Chapter 11: The Beautiful Sheep Stratagem

"Please, I beg you,

don't break down!"

Lu Ran cried out from the bottom of his heart: "Dame~"

"Don't... don't speak." Jiangjiang Ruyi, both ashamed and annoyed, glared at Lu Ran.

Although she stuttered slightly, at least she was back online.

Lu Ran let out a sigh of relief and pushed Jiangjiang Meiren toward the path lit by torches: "Let's head back first."

Just then, two teammates arrived to provide support.

"What happened to you two?"

"Are you okay?" Wu and Deng asked with concerned expressions, looking at the small Jiang-Lu unit.

"We need to regroup or adjust our tactics," Lu Ran said.

"Did the Divine Art affect the squad leader so severely?" Deng Yutang examined Jiangjiang Ruyi carefully as he speculated.

"Exactly," Lu Ran replied helplessly. "Just now, your Wu Ban Zhang Jiang nearly ate me—"

"Don't say it!" Jiangjiang Ruyi stamped her foot, both ashamed and annoyed.

"Eh?" Wu Wu Shanshan widened her eyes; she had never seen the gentle and quiet Jiangjiang Meiren reveal such a side.

It was actually quite fun~

"Should we two go together?" Deng Yutang volunteered. "You cast yours, and I'll buff myself with Battle Intent."

Lu Ran's voice drifted softly: "You really want to kill me."

Deng Yutang: "."

Battle Intent could dilute the effects of the Zheng Ban Shen Fa: Sound of Compassion, making everyone determined to fight and no longer feel pity for their opponents.

The problem was that the art Lu Ran intended to cast was the Sound of Sorrow and Fear.

This Divine Art could already awaken the beastly desires in people's hearts; if Battle Intent were added on top of that—

Deng Yutang would likely grab a butcher's cleaver and become a demon on the spot!

"You are all at Mist Realm, Stage One; your mental resistance is still very low," Lu Ran thought for a moment and said. "I'd better wander outside alone."

Lu Ran had a clear understanding of his role; within the team, he was inherently a flexible jungler.

"Isn't this a bit inappropriate?" Wu Wu Shanshan said softly.

"We won't split into groups; we'll fight normally," Jiangjiang Ruyi said, holding one hand to her forehead as her emotions finally returned to normal.

She lifted her head, her eyes fixed on Lu Ran: "When fighting the Evil Dogs, seize the opportunity to circle behind them and cast your spell quietly, okay?"

The flickering firelight cast the young girl's beautiful face in alternating shadows and brightness.

Her brows knitted lightly; she harbored hidden sorrow, radiating a sense of fragility after being mentally tortured.

The beauty known as Jiang Ruyi was nearly shattered,

while Lu Ran was completely numb!

He felt entirely like a scumbag.

Who could endure this!

"Alright!" Lu Ran nodded decisively.

"Then let's go."

"Go, go, go!"

For the sake of ranking and rewards, the four-person group wasted no more time and swiftly embarked on their journey.

Combat experience, naturally, was earned kill by kill!

Through continuous battles, Jiangjiang Ruyi gradually adapted to the speed and agility of the Evil Dog clan; lightning sparks danced at her fingertips, and her Lightning Binding Talismans grew increasingly accurate.

Once struck by these talismans, the Evil Dogs would be frozen on the spot, left at the mercy of others.

Wu Ban Zhang Wu held her own as well; her arrows flew in rapid succession, becoming ever more effortless and skilled.

Deng Yutang remained as brave as ever, especially with Lu Ran's support, he felt even more confident.

As for Lu Ran...

he was simply inhuman!

Yes, he was a sheep.

A little fat sheep who often lured Evil Dogs to come hunt him.

What was heartbreaking was that the lamb had bleated the entire way, yet the only ones dying were the dogs.

This move,

this move was called the Beautiful Sheep Stratagem.

In ancient times, devastatingly beautiful enchantresses bewitched kings and nobles; today, a fragrant little fat sheep plagued the skinny dogs.

After three hours of walking, Lu Ran could no longer speak human language; every time he opened his mouth, all that came out was "Baa," and everyone looked like a dog to him.

The team operated effectively; the four-person group strove to maximize their unique traits, and each achieved tremendous growth.

Only two things became stumbling blocks on the team's dog-slaughtering path: first, stamina, and second, divine power.

"Flap, flap, flap~"

A pitch-black crow descended from the sky, transforming into human form.

The four-person group halted their steps and turned to look behind them.

"Time's up," Dou Dou Zhiqiang announced.

"So soon?" Deng Yutang untied the red headscarf soaked with sweat and shook his head left and right.

Compared to Deng Yutang, who felt unsatisfied, Lu Ran was filled with relief and sat directly on the ground.

Jiangjiang Ruyi turned her head to look, her expression showing slight concern: "Are you okay?"

Along this entire journey, Lu Ran had been the tactical engine, the roamer, and the jungler who lured enemies; undoubtedly, he was the most exhausted and the most fatigued.

Lu Ran waved his hand, too tired to speak.

To be honest, he could no longer distinguish whether he was merely exhausted or simply depleted.

Even though the Demon Cave was brimming with divine power, Lu Ran could not recover.

The Sound of Mourning and Fear was indeed a low-tier divine art, but alas, Lu Ran was also a novice, possessing both a low reserve of divine power and a slow absorption rate.

As the group ventured deeper, the frequency of encountering evil dogs increased; during the middle and latter stages of the journey, Lu Ran's divine power remained in a state of exhaustion.

Having just absorbed a little only to expend it all immediately—this sensation of "energy depletion" tortured Lu Ran terribly!

This also caused Lu Ran's steps to become increasingly unsteady.

Yet, for the sake of the ranking, he could not bear to absorb any demon crystals.

Sigh...

Who among them wasn't a slave to points?

If only he had a Divine Power Bead.

Never before today had Lu Ran craved such a sustain artifact so desperately.

"Squad 98, return to Huicheng with me, immediately!" The iron-faced instructor showed not a shred of mercy, unwilling to grant even a moment of rest, and turned to leave at once.

"Lu Ran?" Jiangjiang Ruyi stepped forward, bending down to extend her hand.

Watching the instructor stride away, Lu Ran had no choice but to raise his hand and grasp the young girl's palm.

Tender and soft.

Mm... just as soft as his legs felt at this moment.

The journey back to Huicheng was relatively calm, after all, the group had fought their way out.

There were still some wandering evil dogs, but Dou Dou Zhiqiang cleared them all away without letting the few students lift a finger.

After walking for a very, very long time, the group finally returned to Evil Dog Village.

Gazing at the magnificent stone city where torches flickered, Lu Ran had no mind to imagine those epic background music tracks anymore.

At this moment, he looked with a pained expression at the Shi Zhu, which stood nearly a hundred meters tall.

He only just remembered that to truly exit the Demon Cave, they still had to climb a spiral staircase over thirty stories high!

"Brother Lu, hold on." Deng Yutang propped up Lu Ran's shoulder, his voice still resonant and powerful.

Lu Ran felt deeply ashamed; as a proper Mist Realm Stage Two Believer, he was actually faring worse than a Mist Realm Stage One Believer.

This must be the price of excessive spellcasting and overexerting one's body.

It was not until 2:47 PM that the few of them finally exited the Demon Cave and returned to the military camp.

The sky remained overcast, drizzling with light rain.

The rather bedraggled quartet emerged from the massive building directly beneath the God Wu Ya, bathing in the pouring drizzle, filled with mixed emotions.

Jiang and Wu were disheveled and quite ragged.

The top laner, Deng Yutang, and the jungler, Lu Ran, had turned into two "blood men."

Due to the squad's special tactics, Lu and Deng had killed the most dogs at close range, so blood on their bodies continuously flowed down with the rainwater.

Upon spotting the quartet appear, a large bus parked nearby immediately began to shake.

The classmates waiting inside clamored, crowding against the windows to look out.

"They're out, someone's come out!"

"See, I guessed right, didn't I? I said it was Wu Wu Shanshan and Jiangjiang Ruyi's team!"

"How far did they go to only return now? It's almost three o'clock!"

Qian Hao's chubby face was flushed red; he trembled as he stared out the window, seemingly striving to endure something:

"The squad leader is finally out! I'm about to burst, I need to pee..."

He was Lu Ran's classmate; on the day of the God Worship, Qian Hao had even offered strategies from below the stage, urging Lu Ran to burn more paper figures.

As for why Qian Hao was holding it in so desperately—

It was because the area beneath Wu Ya was a critical military zone!

No one was allowed to enter or exit freely; naturally, the students had to act in unison.

With each bus seating forty people, before Lu Ran's squad emerged, the first nine buses had already departed.

Only this last bus, with four empty seats, had been waiting for the final team to return.

What made matters worse was that this last batch of students to emerge had all been locked inside the bus, the doors bolted shut, forbidding any movement.

One could well imagine how stifled those thirty-six students felt.

"I'd like to see just how many dogs they actually killed!"

"Look at the amount of blood on their uniforms; it would need censoring on TV; there must be quite a lot."

"Don't tell me they walked for a full three hours without stopping for a single moment?"

With a woeful expression and legs clamped tightly together, Qian Hao muttered softly, "I need to pee..."

Slap!

A hand pressed down onto Qian Hao's shoulder.

Qian Hao's face turned crimson; his whole body shivered, and he clamped his legs even tighter.

He turned his head, ready to curse, but upon seeing who it was, Qian Hao, being sensible, swallowed the words on his lips.

The top of the academic year, Ma Ma Tianchuan!

The youth was slender, wearing rimless glasses, looking quite refined and gentle.

Standing in the aisle, he leaned over, resting his weight on Qian Hao's shoulder, and craned his neck to look out the window.

He happened to see, under the small rain shelter, Wu Wu Shanshan take a handful of demon crystals from her pocket and place them on the table.

The soldier in charge of recording immediately began counting, while the students inside the carriage clamored noisily:

"Damn, I thought there would be far more; what a waste of emotions!"

"So few? Only seven or eight demon crystals?"

"That can't be right! Class Wu Ban Zhang Jiang has some in her pocket too!"

Under the gaze of the students inside the carriage, Jiangjiang Ruyi beneath the rain shelter also pulled out nearly ten demon crystals and placed them on the table.

"Adding them up, there might be twenty? This result is acceptable."

"Hmph, my Brother Ma brought back thirty-one demon crystals."

"These are two girls; don't demand too much. It's their first time killing evil spirits; it's impressive enough that they dared to act, damn it!"

A chorus of exclamation erupted from inside the carriage.

Deng Yutang, covered head to toe in blood, actually pulled a handful of demon crystals from his pocket and threw them onto the table.

"Uh." Qian Hao only felt the hand on his shoulder suddenly tighten its grip.

Ma Ma Tianchuan's face was as grim as water; after a full two years, he felt for the first time that his position in first place was unstable.

And the scene that followed made Ma Ma Tianchuan's eyes widen even further!

Because the final believer of Xiang Xiang Xianyang also pulled a handful of demon crystals from his pocket and threw them onto the table!

The stone hanging in Ma Ma Tianchuan's heart finally dropped to the ground.

There was no chance left.

How could this be called a close contest?

Clearly, the other side was far ahead!

"Is this real or fake?" After a brief silence, the carriage completely exploded with noise.

"How could there possibly be more demon crystals?"

"No wonder they're the second and third in the grade; these two girls went on a killing spree!"

"Stop saying we shouldn't demand too much from girls; let me tell you, women's hearts are the most ruthless!"

"There are too many demon crystals; did this team cheat?"

Yes, how could this be possible?

Ma Ma Tianchuan likewise found it hard to believe.

The mission duration was only three hours; he and his three teammates obtained thirty-one demon crystals, averaging less than six minutes to slaughter one evil dog!

For novice rookies, such efficiency was already terrifyingly high.

Yet Class Monitors Jiang and Wu's team could actually produce forty demon crystals?

Was this team truly that strong?

Indeed, Wu Wu Shanshan was a believer of the Second-Rank God, Divine Divine Asha, and Jiangjiang Ruyi was a believer of the Third-Rank God, Master Yu Fu.

Deng Yutang, as a believer of the Fifth-Rank God, the Red Scarf, was also quite capable and would not drag anyone down.

But that Lu Ran—

As a believer of Xiang Xiang Xianyang, how could he not be a dead weight?

Ma Ma Tianchuan frowned tightly; he had indeed heard of Lu Ran's glorious achievements, forcing the believer of the Third-Rank God, the Prisoner of Demons, into a steady, step-by-step retreating defeat.

Could it be that this little lamb was truly special, different from other believers of Xiang Xiang Xianyang?

Judging by the bloodstains on Lu Ran's body, it seemed this was indeed the case.

"Bro-Brother Ma! Brother Ma?"

"What?" Ma Ma Tianchuan still pressed his hand on Qian Hao's shoulder, leaning forward to look out the carriage window without lowering his head.

Qian Hao was nearly in tears, his fat face buried in the backrest of the front seat: "Stop pinching; if you pinch again... if you pinch again, I'll pee myself!"

Ma Ma Tianchuan:???

Thanks to Holy Great Meng of Turning Around and Disappearing for the reward of one hundred thousand; Boss is generous, thanks for the support!

May your dreams come true soon and everything go smoothly! Hooray~!

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(End of Chapter)