone, dozens of eyes subtly followed him. Along the way, he saw hunters, some alone and some moving in groups, although almost all of them flanked by their monster companions. But Lin Fang… walked alone.

That drew attention more than even a Lord Tier monster.

A few whispers followed behind him.

“He doesn’t have a monster?”

“Hey, look at that guy… he is alone.”

“Maybe, his monster companion is invisible.”

“Some hunters don’t want to form contracts with monsters.”

“Looks like he has high mana reserves, but not ridiculously high either. I wonder which rank he was…”

“If he’s here without one, then either he’s too overconfident or he might be an A-ranker…”

“Was he from Camp 3?”

Eventually, he crossed halfway through the Resting zone, and was about to bypass two cadets who stood out so far— both in their late 20s and both brimming with mana almost similar to his current reserves. One commanded a Stone Bull with its hide a mix of granite and bronze. The other held a chain leash attached to a Steel Kangaroo.

They were talking casually until one of them noticed Lin Fang walking past alone.

The taller one, a man with light brown hair and a confident smirk, nudged his companion. “Oi, that guy’s solo. You think he is from Camp 3?”

His friend grinned. “Nah, must be one of those ’prodigy’ types Master Feng Xiu gathered this last year and inducted in this trial.”

“Give me a second…” The brown-haired man chuckled and stepped forward, leaving his friend behind. He walked toward Lin Fang, his boots crunching the gravel beneath him.

“Hey, Man…” he called out.

Lin Fang glanced sideways. “Yes?”

The man extended a hand with a confident grin. “Name’s Glenn Maxwell. Hunter from the Southern Sky Group.”

Lin Fang gave a short nod, bowing slightly in courtesy. “Lin Fang.”

After a short silence, Glenn tilted his head curiously. “So, what rank are you? If you don’t mind me asking.”

Lin Fang shrugged indifferently. “I’m not licensed yet.”

For a second, Glenn didn’t react. But then, his smile faltered. “Wait—unlicensed?”

Behind him, his friend — who had been listening — blinked as well. “No way… I was just joking earlier. He’s really one of those freaks Feng Xiu brought to the trial. Which city champion is this guy?”

Glenn then spoke aloud. “So, why are you here without any monster companion?”

Lin Fang frowned slightly at his question but shrugged his shoulders, “Not your business.” He no longer waited there to converse and walked past Glenn with disinterest.

Lin Fang’s reply made the tone in Glenn’s voice shift in opposite direction. The friendly curiosity was gone, replaced by anger. “Hey, you stop right there…”

As Lin Fang ignored him and continued to walk, Glenn whistled sharply.

Instantly, the Stone Bull beside him roared and charged forward, its hooves tearing into the dirt as it thundered toward Lin Fang’s back.

Gasps echoed from nearby cadets. “Is he insane?”

But just as it reached within striking distance, Lin Fang stopped mid-step. Glenn was about to order his monster companion to stop, but before he did, Lin Fang glanced over his shoulder.

“Alpha… lend me your aura…”

In the next instant, as his eyes subtly glowed, the Stone Bull froze where it stood with all four legs locking up as a visible shiver ran through its tough body. Its eyes rolled back in fear before dropping to its knees and trembling violently.

Glenn’s eyes widened at the scene. “What the hell—”

He rushed to his companion, crouching beside the massive creature and placing his hand on its forehead. “Hey, what happened to you? Calm down!”

The bull refused to move, and its tail was tucked tightly between its hind legs.

Glenn looked up with fury flashing in his eyes. “You!” he shouted after Lin Fang, who turned back and continued to walk. “Stop right there! What did you do to my friend? Whatever mental spell or intimidation trick you used, cancel it now!”

Lin Fang exhaled slowly through his nose, visibly tired of the confrontation. “I didn’t even lift a finger,” he muttered under his breath. “And yet, people still try to pick a fight.”

But then, his expression hardened.

He turned around fully and murmured quietly, staring at Glenn, who seemed like he was about to charge at him while being enveloped in a layer of mana. “Fine… you want an answer? Here’s one.”

“Activate, Alpha’s Blessing.”

“Alpha, I chose my leg as my weapon.”

*Ding!

[Alpha’s Blessing has been activated.]

[Limbs cannot be chosen as weapons.]

[Alpha’s spirit bypassed the system’s law]

[Alpha’s blessing has been applied to your right leg.]

With Alpha reacting right away, increasing the strength of his leg, Lin Fang raised his leg slightly and stomped down.

*DUM*

At once, the ground beneath his feet fractured like glass, sharp cracks snaking outward. The resulting shockwave burst forth, slamming into Glenn and his bull. The sheer force threw Glenn backward, making him crash into the dirt with a grunt as the bull’s front legs gave way completely.

Meanwhile, Lin Fang straightened his back, adjusted his jacket, and continued to walk without another word.

Behind him, a hush fell over the camp.

“Woah… that’s some shockwave…”

“He should be an A-rank Hunter with high physical strength…”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep