"All four teams are in the east..."
Chen Shu held a communication device, which displayed the positions of five yellow dots.
This was the communication device he had stolen from the Sakura Country people. To successfully infiltrate the ruins, he could only rely on them to find the way.
"Hehehe~~"
Chen Shu grinned, riding his Slime towards the direction of the other four Sakura Country teams.
Meanwhile, the Sakura Country team that Chen Shu had attacked.
The Gold-ranked Beast Tamer was lying on his Contracted Spirit, his body partially wrapped in bandages. The muscles in his face twitched from time to time.
"My lord, what should we do?"
"Regroup with the others!"
The man's expression was calm, but his eyes still held a surge of anger.
He casually reached for the communication device beside him but felt nothing.
"Huh?"
His heart skipped a beat, and he muttered,
"Could that pervert have taken it?"
"My lord, Commander Kobayashi and the others haven't returned..."
At this moment, an attendant approached and spoke.
"They're probably gone!"
The man showed no surprise. Anyone who dared to sneak attack him couldn't be ordinary.
"No need to collect their bodies, just head east!"
With that, the group left the place directly. Only a faint crimson stain remained on the snow...
Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
Chen Shu was in a cheerful mood, cooking food on the head of his Slime.
He was now not far from the nearest Sakura Country team, and they would likely meet in another three days.
Just as he and his Contracted Spirit were enjoying the meal, five Contracted Spirits appeared in front of him.
"Huh?!"
Chen Shu's expression stiffened, and he held a Teleportation Potion, ready to flee at any moment.
But when he saw the figures on the backs of the Contracted Spirits ahead, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Brother Bandit, it's me!"
A man waved his hand, having recognized the Slime long ago.
It was Li Ze, whom Chen Shu had rescued before!
Five minutes later,
The four of them sat around a campfire.
Chen Shu asked, "You didn't return to the stronghold?"
"I ran into our group leader right after I left!"
Li Ze smiled, still a little fearful of Chen Shu.
"Thank you, young friend, for your help!"
A middle-aged man cupped his fists, his eyes filled with gratitude.
"Just doing my job for the money!"
Chen Shu waved his hand and said,
"There might be Sakura Country people nearby, you'd better leave first!"
"Still?!"
Li Ze and the other two were startled. They had deliberately moved away from their previous location, yet they could still encounter Sakura Country people?
"It's not just one team!"
Chen Shu shook his head and said, "You should return to the Spirit Guard stronghold and deliver a message to Commander Jiang!"
"What message?"
"The Icefire Forest has ruins about to emerge!"
"Ruins?!"
The three men's expressions jolted, their eyes filled with disbelief.
Ordinary Beast Tamers might not have high combat power, but their knowledge was vast, and they understood what ruins meant.
"Otherwise, why would the Sakura Country take such a big risk?"
Chen Shu smiled. If they could obtain the resources from a ruin, they could even train a King-ranked Beast Tamer.
"The Sakura Country is led by Gold-ranked Beast Tamers, so you shouldn't get involved. Hurry back!"
Chen Shu had also relayed the intelligence to the Spirit Guard.
He, a Silver-ranked cultivator, probably couldn't handle a ruin alone. At the very least, he couldn't let the Sakura Country benefit.
The middle-aged man nodded and gradually calmed down.
With such a significant move by the Sakura Country, they wouldn't be able to get any benefits with a group of Silver-ranked cultivators. It was possible that even King-ranked cultivators would be alerted.
"Alright!"
The man thought for a moment and finally nodded.
As long as they delivered the intelligence back, they would at least receive some reward.
Li Ze said, "Brother, why don't you come with us? It's too dangerous to stay here!"
"I have something to do!"
Chen Shu shook his head and refused, returning to the top of his Slime.
Just as Li Ze was about to persuade him, his group leader stopped him, giving him a look.
"Huh?"
Li Ze was slightly stunned and then saw the two large sacks hanging from the Slime.
"Aren't those the spoils of war seized from the Sakura Country?"
Li Ze suddenly remembered. Now that he recalled Chen Shu's words, was this really a case of 'black eating black'?
"Either he stole it or he snatched it directly. No matter what the situation is, we can't afford to offend him..."
The group leader shook his head and said, "Are today's college students already this outrageous?"
Li Ze also nodded and no longer tried to persuade Chen Shu.
The four of them parted ways, and Chen Shu mounted his Slime again and left the place.
Now that the news of the ruins had spread, the Spirit Guard would definitely prioritize the matter and would be able to allocate personnel to handle it.
...
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Chen Shu did not act rashly but waited in place.
His current location was between the four Sakura Country teams. As long as one team found the ruins, he could rush over in time.
"Still no movement? What kind of efficiency is this?"
Chen Shu opened the Sakura Country communication device again and observed it.
He wasn't sure if they had already discovered that the communication device had been stolen. To avoid being located, he could only turn it on when necessary.
But in reality, he was overthinking.
The Sakura Country team he had attacked, having lost their communication device, had successfully gotten lost...
Just as Chen Shu was thinking, the ground suddenly began to shake.
Boom! Boom!
The earth rumbled, snow fell from the trees, and the cold wind howled, as if a world-shattering change was occurring!
Roar! Roar! Roar!
Countless ferocious beasts roared to the sky, their roars echoing in the dim, overcast world.
"Huh? Is it the ruins?"
Chen Shu was slightly taken aback, also a little confused.
Although he had read about ruins, he had never personally experienced them. Seeing this situation, he was also a bit bewildered.
But at this moment, options appeared before his eyes.
[Option 1: Successfully enter the Icefire Forest Ruins! Completion Reward: Ice Potion proficiency increased to Grandmaster level! Note: Limited spots, enter quickly.]
[Option 2: Return to the Spirit Guard stronghold and report the situation! Completion Reward: Large amount of Beast Taming Power.]
[Option 3: Go to the Sakura Country stronghold and cause trouble! Completion Reward: Space Rabbit's spatial power increased by 3%.]
Chen Shu was slightly stunned, instantly understanding that the ruins were indeed about to open!
Without hesitation, he directly locked onto the first option.
"But the specific location..."
Chen Shu stroked his chin. Although he could sense the spatial anomaly, he couldn't find the source.
Just then, the map on his communication device changed.
One of the yellow dots turned black, with the word "Assemble" flashing beside it.
"Isn't that how I find it?"
Chen Shu's eyebrows shot up. He gave his Slime a large gulp of flying potion and headed straight for the location of the ruins.