“Brother Ji!” Lu Fei exclaimed in delight.
He cast the others aside and ran towards the cave entrance.
As he ran, he called out, "Brother Ji!!!"
Brother Ji also heard Lu Fei's voice and was about to respond, but a wave of dizziness washed over his brain, preventing him from speaking loudly.
This was a typical sign of excessive indulgence.
Before long, Lu Fei arrived in front of Brother Ji, saying anxiously, "Brother Ji! Why did you take so long? I thought you'd been kidnapped, and I was about to take the Headstrong Snake to find you!"
Brother Ji sighed, sincerely remarking, "I encountered a persistent opponent."
Well... truly persistent, the way that waist twisted...
Looking at Brother Ji's sallow complexion and visibly emaciated frame, Lu Fei secretly thought that Brother Ji must have endured inhuman treatment these past few days, or had been toiling day and night to complete a mission!
He silently vowed never to use his status as the team's elder brother to emotionally blackmail Brother Ji again!
"Brother Ji, since you've returned safe and sound, does this mean you've successfully persuaded them?"
Brother Ji nodded absentmindedly, his thoughts still lingering on last night, thinking, *It was conquest! Not persuasion!*
"The problem has indeed been resolved. The Platypus Beast Queen has agreed to return the encroached territory to the Otter Beasts."
Lu Fei's face lit up. As expected of the chief diplomat!
"Brother Ji, how did you do it!"
After a moment of silence.
Brother Ji recalled his experiences over the past few days, his face displaying a peculiar expression that was neither excitement nor sorrow. "It was all thanks to my damned charm, my robust physique, and most importantly, my astonishing stamina!"
Lu Fei frowned.
He didn't understand the words... but he could tell the opponent was formidable!
"Was the opponent you encountered difficult this time?" Lu Fei asked with concern.
Brother Ji immediately waved his hand.
"No! A worthy opponent!"
...
Brother Ji returned triumphantly. Lu Fei shared the good news with everyone.
Cheers and celebrations erupted in the stone cave as they brought out various treasured delicacies to reward Brother Ji...
Brother Ji picked up a piece of succulent meat and took a few bites.
He frowned, finding the taste bland and unappetizing.
He glanced at Lu Fei, "Old Lu, this flavor is too light. I suggest we get some MSG later..."
Lu Fei nodded silently.
Having completed the mission of helping the Otter Beasts reclaim their territory, the group happily continued on their way. This expedition would finally not be in vain, and they had even completed a C-rank mission, which far exceeded most people's expectations.
They were now heading to the nearest rescue center to verify the mission completion and check their current point rankings.
...
At the main command center, in the monitoring area, several referees in uniform watched the frontline videos transmitted by the [Scout Butterflies].
These videos were filtered, mainly focusing on the performance of the ace teams from the three academies. No one paid any attention to the mission Lu Fei's group was undertaking.
This was also why Fang Lin had dared to slaughter the Great Ape tribe so unscrupulously before, as he had secretly observed that there were no [Scout Butterflies] watching them from the sky.
A woman in a black combat suit, holding a cup of coffee, walked through an automatic mechanical door.
Before she even reached the command center, her cool voice rang out, "What's the point ranking now?"
After a while, no one responded to her.
The woman frowned slightly.
Upon closer inspection, she saw several referees staring intently at a large screen, two people high, commenting on a particular area.
"Spectacular! Six top teams from the three Beast Taming Academies are all targeting this pair of Fire Hawks!"
"Fire Hawks are already rare in the Yanbei region. Finding one could take ten days to half a month. This one is worth 3500 points! Whoever captures it will likely jump directly to first place!"
"Why don't we make a bet? Let's see which team captures it in the end!"
"Is there even a need to bet? It's definitely the Futu team from Longzhen Beast Taming Academy! They have the advantage in both combat power and past achievements!"
Someone immediately objected.
"That's not necessarily true! I noticed two teams from Cangzhen Beast Taming Academy just now. I've heard of them, one called the Absolute Black team, and the other called the Absolute White team. These two teams have always been at odds, but look, they've teamed up today!"
"Old Li, I disagree with that. That Absolute White team only has five people, and they're participating on a special exemption this time! How about we make a bet!"
The referee named Old Li was displeased and slammed the table, "A bet it is!"
"Ahem..."
Just then, a series of light coughs came from behind them.
The few quickly fell silent and returned to their posts, leaving only Old Li and Old Zhang, who had bet with him.
They both lowered their heads awkwardly and said timidly, "Heh heh, President Chen, you're back."
The President Chen they mentioned was Chen Fei, the chief referee for this trial, and also specially assigned by Fifth River. In terms of relationship, they needed to address Fifth River as master.
Chen Fei hummed, not blaming them. They were also a temporary team, and would disband after this trial, likely without any further interaction.
She stood before the large screen, watching the real-time footage transmitted by the [Scout Butterflies]. All the members of the six opposing teams had summoned their contracted beasts, making the originally spacious forest clearing a bit crowded.
The six teams surrounded the two [Fire Hawks] in the center, making escape impossible!
However, they were not worried about the two [Fire Hawks] escaping. They were merely probing each other, with no one making the first move. The three factions were in a state of a three-way standoff.
Chen Fei took a sip of her coffee and analyzed with interest, "These kids are young, but their minds are quite sharp. Whoever makes the first move now will definitely become the primary target of the two [Fire Hawks]."
"If a [Fire Hawk] goes berserk, it might stand a chance against a single team, let alone two."
"At that point, the other two teams can just reap the rewards."
The corners of her mouth curved slightly as she continued to observe the changes on the field.
Just then, a ball of blue flame shot towards the two [Fire Hawks]!
This sudden attack landed squarely on the [Fire Hawks]!
Then, the terrifying flame, carrying intense heat, inexplicably disappeared upon contact with their bodies.
This was due to the [Fire Hawk]'s unique characteristic!
[Fire Armor]!
The effect was to immune 50% of fire-attribute damage!
Everyone's gaze invariably shifted towards the beast tamer who controlled the [Blaze Bird]!
There stood a young man in a black team uniform.
The youth's lips curled into a playful smile.
"Since no one is making a move, I'll add some fuel to the fire!"