Methods, as always, could be devised.
The Beautician held an unusual obsession with Gu Weiyu’s face. Regardless of how Lu Zhi and the other two attacked, the Beautician remained ‘singularly fond’ of Gu Weiyu.
Thus, Lu Zhi conceived an idea.
The Beautician was already a Level 5 anomaly, and they could lure it to another area, orchestrating a scene of 'two snipping at each other while a third profits.'
If handled correctly, they could even snag some points.
After all, anomalies possessed the ability to devour each other. A Level 5 anomaly was considered to have nascent sentience. Those like the Beautician, who had just been promoted and hadn't yet become fully ‘clever,’ were the easiest to ensnare.
And so, under Gu Weiyu’s bait-and-lure-style guidance, the Beautician slowly advanced towards another region.
Lan Yushan, watching from behind, gazed blankly at the receding figures of the four: “What… what are they trying to do?”
Lu Zhi sent a team message to Lan Yushan, telling him to stay safe and just follow behind the group.
Only then did Lan Yushan crouch low and follow at a steady pace.
Hao Yunyi had no idea what Lu Zhi was planning, but when he grew tired of flying, he settled in on Lan Yushan’s head.
Meanwhile, Lu Zhi opened the examination area map and reminded Gu Weiyu, “Ahead lies the ‘Rock Burrow District,’ where Level 3 anomalies roam. The Level 3 anomalies stationed here are the cluster-type ‘Fire Bulls.’”
Fire Bulls were snails about the size of basketballs, appearing weak, sluggish, and harmless. However, the transparent slime they left behind as they climbed would, upon detecting intruders, transform into magma. Moreover, when sensing danger, they would fuse together to confront enemies.
From a distance, Lu Zhi and the others spotted immense nests constructed from brown earth, each about ten meters high and five meters wide. A nest appeared every hundred meters. Lu Zhi counted a total of seven Fire Bull nests.
The school wouldn’t allow students loopholes. Twenty Fire Bulls counted as one point. From the numerous honeycomb-like openings on the nests, there were exactly twenty, no more, no less.
This meant seven nests were equivalent to seven Level 3 anomalies.
Of course, without fusion, Lu Zhi and his companions were not afraid at all. They only needed to be wary of the slime left by the Fire Bulls and minimize their presence as much as possible, stealthily creeping into the nests.
“We’ll wait here to support Weiyu,” Lu Zhi, Jiang Yue, and Luo Shiyu stopped at the shelter of a hill a hundred meters away from the Fire Bull nests.
Gu Weiyu feigned being unable to withstand the Beautician’s attack and fearfully charged into the center of a Fire Bull nest. Once the Beautician entered the calculated position, Gu Weiyu let out a low shout and smashed his fist into the ground, a powerful residual energy fiercely sweeping through the Fire Bull nest.
The Fire Bulls, originally content to ‘live peacefully’ in their homes, were roused in anger. One by one, with brown skin and red snail shells, the Fire Bulls raised their two slender, soft tentacles. The residual slime in the earth instantly lit up like illuminated rock lamps, rapidly advancing towards Gu Weiyu and the Beautician.
“Weiyu!” Lu Zhi threw out the Moon Vine, wrapped in a thin layer of ice, and pulled Gu Weiyu out of the attack range.
“Phew, it’s really too hot,” Gu Yiyu said, sweating profusely. The Fire Bulls, as a communal anomaly, were fire-attributed. Their dwelling was like a constantly operating furnace, not to mention the raging magma-like flames ignited by the roused Fire Bulls, as if being roasted in lava.
“Well done,” Lu Zhi hadn’t expected the Beautician to be so easily tricked.
At this very moment, the Beautician, with long black hair trailing to the ground, found her once-proud black hair becoming fuel for the flames.
Once the Fire Bulls’ magma-like flames touched something, they were difficult to extinguish. With her hair burned, the enraged Beautician retaliated.
She swung her hair, smashing the Fire Bull’s nest into pieces. This truly infuriated the ‘home-loving’ Fire Bulls, who then began to fuse with each other.
Lu Zhi, who had anticipated all of this, said with feigned seriousness, “The school didn’t say students had to personally kill anomalies to earn points. Will the school honor points earned through wit?”
Shen Lu, silently watching the live broadcast, looked at his adopted son after a long pause and said, “Your little boyfriend is quite cunning.”
Shen Qi smirked, his fingertip tracing the corner of his lips. “I like that about him.”
Shen Lu: … Hmph, Xue Jinhuai said the same thing to me back then!
(Apologies, I’ve been very busy and can only update one chapter today.)